w/ Jim Field

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CHICAGO (AP) — Sammy Sosa says he and fellow steroid-tainted star Mark McGwire belong in the Hall of Fame. Slammin’ Sammy also says the Chicago Cubs should retire his number, and he left open the possibility of running for President of the Dominican Republic during an interview Wednesday on the website Ustream.com. Asked if he thinks he or McGwire belong in the Hall, Sosa said: “I think so.” He also said he won’t say anything that will “jeopardize my future” and that time “will determine everything.”

Sosa, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens were denied entry to the Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility amid suspicions their accomplishments were boosted by performance-enhancing drugs. McGwire, 10th on the career home run list, received 16.9 percent of the vote on his seventh try, far short of the 75 percent needed for election.

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Josh Gray scored 16 points to lead Texas Tech to a 56-51 win over Iowa State on Wednesday night. Jordan Tolbert added 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and Dejan Kravic had eight points and eight rebounds for the Red Raiders (9-8, 2-4 Big 12). Will Clyburn led the Cyclones (13-5, 3-2) with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Korie Lucious added 11 points, nine of them from beyond the arc.

Texas Tech took a 48-47 lead on a Tolbert field goal with 3:20 remaining. A Gray lay-in as the shot clock expired made it 50-47 with 2:32 left. Both teams traded baskets, and the Red Raiders led by three again, 54-51, with just under 40 seconds remaining. Clyburn attempted a 3-pointer to tie the game with 14 seconds left but came up short. Tolbert went to the line again and made both free throws to seal the victory.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Brittney Griner scored 22 points, blocked six shots and dunked for the 11th time in her career in leading top-ranked Baylor past Number 24 Iowa State 66-51 on Wednesday night. Baylor (17-1, 7-0 Big 12) took control early, running off 17 straight points in the first half while holding Iowa State scoreless for 11½ minutes. The Cyclones (13-4, 4-3) had taken a quick 6-4 lead on a pair of 3-pointers, but didn’t score again until Baylor was up 21-6 in Ames.

Griner triggered the big run when she picked off a pass intended for Anna Prins, drove unimpeded to the other end and threw down a two-handed dunk. It was just one more slam for the most prolific dunker in women’s college basketball history.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — Marc Sonnen had 15 points on five made 3-pointers and Northern Iowa shot 48.8 percent from the field in a 58-45 victory over Missouri Valley foe Southern Illinois on Wednesday night. UNI (11-9, 4-4 Missouri Valley) took a 28-22 halftime lead and led by as many as 20 in the second half.

Desmar Jackson gave Southern Illinois a 5-3 lead with a lay-up just over 2 minutes into the first half but the Panthers answered with a 10-0 capped off by a Sonnen 3-pointer to give UNI a 13-5 lead with 13:32 to play. The Panthers never trailed again. Anthony James had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists for UNI, which has won three of its last four contests. Seth Tuttle scored nine points and grabbed 10 rebounds. For Southern Illinois (8-11, 1-7), Dantiel Daniels had 11 points and Jackson finished his night with nine points and five rebounds.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Richard Carter scored 20 points and Drake stunned Number 17 Creighton 74-69 on Wednesday night, handing the Bluejays their first consecutive losses of the season. Ben Simons added 13 for the Bulldogs (9-10, 3-5 Missouri Valley Conference), who blew a 16-point lead before rallying for their first win over a ranked opponent in five years.

Grant Gibbs brought Creighton within 71-69 with 32 seconds left, and the Bluejays got the ball back on a steal. But Gibbs missed a layup and Simons sealed the win with a steal and two free throws with 0.5 seconds left last night. Doug McDermott had 19 points to lead Creighton in Des Moines. The Bluejays shot just 24 percent from 3-point range. But McDermott had just two points in the second half and didn’t touch the ball on Creighton’s last two possessions.

w/ Jim Field

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• Griswold 48, Exira/EHK 27
• East Mills 48, Exira/EHK 20
• East Mills 46, Griswold 18
• Shenandoah 51, Griswold 22
• Shenandoah 60, Exira/EHK 18
• Shenandoah 44, East Mills 27

• Red Oak 63, Corning 18
• Clarinda 63, Corning 12

BOYS BASKETBALL

Hawkeye 10:

• Atlantic 40, Glenwood 34
• Denison-Schleswig 63, Kuemper Catholic 58

Western Iowa:

• A-H-S-T 55, Audubon 21
• Griswold 77, Missouri Valley 65
• Riverside 76, Tri-Center 60
• Treynor 53, Underwood 46

Rolling Hills:

• Ankeny Christian Academy 62, Adair-Casey 46
• Exira/EHK 70, Orient-Macksburg 46
• Glidden-Ralston 55, Iowa Christian Academy 47
• Grandview Park Baptist 73, CAM 43

Others:

• Carroll 56, ADM 54
• Coon Rapids-Bayard 48, Guthrie Center 31
• East Mills 62, Nishnabotna 55
• Fremont Mills 58, Essex 32
• Lenox 68, East Union 42
• Mount Ayr 44, Bedford 43
• Nodaway Valley 115, Corning 24
• Panorama 40, Woodward-Granger 28
• Sidney 62, Heartland Christian 39
• Sioux City West 65, Thomas Jefferson 54
• South Page 48, Stanton 44
• Villisca 45, Clarinda Academy 44
• Columbus Scotus, NE 70, St. Albert 50

Western Valley Conference Tournament – First Round

• Ar-We-Va 45, Logan-Magnolia 39
• Boyer Valley 70, West Harrison 58
• Charter Oak-Ute 44, Westwood 33
• IKM-Manning 85, Whiting 35
• Lawton-Bronson 83, Siouxland Community Christian 35
• Maple Valley-Anthon-Oto 71, Kingsley-Pierson 50
• OA-BCIG 47, Ridge View 42
• West Monona 80, Woodbine 45
• Woodbury Central 54, River Valley 44

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Hawkeye 10:

• Glenwood 44, Atlantic 30
• Kuemper Catholic 65, Denison-Schleswig 31
• Stanton 67, Red Oak 60

Western Iowa:

• Audubon 64, A-H-S-T 45
• Missouri Valley 40, Griswold 25
• Treynor 64, Underwood 21
• Tri-Center 56, Riverside 38

Rolling Hills:

• Adair-Casey 68, Ankeny Christian Academy 47
• Exira/EHK 68, Orient-Macksburg 16
• Grandview Park Baptist 45, CAM 36
• Iowa Christian 53, Glidden-Ralston 19

Others:

• ADM 62, Carroll 61 (OT)
• Bedford 48, Mount Ayr 38
• Coon Rapids-Bayard 26, Guthrie Center 18
• Corning 56, Nodaway Valley 49
• Abraham Lincoln 56, Sioux City North 34
• East Union 45, Lenox 36
• Panorama 48, Woodward-Granger 46
• Sioux City West 64, Thomas Jefferson 31
• St. Albert 47, Grand Island Central Catholic, NE 36
• Nishnabotna 59, East Mills 52
• Fremont-Mills 55, Essex 41
• Sidney 47, Heartland Christian 35

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Reliever Jason Motte and the St. Louis Cardinals have agreed to a $12 million, two-year contract, avoiding salary arbitration. The 30-year-old right-hander had a career-high 42 saves in 49 chances last year, when he was 4-5 with a 2.75 ERA. He made $2 million. Motte is 17-13 with a 2.87 ERA and 54 saves since his major league debut in 2008. He will be eligible for free agency after the 2014 season. St. Louis announced the deal on Tuesday.

Two Cardinals remain in arbitration: third baseman David Freese and left hander Marc Rzepczynski. If they fail to reach agreements, hearings would be held next month in Phoenix before three-arbitrator panels.