IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – The University of Iowa athletics department has given the company that manages its sports marketing a contract extension through 2026 and the right to sell the name of its basketball court in exchange for guaranteed payments totaling $114 million. Learfield Communications beat out several firms in 2006 for a 10-year contract to exclusively broadcast Iowa athletic events on the radio, negotiate corporate sponsorship agreements and generate other advertising income. Iowa was guaranteed $55.1 million. But in a move that has escaped public scrutiny, records show Iowa agreed in November 2009 to extend the contract by another 10 years and give Learfield the ability to sell naming rights to the court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Cable television provider Mediacom in February secured the naming rights for terms that haven’t been released.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Albert Pujols hit a grand slam and the St. Louis Cardinals completed a three-game sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers with an 8-4 win Thursday. Rafael Furcal led off the game with a home run for the second game in a row and Pujols also hit a first-inning homer before his third-inning slam. Matt Holiday hit his 200th career home run in the fifth to help the Cardinals win for the sixth time in seven games and move within 7 1/2 games of the Brewers, who hadn’t been swept at home since the Dodgers did it Aug. 24-26, 2010. Milwaukee scored all of its runs on homers by Prince Fielder, Jonathan Lucroy and Corey Hart.

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) – With most of the Super Bowl champions’ marquee players on the sideline, outside linebacker Vic So’oto likely sealed up his roster spot in the Green Bay Packers’ 20-19 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in Thursday night’s preseason finale. So’oto, an undrafted free agent out of BYU who ended up in Green Bay after his wife chose among multiple NFL offers, returned an interception 33 yards for a touchdown. He had 1 1/2 sacks and a forced fumble. Packers defensive lineman Howard Green, a 340-pounder, gave the Chiefs a scare when he landed directly on top of starting quarterback Matt Cassel. Aaron Rodgers played just one series for the Packers, throwing an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tom Crabtree.

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) – Mitch Sutton ran for 105 yards and North Dakota’s defense sacked Drake quarterback Michael Piatkowski four times as the Fighting Sioux won 16-0 Thursday night in the season opener for both teams. Joey Bradley completed 18 of 26 passes for 137 yards and Jake Miller ran for an 11-yard score for North Dakota. The Fighting Sioux led 13-0 at the half. North Dakota blocked a field-goal try in the first quarter, and Piatkowski fumbled at the North Dakota 8-yard line on the Bulldogs’ opening drive of the second half. Daryl Brown intercepted Piatkowski’s pass midway through the fourth quarter and returned it 38 yards to the Drake 9. Zeb Miller’s third field goal, a 32-yarder, completed the scoring.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – The University of Iowa has some new ways of dealing with unruly fans at Hawkeye football games.  Some disruptive fans could, for example, be given warning cards by stadium security. Associate Athletics Director Rick Klatt says the idea came from a different venue where it’s been successful. He says the cards will be used to notify fans if their behavior is inappropriate. Klatt says the goal is not to kick anyone out of a game but to put them on “a kind of notice.” Fans also will be able to send text messages to security if they see unruly behavior, including during the pregame. University police also will patrol several checkpoints near Kinnick Stadium, conducting random checks of those areas.