Da Matta Is Seriously Injured

Champ Car driver Cristiano da Matta needed surgery to remove a ruptured blood vessel in his head after his race car collided with a deer that wandered onto the track Thursday during a test session at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis.

Da Matta was unconscious when he was airlifted to Theda Clark Memorial Hospital in Neenah after the crash, and remained unconscious as of Thursday night, Champ Car series spokesman Steve Shunck said.

Champ Car Director of Medical Affairs Chris Pinderski said a CT scan at the hospital showed that da Matta had a subdural hematoma.

“He was urgently taken to the operating room for surgical removal of the hematoma and is now being observed in the intensive care unit,” Pinderski said.

BASKETBALL

U.S. Cruises Past Puerto Rico, 114-69

The U.S. team overcame a slow start and overwhelmed Puerto Rico, 114-69, at Las Vegas, its only exhibition on home soil before the world championships begin on Aug. 19 in Sapporo, Japan. Carmelo Anthony scored 18 points to lead the U.S.

Amare Stoudemire, recovering from a knee injury, was dropped from the U.S. roster for the trip to Asia.

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The Dallas Mavericks signed undrafted free-agent forward Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who averaged 12.6 points and 6.7 rebounds for George Washington last season.

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Portland Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen has pulled his team off the market.

PRO FOOTBALLL

Roethlisberger Says He’s Ready to Play

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger pronounced himself fit for the Steelers’ first exhibition and said Coach Bill Cowher would have to “hold me back” from playing nine days from now in Arizona.

Roethlisberger is less than two months removed from a motorcycle accident that could have ended his life.

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Dallas receiver Terrell Owens missed practice after tweaking his left hamstring a day earlier. He spent much of the practice riding an exercise bike.

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Arizona starting right tackle Oliver Ross has been diagnosed with a probable torn meniscus in his right knee and could be out for 2 1/2 months.

TENNIS

Safin Blasts Past Blake in Washington

Top-seeded James Blake became the latest American ousted in the Legg Mason Tennis Classic at Washington, falling, 7-6 (6), 7-5 (5), to Marat Safin in a third-round match delayed for more than two hours by rain.

Safin, who reached the quarterfinals of a tournament for the first time since the Valencia event in April, will meet Wesley Moodie, a 3-6, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6) winner over Kenneth Carlsen, today.

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The home of the U.S. Open will be renamed the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, honoring the tennis pioneer who won 39 Grand Slam titles, including 13 U.S. Open titles.

It had been known as the USTA National Tennis Center, and a ceremony to acknowledge the name change and honor King will be held Aug. 28, the first night of the U.S. Open.

-- Lisa Dillman

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Top-seeded Nikolay Davydenko defeated Juan Monaco, 7-5, 6-7 (7), 6-1, in the second round of the Prokom Open at Sopot, Poland.

MISCELLANY

Guilty Plea Entered in Gambling Case

James Harney, a former New Jersey state trooper, pleaded guilty in New Jersey to helping run a gambling ring and promised to help authorities with their case against former hockey standout Rick Tocchet and others.

Tocchet, who has been on an unpaid leave since Operation Slap Shot was announced nearly six months ago, remains hopeful that the attorney general will elect not to seek his indictment. If an indictment is returned, Tocchet will contest any charges brought against him.

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Jose Maria Buxeda, the lawyer for Floyd Landis, said dehydration is the latest possible reason offered for the Tour de France winner’s elevated testosterone levels.

But that theory was rejected by Christiane Ayotte, director of Montreal’s anti-doping laboratory.

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U.S. defender Eddie Pope, 32, announced his retirement from international soccer after appearing in three World Cups.

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The Italian defender who was head-butted by Zinedine Zidane in the World Cup signed a new four-year contract with Inter Milan. Marco Materazzi had an extra year added to his previous deal, the club said.

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A charge of disorderly conduct against Pittsburgh Steelers rookie receiver Santonio Holmes was dropped by prosecutors in Miami.

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Coach Ben Howland, former coach John Wooden and former players Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Lynn Shackelford, Keith Erickson and Mike Warren are scheduled to attend a UCLA basketball reunion Saturday night at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel near LAX.

Organizers Eddie Sheldrake and Jerry Norman said the event, which begins with a cocktail hour at 4:30 p.m., is open to the public. The cost is $65 a person. Information: (714) 459-0041, ext. 225.

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The Golden State Boxing Hall of Fame will honor some of the biggest names in Los Angeles boxing history Saturday at a luncheon at the Spaghetti Factory in Hollywood. Information: (818) 247-0882.

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Defenseman Shane O’Brien, who spent last year with Portland of the American Hockey League, signed a one-year contract with the Ducks.

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The Buffalo Sabres agreed to accept the $5-million contract Daniel Briere was awarded in salary arbitration, ending speculation that the team was prepared to part with its co-captain.

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An appeals court in Trenton, N.J., overturned a landmark $105-million verdict against a stadium vendor that sold beer to a drunken fan who later paralyzed a girl in an auto wreck. A new trial was ordered.

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Germany set a world record in the women’s 800-meter freestyle relay at the European Swimming Championships in Budapest, Hungary, finishing in 7 minutes 50.82 seconds.

COLLEGES

Thompson Named Starter at Oklahoma

Coach Bob Stoops named Paul Thompson as Oklahoma’s starting quarterback, a day after Rhett Bomar was dismissed from the team.

Bomar and guard J.D. Quinn were booted by Stoops after it was learned the players broke NCAA rules through their employment at a car dealership. Stoops said the players “knowingly” broke rules.

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California quarterback Steve Levy was reinstated to the team, a day after pleading no contest to a misdemeanor for his involvement in a bar fight in June. Levy can practice with the team when camp opens Sunday but remains suspended for the season opener Sept. 2 at Tennessee.

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The UCLA men’s basketball team will play host Chaminade in the opening round of the 2006 EA Sports Maui Invitational Nov. 20 at Lahaina, Hawaii.

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Repeat offenders will get letters of warning next year and face increasingly harsher penalties, including postseason bans and the loss of scholarships, starting in 2007-08 for continued academic failures, the NCAA announced.