Joshua S. Kelly-US PRESSWIRERutgers has added Alexis Burke, a transfer from Illinois. Alexis Burke will transfer into the Rutgers women's basketball program, according to a person who requested anonymity because they could not speak publicly about the issue. A 5-foot-11 forward from Illinois, Burke is a sophomore. She will sit out a year. Burke earned Illinois' most improved award last season for the Illini. She averaged 6.9 points per game in 30 games and 2.9 rebounds, while playing 18 minutes a night and starting 12 games. She has the ability to score in bunches, having scored a career high 26 points in just 20 minutes against Clemson in December. Coming out of high school in Bainbridge, Ga., Burke was ranked the 50th best recruit in ... Continue reading →

Gene Boyars/The Star-LedgerMark Messier skates around the ice after scoring his third goal of the game in the third period of game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Devils, making good on his guarantee that the Rangers would win. NEW YORK -- John Tortorella seemed a bit offended when a reporter brought up "the guarantee." Well actually, he was confused at first when he was asked about "1994," claiming ignorance of the question. And when he was finally clued into where it was going... "Aww crap," the Rangers coach replied. It's safe to say that the calendars are tightly bolted to 2012 at Madison Square Garden. Of all the remembrances of the 1994 Eastern Conference finals between the Rangers and the Devils, none ... Continue reading →

NEW YORK – Stephen Gionta, the Devils’ little powder keg of guile, finally received his moment in the spotlight. He stood in front of NBC Sports cameras, just moments after playing a starring role and smiled all through his closeup on national television. For nearly a minute, he kept a Cheshire grin – breaking only to speak what must have been unintelligible words lost in the jubilation of his biggest night. And when he reappeared, nearly a half hour later, to face the media, it was still there as he sat on a podium with the nameplate in front of him reading his name while back in the locker room it was Martin Brodeur and Ilya Kovalchuk answering questions about him. It was Gionta who ... Continue reading →

BOSTON (AP) -- Harvard University alumni attending their 50th class reunion this week are getting updates on classmates - including Unabomber Ted Kaczynski. Kaczynski graduated in 1962 and is locked up in the federal Supermax prison in Colorado for killing three people and injuring 23 during a nationwide bombing spree between 1978 and 1995. In an alumni directory, he lists his occupation as "prisoner" and says his awards are "Eight life sentences, issued by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, 1998." Harvard's alumni association said all class members, including Kaczynski, were invited to submit entries for the class report, distributed for reunion activities during commencement week. But it said it regrets including his references to his convictions. "While all members ... Continue reading →