Wednesday News and Sports

12-million dollars in grants have been awarded to repair over 200 low-income homes in 30 counties across the state, including Bertie, Camden, and Gates counties. The Scattered Site Housing Block Grants are made to county governments on a rotating basis every three years.

The Roanoke Island Historical Association, producer of The Lost Colony, has received a 10-thousand dollar grant from the Covington. The foundation named for Asheboro-native Marion Covington, promotes history preservation across the state through financial support.

The state officials remind shoppers to make sure they purchase oysters from legal sellers. Only licensed dealers are allowed to sell to the public, and must meet stringent requirements for storing and selling oysters.

Congressman Walter Jones says NBC’s Saturday Night Live was “funny, clever, and fair” in its satire of the 3rd District Republican during a skit on the auto industry bailout last weekend. Jones told WITN-TV he watched the show at his home in Farmville.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL
TUESDAY
Tyler Hansbrough returned to the North Carolina lineup and scored 16 points, mostly from the foul line, as the top-ranked Tar Heels throttled Oregon, 98-69, to reach the championship game of the Maui Invitational. Danny Green had 21 points and eight rebounds for North Carolina (5-0), Wayne Ellington scored 13, while Ed Davis contributed 11 points and 13 rebounds for UNC, which also got 11 points from Deon Thompson.
Luke Harangody had 29 points and 13 rebounds and No. 8 Notre Dame hung on to beat No. 6 Texas 81-80

Ben McCauley had 15 points and 11 rebounds to help North Carolina State beat Winthrop 74-48 on Tuesday night. Brandon Costner added 12 points for the 3-0 Wolfpack.

No. 24 Davidson walloped Loyola of Maryland 78-48 in the consolation round of the NIT Season Tip-Off.

East Carolina 93 Virginia Commonwealth 90 (OT)
Bucknell 83 Old Dominion 82 (2OT)
Liberty 86 Virginia 82
Georgia Tech 74 Arkansas Pine Bluff 47
Clemson 81 Savannah State 49

WEDNESDAY
Maui Invitational
Saint Joseph's vs. Alabama, 2:00 PM
(6) Texas vs. Oregon, 4:30 PM
Indiana at Chaminade, 7:00 PM
(8) Notre Dame vs. (1) North Carolina, 10:00 PM (9PM on Mix 96)

Elon at Virginia Tech, 7:00 PM

NIT Season Tip-Off Tournament – Semifinals – Madison Square Garden
Boston College vs. (10) Purdue, 7:00 PM

The NCAA infractions committee has slapped Indiana's basketball team with three years probation for the university's failure to monitor the dealings of former coach Kelvin Sampson. Sampson is now an assistant with the NBA Milwaukee Bucks. It's the first time since 1960 one of the Hoosiers' sports programs has been found guilty of a major NCAA violation.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL
North Carolina linebacker Mark Paschal won't play college football again because of a spine injury he sustained last week against North Carolina State. School officials said Tuesday that Paschal suffered a cervical spine injury. After reviewing an MRI taken Sunday, doctors recommended that Pascal quit playing football because of the risk of further injury. He is expected to make a full recovery. The second-generation Tar Heel whose father played fullback in the 1970s, will miss the first game of his career Saturday when North Carolina visits rival Duke. He has 103 tackles, two interceptions and a fumble recovery.

It's a perfect 12-0 regular season for 15th-ranked Ball State, which beat Western Michigan 45-22 last night as MiQuale Lewis ran for three touchdowns. Ball State is among the nation's four unbeaten teams and will play Buffalo on Dec. 5 with a chance to win its first Mid-American Conference title since 1996.

NFL
The Washington Redskins waived running back and former MVP Shaun Alexander on Tuesday, just more than a month after they brought him to the team. Alexander, 31, was added by Washington in mid-October, after being waived by Seattle in the offseason, to serve as a backup to Clinton Portis.