AP - The Boston Bruins fired general manager Mike O'Connell on Saturday, replacing him on an interim basis with assistant general manager Jeff Gorton.

AP - The Big East had two No. 1 seeds playing Friday night in the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament. Villanova and Connecticut will be playing for a berth in the Final Four on Sunday, but they both needed an extra 5 minutes to get there.

AP - Now that March Madness is in full swing, AP sportswriters will be filing periodic, behind-the-scenes reports from the NCAA tournament:

AP - Scott Gomez broke out of a scoring drought with a goal and an assist and Scott Clemmensen won in his first start in nearly three months in the New Jersey Devils' 4-2 victory over the Boston Bruins on Friday night.

AP - They scrapped their vaunted four-guard attack in the opening minutes of the game after seeing it was no match for the taller, heftier Boston College. Allan Ray had one of his more miserable nights, and the rest of Villanova's offense wasn't much better. It took almost 38 minutes for the Wildcats to get their first lead, and even then it was fleeting.

AP - LeBron James scored 36 points to lead Cleveland to a 94-82 win over the Boston Celtics on Friday night, moving the Cavaliers closer to their first playoff berth in eight years.

AP - Growing up in Edmonton, Ken Daneyko used to carry around a garbage can and pretend it was the Stanley Cup, little knowing that one day he would hoist the genuine article three times and etch his name in NHL history.

AP - MINNEAPOLIS — The Minneapolis Regional game between Boston College and Villanova is going into overtime with the score tied at 51.

AP - The Boston Bruins agreed Friday to a three-year contract with defenseman Matt Lashoff, their first-round pick in last year's draft.

AP - Boston claimed Hee-Seop Choi off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday, giving the Red Sox another first basemen to back up starter Kevin Youkilis.

AP - The 2004 World Series trophy has a permanent home in Fenway Park. Most of the Red Sox players who won it already are gone.

AP - Sarah Caldwell, hailed as the first lady of opera for her adventurous productions as longtime director of the Opera Company of Boston, died of heart failure. She was 82.

AP - Not much went right for Allan Ray in last year's round of 16.

AP - New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada was released from the hospital on Thursday, one day after being admitted for a broken nose.

AP - Jon Papelbon is going to the bullpen, Keith Foulke is headed for his first appearance on the mound and Boston's bullpen is finally taking shape 11 days before opening day.

AP - The New Jersey Devils will retire former defenseman Ken Daneyko's No. 3 jersey Friday night before their game against the Boston Bruins.

AP - The Toronto Raptors waived Antonio Davis on Thursday, effectively ending a season in which the center was suspended for five games for climbing into the stands after his wife got into a confrontation with a fan in Chicago.

AP - Not much went right for Allan Ray in last year's round of 16. The star shooting guard went 2-for-14 from the field in a one-point loss to eventual national champion North Carolina.

AP - P.J. Axelsson signed a three-year contract extension Thursday with Boston, where he has spent his entire NHL since the Bruins drafted him in 1995.

Reuters - New claims for U.S. jobless benefits fell by a larger-than-expected 11,000 last week, a government report showed on Thursday, suggesting a healthy labor market and more job growth in March.