WEEK IN SPORTS

Courtesy of the Sports Information Center

Soulis earns Horizon League weekly honors

For the second time this season, senior forward Nicole Soulis was named the Horizon League’s Player of the Week. It is also the eighth such award of her career at UWGB.

Soulis had a pair of strong games this past week to earn the award. She scored 17 points in a victory over North Dakota State Jan. 9 while leading all scorers in an 85-70 Phoenix win over in-state rival UW-Milwaukee Jan. 13.

Wave of college stars heading to NFL

With the college bowl season coming to a close last week, many of the best players in the collegiate ranks are making their decision whether or not to forego their senior seasons in favor of heading to the pros. Among those who have already declared for April’s draft are Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson, Ohio State wide receiver Ted Ginn and running back Antonio Pittman and Georgia Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who many believe may be the No. 1 overall selection in the NFL Draft.

Pistons sign hometown hero

The firesale by the Philadelphia 76ers continued last week, as they came to terms on a buyout of forward Chris Webber’s contract. A member of Michigan’s Fab Five, the Detroit native chose to go home again Tuesday. Webber chose to sign with Detroit over the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs, both of which were believed to have had a lot of interest in signing Webber. He made his Pistons debut Wednesday night against Utah.

NFL’s final four set

The two teams heading to Miami for Super Bowl XLI will be decided Sunday afternoon as the AFC and NFC Championship games will take place. Sunday’s first game will see the NFC North champion Chicago Bears host the NFC South champion New Orleans Saints at 2 p.m. Sunday’s late game will see the AFC South champion Indianapolis Colts welcome in the AFC East champion New England Patriots. Kickoff for that game is set for 5:30 p.m. Super Bowl XLI will be played Feb. 4.

Defending champs take top spot in AP poll

After former No. 1 North Carolina lost to Virginia Tech this weekend, the No. 1 ranking was left wide open. Last year’s national champions, Florida, took the top spot for the second time this season. Wisconsin came in at No. 2, followed by UCLA at No. 3. North Carolina is ranked fourth while Kansas rounded out the top five.

Virginia Tech, which already has victories over North Carolina and Duke, entered the AP poll for the first time since 1996 at No. 23.

Beckham’s MLS status in limbo

After signing the largest contract in pro sports history — one that will pay him $250 million throughout five years — David Beckham’s status with Real Madrid and the MLS’ Los Angeles Galaxy remains a question mark. Reports out of Spain say that Beckham’s lawyers are trying to get him out of his deal with Real Madrid early, while MLS Commissioner Don Garber says that no such plan is in place. Beckham is currently slated to make his MLS debut in August.