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BRISBANE, Australia -- Venus Williams withdrew from the Hobart International on Sunday while fellow American Sloane Stephens did the same from the Sydney International due to a left wrist injury. Williams withdrawal came less than 24 hours after losing in the final Auckland WTA tournament final. "I dont believe she has an injury," Hobart tournament director Mark Handley said. "I just think that shes played a lot of tough, close matches over in Auckland and in the lead-up to a first Grand Slam (of the season) shes not taking any chances." Williams was planning to use the Hobart event as final preparations for the Australian Open which begins Jan. 13. She lost in the third round at Melbourne Park last year. The 33-year-old Williams lost 6-2 5-7, 6-4, to Ana Ivanovic at Auckland on Saturday. It was Williams first final since winning her 44th career title at Luxembourg in October 2012. The seven-time Grand Slam champions ranking has fallen to 47th as she has battled injuries and Sjogrens syndrome, a fatigue-causing autoimmune disease, over the past two years. Stephens first injured her wrist at the Hopman Cup team event on Friday and said scans might indicate she needed to take week off before the Australian Open. "I was having some pain in my wrist and the doctor recommended I not play this week," the 12th-ranked Stephens said. Gael Monfils also withdrew Sunday from the Heineken Open ATP event at Auckland, citing fatigue. Monfils lost in the final of the Qatar Open at Doha to Rafael Nadal on Saturday. The Sydney International had its first upset Sunday when American Madison Keys beat seventh-seeded Simona Halep of Romania 6-1, 6-4. Third-seeded Sara Errani beat fellow Italian Roberta Vinci 6-4 6-2 another first-round match. Agnieszka Radwanka of Poland is the No. 1 womens seed at Sydney and former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova is No. 2, and both have first-round byes. Former No. 1 and sixth-seeded Caroline Woznicacki, playing her first match since becoming engaged to golfer Rory McIlory last week, faces a qualifer in the first round. Juan Martin del Potro is No. 1 seed on the mens side and Jerzy Janowicz of Poland is No. 2, also both with first-round byes. Defending champion Bernard Tomic, who won his first ATP title last year in Sydney before the rest of his season deteriorated into poor results on the court and some controversy off it, plays his first-round match Monday Tomic, with new coach Velimir Zovko, takes on eighth-seeded Marcel Granolliers of Spain. Zovko replaced Tomics father, John, who is serving a one-year suspension from the ATP Tour for assaulting Bernards former hitting partner last May. Miami Heat Jerseys . Felix Pie had an RBI double earlier in the inning, as Baltimore rallied for three runs to overcome a 3-2 deficit. J.J. Hardy had two hits and Matt Wieters chipped in with an RBI double for the Orioles, who pushed their winning streak to three games. Goran Dragic Jersey .com) - Coming off a pair of tough losses last week, the Syracuse Orange will try to put an end to their first losing skid of the season when they pay a visit to the Maryland Terrapins at the Comcast Center on Monday night in Atlantic Coast Conference action. http://www.basketballheatshop.info/Cheap...sh-Heat-Jersey/. The struggling New Orleans Pelicans were simply overmatched. Crawford hit seven 3s on his way to 24 points, and the Clippers beat the Pelicans 123-110 on Monday night. "We understand what we do well. If we all do what we do well, well make our team stronger," Crawford said. Rodney McGruder Jersey . The union filed a grievance late Thursday, one day after Goodell suspended four players who participated in bounties from 2009-11. The complaint says Goodell is prohibited from punishing players for any aspect of the case occurring before the new collective bargaining agreement was signed last August. Dion Waiters Jersey . The bout served as the headlining matchup of Saturdays "UFC Fight Night: Brown vs. Silva" event, which took place at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati. It was Silva who looked well on his way to victory in the early going, delivering a pair of crushing kicks to the body that sent Brown crashing to the floor, doubled over in pain.Newark, NJ (SportsNetwork.com) - The 15th-ranked St. Johns Red Storm and the Seton Hall Pirates begin Big East play on Wednesday evening, as the two teams square off at the Prudential Center. St. Johns continued its best start to a season since the 1985-86 campaign with an 82-57 rout of Tulane on Sunday. The victory was the seventh straight for Steve Lavins Red Storm and their 11th in the first 12 games of the season. The win streak marks the teams longest since the 1999-2000 season. Kevin Willards Pirates are also off to a fast start, as they enter league play with a 10-2 record. Seton Hall has won three of its last four games, and also comes in off a lopsided win, making light work of Maine on Saturday, 72-43. These two teams are meeting for the 92nd time in the series history. They have met every season since 1963-64. St. Johns holds a 57-34 advantage all-time. The Red Storm rolled over the Green Wave at the Barclays Center on Sunday, thanks in large part to SirDominic Pointers big outing. The senior swingman erupted for a career-high 24 points, on 9-of-13 shooting. Senior guard DAngelo Harrison was instrumental in the win as well, pouring in 21 points for St. Johns, which shot .508 from the field overall. St. Johns definitely has some offensive depth, but it is the teams defensive effort that has really fueled the strong start. The Red Storm are limiting foes to a mere 58.2 ppg this year, holding them well under 40 percent shooting (.364). It certainly helps to have a playerr like center Chris Obekpa (7.dddddddddddd4 ppg, 8.8 rpg) in the middle. The junior big man is the DI active leader in career blocks (3.53 per game). Offensively, four players are averaging double figures providing more than enough scoring depth. Harrison is one of the top scoring threats in the Big East, averaging 19.0 ppg. Rysheed Jordan is next in the scoring column for St. Johns at 14.3 ppg, while Pointer (11.5 ppg) and Phil Greene IV (11.2 ppg) make sizable contributions as well. Seton Hall has followed a similar blueprint to its season. Defense has been a strength, as foes are netting just 60.2 ppg on a meager .386 shooting against the Pirates. At the other end of the floor, the team is led by the scoring of Sterling Gibbs. Seton Halls top sniper, Gibbs is shooting over 50 percent from behind the arc (27-of-53), en route to 15.6 ppg. Isaiah Whitehead isnt quite as efficient from the floor (.393), but he does averaging nearly 12 points per outing (11.9). Brandon Mobley (9.9 ppg) and Angel Delgado (8.6 ppg, 8.8 rpg) provide depth. Four Pirates finished in double figures, as Seton Halls balanced attack was simply too much for Maine to contend with. Gibbs paced the team with 18 points. Fellow guard Jaren Sina added 13 points, followed by Khadeen Carrington and Delgado, who finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Seton Hall turned up the heat defensively in the win, forcing Maine into 20 turnovers and holding the Black Bears to a mere .304 shooting effort. 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