NW Sports from the AP

AP-NW–1st SportsMinute,295
Here is the latest Washington, Oregon and Alaska sports news from
The Associated Press

RENTON, Wash. (AP) – Deon Butler is ready to get back in a game
after a nearly yearlong recovery from a broken right leg. Butler
fractured his leg taking a knee to his shin from San Francisco
49ers cornerback Nate Clements while catching a 2-yard touchdown
pass in a 40-21 loss to the 49ers last December. He was placed on
the physically unable to perform list before training camp, making
him ineligible for the first six weeks of the season.

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) – California shouldn’t have a problem
finding motivation against Oregon State. A victory Saturday would
make the Golden Bears bowl eligible for the eighth time in nine
seasons and likely get them back into the postseason after missing
out in 2009. The game also marks the final home contest for Cal’s
21 seniors who have had to play out their last season at the San
Francisco Giants’ AT&T Park while Memorial Stadium undergoes a $321
million renovation.

PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) – Washington State basketball coach Ken Bone
has signed a post player to a national letter of intent for next
season. Bone signed Richard Peters, a 6-foot-10 center from
Phoenix, yesterday. He joins the class of Brett Boese, DeMarquise
Johnson and Richard Longrus, who each signed Wednesday. Peters
played one year at Westwind Prep after attending Brewster Academy
in New Hampshire. He is originally from Toronto.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) – Lukas Verzbicas (verz-BIK’-iss),
who put a promising running career on hold to win the junior world
triathlon title for a cancer-stricken friend, is recommitting
himself to triathlon full-time. But He’s withdrawing from Oregon,
where he’s on a running scholarship, and moving to the new Elite
Triathlon Academy at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs.
Verzbicas won the junior world title in September.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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