LOCAL

LOCAL
YSU back in action
AKRON -- The Youngstown State men's basketball team visits Akron for a 5 p.m. tipoff today at Rhodes Arena.
The Penguins (1-1) rebounded from a season-opening loss to St. Francis (Pa.) with a 95-53 win over Slippery Rock Wednesday night at home.
This will be Akron's first game of the season. The two teams haven't met since 1994.
Bryant to appearfor Browns Boosters
NILES -- The Ohio Browns Boosters will have their annual Toys for Tots Christmas Party Dec. 6 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at McMenamy's.
Cleveland receiver Antonio Bryant will sign autographs and answer questions about the season.
The event is open to the public, and a donation of one new unwrapped toy is requested.
For more information, go to the Boosters' Web page at www.brownsboosters.com.
OHIO
Kent men stumbleagainst Rutgers
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas -- Quincy Douby scored 19 points to lead Rutgers to a 55-52 victory over Kent State Friday in the South Padre Island Invitational.
Kent State had a chance to force overtime, but Armon Gates missed a 3-pointer with two seconds left.
Rutgers (3-0) saw its 12-point halftime lead whittled to four with 1:29 remaining when Kevin Warzynski hit a 3-pointer to pull Kent State (1-2) within 53-52.
Kent State's Nate Gerwig then missed a jumper with 34 seconds left and Anthony Farmer hit two free throws to extend Rutgers' lead.
Farmer finished with eight points and J.R. Inman had 11 for Rutgers, which made 89 percent of its free throws but shot 38 percent from the field.
Gerwig scored 12 points for Kent State, which was 18-for-28 from the line and shot 36 percent for the game.
PENNSYLVANIA
Bucs promote Mantoto hitting coach
PITTSBURGH -- Jeff Manto, the Pittsburgh Pirates' roving minor league hitting coordinator the last three seasons, was hired Friday as new manager Jim Tracy's hitting coach.
Manto joins a Pirates staff that already includes bench coach Jim Lett, pitching coach Jim Colborn, first base coach John Shelby and bullpen coach Bobby Cuellar.
Manto, from Bristol, played nine seasons in the majors from 1990-2000 with the Indians, Phillies, Orioles, Red Sox, Mariners, Tigers, Yankees and Rockies. He hit .230 with 31 homers and 97 RBIs in 289 major league games.
Manto also managed the Phillies' Class A Lakewood farm club in the South Atlantic League in 2002.
NATION
'The other Fred' joinsCouples, Tiger
LA QUINTA, Calif. -- Poor Fred Funk. He gets invited to the Skins Game for the first time, and all he hears from Tiger Woods is that he'll face eternal grief if Annika Sorenstam outdrives him even once.
Woods was at it again Friday, busting Funk's chops some 24 hours before the foursome -- which includes Mr. Skins himself, Fred Couples -- stepped up to the first tee.
Sorenstam was talking about how hard it is for her to win skins on the par 5s against "these long hitters" when Woods saw an opening.
"Two of us are long hitters," Woods chimed in.
"Oh yeah, sorry," Sorenstam said.
"It's already starting," the easygoing Funk said.
The 49-year-old Funk, known for his short but straight tee shots, has taken the ribbing good-naturedly ever since Woods started it at the Presidents Cup dinner in September.
"I just mentioned to Tiger that I'd just found out that I was in the Skins," Funk said. "And he says, 'You know, Annika's the fourth.' And I said, 'Really, I'm the fourth.' And he said, 'Well, if she outdrives you, you'll never hear the end of it.'
"I said, 'She's going to outdrive me.' And Jim Furyk's down there chirping up, 'I'm definitely watching this year.'"
Woods reinjured his left ankle on the eighth hole of the pro-am, played the ninth and then left to ice it. He's still expected to play in the Skins Game, a spokesman said. Wood twisted the ankle recently while playing in Japan.
WORLD
Wie misses cut byone stroke in Japan
KOCHI, Japan -- Distraught over poor play on the final two holes, Michelle Wie missed the cut by one stroke at the Casio World Open on Friday and promised to learn from her mistakes and keep playing in men's tournaments.
With a par on No. 18 Wie could have made the cut.
Soccer great Best dies
LONDON -- George Best, one of the most dazzling players in soccer history who also reveled in a hard-drinking, playboy lifestyle, died Friday after decades of alcohol abuse, hospital officials said. He was 59.
The 1960s star for Manchester United and Northern Ireland, who had a liver transplant three years ago, had been hospitalized since Oct. 1 because of a reaction to medication to control his alcoholism.
Vindicator/wire reports