Saints get Mardi Gras-style parade

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Only a Super Bowl victory parade could upstage Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

Carnival floats carrying Saints players, coaches and team owner Tom Benson rolled past tens of thousands of jubilant fans in downtown New Orleans on Tuesday, two days after the 43-year-old franchise won its first NFL championship.

Players, wearing team jerseys instead of traditional Carnival masks and costumes, tossed beads into the crowd and signed autographs for throngs of screaming fans. Benson shouted "Who Dat!" into a microphone from his perch atop a float. Head coach Sean Payton blew kisses and held the Lombardi Trophy over his head.

Peppers upset Panthers have ignored him
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Julius Peppers no longer wants a long-term contract with Carolina, saying the Panthers have ignored him this offseason. In an interview aired Tuesday morning on Charlotte radio station WFNZ-AM, the five-time Pro Bowl defensive end indicated he's irritated by the team's "silence" and has changed his stance on whether he wants to continue his career in Carolina. (MORE)

Kerrigan family upset by homicide ruling
BOSTON (AP) The family of Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan insisted Tuesday that they do "not blame anyone" for her father's death and criticized a medical examiner's finding that Daniel Kerrigan died of a heart rhythm problem after a fight with his son. Daniel Kerrigan's death was ruled a homicide by a state medical examiner. (MORE)

Rams RB Jackson won't be charged

LAS VEGAS (AP) St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson won't face criminal charges over allegations that he beat a girlfriend who was nine months pregnant with the couple's child at his Las Vegas home last year, a police spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Investigators found insufficient evidence that Jackson, 26, attacked Supriya Harris of Mableton, Ga., in March 2009, Las Vegas police Officer Barbara Morgan said. (MORE)

Pac-10 considering possible expansion

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott said Tuesday that the window for expansion by the conference is open for the next year as the conference begins negotiations for a new television deal.

Speaking on a conference call to introduce former Big 12 commissioner Kevin Weiberg as his new deputy, Scott talked about possibly adding new teams to the conference and launching a new television network. (MORE)

Rutgers suspends Stringer for 1 game
Rutgers is suspending Hall of Fame women's basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer for one game for misusing practice players. Stringer will miss the Scarlet Knights' game against Seton Hall on Wednesday. She is third among women's coaches on the all-time victories list with 838 wins and was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame last September. (MORE)

Injured Kobe unsure about All-Star game
LOS ANGELES (AP) Kobe Bryant isn't sure if he'll play in this weekend's NBA All-Star game in Dallas because of his sore left ankle. Bryant missed his second consecutive game Monday night against San Antonio, which lost to the Los Angeles Lakers 101-89. (MORE)

Andrews' stalker taped 16 other women

Warriors G Ellis has sprained left knee
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) The Golden State Warriors say star guard Monta Ellis has a sprained left knee and could miss Wednesday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Ellis injured the knee late in the fourth quarter of Monday night's home loss to Dallas. The team says an MRI on Tuesday determined that the injury is mild. (MORE)

Iverson to miss at least 2 more games
PHILADELPHIA (AP) Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson will miss the team's next two games because of the lingering illness of one of his children. Iverson, who has missed the previous three games, will sit out Tuesday against Minnesota and Wednesday at Toronto. Iverson will return for the Sixers' first game following the All-Star break vs. Miami on Feb. 16. (MORE)

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