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Monday, January 2, 2012 12:21 AM PST

Today's Reuters Sports News Headlines - Yahoo! News: Losing Bengals earn final AFC wild card berth Afghan girls throw punches, aim for Olympic gold Kings banish forward Cousins after trade demand Williams makes winning return to Australia Giants beat Cowboys to capture NFC East title Blues' Cole suspended for three games Kostitsyn's hat-trick helps Predators douse Flames Broncos clinch AFC West, snap playoff drought Heats scorch Bobcats to go 5-0 Ravens earn AFC North title and first-round bye Bengals, Broncos in playoffs; Pats get home field Proud 49ers secure bye with win over Rams Brady joins "5,000 club" as Patriots get top seed Patriots, 49ers clinch advantages for playoffs UPDATE 1-Rallying-Argentine Boero killed in Dakar Rally opening stage Losing Bengals earn final AFC wild card berth Sun,1 Jan 2012 10:34 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The Cincinnati Bengals clinched the final AFC wild card spot and punched their ticket to the postseason despite closing out the National Football League's regular season with a loss on Sunday. Full Story Top Afghan girls throw punches, aim for Olympic gold Sun,1 Jan 2012 10:13 PM PST Reuters - KABUL (Reuters) - Teenage Afghan sisters Shabnam and Sadaf Rahimi are taking the fight for women's rights more literally than most of their peers, throwing punches in a ring as members of their country's first team of female boxers. Full Story Top Kings banish forward Cousins after trade demand Sun,1 Jan 2012 10:06 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The Sacramento Kings have suspended DeMarcus Cousins after the temperamental power forward demanded a trade, the team said on Sunday. Full Story Top Williams makes winning return to Australia Sun,1 Jan 2012 09:41 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - Former world number one Serena Williams made a successful return to Australia on Monday, beating South Africa's Chanelle Scheepers 6-2 6-3 in the first round of the Brisbane International. The 30-year Williams, who last played Down Under when she won the Australian Open title in 2010, was not able to defend the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup last January due to injury. She was also returning after a lengthy layoff following a sensational tirade against the chair umpire in the U.S. Open final last September. ... Full Story Top Giants beat Cowboys to capture NFC East title Sun,1 Jan 2012 08:49 PM PST Reuters - EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Reuters) - The New York Giants advanced to the playoffs for the first time in three years by defeating the visiting Dallas Cowboys 31-14 on Sunday and capturing the NFC East division title in the National Football League's regular season finale. Full Story Top Blues' Cole suspended for three games Sun,1 Jan 2012 08:35 PM PST Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - St. Louis Blues defenseman Ian Cole has been suspended for three games for delivering an illegal check to the head of Detroit Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader, the National Hockey League (NHL) said Sunday. The infraction occurred midway through the first period of Detroit's 3-0 triumph Saturday at Joe Louis Arena. Cole was assessed a minor penalty on the play. Cole, who will miss games against Phoenix, Edmonton and Colorado, will be eligible to return January 10 at Montreal. He will lose more than $21,000 in salary because of the suspension, the league said. ... Full Story Top Kostitsyn's hat-trick helps Predators douse Flames Sun,1 Jan 2012 08:32 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - Sergei Kostitsyn completed a hat-trick late in the third period to help the Nashville Predators withstand a late charge and beat the road-weary Calgary Flames 5-3 on Sunday. Full Story Top Broncos clinch AFC West, snap playoff drought Sun,1 Jan 2012 07:48 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The slumping Denver Broncos won the AFC West division title and advanced to the National Football League playoffs for the first time in six years despite losing their regular season finale to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. Denver (8-8) fell 7-3 to visiting Kansas City but captured the AFC West crown shortly after when the division rival Oakland Raiders (8-8) were defeated 38-26 by the San Diego Chargers. The Broncos host the Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4) on January 8. ... Full Story Top Heats scorch Bobcats to go 5-0 Sun,1 Jan 2012 07:32 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The Miami Heat mauled the Charlotte Bobcats in a 129-90 blowout Sunday to improve to a franchise-best 5-0 start to an NBA season. Needing a pair of Dwyane Wade last-second game-winners to defeat Charlotte and Minnesota in back-to-back games last week, the Heat buried the Bobcats early in the rematch. "We came into the game with a very heightened sense of having the ability to concentrate," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters. "It speaks to our guys' professionalism. ... Full Story Top Ravens earn AFC North title and first-round bye Sun,1 Jan 2012 07:11 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The Baltimore Ravens captured the AFC North division title and earned a first-round bye in the playoffs with a 24-16 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on the final weekend of the National Football League's regular season on Sunday. With the victory, the Ravens (12-4) also secured the No. 2 seed in the AFC and will begin their postseason with a game at home, where they went undefeated all season. The New England Patriots earned the top seed in the AFC. ... Full Story Top Bengals, Broncos in playoffs; Pats get home field Sun,1 Jan 2012 06:20 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals clinched places in the National Football League playoffs despite losing their final regular season games on Sunday, while the streaking New England Patriots captured the top seed in the AFC. Full Story Top Proud 49ers secure bye with win over Rams Sun,1 Jan 2012 04:53 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The San Francisco 49ers clinched a first-round bye in the National Football League (NFL) playoffs with a 34-27 victory over the St. Louis Rams on Sunday. Full Story Top Brady joins "5,000 club" as Patriots get top seed Sun,1 Jan 2012 04:06 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - Tom Brady became just the third quarterback to pass for over 5,000 yards in a National Football League season as he rallied the New England Patriots to a 49-21 win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday that secured home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. The Patriots, already assured of a first round bye in the playoffs, knew a win would secure home-field advantage but were stunned when the Bills raced out to a 21-0 first-quarter lead. ... Full Story Top Patriots, 49ers clinch advantages for playoffs Sun,1 Jan 2012 02:39 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The New England Patriots earned home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs and the San Francisco 49ers secured a first-round bye in the NFC postseason with wins in their final games of the National Football League's regular season on Sunday. Full Story Top UPDATE 1-Rallying-Argentine Boero killed in Dakar Rally opening stage Sun,1 Jan 2012 01:43 PM PST Reuters - * Rider killed on first special section * Suffered cardiac arrest after damage to thorax * Yet another victim in high risk event (Adds details, background) Jan 1 (Reuters) - Argentine motorcyclist JorgeMartinez Boero was killed when he crashed on the first stage ofthe Dakar Rally in Argentina on Sunday, organisers said. Boero, 38, crashed near the end of the special section amongdunes on the Atlantic coast on his Beta RR450 on the stage fromMar del Plata in Buenos Aires province to Santa Rosa in La Pampain the centre of the country. ... Full Story Top

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