SOCCER

LIVERPOOL HEADS TO CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL

Luis Garcia scored in the fourth minute yesterday to give Liverpool a 1-0 victory over English champion Chelsea and put the four-time European champions into the Champions League final.

Liverpool took an early lead when Steven Gerrard played a through pass to Milan Baros, who lobbed the ball over the goalkeeper and appeared to be brought down by Petr Cech at the same time. But play continued, and Garcia managed to nudge the ball goalward. Chelsea defender William Gallas tried to clear the ball off the line, but it was ruled a goal.

Chelsea, which clinched the English title on Saturday for the first time in 50 years, almost snatched a vital away goal in the fifth minute of injury time at Anfield when forward Eidur Gudjohnsen fired across the front of the goal after Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek had failed to clear a cross. Liverpool, which last won the European Cup in 1984, will meet either AC Milan or PSV Eindhoven in the final on May 25 in Istanbul, Turkey. Milan won the first leg 2-0.

BASKETBALL

KRSTIC UNDERGOES SURGERY ON HAND

Nets rookie center Nenad Krstic had surgery yesterday to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb. The surgery came two days after the Nets were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Miami Heat. Krstic, who hurt his thumb late in the regular season, will be in a cast for five weeks before starting rehabilitation. The 7-footer from Serbia-Montenegro averaged 10 points and 5.3 rebounds in 75 regular-season games.

WIZARDS SUSPEND BROWN FOR REST OF SEASON

The Washington Wizards suspended forward Kwame Brown yesterday for the remainder of the playoffs for what president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld called “philosophical differences.”

Brown won’t travel with the team or participate in any practices for the remainder of the season. The Wizards are tied with the Chicago Bulls 2-2 in their Eastern Conference first-round series. Brown played only four minutes in the Game 3 victory Saturday, then didn’t attend practice Sunday and Game 4 Monday.

PITTSNOGLE REVERSES COURSE, DECLARES FOR DRAFT

West Virginia center Kevin Pittsnogle, who earlier in the day announced his intention to return for his senior season, reversed course and declared for the NBA draft, but will not hire an agent. Because he has no agent, Pittsnogle will have until June 21 to withdraw from the draft. Pittsnogle, who helped West Virginia reach the NCAA Elite Eight in March, didn’t start until the season’s midpoint and led the Mountaineers in scoring in half their games after that. He averaged 11.9 points and 3.7 rebounds last season.

HOCKEY

AMERICANS, CANADIANS, CZECHS ADVANCE AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Mark Parrish had two goals and the United States rallied to beat Latvia 3-1 yesterday, clinching a second-round berth at the world hockey championships. Doug Weight also scored for the Americans (2-0), who will play Canada for first place in their group finale tomorrow.

Earlier, the two-time defending champion Canadians routed winless Slovenia 8-0 for their second straight win, and Switzerland beat Kazakhstan 2-1 in Vienna. Slovenia, playing in hockey’s top annual event for the first time, lost to the Americans 7-0 in its opener and must beat Latvia in its last game to avoid relegation play. The Czech Republic also secured a berth in the next round with a 2-0 victory over Germany in Vienna, but Jaromir Jagr left the game in the second period after apparently breaking the little finger on his left hand.

– Associated Press