Sports Desk
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

BASKETBALL
SUNS GIVE D’ANTONI TWO-YEAR EXTENSION
The Phoenix Suns have signed coach Mike D’Antoni to a two-year extension, the team announced yesterday. D’Antoni, the reigning NBA coach of the year, directed Phoenix to a 33-game improvement in his 2004-05, his first full season as head coach.
GOLF
CURTIS, LEWIS SHARE LEAD IN BUICK CHAMPIONSHIP
Ben Curtis birdied his 17th hole, and J.L. Lewis birdied his 18th to emerge from a group of players bunched at 5-under in the first round of the Buick Championship in Cromwell, Conn. Their rounds were two of the eight bogey-free opening rounds. Kevin Sutherland, Justin Rose, Franklin Langham, Vaughn Taylor, and Michael Putnam are a stroke back.
TENNIS
DAVENPORT WINS, CLOSES IN ON RECLAIMING NO. 1
Lindsay Davenport escaped with a 6-2, 7-6 (5) victory over Slovakia’s Daniela Hantuchova yesterday to reach the Pilot Pen semifinals, putting her within one win of regaining the no. 1 ranking from Maria Sharapova. Davenport, seeded first and tuning up for next week’s U.S. Open, struggled to find her serve for the second consecutive match.
WTA officials said if Davenport makes it to the finals here, she’ll go into the U.S. Open as the world’s top player.
SOCCER
LIVERPOOL, CHELSEA DRAWN IN SAME GROUP Defending champion Liverpool and English champion Chelsea were drawn yesterday into the same European Champions League first-round group, along with Belgium’s Anderlecht and Spain’s Real Betis.
Because it didn’t finish among the top four in last season’s Premier League, Liverpool at first failed to qualify for the tournament, which starts September 13. The Union of European Football Associations then put Liverpool in the first round of qualifying, and it played six games to reach the 32-team field. The rest of the draw set:
Group A: Bayern Munich (Germany), Brugge (Belgium), Juventus of Turin (Italy), Rapid Vienna (Austria)
Group B: Ajax Amsterdam (Netherlands), Arsenal (England), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic),Thun (Switzerland)
Group C: Barcelona (Spain), Panathinaikos (Greece), Udinese (Italy), Werder Bremen (Germany)
Group D: Benfica of Lisbon (Portugal), Little (France), Manchester United (England),Villarreal (Spain)
Group E: AC Milan (Italy), Fenerbahce (Turkey), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Schalke 04 (Germany)
Group F: Lyon (France), Olympiakos Piraeus (Greece), Real Madrid (Spain), Rosenborg (Norway)
Group H: Artmedia Bratislava (Slovakia), Glasgow Rangers (Scotland), Internazionale of Milan (Italy), Porto (Portugal).
FOOTBALL
FALCONS RUN PAST JAGUAS IN PRESEASON ACTION
Michael Jenkins caught four passes for 35 yards and scored twice, helping the Atlanta Falcons beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-7 in a rain drenched preseason game last night.
The Falcons moved the ball with ease against Jacksonville’s vaunted defense and scored on three of their first four possessions. Warrick Dunn ran eight times for 65 yards, Michael Vick was 5-of-10 passing for 44 yards with a touchdown, and T.J. Duckett gained 18 yards on four carries.
– Associated Press