Sports briefs

GOLFPiercy leads, Phil three back

Scott Piercy tied a tournament record with a nearly flawless 9-under-par 63 Thursday to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Houston Open. Alex Cejka was second with a 64, and Phil Mickelson shot 66.

Ko ties Sorenstam mark

Lydia Ko tied Annika Sorenstam's LPGA Tour record with her 29th consecutive round under par, a 1-under 71 in the ANA Inspiration at Rancho Mirage, California.

NBA

LeBron passes Ewing

LeBron James moved into 20th place on the career scoring list, passing Knicks Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing. James reached the milestone with a hook shot in the first quarter against the Heat. James' 23 points gave him 24,837 points in his 12th season. Next is Jerry West with 25,192 points.

Wade suffers bruised knee

The Heat's Dwyane Wade bruised his left knee in the first half of a 114-88 road loss to the Cavaliers. Miami fell into a tie for eighth with the Celtics in the Eastern Conference, half a game behind the Nets.

COLLEGE HOOPS

Smart: From VCU to Texas

Shaka Smart is leaving Virginia Commonwealth to coach Texas, a VCU spokesman confirmed. Smart, who has won at least 26 games in each of his six seasons at VCU, has been one of the hottest names in college coaching since leading the Rams to the Final Four in 2011.

Stanford wins NIT in OT

Chasson Randle had 25 points to lead Stanford (24-13) to a 66-64 overtime win over Miami (25-13) in the NIT championship game at the Garden.

BOXINGManny-Floyd PPV record

Don't expect much change from a $100 bill to watch the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao fight at home. The suggested retail price for the May 2 pay-per-view is a record $89.95, the two cable networks broadcasting the fight said. -- AP