er made two dazzling layups, first pre

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ROME -- Serena Williams kept the crowd from being a factor in a 6-3, 6-0 victory over 10th-seeded home favourite Sara Errani to win the Italian Open for the third time Sunday. . Errani was bidding to become the first Italian to win the tournament in nearly 30 years but the top-ranked Williams quickly took control in both sets and Errani appeared slowed by a left thigh problem. Errani left the court for an injury timeout while trailing 5-3 in the opening set and came back with her thigh bandaged. On the final point before she left the court, Errani pulled up and let a shot from Williams pass by her without even attempting to get to it. "Im sorry. You were unbelievable all week," Errani told fans during the victory ceremony, as she brushed back tears. "I tried to do my best and stayed on the court only for you." Williams other Rome titles came in 2002 and last year -- and she went on to win the French Open on both occasions. "Im also sorry for Sara today," Williams told the crowd in Italian. "She really played great all week." Later, seven-time champion Rafael Nadal was facing Novak Djokovic in a No. 1 vs. No. 2 meeting in the mens final of the last key clay-court tuneup for Roland Garros, which starts next weekend. A left thigh problem prompted Williams to withdraw before her quarterfinal match at the Madrid Open last week but now she appears back on track for the French. "Im not 100 per cent but Im just kind of going on adrenaline," Williams said. Organizers attempted to whip up patriotic fervour by having the Italian anthem sung before the players walked out onto the court, and fans continuously chanted "Sara, Sara" to try and encourage Errani in an atmosphere that more resembled a Davis Cup or Fed Cup setting. But Williams jumped out to a 3-0 lead and while Errani had a few chances to get back into the first set, Williams overpowered the Italian with her serve -- she had seven aces to Erranis none -- and overall attacking game. Still, Errani could console herself by becoming the first Italian runner-up in the tournament since Raffaella Reggi took the 1985 title in Taranto. The last Italian man to win was Adriano Panatta back in 1976. When former Italian player Lea Pericoli asked Errani during the trophy presentation if she was "disappointed" with her showing, the crowd responded with boos and whistles. Pericoli then acknowledged that Erranis appearance in the final was an accomplishment by itself. Injury permitting, Errani was slated to play the doubles final later with partner Roberta Vinci against Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik. It was the 60th title of Williams career, and a large portion of those trophies have come in recent years for the 32-year-old American. Martina Navratilova holds the record with 167 titles and Williams needs seven more to match Billie Jean King for sixth place on the all-time list. "Im like a fine wine, I guess -- at least my tennis is," Williams said. "My game gets better with age." . Robert Griffin III, the No. 2 pick in the 2012 draft, set numerous rookie records and was picked AP Offensive Rookie of the Year for the Washington Redskins. . The agreement comes a little more than one week after the video game manufacturer agreed to a $40 million settlement in a similar but separate case, bringing the total payout planned for athletes to $60 million, said Steve Berman, an attorney for the plaintiffs, and the NCAA. . Five straight losses (and six in the past seven) now dot the schedule – matching their longest skid of the year – after they fell again in New Jersey on Sunday night, topped 3-2 by Cory Schneider and the Devils. SAN ANTONIO -- Although the San Antonio Spurs seem rather methodical and downright boring to some, they are enjoying themselves this season and that is ruining the fun for others. Tony Parker scored 19 points before sitting out the fourth quarter and the Spurs beat the Boston Celtics 104-93 Wednesday night, winning their eighth straight overall and remaining undefeated at home. San Antonio had 27 assists and six players score in double figures, rallying from a lethargic start to lead by as many as 19 points in the second half. "Those moments when we start to play better D, push the ball and be more aggressive, then its fun to watch, its exciting and thats what we need," San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili said. "We are not exciting in a way that were going to have alley-oops and windmills (dunking) and stuff like that, but we pass the ball really well. We penetrate and pitch, and everybody gets involved and thats fun." Kawhi Leonard had 16 points and Tim Duncan rebounded from a poor outing in San Antonios previous home game to score 13 points. Boris Diaw had 12 points, Tiago Splitter added 11 points and 10 rebounds and Danny Green 11 points for the Spurs (10-1). San Antonio shot 48 per cent from the field and was 8 for 21 on 3-pointers as Boston struggled to close on the Spurs shooters. "Phew," Celtics forward Jared Sullinger said, exhaling when asked about the Spurs ball movement. "Theyre a tough team to play. On any given night, anybody can go off. Honestly, they move the ball. They care less about scoring; they play together as a team. "They have go-to players but they hardly ever use them because they move the ball so well and they play as a team, so theyre hard to guard. Sullinger, Avery Bradley and Jeff Green each had 19 points for Boston (4-9), which has lost five straight. There were 10 lead changes and 14 ties in the first half, as neither team was able to sustain any momentum. While the Spurs werent happy with the early efforts, first-year coach Brad Stevens was pleased with the Celtics forging a 48-all tie at the half. "The team that played tonight could be a really fun group to build with," Stevens said. "I think thats what you take from here. We talked about this early in the year. Theres going to be nights where we measure progress a little bit differently." That progress was stunted in the second half, as San Antonio wass able to pull away midway through the third quarter behind strong individual efforts by Leonard, Parker and Ginobili. . Leonard keyed the resurgence, scoring 10 of 12 points, including a 3-pointer that put San Antonio ahead 61-52 with 8 minutes left in the quarter. "He can do that kind of thing," Diaw said. "He is really talented and he proved that already last year. This year is no different. Sometimes, when he gets it going, it is going to be very hard to stop (him)." Leonard had 12 points, five rebounds and two steals in the third quarter, as San Antonio outscored Boston 32-22. "Im still having fun; thats why Im still playing," Leonard said. "Were winning, you cant have more fun than that, when youre winning and on a good team." Parker made two dazzling layups, first presenting the ball with his right hand to draw a defender out of the lane and spinning back for a layup between defenders and then spinning away from a defender in the lane for a layup on the right side of the basket. Ginobili literally wrapped a pass around a defender, tossing behind around a charging Brandon Bass to find Diaw cutting to the basket for a layup. Ginobili finished with five points and six assists. After scoring only two points in the Spurs previous home game against Washington, Duncan made the games first two baskets as the team targeted him early. He finished 3 for 13, but was 7 for 8 on free throws while also grabbing nine rebounds. NOTES: San Antonio is tied with Indiana for the leagues best record, but its victories have come against teams with a combined winning percentage of .408 entering Wednesdays games. Only two the Spurs wins have come against teams above .500. Their only loss was against Portland, which is 10-2 after defeating Milwaukee. ... Bostons Keith Bogans was not with the team due to an undisclosed illness. ... San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich was issued a technical foul with 4 minutes left in the game after haranguing referee David Guthrie continually for a lack of calls. Popovich smiled, appearing amused by the technical. ... The Big Three of Duncan, Parker and Ginobili have played 629 games together, which is the most amongst active teammates and fifth all-time. The trio surpassed Derek Harper, Brad Davis and Rolando Blackman of the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday and trail the leading trio of Robert Parrish, Kevin McHale and Larry Bird by 100 games played together. ' ' '

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