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He arrived in the Big Apple this week via train, and Michael Beasley and his family are hoping tonight doesn't resemble a train wreck.

It's certain the Kansas State freshman forward will be one of the top choices in tonight's NBA Draft. But where Beasley is selected remains a mystery, only clouded by an ESPN.com report Wednesday that insisted the Miami Heat, owner of the No. 2 pick, is strongly considering Southern California guard O.J. Mayo.

The story said Heat president Pat Riley "seems to be uncomfortable with his (Beasley's) personality and seems dead set on finding a point guard to pair in the backcourt with Dwyane Wade."

Once thought to be a so-called lock for the top spot, Beasley has likely surrendered that slot, which belongs to Chicago, to Memphis guard Derrick Rose, a Windy City native. And now, if Wednesday's reports are true, how much farther will Beasley's stock dip?

On Wednesday, Beasley told reporters that he hadn't visited with Heat officials since last week. Mayo and former Arizona guard Jerryd Bayless worked out for Miami on Tuesday, the Miami Herald reported.

A year ago, Florida followed up back-to-back NCAA basketball titles by having three of its players selected in the first round of the NBA Draft. Tonight, Kansas is expected to have three players off its national championship team taken in the opening round.

Is there a connection?

"Winning covers a lot of intangibles," Charlotte Bobcats coach Larry Brown said. "Potential and talent are the big factors. But a guy can certainly improve his stock if he's been a factor on a team that has won it all."

Brown's 1988 Jayhawks won it all and the star of the show, Danny Manning, was the No. 1 pick in that year's draft. Although Manning was also the national player of the year, it has been debated for years whether KU's championship might have boosted his stock a notch or two in the draft.

Last year, Al Horford, Corey Brewer and Joakim Noah cashed in on winning big. After leading the Gators to consecutive NCAA championships, they not only were drafted in the first round but were selected in the first nine picks.

When the umpires made a late infield-fly call in the bottom of the first inning on Tuesday, it was evident the Wingnuts were about to become involved in the season's latest episode of manager drama.

Shreveport skipper Terry Bevington didn't disappoint. He was ejected shortly after he began protesting the call, which cost the Sports an out and a Wichita run.

But the agrument turned into a 15-minute spectacle with Bevington refusing to leave the field and Wingnuts manager Kash Beauchamp threatening to pull his team off it.

The Wingnuts managed to avoid more drama -- a more typical variety -- by breaking open a tie game with five runs in the sixth, propelling them to a 10-5 win at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

With the bases loaded and one out in the first, Wingnuts third baseman Michael Thompson hit a towering pop fly near the first base line. The umpires didn't call the infield fly, and when first baseman Adam Miller dropped the ball, Brenan Herrera attempted to score from third.

To Wingnuts manager Kash Beauchamp, the fact that the Wingnuts followed Monday's 16-run performance with a two-run output against Shreveport on Tuesday wasn't representative of a random two-game sample but of a big-picture issue.

Wichita squandered several scoring opportunities and blew a late lead in a 4-2 loss to Shreveport, last place in the American Association South, at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

A night after scoring a league record 12 runs in the sixth inning and beating Sports ace Thad Markray, Wichita fell to Bert Snow, who entered with an 0-5 record and 7.85 ERA.

"That's this team in a nutshell right there," Beauchamp said. "This team, they don't know if they want to win or if they want to be losers. They have no idea what they want to do.

"You score 16 runs off their No. 1 starter, then let a guy with a 7-something ERA come in and shut you down. That's lack of mental focus."

Zack Greinke matched a career high with 10 strikeouts and Alex Gordon hit a two-run homer as the surging Kansas City Royals beat the Colorado Rockies 7-3 Tuesday night.

The Royals have won four straight and nine of 10, all against National League clubs. Their 11-3 record is the best in interleague play.

The game included a frightening moment in the bottom of the second inning, when plate umpire Brian O'Nora was hit in the head by a shattered piece of Miguel Olivo's broken bat.

With blood streaming down his face, O'Nora rushed to Kansas City's dugout, where Jose Guillen quickly covered the umpire's head with a towel.

O'Nora came out of the game and was treated by Kansas City trainer Nick Swartz. The Royals later announced that O'Nora had a small cut on his forehead and was taken to St. Luke's Hospital for further evaluation.

Rarely do doubles teams find success without a sense of familiarity between players.

So much chemistry and communication goes into it that Wichita State junior tennis player Florentina Hanisch wasn't expecting any more than another match for experience from her doubles draw in the opening round of the Via Christi Pro Tennis Classic at Wichita State's Coleman Tennis Complex.

Awarded a wild card into the event, Hanisch first had to find a partner. WSU coach Chris Young suggested Texas Christian doubles standout Macall Harkins, who had just worked her way up through qualifying to earn a spot in the singles main draw.

"I didn't really know her," Hanisch said. "I just asked her if she wanted to play and she said yes."

The two bonded quickly to form a high-energy attack that was too much for top-seeded Erika Clarke-Magana and Daniela Munoz-Gallegos. Hanisch and Harkins knocked them off 7-6 (5), 5-7, 10-2.

Bradley hired Eastern Kentucky's Elvis Dominguez, 45, as its coach, replacing Dewey Kalmer. Dominguez went 178-199-2 in seven seasons at Eastern Kentucky. He played shortstop at Creighton and spent five seasons as an assistant coach with the Bluejays.

BASKETBALL

Kansas State hired Mike Lopriore as basketball trainer Tuesday. He has been in athletic training for 30 years, 14 on the professional baseball level. He was head trainer at Vail (Colo.) Cienega High last year.

• Asjha Jones scored 20 points and rookie Amber Holt added a career-high 19 as Connecticut defeated Detroit 85-68 in the WNBA.... Diana Taurasi scored 31 points as Phoenix halted Washington's winning streak at three with a 98-90 victory.... Ebony Hoffman had career highs with 23 points and 13 rebounds, and Indiana defeated Sacramento 78-73.... Seimone Augustus scored 21 points and had nine assists, and the Minnesota Lynx defeated New York 91-69. Nicole Ohlde hit her first six shots from the floor and finished with 14 points for Minnesota.

GOLF

KGA

Kansas Amateur qualifier

At Southwind C.C., Garden City

Qualifiers--Ross Geubelle, Lakin, 69; Grant Vollertsen, Garden City, 69; Trent White, Dodge City, 73; Barry Lucas, Colby, 73; Kevin Colvin, Liberal, 75; Adam Gotsche, Great Bend, 75; Aaron Mapel, Dodge City, 76; Ryley Haas, Colby, 76.

Senior Team Championship

Senior Team

At Sand Creek Station G.C., Newton

Second round

Top teams--1. Mark Crow, Overland Park-William Edwards, Stilwell, 67-65--132; 2. (tie) Craig Shultz, Wichita-Chad Renn, Wellington, 66-68--134 and Bob Vidricksen, Salina-Mike Grosdidier, Baldwin City, 67-67--134; 4. Marvin Linville, Mulvane-Gregg Harney, Wichita, 68-69--137; 5. (tie) Mark Addington, Olathe-Ron Eilers, Lee's Summit, Mo., 69-69--138; Nick Onofrio-Johnny Stevens, Wichita, 68-70--138 and James Seward, Overland Park-Mark Hanrahan, Stilwell, 66-72--138; 8. (tie) Bill Toalson, Prairie Village-Don Cox, Lake Quivira, 69-71--140 and Randy Vautravers, Wichita-Dave Gourlay, Manhattan, 67-73--140; 10. (tie) Don Kuehn-Randy Agpar, Kansas City, Mo., 70-71--141 and Dakin Cramer-Mickey Johnson, Wichita, 70-71--141.

WGAW

Softball

Coaches All-State

Note: Class 4A and 3A all-state teams have not been released.

Class 6A

First team

Scrolling through the list of tournaments online, the Via Christi Pro Tennis Classic didn't exactly pop off the page to 16-year-old Jacqueline Cako.

But the way the rising tennis star's schedule worked out, Wichita was penciled in to be Cako's second professional tournament.

Given a wild card to play in this week's tournament, Cako was matched up against top seed Daniela Munoz-Gallegos in the opening round of the singles main draw on Wednesday at the Sheldon Coleman Complex at Wichita State.

"I don't get nervous," Cako said. "I just get really competitive. I thought it was a good opportunity to make a splash."

Not only did the teenager make a splash, she sent shockwaves through the tournament by knocking off Munoz-Gallegos 7-6, 6-2, then teamed up with Maria Sanchez later Wednesday afternoon to advance to the doubles quarterfinals as well.

Wednesday's results

At Coleman Tennis Complex

Singles

Anna Lubinsky def. Ana-Clara Duarte 6-4, 6-0. Maria Sanchez def. Anna Wishink 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3. Emelyn Starr def. Nina Pantic 6-1, 6-4. Macall Harkins def. Mami Inoue 7-6 (5) 6-1. Jacqueline Cako def. Daniela Munoz-Gallegos 7-5, 6-2. Christina McHale def. Amanda Marie Taylor 6-1, 6-4. Nathalia Rossi def. Anastasia Kharchenko 6-3, 6-3. Aeriel Ellis def. Florentina Hanisch 6-3, 6-3.

Doubles

Fresno State was smashing in its final performance as college baseball's team of destiny, winning a championship that would have been impossible to predict.

With Steve Detwiler providing all the offense Justin Wilson needed, the Bulldogs captured their first national championship in a men's sport with a 6-1 victory over Georgia in Game 3 of the College World Series finals Wednesday night.

Detwiler homered twice and drove in all six runs, and Wilson allowed five hits in eight innings to cap Fresno State's wild ride to a title.

Fresno State was forecast to be a Top 25 team coming into the season, but the Bulldogs lost 12 of their first 20 games. They needed to win the Western Athletic Conference tournament just to make the NCAA field of 64, fought off elimination in regionals and super regionals, and became the first No. 4 regional seed to reach the CWS since the tournament expanded in 1999.

The Bulldogs (47-31) from California not only showed they belonged, they showed they were the best, even though no previous national champion had more losses. The national title was the second in school history. Fresno State won the 1998 women's softball title.

A match involving Marat Safin is always worth watching. He's liable to moon the crowd, smash several rackets or dominate the world's best player, as he did against Pete Sampras in the 2000 U.S. Open final.

For a change, Wimbledon inspired Safin's best behavior and tennis Wednesday, much to the chagrin of Novak Djokovic. Finally comfortable on the grass he long has loathed, Safin pulled off the biggest upset of the tournament so far with a workmanlike performance to beat the third-ranked Djokovic 6-4, 7-6 (3), 6-2.

Safin has been battling a slump for months, or even years, and the big Russian expressed surprise to find himself in the third round.

"The last time I won two matches in a row was I don't remember when," he said.

Djokovic, this year's Australian Open champion, was dismayed to catch the erratic Safin at a peak.

Fresno State kept its amazing postseason run alive Tuesday night thanks to an offensive performance that was nothing short of, well, amazing.

After spotting Georgia a five-run lead in the third inning, Fresno State struck for 15 runs over the next three innings for a 19-10 victory in Game 2 of the College World Series finals.

Tommy Mendonca put Fresno State in front with his record-tying fourth home run of the CWS in his team's six-run third inning.

The Bulldogs from Fresno State (46-31) and Bulldogs from Georgia (45-24-1) will meet in Game 3 tonight to determine college baseball's top dog.

Fresno State scored five runs in the fourth and four more in the fifth to trip up a Georgia team that appeared on the verge of sweeping through the CWS to its second national title and first since 1990.

Tiger Woods had reconstructive surgery on his left knee Tuesday in Utah to repair a torn ligament, and doctors said it was "highly unlikely" there would be any long-term effects.

It was the second time in 10 weeks Woods had surgery on his knee, this time on his anterior cruciate ligament.

"We were confident going into this surgery, and I am pleased with the results," Dr. Thomas D. Rosenberg said in a statement released by IMG, Woods' management company.

The surgery came one week after Woods went 91 holes at Torrey Pines to win the U.S. Open in a playoff over Rocco Mediate, revealing later that he also had a double stress fracture in his left tibia.

The surgery was the fourth time Woods has had surgery on his left knee. He had a benign tumor removed in 1994, and he had benign cysts removed in 2002, along with fluid around the ACL.

Venus Williams was back to title-contending form Tuesday after roughly an hour's work on Centre Court, in which she battled a bumblebee and turned back a spirited charge from a 19-year-old British wild card who had the crowd on her side.

The odds were never in Naomi Cavaday's favor, ranked 197th in the world and surrendering half a foot to the 6-foot-1 Williams, who boasts one of the game's bigger serves, breathtaking athleticism and four Wimbledon titles. The bee, arguably, inflicted greater damage, causing Williams to lose her serve in the early going as she tried in vain to swat it away.

But after bolting to a 3-1 lead only to lose the first set in a tiebreak, Cavaday was physically and emotionally sapped. And Williams took swift advantage, cruising to a 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 victory that delivered exactly what she had hoped: a legitimate struggle (at least for one set) that forced her to shake off the rust of her relative inactivity in a hurry.

"She took her chances, really took advantage of her opportunities, and played with poise on this occasion," Williams said of Cavaday. "So it was good to have that challenge early on."

Day 2 of Wimbledon saw the sport's biggest names advance with little difficulty. Like Williams, the tournament's defending champion, neither second-seeded Rafael Nadal, nor third-seeded Maria Sharapova nor sixth-seeded Andy Roddick lost a set in their first-round matches.

Adorable. That's the word one fellow diner used to sum up Sugar Sisters Bakery and Cafe, which looks like it might have been designed by Interior Designer Barbie.

Sticker shock. That's two more we heard from someone who paid $2.99 for a cupcake (which are called "baby cakes" at Sugar Sisters and are bigger than standard cupcakes).

The eatery was opened in May by three sisters -- Katie, Kelli and Kristina Sykes -- using many family recipes. While some of those recipes struck us as idiosyncratic -- the kind of things kids might whip up while mom is away -- the restaurant has quickly brought traffic back to Oliver Square, site of a recently departed Dillons supermarket.

ON THE MENU: Soups, salads, sandwiches and the cafe's signature macaroni and cheese for lunch and dinner; quiche, French toast, cheese grits and homemade granola for breakfast; specialty coffee drinks and a full line of baked goods including scones, muffins, cakes and cookies.

DON'T-MISS DISHES: The restaurant takes mac and cheese to a rich new level by coating tubular pasta with sharp white cheddar, gruyere and Romano cheeses, and then topping it with toasted bread crumbs. Served with mixed greens, it's one of the best deals at lunch for $5.99.

As soon as you venture into the gallery at Wichita Center for the Arts, you'll run into a group of 20 life-size terra-cotta heads displayed on two walls -- some with separate but accompanying hands holding everything from a paintbrush to a martini glass -- that represent self-portraits from a recent sculpting class.

Further in, you'll be captivated by the realism of some landscapes and still lifes and intrigued by the abstractness of others. Then there are the colorful enameled bowls, the intricate jewelry, the loving portraits of family members and the whimsical sculptured animals, from various bears and monkeys to a rabbit dressed as a medieval minstrel.

They are all part of the annual student-faculty exhibition -- some 300 pieces from 150 artists -- from the Mary R. Koch School of Visual Arts, founded at the center in 1920, that opens today and runs through Aug. 10. A free public reception featuring many of the artists will be from 5 to 7 p.m. today.

"The purpose of the show is to let the community see the variety of what we are teaching at the center and what students are doing with it," says Brian Hinkle, gallery director the past two years. "But the neatest thing is watching the students watch their family and friends react to their work. It's a long-standing tradition, and it's probably tripled in the past decade."

Students, from preschool to a couple of octogenarians, plus a handful of faculty, will display works created during the past year in 10 different disciplines, from oil and acrylic paints to watercolors to sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, printmaking, enameling, drawing and photography.

The scene at Mid-Continent Airport on Wednesday offered a preview of what Wichitans are in for this weekend -- now that the city's been invaded by nearly 7,000 twirly-skirt and Western-shirt-wearing square dancers.

The 57th National Square Dance Convention, titled "Promenade on the Prairie," opened Wednesday evening, but the attendees were flying in all afternoon from nearly every state and eight foreign countries including Japan and England.

Their welcoming committee, set up near baggage claim, was a whole mess of do-si-do demonstrators, gleefully yipping, promenading and spinning in a blur of revolving rickrack.

"Getcha a girl!" the dance caller shouted into the microphone as hurried (and confused) travelers maneuvered through the crowd.

"Let's dance!"

The most ambitious film yet from the House of Pixar, "WALL-E" is an intergalactic epic about robot romance, furious physical comedy and the fate of humanity.

If that's a lot of ground to cover, if the film's reach exceeds its grasp... well, this critic is in a forgiving mood. You can't advance an art form without taking risks and making a few missteps. "WALL-E" bravely charges into thematic territory and a presentational style that few movies -- much less animated ones -- have dared to explore.

In the wordless but exhilarating first half-hour of Andrew Stanton's film we find ourselves on a barren dusty planet littered with the remains of civilization. People once lived here, but they're long gone, leaving behind a ravaged landscape of skeletal buildings and mountains of trash.

We get this information not through narration or "Star Wars"-ish creeping credits but simply by watching and observing. This is the first hint that "WALL-E" won't be business as usual.

WALL-E (short for "waste allocation load lifter Earth-class") is a boxy little robot with big binocular eyes on a long E.T. neck. Every day he gets up, recharges his batteries in the sunshine and gets to work picking up armfuls of junk. He places the refuse in his trash-compactor body, reducing it to large cubes which he stacks to form soaring pyramids.

Zap2it.com

HBO, George Carlin's TV home for more than 30 years, will celebrate the comedian's work over the next few days.

Carlin died of heart failure Sunday at the age of 71. He was probably best known for his "seven words you can't say on television" routine, but his observations about the vagaries of language and everyday life also made him one of the enduring stars of the stand-up world.

Last week he was chosen to receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor; he'll now be the first person to be given the award posthumously.

He also did 14 comedy specials for HBO, spanning 30 years. HBO2 will air six of those tonight, beginning at 7 p.m.

It really helps to be a huge Neil Sedaka fan to get through "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do," a bit of musical fluff created by stringing together 16 Sedaka hits from the 1960s and 1970s into a tenuous tale.

It's a story about losing love, finding love, then losing and refinding it all over again with another person through a continuum from "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" to "Where the Boys Are" to "Stupid Cupid" to the inevitable happy ending with "Love Will Keep Us Together."

While this off-Broadway romp -- making its Kansas premiere at Crown Uptown Professional Dinner Theatre -- is often enjoyable, it's merely cute rather than clever, shallow rather than substantial. The songs are fine, but the lackluster dialogue slows things down despite valiant efforts from a well-voiced cast.

Wisconsin performer Andrea Marie Roth, who will remind you of winsome "Legally Blonde" Reese Witherspoon, makes her Crown debut as Marge, a young woman jilted at the altar who is talked into going on her honeymoon at a Catskills resort anyway with her best friend, Lois.

Roth has a lilting soprano that's best showcased in ballads like "Lonely Night" and "Solitaire."

Oil and acrylic paints, watercolors, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, enameling, drawing, photography. Works in those mediums and more can be found at the student faculty exhibition opening Friday at Wichita Center for the Arts.

Some 300 pieces from 150 artists will be on display through Aug. 10. A free public reception featuring many of the artists will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday. Gallery hours are noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday and admission is free.

Students range in age from preschool to a couple of octogenarians. Several faculty members at the center also will be displaying works created during the past year in 10 different disciplines.

Some of the works in the exhibition aren't for sale. But many pieces are, ranging from a $20 ceramic bowl to a $2,700 oil painting. Gallery director Brian Hinkle says the quality of art this year is exceptional: "This is a very good year -- and may be among the best."

The Center is at 9112 E. Central.

What made the cover

• "Angelina speaks about their crisis at home" (In Touch)

• "Found! JFK Jr.' s secret diary" (National Examiner)

• "Revealed! Plot to kill Doris Day" (Globe)

Finally! I've been worrying about this for weeks!