So they weren’t about to ease up when they had a big lead of their own on Sunday.

Boston went ahead by two goals in the first minute of the third period, added another 12 minutes later and beat the New York Rangers 5-2 to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals.

Still, the Blueshirts aren’t about to go down without a fight as the series heads to New York.

“We don’t want to lose two games here, no one does,” said Rangers coach John Tortorella. “But there’s no give in this team. There will be no give in this team. We need to go win a game. Not look anywhere else, just try to win our first home game this series.”

Just six days earlier, the Bruins became the first team to win a Game 7 after trailing by three goals in the third period. They started their comeback with less than 11 minutes left and extended their season with a 5-4 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“Guys are really trying to stay focused on doing their job in the third period,” Brad Marchand said. “We know how important they are, especially after what we went through being down by a few goals. We know that it’s possible for any team to come back from any score.”

Marchand made it 4-2 with just 26 seconds gone in the third period, Milan Lucic scored at 12:39 and the Bruins worked hard the rest of the way.

“We talked about it before we went out there in the third period, and we just had to make sure that we played to win,” Boston coach Claude Julien said. “I don’t like our team when we play on our heels and we’re just trying to protect a one-goal lead. We’ve got to extend the lead and extend it even more before we even think about protecting it.”

Game 3 is Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.

The Rangers never led Sunday, although they tied the game quickly after each of the Bruins’ first two goals.

The second period may have been New York’s best of the series even though Johnny Boychuk’s tie-breaking goal on a 40-foot shot at 12:08 of the period got past goalie Henrik Lundqvist, who was screened by several players.

“We played a really good second,” New York’s Dan Girardi said. “The first shift of the third killed us.”

That’s when Marchand made it 4-2 with a goal similar to the one that gave the Bruins a 3-2 overtime win in the opener.

Patrice Bergeron carried the puck in deep along the right side and passed across the crease to Marchand, who had beaten Girardi and tipped it in.

“I have to be ready to defend that pass there,” Girardi said. “They didn’t have much room, but, obviously, I have to be either on the strong side blocking that or on Marchand’s stick. That really put us behind the eight-ball.”

With a two-goal lead, the Bruins remained aggressive but still clogged the middle in front of goalie Tuukka Rask when the Rangers attacked.

“We felt really good going into the third, and to have that type of goal go in — it’s just two-on-two — it hurts you,” Tortorella said. “We couldn’t generate anything, and then they’re just going to fill the middle and they’re just going to jam you.”

Boston never trailed as rookie Torey Krug scored the first goal at 5:28 of the first period before Rangers captain Ryan Callahan tied it less than three minutes later. Gregory Campbell made it 2-1 at 2:24 of the second period, and New York pulled even again 56 seconds later on Rick Nash’s goal, his first of the playoffs after he led the Rangers with 21 in the regular season.

“We didn’t play our best,” Marchand said. “I think, especially in the second period, they took it to us, but we were able to bounce back. It’s definitely a very even series.”

Not when it comes to goaltending.

Lundqvist allowed more than five goals for the first time in 152 games, including the postseason, and stopped 27 shots.

“I thought I was in position, but (there were) a couple screens and when you give up five goals you can’t be satisfied,” he said.

There’s also the matter of his left shoulder that was hit by Daniel Paille’s third-period shot. Lundqvist rubbed it after the game and said, “We’ll take a look at it.”

Rask saved 35 of 37 shots.

Still, Lundqvist won the Vezina Trophy last year and is a finalist for it this year.

“I know that I can’t let in any lead goals most nights because he is who he is,” Rask said, “but, then again it’s a team game and we’re more focused on the Rangers than any individual.”

These are the Rangers who also lost the first two games of their opening series on the road, then won the next two at home. They lost Game 5 in Washington but won the last two games behind shutouts by Lundqvist.

“We’ve done it before,” he said, “but I think we are playing a better team now so it’s going to be tough to do it.”

Ahead or behind, home or away, the Bruins plan to play with the same determination the entire game.

“You can’t take anything for granted,” Boychuk said. “It’s playoffs. Anything can happen, and sometimes a team can play better in front of their hometown.”

NOTES: The last time Lundqvist allowed more than four goals was March 9, 2011, in a 5-2 loss to Anaheim. In the next 151 games he allowed four goals just 13 times. … The Bruins played their second straight game without injured veteran defensemen Andrew Ference, Dennis Seidenberg and Wade Redden … A defenseman got a goal or an assist on each of Boston’s goals. … The margin of victory was more than two for just the second time in 26 games between the teams. … In their nine playoff games, the Rangers have scored on two of 35 power plays. They’re 0 for 7 against the Bruins.

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(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

After their performance in Game 3, it is clear the defending Stanley Cup champions still need plenty of work.

The Kings went through a short workout at their training complex Sunday after sleeping in their own beds following a 2-1 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night.

Such easy travel usually isn’t possible in the spread-out Western Conference, but Game 4 isn’t until Tuesday night at the Shark Tank.

“We were home at pretty much the same time as we would coming from Staples on a regular night,” center Anze Kopitar said. “It’s a 50-minute flight, so it’s pretty quick. I think it’s good for us.”

Los Angeles’ 2-1 loss in Game 3 ended on a power-play goal after two penalty calls that angered and confused the Kings for several reasons. Yet captain Dustin Brown acknowledged the Kings have plenty of concerns beyond the officiating.

Los Angeles leads the series 2-1, but only after getting a 35-save shutout from Jonathan Quick in Game 1 and stealing Game 2 with two late power-play goals.

“We’ve got to score more than one goal,” Brown said. “I mean, Quickie is a great goalie, but at the end of the day, we need to score more than one goal for him. We haven’t done that. I think we’ve only scored one goal three times out of four away games.”

Indeed, the Kings have scored six goals in their four road playoff games this spring, half of them in a 3-2 overtime win at St. Louis. The other three road playoff games all have been 2-1 losses — and before that, Los Angeles dropped six straight road games to close the regular season, scoring nine goals in that stretch.

Robyn Regehr was whistled for hooking on a seemingly garden-variety stick play with 41.7 seconds left in regulation in Game 3, and Trevor Lewis followed him into the box with 4.5 seconds left on a goaltender interference call that had the Kings steaming. They claimed Lewis was pushed into Antti Niemi, and questioned why such a dramatic call would be made so late in a game.

The Kings killed off the 5-on-3 disadvantage, but gave up Logan Couture’s power-play game-winner. Quick, who shut out the Sharks from the opening minutes until the final buzzer, got a game misconduct for berating the officials who made the decisive call.

“Not happy, but we can’t do anything about it,” Kopitar said. “Again, it’s the position that we put ourselves into that is mind-boggling. It’s not the way we want to play and be in that situation. We came close to killing it off, but we’ve said it all along, you can’t give them too many opportunities, because they will score, and they did.”

The Kings have demonstrated they know how to regroup after a playoff loss. After dropping the first two games of the postseason in St. Louis, they responded with six straight victories.

The Sharks also present a challenge similar to the Blues in their desire to attack Quick with a high volume of shots. St. Louis outshot Los Angeles in four of the six games, and the Kings have been soundly outshot by San Jose in the current series — but with Quick in top form, the numbers haven’t beaten Los Angeles.

San Jose also has revived its dominant power play, which produced both of its goals in Game 3 after the Kings shut out the Sharks in the first two games at Staples Center.

“Especially when the Conn Smythe winner (is) on the defending champion team, I’m going to assume if I was coaching against them, that I’m going to say, `Shoot lots, and get as much traffic as you can,”‘ Sutter said. “So I think San Jose has that mindset, as St. Louis did last series. You’re trying to get your team to shoot more, and you’re trying to get players to go to the net more.”

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Daniel Alfredsson of the Ottawa Senators and Dustin Brown of the Los Angeles Kings are the other finalists.

Former NHL star Mark Messier determines the winner of the award. He solicits suggestions from from club and NHL personnel and fans to come up with the finalists and then makes a final decision on the winner.

The following is the explanation of Toews’ nomination as provided by the award:

Toews was named captain of the Blackhawks in 2008 when he was just 20-years-old, making him the third-youngest captain in NHL history at the time. While his leadership on the ice is undisputed, his role off the ice with various children’s charitable causes makes him an undeniable role model to fans. In his spare time, Toews volunteers to grant wishes through the Make-A-Wish Foundation and visits with patients at the local children’s hospital and Chicago’s Misericordia. Last fall, he returned home to join the Winnipeg Patrolmen Hockey Club and other NHL players for the “Goals for Dreams Hockey Challenge,” which helped raise $80,000 for the Children’s Hospital Foundation and the Dream Factory, a charity that grants dreams for critically and chronically ill children.

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings got much younger this year, rebuilding with rookies and prospects pushed onto the ice.

For much of the lockout-delayed season, it didn’t look good for them.

The storied franchise used to chase Stanley Cup titles with key players in their late 30s and 40s such as Nicklas Lidstrom, Chris Chelios, Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull and Larry Murphy.

Not anymore.

As the Chicago Blackhawks are now finding out, the Red Wings are much better than they were during the regular season thanks to an improved cast of inexperienced players.

“We’ve had great growth from within, I think the most since I’ve been in the National Hockey League for sure,” Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said Sunday. “That may be because we have a different type of team. We got a whole bunch of kids, so we have a chance for growth.”

Red Wings rookie Brendan Smith scored the winning goal Saturday in Detroit’s 4-1 win at Chicago that tied the series 1-1. The top-seeded Blackhawks won the opener by the same 4-1 score.

“We knew they were going to come back and play much better than they did in Game 1,” Chicago captain Jonathan Toews said. “Obviously, we didn’t quite match the effort.”

When the puck drops Monday night in Detroit for Game 3, Toews hopes his team is ready to bounce back.

“There’s no time to waste in this series,” Toews said. “We know going into their building it’s even more difficult.”

It will be even more challenging for Chicago if Toews can’t produce as he did in the 48-game regular season.

Toews had 23 goals, tying Patrick Kane for the team lead and trailing just four players in the league. However, he is struggling to score for a third straight postseason.

Toews is in an eight-game playoff slump that dates to last year. He has just three goals combined in three postseasons since scoring seven goals to help Chicago win the Cup in 2010. He had seven goals the previous postseason — his first — when Detroit eliminated the Blackhawks in the Western Conference finals.

Henrik Zetterberg had a lot to do with holding Toews without a point in Game 2, an accomplishment that didn’t surprise Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard.

“Most nights, he’s the best player on the ice,” Howard said. “No different from (Saturday), the way he was all over Toews the whole game, shutting him down. We’re going to need that for the whole series.”

The Red Wings would also benefit if their inexperienced players figure out a way to avoid fading into the background.

Before Smith’s go-ahead goal on Saturday, first-year player Damien Brunner and rookie Gustav Nyquist also scored winning goals this postseason — in overtime against Anaheim. Teammate Joakim Andersson ranks among rookie scoring leaders.

The 27-year-old Brunner, too old to be a candidate for the Calder Trophy given to the rookie of the year, has followed up a 26-point regular season with four goals in the playoffs to match Johan Franzen for the team lead. He also has three assists.

Calder finalist Brandon Saad has only one assist in seven postseason games for the Blackhawks. The 20-year-old forward had 27 points during the regular season.

Brunner has insisted it doesn’t bother him to be out of the running for the Calder, and sounded even more thankful on Sunday that he waited to make the jump from the Swiss League.

The 5-foot-11, 184-pound forward was banged around on the ice quite a bit and had growing pains off it, dealing with a lot of travel after his longest trip last year was a 2½-hour bus ride.

“You kind of think it’s not that big of a deal when you come over, but after a couple trips and the hours you lose, especially when you come back home, it’s tough,” Brunner said. “It’s really tough.”

While Babcock’s job behind the bench was tougher this year than it had been the past seven seasons with veteran-filled rosters, he relished the opportunity to lead the young Red Wings.

“It’s the most fun I’ve had coaching in a couple years, by far, just because we have a real enthusiastic group,” Babcock said. “At the start of the year, we weren’t a good team. We all understood that, but we buckled down and we got better. It’s been fun for us. If you would have asked me before the playoffs, I would’ve told you the same thing. Then suddenly you have a little success in the playoffs — and it’s more fun.”

___

Follow Larry Lage on Twitter: http://twitter.com/larrylage

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

After Game 2, Henrik might be in for some tossing and turning after experiencing some serious déjà vu.

Early in the third period, with the Bruins leading 3-2, Patrice Bergeron won the opening faceoff and shortly afterwards carried the puck on a 2-on-2 rush up the ice. With Marchand driving to the net, Bergeron carried the puck to the corner of the rink, drawing Michael Del Zotto with him before sending a pass to the front of the crease. Marchand, able to fight through Dan Girardi, got his tape on the puck and redirected it just under Lundqvist’s right pad.

The goal made the score 4-2 in favor of the Bruins with 19:34 left in the game, so it wasn’t quite the back-breaker that Thursday’s overtime goal was. Yet the goal appeared to crush New York’s hopes of clawing back, a thought completely eliminated 12 minutes later when Milan Lucic scored to give the Bruins a 5-2 lead. The rout was on, and while Lundqvist was a bit cryptic with his postgame comments, he seemed to confirm suspicions that the Rangers were taken off their game in the third period.

“We gave it to them,” Lundqvist said after the game, before repeating himself. “We gave it to them. I thought we played great, [but] I don’t think they had to work really hard to get a couple goals there. We just made it really tough on ourselves, so we have to correct a few things and go home and turn this around. It doesn’t matter the score — it’s a loss. Overtime or 5-2, doesn’t matter.”

The bottom line is that the final score doesn’t matter, but in a series predicated on defense and goaltending, the dynamic certainly shifts now. After an imperfect but respectable performance by Lundqvist in Game 1 (45 saves on 48 shots), the safe bet was for a monster performance in Game 2. Instead, he allowed five goals, the first time he’s done that in any game since March 9, 2011, and the first time he’s done it in a postseason game since April 26, 2009. His save percentage in the series now sits at .900, his goals-against average at 3.54. His regular-season numbers? A .926 save percentage and 2.05 GAA.

Despite the outcome, the Rangers won’t panic. Head coach John Tortorella said flatly, “I’m not evaluating our goaltending. I don’t need to evaluate Henrik. We know what Henrik is.”

And, really, the five goals don’t all fall on Lundqvist’s shoulders. Dan Girardi screened the goalie on Torey Krug’s shot, which opened the game’s scoring, and Girardi later kicked a Krug shot right to Gregory Campbell in front of the net for the second Bruins’ goal. Girardi again screened Lundqvist on Johnny Boychuk’s goal, the eventual game-winner, and he failed to break up the pass from Bergeron to Marchand early in the third. The icing on the cake for Girardi came when he made a decent play to drop to the ice to break up a pass, but ended up sliding out of the way and allowing Lucic to easily score the fifth goal. If anyone had a nightmare game, it was most certainly No. 5 in white, not No. 30.

Lundqvist also looked to be suffering through some sort of pain in the third period, and he later confirmed he had some sort of shoulder injury that would require a look from the team’s medical staff.

Excuses beyond his control were there for Lundqvist, and he certainly cashed in on the opportunity to make them, but he is not supposed to be just any goalie. The reigning Vezina winner and almost-unanimous best goalie in the sport should be able to rise to the challenge of playoff hockey and come through with saves no matter the circumstance — maybe not all of them, but at least one of them. That’s what it takes to get through the postseason and win a Cup for a team dependent on defense, and the last two Conn Smythe winners are proof of that.

For the last two games in Boston, dozens of reporters, microphones and cameras crowded around Lundqvist’s locker stall, because he is the superstar, and he is the “king.” His hat with the number 30 inside a crown, which he wore after the 5-2 loss, was there to remind everyone of that.

But one more game from Lundqvist where the king plays like just another goalie, and this series is going to be a lot shorter than most everyone anticipated.

Read more from Michael by clicking here, or find him on Twitter @michaelFhurley.

I’m writing because a woman has placed me in an awkward position. The woman, who is best friends with a woman I am casually dating, sent me a shot of her cleavege then asked me to return the favor. Weird. I haven’t yet, and not sure if I should tell the woman I’m seeing about what her friend did. But I have to admit, it kinda turned me on. Do you think they are testing me to see if I’m faithful or does she want me too?

Signed,

I’ve been flashed.

Yessir, you have indeed just been flashed, and not with sports scores by me either.

I think there are 2 options here…

1. They’re testing & messing with you. Which is doubtful … but if that is the case, then that leads me to believe they’re really immature, or just plain crazy.

2. Your girl’s friend is a back stabbing insecure whore.

And you don’t want to play with fire with a back stabbing whore, you’ll get burnt (quite possibly literally). Those kind of girls are just too much drama, for even girls!

And sadly for both you and me, some girls are just like that. They’re so insecure they feel like they are in competition with other girls, even their own girlfriends. Homegirl is just trying to turn you on to get your attention to “win” you over and spite her friend. And while I’m sure this is making your head swell, I hate to burst your bubble, but that girl isn’t picky, she just likes whoever her friends like. And you flash boy, are merely an innocent bystander in some vaginal insecurities. Cason-Point: regardless of how good her boobs looked in that pic she sent — stay away — for your own benefit! Or you could do one better and go Jenn Sterger on her.

And if you care for the woman AT ALL, then show her what her “friend” sent you. Let her send a picture of her middle finger in reply. I’d like to know if I were her, and not because I wanted to get all protetive and jealous over you either, but so I’d know not to trust her and stop being her friend.

And by being honest and saving her a back stab wound, you look like the hero.

Hope that answers your question. And you have not just been flashed

~Flash Girl

Send Flash Girl a question to flashgirl@wfnz.com

That includes Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal, who recently talked about the Bulls’ point guard on 106.7 The Fan.

“That’s hard, because I’ve never experienced that injury,” Beal said. “And I know what type of injury that is, it’s possible it’s gonna happen again. Knock on wood. But at the same time, you might have to give it a go. If you’re practicing for two months and everybody in practice is saying you’re practicing well, I figure you gotta give it a shot in a game.”

At first, it seemed like Beal caught himself and wanted to give Rose the benefit of the doubt.

“It’s his decision. I can’t really have a say so in it. If he doesn’t feel he’s mentally confident to be able to go out there and help the team, I guess I can’t really blame him for it.”

But then Beal was asked if he would lose respect for a Wizards’ teammate if they made the same decision.

“A little bit. Yeah, I would,” he said. “The type of player he is, and the mentality and competitiveness that he has, I think he would have gave it a go. I don’t know what was holding him back. I think he’s scared it’s probably going to happen again and he won’t be the same. But you’re never the same after an injury. But you just have to fight through it and do something else to be able to impact the game. I’m not sure what it is he has to do. I really can’t speak for him.”

Different words are resonating with the Heat again now.

Not long after the Pacers reached the Eastern Conference finals and another postseason clash with Miami, Vogel called the reigning champions “just the next team that’s in our way.”

So following the Heat practice on Sunday to start preparing for the Pacers, four-time NBA MVP LeBron James insisted that his team would be ready for the challenge of facing Indiana.

Miami beat Indiana in six games last season. The teams start the East finals Wednesday night in Miami.

Authorities said it took dive teams more than two hours to find the body of Johnny Price after he fell in the water Saturday night.

Greenwood County Coroner Sonny Cox says another man on the boat said Price lost his balance and fell in the water and never resurfaced.

Cox says he ruled the death accidental, and toxicology tests on Price are pending.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Mrs. Obama spoke for 22 minutes to the graduates of Martin Luther King Jr. Academic Magnet High School on Saturday in her only high school commencement address this year. The ceremony took place in the gymnasium of nearby Tennessee State University.

The first lady told the 170 graduates that she spent too much of her own time in college focusing on academic achievements. While her success in college and law school led to a high-profile job, she said, she ended up leaving to focus on public service.

“My message to all of you today is this: Do not waste a minute living someone else’s dream,” she said. “It takes a lot of real work to discover what brings you joy … and you won’t find what you love simply by checking boxes or padding your GPA.”

Mrs. Obama lauded the school — it’s on the site of one of the city’s first to educate African-Americans — for its graduation rate, spirit of volunteerism and healthy food programs. She noted that each graduate was going on to either higher education or the military.

FLASHBACK: Obama kicked off his speech at White House Correspondents’ dinner with DJ Khaled‘s “All I Do Is Win” as his introductory song

She said MLK reminded her of her own high school experience in Chicago.

“My No. 1 goal was to go to a high school that would push me and challenge me,” she said. “I wanted to go somewhere that would celebrate achievement. A place where academic success wouldn’t make me a target of teasing or bullying, but instead would be a badge of honor.”

But Mrs. Obama lamented that not all students have the same opportunities.

Authorities said Clarence Sullivan was found injured around 3 a.m. Monday and died a short time later at the hospital.

Anderson County deputies say they are interviewing witnesses and still trying to determine a motive for the shooting. No arrests have been made.

An autopsy has been ordered on Sullivan.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

During a recent car trip with her 5-year-old son Caleb Taylor, area resident Sandra Johnson began to experience a seizure while driving.

Caleb was asleep and buckled up in a car seat situated in the back seat when she began to suffer the effects of it.

“I was taking a nap, and I just woke up. Then I saw her not driving,” Caleb told WSOC-TV.

He then said he tried to wake her up, before eventually taking matters into his own small hands.

“[I asked her] ‘Mama, are you OK? Mama are you OK?’ And then I unbuckled and turned the car off,” he recalled.

He then put the car in neutral, took the keys out of the ignition, and ran to get help, the station learned. A passerby saw the commotion and called 911.

“There is a woman fell out on the side of the road,” the caller was quoted as saying. “Come quick.”

Thanks to Caleb’s fast thinking, his mother is now home safe and recovering from the seizure. Both she and her husband, Robert, are proud of their son’s quick-thinking actions during the crisis.

He noted to WSOC-TV of his son, “He was a superhero in my book.”

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Anthony will have his left shoulder re-examined now that the Knicks have been eliminated from the playoffs, the Daily News reported.

He hurt the shoulder on April 14 and aggravated it in the first round against Boston. A banged-up Anthony insisted he was “fine” after the Celtics series.

“(I)t really just kind of popped in and out a little bit,” he said. “But I’m fine.”

New York was eliminated Saturday by the Indiana Pacers.

The Knicks are “hopeful” the injury “is not serious and that it will improve with rest and therapy and won’t require surgery,” the Daily News reported. Also according to the paper, Anthony won’t need arthroscopic surgery on his now-better right knee.

Meanwhile, J.R. Smith said he wants “to retire a Knick” when asked about his future following New York’s ouster Saturday. He’s expected to opt out of his contract this offseason.

“I don’t want to go anywhere else,” said the guard, who picked the wrong time of year to go ice-cold. “I love it. I love my teammates. I love my coaches. I was sitting in the locker room looking at my jersey after the game just knowing I don’t want to be anywhere else except for in the orange and blue. So we’ll see.”

Guard Pablo Prigioni will also have a big decision to make. The impending free agent may head back to the Spanish league next season because his wife “wants to return overseas,” the New York Post reported.

“I think it’s not the moment to talk about that now,” Prigioni said Saturday, according to the Post. “It’s painful to lose. It’s painful to start the vacation now. This is about the team. Now I stay quiet.”

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Same goes for soda.

Until now, the only way to find out what people in the United States eat and how many calories they consume has been government data, which can lag behind the rapidly expanding and changing food marketplace.

Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are trying to change that by creating a gargantuan map of what foods Americans are buying and eating.

Part of the uniqueness of the database is its ability to sort one product into what it really is — thousands of brands and variations.

Take the chocolate milk.

The government long has long classified chocolate milk with 2 percent fat as one item. But the UNC researchers, using scanner data from grocery stores and other commercial data, found thousands of different brands and variations of 2 percent chocolate milk and averaged them out. The results show that chocolate milk has about 11 calories per cup more than the government thought.

The researchers led by professor Barry Popkin at the UNC School of Public Health, are figuring out that chocolate milk equation over and over, with every single item in the grocery store. It’s a massive project that could be the first evidence of how rapidly the marketplace is changing, and the best data yet on what exact ingredients and nutrients people are consuming.

That kind of information could be used to better target nutritional guidelines, push companies to cut down on certain ingredients and even help with disease research.

Just call it “mapping the food genome.”

“The country needs something like this, given all of the questions about our food supply,” says Popkin, the head of the UNC Food Research Program. “We’re interested in improving the public’s health and it really takes this kind of knowledge.”

The project first came together in 2010 after a group of 16 major food companies pledged, as part of first lady Michelle Obama’s campaign to combat obesity, to reduce the calories they sell to the public by 1.5 trillion. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation agreed to fund a study to hold the companies accountable, eventually turning to UNC with grants totaling $6.7 million.

Aided by supercomputers on campus, Popkin and his team have taken existing commercial databases of food items in stores and people’s homes, including the store-based scanner data of 600,000 different foods, and matched that information with the nutrition facts panels on the back of packages and government data on individuals’ dietary intake.

The result is an enormous database that has taken almost three years so far to construct and includes more detail than researchers have ever had on grocery store items — their individual nutritional content, who is buying them and their part in consumers’ diets.

The study will fill gaps in current data about the choices available to consumers and whether they are healthy, says Susan Krebs-Smith, who researches diet and other risk factors related to cancer at the National Cancer Institute.

Government data, long the only source of information about American eating habits, can have a lag of several years and neglect entire categories of new types of products — Greek yogurt or energy drinks, for example.

With those significant gaps, the government information fails to account for the rapid change now seen in the marketplace. Now more than ever, companies are reformulating products on the fly as they try to make them healthier or better tasting.

While consumers may not notice changes in the ingredient panel on the back of the package, the UNC study will pick up small variations in individual items and also begin to be able to tell how much the marketplace as a whole is evolving.

“When we are done we will probably see 20 percent change in the food supply in a year,” Popkin says. “The food supply is changing and no one really knows how.”

For example, the researchers have found that there has been an increase in using fruit concentrate as a sweetener in foods and beverages because of a propensity toward natural foods, even though it isn’t necessarily healthier than other sugars. While the soda and chocolate milk have more calories on average than the government thought, the federal numbers were more accurate on the calories in milk and cereals.

Popkin and his researchers are hoping their project will only be the beginning of a map that consumers, companies, researchers and even the government can use, breaking the data down to find out who is eating what and where they shop. Is there a racial divide in the brand of potato chips purchased, for example, and what could that mean for health? Does diet depend on where you buy your food — the grocery store or the convenience store? How has the recession affected dietary intake?

“It’s only since I’ve really started digging into this that I have realized how little we know about what we are eating,” says Meghan Slining, a UNC nutrition professor and researcher on the project.

Steven Gortmaker, director of the Harvard School of Public Health Prevention Research Center, says the data could help researchers figure out how people are eating in certain communities and then how to address problems in those diets that could lead to obesity or disease.

“The more information we have, the more scientists can be brainstorming about what kinds of interventions or policy changes we could engage in,” Gortmaker said.

But the information doesn’t include restaurant meals and some prepared foods, about one-third of what Americans eat. If the project receives continued funding, those foods eventually could be added to the study, a prospect that would be made easier by pending menu labeling regulations that will force chain restaurants to post calories for every item.

Popkin and his researchers say that packaged foods have long been the hardest to monitor because of the sheer volume and rapid change in the marketplace.

The Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation, an industry group representing the 16 companies that made the pledge to reduce 1.5 trillion calories, says it will report this summer on how successful they’ve been, according to Lisa Gable, the group’s president. The first results from Popkin’s study aren’t expected until later this year.

Marion Nestle, a New York University professor of nutrition, food studies and public health, says the data could be useful in pressuring companies to make more changes for the better. Companies often use “the research isn’t there” as a defense against making changes recommended by public health groups, she notes, and it can be hard to prove them wrong.

“What people eat is the great mystery of nutrition,” Nestle says. “It would be wonderful to have a handle on it.”

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Horry (OR-ee) County Sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Jeff Benton says 50-year-old Deputy Timothy Causey died Sunday at the Medical University of South Carolina.

Benton said Causey was hospitalized for smoke inhalation and acute respiratory following the fire. He was later transferred to the Medical University in Charleston where doctors diagnosed him with the swine flu, he developed pneumonia, and was placed in a medically induced coma.

The exact cause of death was not immediately available. Causey was a 25-year veteran of law enforcement and had worked for the Horry County Sheriff’s Office for two years.

The March fire displaced 190 people.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, the suspects fled the area by vehicle and crashed after a police pursuit. A foot chase followed near Mint Hill, and police arrested one suspect.

Two additional suspects took off on foot after the crash.

As of 10:15 a.m., CMPD reported that all three suspects had been taken into custody.

-Nichole Jaworski, CBS Charlotte

(This story is still developing. Stay with CBS Charlotte for updates as they become available.)

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People plans the latest demonstration on Monday aimed at the policies of the Republican-led General Assembly.

Arrests have grown every week of what the group calls “Moral Mondays,” totaling 96.

The NAACP and other activists have directed their anger at policies on social programs, voting rights, education and tax reform. They argue decisions to refuse Medicaid expansion, cut unemployment benefits, require photo identification at the polls, and other actions show a disregard for the state’s most vulnerable residents.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Troopers say the fatal incident happened Sunday evening near the Jasper County community of Yemassee. Southbound traffic on I-95 was rerouted for almost three hours.

Highway Patrol Sgt. Bob Beres says the female passenger was riding in a southbound 1993 Buick 4-door driven by a 58-year-old Savannah, Ga., man. Beres says the unidentified female came out of the moving car and was struck and killed by a Freightliner tractor-trailer headed southbound in the next lane.

The patrol didn’t release the passenger’s age and other information.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

ASHEBORO, N.C. (AP) — A 2-year-old boy is recovering after Randolph County deputies say he found a handgun inside his home, put it in his mouth, and the weapon fired.

Deputies say the toddler found his father’s .45-caliber handgun in his parents’ bedroom on Saturday.

Authorities say the boy is expected to survive after being taken to a Winston-Salem hospital. Sheriff’s Capt. Derrick Hill says the bullet missed vital arteries in the neck and head, as well as the child’s spinal cord.

The names of the child and his parents haven’t been released.

The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office and the district attorney will decide if the parents should be charged for leaving the pistol improperly locked.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Senate Republicans are ready to talk about their North Carolina state government spending proposal for the next two years.

The GOP budget-writers scheduled a news conference Monday to discuss the plan that would spend $20.6 billion for the year starting July 1 — about the same Gov. Pat McCrory wants. Budget committees will discuss the plan later in the day on the way to the first recorded floor vote Wednesday.

The spending plan contains measures from Senate leader Phil Berger that would eliminate teacher tenure and start a merit-pay system in the fall of 2014. But there’s no pay increase this coming year for state employees and teachers.

The budget also would raise Medicaid spending by well over $300 million next year compared to this year.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

When you think of an “all-around” basketball player, Pinson fits the bill.  He can shoot, pass and defend.  Being a jack of all trades, its easy to see why Rivals recruiting service has him ranked as the #15 overall player in the 2014 class.  Pinson was expected to just narrow his list down in the near future so this announcement comes as a bit of a shock to recruiting analysts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z70xsVFTF3I

Indiana and UNC are the schools you will hear most analysts spit out, in reference to where Pinson will end up but the young man grew up a Duke fan and you can never count Coach K out of a recruitment.  The only official visit Theo has made to any college is to Indiana and that will be the only one he takes.  Aside from multiple un-official visits to Chapel Hill to watch games, UNC never got him on campus for an official.  That would seem to be an advantage for Indiana given Roy Williams’ track record recently when he gets kids on campus for official visits (see Joel Berry and Justin Jackson) during their junior year.  Both Berry, a 6’1 PG and Jackson a 6’7 forward have committed to UNC.

This recruitment just feels like a 3-horse race with Indiana leading as they make the turn down the stretch.  We all will find out for sure Wednesday afternoon.

The Department of Transportation said its crews will begin to demolish the N.C. Highway 73 bridge over I-85 Sunday night. They will closed lanes on the highway on exit and on ramps periodically as the work continues.

The work will take place from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. It is part of a project to widen I-85 to eight lanes in the area.

The DOT says the work to demolish the bridge should be finished by Wednesday morning.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Former Panthers general manager Marty Hurney, who as put together some of the worst contracts and draft picks of any general manager in NFL history, gave Beason a five-year, $50 million contract. The last two seasons, Beason has played in five games and made $20 million.

Not only that, Beason, 28, has lost his starting spot and will be playing a position he hasn’t played. Then there’s all the injuries to several different joints, including a rupture of his Achilles tendon.

Panthers certainly haven gotten their monies worth right?

I said aloud numerous times that the Panthers should play hardball with Beason and almost demand a restructuring of his contract, or tell him in no uncertain terms they will release him at the end of the season, or maybe even this season, if he didn’t.

Those with other monstrous contracts have done so, such as Jordan Gross, DeAngelo Williams, Ryan Kalil and Jonathan Stewart. None really had to, but they did for the good of the team and for the opportunity to stay with the team longer. By doing so, some even guaranteed themselves more money after this year as opposed to being released.

Those players also knew that the only way Carolina was going to get better was to bring in some free agents to help out a secondary that is the worst in the NFL, as well as other positions, and that the only way it could do that was to give the team more salary cap room by redoing their deals.

But not Beason.

The Panthers owe him another whopping $10 million for this season. And he will get it, which is a shame.

Carolina should tell him, if you restructure your deal this year by taking a 50 percent pay cut, we will guarantee you money next year, as well. They could also load it with incentives and reward him for helping out the team this year.

However, apparently that’s not going to happen. By all accounts, Beason isn’t going to restructure. And if true, that speaks volumes.

And because of that, regardless of what type of season he has, the Panthers should cut him at the end of the season. He won’t help them, so they shouldn’t help him.

He’s simply not worth it.

Couple notes before we get started.

*Derrick Rose, Kevin Love and Kobe Bryant are based off the assumption they will be healthy when the new year starts

*I actually forgot Andrew Bynum still played in the NBA. My bad. I honestly have no clue what to even think about him right now

*J.R. Smith was dropped down multiple spots when the news came out that he was  pretty much shutdown by Rihanna during the playoffs.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN

I expect most of the players in this tier to make a move up by the time we do this next season. Most of these Guys that had a breakout season, are poised to, or still have a lot to prove.

DeMar DeRozen: Can score at a pretty high level.Needs the rest of his game to follow
Nikola Pekovic: Averaged 16 and 8 without Kevin Love playing much
Monta Ellis: Solid player that never seems to make his team that much better
Chandler Parsons: Really came on strong in the style the Rockets play.
Nikola Vucevic: Was 2nd in the league in rebounds per game.
Greivis Vasquez: Had a breakout year 13ppg and 9apg without much help from the 2 guard spot
Klay Thompson: Terrific shooter.Will only get better playing with Curry.Defense needs to improve
John Wall: Averaged 18 and 7 when he returned.Lookout for the back court of Wall  and Beal going forward
DeMarcus Cousins:Talent isn’t the issue. Lack of maturity and playing in Sacramento are the problems.
Rudy Gay: Here is how I look at it.How did trading him away impact the Grizzlies? Exactly.
Anthony Davis: Of course he will move way up.Looking forward to seeing a fresh and healthy AD in the fall.
Kemba Walker: Shows flashes of brilliance at times.Numbers in 1st half of season were better than Deron Williams who some say was snubbed for ASG
Brandon Jennings: I really do like him a lot.Needs to get away from Monta Ellis like NBC needs to get away from Matthew Perry comedies.
Anderson Varejao: Was leading the league in rebounding before he went down. Which always seems to happen
Danilo Gallinari: Great outside shooter who was sorely missed in GS series.I speak Italian as well as he plays defense however.
Ryan Anderson: Outstanding 3 point shooter who I think will get more credit and become more valuable once Anthony Davis emerges more.
Avery Bradley: If a certain player made this list for defense (number 50) than AB needs a mention.His on ball defense is as good as it gets right now
Manu Ginobili:Still can ball. Still clutch.FG percentage dropped 10 percent this year and only averaged 11ppg though

TIER 4

50 Tony Allen:Better offensive players left off but this is a nod to the best perimeter defender in the league

49 Greg Monroe:Has been solid but would like to see him take his game to another level soon

48 Larry Sanders: One of the breakout players of 2013. Rebounded and defended at an elite level.Will he remain a Buck? They also have John Henson who does similar things

47 Kenneth Faried: “Manimal” is one of my favorite players to watch and will keep moving up the list

46 Mike Conley: Questioned the contract he got but he is perfect for what Memphis tries to do.Solid not spectacular

45 Paul Pierce:Still one of the most clutch players in the game but really struggled in the playoff series against NY

44 Jamal Crawford: If this was just based off pure scoring he would probably be a top 12 player

43 J.R Smith: See Jamal Crawford.

42 Jeff Green: The face he is even in the league after his health issues is amazing.The future of the Celtics along with Rondo

41 Pau Gasol: Will be interesting to see how the latter part of his career goes. Does he regain form or will injuries take a toll?

40 Andre Iguodala: I think he has peaked. Your getting a very solid player with AI but won’t reach star status

39 Kevin Garnett: Still a top 5 player mentally and on defense but the legs are starting to go

TIER 3

38 Damian Lillard:Might seem a little high but had one of the better rookie seasons in recent memory

37 Al Horford: Much like Iguodala you just kind of know what you’re getting game in and game out.Good player, not great.Interested to see him without Josh Smith and how that affects him either way.

36 Joe Johnson: Of course he can still score but it seems like teams are always trying to figure out how to get out of his contract as soon as they get him

35 Ty Lawson: Seems to be getting better by the year.Would like to see his assist numbers go up to the 8-9-10 range with all the good offensive talent he has surrounding him

34 Joakim Noah:The heart and soul of the Bulls.Perfect for that team, coach, and city.Love what he does.

33 Al Jefferson:One of the best low post scorers in the game despite never leaving his feet. Should get big money in July

32 Luol Deng:One of the more underrated players in the league.Always plays great defense and a ton of minutes.You could argue he is as important for what he does for the Bulls as Rose

31 Josh Smith:I have no idea what to think of him anymore.Top 10 skill set but settles too much from the outside.Fascinated to see if he becomes elite on a new team

30 David Lee: Led the league in double doubles but his defense keeps him a notch below other bigs

29 Jrue Holiday:Just 22 years old and blossoming.Made first all-star team despite losing Iggy and Bynum not playing

TIER 2

28 Blake Griffin: May seem low but is he really getting any better? Good player, lots of highlights, but may never be great.

27 LaMarcus Aldridge: Led the NBA with 16 games of 25 plus points and 10 plus rebounds

26 Tyson Chandler: He has many Offensive deficiencies and whines too much to refs but still one of the top defensive players in the game.Slipping a little though

25 Serge Ibaka: Struggled against Memphis shooting wise but is only 23 years old and is one of the elite shot blockers/defenders in the game

24 Roy Hibbert: I struggled with his ranking.At times he plays like a top 10-15 player but there are stretches where he disappears and doesn’t impact the game as much as he should

23 Brook Lopez: One of the elite offensive big man in the game.Doesn’t rebound well but he has Reggie Evans there to handle the dirty work

22 Dirk Nowitzki:Down year but I think he has a couple more years left at a Dirk like level.Mavericks will put better pieces around him

21 Zach Randolph: Was an absolute monster against the Thunder.Lot of miles on him but still only 31 and in his prime

20 Chris Bosh: We saw how important he is to the Heat in the playoffs last year.Not a great rebounder but always seems to hit big shots when the Heat need to him

19 Tim Duncan: Colin and I watched him play in 2009 against the Bobcats because we figured that was the last chance we would get.He was dragging his leg around.4 years later and he is going strong again.Seems like he will be like Mariano Rivera and not the leave his sport with his skills diminishing.

18 Kyrie Irving: If you’re doing the debate on who to start a franchise with he is probably 3rd behind LBJ and KD.Needs to commit to defense though before he moves up this list

17 Paul George: He scores, he passes, he rebounds, and we have seen in the Knicks series how well he defends.Should be a valuable member of Team USA in the future.Only 23.

16 Rajon Rondo: We have seen how great he can be surrounded by Hall of Famers but the real test is going to come when Garnett and Pierce are gone. Does he have the maturity to be the team leader? Will he be as good without great players around him? Jury is out.

15 Tony Parker: One of the most underrated players in the NBA.Entertaining to watch.Still only 31 with years left but we need to start discussing his credentials for the Hall of Fame.

14 Dwight Howard:I’m not a huge fan but I will chalk up this past season as a down one due to injuries.Seems to have more maturity issues than anyone listed but I think we will get the monster Dwight Howard on both ends of the court wherever he chooses to play.

TIER 1

13 Marc Gasol: Was the best big man in the league this season.Won the defensive player of the year award and his ability to pass the ball is vital to the Grizzlies success.Little turnaround shot is nearly unstoppable when hitting.Only averaged 7 rebounds per game but part of that is due to Randolph getting 11 per game

12 Kevin Love: Of course he makes it this high based off past years and not his injury plagued 2013 season in which he only played in 18 games. Averaged 18 points and 14 rebounds in the games he did play.Looking forward to him getting out of Minnesota so we can see him play with better players. One of my favorite players.

11 Steph Curry:If the ankles hold up there is no reason he can’t be in the top 10 for the next decade.One of the best shooters of all time and becoming an elite passer.Defense leaves a little to be desired but you can say that for a lot of guys on this list

10 Carmelo Anthony:The leading scorer and best mid range shooter in the league.He is flawed at times with his shot selection and defensive effort but there are few players who can do what he does.Needs to advance further in the playoffs but getting the Knicks to a 2 seed from where they were is a great start. He is not the new Stephon Marbury despite what some “experts”will tell you

9 Dwyane Wade: I really have no clue how to rank Wade at this moment.It seems like every time we think the injuries are too much for him to handle he bounces back and goes into beast mode. Lets revisit him again when the finals are over. If he only averages 12ppg the rest of the playoffs we will know he really isn’t right.

8 Deron Williams:Played like the best PG in the league the 2nd half of the season after a brutal start.When he is motivated he as good as any guard in the game but goes through these long stretches when he doesn’t seem engaged.I rank him this high as the Deron Williams that finished the season and not the chubbier one from November.

7 Chris Paul: Was shocked to see the LA Times piece that Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan had issues with him as a teammate.That goes against everything we have heard about him. Great leader, arguably the best PG in the game but we are at the point where he needs to start winning and advancing deeper in the players before the pressure really gets on him. I have no idea where he will sign this summer but I would guess the Clippers minus some of the guys who had issues with him.

6 James Harden: Proved me wrong. Wasn’t sure he could be the main guy on a team but he was sensational.Now he needs to lead the Rockets past the 8th seed. He does have an aggressive GM who will certainly make an effort to surround him with talent.They have room for a max contract. Dwight Howard perhaps?

5 Russell Westbrook: Outside of LBJ there isn’t a better athlete in the league today.We finally saw just how important he was to the Thunder when he got hurt against Houston. It’s easy to pick out his flaws but I think we need to realize what a special talent he is and enjoy him for what he is.

4 Derrick Rose: Even though he will have to wear a name tag to training camp I still rank him this high based off how great I think he still will be. Gonna be interesting to see how he adjusts his game when he returns.Part of what made him great was his leaping ability and how special he was off the bounce in the lane. He may not do all of the things we remember but the great ones adapt and I think he will

3 Kobe Bryant: Are we really counting the Mamba out? One of the great competitors in league history? A little stem cell in the off-season and he will be back at his 27ppg level by December. I just cannot see Kobe coming back at anything other than an elite level.

2 Kevin Durant: Really struggled to find his shot for long stretches without Westbrook. Still the 2nd best player in the game and I don’t think its even close really.Will win a championship in time but getting multiple ones will be tough in the Lebron James era.

1 LeBron James: There is no debate on where he ranks among the current players.The debate is going to be his rank all time.Some say he has already passed Magic. Is Jordan in sight? Sure is as long as he keeps winning championships.The most elite athlete we have ever seen in the NBA.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation reported that the accident happened around 2 p.m. today. The road was later reopened about an hour after the initial report was received.

It is not clear at this time how many cars were involved in the accident, whether or not there were any fatalities.

Drivers are being urged to avoid the area.

-Nichole Jaworski, CBS Charlotte

(This story is still developing. Stay with CBS Charlotte for updates as they become available.)

Officials say 1st Lt. Paul Demeo of Derry, N.H., died Tuesday at Womack Army Medical Center on base.

Army officials are investigating the circumstances of his death, and aren’t releasing any additional information.

Demeo was a platoon leader assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

His commander, Lt. Col. J.C. White, says Demeo was a charismatic leader who cared deeply for his fellow soldiers and left a lasting impression on them.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Fisherman found Dorien Jackson’s body in Lake Townsend nearly two months after he was last seen leaving his Greensboro home on his bicycle after getting a message from a friend.

An autopsy report released this week said Jackson died from a gunshot to the back of his neck that injured his spine before exiting from his mouth.

Jackson’s body was so decomposed from being in the water that he had to be identified through fingerprints.

Greensboro police are looking for clues to determine who killed the teen.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Witnesses told police that two men on scooters shot and killed 22-year-old Dantae Stokes on Thursday afternoon.

Officers arrested 22-year-old Byron Smyre on Friday. He is charged with murder. A murder warrant has also been issued for 18-year-old Dewayne Pickett. It wasn’t known if either man had an attorney.

Investigators have released little information on what led to the shooting or whether the victim and suspects knew each other.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

So, what’s my reaction?

Measured excitement.

Like most Charlotte basketball fans, I remember how fun the Hive used to be, how proud we used to be of our basketball team. That feeling faded of over time. It’s impossible to say when. George Shinn had legal problems, pressed for a new stadium and left town. Bob Johnson brought us a new team. He also gave it an unpopular name, was rarely seen around town, insulted our community and failed to assemble a winning organization. In nine seasons, the Bobcats have yet to win a playoff game.

Changing the name will help turn the page on a decade of forgettable basketball – if the product on the floor changes. I happen to believe that General Manager Rich Cho has the organization trending in the right direction, but I also know that several members of the old regime are still a part of the current organization. You know, the regime that drafted Adam Morrison and Alexis Ajinca, the regime that will soon name its fourth head coach since December of 2010.

Still, I’m excited because the rebrand offers an opportunity to erase those bad memories. The organization will have a new head coach and will likely have four first round picks over the next two years. If Cho and company make the right decisions, they could build the winning foundation we’ve been missing over the last decade.

It also brings home a name the community loves, a name that was meant for our community.

I’m glad we can break out the purple and teal.

Here’s to hoping it accompanies a few more wins.

~Lewis Woodard, WFNZ Sports Radio The Fan 610 AM

Find Lewis on Twitter @LewWoodard

The Wake County Sheriff’s Office said 33-year-old Misty Michelle Mullins was shot after breaking into a second home around midday Friday. Deputies responded to a 911 call that a woman had broken into a previous home and threatened the resident with a garden rake.

Three officers say they entered the second house and tried to subdue Mullins with stun guns as she charged at them with a knife or a machete. Authorities say Deputy Gabriel Romero then shot and killed Mullins.

A standing protective order barred Mullins from one of the homes.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

For months insiders have told me that changing the Charlotte Bobcats name to the Charlotte Hornets was inevitable. Will Brinson of CBSSports.com reported on Friday night that those wheels are firmly in motion, as digital assets for the name are being acquired and a new website domain was purchased by the NBA earlier this week.

I prefer Hornets over Bobcats for two major reasons. First, it’s the nickname that put Charlotte on the map nationally in the late 80′s. Greensboro and Greenville are great cities, but without the Hornets coming to town in the late 80′s, Charlotte would feel just like those towns. It wasn’t the city’s decision to abandon the name. It was a shamed owner, George Shinn, that left town with his tail between his legs. The name isn’t synonymous with him, it’s synonymous with Charlotte.

But the other reason might be the biggest. Even though Charlotte should be grateful to Bobcat Johnson for quickly bringing the NBA back to town, the franchise has gotten off to an awful start in its first decade. The name Bobcats is synonymous with losing and one man’s nickname. Quite frankly, Johnson was one of the worst owners in American professional sports history. Changing the name back to Hornets does not make the team any better on the floor, but it does eliminate a name that conjures up thoughts of futility on and off of the floor.

Sure, putting a product on the floor that the community can get excited about is far more important than your nickname. But changing your name to the Charlotte Hornets is a branding move that the community can be proud of, while getting rid of a moniker that only embarrassed them.

It’s time to turn off the lights in Time Warner Cable Arena and watch a caped creature named Hugo fly down from the rafters. Now, on to this winning thing…