Reuters U.S. Sports Schedule at 2 PM EST on Tuesday, March 24

March 24 (Reuters) - Reuters U.S. sports schedule at 2 PM ET on Tuesday: - - - - The duty editor is Steve Ginsburg, 202-898-8427 - - - - NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE Health, safety at forefront as medical TOs approved PHOENIX - A week after All-Rookie linebacker Chris Borland retired, owners unanimously approve "medical timeouts" triggered by trainers and concussion spotters. Here's how coaches weighed in on the safety of the game and recent early retirements. (FBN-NEWS/PLAYERSAFETY/, expect by 5 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, by Howard Balzer, 750-850 words) - - Whisenhunt: Titans would start Mariota If Marcus Mariota is the No. 2 overall pick, he would also be the No. 1 quarterback on the depth chart with the Tennessee Titans. (FBN-TITANS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 405 words) - - Steelers remain mum on Polamalu PHOENIX - Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin says there is nothing new with Troy Polamalu. With it looking more likely he won't return and coordinator Dick LeBeau gone, what will the Pittsburgh defense look like in 2015? (FBN-STEELERS-NEWS/, expect by 5 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - Browns expect Manziel back in April Johnny Manziel is expected to be back on the field with the Cleveland Browns next month following the completion of months of treatment. (FBN-BROWNS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - Lions GM glad Suh contract is Dolphins' problem Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh was a headache for opponents in the NFC North, but Lions general manager Martin Mayhew is relieved his salary is not his franchise's burden. (FBN-LIONS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 437 words) - - Cowboys keep run-first vision minus Murray Darren McFadden, Ryan Williams, Lance Dunbar and Joseph Randle might not be the answer, but the Dallas Cowboys will find one before the 2015 season, coach Jason Garrett said. (FBN-COWBOYS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 451 words) - - Chargers GM: QB Rivers 'our guy' Quarterback Philip Rivers has reservations about a commitment to the San Diego Chargers with a potential relocation to Los Angeles in play, but the franchise is not parting with its quarterback according to general manager Tom Telesco. (FBN-CHARGERS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 460 words) - - Bears sign DE Jenkins Former second-round pick Jarvis Jenkins signs with the Chicago Bears, who will use the 320-pound defensive lineman at end in their new 3-4 defense. (FBN-BEARS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 175 words) - - Texans' Watt converts bonus to create cap space Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, the 2014 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, agrees to convert a $10 million roster bonus to a signing bonus, creating a salary cap savings of $8 million for Houston. (FBN-TEXANS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 300 words) - - NFL roundup News and notes from around the league. (FBN-NOTEBOOK/, expect by 7:45 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - - - NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION Nash reflects on the end of his stellar career EL SEGUNDO, Calif. - Canadian point guard Steve Nash, an eight-time All-Star who was twice honored as the NBA's most valuable player, talks about his decision over the weekend to retire from competitive basketball at the age of 41 after suffering assorted injuries over the past two years. (NBA-LAKERS/NASH (PIX), expect by 7:30 PM ET, by Mark Lamport-Stokes, 400 words) - - TSX covers all NBA games, highlighted matchup below - - Golden State at Portland PORTLAND, Oregon - A pair of Western Conference teams heading in opposite directions hook up at the Moda Center when the front-running Golden State Warriors, winners of six straight, visit the Portland Trail Blazers, a club riding a four-game losing streak but holding on to fourth place in the conference. (BKN-WARRIORS-TRAILBLAZERS-FIRSTLEDE-WRITETHRU/ (PIX), expect ASAP after the 10:30 PM ET scheduled tip-off, The Sports Xchange, 400-word first lede, 700-word writethru) - - Today's NBA schedule at a glance Toronto at Detroit, 7:30 PM ET (PIX) Miami at Milwaukee, 8 PM ET (PIX) Los Angeles Lakers at Oklahoma City, 8 PM ET (PIX) San Antonio at Dallas, 8 PM ET (PIX) Philadelphia at Sacramento, 10 PM ET (PIX) Golden State at Portland, 10:30 PM ET (PIX) - - NBA Roundup Roundup of all of the day's action in the NBA. (BKN-ROUNDUP/, running copy beginning with the end of the first game of the day, The Sports Xchange, 500 words) - - NBA Notebook The latest moves and news from the NBA. (BKN-NOTEBOOK/, expect by 6 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 350 words) - - - - COLLEGE BASKETBALL Arizona State parts with Sendek Head coach Herb Sendek will not return to Arizona State next season. (BKC-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 200 words) - - - - PREP BASKETBALL Simmons named HS player of the year Ben Simmons, who moved from Australia to Florida to play high school basketball, is named Gatorade National Player of the Year. (MSC-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 200 words) - - - - MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL Uggla makes a bid for Nationals' Opening Day roster Dan Uggla is making a bid to make the Opening Day roster of the Washington Nationals. (BBO-NATIONALS-NEWS/, expect by 5 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, by David Driver, 450 words) - - Miami Marlins spring report A spring training snapshot from Miami Marlins camp. (BBO-MARLINS-NEWS/, expect by 8 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - New York Mets spring report A spring training snapshot from New York Mets camp. (BBO-METS-NEWS/, expect by 8 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - Atlanta Braves spring report A spring training snapshot from Atlanta Braves camp. (BBO-BRAVES-NEWS/, expect by 8 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - - - NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Injury sidelines Bruins' Hamilton The Boston Bruins will be without defenseman Dougie Hamilton for an indefinite period because of an undisclosed injury, coach Claude Julien says. (HKN-BRUINS-NEWS/, moved, The Sports Xchange, 225 words) - - TSX covers all NHL games, highlighted matchup below - - Los Angeles at New York Rangers NEW YORK - The New York Rangers can take over sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference if they can beat the Los Angeles Kings, a club that can move into a tie with Calgary for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West if they can leave Madison Square Garden with a win. (HKN-RANGERS-KINGS-FIRSTLEDE-WRITETHRU/ (PIX), expect ASAP after the 7 PM ET scheduled start, The Sports Xchange, 400-word first lede, 700-word writethru) - - Today's NHL schedule at a glance Minnesota at New York Islanders, 7 PM ET (PIX) Los Angeles at New York Rangers, 7 PM ET (PIX) St. Louis at Pittsburgh, 7 PM ET (PIX) Anaheim at Columbus, 7 PM ET (PIX) Arizona at Detroit, 7:30 PM ET (PIX) Florida at Tampa Bay, 7:30 PM ET (PIX) Montreal at Nashville, 8 PM ET (PIX) Winnipeg at Vancouver, 10 PM ET (PIX) - - NHL roundup Running capsule recaps of all the games on the NHL schedule Tuesday. (HKN-ROUNDUP/, expect first version ASAP after 7 PM ET games end, The Sports Xchange, 500 words) - - NHL Notebook The latest moves and news from the NHL. (HKN-NOTEBOOK/, expect by 6 PM ET, The Sports Xchange, 350 words) - - - - HORSE RACING California Chrome ready for Dubai race, trainers say DUBAI - California Chrome's trainers say the Kentucky Derby and Preakness champion has been working well since his 25-hour flight to the Middle East where he will compete in the world's richest race on Saturday. (HORSERACING/DUBAI-CHROME (PIX), moved, by Martin Dokoupil, 317 words) - - - - SOCCER UEFA loves FIFA dearly, says re-elected Platini VIENNA - Michel Platini is re-elected by acclamation as UEFA president for a third term and immediately tells Congress delegates not to believe everything they've heard about the confederation's relationship with FIFA. (SOCCER-UEFA/PLATINI (UPDATE 1, PIX, TV), moved, by Mike Collett, 380 words) See also: Blatter forced to sit through stinging criticism of leadership (SOCCER-UEFA/CANDIDATES) - - - - JURISPRUDENCE Roots of accused Boston bomber's note argued at trial BOSTON - Lawyers for accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and a terrorism expert serving as a prosecution witness argue over whether the defendant was paraphrasing Al Qaeda propaganda in a note he left four days after the deadly attack. (BOSTON BOMBINGS-TRIAL/ (UPDATE 1, moved; will be led, 477 words) - - ADVISORY: If former NFL Pro Bowl safety Darren Sharper pleads guilty today to sexual assault in Las Vegas, we will have a story. (US-USA-NFL-SHARPER/) - - - - OLYMPICS Backers of Boston Olympics call for statewide referendum BOSTON - The backers of Boston's bid to host the 2024 Olympic Games call for a statewide referendum in 2016 on whether the bid should go forward, adding that they will abandon the attempt without majority support statewide and in Boston. (OLYMPICS-USA/BOSTON (UPDATE 1, PIX), moved, by Scott Malone, 424 words) - - South Korean Park apologizes after doping ban SEOUL - Former Olympic swimming champion Park Tae-hwan apologizes to his fans after the South Korean is handed an 18-month ban for failing a drug test. (SWIMMING-PARK/APOLOGY (PIX), moved, 306 words) - - FEATURE: 'Archery's Neymar' eager to hit Rio Games target MARICA - He has already been dubbed "Archery's Neymar" and now 17-year-old Marcus Vinicius D'Almeida is being tipped to be one of Brazil's top medal prospects at next year's Rio Olympics. (BRAZIL-OLYMPICS/ARCHERY (FEATURE, PIX, TV), moved, by Andrew Downie, 606 words) - - Mayor: Water won't be clean, but sailing will go ahead RIO DE JANEIRO - Rio de Janeiro's inability to clean the waters where Olympic sailing events will take place next year is a lost opportunity for the city but it will not affect the smooth running of the races, mayor Eduardo Paes says. (OLYMPICS-BRAZIL/SAILING-CLEANUP (PIX), moved, by Andrew Downie, 352 words) See also: Cavendish says Olympic ambitions would harm career (CYCLING-CAVENDISH/) - - - - FITNESS 'Prince of Tides' author Pat Conroy to open fitness studio CHARLESTON, S.C. - After bad health habits nearly killed him, "The Prince of Tides" author Pat Conroy says he's opening a fitness studio near his South Carolina home to help him stay healthy enough to write several more books. (PEOPLE-CONROY/FITNESS, moved, 258 words) - - - - SAILING Four Ocean Race boats tipped over in Southern Ocean 'mayhem' ALICANTE, Spain - Four boats in the Volvo Ocean Race fleet keel over in the Southern Ocean as the fleet experiences its roughest conditions since the event started last October. Team Alvimedica (Turkey/U.S.), which stayed upright, is in third place. The boats are still expected to arrive in their leg five destination, Itajaí, Brazil, around April 4, having left Auckland, New Zealand, on March 18. - - - - ROBOT RACING FEATURE-Robot racing sparks students' scientific enthusiasm WORCESTER, Mass. - A hefty robot designed for search-and-rescue and a spindly four-legged rival that bounds along on hydraulic limbs will face off next month along with more than a dozen other entrants in the debut Vecna Robot Sprint Challenge outside Boston. (USA-ROBOTS/RACE (PIX), moved, By Scott Malone, 600 words) - - - - NORTH AMERICAN SPORTS Roundups of off-field developments in the major North American professional sports leagues. (Expect by 8 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 400 words)