NW Sports from the AP

AP-NW–1st SportsMinute,243
Here is the latest Washington, Oregon and Alaska sports news from
The Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Gary Bell Jr. had 18 points, Elias Harris
added 17 points and 10 rebounds and Gonzaga (17-3, 7-1 West Coast)
beat Portland 74-62 Thursday night for its 18th straight win in the
series. Ryan Nicholas had all 13 of his points and eight of his 10
rebounds in the first half for the Pilots (5-16, 2-6), who have
lost five in a row.

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) – Kyle Fogg scored 20 points and Solomon Hill
17, leading a shower of Arizona 3-pointers that buried Washington
State 85-61 on Thursday night. Brock Motum scored 18 for Washington
State (11-9, 3-5). In Tempe, Tony Wroten scored 22 points and ended
a pair of rallies with three-point plays, lifting Washington to a
60-54 win over Arizona State.

SEATTLE (AP) – Seattle manager Eric Wedge says he’s leaning
toward moving Ichiro Suzuki out of the leadoff spot as a way to
improve the Mariners’ anemic offense. During the Mariners’
pre-spring training luncheon on Thursday, Wedge said he’s
considered the No. 2 and No. 3 spots in the Mariners batting order
for Suzuki, while thinking about Dustin Ackley, Chone Figgins and
Franklin Gutierrez as options for the leadoff role.

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) – Former Seahawks quarterback Jon Kitna was
hired as the football coach at Lincoln High School in Tacoma after
retiring from a 15-year NFL career. Kitna was introduced Thursday.
He was recently hired at his old high school as a math teacher.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

AP-NY-01-27-12 0531EST