FT.LAUDERDALE***As this Super Bowl week winds down,the biggest question is whether the Colts Dwight Freeney will play Sunday,or even be active. Freeney has torn ligaments in his ankle,and has not practiced all week.Each Colt player I talked to on Wednesday said that they pretty much all are NOT expecting Freeney to play.

***The neat local angle here has a pair of Chicagoans and former Fighting Illini teammates set to play against one another for the first time on any level. Kelvyn Hayden of Indianapolis is from Hubbard High School and returned a pass he intercepted(off Rex Grossman)for the Super Bowl clinching touchdown three years ago.Hayden grew up a Bears fan,and said he still roots for them against anyone other than his Colts.Pierre Thomas,who has emerged as a big running threat for the Saints, said he hoped to run into Hayden during Sunday’s game.

***It should be in the upper 80’s here in South Florida today but it should cool down to a high of the upper 60’s by Sunday.The very good news is that there is no rain in the current forecast for Sunday.

***Today is the news conference for the Halftime Show which will this year feature The Who. Pete Towsend and Roger Daltry are expected to take part in today’s session.It will be interesting to see if Townsend’s pedophile incident is brought up.

***Friday is the annual Commissioner news conference,and the Commissioner’s Party is Friday night. 

LES

The St. Louis Blues played like a much different team than the one the Blackhawks saw a month ago on the night Davis Payne took over as interim coach.Catching the Blackhawks in their first home game since a two-week, eight-game road trip, the Blues got two goals from David Backes and scored three times in the second period to beat the Hawks 3-2 Wednesday.Chris Mason had 32 saves as St. Louis improved to 8-5-3 since Payne replaced Andy Murray.St. Louis scored three times in the final 8:26 of the second — the second and third goals coming 69 seconds apart — to spoil the Hawks  first game at home since Jan. 14. The Blackhawks had gone 5-3 on a trip that took them to both coasts and covered nearly 7,800 miles.The change to Payne has given the Blues a lift.Jay McClement also had a goal for the Blues, who had 19 shots. Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa scored for thew Hawks.McClement scored from in-close by deflecting in a shot from teammate Roman Polak with 22 seconds to go in the second period, making it 3-1.Backes’ second goal, with 1:31 left in the second, came on the power play when his shot from the left circle went between Cristobal Huet’s legs to put the Blues up 2-1.About seven minutes earlier, Paul Kariya raced behind the net to get the puck after Duncan Keith had tried to bank it off the boards and fed it back to Backes in the right circle. His shot went whizzing past Huet to make it 1-1.Hossa had a short-handed goal at 4:16 of the final period, taking a nice pass from Jonathan Toews to make it 3-2, but then Mason held off the Blackhawks.Kane scored on a breakaway, picking up the puck after a blocked shot by teammate Troy Brouwer and skating in to beat Mason just 2:40 into the game.Mason stopped wraparound attempts by Toews and Dustin Byfuglien and denied Hossa at the end of a 2-on-1 break to keep the Blues close in the opening period. St. Louis managed just three shots in the first 20 minutes.The Blues had their best scoring chance of the opening period when Brad Boyes got the puck on a turnover from Keith but couldn’t connect at the end of the breakaway just before the horn sounded.

 NOTES—Blackhawks C Dave Bolland was activated from injured reserve before the game and made his first appearance since undergoing back surgery Nov. 10. He got a loud ovation when he hit the ice for the first time. …The Blackhawks also recalled G Joe Fallon from Rockford of the AHL. He replaced backup Antti Niemi, who was supposed to start against the Blues but was ill….The Blues got their first win in three meetings with Chicago this season. The longtime rivals play three more times this season….Hossa has four short-handed goals this season….The Blues continued to play better on the road where they are 16-8-4.

PHILADELPHIA—Andre Iguodala wasn’t bothered by his first five misses from 3-point territory.So he went to his favorite spot on the floor for his sixth attempt.Elton Brand scored 26 points, and Iguodala had 25 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to help the Philadelphia 76ers rally for a 106-103 overtime victory over the Bulls on Wednesday night.Iguodala’s clutch 3-pointer from the top of the key gave the Sixers a 101-98 lead they would not relinquish.Willie Green added 15 points in place of Allen Iverson, while Lou Williams had 14, and Samuel Dalembert finished with 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Sixers (17-31), who have won two in a row. They are still just 8-16 at home.Iverson missed the game because oneis expected back Friday night at New Orleans. In 25 games since returning to the Sixers, Iverson has averaged 14.4 points.Derrick Rose scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, and Luol Deng and John Salmons had 17 each for the Bulls (23-24), who had their five-game road winning streak snapped. Those five wins came against teams with winning records, which set an NBA record.Kirk Hinrich added 13 points, and Tyrus Thomas had 12.Rose hit two free throws to tie it at 98 with 1:41 left in overtime.On Philadelphia’s next possession, Iguodala hit his huge 3-pointer. After a miss by Rose, Green connected on a short jumper for a 103-98 lead with 50.8 seconds remaining.The Sixers pulled away from there for a rare victory at the Wachovia Center.Iguodala had a chance to put the Sixers ahead with 6.7 seconds left in regulation, but he converted the first free throw and missed the second, tying it at 94. Brand then missed a short jumper from the baseline.ose had one last shot for Chicago and his 18-footer from the baseline fell short, forcing overtime

NOTES—Sixers C Samuel Dalembert said he plans to visiting his home country of Haiti during the All-Star break. It will be Dalembert’s second trip since the devastating earthquake in Haiti.Deng had 11 rebounds the Bulls….Seldom-used Sixers G Royal Ivey played for the first time since Dec. 31, 2009, at Los Angeles against the Clippers. Ivey scored three points in seven minutes.

EVANSTON—Drew Crawford scored 17 points, John Shurna added 15 and Northwestern went on a 21-4 second-half run to pull away from Michigan for a 67-52 victory Tuesday night.The Wildcats (15-7, 4-6 Big Ten) led by five at the half, but Northwestern limited Michigan to 22 points and just six field goals in the second half.Manny Harris, the Big Ten’s leading scorer, was held to 11 points – eight below his average. He was only 4 for 14 from the field for the Wolverines (11-11, 4-6), who lost for the fourth time in five games.DeShawn Sims, Michigan’s second-leading scorrr at 17.6 points, managed only four points. The Wolverines were only 6 for 25 from the field in the second half.Luka Mirkovic and Michael Thompson added 12 points each for Northwestern.

***Getting ready to head to South Florida Tuesday morning.Doing the Tues,Wed and Thurs overnight shows from the Ft.Lauderdale-Broward Co Convention center at Radio Row.Sunday evening we’ll be on the Score after the Super Bowl at midnight Chicago time. This will be the 27th(out of te 44)Super Bowl I’m covering. The first one was Super Bowl 13,also in Miami between the Steelers and Cowboys which was the last one held in the Orange Bowl. This will make it 27 of the last 31 that I will have worked–my favorite of course was Super Bowl XX on January 26,1986 as the Bears smoked the Patriots 46-10 in New Orleans. Interesting that the Saints are now about to play in their first  Super Bowl.

***The Saints and Colts(still Baltimore)were once the two worst teams in the NFL and when they played,it was called the REPUS BOWL. Repus is Su[er spelled backwards.

***Three years ago it rained throughout the Bears-Colts game,making it so far the only ever Super Bowl(outdoors)in which it rained. AND it’s raining in South Florida today as it did during Sunday night’s Pro Bowl. Hope it’s nice weather by game day.

***Bulls and Blackhawks bring some momentum back to the United Center this week. The Bulls closed their 7 game road trip by winning the last five,all against winning teams(an NBA first). The Clippers,who will be in the UC Tuesday night,are the last team to beat the Bulls. The Blackhawks,who went 5-3 on their trip.will host the Blues Wednesday night,and look for that game to be on the chippy side since St.Louis mucked it up the last time these two teams played. The Hawks have way too much speed and skill for a team like the Blues,and they know it.

***DePaul played #4 Syracuse to the final buzzer and almost pulled off a big upset in Rosemont Saturday,but Will Walker’s potential game winning three was off the rim. There are no consolation defeats,but the guys deserve plenty of credit for putting forth a great game.

***OK, it’s off to the Florida sun(or rain)!!!!

LES