*TENNIS: Top-ranked Serena Williams twice lost five games in a row but finished with a flourish and defied the tournament’s upset trend Monday by beating No. 17-seeded Zheng Jie 7-5, 5-7, 6-3 at the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Fla. Also reaching the final eight was No. 5-seeded Venus Williams, who staged her own narrow escape to beat Agnieszka Radwanska 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. On the men’s side, top-ranked Rafael Nadal reached the fourth round by beating qualifier Frederico Gil 7-5, 6-3.
*NBA: Alonzo Mourning’s jersey was raised to the rafters by the Heat, making him the first Heat player in the organization’s 21-year history to receive that honor. The 43-minute ceremony featured the reading of a letter from President Barack Obama. … Knicks guard Larry Hughes injured his right ankle and had to leave Monday night’s game at Utah. The team said Hughes had a strained right ankle and would not return. … Hornets forward James Posey will miss at least the next three games with a sprained left elbow.
*NFL: The NFL has released its preseason schedule, featuring a Super Bowl rematch between the Steelers and Cardinals. The exhibition season begins Aug. 9 in Canton, Ohio, where the Bills will play the Titans in the Pro Football Hall of Fame game. The Super Bowl champion Steelers will host the Cardinals on Aug. 13 — six months after Pittsburgh defeated Arizona 27-23 for the NFL title. … The Saints have re-signed backup quarterback Joey Harrington. … The Saints also announced they will hold training camp this summer at the same place they practice the rest of the year — their facility in Metairie, La. Saints owner Tom Benson said the team has a state-of-the-art facility and sees no reason to leave it to train at Millsaps College in Jackson, Miss., where the team has worked out the last three summers. … Marvel Smith signed a two-year deal with the 49ers, who expect him to be their starting right tackle.
*WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Jayne Appel had a career-high 46 points and 16 rebounds in the third-highest-scoring performance in NCAA tournament history, overwhelming Iowa State and carrying Stanford back to the Final Four with a 74-53 victory in the Berkeley regional final. … Angel McCoughtry had 21 points as Louisville claimed its first Final Four berth by upsetting top-seeded Maryland 77-60 in the Raleigh regional final.
*COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Nebraska football coach Bo Pelini signed a contract extension following a 9-4 season, boosting his annual salary to $1.85 million. The contract runs through the 2013 season . … Syracuse coach Doug Marrone announced that redshirt freshman Ryan Nassib will be the Orange’s starter at quarterback.
*ALSO: Mark Johnson is retiring after 17 seasons as the wrestling coach at Illinois. Johnson’s final Illinois team finished eighth in the NCAA championships last month. The Rock Island, Ill. native leaves with a 203-44-3 mark at Illinois and the school record for wins. … Julia Mancuso won the giant slalom at the U.S. Alpine Ski Championships in Girdwood, Alaska, after first-run leader Sarah Schleper fell on the lower half of the course.
