Basketball » Geno Auriemma and the United States women's basketball team were placed in Group B at the world championships that begin next September.

The draw announced Tuesday pits the Americans against Greece, Senegal and France in opening pool play, which begins on Sept. 23. The U.S., which won its fourth straight Olympic gold medal in 2008, will be trying to recapture the world title. The Americans lost to Russia in the semifinals of the 2006 worlds.

Chicago Fire fire coach Hamlin

mls » Denis Hamlett will not return to the Chicago Fire next year after leading them to the Eastern Conference finals in each of his two seasons as head coach.

Fire technical director Frank Klopas says the organization "has decided to take the team in a new direction in 2010."

Hamlett's contract expires at the end of the year, and the team says he plans to pursue other coaching opportunities.

Feds want drug ruling overturned

baseball » Federal officials are asking for a rehearing of an appeals court decision that said the government illegally seized drug-testing samples and records of baseball players who allegedly tested positive for steroids.

Officials say their investigations have been hampered by the ruling, which established new rules for computer searches by federal agents.

In a court filing Monday, the government asked the 9th U.S. Court of Appeals to take the unprecedented step of having all 27 of its judges reconsider the case.

A panel of 11 9th Circuit judges ruled in August that investigators trampled on protections against unreasonable searches when they seized the records and samples of 104 players who allegedly tested positive during baseball's 2003 survey.

From wire reports