Sports Roundup: Lions get new weapon

Lions

The Detroit Lions are adding another weapon for quarterback Matthew Stafford to throw to.  They have agreed to a five-year, 31 million dollar contract with former Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate. Tate caught 64 balls for 898 yards and five touchdowns last season with Seattle. The Notre Dame product will pair with Pro Bowler Calvin Johnson to give the Lions one of the premier pass catching duos.

Boys Basketball Regional Finals

St. Philip defeated Covert, 61-44, in this Class D regional championship game at Portage Central to win their first regional title in 30 years.  The Tigers are now 24-1. Alex Doyle led St. Phillip with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Hunter Haley added 13 points for St. Philip with Tyler Hubbard-Neil adding 11 points and nine rebounds.  St. Philip advances to the Class D state quarterfinals, which will be played Tuesday at Battle Creek Central. The Tigers will play the winner of Morrice vs. Adrian Lenawee Christian, which will be played today.

Maple Valley takes on Hillsdale a Class C the regional championship game tonight at Jonesville.

Girls Basketball

Athens girls’ team will take on top-ranked and undefeated Crystal Falls Forest Park on Thursday at the Breslin Center.  The winner will go to the Girls’ Class D State Final.

Pistons

The Detroit Pistons lost to the Toronto Raptors 101-87 in Toronto last night.  Brandon Jennings led Detroit with 24 points. Andre Drummond had 16 and Greg Monroe scored 13 points and pulled down 10 rebounds.   It was Detroit's 10th straight road loss.  The Pistons are home Saturday to play the Indiana Pacers.

Red Wings

The NHL is suspending Columbus Blue Jackets forward Blake Comeau two games for hitting Red Wings defenseman Brendan Smith from behind in Tuesday's game.  Comeau also cross-checked Red Wing Tomas Jurco in the game, giving Jurco has a rib injury.  He’ll  miss two weeks.  The injury list just never gets shorter for Detroit. In addition to Jurco, Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk,  Darren Helm, Joakim Andersson, Jonas Gustavsson and Stephen Weiss. Detroit called up 22 year old Teemu Pulkkinen from Grand Rapids to take Jurco’s spot. The Red Wings host Edmonton on Friday.

Peverley Out after Cardiac event

The season is over for Dallas Stars forward Rich Peverley. The 31-year-old will undergo surgery to try and regulate his heart beat after collapsing on the team's bench during Monday night's game against Columbus. Peverley was treated for what was called a "cardiac event" and was revived with a defibrillator. Once he has the surgery, doctors say recovery time will be several months.

Tigers

The Detroit Tigers let an early five-run lead slip away and ended up with a 7-7 tie against the Yankees yesterday in Tampa, Florida. Starter Anibal Sanchez gave up three hits, and a run in four innings. Third baseman Nick Castellanos went 2-for-4 at the plate and had two RBI.   He’s hitting .400 for the spring.  The Tigers host the Florida Marlins today.

In the first round of roster cuts yesterday, Detroit released pitcher Luis Marte and optioned pitchers Casey Crosby and Melvin Mercedes to Triple-A Toledo.  Young lefty Robbie Ray was also among several players sent to minor league camp.

Comerica Park Security

Metal detectors will be in place at Comerica Park beginning on Opening Day. The Detroit Tigers announced the plan today to have the security measures in place as part of an initiative from Major League Baseball. Officials say they will release more details about the plan later this month. The Tigers open their 2014 campaign on March 31st against the Kansas City Royals.

Big 10 Basketball

The Big Ten Tournament gets underway today.  The Spartans and Wolverines don’t play until Friday.  The MSU Spartans face Iowa or Northwestern.  The Michigan Wolverines face Indiana or Illinois.