March 27 / 10:45 pm
UConn Beats Ohio State - Will Play for National Title
(WTNH) _ The UConn Huskies are going for the National Championship. In their first ever Final Four game, the UConn men beat Ohio State 64-58. They will play either Duke or Michigan State for the title Monday night.
UConn won the opening tip, scored the first 2 points of the game, and held a 16-11 lead with 11:56 left. But they were hot-and-cold after that. Ohio State came back with 6 unanswered points to take the lead, but a basket by Khalid El-Amin gave the Huskies the lead again. They went out to a 9-point lead with just over seven minutes to play, then UConn went cold. The Huskies failed to score on 9 straight possessions, turning the ball over several times. Ohio State took advantage, mounting another 8-0 run. The Huskies clung to a 1 point lead at the half, 36-35.
UConn came out with a mission in the second half, going on a 4-0 run to start the second half, including a slam-dunk by center Jake Voskuhl, his only points of the game. A fast break and alley-opp from El-Amin to Rashamel Jones gave UConn a 10 point lead with 11:41 to play.
Again Ohio State fought back. A fieldgoal by OSU's Brian Brown narrowed the lead to 3 with 4:13 to go. It was a 6 point lead with 25.9 to play when Ricky Moore fouled Ohio State's Scoonie Penn on a 3-point attempt. Penn made only 2, they got the ball back on another foul, but couldn't overtake the Huskies.
Richard Hamilton led UConn with 24, El-Amin added 18 and 6 assists. For Jim Calhoun it's his 19th straight win over OSU Coach Jim O'Brien.
Hundreds of thousands of Connecticut fans were glued to their TV sets in homes and sports bars across the state. The team spirit is higher than ever on the UConn Campus in Storrs, where students sat glued in front of big-screen TVs and cheered the Huskies on.
We have more stories, including video reaction from the players, on our Sports page.
US Stealth Jet Shot Down over Yugoslavia
(AP) _ An American F-117A stealth fighter crashed in Yugoslavia on Saturday, but the pilot was rescued, the Defense Department said late Saturday.
"He and the combat rescue team that picked him up are all safe," Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacoon said at a news conference. He said he could not provide details. Word of the dramatic rescue came several hours after Serb official claimed they shot down the radar-evading fighter jet. Bacon said he could not say what caused the plane to "crash" _ whether it was shot down or malfunctioned.
Television stations in the Yugoslav capital broadcast footage showing flames rising from a tangled wreck that bore U.S. Air Force markings and the words "Air Combat Command." "It's one of ours down," said a senior officer at Hollomon Air Force Base in New Mexico, where the stealth fighters are based. The officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the pilot's family was being notified.
The official Tanjug news agency said the radar-evading F-117 fighter was shot down 9 p.m. local time near Budjenovci, 35 miles northwest of Belgrade.
President Clinton is in agreement with other NATO allies on today's stepped-up air campaign over Yugoslavia. He spoke with leaders of Italy, Germany, Britain and France. Clinton says with continued Serbian attacks on Albanians, it's more reason to "stay the course."
Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic remains adamant. He's again refusing any NATO peace deal that includes a peacekeeping force. In a statement today, Milosevic says Yugoslavs are "unanimous in their resolve not to allow at any cost the enemies to occupy their country."
 Get more on the latest developments from ABCNews.com and CNN Interactive.
Friends, Family Mourn Teenage Suicide Victim
(Wilton-WTNH) _ The town of Wilton said goodbye to Sam Hingston Saturday, three days after the teen set himself on fire. As hundreds of friends and family remember the outstanding teen, they are still trying to understand his shocking death.
News Channel 8's Jocelyn Sigue reports.
Report: DNA Links Suspect to Girl's Murder
(Putnam-AP) _ A drop of seminal fluid the size of a pin head is the main piece of evidence linking a 26-year-old suspect to the killing of an 11-year-old Willimantic girl, prosecutors say. The FBI's forensic laboratory discovered the DNA evidence while examining the shorts worn by Angelica Padilla when she was killed in August, Windham State's Attorney Mark Solak said Friday. The stain links Jose Antonio Torres to the murder, Solak said. The discovery was made after police had charged Torres with the murder of Padilla, who was killed while delivering newspapers at the apartment complex in which they both lived. Until the discovery of the stain, the case against Torres was mostly circumstantial, Solak said.
Fires Kill Meriden Man, Bristol Woman
(Meriden-AP) _ A 73-year-old man is dead after a fire raged through his trailer home in Meriden. Authorities say Roger Chase wasn't able to escape the blaze early Friday morning. His wife, 54-year-old Janet Chase, suffered minor burns to her hands trying to pull her unconscious husband from the home.
The fire broke out about 3:30 AM Friday. Officials are still investigating the cause of the blaze, but say it did not appear suspicious.
Meantime, A 90-year-old woman is dead after her Bristol house burned in a fire this afternoon. Fire dispatcher Dave Dittman says the woman, whose name isn't being released, was by the front door when she died. He says a neighbor who reported the fire tried to rescue her but failed to get inside the house. Dittman says the woman was alone when the fire started shortly before 1 pm.
He says the single-family house with a wood roof burned quickly. Dittman says a firefighter was treated at the scene for minor burns. No other injuries have been reported. City fire marshal Denis Pieri is investigating.
Waterbury Man Convicted of Murder
(Waterbury-AP) -- A Waterbury man has been convicted of murder in the death of a man who was tended by his toddler as he died. William Morales Junior had confessed to the 1994 slaying of 44-year-old Andrew Joseph Scott, of Watertown. But his lawyer had argued Morales had been tricked into confessing. A jury on Friday didn't believe the story. 21-year-old Morales remains jailed on $1 million bond and is scheduled to be sentenced May 21st.
Scott was killed by multiple gunshot wounds, including a bullet to the brain. His 2-year-old daughter Andrea covered his body with a blanket and slept beside the corpse for two days until she was found by day-care workers. Prosecutors say Morales killed Scott to prevent the victim from telling police he sold drugs. A 1997 trial ended in mistrial when a juror told the judge during a jury poll that she had changed her mind about Morales' guilt.
Man Surrenders Following 6 hour Standoff
(Enfield-AP) _ A man has been arrested this morning after a nearly six-hour standoff at his Enfield home. Police say the man was armed with a shotgun and fired at police when they tried to take him into custody. No one was injured during the incident. Police say they were called to the home on Broadleaf Street about 12:40 this morning for a domestic dispute. The man, whose name has not been released, then holed himself in the home for nearly six hours. Police say family members were evacuated without incident shortly after the standoff began. No children were in the home. A SWAT team was called in and neighboring homes were evacuated. Those families were allowed to return about 7:00 this morning after the man was arrested.
Bond Lowered for Chase Suspect
(Norwalk-AP) _ A Bridgeport man who led police on a chase from Greenwich to Norwalk on Interstate 95 has been given a lower bond. 62-year-old Donald Frazier is charged with attempted murder, assault and motor vehicle charges for the February 16th chase. Police say Frazier had been wanted for allegedly passing bad checks and was driving a stolen car when he fled Greenwich, and then, state police. The chase ended with a crash in Norwalk, and Frazier was shot in the arm. Frazier's bond Friday was reduced from $500,000 to $200,000, a move his lawyers say will allow him to move to the Bridgeport Correctional Center. He had been held in the Walker Detention Center in Suffield, where many prisoners are kept in small cells for all but a short period during the day. He is due back in court April 19th.
Car Dealership Employee Sentenced for Stealing Car from Lot
(Milford-AP) _ The former financial manager of a West Haven car dealership has been sentenced to three years in prison for stealing at least one car from the lot. 35-year-old Steven Bernstein of Milford must also pay eight thousand dollars in restitution to George Harte Nissan. Bernstein was convicted of first-degree larceny, though prosecutors believe he made off with four Nissan Pathfinders. Police began investigating after the four vehicles, each worth about $31,000, were reported stolen in June 1997. Police say Bernstein resold one of the vehicles and made $60,000. Two of the vehicles have not been recovered.
School Cancels Donkey Fund-raiser After Criticism
(East Hampton-AP) _ A fund-raising game of donkey basketball planned in East Hampton has been called off amidst criticism from a national animal rights organization. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals had complained the game, in which players maneuver around the court and shoot baskets astride the animals, is cruel to animals. They say the donkeys often are dragged, punched, kicked and screamed at to cooperate. School officials say that after a discussion with students, the April 22nd event was cancelled.
The event was to have raised money for scholarships.
Bowling Benefit for Big Brothers/Big Sisters
(Milford-WTNH) _ The ball was rolling for Big Brothers/Big Sisters in Milford Saturday. The organization hosted its biggest turnout ever at its annual Bowl for Kids Sake fundraiser. The group credits better recruiting for pulling in more than 600 bowlers to today's event.
Gerald Clark, Big Bros. Big Sis.:
"Certain people within an organization who really believe in our organization will step forward and then go out and organize other people in the company and as a result we have the turnout that we have."
Big Brothers/Big Sisters expects to raise about $40,000 from today's bowl-a thon. The money supports programs for hundreds of children in southwestern Connecticut.
Church gets Million Dollar Gift
(Vernon-AP) _ Father John White says he knew the Tobin sisters planned to bequeath some money to Saint Bernard's Church. But it wasn't until a few weeks ago when he learned just how big the women's hearts and pocketbooks were.
Frances Tobin Tierney, who died at 96 last August, left more than $1 million dollars to her family's parish in Vernon. Some of the money had come from her sister, Mae Tobin, who died in 1992. The sisters, who had been longtime members of Saint Bernard's, also gave the money in 1985 to build the main altar of the church.
Notebook Recalled
(WTNH) _ A Michigan company is recalling almost four-million toy notebooks because of a choking hazard. It is the Colorbök Handy Dandy notebook. Coils on "Blue's Clues" version are breaking off.
 Three parents have reported pulling pieces from their child's mouth. Luckily there have been no injuries from this.
If you have the "Handy Dandy Notebook" with the words "1998 Colorbök Paper Products Incorporated" on the back cover and a red chair on the front you are at risk. The red plastic coil is dangerous the dangerous part.
Consumers should call 1.877.677.4725 for a replacement coil.
State Sex Offender Website Online
(Hartford-WTNH) _ The State of Connecticut's Sex Offender Registry went online at the first of the year. Residents can look to see if a convicted sex offender is living in their neighborhood by accessing the information through the Department of Public Safety's website at www.state.ct.us/dps/sor.htm
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