Sean Payton agreed to a new contract with the New Orleans Saints that runs through 2020 season. Payton, 52, had two years remaining on his current deal at about $8 million per season. He hasn’t signed the contract yet, but had it in his briefcase at the NFC coaches’ breakfast Wednesday morning during the NFL owners’ meetings. ‘‘I don’t see myself working anywhere else,’’ said Payton, who is 87-57 in nine seasons in New Orleans. ‘‘It’s a good thing. There’s been really good stability and consistency. That doesn’t guarantee anything, but it gives you a chance.’’ . . . The Philadelphia Eagles signed former New York Giants wide receiver Rueben Randle to a one-year contract. Randle had 57 catches for 797 yards and a career-best eight touchdowns last season. He had 188 receptions for 2,644 yards and 20 TDs in four seasons in New York . . . Panthers owner Jerry Richardson had successful surgery on his shoulder in Charlotte, according to a statement released by the team. Richardson, 79, did not attend the NFL owners’ meetings this week in Boca Raton, Fla. . . . Free agent nose tackle Ian Williams signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers. On March 9, Williams reached agreement on a five-year deal that was restructured once his doctors shared findings about an undisclosed lower leg injury suffered in 2013 with the 49ers medical staff.
Colleges
Bentley, Stonehill eliminated
The Bentley women’s basketball team was ousted by undefeated Lubbock Christian (34-0), 67-57, in the NCAA Division 2 semifinals in Sioux Falls, S.D. Junior forward Jen Gemma of Milton led the Falcons (29-6) with a game-high 25 points on 10-for-17 shooting from the field . . . Stonehill was eliminated by West Liberty University, 75-74, in a NCAA Division 2 Elite Eight men’s matchup in Frisco, Texas. The Skyhawks (24-9) trailed by as many as 13 points (63-50) with 8:17 remaining in the game before rallying to within 1 on a 3-pointer by Pierce Cumpstone (21 points) with two seconds left for the final margin.
ND: Hockey East was not a fit
Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick confirmed the school’s departure from Hockey East for the Big Ten as an affliliate member in 2017-18, saying the move to the Big Ten will make it easier on athletes who for the past three years have played against teams in New England. ‘‘We understood that being in Hockey East that traveling would be challenging and it certainly was,’’ he said. ‘‘So when this option was presented, it is so much better. There’s so much less time in the airports and in the air and there’s some venues we can bus to. So it’s a completely better experience.’’ Notre Dame will square off against future Big Ten opponent Michigan in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Cincinnati, but as a member of the Hockey East. “This weekend, Notre Dame is part of Hockey East’s six-team contingent that is looking to defend the national championship won by Providence College last April in Boston,’’ Hockey East commissioner Joe Bertagna said in a released statement. “The college hockey landscape continues to change but one certainty is that Hockey East will remain the premier conference in college hockey for years to come.’’
Basketball
Judge tosses Sterling’s suitA federal judge dismissed a $600 million antitrust lawsuit filed by former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling against the NBA and his wife Shelly Sterling. US District Judge Fernando M. Olguin said he was ‘‘skeptical Sterling suffered any injury at all, let alone an antitrust injury’’ by the sale of the team for $2 billion to ex-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and called other parts of the lawsuit implausible. Sterling, 81, had claimed in the lawsuit he could have gotten more than that for the team but the circumstances of the sale ‘‘markedly reduced’’ the price. NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Sterling from the league for life in 2014 and fined him $2.5 million over recorded racist remarks that he made to a friend.
GolfDay’s back aches after match
Jason Day overcame an early deficit to win his opening match in the Dell Match Play at Austin (Texas) Country Club, closing out Graeme McDowell, 3 and 2, just before he was brought to his knees by an aching back. Day reached for his back for a few holes until grabbing it after a tee shot on the 16th hole and dropped to one knee after he defeated McDowell. Day 1 winners included World No. 1 Jordan Spieth and third-ranked Rory McIlroy . . . Nick Watney, a winner of six PGA Tour events including a World Golf Championship and a FedEx Cup playoff event, said he will sit out the rest of the season with a herniated disk in his lower back. “I’m rehabbing, but I don’t want to have surgery, and that’s part of the reason I’m going to take the year off. I just want to rehab and get everything sorted out,’’ Watney said.
Miscellany
Djokovic backs off remarksNovak Djokovic met with Billie Jean King and Chris Evert to discuss equal prize money, backpedaling from his controversial comments after his tournament victory at Indian Wells. ‘‘We are all part of the same sport and we all contribute in our own unique and special ways,’’ he said . . . The Boston City League’s best girls and boys players will showcase their skills in the Dr. Joseph D. Warren Memorial Basketball All-Star Classic Saturday at noon at Northeastern’s Cabot Center.
