Sports briefs

Marino retires after 17 seasons in NFL

DAVIE, Fla. (AP) - The men at the front of the room wore dark suits and somber expressions, like at a funeral. The wife sat in the front row crying. Dan Marino bit his lip, took deep breaths and leaned on the lectern.

"This isn't easy," he said.

But as always, Marino followed the game plan. With relief and reluctance, he retired yesterday at age 38, confirming a decision he made Thursday.

Marino rejected an offer last week to play for the Minnesota Vikings and said he decided to quit mostly because of the toll 17 NFL seasons took on his body, not because of the way the Dolphins treated him.

Cincinnati whines about No. 2 seed

Another selection Sunday ended with the Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins wearing a scowl. In past years, Huggins complained about his Bearcats being seeded too low, too close to Temple, or too far from their home.

This year, Huggins felt that committee members seeded teams based on what they think will happen in light of Kenyon Martin's injury.

"Who has a better chance than we do?" Huggins asked.

- Compiled from wire reports