As promised, Carmelo Anthony sprinted straight to the bench when coach George Karl sent in a sub this time.

Anthony scored 38 points in his return from a one-game suspension for refusing to come out of a game last weekend, and he led the Denver Nuggets past the Portland Trail Blazers, 106-90, last night in Denver.

Anthony didn't get many breathers in this crucial Northwest Division showdown, logging 38 minutes as he helped the Nuggets avoid falling out of first place for the first time since Dec. 8.

When he rejoined his teammates at practice Wednesday after watching Denver's 100-95 loss at Detroit from the team hotel the night before, Anthony insisted he didn't agree with his suspension. But he pledged that the next time Karl tried to take him out, "I'm going to run. I'm going to run to the bench. I'm going to run hard to the bench."

Brandon Roy scored 22 points for the Trail Blazers.

HORNETS STING MAVS

Chris Paul had 27 points and 15 assists, and host New Orleans increased its season-best winning streak to six with a 104-88 victory over Dallas last night

David West scored 19 and Rasual Butler 18 for the Hornets. Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas with 27 points.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

COKER STARTS PROGRAM

Former Miami coach Larry Coker has been hired to lead the new Texas-San Antonio football program, his first coaching job since the Hurricanes fired him in 2006.

Texas-San Antonio plans to play its first season in 2011 in the Football Championship Subdivision. Coker was among three finalists for the job.

Coker, who has been working for ESPN as a college football analyst, went 60-15 with the Hurricanes and led them to the 2001 national championship.

ELSEWHERE

College athletics: The University of Alabama has told the NCAA that athletes improperly got free textbooks for other students and that the school failed to adequately monitor distribution. The university said that the hearing before the Committee on Infractions was held Feb. 20. The university reported the violations after uncovering them during the 2007 football season, when five players were suspended.

Tennis: The first day of play in Spain's Davis Cup matchup against Serbia was suspended early today when strong winds compromised the stadium in Benidorm, Spain. Gusts up to 60 mph have "blown off some of the rows of the stands and has played an effect on the whole stability" of the 16,000-seat temporary stadium, International Tennis Federation referee Soren Frienel said.

Swimming: Dara Torres won the 50-meter freestyle in her first competition after the Beijing Olympics. The 41-year-old mom, who won three silver medals in Beijing, took the Austin (Texas) Grand Prix in 24.91 seconds last night. Torres has won 12 Olympic medals.

Soccer: Landon Donovan is returning to the Los Angeles Galaxy. The Galaxy announced that last season's team MVP will rejoin Los Angeles on March 10, two days after the end of his loan to Germany's Bayern Munich.