BRIEFS

Snoopy wins

best in show

All he wants to do is play.

Let the fancy-cut French poodles prance with their pompoms, let the flowing Afghan hounds fly around the ring. The tiny beagle is happy to dig his nose in the dirt and make a little mischief.

Good ol' Snoopy.

The only dog consistently listed among America's popular breeds for nearly 100 years. But definitely not a show dog.

Until now. Make way for the rise of beagle! Come, Uno, come.

Atri-colored package of personality, Uno put himself in position Tuesday night to become the first beagle to win best in show at Westminster, the nation's No. 1 pooch event.

It would be a shocker in the show world, where wire fox terriers usually wobble off with the prize ribbon. Sort of like the boy-next-door becoming president - that's how it would be to see a baying, barking backyard pet sip from the silver bowl.

''My sister called me today and said she's always turned off the dog show on TV because she's tired of all those poodles winning,'' said Jon Woodring, one of Uno's co-owners. ''But she watched last night. I think Uno winning would show that an everyday dog can do it.''

Longtime dog expert David Frei, the paw-by-paw announcer for USA Network's coverage of the Westminster Kennel Club show, went even further.

''If he wins best in show, I'll rent him an apartment in New York City because I'll be traveling with him all year, so many people will want to see him,'' he said. ''If he won, it would be

the greatest thing for our show.''

Clemens testifies before Congress today

recovering Whatever Roger Clemens and his accuser have to say for themselves before Congress on Wednesday, one thing seems certain: Clemens will be no Mark McGwire.

''He IS here to talk about the past,'' Clemens' lead lawyer, Rusty Hardin, said Tuesday as he accompanied the seven-time Cy Young Award winner through the hallways of Capitol Hill office buildings.

Clemens was making the rounds one last time, wearing a gray pinstriped suit and squeezing face-toface meetings into the busy schedules of the members of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. He met with five Congressmen over a four-hour span Tuesday, on top of the 19 he saw on Thursday and Friday.

''I enjoyed talking with him,'' said Rep. Diane Watson, D-Calif., who said the discussion included baseball stories and personal accounts about the Sept. 11 attacks. ''It's always good to meet the person who is in the spotlight. ... I told him, 'This is not a trial.'''

But it might very well feel like one when Clemens and his former personal trainer, Brian McNamee, sit at the witness table, and - under oath - offer what will surely be contradictory versions as to whether Clemens has used steroids and human growth hormone during his storied career.

''I couldn't tell you who's telling the truth,''Watson said.

Hockey player

With Richard Zednik on their top line, the Florida Panthers faced an uphill battle just to make the playoffs.

Without him, they vow to fight harder.

Zednik continued what some termed a remarkable recovery Tuesday, when his condition was upgraded to good and he was moved out of the intensive care unit at Buffalo General Hospital. That was just two days after teammate Olli Jokinen's razor-sharp skate blade sliced the 32-year-old forward's neck, cutting his carotid artery and stopping just shy of his jugular vein.

On Wednesday, the Panthers will play their first game since the accident, hosting the Montreal Canadiens.

''We have to set it aside now and play hockey,'' said Florida defenseman Jassen Cullimore, who helped Zednik off the ice in Buffalo on Sunday night, as blood spurted in all directions.