Associated Press

NEW YORK — New York Knicks owner James Dolan promised U.N. ambassadors tickets to every game if the team won Tuesday night.

So much for that.

With Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and several VIP diplomats on hand, the Knicks went down to their seventh straight loss. As kind of a bonus, the dignitaries got to see what a New York crowd can be like when it turns on the home team.

Fans at the Garden booed relentlessly throughout the game and chanted for coach Isiah Thomas to be fired.

Despite the scene, it was a night for new and old members of the U.N. Security Council and top U.N. officials to forget about global conflicts and crises and watch cheerleaders, a dance contest and some great plays by the Golden State Warriors.

"The important thing is to have a good time," said Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who kept up a tradition started by his predecessor, John Bolton, by inviting the envoys to Madison Square Garden for a rare night off the diplomatic circuit.

NHL

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks signed Ryan Getzlaf to a five-year extension worth $26.625 million that begins next season and runs through 2012-13.

The 22-year-old center has seven goals and 14 assists in 19 games this season.

BASEBALL

CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs president John McDonough resigned after a little more than a year on the job and became president of the Chicago Blackhawks.

McDonough took over as Cubs' president on Oct. 1 last year after Andy MacPhail resigned. McDonough's background is in marketing and he had been with the Cubs since 1983, serving long stints as the club's marketing director and vice president for marketing and broadcasting.

* CHICAGO — Outfielder Scott Podsednik was cut by the Chicago White Sox, who no longer had a spot for the catalyst of their 2005 World Series championship team.

The 31-year-old never regained the form he showed in 2005, when he batted .290 and stole 59 bases, the second-highest total in franchise history. He hit a pair of home runs during the playoffs, including a game-ending drive in Game 2 of the World Series against Houston.

* DETROIT — Kenny Rogers is representing himself in negotiations with the Detroit Tigers and hopes the team will be patient with him as he learns his new craft.

Rogers and Tigers president Dave Dombrowski had a talk Monday aimed at bringing the pitcher back for a third season in Detroit.

Agent Scott Boras had been representing Rogers, who made it clear throughout the year that if he chose to pitch again he wanted to do it in Detroit. The 43-year-old left-hander indicated last week that he still hoped to wear a Tigers uniform in 2008.

TENNIS

LONDON — Andy Roddick will lead the United States against defending champion Russia in the Davis Cup final.

The sixth-ranked Roddick, who has never won a Davis Cup title, was selected along with No. 13 James Blake and the top-ranked doubles pair of Bob and Mike Bryan. The best-of-five series will be played Nov. 30-Dec. 2 on the indoor hard courts of the Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Ore.

The Russian team, which won its second Davis Cup title last year, will be led by No. 4 Nikolay Davydenko, Igor Andreev, Dmitry Tursunov and Mikhail Youzhny, the International Tennis Federation announced Tuesday.

"It's pretty tough because we play in America," Davydenko said recently. "We know we have less chance to win."

SOCCER

SECAUCUS, N.J.. — The New York Red Bulls traded all-time leading scorer Clint Mathis to the Los Angeles Galaxy on Monday, getting a third-round pick in the MLS SuperDraft.

The trade sends midfielder Mathis, who turns 31 next week, back to the team where he began his pro career in 1998 and unites him David Beckham.

Mathis, who has 46 caps with the U.S. national team, including the 2002 World Cup, had six goals and two assists in 26 games with the Red Bulls this season.