Obadiah

Not even the presence of Marvin "The Human Eraser" Webster could help the Morgan State basketball team last night.The greatest of all Morgan basketball players was in the stands and was introduced before the game, but there was nothing he could do to stop rival Howard University from rolling to a 78-63 victory over the Bears in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game at Hill Field House before 4,275.Howard bolted to a 19-point lead late in the first half and held off several Morgan mini-runs in the second half for its seventh win in the past 11 starts.

At 5 p.m. on Monument Street in East Baltimore, the line of doctors, nurses, researchers, students and others winds down the block and around the corner. Coffee cups in hand and headphones in ear, they file on to the buses that line up three deep. They are riding what has become a highly popular shadow transit agency - the Johns Hopkins shuttle. Every day it provides 5,000 rides to and from Charles Village, Mount Vernon and the east side, to anyone associated with Hopkins, or sometimes just anyone at all. That's up from 3,100 daily riders just three years ago. Riders do not pay a fare and need not show an ID. The big white buses with "Johns Hopkins" emblazoned on the side depart as often as every five minutes during rush hour.

In Baltimore City Pupils dismissed early after heating oil spill in Roland Park Pupils at Roland Park Elementary and Middle schools were dismissed early yesterday because of a heating oil spill, but both were expected to reopen today, school officials said. The spill in the basement of the complex in the 5200 block of Roland Ave. occurred about 10:30 a.m., said Vanessa Pyatt, a school system spokeswoman. The children were moved into the elementary school and dismissed as a precaution at 12:30 p.m., she said.

After 27 games -- 22 of them losses -- Morgan State is ready. Ready for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament that begins this week."To tell you the truth, we've been practicing for the tournament all year," coach Mike Holmes said last night after his Bears throttled UMES, 98-76, in the regular-season finale at Hill Field House."

By Louise Vest 100 Years Ago A journey: Zion to Belmont From a 20-year look back column in the Times (1892): W.F. Iager of this county, and Miss Maggie Dinkleman, were married in Baltimore, at Zion Independent Lutheran Church. " Zion opened for worship before we were a country, in 1755 and grew along with the nation. Today they have many outreach projects, including assisting with disaster relief. During World War II, they housed service men on leave, giving 15,000 men lodging and breakfast during the war years.

LANDOVER -- In a season in which Morgan State has yet to shoot at a friendly basket, the Bears were reminded yesterday of just how rough the road can be.No. 11 Georgetown went to the foul line for an arm-wearying 60 shots and made 42 of them, both school records, at the Capital Centre.But the Hoyas (5-0) were extended to the final five minutes before securing a 103-85 victory over Morgan (0-6) in front of 9,752.It was a game of diminishing returns for the Bears, who won't play a home game for nearly another month.

Bills: Released QB Jim Ballard and WR Chris Brantley.Bears: Released QB Mark Butterfield, OT Tafa Jefferson, DT Mike Miano and FB Shawn Washington. Reached injury settlement with CB Dwayne Joseph.Broncos: Waived DB Jamal Ellis. Placed OL Matt Lepsis on IR.Cardinals: Placed DT Jerry Drake, OT Eric Jonassen and CB Dell McGee on IR. Waived QB Chad May, WR Stevie Anderson, WR Kevin Jordan, PK Scott Bentley, FB Ryan Christopherson, CB Anthony Cobbs, P Matt Peyton, OL Allen DeGraffenreid, OL Lance Scott, LB Jarrett Irons, LB Marcellus Mostella, LB Rory Wilfork, S Kevin Jackson, DT Lamar Mills, DT Ben Williams, DE Ronnie Woolfork, DE Brent Burnstein and DE Darrius Felder.

Even more than his love of gadgets, more than his appreciation of the comic-book ethos that inspired Iron Man, director Jon Favreau's success in bringing the Marvel Comics superhero to the big screen came down to his success as a mediator. Consider the creative forces he had to bring together. There was Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jr., an actor of unquestioned talent and commanding presence, but one weighed down by a personal life that hasn't always been his greatest asset. There were the folks at Marvel Comics, gatekeepers of the Iron Man mythology since his creation in 1963, who were bankrolling their first movie (after depending on others for such mega-franchises as Spider-Man, X-Men and Fantastic Four)

Capsules by Michael Sragow or Chris Kaltenbach, unless noted. Full reviews are at baltimoresun.com/movies. Baby Mama -- Tina Fey inhabits what should be her comfort zone as a career woman who decides to use a surrogate to have a baby and ends up with raucous, declasse Amy Poehler. As the movie makes its way toward a denouement that leaves everyone happy-ever-after, the film feels emptier than your typical successful high-concept comedy. Part of the problem is the center will not hold: The TV stars are outmatched by a strong supporting cast (Greg Kinnear, Maura Tierney, Holland Taylor, Steve Martin, Sigourney Weaver and more)