Xavier

Baltimore filmmaker Francis Xavier's Johnny Come Lately, the story of a criminal profiler lured out of retirement to help catch a serial killer targeting children, will have its world premiere at the Senator Thursday night. "I wanted to stay away from the teen-age-type thing," says Xavier, 42, insisting he's had enough of films in which teens are the victims. "I just thought that would be more terrifying, to deal with a serial killer of little kids, and I'm talking about kids 8, 9 years old."

CINCINNATI -- As Skip Prosser watched his former Loyola players warming up before yesterday's game at Xavier, he talked about mixed feelings, about how strange it felt to watch the players who gave him a ride to last season's NCAA tournament preparing to compete against him.After Prosser walked around the Cincinnati Gardens floor to shake hands with each Greyhound and wish him luck, Prosser's new team showed no such warmth.Behind a pressing, trapping, man-to-man defense and a roster packed with quickness and depth, Xavier set the tone by scoring the game's first 11 points, and the Musketeers had their way throughout an 86-51 whipping of the Greyhounds before 7,663.

A 16-year-old boy was arrested yesterday and charged with shooting a kindergarten teacher in the face on Feb. 1.Baltimore police said the youth was attempting to steal the teacher's Acura Legend, which he planned to strip and use for parts to repair his own Acura.Xavier Cornelius Wilson was arrested about 11 a.m. after being pulled out of his science class at Northwestern High School. He was charged as an adult with attempted murder, assault with intent to murder, attempted carjacking and felony use of a handgun, police said.

The poster of a girl bears a chilling message: REWARD. For information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the murder of Jessica Rogers. In a city like Baltimore with its triple-digit homicide rates, the case of Jessica Rogers has caught the attention of many who feel sympathy and concern for the child and her family. The reward poster of the Audrey Hepburnish-looking girl is taped to telephone poles and news racks around town. But she isn't real. The case of Jessica Rogers is really a case of a successful - if objectionable - advertising campaign.

PHILADELPHIA -- Jameer Nelson showed up for the Selection Sunday festivities at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse yesterday wearing a black cap and a Saint Joseph's jersey with the No. 15 and the name "West" across the back. "Why not?" the Hawks' smiling All-American senior said of his backcourt mate, Delonte West. "I like the guy. He made me who I am." As he's done so frequently during the two seasons he has played alongside Nelson, West took the pass and went with it. "I've raised Jameer since he was a little boy," he said.

Skip Prosser, the new basketball coach at Loyola College, knows that the next two weeks will be some of the most important he'll spend with the Greyhounds.Prosser was introduced to players, fellow employees, alumni and boosters at Reitz Arena yesterday afternoon. He and athletic director Joe Boylan then met to iron out specifics of a multi-year deal that will be made official next week.Prosser, who spent the past eight seasons as an assistant at Xavier, was to travel today to New Orleans and the Final Four, and it's not a social visit.

TELEVISION HIGHLIGHTS IndyCar Honda GP of St. Petersburg ESPN2 10 a.m. NASCAR Sprint Cup Goody's 500 45, 5 Noon MLB ex. Minnesota@St. Louis ESPN 1 Yankees@Orioles MASN 7 Tampa Bay@Boston MLB 7 Yankees@Orioles (T) MASN 11 B. bask. 2010 Powerade Jam Fest ESPN2 7:30 W. bask.

BaseballToronto Blue Jays: Named Ronald Bronson Jr. assistant general manager.Los Angeles Dodgers: Will not renew contract of 3B Tim Wallach for 1996.BasketballBoston Celtics: Signed C Charles Claxton.Charlotte Hornets: Waived G Negele Knight.Portland Trail Blazers: Waived F Bob Thornton and G Derrick Chievous.Jacksonville Barracudas (USBL): Named Artis Gilmore president and Mike Strader vice president-marketing coordinator.College4( Patriot League: Named Navy sophomoresoccer F Mike Curtis Offensive Player of the Week.

ATLANTA REGIONAL No. 3 Texas vs. No. 7 Xavier Time: 7:27 p.m. Records: Texas 25-7, Xavier 25-10. How they got here: Texas defeated No. 14 Princeton, 66-49, beat No. 6 North Carolina, 78-75; Xavier defeated No. 10 Louisville, 80-70, beat No. 2 Mississippi State, 89-74. What to watch for: Texas has the deepest bench in the tournament and a stable of talented big men, but that won't matter unless the Longhorns can adequately defend Xavier guards Lionel Chalmers, Romain Sato and Dedrick Finn.

In the marble hallways of Annapolis yesterday, the chief executive officers crossed paths with the transsexuals while 16-year-olds slouched and waited to testify against underage drinking.Inside committee rooms, legislators tried to stay interested in the blizzard of testimony that has become a daily ritual.Two-thirds of the way through its annual 90-day session, the Maryland General Assembly has turned into a legislative machine, churning through issues and laying the groundwork for a frenetic final month.