John Barrow faces Lee Anderson in the race to represent the 12th District of Georgia in the U.S. Congress.

ATLANTA - The first day was a roar; then came the calm.

This has been a good year for Augusta's gay and lesbian community. Three years after Medical College of Georgia students formed the first Lambda Alliance chapter, students at Augusta State University and the University of South Carolina Aiken have followed suit.

NEW YORK - In the harshest punishment in NBA playoff history, five New York Knicks, including three starters, and P.J. Brown of the Miami Heat were suspended Thursday for a bench-clearing brawl. Patrick Ewing, Allan Houston, Larry Johnson, John Starks and Charlie Ward were suspended one game apiece, although only Ewing, Ward and Houston will miss Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals tonight. Brown's suspension is for two games, meaning his season is over unless the Heat can overcome their 3-2 deficit in the bestof-7 series.

The Augusta-Richmond County Fire Department said it believes someone set a fire that damaged a two-bedroom house Tuesday afternoon.

MIAMI -- The Atlanta Falcons won 16 games this season. They lost twice. Repeat: They lost only twice, so that -- if no other reason -- is why Broncos players insisted repeatedly Tuesday that being favored by seven points in Super Bowl XXXIII Sunday matters not at all, and why they scoff at suggestions they might be overconfident Sunday.