Five-time champion Roger Federer will appear in a men's record seventh straight Wimbledon final on Sunday after defeating Tommy Haas in Friday's semifinal action at Wimbledon. The iconic Federer is trying to become the men's all-time leader in Grand Slam singles titles, as he's currently tied with American great Pete Sampras at 14. The super Swiss equaled Sampras and became the sixth man in history to complete a career Grand Slam when he titled at the French Open last month. The second-seeded former world No. 1 Federer topped a 24th-seeded Haas 7-6 (7-3), 7-5, 6-3 on another sun-filled day at the All England Club. Federer would supplant Rafael Nadal atop the men's rankings with a victory here on Sunday against sixth-seeded American Andy Roddick, who emerged victorious 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (7-5) against crowd favorite Brit Andy Murray. The third-seeded Murray was vying to become the first British man to win the Wimbledon crown since Fred Perry in 1936. Roddick is in the final pairing for a third time, having previously lost twice to Federer.

It will be Williams versus Williams for the Wimbledon women's crown on Saturday, as Serena and Venus each won semifinal matches Thursday against Russian opponents in completely different fashion at the All England Club. Serena was up first and the second seed went nearly three hours before finally disposing of fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva with a 6-7 (4-7), 7-5, 8-6 triumph. Venus was next and needed a mere 51 minutes to bounce top- seeded Dinara Safina, rolling to a 6-1, 6-0 victory. Venus is gunning for her sixth career Wimbledon crown and third in a row. She beat Serena in last year's title match and lost to her younger sister in the final in both 2002 and 2003.

Free agent forward Ron Artest is leaving the Houston Rockets to join the Los Angeles Lakers and will provide the team with more offensive firepower next season, as he'll join Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol on the defending NBA champions. Artest announced on ESPN's SportsCenter in Los Angeles that he has reached a verbal agreement with the Lakers and will play for the mid-level exception. He cited the fact that Houston offered him only a one-year contract, while the Lakers jumped at the chance to give him a multi-year deal. A Los Angeles newspaper has reported the pact is for three years at close to $18 million. That represents a pay cut after Artest made $7.4 million last season. No deal can be officially announced until July 8, per league rules. In another twist, the man Artest would replace in the lineup -- Trevor Ariza -- reportedly reached a verbal agreement with the Rockets. A Houston newspaper is reporting that Ariza accepted the Rockets' offer of the mid-level exception for five years, which is expected to be worth close to $33 million in total.

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, fresh off a record 10th NBA Championship as a coach, announced on Friday he will return to the bench next year for a 10th season in LA and 19th as an NBA head coach. There was some speculation that Jackson would either decide to retire or coach an abbrevaited schedule based on health concerns. Jackson discussed those scenarios late last month in an ESPN radio interview but later came to a decision along with general manager Mitch Kupchak to be all in or step away. For Jackson, his 10th championship surpassed the legendary Red Auerbach for the most in history. Coaching his 300th career playoff game, Jackson also passed Bill Russell (11) for most titles won by a player/coach as LA finished off Orlando in Game 5 of the Finals last month. It was his fourth championship in Los Angeles, having previously guided Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls to six titles in the 1990s.

Minnesota Timberwolves first-round draft pick and international sensation Ricky Rubio will reportedly play out his contract with DKV Joventut, choosing to remain with the Euroleague team for the next two seasons. According to a Barcelona newspaper, Rubio will withdraw his contract lawsuit against his club. He would have had to pay an expensive buyout if he were to negate his contract and play for Minnesota next season.

Manny Ramirez has completed his 50-game suspension and is expected back in the Los Angeles lineup Friday, when the Dodgers take on the Padres in San Diego. The Dodgers went 29-21 while Ramirez sat due to a positive test for performance-enhancing drugs. When he does return to the starting lineup he'll join a team that is 50-29 this season and holding a 7 1/2 game lead on San Francisco for first place in the National League West. Ramirez was hitting .348 with six homers and 20 RBI prior to his suspension on May 7.

The initial frenzy surrounding the opening of NHL's free agency period has cooled off somewhat but strategic signings continue to take place. Vancouver inked free agent winger and former Red Wing Mikael Samuelsson to a three-year contract on Friday, and the Pittsburgh Penguins brought back two-time Stanley Cup winning forward Ruslan Fedotenko on a one-year deal. Still up in the air is the fate of high-scoring free agent forward Dany Heatley, who is being aggressively pursued by the Edmonton Oilers but has so far rebuffed their interest.

Defending champion Anthony Kim, who set a course record with an eight-under 62 at Congressional on Thursday, now has tournament host Tiger Woods to contend with. Woods fired a 66 on Friday to move to 10-under but Kim has kept pace, now at minus-two for the round approaching the back nine. Rod Pampling is one stroke back at minus-nine after firing a six-under today. Bryce Molder and D.A. Points are tied for fourth at six-under with Points still on the course. Stuart Appleby (69), Lucas Glover (66) and Danny Lee (67) are grouped in at five-under.

Phoenix Mercury star guard and three-time WNBA All-Star Diana Taurasi was reportedly cited for driving under the influence in Phoenix early Thursday morning. A Phoenix area newspaper is reporting Taurasi, arguably one of the most recognizable faces in women's basketball, was pulled over at 2:30 a.m. for allegedly speeding and lane violations. A Phoenix police officer detected the smell of alcohol and conducted field sobriety tests. The Phoenix Police Department stated she refused a breath test and was forced to draw blood in a mobile DUI van. She was cited and later released. The 27- year-old Taurasi was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 WNBA draft, a three- time NCAA champion with Connecticut and Olympic gold medalist. She captured Rookie of the Year honors in her first season with Phoenix and helped the Mercury to the WNBA Championship in 2007. In her sixth season with Phoenix, Taurasi leads all players in fan balloting for the 2009 WNBA All- Star Game, which is scheduled for July 25. Over 11 games this season, she is averaging 21.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.9 blocks. She owns a career average of 20.4 points.