OBIT: Dowd’s mother dies

Kelly Jo Dowd, a cancer-stricken mother whose dream of seeing her teen daughter Dakoda play in an LPGA event was realized last spring, has died. She was 42.

She spent years battling breast cancer, which her family said spread to her bones and liver, and then to her brain in the final months of her life. She died Thursday night at her home in Palm Harbor, Fla., with her daughter and other

relatives at her side.

Her death came just over a year after seeing her daughter play in the Ginn Open in Reunion, Fla., when Dakoda, then 13, and her family went public with their story, even knowing Kelly Jo’s death was expected. Shortly before

the tournament, the family was told Kelly Jo would have only a few months to live.

MLB: Phils’ Howard returns

The Phillies activated first baseman Ryan Howard from the disabled list and placed pitcher Brett Myers on the 15-day DL with a strained right shoulder yesterday.

* Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez was suspended for one game by Major League Baseball for returning to the field following his ejection in the third inning of Florida’s 5-4, 11-inning win over the Phillies on Thursday.

BLOTTER: Ex-Net Daniels arrested

Lloyd Daniels, who played for the Nets and three other teams in a five-year NBA career, was charged with burglary early yesterday after his girlfriend told police in Freehold, N.J., she found him sitting on a couch in her condominium, drinking a beer. Daniels, 39, was involved in an argument at the girlfriend’s home, but did not attempt to steal any of her belongings, Lt. Mark Wodell told the Asbury Park Press for a story posted on its Web site. Daniels was taken to the Monmouth County Jail, and bail was set at $50,000.