Off the wire
BASKETBALL Heath gets E. Michigan job
Eastern Michigan has hired Stan Heath as its new men’s basketball coach. The 56-year-old Heath, an Eastern Michigan alum, returns to the Mid-American Conference. He was previously the coach at Kent State, leading that program to the Elite Eight in 2002. He also guided the University of Arkansas to the NCAA Tournament in 2006 and 2007, and did the same at South Florida in 2012. “I’m thrilled to return to my alma mater as the head men’s basketball coach,” Heath said. “Eastern Michigan is a special place for me and my family. … Our goal is to win Mid-American Conference championships and be a perennial NCAA team.” Heath’s most recent position was head coach of the Orlando Magic’s G League affiliate. He took over that role in 2017.
NBA fines Fox $20,000
Sacramento guard De’Aaron Fox was fined $20,000 on Monday for criticizing the officiating after the Kings’ 128-112 loss to the Utah Jazz over the weekend. Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell kept Fox from going after the officials after Saturday night’s game in Salt Lake City. The Kings guard had been bothered throughout the second half and Mitchell, who said he has known Fox since high school, wanted to save him from a potential fine. “If you’re going to call something on one end, call it on the other end,” Fox said after the game. “And if somebody is trying to talk to you, you can’t get your feelings [hurt] so quick to where it’s not even a hostile conversation and you’re saying, ‘Don’t talk to [me]’ and this and this and that and that. I mean, you’re coming down guessing on plays.” Sacramento Coach Luke Walton said he shared Fox’s exasperation in his postgame interview as he pointed to Mitchell’s 17 free-throw attempts to Fox’s six. Fox scored 30 points during the loss. He’s averaging 24.7 points and 7.2 assists for the season.
Spartan to enter draft
Aaron Henry has decided to skip his senior season at Michigan State to enter the NBA Draft. Henry said Monday that he plans to sign with an agent. He helped the Spartans push their NCAA Tournament streak to 23, extending the longest run in Big Ten history, which trails only Kansas’ 31-year stretch among active streaks. The 6-6 guard was the team’s only double-digit scorer, averaging 15.4 points. He led Michigan State with 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game, along with being tied for the team lead with 5.6 rebounds a game and being its top defender.
Vols complete staff
Tennessee Coach Rick Barnes has hired veteran Justin Gainey as an assistant coach to fill out his staff. Barnes announced the hiring Monday and called Gainey a proven national recruiter. “I coached against Justin when he was the point guard at N.C. State,” Barnes said. “He was an incredibly tough competitor then, and he has that same tenacity now as a coach. Justin has a passion for on-court player development that fits well with our staff. Our players are going to love working with him to grow their game. Gainey has 15 years of Division I experience. He spent this season as associate head coach at Marquette where he also worked from 2014-17. He was assistant coach at Santa Clara in 2017-18 and Arizona from 2018-20 where he helped recruit and develop 2020 NBA Draft picks in Josh Green, Zeke Nnaji and Nico Mannion.
FOOTBALL DWI charge for Britt Reid
Former Kansas City Chiefs assistant coach Britt Reid was charged Monday with driving while intoxicated resulting in serious physical injury after a crash that left a young girl critically injured. The Jackson County prosecutor’s office said Reid’s blood-alcohol content shortly after the Feb. 4 crash was 0.113, above the legal limit of .08. He was driving 84 mph in a 65 mph zone seconds before his truck crashed into two cars stopped on an entrance ramp to Interstate 435 near Arrowhead Stadium, prosecutors said. One of the vehicles had stalled because its battery was dead and the second was owned by a cousin who had arrived to help, according to the charging documents. A 5-year-old girl in the second car, Ariel Young, suffered a traumatic brain injury. Her family’s attorney told The Kansas City Star on Monday that she was released from the hospital on April 2 and is being treated at her home. She is unable to talk or walk and is being fed through a feeding tube. Reid, the son of Chiefs Coach Andy Reid, could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison if convicted of the felony charge. Reid surrendered to Kansas City police Monday afternoon and was released after posting $100,000 bond. As part of his bond release, Reid was ordered to not consume alcohol or visit any establishment where alcohol is the primary item sold. He also must report to a dependency services clinic for pretrial supervision, is subject to random drug testing, and must use alcohol and GPS monitoring devices.
BASEBALL Rendon to injured list
Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon was placed on the 10-day injured list Monday because of a strained groin. Rendon was hurt while making a throw late in a 15-1 loss to Toronto on Saturday. The Angels made the roster move retroactive to Monday. Angels Manager Joe Maddon said he hopes Rendon will be sidelined for the minimum 10 days. Rendon, 30, is starting his second season with the Angels after signing a $245 million, seven-year contract. He hit his first home run of the season Saturday and is batting .290 with three RBI. Los Angeles selected the contract of right-hander Ben Rowen from its alternate training site and recalled infielder Jack Mayfield from its alternate training site.