Rick Pitino calls for delaying start of college basketball
Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino is advocating for a delayed start to the NCAA basketball season, less than two weeks before the start of the season.
His tweet on Saturday came amid reports of shutdowns at 20 programs because of COVID-19 issues. Pitino is in his first season as the coach of Iona, which is one of the programs on pause.
“Save the Season. Move the start back. Play league schedule and have May Madness,” Pitino said. “Spiking and protocols make it impossible to play right now.”
The NCAA season opens Nov. 25. Pitino’s Gaels are scheduled to play that day at Fordham.
Under NCA A guidelines, programs are recommended to quarantine for 14 days if a player, coach or certain staff members test positive for the virus.
Laws in some states and counties requiring quarantines after travel also could be disruptive for NCA A programs and players.
And in some locales, bans on gatherings of more than a few people have put seasons on hold. New Mexico and New Mexico State are among teams that are considering relocating for the season because of state regulations.
The coronavirus was declared a pandemic in the midst of most NCAA conference basketball tournaments in mid-March. The NCA A tournament was called off.
TENNESSEE SIGNS TOPRATED POINT GUARD >> No. 12 Tennessee has signed Kennedy Chandler, a fivestar prospect who’s the nation’s top-rated point guard in the 2021 class.
Chandler signed Saturday and is expected to enroll next summer. Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said Kennedy was one of the Vols’ top targets for a long time.
“To us, his elite speed, athleticism, defense and basketball IQ separated him from every other point guard in America,” Barnes said. “But it was his character, work ethic and toughness that really made him a perfect fit for our program. We’re very excited to have Kennedy and his family join our Tennessee basketball family.”
A native of Memphis, Chandler is playing his senior year of high school at Sunrise Christian Academy in Wichita, Kansas.
Soccer
FRANCE CLINCHES FINALS SPOT >> France ended Portugal’s defense of its Nations League title after winning 1- 0 in Lisbon to ensure it advances to the final- offour on Saturday.
N’Golo Kanté scored in the 54th minute when the midfielder joined the attack hunting for a loose ball that fell to him when goalkeeper Rui Patricio fumbled a save.
France clinched a firstplace finish in Group 3 with three more points than Portugal and the tiebreaker on head-to-head goals with one game to play. Portugal won last year’s inaugural Nations League.
World champion France outplayed European champion Portugal at Benfica’s stadium and was denied a lead by halftime only thanks to Patricio.
Horse racing JO CK E Y W I NS 3 ,000T H RACE >>
Jockey Joel Rosario earned his 3,000th career victory in a race at Aqueduct in New York. The 35-year- old rider reached the plateau in Friday’s first race, guiding Hit the Woah to a 1 1/4-length victory. He rode his first winner in 2006 and has compiled at least 150 wins every year since 2007.
Rosario won the 2013 Kentucky Derby with Orb and won the Belmont Stakes in 2014 and 2019. He has 13 Breeders’ Cup victories.
“Coming from the Dominican Republic, I’m very thankful to all the people who got me to where I am today,” Rosario said. “All the support from the owners and trainers and all the good horses they’ve given me.”
NBA
CHEEKS RETURNS TO HOMETOWN BULLS >> Hall of Famer Maurice Cheeks is returning to his hometown to serve as an assistant under new coach Billy Donovan, the Chicago Bulls announced.
Cheeks, who grew up on Chicago’s South Side, was on Donovan’s staff in Oklahoma City the past five seasons. The Bulls hired Donovan in September to replace the fired Jim Boylen.
A steady point guard who won a championship playing alongside Julius Erving and Moses Malone in Philadelphia, Cheeks spent most of his 15-year playing career with the 76ers. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018.
Tennis
SINNER EARNS FIRST ATP TITLE >> Italian player Jannik Sinner earned his maiden ATP title after beating Vasek Pospisil 6- 4, 3- 6, 7- 6 (3) in the Sofia Open final in Bulgaria.
At 19, Sinner became the youngest man to capture an ATP title in more than 12 years, after Kei Nishikori, then 18, in 2008 at Delray Beach.
Sinner is the youngest player in the top 100, and will crack the top 40 for the first time in the rankings update on Monday.
“It is special,” Sinner said. “Playing finals like this, 7- 6 in the third ... is always tough. But when you win, it is an even better win than winning 6-1 6-1.”
S A B A L E N K A , ME RT E N S REACH LINZ FINAL >>
Topseeds Aryna Sabalenka and Elise Mertens had three-set wins to advance to the final of the season-ending Upper Austria Ladies Linz.
T he 11th- ranked Sabalenka outlasted Barbora Krejcikova 7- 5, 4- 6, 6- 3, and Mertens rallied to defeat Ekaterina Alexandrova 2- 6, 6-1, 7-5.
By reaching the final, Sabalenka will enter the top 10 of the WTA rankings for the first time, overtaking Serena Williams.