VCU bounces Fordham from Atlantic 10 Tournament

Max Shulga scored 14 points to help lift VCU over Fordham, 69-62, on Wednesday in the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament.

Fifth-seeded VCU plays No. 4 seed UMass today in the quarterfinals.

Kyle Rose led the way for Fordham (1320) with 19 points. Abdou Tsimbila added 10 points and Will Richardson scored eight.

PAYNE OUT AT LOUISVILLE

Louisville fired coach Kenny Payne on Wednesday after he went 12-52 in two seasons that marked the worst consecutive finishes in the storied program’s history, saying “a change is needed” to reach expectations.

The move came a day after the Cardinals’ 94-85 first-round loss to North Carolina State in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, their eighth consecutive defeat.

UFC LEGEND FIGHTING FOR LIFE

UFC Hall of Famer and former champion Mark Coleman was airlifted to a hospital and was “battling for his life” after saving his parents from a house fire in Ohio this week, his daughter said on Instagram.

Morgan Coleman posted that her father went into the burning house several times and was able to bring out his mother and father. Coleman said her 59-year-old father was at the hospital “battling for his life after this heroic act.”

Coleman, form Fremont, Ohio, was UFC’s first heavyweight champion in 1997 when he defeated Dan Severn. He won 16 of 26 fights over his 14-year career and was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2008.

GIOLITO EXPECTED TO MISS SEASON

Red Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito is expected to miss this season after his right ulnar collateral ligament was repaired with an internal brace.

Dr. Jeffrey R. Dugas operated Tuesday at the Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Giolito was able to avoid ligament replacement surgery, which he had on Aug. 31, 2012, with Dr. Lewis Yocum, less than two months after

Washington made Giolito the top overall pick in the 2012 amateur draft.

FORMER RED PLUMMER DIES

Bill Plummer, a reliable catcher who spent spent seven seasons backing up Johnny Bench during the Big Red Machine era and later served as a coach and manager in the majors and minors has died. He was 76.

Plummer died Tuesday after suffering a heart attack last Thursday at home in Redding, California.

He appeared in 324 games for the Reds between 1970 and 1977 as the team won back-to-back World Series titles in 1975 and ’76.

“Loved Bill for the person he was and the competitor he showed us on the field. He was always ready to play,” Bench said.