LOUISVILLE ACCUSED BY NCAA OF FOUR SERIOUS VIOLATIONS
louisville, ky.» The NCAA accused Louisville of four serious violations Thursday and criticized the conduct of men’s basketball coach Rick Pitino for failing to monitor a former staffer who hired escorts and strippers for sex parties with recruits and players.
Pitino disputed the finding that he did not monitor Andre McGee, saying his tendency is to over-monitor. If anything, the coach said he was guilty of trusting someone to tell him what was going on.
“This man (McGee) made a mistake and we apologize for his mistakes,” he said during a news conference. Pitino has denied knowledge of the alleged violations.
The NCAA’s letter is the first step in a process that could extend into spring. Louisville has 90 days to respond.
The letter culminates an inquiry that began with the publication last October of Katina Powell’s book, “Breaking Cardinal Rules: Basketball and the Escort Queen.”
Powell wrote that McGee paid her $10,000 for strippers to perform 22 shows from 2010-14 — a period that includes Louisville’s NCAA 2012-13 championship season.
Louisville already has imposed its own penalties. The most severe one was announced Feb. 5 — a postseason ban after the school determined violations occurred.
B fort collins» Colorado State extended basketball coach Larry Eustachy’s contract through the 2020-21 season, adding a year to his existing deal.
The 60-year-old Eustachy took over at Colorado State in 2012. He’s 87-48 with the Rams, including an NCAA Tournament appearance during his first season in charge.
As part of his agreement, Eustachy has bonuses for winning 20 games ($40,000), taking the Mountain West championship ($100,000) and earning an NCAA Tournament bid ($200,000).
CSU’s Eustachy gets extension Skier Maze to retire after one more race B
soelden, austria» Olympic and world downhill champion Tina Maze said she will retire after competing in one more race — on home snow in January.
The 33-year-old Slovenian said her last World Cup race will be the giant slalom in Maribor on Jan. 7.
Having set the record for most World Cup points in a single season while taking the overall title in 2013, Maze took a year off from racing last season, prompting speculation about her career.
The four-time Olympian won 26 World Cup races and 13 medals at major championships, including two golds at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
B blacksburg, va.» Jerod Evans threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third and Virginia Tech beat Miami 37-16.
Travon McMillian ran for 131 yards for the Hokies (5-2, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who kept pace with Coastal Division-leading North Carolina in the chase for a spot in the ACC title game.
Brad Kaaya threw for 323 yards and two touchdowns for the Hurricanes (4-3, 1-3), but he also was sacked eight times as they lost their third in a row.
Hokies keep pace in ACC Footnotes.
No. 22 Colorado (12-4, 6-1) dropped a 2-0 decision at No. 3 Stanford (13-1-1, 6-1) in women’s soccer, snapping a 10-match winning streak for the Buffaloes. Colorado, Stanford and Southern California are all now in a three-way tie atop the Pac-12 standings. … Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand, the first overall pick out of Duke in the 1999 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, announced his retirement. … Justin Thomas opened his CIMB Classic title defense with an 8-under-par 64 for a share of the lead with fellow Americans Keegan Bradley and Derek Fathauer at Kuala Lumper, Malaysia. … Rafael Nadal is cutting short his 2016 season so he can fully recover from a left wrist injury.