Quick Hitters
Mats fall in District I final
For the second year in a row, the Arizona Western men’s basketball team came up just short of reaching nationals.
The Matadors lost, 89-86, at Salt Lake Community College on Saturday night in the District I Championship.
AWC (23-10 overall) had three chances to tie in the final 30 seconds. First, Andre Allen had two looks from inside with the Matadors down by two, but missed both. After Salt Lake CC then split a pair of free throws with 14.5 seconds left, Brandon McGhee took a 3-pointer in the closing seconds that missed.
Lamont Traylor led AWC with 21 points and seven rebounds. Dajuan Beard and Daryl Adams both had 13 points, while Marvin Mapaga chipped in 12.
UConn fires coach Ollie
The combination was too much for UConn: an NCAA investigation and a second straight losing season.
All of which left coach Kevin Ollie out of a job. He was fired Saturday four years after leading the Huskies to the NCAA basketball title.
The university said in a statement it has “initiated disciplinary procedures” and is dismissing him for “just cause.” The school says it would have no further comment until its disciplinary process and the NCAA inquiry are complete. The scope of the investigation is not clear.
“Our goal, above all, is to ensure we have a program that UConn Nation can be proud of, including our students, alumni, fans and all our committed supporters,” said Susan Herbst, the university president.
Athletic director David Benedict said it was “unfortunate that this decision became necessary.” He added that the team must be held to the “highest standards” and a search for a new coach begins immediately.
Ollie was in the second year of a five-year deal valued at $17.9 million that was signed amid reports he was a candidate for several NBA jobs. He is not owed the remainder of his contract if fired for just cause, which includes serious NCAA violations.
Ollie spent six seasons at UConn and was an assistant under Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun on the 2011 NCAA title team. The team went 14-18 this season, including 7-11 in the American Athletic Conference. Ollie’s career record at UConn is 127-79.
He played point guard for Calhoun from 1991-95 and played 13 seasons in the NBA before joining the UConn staff in 2010. He was his former coach’s hand-picked successor.
Ollie guided the team to a 20-win season in his first year as coach, even though the program had been declared academically ineligible for postseason play.
NEW YORK — As confetti fluttered down on a court still simmering from an epic title game, Jay Wright wrapped his arms around several Wildcats. While his current crop of stars got ready to climb a ladder and snip the net again, Wright celebrated with NBA AllStar Kyle Lowry and a slew of other former players who had sat behind the bench in a scene that bridged the start of Villanova’s ascent into a powerhouse with this season’s Big East Tournament champions.
“I wanted them to be up there and a part of it,” Wright said. “I wanted our young guys to see how much pride they take in them and in following them.”
They could follow Villanova straight to the Final Four.
Mikal Bridges scored 25 points and hit two 3-pointers in overtime to lift No. 2 Villanova to a 76-66 win over Providence in the Big East title game Saturday night.
The Wildcats (30-4) won their second straight Big East Tournament and third in four years (losing in the 2016 final). They put a bow on a fantastic season that should have them earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Villanova had rolled to a pair of dominant victories in the tourney and held off a pesky Providence team that finally wilted late in its third straight overtime game.
The fifth-seeded Friars (21-13) rallied in the second half from another doubledigit hole and seemed set to pull off one more upset and earn the automatic NCAA berth. Providence erased a 17-point deficit in the second half to beat top-seeded Xavier to reach the final. With one stunning rally on its resume, Providence