Canes evacuate during practice
A fire alarm triggered a brief evacuation Saturday of the University of Texas arena in Austin hosting NCAA tournament games.
The alarm went off the day between games at the Erwin Center and during Miami’s allocated 90-minute practice period inside. The Hurricanes play Illinois on Sunday.
Canes coach Jim Larranaga said the evacuation was just another in a series of firsts for his team this season. He said the team had a “very good practice” despite the disruption and needing to be escorted out of the building.
“The neat part about our Miami players is they kept everything in stride and had a good time outside, just hanging out with each other,” Larranaga said.
The Hurricanes were able to get in all of their allotted practice time.
There were no reports of any injuries or problems with the building. The alarm was apparently activated by a minor mechanical issue.
Dixon stays; Howland goes
Saying he wants to “finish his career” with Pittsburgh, Jamie Dixon agreed to a contract extension that will keep him signed through 2023. There had been talk USC was targeting Dixon (262-86), a Southern California native, for its open job.
Dixon is 11-9 in the NCAA tournament, and Pitt hasn’t advanced past the opening weekend since 2009, when it lost to Villanova in the regional finals.
UCLA fired coach Ben Howland, according to Yahoo! Sports, five years after he led the Bruins to their third consecutive Final Four. UCLA hasn’t advanced past the opening weekend of the NCAA tournament in five consecutive seasons.
Temple’s Wyatt ready
Temple star guard Khalif Wyatt said his injured left thumb shouldn’t be a problem when the Owls play Indiana on Sunday.
The Atlantic 10 player of the year was hurt in the second half Friday against North Carolina State. He came out briefly to get his thumb taped and scored 31 points.
Wyatt said X-rays were negative. Owls coach Fran Dunphy expects him to be a “little tender” Sunday.
UIC ousted in 2nd round
UIC was eliminated in the second round of the CollegeInsider.com tournament, falling to Northern Iowa 63-51 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The Flames held UNI to 37 percent shooting, but the Panthers finished the game on a 23-10 run. UIC (1816) finished with its most victories since the 2007-08 season.