Alabama loses NCAA sanctions appeal
INDIANAPOLIS, March 23 (UPI) -- The University of Alabama football team was ordered to vacate 21 victories from the 2005-07 seasons because of NCAA rules violations, the NCAA said Tuesday.
An NCAA committee said it was turning down an appeal from Alabama officials related to an investigation in which 201 student-athletes over 16 different sports were found to have received impermissible benefits through a textbook distribution program.
The NCAA Committee on Infractions last June slapped Alabama with sanctions including three years' probation, vacation of records in football, men's tennis and men's and women's track and a fine of $43,900.
Alabama appealed, saying vacating records made for an excessive and inconsistent penalty. An NCAA appeals committee ruled against Alabama.
As a result, the football team record will drop 10 wins, including a Cotton Bowl victory, from 2005, six wins in 2006 and five in 2007.
Alabama Director of Athletics Mal Moore said the school was disappointed in the outcome of the appeal but, "we have thoroughly addressed the situation and have taken corrective measures. We are eager to move forward while continuing to build a program that not only is successful on the field but also reflects the values of our university."
Sypher trial scheduled for June
LOUISVILLE, Ky., March 23 (UPI) -- Karen Sypher is to be tried in June on charges of trying to extort money from University of Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino, officials said.
U.S. District Judge Charles Simpson has scheduled the trial to begin June 1 and last nine days, The Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal reported Tuesday.
Interest in the case is so intense Simpson has appointed Vanessa Armstrong, the court's chief deputy clerk, as a "media liaison" with a special toll-free telephone number.
Sypher, the estranged wife of the basketball team's equipment manager, has pleaded innocent to trying to extort $10 million from Pitino in exchange for her silence about sex they had in 2003 in a Louisville restaurant. Sypher also is charged with lying to the FBI.
Pitino has admitted to having sex with Sypher and said he gave Sypher $3,000 because she said she needed an abortion.
If convicted, Sypher faces as long as 26 years in prison and $1.5 million in fines.
NFL adds compensatory picks to draft
NEW YORK, March 23 (UPI) -- The NFL awarded a total of 32 compensatory picks in the upcoming draft to teams that lost more free agents than they signed.
The selections are added to the end of rounds, with three extra picks due for the third round when Cincinnati, Tennessee and Atlanta will make choices and one after the fourth, when Cincinnati has another compensatory turn, the league said Monday.
The NFL ordered six extra picks each for the fifth and sixth rounds and 16 after the seventh.
NFL agreements say a team losing more or better compensatory free agents than it acquires in the previous year is eligible to receive compensatory draft picks. A league formula involving salary, playing time and other factors determines the selection round.
The New England Patriots have been awarded four compensatory picks, one in the sixth round and three in the seventh. Carolina, Pittsburgh and Tennessee will each make three extra selections.
With the compensatory picks added, the NFL will see a total of 255 players selected during the NFL draft April 22-24 in New York.
Gasol, Pierce are NBA players of the week
NEW YORK, March 23 (UPI) -- Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston's Paul Pierce were selected the NBA players of the week, the league said.
Gasol averaged 24.8 points over four games -- all Lakers' wins -- in winning the NBA Western Conference player of the week honors for March 15-21. He also averaged 11.8 rebounds as the Lakers ran their winning streak to six games and improved their conference-best record to 52-18.
Gasol had three double-doubles, including a 28-point, 14-rebound effort against Sacrament.
The Celtics were also 4-0 last week with Pierce, the Eastern Conference player of the week, averaging 24.8 points a game, a mark 6.7 points higher than his season scoring average. He capped the week with 29 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals in a win over Dallas.
Boston has the third-best record in the Eastern Conference.
