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Emmert acknowledges errors in Miami probe

INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 18 (UPI) -- NCAA President Mark Emmert Monday admitted mistakes were made in the college sports governing body's probe of alleged violations at Miami-Florida.

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But, he said, the investigation of the Hurricanes' basketball and football programs will go on after a 27-day external review of the NCAA enforcement division's handling of the case.

Yahoo! Sports reported NCAA enforcement chief Julie Roe Lach has been fired, which Emmert declined to confirm.

The review, carried out by the law firm of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, determined enforcement staffers went against NCAA legal advice in paying a bankruptcy attorney for former Miami booster Nevin Shapiro to share court depositions with them.

Shapiro, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for operating a high-stakes Ponzi scheme, claimed to have given improper benefits to Hurricanes athletes over many years.

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Calling the Miami probe a "debacle," Emmert said, "This is an outcome nobody wants to see on their watch, or anyone else's. It's something that's an embarrassment to our association and our staff. ... This is not a good situation at all."


Utah's Lowe arrested on tax charges

RALEIGH, N.C., Feb. 18 (UPI) -- Utah Jazz assistant coach Sidney Lowe was arrested on misdemeanor state tax charges in North Carolina Monday.

WRAL-TV, Raleigh, N.C., reported Lowe, a former head coach at North Carolina State, is accused of failing to file state tax returns for 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Lowe, who has a home in Wake Forest, N.C., was the Wolfpack's coach from 2006 to 2011 and joined the Jazz's staff last year. He drew a $500,000 salary his last year at N.C. State

The 53-year-old coach had his unsecured bail set at $10,000 and had a court appearance set for March 19.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported Jazz spokesman said the team was aware of Lowe's arrest but had no comment.

WTVD-TV, Raleigh, reported Lowe had no comment as he climbed into a taxi outside his home Monday afternoon.

Lowe played for N.C. State's 1983 national championship team before going on to the NBA where he played for Indiana, Detroit, Atlanta, Charlotte and Minnesota.

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His coaching career also includes stints as an assistant with Minnesota (three times), Cleveland and Detroit, and as head coach with the Timberwolves and Vancouver/Memphis.


Girardi unaware of Jeter's stress fracture

TAMPA, Fla., Feb. 18 (UPI) -- New York Yankees Manager Joe Girardi said he was unaware of the left foot stress fracture Derek Jeter had before he broke his ankle.

Speaking separately to reporters at the Yankees' spring training facility in Tampa, Fla., Jeter said he was told he had a stress fracture before he broke his ankle in the first game of last season's American League Championship Series against the Detroit Tigers, but Girardi said he never heard the term associated with Jeter's foot.

"I was not aware of it," Girardi said of the stress fracture. "I knew he had a bone bruise." He added that if he knew a bone bruise could lead to a broken ankle, "We wouldn't have been playing him."

"They told me it was a bone bruise," Jeter said. "Eventually it turned into a stress fracture and broke in half."

Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman, reached by phone, said he did not know what happened between the bruise being diagnosed and the break, but added the Yankees did not knowingly play Jeter with anything more than a bone bruise, the New York Post reported Monday.

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"The bone bruise got worse and led to the break. What happened in between I couldn't tell you. It's possible after the break they told him he had a stress fracture over time," Cashman said.


Top-seeded Cilic wins opener at Memphis

MEMPHIS, Feb. 18 (UPI) -- Top-seeded Marin Cilic earned a first-round win at the U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships Monday, getting past fellow Croatian Ivan Dodig.

Cilic dropped the first set before rallying for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory at The Racquet Club of Memphis.

In other opening day matches, Rhyne Williams of the United States bested compatriot Steve Johnson 7-6, (7-4), 6-4, and Poland's Lukasz Kubot battled past American Ryan Harrison 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 7-6 (7-2).

The second seed in Memphis is 2012 runner-up Milos Raonic of Canada, who is fresh off his third straight victory at San Jose's SAP Open.

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