COLLEGEBASKETBALL

Olson steps down at Arizona

Arizona had won one conference title in the 29 seasons before Lute Olson arrived from Iowa in 1983. It didn’t take long for Olson to build a powerhouse in the desert. The 74-year-old Olson, who announced his retirement on Thursday, went 589-187 in 24 seasons at Arizona and led the Wildcats to the 1997 national championship and four Final Fours, most recently in 2001.

October 24, 2008

Packer out, Kellogg in as main CBS voice

Billy Packer didn’t sound like a man who found out his 34-year run as part of the Final Four broadcast had ended. On Monday, CBS announced that Clark Kellogg would replace Packer after 27 years as the network’s lead college basketball analyst. Including his earlier years at NBC, Packer had done every Final Four since 1975, an unparalleled run for a national sports championship.

July 15, 2008

Report: USC’s Mayo took gifts, money

A former associate of USC freshman guard O.J. Mayo claims the basketball star received thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts from an event promoter over the past four years that would violate NCAA rules, ESPN reported Sunday.

May 12, 2008

Gilliss resigns after 17 seasons with Mystics

Bismarck State College head men’s basketball coach Buster Gilliss has resigned after 17 seasons.

May 08, 2008

Memphis loses two more

The Memphis Tigers’ entire starting lineup last season has declared for the NBA draft now that juniors Antonio Anderson and Robert Dozier have become the last from the 2008 NCAA runner-up to announce.

April 24, 2008

UCLA’s Love leaving early for the NBA

UCLA’s Kevin Love is NBA-bound. Less than two weeks after leading the Bruins to the Final Four, the All-American freshman announced Thursday that he’ll skip his final three college seasons and enter the NBA draft.

April 18, 2008

Oklahoma State ready to hire UMass’ Ford

Travis Ford replaced Sean Sutton when the two were still playing college basketball. He’ll do it again in the coaching profession.

April 17, 2008

Bison name DeHoff new women’s coach

Carolyn DeHoff, who spent 17 years in a supporting role at the NCAA Division I level, is the new head women’s basketball coach at North Dakota State. DeHoff was named Friday to replace Amy Ruley, the 29-year veteran who guided the Bison to five Division II national titles and the move into Division I. It’s DeHoff’s first head coaching job.

April 12, 2008

Self staying at Kansas

Three days after winning the NCAA championship, Kansas coach Bill Self said no thanks to Oklahoma State, his alma mater, and agreed to a lucrative contract extension that could keep him at Kansas for the rest of his career.

April 11, 2008

Bauman transferring from MSCTC-FF to JC

Bill Bauman has signed a Dakota Athletic Conference letter of intent and is transferring to Jamestown College from MSCTC-Fergus Falls to play basketball for the Jimmies. Bauman, a native of Richfield, Minn., averaged 17 points and 8 rebounds per game last season and was named to the all-conference squad. He recorded eight double doubles and shot nearly 60 percent from the field. A 6-foot-7, 235 pound post player, he previously played one season at Grossmont College in El Cajon, Calif., and one season at Minneapolis CTC, where he started 10 games.

April 10, 2008

Sparks land Parker

Candace Parker had a whirlwind 24 hours. Parker was selected No. 1 by the Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA draft on Wednesday, a day after capping her college career by leading Tennessee to a second straight NCAA title.

April 10, 2008

Vols claim repeat crown

One by one, Candace Parker hugged her teammates on the sideline as the last seconds ticked away. It was all part of her final farewell to Tennessee. All that was left was to hoist a championship trophy, which came moments after the Lady Vols’ 64-48 victory over Stanford on Tuesday night. Parker scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds to help Tennessee capture its eighth championship. The Lady Vols also became the first repeat champs since Connecticut won three straight from 2002-04. The Associated Press player of the year will leave the Lady Vols (36-2) with a year of eligibility remaining, but has accomplished one of her goals by winning multiple championships.

April 09, 2008

New offense has Tigers on verge of title

Every year, some sharp basketball coach wins a national title. How often, though, does a coach truly change the game? John Calipari could be one of those rare coaches. The “dribble-drive motion” offense he uses is among the hottest things going in hoops these days, and Memphis puts it on display for the final time this season in Monday night’s championship game against Kansas. Calipari calls it “Princeton on steroids,” a bow to the constant-motion, cut-and-backdoor offense perfected by Pete Carril.

April 07, 2008

Kansas, Tigers advance to NCAA men’s title game

Roy Williams taught Kansas all about how to handle cruel, crushing disappointments. This time, the Jayhawks got their chance to make Williams feel the pain. Kansas left its old coach in the dust Saturday night, getting 25 points and seven rebounds from Brandon Rush to stave off a ferocious comeback by North Carolina for an 84-66 victory in the national semifinals. Trailing 40-12 late in the first half, Tyler Hansbrough, Wayne Ellington and the Tar Heels made a valiant rally, getting to within five points with nine minutes left.

April 07, 2008

Stanford tops UConn

The bigger the stage, the better Candice Wiggins performs. Wiggins continued her electrifying run through the NCAA tournament, scoring 25 points and grabbing 13 rebounds while getting some timely help from Kayla Pederson and JJ Hones as Stanford shocked Connecticut 82-73 in Sunday night’s national semifinals.

April 07, 2008