Times wires
Friday, April 8, 2011
NEW YORK — St. John's basketball coach Steve Lavin has prostate cancer, but he expects to keep coaching and fully recover.
Lavin, 46, who led the Red Storm to the NCAA Tournament in his first season, said Friday in a statement that he was diagnosed in September and was told he could delay treatment until after the season. He will begin treatment in a few weeks.
"My family feels fortunate that through annual health exams, we detected my condition at an early stage," the statement read. "I didn't want to distract our team, but with the season behind us, we are now working with medical experts and taking the proper steps to tackle this health challenge head on."
Lavin's doctor, Jonathan Schiff, described his condition as a "relatively low-grade cancer."
"I expect a complete cure of Coach Lavin's condition," he said.
Additions for FSU
TALLAHASSEE — Nearly a week ago, Florida State football coach Jimbo Fisher bemoaned the fact that his receivers were watching too many big-play opportunities slip through their fingers and defensive linemen were being used too often as rag dolls by run-blocking offensive linemen.
Ahead of the Seminoles' first scrimmage of the spring, he saw plenty of areas where they could improve.
Now, he's singing a different tune.
As FSU eases this morning into its second scrimmage and its final live-action tuneup before next weekend's spring game, he has detected progress.
While Monday's scrimmage was about correcting problems in the pass-catching and run-defense games, today's session will be about seeing how well the 'Noles respond to new play-calls.
"It'll be adding things, new situations — moving on," Fisher said. "We'll call the scrimmage differently and do some different things and try to emphasize … different things in the scrimmage on both sides of the ball."
NCAA changes: As a result of allegations at Oregon and other schools, the NCAA has reclassified recruiting websites such as Rivals.com and Scout.com from media entities to recruiting services. That means schools cannot subscribe to them.
Media reports say Oregon paid Willie Lyles, owner of a Houston-based scouting company, to steer players to it. Coach Chip Kelly denied the allegation but said the school has paid companies to scout players.
Under the NCAA's new interpretation, if a recruiting or scouting service provides nonscholastic video (seven-on-seven summer tournaments for example) not available for free to the public, then a school cannot pay them for services.
Connecticut: A man involved in the fight that left cornerback Jasper Howard dead was sentenced to 2½ years in prison. Hakim Muhammad pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and hindering prosecution in the stabbing of receiver Brian Parker in October 2009. Last month, Muhammad's friend, John Lomax, was sentenced to 18 years for stabbing Howard.
Missouri: Coach Gary Pinkel, 77-49 in 10 seasons, signed a two-year extension through 2017. His salary remains $2.35 million, but his assistants' salaries will rise.
N. Illinois: The condition of junior linebacker Devon Butler, wounded in a drive-by shooting Tuesday, was upgraded from critical to serious.
Hockey: Miami (Ohio) forward Andy Miele won the Hobey Baker award as the nation's top player. Miele, who signed with the Coyotes last week, led the nation with 71 points (24 goals and 47 assists) in 39 games. … Michigan and Minnesota-Duluth meet in the Division I final tonight in St. Paul, Minn. (7, ESPN).
Baseball: Cal's program will not be eliminated after alumni, ex-players and supporters raised $9 million to rescue it.