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(06/15/10 11:50pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Tom Izzo is staying at Michigan State, turning down a chance to coach the Cleveland Cavaliers and perhaps LeBron James.In a statement released by the school on Tuesday Izzo says: "I'm pleased to say I am here for life at Michigan State."For the past nine days, Izzo has been trying to decide whether to leave the place that has been his home since 1983 and jump to the NBA to perhaps make $6 million — doubling his salary — and possibly coaching one of the best basketball players in the world.The Spartans have scheduled an 8:30 p.m. ET press conference with Izzo, school president Lou Anna Simon and athletic director Mark Hollis.
(06/11/10 12:26pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>CLEVELAND (AP) — Tom Izzo has flirted with the NBA before. He may finally be ready to commit.Michigan State's highly respected coach visited the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday to get a firsthand inspection of a franchise undergoing a major makeover as it prepares to try and re-sign LeBron James, the free-agent-of-a-generation.After flying to Cleveland in one of Cavs owner Dan Gilbert's jets, Izzo spent several hours visiting with members of the front office and coaching staff. He also toured the team's facilities before returning home late Thursday."It won't go on forever, I can tell you that," Izzo said at the airport upon his return to Lansing, Mich. "I feel bad that I can't talk. I feel good that I did what I had to do."Izzo, who has been courted by pro and college teams in the past, is believed to be mulling a contract worth up to $6 million a season from the Cavs, who fired Mike Brown last month after they lost in the second round of the playoffs to Boston despite having the league's best regular-season record for the second straight year.If Izzo and Cleveland do not come to terms, the team could turn its attention to former New Orleans and New Jersey coach Byron Scott, whose resume would make him attractive to Cleveland. Scott won three NBA titles as a player and has experience in coaching such stars as Jason Kidd and Chris Paul.A phone message to Scott's agent, Brian McInerney, was not immediately returned.AOL Fanhouse.com reported that Scott had an hour-long interview with new Cleveland general manager Chris Grant and assistant GM Lance Blanks."They asked him what his view was on championships, talked about his mentality that you either win or you come home on your shield trying," McInerney said.Grant said the Cavs have spoken to a "number" of candidates, but did not divulge any names. The team has also inquired about Milwaukee assistant Kelvin Sampson.Izzo recently said he would stay with the Spartans until they won another national title. But earlier this week, Izzo seemed to have a change of heart and met with his current players. He told them to continue to work hard, but did not say if he was leaving the school, associate head coach Mark Montgomery said.The day began with Izzo on campus in East Lansing, Mich., but by early afternoon he was in Cleveland. His plane was scheduled to land at Burke Lakefront Airport, but was diverted to Cuyahoga County Airport in Richmond Heights, Ohio, to avoid TV cameras. Gilbert did arrive at Burke, which is a short drive from Quicken Loans Arena, the Cavs' downtown home.Izzo's interest in the Cavs' job could hinge on James' future. The two-time MVP can become a free agent July 1, and is expected to entertain offers from several teams. It is not known if Izzo has contacted James to see whether Cleveland remains one of his possible destinations. Last week, James told CNN's Larry King that the Cavs, his team for the past seven seasons, have "an edge" to re-sign him.Gilbert has been ultra-secretive in his pursuit of Izzo, whom he has known for years.Grant, who recently took over when Danny Ferry resigned, confirmed this week the team has had contact with Izzo but would not comment on whether an offer has been made to the 55-year-old coach. Gilbert is a Michigan State graduate.Michigan State athletic director Mark Hollis said in a statement that Izzo "made me aware he is meeting with Cleveland." Hollis added that details of any meetings are "between him and me."About 500 people, including center Derrick Nix, showed up at the Magic Johnson statue outside Michigan State's arena, responding to a rally created by fans on message boards and social networking websites."Coach is the best thing that ever happened to me," said Nix, a freshman last season.Hundreds wrote personal messages in different colors on a huge banner that was taped up to the windows of Izzo's office. An "Oh no, please don't go Izzo," banner was taped at the base of Johnson's statue.Izzo has been at the school since 1983 and has been the Spartans' head coach since 1995, leading them to six Final Fours in the past 12 years. He has spurned previous overtures from the NBA, most notably from Atlanta, which offered him a five-year deal in 2000.Izzo must weigh leaving a familiar situation that pays $3 million a year for probably as long as he wants the job, and perhaps a legacy that would put him among college basketball's all-time greats, for a chance to coach in a player-first league with a team that doesn't know if it will have James next season.In recent years, several successful college coaches, including Rick Pitino, Tim Floyd and John Calipari, have struggled in switching to the pro game. Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown is a rare exception.Several of Izzo's former players believe he's ready for the leap."I don't think coach would have a problem getting respect in an NBA locker room," Hornets guard Morris Peterson said. "Guys will buy into what he's telling them because he has a gift with people. Izz is one of the smartest coaches in basketball."Milwaukee guard Charlie Bell said Izzo may have to alter his intensity when he talks to players who are making more than him and perhaps a superstar in James who would have more power."I've heard he's not as hard on guys as he used to be," Bell said. "He'd have to tone it down even more in the pros."
(06/10/10 4:53pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>CLEVELAND — Tom Izzo may finally be ready to make the jump to the NBA.Michigan State's coach plans to visit the Cleveland Cavaliers to discuss becoming the their coach, a person familiar with the visit told The Associated Press on Thursday.Izzo, who has flirted with going to the pros several times in the past, is expected to travel to Cleveland later to meet with the Cavs and tour their facilities, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the team is not commenting on the coaching search.Two people in East Lansing, Mich., said Izzo was on campus all morning. They spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because Izzo and the school are not commenting on talks.Izzo is believed to be mulling a massive contract from the Cavaliers worth up to $6 million per season. The team has been searching for a coach since firing Mike Brown following the club's second-round playoff collapse to the Boston Celtics. Brown led the Cavs to 127 regular-season wins the past two seasons but failed to get superstar LeBron James back to the finals.Earlier this week, new Cavs general manager Chris Grant said the team has had contact with Izzo but would not comment on whether an offer has been made.Text messages seeking comment were sent to Izzo and Michigan State athletic director Mark Hollis.Izzo has been at the school since 1983 and has been the Spartans coach since 1995. He has spurned previous overtures from the NBA, but the Cavs may have given him more to consider. Izzo must weigh leaving a comfortable situation for a chance to coach the Cavs, who don't know if they'll have James next season and beyond.The two-time MVP can become a free agent on July 1, and is expected to entertain offers from several teams.In recent year, several successful college coaches, including Rick Pitino, Tim Floyd and John Calipari, have struggled in switching to the pro game. Several of Izzo's former players believe he can make the leap."I don't think coach would have a problem getting respect in an NBA locker room," said New Orleans Hornets guard Morris Peterson. "I think guys will buy into what he's telling them because he has a gift with people. Izz is one of the smartest coaches in basketball and one of the nicest guys around."Grant said the Cavaliers have spoken to a "number" of candidates. One may include former Hornets coach Byron Scott, whose resume would make him attractive to Cleveland.Scott won three NBA titles as a player and has experience in coaching superstar players like Jason Kidd and Chris Paul. Scott is currently working as a TV analyst.
(07/11/07 11:45pm)
DETROIT – Chauncey Billups signed a $60 million, five-year contract Wednesday with the Detroit Pistons, returning to the team he helped reach five straight conference finals.\nThe contract is worth $46 million guaranteed over four years and includes a team option for the fifth year.\nPistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars said he was “very pleased” to have Billups back.\n“We said from the beginning that re-signing Chauncey was our top priority, and now we can move forward knowing that Chauncey will continue to lead this team,” Dumars told The Associated Press on Wednesday afternoon. “One of the toughest positions to fill in this business is the point guard position, and that’s why it was imperative that we re-sign Chauncey.”\nBillups and the Pistons appeared to reach a win-win deal, because even though the All-Star was one of the NBA’s top free agents this summer, other teams didn’t seem to be willing or able to compete with Detroit’s offer.\nRasheed Wallace in 2004 re-signed with the Pistons in a similar situation, for $57 million over five years after he and Billups helped the franchise win its third title.\nBillups has guided Detroit on the court during what has been one of the league’s most consistent stretches in two-plus decades.\nHe was the NBA finals MVP three years ago, when Detroit beat the Los Angeles Lakers with Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, and nearly led Detroit to a title the \nnext year.\nSince 1984, only the Lakers have been more reliable in the playoffs with a run that ended with a sixth straight conference finals appearance in 1989.\nBillups made it clear he wanted to return to the team that gave him stability for the first time in his career. The Pistons, likewise, said re-signing him was the No. 1 priority this offseason.\nHe joined the Pistons as a free agent in 2002 after bouncing around the league.\nThe former Colorado star was drafted third overall in 1997 by Boston and was with Toronto, Denver, Orlando and Minnesota within his first four years in t\nhe league.\nIn Detroit, Billups was given a chance to blossom, and he took full advantage of it.\nHe became one of the NBA’s top point guards with his steady leadership and clutch shooting along with the willingness to take something from each of his three coaches – Rick Carlisle, Larry Brown and Flip Saunders – in Detroit.\nBillups averaged 17 points, 7.2 assists and two turnovers last season, helping the Pistons have the best record in the Eastern Conference. He has career averages of 14.5 points, 5.3 assists and two assists.\nThe player known as Mr. Big Shot was off his game, though, in each of the past two conference finals as Detroit was eliminated. Against Cleveland last month, he averaged 15.3 points, 3.5 assists and 3.8 turnovers while uncharacteristically struggling in pressure-packed situations.\nBut the Pistons wouldn’t have reached the NBA’s final four in each of the past five seasons without Billups, whose unique ability to run the team was underscored when he was sidelined with injuries last season.\nBillups might have a chance to play in the conference finals for a sixth straight year.\nBarring a major trade, he will be in one of the top backcourts with Richard Hamilton. The Pistons also feature three talented frontcourt players: Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and Antonio McDyess.
(01/29/07 2:44am)
JACKSON, Mich. -- Tony Dungy was back in his hometown, attending a ceremony to name Frost School's library after his mother, a former teacher.\nA black plaque with silver lettering read: "Cleo May Dungy Library. In honor of her many years of dedicated service to Jackson Public Schools. Dedicated, May 2001."\nOne problem -- Dungy's mother's name is spelled "Cleomae."\nTony Dungy didn't point out the mistake, a decision befitting a man whose reputation as a gentleman rivals his acclaim as a coach.\n"He probably didn't say anything because he's so nice," gushed Frost School sixth-grade teacher Mary Anne Gough, who's known of Dungy since they were in middle school nearly four decades ago.\nIn Jackson, about 75 miles west of Detroit, the mere mention of the Indianapolis Colts coach makes people smile.\n"This is great for our city, because we're losing jobs and people every day," said Jackson High School Athletic Director Russell Davis, who played football against, with and for Dungy. "Tony's story is really giving us a shot in the arm that we desperately need."\nSunday night, the 51-year-old Dungy will lead his Colts onto the field at Dolphin Stadium in Miami to battle the Chicago Bears in the Super Bowl, where he and Bears coach Lovie Smith will make history as the first black head coaches at the title game.\n"Tony Dungy is the talk of the town," Mayor Jerry Ludwig said. "He's all people are talking about -- no matter where you go. It doesn't matter if you're old or young, it's exciting for all of us."\nDungy's hometown needs a pick-me-up story. Jackson -- like the entire state of Michigan -- is hurting because of a sagging economy that keeps taking hits from the Big Three's automobile woes.\nDungy's story and the spotlight it has put on Jackson -- which touts itself as the birthplace of the Republican Party -- won't pay the bills, but it gives many of the more than 35,000 residents a reason to be proud of their town.\nThe city council even declared Jan. 29 through Feb. 4 "Tony Dungy Week."\nIn a quiet downtown, Dungy's image loomed on a billboard not far from Jackson Coney Island, where hot dogs smothered with dense chili, onions and mustard have been served for almost a century.\nIt's easy to imagine Dungy eating a coney dog after playing with friends at the Martin Luther King Community Center, where a room is now named after him, before returning to his modest home at Robinson and Merriman in a middle-class neighborhood on the east side of town.\n"He was friends with everybody," said Peter May, who has known Dungy since the seventh grade and will be one of his personal guests at the Super Bowl. "He didn't have an enemy. He's got that 'it' that special people have."\n"I don't think he has a skeleton in his closet," said Sherrilyn Sims, Dungy's older sister, who still lives in Jackson.\nThere's no dirt on Dungy?\n"Well, we had our brawls over toys, and he got spankings like the rest of the kids," Sims said. "He wasn't a complete angel when he was little"
(09/08/06 4:27am)
DETROIT - Joe Dumars is going into the Basketball Hall of Fame just as he played -- under the radar.\nMaking all the noise, drawing all the attention Friday night will be two other inductees -- Charles Barkley and Dominique Wilkins. Barkley, no doubt, will have the most entertaining speech. Wilkins will monopolize the highlight tapes.\nDumars plans to stay nice and quiet, in keeping with the way he acted as a player and now conducts himself as the Detroit Pistons' president of basketball operations.\n"It's only befitting that I go in with a couple guys like Charles and Dominique because it typifies my 14 years in the NBA," Dumars said in an interview with The Associated Press this week. "And it's absolutely the way I would prefer to go into the Hall of Fame."\nUnlike Barkley and Wilkins, Dumars was an NBA champion. He was the MVP of the 1989 NBA finals and helped Detroit repeat the next year.\n"The three of us are getting to the same mountain top as players, using three different routes," Dumars said. "You're either a Hall of Famer based on championships or numbers, and I'm 100 percent comfortable and happy with the route I've taken."\nDetroit drafted Dumars with the 18th pick overall in 1985, and the skinny, unknown shooting guard from McNeese State University spent his entire 14-year career with the Pistons -- the longest any player has played for the franchise.\n"What's great about only playing for one team is that when people think about your career, they don't have to piece it together," he said. "They don't have to say, 'What did he do there?' or 'Did he win a title there?' If people think about my career, they only think about the Pistons, and I like that."\nDumars, elected in his second year of eligibility, might not be a Hall of Fame player because of any one facet of his game, but his versatility earned him a spot among the game's all-time stars.\n"Nobody deserves it more than Joe," Pistons owner Bill Davidson said.\nMichael Jordan has said Dumars was the toughest defender to score against in the NBA, helping him earn a spot on the All-Defensive team four times. The shooting guard averaged a relatively modest 16.1 points and 4.5 assists.\n"Arguably, he helped form one of the greatest backcourts in NBA history, with Vinny (Johnson), Joe and myself," Hall of Fame point guard Isiah Thomas said in a statement released by the New York Knicks, a franchise he leads as coach and president. "He was a Hall of Fame player and Hall of Fame person. His contributions to our game of basketball far exceed what he has done on the court."\nDumars was the good guy on the Bad Boys, a person respected so much that the NBA created the Joe Dumars Trophy after he won the league's sportsmanship award following the 1995-96 season.\n"To the people closest to me, that awards means as much or more than anything," he said. "It solidifies how you carried yourself for a very long time in the public eye."\nDumars' path to the Hall of Fame began in the dusty backyard of his parents' home in Natchitoches, La.\n"The light from a liquor store turned off at midnight, so that's when my imaginary games ended," he said. "In the summer, I bet I spent about six hours a day out there shooting -- mostly by myself. My mom and dad always knew where I was because they could hear me dribbling."\nThomas will present Dumars in Springfield, Mass., where people from Louisiana and Michigan will gather to celebrate.
(02/21/06 5:56am)
TURIN, Italy -- Katie King wishes she could've thrown her gloves in the air like a graduation cap and jumped into a pile of her teammates on the ice.\nInstead, she and the rest of the U.S. women's hockey team had to settle for some hugs -- and a bronze medal.\nKing scored two of her three goals in the first period to give the Americans a three-goal lead and they glided to a 4-0 victory over Finland on Monday, playing in a third-place game they would've rather watched on TV from their dressing room.\n"It's hard to be excited because we came for gold," forward Kim Insalaco said. "We were living in disbelief the last two days, and we had to get over it. We wanted to play in the 8:30 game tonight.\n"That's going to be there for a while, and it's going to be hard to get over."\nOne game too late, the United States hustled to loose pucks, finished checks and showcased superior talent in a dominating performance.\nAfter time expired, the Americans gathered around goaltender Chanda Gunn, embraced, slapped backs and raised sticks to the crowd.\n"It was subdued after the game, but we're happy to go home with at least some hardware," said King, who added that she had played in her final game.\nWhat do they have to show from the consolation match? As three-time Olympian Angela Ruggiero said Sunday, America's women's hockey veterans -- herself, King, Tricia Dunn-Luoma and Jenny Potter -- now have a complete set of Olympic medals: gold from Nagano, silver from Salt Lake City and now bronze from the Turin Games.\nExpecting to face Canada in Monday night's gold-medal game, the American women ended up vying for bronze after the biggest shocker in women's hockey history: Sweden's 3-2 shootout win Friday.\n"I am glad we had a couple of days after the semifinals," U.S. coach Ben Smith said. "We had a chance to regroup."\nThough it fell to an anticlimactic game, the Americans played with inspiration, harassing the Finns and celebrating each goal.\nOne game too late.\nFinland found itself smothered offensively, even with an extra skater, harassed by backchecking forwards and stingy defensemen. Despite having a power play early in the second period, the Finns didn't get a shot on Gunn for more than 11 minutes.\nGunn had to make just 14 saves for the shutout.\nIt didn't take long for the Americans to give her a cushion.\nTwo-plus minutes after the puck dropped, Kelly Stephens deflected Julie Chu's shot past goaltender Noora Raty.\nKing scored twice midway through the first period.\nAfter a crafty off-the-boards pass from Helen Resor, King carried the puck along the right boards, swooped across Raty and flipped the puck above her. King pumped her stick in the air, then had another reason to celebrate a few minutes later. Potter fed King with a pass up the middle of the ice, she outskated defenseman Heidi Pelttari and wristed a shot over Raty's stick.\n"We came out and did not have enough speed," Finn defenseman Emma Laaksonen said. "The USA won it in the first period."\nThe Americans made it 4-0 early in the second period on King's goal off a circle-to-circle pass from Chu.\nFinland then pulled Raty, replacing her with Maija Hassinen, but it was too late to make a difference. The two goalies combined for 16 saves.\nThe game was much different from the matchup in the preliminary round, when the United States rallied from a two-goal, second-period deficit to beat the Finns 7-3.\n"We had to set the tone, if we gave them an inch, they would've taken it," Insalaco said. "We didn't do that the last time we played."\nOne game too late.
(07/21/05 1:18am)
DETROIT -- Larry Brown is free to roam again.\nBy letting him go, the Detroit Pistons are looking for their third coach in four seasons, and Flip Saunders is the leading candidate.\nThe Pistons seemed to decide they weren't willing to look past Brown's wandering eye, though they enjoyed a pair of great seasons with him on the sideline. Weeks of negotiations and months of speculation ended -- finally -- on Tuesday night.\nBrown and the Pistons reached a settlement on the final three years of his contract, which had about $18 million remaining. He can coach another team next season, but further details were not provided by the Pistons or Brown's agent, Joe Glass.\nThe team didn't want the Hall of Fame coach back and offered a payoff, Glass said.\n"I take umbrage with the Pistons, or sources, saying it's a buyout," the agent said Tuesday morning before the announcement. "A buyout encompasses a mutual agreement, and that's not what is happening. Larry Brown is saying, `I want to coach the Pistons,' and they want to pay him off for whatever reason."\nBefore the Pistons said Monday that they were negotiating a buyout, they had said they would welcome Brown back if he was willing to return.\n"Until this week, I can't remember a time that I read (team president) Joe Dumars not categorically state that Larry Brown is our coach," Glass said. "The Pistons can try to change the facts, but you can't change history.\n"When did this all break down? My best guess is months ago."\nAfter the announcement, messages seeking comment were left with Brown, Dumars and Pistons players Richard Hamilton and Chauncey Billups.\nIn a statement, Dumars said "the search for a new Pistons' head coach has already begun." Brown is expected to be replaced soon by Saunders, who was fired last season by the Minnesota Timberwolves.\n"We appreciate the two tremendous seasons the team enjoyed with Larry as coach," Dumars said in a statement. "We wish him the best and good health going forward."\nTwo years ago, Detroit signed Brown to a five-year contract worth about $25 million, plus incentive bonuses. He guided the Pistons to the NBA championship in 2004 and came one victory away from repeating this year.\n"If that's not good enough to bring a coach back, I don't know what is," Glass said. "As he has done for over 30 years, he made the Pistons better than they were when he got there."\nThroughout the season, Brown insisted he would return if doctors deemed him healthy enough and said he wouldn't lead another NBA team from the sideline. Still, there have been reports that the New York Knicks would wait until Brown's status was clear before hiring a coach.\n"The ink hasn't even dried on this thing with the Pistons, but if and when any team is willing to talk to Larry, we'll listen," Glass said.\nThere are reports that Thomas and the Knicks will meet with Brown in the next day or two to discuss their coaching job.\n"Now that the Detroit situation is settled, obviously Isiah will be reaching out to Larry," Madison Square Garden spokesman Barry Watkins said, according to various media reports.\n"I'll cross that bridge if and when it presents itself," Brown told the New York Post for Wednesday's editions.\nThe 64-year-old Brown was hospitalized for treatment of a medical problem that developed from complications following hip surgery in November and persisted after a second procedure in March. He checked into the Mayo Clinic the morning after last month's NBA draft, less than a week after Detroit lost Game 7 of the finals to the San Antonio Spurs.\n"His medical condition isn't 100 percent and it hasn't improved much," Glass said. "But we're trusting God that it will, and Larry has represented that he is physically, spiritually and emotionally able to coach.\n"I do not want myself or Larry to sound vindictive because this is a free country, but at the same token, facts are facts. Some are saying Larry is using his health as an excuse, but that's not the truth because he's more than willing to come back, even with his current condition."\nBrown and Glass met with Dumars and Pistons owner Bill Davidson last week. Other than traveling to suburban Detroit for the meeting, Brown has been resting, on doctor's orders, at his vacation home in New York.\nDuring the regular season, reports linked Brown to jobs in New York, Los Angeles and Denver.\nThe Cleveland Cavaliers talked with Brown about becoming their president after Detroit gave them permission during the spring. Cleveland hired Danny Ferry as general manager last month, and he has been assured that Brown will not be his boss.\n"He only spoke to the Cavaliers ... because they were given permission by the Pistons," Glass said.\nBrown is the only coach with NBA and NCAA championships, winning a title with the Pistons last year and one with Kansas in 1988.\nHis longest tenure with any team was six seasons with Philadelphia. He had two years left on his contract there before coming to Detroit.\nBrown led the 76ers to the playoffs for five straight seasons, including the 2001 NBA Finals, and became the first coach to take six NBA teams to the playoffs when the Sixers made it in 1999.\nThe win over the Spurs in Game 6 this year was Brown's 100th in the postseason, moving him past Red Auerbach for third place on the all-time list.\nBrown has more than 1,000 NBA victories in the regular season and playoffs. Since starting his career in 1972 with the ABA's Carolina Cougars, he has led pro and college teams to more than 1,400 wins.\nBrown also coached the U.S. men's basketball team to a bronze-medal finish at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, the first time since pro players were added in 1992 that the Americans went home without gold.
(04/06/05 5:31am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Michigan State advanced to its first championship game with a balanced team, getting contributions from up and down the lineup.\nBut with a title on the line, the Spartans became a two-woman show offensively and it wasn't enough.\nFor first time in the NCAA tournament Michigan State didn't have four double-figure scorers and they struggled to stop a trio of Baylor post players in a 84-62 loss Tuesday night.\nMichigan State's Lindsay Bowen scored 20 and Kristin Haynie had 17, but they didn't get much help.\nLeading scorer Liz Shimek finished with seven points -- well below her average of 15 -- and had only two points in the first 30 minutes of the game. She did, however, tie the school's single-season scoring record of 546 points.\nKelli Roehrig, second on the team in scoring, had just eight points. Victoria Lucas-Perry and Rene Haynes, who had averaged 15 points a game, were scoreless until midway through the second half. They finished with a combined eight points.\nThe Bears made it tough to score on every possession.\nThey extended their defense deep on the perimeter and when Michigan State tried to score inside, it often turned into a defender or two on low-post moves.\nMeanwhile, Baylor's Sophia Young, Steffanie Blackmon and Emily Niemann combined for 67 points -- more than the Spartans' entire team.\nMichigan State (33-4) will eventually look back on its season with pride.\nThe Spartans started the season ranked 15th before winning a share of the Big Ten title and being regarded as one of the nation's best with a program-record 17-game winning streak that ended in the final.\nThe top-seeded squad had not advanced past the second round in five previous NCAA tournaments.\nMichigan State rallied from a 16-point, second-half deficit to beat traditional power Tennessee in the Final Four on Sunday, but could not mount any sort of comeback against the Bears. The Spartans fell behind early, were down 12 at halftime and trailed by 20 midway through the second half.
(03/31/05 5:03am)
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Rob Dare and his friends crowded around a TV, screaming as Michigan State competed for a spot in the Final Four.\nThe students weren't watching the men's team, however. For the first time, Dare and his buddies were tuned in to cheer on the Spartan women.\nMichigan State will have its men's and women's teams in the Final Four this weekend and Dare, as much as it surprises him, will be interested in both games.\n"Everybody follows the men around here, but now people are jumping on the women's bandwagon -- me included," the sophomore said Wednesday. "I was really impressed with them against Stanford. Me and my friends couldn't believe how good they could shoot. Maybe we should've started following them earlier."\nMichigan State has gone hoops crazy, a fact that could be seen and heard on and around campus.\nMerchandise was hawked on street corners under makeshift tents, and congratulatory messages could be seen on businesses' marquees.\nA green-and-white Spartans blanket attached to a flag pole flapped in the wind in the back of a pickup truck on the eastern edge of campus.\nAs if a partly cloudy, 70-degree day weren't enough to create a buzz in the winter-weary college town, two Final Four-bound basketball teams provided an extra boost of excitement.\nFor the past two weeks, Michigan State President Lou Anna Simon has crisscrossed the country to give equal time to the Spartans in both the men's and women's NCAA tournaments.\nThere's no rest for Simon now.\n"It's a great problem to have," Simon said in interview with The Associated Press a few minutes after the women's team beat Stanford Tuesday night. "It's going to be a little easier on me this weekend because the sites will be closer together and the games don't conflict.\n"I can't wait to get to the pep rallies and other events we have planned before each game."\nSimon will watch the men play North Carolina Saturday in St. Louis, then she will travel 250 miles to Indianapolis for the women's game Sunday against Tennessee.\nIf both Michigan State teams pull off upsets, Simon will be back in St. Louis Monday for the men's national championship before wrapping up her whirlwind tour Tuesday night in Indianapolis for the women's title game.\nJust six schools have sent both men's and women's teams to the Final Four, but the feat has now happened four years in a row.\nGeorgia was the first to do it in 1983, and Duke followed in 1999 before Oklahoma, Texas, Connecticut and now Michigan State had two teams advance to the semifinals from 2002-05. Last year the Huskies were the first to have both men's and women's teams win national championships in the same season.\nMichigan State coach Tom Izzo said superior facilities, successful recruiting and support from the administration likely helped each school pull off the accomplishment.\nAt Michigan State, the head coaches of both basketball programs are close, and the players are, too.\nIzzo said he spoke with women's coach Joanne P. McCallie Wednesday afternoon, a day after he gathered his players to watch her team topple Stanford.\nWhen the women clinched a share of the Big Ten title last month at the Breslin Center, an arena both teams share, some players from the men's team rushed the court alongside other fans.\n"That was an amazing, special moment for our program and this community when the guys did that," McCallie said. "They realize we all sweat the same, we all bleed green, and it says 'State' on both of our jerseys."\nAlthough the women are a top-seeded team and the men are a fifth-seeded squad, both have had to scramble to win some games en route to the Final Four.\nThe men beat Kentucky in double overtime Sunday in a regional final, and the women escaped the second round with a 61-59 win over Southern California. Both will face traditional powerhouses in the Final Four: North Carolina for the men and Tennessee for the women.\nMichigan State's women had not advanced past the second round before this season, whereas the men have won two national championships and are going to the Final Four for the fourth time in seven years -- one more trip than any other team since 1999.\nMichigan State will open Breslin this weekend so fans can watch the games on the oversized monitors above the court for free.\nThe College Store, a local store specializing in Michigan State paraphernalia, is hoping soon to have "This Dance Is For Couples Only" T-shirts featuring both teams available for sale.\nIf such a shirt were on the racks Wednesday, Ronda Bokram would have bought it.\n"I'll be back," said Bokram, 49, of East Lansing.\nGov. Jennifer Granholm, who attended the Stanford game, plans to travel to both the men's and women's games this weekend with her daughter, Kate.\n"The unparalleled sense of pride over the MSU Spartans is permeating the entire state," Granholm said. "The nation has an opportunity to see the character of our student-athletes, our coaches"
(02/11/04 5:34am)
DETROIT -- Dominik Hasek's season is over because of a groin injury. He's determined not to let it end his career.\n"I'll be back next season," Hasek said Tuesday.\nThe 39-year-old Hasek ended his retirement after one year to return to Detroit this season, but he played in just 14 games before Tuesday's announcement. He was 8-3-2 for the Central Division-leading Red Wings.\nHasek said he doesn't regret coming back.\n"No, I never made a mistake," he said. "Unfortunately, my groin wasn't strong enough."\nOne of the NHL's all-time great goaltenders, Hasek won two MVP awards and six Vezina Trophies, given to the league's top goalie, during a nine-year stint in Buffalo. He also led the Czech Republic to a gold medal in the 1998 Nagano Olympics.\nHe joined the Red Wings before the 2001-02 season, winning his first Stanley Cup that season.\nHasek skated with his teammates Tuesday, then made his surprising announcement.\n"It's very sad, but that's the way it is," he said. "I hoped for two months it would get better every day. But it didn't get better, it got even worse last week."\nRich Winter, Hasek's agent, said the goaltender's desire to win another championship will have him back on the ice next season.\n"He came back to Detroit to win a Stanley Cup, and I think he wants to come back again to be a part of another run for the Cup," Winter said. "This was not the storybook ending we were all hoping for for Dom, in the final chapter of his career."\nRed Wings general manager Ken Holland said Hasek wants an extended period of time to give his groin a chance to heal.\n"I think in the summertime he's going to decide whether he wants to officially retire," Holland said from a meeting of GMs in Henderson, Nev.\nThe Red Wings are left with the same goalies -- Curtis Joseph and Manny Legace -- they had last year. Detroit had one of the best records in the league last season, but lost to Anaheim in the first round of the playoffs.\n"Curtis and Manny can concentrate on playing," Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman said. "We have no distractions."\nThe season started with a big distraction.\nWhen Hasek retired in 2002, Detroit lured Joseph away from Toronto with a $24 million, three-year deal to replace Hasek. When Hasek returned and agreed to make $6 million this season, the Red Wings desperately tried to trade Joseph.\nBut no one wanted to take Joseph because of the two years and $16 million left on his contract.\n"We're very, very lucky that he's been a real pro through this," Holland said. "And luckily for us that nobody claimed him."\nJoseph is 13-9-2 with a 2.48 goals-against average this season. He has kept his family in the Toronto area because he didn't know where he would end up playing this year.\n"I don't think there's been a player in the league who's gone through more adversity individually this season," Detroit coach Dave Lewis said. "And I think he's become a stronger person and player because of it."\n"Sometimes the (trades) you don't make are the best ones."\nJoseph did not make himself available to reporters after practice Tuesday.\n-- AP sports writer Ira Podell contributed to this report from Henderson, Nev.
(06/02/03 1:10am)
DETROIT -- Larry Brown will be introduced as the coach of the Detroit Pistons at a news conference Monday, a source within the league said.\nBrown reached an agreement on a five-year deal worth about $25 million, said the source, who had knowledge of the discussions between the Pistons and Brown and spoke Sunday to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.\nBrown replaces Rick Carlisle, who was fired Saturday. Brown did not return numerous phone messages left at his home during the weekend.\n"Larry Brown is obviously a great coach and his record speaks for itself," Carlisle said Sunday. "That's a great hire."\nCarlisle was asked if he thought Brown was hired before he was fired.\n"I'm not going to get into that," Carlisle said.\nPistons spokesman Kevin Grigg said Sunday he could not confirm a news conference would be held.\nCarlisle was fired after leading Detroit to a 50-win season and a spot in the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 1991.\nBrown resigned as coach of the Philadelphia 76ers on May 26 after six seasons.\nAt a bizarre news conference Saturday, Carlisle sat elbow-to-elbow with the man who had just fired him, Joe Dumars.\nCarlisle poked fun at himself during an opening statement, then initiated jokes and even defended Dumars' decision when he was pressed to explain the dismissal.\n"If you think he's going to bring in a stiff behind me, you're nuts," Carlisle said Saturday, cutting off Dumars' response to a question. "He's going to bring in a big-time guy, and if he can do that he will have done his job."\nBrown, a Hall of Famer, was released from a contractual clause that prohibited him from coaching another NBA team if he left Philadelphia prematurely.\nWhen asked about Brown on Saturday, Dumars said, "We'll be talking to him," adding that he had heard Brown's name linked to openings in Houston, Cleveland and Washington.\nCarlisle was fired with one year and $2 million left on his contract despite winning two straight division titles, 100 regular-season games, a Coach of the Year award and leading the Pistons to two postseason series victories for the first time since 1991.\nPhiladelphia captain Eric Snow said he understood why the Pistons were going after his former coach.\n"With Rick Carlisle gone, it would be great for Detroit's organization if it was fortunate enough to get Larry Brown," Snow said Saturday. "He's a Hall of Famer who is a great coach and a great teacher that would make every one of their players better, and that would make the Pistons even better."\nBrown, 62, had two years left in his contract that paid him $6 million per season in Philadelphia.\nHe also coached Denver (five years), Indiana (four years), San Antonio (3 1/2 years), New Jersey (two years), Carolina of the ABA (two years) and the Clippers (18 months).\nBrown's tenure with the Sixers was his longest in his 31-year coaching career. He led the Sixers to the playoffs for five straight seasons, including the 2001 NBA Finals, and will coach the U.S. men's national team this summer at an Olympic qualifying tournament in Puerto Rico.\nHe has an 879-685 record in the NBA and is 1,285-853 overall, including ABA and college. Brown won an NCAA championship with Kansas in 1988 and became the first coach to take six NBA teams to the playoffs when the Sixers made it in 1999.\nBrown would inherit a Pistons team that has the No. 2 pick in the June 26 draft. Detroit likely will select a scorer -- Darko Milicic of Serbia and Montenegro or Syracuse's Carmelo Anthony -- to complement a young nucleus of Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups, Ben Wallace and rookies Mehmet Okur and Tayshaun Prince.\nBrown's brother, Herb, was head coach of the Pistons from 1975-76 through 1977-78.\nCarlisle, in his first head coaching job, helped turn Detroit from a lottery team into one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. He was honored as NBA Coach of the Year for the 2001-02 season.\nHe led the Pistons to a 100-64 regular-season record and a 12-15 postseason mark over two years. Their season ended May 24 when they were swept by New Jersey in the conference finals.\nSome believed there was tension between Dumars and Carlisle, but both denied that was true Saturday. \n"You can get into a conversation about what may or not be fair, or you can be excited about being at the peak of your career," Carlisle said.\nCarlisle is unsure whether he wants to pursue a coaching job right away or take a year off to be a television analyst.\n"I'll just let this week play out and we'll see what happens," Carlisle said Sunday.
(05/09/03 5:34am)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- More misery for Michigan basketball.\nThe Wolverines were barred from the next postseason and put on three-and-a-half years' probation by the NCAA on Thursday for a booster's payments to players dating to the Fab Five era.\nThe team also will lose one of its 13 annual scholarships for four years, beginning in 2004-05.\nThe case stems from an investigation involving now-deceased Michigan booster Ed Martin, who said he paid players, including current Sacramento Kings star Chris Webber.\n"This is one of the most egregious violations of NCAA laws in the history of the organization," NCAA Committee on Infractions chairman Thomas Yeager said. "The reputation of the university, the student-athletes and the coach as a result of the basketball team's accomplishments from 1992 through 1998 were a sham."\nMichigan held itself out of the NCAA tournament last season, and the NCAA infractions committee called the university's self-imposed penalties "meaningful" but not enough. The Wolverines were barred from the NCAA tournament and NIT next season, but the Big Ten can decide whether to allow the school into the conference tourney.\n"We have always accepted responsibility for the concerns raised by the NCAA and by the infractions committee in its report," Michigan president Mary Sue Coleman said. "We own the wrongdoing, and we own the responsibility."\nShe said the school will appeal the postseason ban. Michigan expects to have a decision on the appeal this fall.\nMartin said he gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to former Wolverines basketball players while they were in high school and college. He died in February, on the same day Michigan officials met with the infractions committee.\nMichigan hoped the NCAA would accept its self-imposed sanctions, including the removal of four banners from Crisler Arena and any pictures, words or records in printed materials involving Webber, Maurice Taylor, Robert Traylor and Louis Bullock; forfeits of 112 regular-season and tournament victories from five seasons, plus its victory in the 1992 NCAA semifinals; the return of $450,000 to the NCAA from tarnished postseason appearances.\nAfter pleading guilty a year ago to conspiracy to launder money, Martin told the federal government that he lent $616,000 to Webber, Taylor, Traylor and Bullock.\nWebber is to face trial in July on charges of obstruction of justice and lying to a federal grand jury about Martin.\nThe Wolverines' woes extended to the court early last season, with the first 0-6 start in school history. But then Michigan won 13 straight games for the first time since 1987-88, and it opened Big Ten play 6-0.Michigan wound up tied for third in the Big Ten with Michigan State and Purdue, which both made the NCAA tournament.\nThe NCAA would allow rising senior Bernard Robinson to leave for another school without sitting out for his final season, but the forward is not expected to transfer.\n"When Coach (Tommy Amaker) said we had an opportunity to leave and play somewhere else he was the first one to say he was staying," sophomore guard Daniel Horton said of Robinson. "He said he was not going anywhere and that there is no sense in whining and crying about it because we have been here before. We had this meeting last year and there were a lot of tears last year. ... Nobody was crying about this Wednesday night"
(01/28/03 6:05am)
ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Marty Mornhinweg was fired as coach of the Detroit Lions on Monday after a 3-13 season, the second-worst record in the NFL.\nDetroit was 5-27 under Mornhinweg over the last two seasons, including a road record of 0-16. The Lions lost their last eight games this season, and only Cincinnati finished with a worse record.\nLions chief executive Matt Millen, with the blessing of team owner William Clay Ford Sr., said on Dec. 31 that Mornhinweg would return as coach.\nOn Monday, Millen said Mornhinweg was fired as part of the process of moving forward.\n"We have to continue to make the best decision to get this franchise going in the right direction," Millen said.\n"I want to win, and I want to win now," he said.\nMornhinweg became the fifth NFL coach to be fired since the end of the season, following dismissals at Cincinnati, Dallas, Jacksonville and San Francisco.\nMornhinweg matched Chris Palmer's two-year record of futility for a new coach since the NFL went to a 16-game schedule in 1978. Palmer coached the Cleveland Browns in 1999 and 2000.\nPalmer, though, was coaching an expansion team. Mornhinweg took over a team that went 9-7 and narrowly missed the playoffs.\nPossible replacements include former Minnesota coach Dennis Green and former San Francisco coach Steve Mariucci, a Michigan native, who was released earlier this month.
(10/10/02 6:19am)
DETROIT -- The Detroit Tigers know Alan Trammell was the popular choice to be their next manager. More importantly, they're also convinced he was the right choice.\n"People don't come to your games to see your manager," Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said Wednesday after signing the former star shortstop to a three-year contract with a club option for a fourth season. "But if your manager makes your team perform better and conduct itself better on and off the field, then people will show their support.\n"I can understand why some people will feel that this was based on Alan's popularity here. But really, we could not afford to make this decision based on that because we need to right this ship."\nThe Tigers have sunk and stunk for the most part since Trammell helped them win the 1984 World Series Detroit's fourth -- and the AL East title in 1987.\nDetroit has endured nine straight losing seasons and has gone through four managers since Sparky Anderson's 17-season tenure ended in 1995.\nThe player they called "Tram," said words such as tradition, history and respect used to be associated with the Tigers.\n"Right now, I don't know if I can say that," Trammell said. "That's going to be one of my jobs, to get that back.\n"This is where my heart is. I care about this place. It would make my life very satisfying to say we helped turn this thing around."\nWith veterans that didn't perform as well as they were paid to, and prospects rushed to the major leagues, the Tigers tied Tampa Bay for the worst mark in the majors with a 55-106 record.\nDombrowski fired manager Phil Garner and general manager Randy Smith after an 0-6 start and then fired interim manager Luis Pujols the day after he lost his 100th game.\n"Is it going to change overnight? No," Trammell admitted. "But what I'm going to guarantee you is our professionalism and our effort."\nTrammell will be a manager for the first time -- at any level -- when the Tigers begin next season on March 31 at home against Minnesota.\n"I'm not worried about that because he's such a student of the game that he's managed in his head every game he's been a part of," Dombrowski said. "He's ready for this."\nThe 44-year-old Trammell was San Diego's first base coach the past three seasons and was the Padres' outfield and baserunning coach.\nWhen Trammell's 20-season career in Detroit ended in 1996 he spent the next two seasons as an assistant in the franchise's baseball operations department and one season as the Tigers' hitting coach.\nHe was fired when Garner was hired following the 1999 season.\n"That was a little disappointing," Trammell said. "But when I look back, it was good for me to go away and gain more experiences."\nTrammell hit .285 with 185 homers and 1,003 RBIs as Detroit's shortstop from 1977-96. The six-time All-Star won four Gold Gloves and was the World Series MVP in 1984 when the Tigers won their fourth and last championship.\n"We all know the history of the English 'D' that I feel a part of," Trammell said, referring to the team's letter insignia. "It's been a big part of my life."\nTrammell, Al Kaline and Ty Cobb are the only players to be with the Tigers for at least 20 seasons.\n"This is the biggest step the Tigers have taken since I retired (in 1974), other than hiring Sparky Anderson," Kaline said.\nDombrowski also interviewed New York Yankees third base coach Willie Randolph and Triple-A Toledo manager Bruce Fields, who was named the Tigers' hitting coach Wednesday. The Tigers asked Oakland for permission to talk to Ken Macha, its bench coach, but didn't interview him.\n"What Alan brings to this organization, I didn't think anybody else can match," Dombrowski said.
(02/08/02 6:21am)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Illinois couldn't possibly answer all of its critics in one night. The Illini, however, tried.\nBrian Cook scored 19 points, including his team's first dozen, and No. 21 Illinois beat Michigan 68-60 Thursday night to end a three-game losing streak.\nThe Illini (16-7, 5-5 Big Ten) won in an opponent's gym for the first time this season by overcoming a 13-point first-half deficit and another lackluster effort from Frank Williams.\nMany believed the Illini were going to be one of the country's top teams this season, but a lack of consistent effort, injuries and Williams' often uninspired play has added up to a disappointing season.\n"It's been baffling to us too," center Robert Achibald admitted.\nThe Illini dived for loose balls -- once causing a head-to-head collision between Cook and Lucas Johnson -- and played with intensity after a slow start.\n"I don't think it could've been scripted any better," Illinois coach Bill Self said.\nWilliams, who announced before the season that he was entering the NBA draft after his junior year, didn't score until 17:09 was left in the game, then didn't score again for nearly 12 minutes.\nWilliams finished with 10 points on 2-of-7 shooting, and often appeared disinterested, following a trend that even his own coach has bemoaned.\nHowever, Self defended Williams after the game by saying there isn't a player in the country that gives 100-percent effort in every game.\nWilliams doesn't really care what his critics are saying.\n"I really don't go off what people say about me," Williams said. "I know what I do out there and my players know what I do out there."\nWilliams made two free throws to give Illinois a 59-57 lead with 3:08 left in the game, the 10th and final lead change in the second half alone. There were also six ties after halftime.\nThe Illini outscored Michigan 11-3 over the final few minutes.\nLeon Jones led the Wolverines (9-11, 4-6) with 14 points, while LaVell Blanchard and Dommanic Ingerson each had 10.\n"Sometimes the team that deserves to win, doesn't win," Michigan coach Tommy Amaker said. "And I firmly believe our team deserved to win."\nThe Wolverines might have won if they could have continued to play well after their solid start.\nMichigan took a 27-14 lead and would have led by even more if not for Cook.\nIllinois outscored the Wolverines 18-3 over the final five minutes of the half to take a 32-30 lead.\nSelf said that run started after Ingerson, a Michigan freshman, tried to play rough with Johnson, Illinois' gritty senior.\n"I got hit, that's all I know," Johnson said. "I don't know if it was a punch or an elbow, intentional or not. I got hit in the throat by something. It was nice that it happened because we rallied around it."\nIngerson said he was just retaliating to Johnson.\n"The guy hit me and I got him off me," Ingerson said. "He tried to push me around, but I'm not going to back down from anybody. I didn't throw a punch"