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#SportsReport: Ex-UConn Coach Ollie Says Firing Was Racially Motivated

Kevin Ollie
WikiMedia Commons
Kevin Ollie

Former UConn men's basketball coach Kevin Ollie is alleging that his firing was racially motivated. Ollie says in court documents filed Tuesday in federal court that he was treated differently from former coach Jim Calhoun, who wasn't fired despite incurring recruiting violations.

Ollie was promoted to head coach in 2014, following Calhoun's retirement, and was dismissed in March.

Ollie says that the university has illegally tried to deter him from filing a racial discrimination complaint. A university spokeswoman said Tuesday that the school fired Ollie because of NCAA violations.

T-25 Action:

The second-ranked Duke Blue Devils have come out of exam break by taking an Ivy League team to school.

RJ Barrett poured in 27 points and fellow freshman Zion Williamson added 17 with 10 rebounds as Duke blasted Princeton, 101-50.

The Blue Devils appears rusty at the start following a 10-day layoff. They didn't take their first lead until the 14-minute mark, but Duke scored on 10 of 11 possessions to close the first half, and four straight after intermission to take a 48-28 lead.

The Blue Devils shot 64 percent in the first half and improved to 10-1.

Meanwhile, the No. 1 team cruised to a 36-point victory. Dedric Lawson had 16 points and 14 rebounds as Kansas hammered South Dakota, 89-53 to move to 10-0. Charlie Moore hit six 3-pointers in an 18-point performance, and freshman forward David McCormack added a career-best 12 points off the bench.

Kansas has won 40 straight in Allen Fieldhouse as the nation's No. 1 team.

Also on the top-25 schedule:

Rui Hachimura had 20 points and 11 rebounds as eighth-ranked Gonzaga thumped Texas-Arlington, 89-55 to end a two-game skid that toppled them from No. 1 on the AP Top 25. Brandon Clarke added 17 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks to help the Zags bounce back from losses to third-ranked Tennessee and No. 9 North Carolina.

Buffalo knocked off a state rival as CJ Massinburg poured in 25 points and Jeremy Harris added 18 to send the 14th-ranked Bulls past Syracuse, 71-59. Buffalo is 11-0 following its first win over the Orange since January 1963.

Kaleb Wesson scored 26 of his career-high 31 points after intermission as No. 15 Ohio State overcame a poor first half to beat Youngstown State, 75-56. Luther Muhammad and C.J. Jackson each had 11 points for the 10-1 Buckeyes, who trailed by three at halftime before winning their third in a row.

Markus Howard scored 19 of his 26 points over the final 10:22 of the first half to help No. 20 Marquette whip North Dakota, 92-66. Sam Hauser added 21 points for the 9-2 Golden Eagles.

Tyler Cook scored 18 points and Luka Garza chipped in with 15 as No. 23 Iowa beat Western Carolina 78-60. Freshman Joe Wieskamp scored 10 points for the Hawkeyes, who forced 26 turnovers and led by as many as 27 points.

A 10:

Vermont topped St. Bonaventure 83-76

America East:

Providence downed UAlbany 73-43

Marist takes on New Hampshire Wednesday at 11 a.m.

American:

UConn beat Drexel 97-65

MAAC:

Charleston defeated Siena 83-58

NBA

The Indiana Pacers had been the NBA's hottest team before running into one of the league's bottom-feeders.

Larry Nance Jr.'s buzzer-beating tip-in gave the Cleveland Cavaliers a 92-91 victory at Indiana. Nance finished with 15 points and a career-high 16 rebounds in the Cavs' third road victory of the season. Rodney Hood scored 17 points to help the Cavaliers end a three-game skid.

The Pacers were ahead 91-90 when Victor Oladipo missed two free throws with 9.5 seconds left, giving Cleveland new life.

Domantas Sabonis had a team-high 17 points for the Pacers, who had won seven in a row.

Checking out Tuesday's other NBA action:

Denver ran its home winning streak to seven games as Nikola Jokic provided 32 points and 16 rebounds to a 126-118 triumph over the Mavericks. Jamal Murray dished out a career-high 15 assists for the Nuggets, whose 21-9 record matches the best 30-game start since 1976-77, their first season in the NBA.

The Nets have the league's longest current winning streak after D'Angelo Russell delivered 22 points and a career-high 13 assists against his ex-team to lead Brooklyn to its sixth win in a row, 115-110 over the Lakers. Joe Harris added 19 points and Spencer Dinwiddie scored 18 for the Nets, who hadn't won a sixth straight game since April 2015.

The Hawks were 118-110 winners over the Wizards as John Collins scored 20 points to lead seven Atlanta players in double-figures. Rookie Trae Young finished with 19 points and Jeremy Lin came off the bench to add 16 points and help the league's worst team improve to 7-23.

In other NBA news:

The Phoenix Suns have waived guard Austin Rivers, a day after he was obtained in a trade with the Wizards. Rivers appeared in 29 games for Washington this season, averaging 7.2 points per game while shooting 39 percent from the field. The 10th player taken in the 2012 draft averaged 15.1 points per game last season for the Clippers while playing for his father, Doc Rivers.

Raptors coach Nick Nurse and Hawks guard Kent Bazemore have been fined by the league. Nurse was fined $15,000 for criticizing the referees after a 95-86 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Sunday. Bazemore was fined $10,000 for throwing the ball into the stands, which also earned him a technical foul with 9:09 left in the Hawks' 144-127 loss to the Nets on Sunday.

Wednesday on the Court:

The 76ers host the Knicks at 7 p.m.

The Boston Celtics take on Phoenix at 7:30 p.m.

The Brooklyn Nets face off against Chicago at 8 p.m.

WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

UConn faces off against Oklahoma Wednesday at 8:30 p.m.

A 10:

Quinnipiac takes on Richmond Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

America East:

Purdue hosts UAlbany at 11:30 a.m.

MAAC:

Marist topped Northeastern 90-84

NFL

The Los Angeles Chargers have placed seven players in the Pro Bowl, including one of six rookies across the league to make the two rosters.

First-round pick Derwin James will be joined on the AFC squad by veteran quarterback Philip Rivers, wide receiver Keenan Allen, running back Melvin Gordon, defensive end Melvin Ingram, center Mike Pouncey and special-teamer Adrian Phillips. Rivers is a backup to Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes, one of 29 first-time Pro Bowlers.

New Orleans, Dallas and Chicago each placed five players on the NFC squad, which includes Giants rookie Saquon Barkley.

Gordon looking good for Saturday vs. Ravens:

It appears the Chargers will have their top running back for Saturday's important AFC matchup against Baltimore.

Melvin Gordon was a full participant during Tuesday's practice after missing three straight games with a sprained MCL in his right knee. The fourth-year pro was injured during the second half of the Chargers' Nov. 26 win against Arizona.

Gordon is sixth in the AFC in rushing with 802 yards despite the injury.

The Chargers have clinched a postseason berth and are tied with Kansas City atop the AFC West after a 29-28 victory over the Chiefs.

Baltimore is 8-6 and clinging to the final AFC wild-card berth based on a tiebreaker.

In other NFL news:

Panthers coach Ron Rivera hasn't ruled out shutting down quarterback Cam Newton for the season because of a sore right throwing shoulder. Rivera says he plans to meet with Newton later in the week and figure out where he is "in terms of his physical state and mental state" before deciding if he will start Sunday against Atlanta.

The Seahawks have placed guard Jordan Simmons on injured reserve after he suffered a knee injury last weekend against San Francisco. Simmons had played well in his three starts this season while filling in for the injured D.J. Fluker. Fluker's status for Sunday's game against Kansas City is in question due to a hamstring injury.

Packers’ running back Aaron Jones will miss the final two games of the season after being placed on injured reserve with a knee injury. The team's leading rusher left a 24-17 loss to Chicago on Sunday in the first quarter.

The Colts have put starting defensive tackle Al Woods on injured reserve, two days after he left Indy's 23-0 shutout over Dallas with a foot injury.

Redskins’ safety Montae Nicholson and a friend were arrested early Tuesday and charged with assault and battery and being drunk in public at a restaurant and retail complex near the team's practice facility. According to police, an investigation showed Nicholson assaulted a male victim, and his friend struck a female victim with a bottle and also struck the male victim.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

UAB has continued its resurgence two seasons after shutting down its football program.

The Blazers have capped an 11-3 season by winning the Boca Raton Bowl, 37-13 over Northern Illinois. Tyler Johnston III threw for 373 yards and four touchdowns in UAB's first-ever bowl victory in three appearances. Xavier Ubosi had seven catches for 227 yards for the Conference USA champions, who have made consecutive bowl appearances since the program was reinstated two years ago following a self-imposed hiatus.

NHL

The Toronto Maple Leafs were in need of a victory after falling eight points behind the first-place Tampa Bay Lightning in the NHL's Atlantic Division.

The Leafs answered the call as John Tavares, Auston Matthews and Patrick Marleau scored in the opening 13 ½ minutes of a 7-2 rout of the Devils in Newark. Tyler Ennis scored the last two goals, while Nazem Kadri and Connor Brown each had three assists to help Toronto improve to 7-2-2 in its last 11 games.

New Jersey has won just three of its last 15 games.

Elsewhere on NHL ice:

Jamie Benn and Radek Faksa scored for the Stars in a 2-0 shutout of the Flames. Ben Bishop and backup Anton Khudobin combined on a 24-save shutout, with Bishop missing the last 6 ½ minutes of the second period due to injury before returning for the third.

The Blackhawks had dropped 10 of 11 before Cam Ward turned back 30 shots in Chicago's 2-1 victory against the Predators. Defensemen Gustav Forsling and Erik Gustafsson scored for last-place Chicago.

Martin Jones made 26 saves for his first shutout this season and 20th of his career in the Sharks' 4-0 victory over the Wild. Logan Couture scored twice and Joe Pavelski added his 21st goal in San Jose's fifth consecutive win.

Evgenii Dadonov scored twice and had an assist while the Panthers netted four unanswered goals in the third period of a 5-2 victory at Buffalo. The Sabres led 2-1 until Aleksander Barkov scored a power-play goal 58 seconds into the final period and Dadonov tallied 2 ½ minutes later.

Kevin Hayes scored on a short-handed breakaway with 40 seconds remaining to send the Ranges past the Ducks, 3-1. Vladislav Namestnikov had a goal and two assists, and Filip Chytil added an empty-netter that wrapped up New York's second victory in eight games.

Third-period goals by Pat Maroon, Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaden Schwarts pushed the Blues to a 4-1 win at Edmonton. David Perron also scored and Jake Allen stopped 22 shots as St. Louis won for the third time in four games since a 3-7-1 stretch.

The Islanders picked up their third straight win as Robin Lehner stopped 35 shots and Anthony Beauvillier scored his fourth goal in five games to lead a 3-1 victory at Arizona. Josh Ho-Sang tied it with his first goal since being recalled last week, and Brock Nelson provided the eventual game-winner.

The Flyers were winners in their first game under interim coach Scott Gordon as Carter Hart made 22 saves in his NHL debut to lead a 3-2 decision over the Red Wings. Shayne Gostisbehere and James van Riemsdyk each had a goal and an assist for Philadelphia, which ended a four-game losing streak.

MLB

The Chicago Cubs are about to finalize a deal with one of the majors' busiest utility players.

Infielder Daniel Descalso has worked out a two-year, $5 million contract with the Cubs, a package that includes a $3.5 million club option for 2021. The 32-year-old Descalso set career highs with 13 home runs and 57 for Arizona last season, hitting .237 with 22 doubles in 138 games.

Descalso has batted .240 with 46 homers and 279 RBIs in 997 major league games, playing every position except for center field and catcher.

In other MLB news:

A person familiar with the negotiations says right-hander Matt Harvey has agreed to a one-year, $11 million pact with the Angels. Harvey was designated for assignment by the Mets last May and was later traded to the Reds before going 7-7 with a 4.50 ERA the rest of the season.

The Nationals have finalized a $4 million, one-year deal with first baseman Matt Adams that includes a mutual option for 2020.

The Twins will retire Joe Mauer's Number 7 jersey next season, honoring the six-time All-Star who retired after a 15-year major league career. Mauer will become the eighth former Twins player or manager with a retired number.

SPORTS BETTING

The D.C. Council has voted 11-2 to authorize betting on professional sports at the city's stadiums and arenas, private businesses like restaurants and liquor stores and within the city limits on a mobile app. If approved by the mayor and Congress, the nation's capital would become the first U.S. jurisdiction without casinos to authorize sports books.

Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser supports the bill, which needs her signature to become law. It would also need to survive a review by Congress, but with Democrats taking over the House in January, the law from the Democratic-dominated city is almost certainly safe.

© 2018 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

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