Report: Butler has interest in A-10
WILL BUTLER replace Temple in the Atlantic 10 Conference? ESPN.com, citing multiple sources, reported that the Bulldogs have expressed an interest in joining the A-10 for all sports except football.
WILL BUTLER replace Temple in the Atlantic 10 Conference?
ESPN.com, citing multiple sources, reported that the Bulldogs have expressed an interest in joining the A-10 for all sports except football.
Butler, located in Indianpolis, currently plays in the Horizon League in every sport except football. In football, it plays in the Pioneer League, which is classified in Division I's Football Championship Subdivision, but does not offer athletic scholarships.
The Horizon League, like the A-10, is a midmajor conference.
Temple is leaving the A-10 for the Big East in the fall of 2013. The addition of Butler would give the A-10 four schools from the Midwest, joining Xavier (Cincinnati), Dayton and St. Louis.
Butler was not selected to play in this year's NCAA Tournament but had reached the Big Dance in each of the last 2 years.
The Bulldogs (20-14) will host Delaware (18-13) tomorrow night in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational.
Noteworthy *
Georgia Tech has dismissed a student manager and is reviewing the status of basketball player Glen Rice Jr. after a shooting shortly before the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.
Coach Brian Gregory announced that graduate student London Warren is no longer with the program. Rice, the son of the former NBA star, was already suspended from the team and Gregory plans to "review his status."
An Atlanta police report says there were reports early last Thursday of a shot being fired near a nightclub. The officer says he pulled over a Cadillac Escalade and recovered two handguns from inside the vehicle. No one was injured.
Warren was charged with DUI, while Rice was charged with permitting unlawful operation. Another passenger was charged with discharging a firearm while under the influence. He claimed the shooting was an accident.
* South Carolina two-sport standout Bruce Ellington is giving up football to concentrate on basketball.
The sophomore joined the basketball team once the football team completed its 11-win campaign. The basketball team went 10-21, its season ending last week with a first-round loss to Alabama at the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
* The graduation rate disparity between African-American and white players at schools in this year's men's NCAA Tournament decreased slightly after growing 10 percent over the previous 3 years.
An annual report by the University of Central Florida's Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport shows African-American players' graduation rates increased from 59 percent to 60 percent in 2012, while white players' dropped from 91 percent to 88 percent. The racial gap was 22 percent in 2009. The overall graduation rate for this year's tournament teams increased from 66 to 67 percent, and there was a 3 percent increase in teams graduating half their players.
* President Obama's Chicago-based re-election campaign is using the NCAA Tournament as a fund-raiser.
The campaign is hosting an NCAA bracket challenge on the campaign website and asking supporters to pitch in to help "the President in another big match-up that's happening this year: the one in November."
To participate, contestants must provide their full name, email address and ZIP code. They're also prompted to make a donation to the campaign after submitting their picks.
Those that pick more winners than the president will have their names published on the campaign website. Obama's bracket has not yet been released.