Cavaliers sign free agent center Sanders
The Cleveland Cavaliers reached an agreement to sign free agent center Larry Sanders and waived center Andrew Bogut, the team announced Monday.
The defending NBA champions needed front-court depth after Bogut suffered a fractured tibia in his left leg just 58 seconds into his Cleveland debut last Monday night against the Miami Heat.
Sanders, 28, was in Cleveland on Monday to take a physical.
Sanders’ deal will cover the remainder of this season and likely include a guarantee trigger date for 2017-18, sources told The Vertical.
The 6-foot-11, 230-pound Sanders is attempting a comeback after walking away from the NBA two years ago. He violated the NBA’s drug policy four times with positive marijuana tests, and after leaving the NBA, he checked himself into a hospital for anxiety and depression.
The Milwaukee Bucks drafted Sanders with the 15th overall pick in 2010. He spent five seasons with the Bucks (2010-11 to 2014-15), averaging 6.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. His best season came in 2012-13, when he averaged 9.8 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks.
NBA fines Warriors’ Iguodala $10,000
Andre Iguodala has been fined $10,000 by the NBA for his postgame comments with racial overtones following the Golden State Warriors’ 103-102 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves last Friday.
Asked why Warriors coach Steve Kerr planned to rest him along with stars Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green on Saturday against the San Antonio Spurs, Iguodala responded, “Nope, no clue. I do what master say.”
Iguodala was later asked about the loss to Minnesota and told reporters, “We gotta score more than the other team. Yep, they want dumb (expletive), so I’m going to give y’all a dumb (expletive).”
Tebow gets first hit with Mets
Former college football star Tim Tebow singled in the bottom of the fifth inning for his first hit of spring training in the New York Mets’ 6-4 win over the Miami Marlins in Port St. Lucie, Florida, on Monday.
Tebow was 0-for-8 when he singled off reliever Kyle Lobstein. After getting the hit, he was erased on a double play. He batted eighth and his other two at-bats resulted in a groundout and a strikeout.
Asdrubal Cabrera, Lucas Duda, Curtis Granderson and Neil Walker homered for the Mets while Justin Bour connected for the Marlins.
Duquesne fires Ferry after five seasons
Jim Ferry has been fired after five seasons at Duquesne.
Ferry, 49, guided the Dukes to a 60-97 mark (21-65 in Atlantic 10) with one trip to the CBI quarterfinals last season. Duquesne went 10-22 this season, tying the 2012-13 team for the most losses in a season during Ferry’s tenure.
“In consultation with President Ken Gormley, we have decided to make a change in leadership for the men’s basketball program at Duquesne University,” Duquesne director of athletics Dave Harper said in a statement. “I would like to thank Jim Ferry for his efforts and work the last five years. Jim is a great person and we wish him the best with his future endeavors.”
The Dukes lost six straight games and 14 of 15 to end the season.
Ferry spent 10 seasons at Long Island before joining Duquesne, going 150-149. Long Island made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in his final two seasons with the program.
He also posted an 82-11 record in three seasons at Adelphi, bringing his lifetime collegiate coaching record to 314-265.
Top overall seed Villanova returns to No. 1 in final poll
Villanova celebrated its top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament by returning to the No. 1 spot in the final Associated Press college basketball poll released Monday.
The reigning national champions, Villanova (31-3) moved up one spot following its run to the Big East Conference tournament title. The Wildcats received 59 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel. It’s the eighth week Villanova has spent at No. 1.
Gonzaga (32-1), which held down the top ranking for four consecutive weeks before dropping its regular-season finale, finished at No. 2 and receiving the remaining six first-place votes.
No. 3 Kansas (28-4), ranked No. 1 a week ago, squandered a chance to finish atop the poll with a loss to TCU in the Big 12 tournament.
Arizona (30-4) and Kentucky (29-5), the champions of the Pac-12 and SEC tournaments, respectively, rounded out the top five.
North Carolina (27-7) held steady at No. 6 despite a loss in the ACC tourney to Duke (27-8), which vaulted seven slots to No. 7 after winning the conference tournament. Pac-12 schools UCLA (29-4) and Oregon (29-5) were next while Louisville (24-8) rounded out the top 10.
SMU (30-4), which stretched its winning streak to 16 by beating Cincinnati in the AAC conference championship game, was 11th and was followed by Baylor (25-7), West Virginia (26-8), Notre Dame (25-9) and Purdue (25-7).
Florida State (25-8) remained at No. 16, just ahead of Iowa State (23-10), which jumped up six spots after winning the Big 12 tournament. Cincinnati (29-5), Wichita State (30-4) and Florida (24-8) filled out the top 20.
Michigan (24-11) moved into the Top 25 after its surprising run to the Big Ten conference title, landing at No. 23, behind Butler (23-8) and Saint Mary’s (28-4). Virginia (22-10) and Wisconsin (25-9) nabbed the final two spots while Maryland dropped out of the poll.