The Tennessean from Nashville, Tennessee • Page 34

2C Wednesday, March 13, 2002 THE TENNESSEAN www.tennessean.com SPORTS: PAGE 2 SPORTS AM Tennessean tints Soviets Fanfare rwirpr- Which midstate BjyTr Which of the top eight li team has the best I MIfLi seeds will be the first to lmmmmmmr chance of winning a fjg' get upset in the NCAA boys basketball men's tournament? state championship? a DCA e. MBA Alabama 27.9 Oklahoma 5.7 b. Ezell-Harding. f. Shelbyville.

Oregon 26.7 Maryland 4.0 c. Father Ryan. g. Stratford. Connecticut 17.9 Kansas 3.6 d.

Maplewood. h. Upperman. Cincinnati 12.6 Duke 1.7 Vote at www.tennessean.com 476 votes as of 9:45 p.m. last night Fri.

15 Sun. 17 Tues. 19 vs. vs. at Phoenix, Colorado, St.

Louis, 7 p.m. 2 p.m. 7 p.m. TV; Fox SN TV Fox SN TV.FoxSN Predators Radio: 99.7-FM Tickets: 770-PUCK Wed.13 Sat 16 Men in NIT. Women in vs.

NCAA: vs. Houston Oakland IVIlNntHBnjJ 7 p.m. (Mich.) 8:30 p.m. Chris Lows Tennessee Dnnsidler MLB wants to restrict team debt Baseball management is placing restrictions on the debt teams can take on, a move that could provoke an angry response from the players' union or even force trades of high-salaried stars. Commissioner Bud Selig, in a March 7 letter sent to teams, said they have until June to get in compliance with the rules, which say a team can't have debt higher than 40 of its asset value.

Teams could be fined lose their payments from national broadcasting contracts or even be placed in trusteeship if they fail to comply with the rules. Teams will be valued at twice their 2001 revenue but they can ask for an outside evaluation. Rivera released: Ruben Rivera was released from the New York Yankees after allegedly stealing a glove and bat from Derek Jeter's locker, the AP reported. Strawberry arrested: Darryl Strawberry was jailed in Ocala, Fla, on his 40th birthday for breaking a rule at the drug treatment center where he had been serving two years of house arrest. Braves fafl: Rookie Mike Rivera doubled twice off Greg Maddux, and Damion Easley was 3-for-3 with a homer, as the Detroit Tigers beat the Atlanta Braves 4-2 in an exhibition game in Lakeland Mich, Clemens hurt New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens will have precautionary X-rays after being hit outside his right ankle just above the bone in a 3-0 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.

4 Spurrier looks over Vols Vanderbilt basketball Tickets: 322-GOLD Men's radio: 650-AM (95.5-FM on Sat. night). Women's radio: 560-AM Fri. 15 Women in NCAA: vs. Georgia St 7:30 p.m.

Tennessee basketball Tickets: 800-332-VOLS Women's radio: 1450-AM i Home games shaded Tyson gets license in Washington Mike Tyson received a license to fight in Washington on a 3-0 vote by the D.C. Boxing and Wrestling Commission, setting the stage for June 8 bout with Lennox at the MCI Center. The vote came at the end of a 2-hour meeting that at times resembled a Tyson pep rally. The commission heard from about 60 speakers, and every single one of them supported licensing Tysoa The next step will be to process Lewis' application. Tyson was also licensed in Tennessee and Michigan.

about Tennessee tight end Jason Witten, a big-time prospect who didn't have the best of games last season against Florida. "That was our best play against them last year, the ball bouncing off him to us," joked Spurrier, who also talked briefly with new UT tackles and tight ends coach Jimmy Ray Stephens, an assistant to Spurrier at Florida for nine years. Dickey on ballot Tennessee Athletic Director Doug Dickey is on the 2002 ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. This year's class will be announced in April and inducted at The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame's 45th awards dinner on Dec. 10 in New York City.

Dickey, who will retire next June as UTs athletic director, has held that post since 1985. He was the Vols' head football coach from 1964-69 and won two SEC titles before leaving to coach Florida from 1970-78. Former Tennessee players on this year's ballot include defensive tackle Reggie White (1980-83), center Chip Kell (1968-70) and linebacker Frank Emanuel (1963-65). Baseball resurgence: The Tennessee baseball team has won four straight games to even its record at 10-10. The Vols will open SEC play this Friday with a three-game series against Alabama on the road.

Coach Rod Delmonico became the ninth coach in SEC history to win 500 games last Friday when the Vols defeated UNC Asheville 6-4. He was the third fastest in SEC history to reach 500 wins, doing it in 760 games. LSU's Skip Bertman did it in 689 games and Mississippi State's Ron Polk in 725 games. The Vols have won six of their last seven games after starting out 4-9. They've already faced the Crimson Tide one time this season.

Alabama won 9-0 in the Hormel Foods Classic on March 1.1 KNOXVILLE It wasn't something you see every day: Steve Spurrier standing in the middle of Neyland Stadium, conversing with Tennessee Coach Phillip Fulmer and then taking in the Vols' scrimmage. Spurrier, the former Florida coach and new coach of the Washington Redskins, was in Knoxville yesterday getting an up-close look at some of the Vols' players. He will be back on campus today, along with several other NFL coaches and scouts, for pro timing day. The former Vols in this year's NFL draft will run the 40-yard dash and participate in several other drills for pro scouts. "I'm just like anybody else in the NFL now huntin' for some ball players," said Spurrier, who spent the first part of practice talking with Fulmer.

Spurrier was accompanied by several of his assistant coaches, including defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis. At one point, Spurrier asked Today Baseball: Belmont at Vanderbilt, 3 p.m. Prep basketball: Boys state tournament, Murfreesboro. Softball: Kentucky Wes-leyan at Trevecca, 2 p.m. Thursday Baseball: UT-Martin at Lipscomb, 2 p.m.

Boxing: Ramon Arellano Jr. vs. Eugene Baser, Nashville Fairgrounds Sports Arena Prep basketball: Boys state tournament, Murfreesboro. Raiders name Callahan coach The Oakland Raiders last night promoted offensive coordinator Bill Callahan to the position of head coach. He replaces Jon Gruden, who left for a similar position at Tampa Bay.

Callahan, who becomes the 13th head coach in team history, will be introduced at a news conference today. Saints sign Carter, Reed: Dale Carter, the four-time Pro Bowl cornerback suspended for 1 12 years for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy, signed a seven-year contract with the New Orleans Saints. The Saints also signed Minnesota wide receiver Jake Reed to a one-year contract and re-signed placekicker John Carney. Cowboys sign Glover: La'Roi Glover, the NFL sack leader in 2000, is now a Dallas Cowboy, the biggest-name free agent signed by Dallas since Deion Sanders seven years ago. Glover was cut by the New Orleans Saints for salary cap reasons.

Hayes goes to Patriots: New England signed the tall wide receiver it felt it needs, adding 6-foot-4 Donald Hayes. He provides an option to Troy Brown and David Patten, both 5-10, the Super Bowl starters last seasoa Mike Organs Event Time Schedule MEN'S BASKETBALL NIT: S. Carolina vs. Virginia 6:30 p.m. ESPN2 NIT: Houston at Vanderbilt 7 p.m.

650-AM NIT: LSU vs. Iowa 8:30 p.m. ESPN2 NIT: Temple vs. Fresno St. 1 1 p.m.

ESPN NBA Sacramento at Philadelphia -7 p.m. TNT Washington at LA Clippers 9:30 p.m. TNT NHL Boston at N.Y. Rangers 7 p.m. ESPN Predators PrimeTime 8 p.m.

99.7-FM TENNIS ATP Pacific Life Open Noon ESPN2 ATP Pacific Life Open 2 p.m. ESPN Event Time Station GOLF PGA Bay Hill Invitational 3 p.m. USA Vanderbilft Dnnsidler rh. NTT had Stallings in dark MEN'S BASKETBALL NCAA: Kentucky vs. Valparaiso 1 1 :25 am.

WTVF-5 NCAA: Alabama vs. Fla Atlantic 1 :40 p.m. WTVF-5 NCAA: Kansas vs. Holy Cross 6:45 p.m. WTVF-5 NCAA N.

Dame vs. Chartottte 6:50 p.m. 560-AM NCAA: Stanford vs. W. Kentucky 9 p.m.

WTVF-5 NCAA: Indiana vs. Utah 920 p.m. NHL Buffalo at Philadelphia 6:30 p.m. St. Louis at Los Angeles 9:30 p.m.

TENNIS ATP Pacific Life Open Noon ATP Pacific Life Open 8 p.m. WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Trevecca vs. Okla. Christian 9:45 p.m. wins with 17.

The Commodores are 17-2 and ranked No. 2. Four players have their highest career individual rankings: Sarah Riske (ninth), Jenny Miller (38th), Katie Blaszak (55th), and Kelly Schmandt (78th). Lacrosse impact: The Commodores women's team is off to a 2-0 start in its new conference, the American Lacrosse Conference. Vanderbilt beat Johns Hopkins and Penn State, two teams that were ranked ahead of the Commodores.

Vandy is ranked Uth, its highest ranking ever. The other teams in the new conference are Northwestern, Ohio State, Ohio University and Davidson. Goalie Ashley Bastinelli had 27 saves in the two conference wins, which earned her Player of the Week honors, the first week that hortor was givea Mike Organ covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. He can be reached at 259-8021 or by e-mail at Championship garb: The Vanderbilt Bookstore is selling T-shirts and hats beginning today commemorating the women's basketball team's SEC Championship. The shirts and hats are the same as the ones the players wore while celebrating after the championship win over LSU at Gaylord Entertainment Center.

The bookstore is open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m.-2 p.m. SEC play: The baseball team plays its final game today before the SEC portion of the schedule swings into action this weekend. Belmont (8-5) will visit Hawkins Field at 3 p.m. and Chris Maultsby (0-1) will be on the mound for the Commodores.

Vandy (10-3) is off to its best start since 1998 when it began 12-L The Commodores visit No. 9 LSU for a three-game series this weekend, beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m. On a tennis lean The women's tennis team leads the nation in About all Kevin Stallings knew when he went to bed Sunday night was that his Vanderbilt basketball team was in the National Invitation Tournament and it would play Houstoa He didn't know anything about Houston and had no idea where or when the game would be played. That's because officials from the NIT called Senior Associate Athletic Director Brad Bates a few minutes past 10 p.m. and told him the Commodores had received a home game against Houston and it would be played Thursday at 7 p.m.

A few minutes later, however, the Associated Press released the NIT pairings, which had Vandy serving as host to Houston on Wednesday night. Bates immediately tried to call the NIT back, but was unable to get through because the line was busy. Finally early Monday morning, Bates got through and found out the game would be tonight and he let Stallings know. ESPN ESPN Maurice Patton's TSU Insider College basketball: Prosper Karangwa led all scorers with a career-high 31 points as Siena (17-18) won 81-77 over Alcorn State (21-10) in the NCAA tournament's play-in game. Siena will face top-seeded Maryland in the first round of East Regional play on Friday.

In first-round NIT action: Reece Gaines banked in a jumper with 53 seconds left and scored 23 points to lift Louisville (19-12) to a 66-65 win over Princeton (16-11); Pete Conway made six 3-pointers and scored a career-high 23 points as Montana State (20-8) won 77-69 over Utah State (23-8); Chris Williams scored a career-high 40 points and Ball State (21-11) won 98-92 over South Florida (19-13). Ball State plays St. Joseph's (19-11), a 73-64 winner over George Mason (19-10). University of Arkansas System President B. Alan Sugg could meet with former coach Nolan Richardson by Monday to review the school's decision to pay off Richardson's contract, the AP reported.

John Kresse, 560-143 in 23 seasons as basketball coach at the College of Charleston, retired Kresse, who has two years left on a 10-year contract, will become an assistant to college president Lee Higdoa College fbotbal: In following new coach Ron Zook's rules, Florida officials removed a fan from the first day of spring drills after he refused to stand to watch the Gators work out Zook is requiring all coaches, players and spectators to stand throughout practice. kfitarwfc Martin Buser captured his fourth Iditarod and completed the 1400-mile race across Alaska in record time. He and his dogs ended their trek from Anchorage to Nome in eight days, 22 hours, 46 minutes the first musher to do so in less than nine days. AREA DIGEST Tennessean Slug Remrls Rain delays start of Vandy football The start of Vanderbilt's spring football practice was delayed yesterday due to raia The players worked out in the weight room and had position meetings. The Commodores are having to conduct all of their drills at the stadium because the two practice fields behind McGugin Center are being renovated and won't be ready until the falL If the team practices in sloppy conditions like yesterday the Dudley Field could be damaged so Coach Bobby Johnson decided to save yesterday's drills for another day.

The first practice will be today at 4 p.m. The Commodores won't practice tomorrow, but return to the field at 4 p.m. Friday and 9 am. Saturday. Tennessee State opens spring practice today without its top rusher from last seasoa Sophomore Charles Anthony, who gained a team-high 728 yards, continues to nurse a groin injury and will be held out of any contact for the duration of the workouts, which conclude April 10.

Redshirt freshmen Dwayne Spearman and Julius Lee and non-scholarship freshman C.J. Pinson will get most of the work at the feature back positioa Middle Tennessee State's football team begins the first of 15 spring practices at 3:15 p.m. today with the spring game slated for April 13. Fourteen starters (eight on offease) and 46 lettermen return from last year's team that shared the Sun Belt Conference title. Andrico Hines, a 6-foot-3, 221-pound redshirt junior, is projected to take over at quarterback Senior starters Tyrone Calico (second in school history in receiving) and David Youell lead the receivers.

Coflege basebal: Corey Loom is drilled a two-out, bases-loaded single to give Bowling Green (4-7) a 10-9 win in 10 innings over Belmont (8-6) at Greer Stadium. Trevecca (9-11) lost 7-2 to North Alabama (12-7) in a rain-delayed game. AD search process heating up Lebanon station will carry Sounds By MAURICE PATT0N Slag Uriler With the countdown to their season opener standing at 24 days, the Nashville Sounds announced a three-year radio broadcast deal yesterday with Lebanon-based WANT-FM (98.9) and WCOR-AM (900). 'This was a significant Issue for us, and we're extremely satisfied with the arrangement," said Glenn Yaeger, chief operating officer for the team. "The strength of their signal is an upgrade for us.

We'll be able to reach out to many of our fans in Davidson County and the surrounding counties." The contract ends the Sounds' tie to WNSR-AM (560). The 24-hour Nashville sports station's strength of signal had been a sticking point for the team throughout the four-year relationship. "We wish the Sounds well and we are glad they were able to find a home," WNSR station manager Jeff Kolb said 'Talks with WNSR were always cordial and professional," Yaeger said. "But the way they were looking at the deal was not the way we were looking at the deaL" Under the terms of the agreement, all 144 of the Sounds' regular-season games and any playoff games will be simulcast on both FM and AM frequencies. The stations simulcast a country music format and carry other sports programming such as the Tennessee Titans, Lebanon High School football and Cumberland University basebalL In the event of conflicts with their other sports obligatioas, the Sounds will be carried on WCOR-AM only.

Talks between the sister statioas and the Sounds developed quickly, according to both Yaeger and Susie Bay, the station owner and general manager. "It was no secret they were l(xking for a change," Bay said "We got together over the List few days and worked out the details. We're pleased to work with the Sounds, and we think they're going to be pleased with the signal of our FM statioa We reach into all the counties surrounding us. Some points on the other side of Nashville are going to be hard for us to reach, and they're aware of that. But from what they've indicated it's still going to be a stronger signal than they've had" Play-by-play announcer Chuck Valenches is set to return for his fifth season, with a number of options being explored for color commentary duties including some of the WANTWCOR talent and some local baseball figures.

As of now, the Adelphia Coliseum contest shapes up as TSU's first Thursday night game since losing at Tennessee Tech 56-23 on Nov. 2, 2000. The Tigers did play Jackson State in the Southern Heritage Classic at Memphis this past Thanksgiving, in a game that was rescheduled following the Sept. II attacks, but that was an afternoon contest. The home schedule for TSU starts with Prairie View visiting for the John Merritt Classic on Sept 7, followed by Tennessee-Martin for homecoming on Oct 26, Eastern Illinois on Nov.

2, Tennessee Tech on Nov. 16 and the EKU game. Away from Nashville, the Tigers will play Jackson State in the Southern Heritage Classic on Sept 14, Grambling in the Silver Dollar Classic at Las Vegas on Sept 2L Florida in the Atlanta Football Classic on Sept 28, at Southeast Missouri on Oct. 5, at Alabama on Oct. 12 and at Murray State on Nov.

9. Maurice Patton covers TSU athletics for The Tennessean. He can be reached at 259-8018 or by e-mail at A major step in the process of hiring a new athletics director should take place within the week, as the search committee is expected to have a pool of prospective candidates to begin interviewing. Sch(X)l officials requested last Wednesday that the Chicago-based search firm of Lauer, Sbar-baro Associates complete their preliminary interviews by next week. "We're not criticizing them, but we're sort of anxious," said Dr.

Jacqueline Mitchell, special assistant to TSU President James Hefner. "We've really tried to push them, and they're working. They've made some progress. They just haven't finished the interviews." Mitchell said they have not received a definitive answer from the search firm as to the number of prospects, but she is encouraged by the length of time the process has taken. "They have taken applicatioas and aLso sent out letters of inquiry," she said "Since we're out of the search until they submit the pool to us, we really don't know how many people they have talked to.

But they have indicated there is interest By no means have they indicated a lack of interest "The fact they're taking this kind of time to interview and investigate tells me that they must have received some great interest in the positioa" The AD vacancy was created with the dismissal of Dr. James Smith in late May, and has been filled by Teresa Phillips on an interim basis since. Phillips, who has served as interim AD on two other occasions, has applied for the permanent role. Thursday night fights The football regular-season finale with visiting Eastern Kentucky has been switched from Nov. 23 to Nov.

2L finalizing the Tigers' home schedule. Tm kinda excited about the Thursday night game," Iliillips said Tm hoping with our OVC television hixkup, they may choose that to be a TV game. You have to anticipate it having some postseason significance, since three of the last four years it has.".