Man who accused ex-Syracuse assistant Fine of abuse admits to lying
Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor Syracuse, NY, United States (AHN Sports) – A man who helped end Bernie Fine’s coaching career and reputation said Friday that his allegation that the former Syracuse University assistant basketball coach sexually molested him as a child was all a lie. Zach Tomaselli, the third man to accuse Fine of sexual abuse, indicated to a Central New York publication that his sexual allegations against the Orange’s former long-time assistant coach were all made up. “It has become a burden of a lie and I am sick of it,” Tomaselli said in a email to Syracuse website CNYCentral.com. “Bobby Davis told me what to tell detectives and it pretty much took off from there. The evidence that supports me is just pure luck, not real evidence.” “I made the ENTIRE thing up. I have never met Bernie in my life,” Tomaselli added. According to multiple reports, Tomaselli, now 23, had said the molestation occurred when he was 13 years old in a hotel room in Pittsburgh, where he had gone to watch a Syracuse basketball game in 2002. “Basically, I’m a sociopath. I take a lot of pride in lying,” Thomaselli said in a CNN.com report. Davis, on the other hand, reportedly denied telling Tomaselli details of his alleged interactions with Fine. In the wake of the Penn State sex abuse scandal last year, Davis, a former ball boy for Syracuse teams in the 1980s, and his stepbrother Mike Lang came out and accused Fine of molesting them during the 1980s and ’90s. Meanwhile, Tomaselli was sentenced earlier this week to 39 months in a Maine state prison for sexual abuse of a 13-year-old boy in 2009. Fine, who was hired along with Rick Pitino as assistants by Jim Boeheim when the latter became head coach at Syracuse in 1976, has not been charged with any crime. Fine has denied the allegations. Fine was fired on Nov. 27, 2011 in response to the allegations. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
SMU considers legendary Larry Brown for coaching vacancy
AHN Sports Staff Dallas, TX, United States (AHN Sports) – Despite being 71-years-old and boasting a Hall of Fame career, Larry Brown still has the coaching bug in his system. Brown, who has coached seven NBA teams since guiding Kansas to the ’88 national title, will reportedly interview for the head coaching position at SMU Saturday. “I’m not going to be politicking for a job right now,” Brown told an ESPN reporter in March. “I’d like to get back involved in the game in some capacity. Whether that’s as a coach, assistant, running a team or just as a resource, I don’t care.” Marquette associate coach Tony Benford is also being considered for the post, according to the same report. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
Dirk Nowitzki’s 27 points lead Mavs past Warriors
Jojo Doria – AHN Sports Contributor Oakland, CA, United States (AHN Sports) – After his recent offensive struggles, Dirk Nowitzki found his range and scored 27 points, leading the Dallas Mavericks past the Golden State Warriors 112-103 Thursday night at ORACLE Arena. Brandan Wright added 16 points and nine boards as part of the strong Mavs’ bench effort to extend the team’s win-streak to two. Jason Terry also had 16 points off the bench, while Jason Kidd filled the stat sheets with 12 assists, 10 boards and nine points for the victors. The reigning NBA champion Mavericks, who kicked off a pivotal four-game road trip, started to take control late in the second quarter. Dallas was up 63-49 at intermission. The Warriors regrouped and drew within 87-79 in the third frame. Nowitzki, who in his past two games shot a combined 9-for-30 from the field, including 4-of-10 from three-point range, gave Dallas a 103-92 lead with just under six minutes to play and the Mavs held on to notch the win. David Lee poured in a game-high 30 points to go along with eight rebounds, but it was not enough to help the Warriors snap a two-game losing skid. Klay Thompson added 24 points and eight assists in defeat. With the victory, Dallas moved 1 1-2 games behind Memphis for the Western Conference’s fifth playoff seed. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
Muhammad picks UCLA while Kentucky gets Noel
AHN Sports Staff Westwood, CA, United States (AHN Sports) – The nations top two high school basketball recruits, Nerlens Noel and Shabazz Muhammad made their commitments Wednesday and Kentucky and UCLA are very happy. Considered the top recruit in the nation, Noel committed to Kentucky while Muhammad decided on UCLA. A 6-foot-10 center from Everett, Mass., Noel chose Kentucky over Georgetown and Syracuse. “It was the toughest decision of my entire life,” the said. “Georgetown and Syracuse are great programs.” Muhammad, a 6-foot-6 swingman from Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, picked the Bruins over Kentucky and Duke. Named the Naismith high school national player of the year, Muhammad was the Most Valuable Player in the McDonald’s All-American Game in Chicago last month. On Saturday, he scored 35 points for the USA Junior Select team in an 84-75 loss to the World team in the Nike Hoop Summit. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
Dwyane Wade changes tune on pay for play Olympics
AHN Sports Staff Miami, FL, United States (AHN Sports) – Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade believes NBA athletes should be compensated for playing in the Olympics but also said his main motivation for participating in the Games is not money. Wade was answering a question on Wednesday about whether or not Olympians should be paid when he said he believes ”guys should be compensated.” Wade pointed to the demands of playing in the summer and the schedule as well a having less rest entering the following NBA season. He didn’t say he needed to be paid to play and on Thursday Wade said, ”I do not want to be paid to go to the Olympics.” Wade also tweeted Wednesday that pride for his country ”motivates me more than any $$$ amount.” Wade has played for the U.S. at Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008. He has stated that the 2012 London Games would be his last. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
Baylor hoops programs facing potential NCAA sanctions
AHN Sports Staff Waco, TX, United States (AHN Sports) – It was a successful basketball season at Baylor for both the men’s and women’s programs but things are not looking as good this offseason. Both programs are facing potential NCAA sanctions after an investigation discovered more than 1,200 impermissible phone calls and texts during a 29-month span. Both men’s coach Scott Drew and coach Kim Mulkey of the NCAA champion women’s team are involved, according to the summary disposition. Drew and Mulkey along with assistants Paul Mills and Jerome Tang of the men’s team and Damion McKinney of the women’s club – have acknowledged their involvement. A 66-page report detailed a number of violations, but focused on the 738 impermissible text messages and 528 phone calls over the span of nearly 2 1/2 years. Baylor has self-imposed penalties following an NCAA probe in 2008. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
El Akkari nets 32 treys, 113 points in Lebanese game
AHN Sports Staff Tripoli, Lebanon (AHN Sports) – Point guard Mohammad El Akkari scored 113 points in a Lebanese basketball league, making him the first pro player to pull off such feat in an official game sanctioned by the FIBA Asia National Federation. El Akkari, who entered the match averaging only 7.6 points per game, went on a scoring outburst as he knocked down 40-of-69 shots, including a staggering 32-for-59 from the three-point territory. According to FIBA Asia, Lou Salvador (116 for Philippines against China in the 1923 Far Eastern Games) and Jeron Teng (104 points in a high school basketball match in the Philippines) were the only Asians to barge into the century mark before Akkari exploded big time. El Akkari’s 113 points almost single-handedly powered his ballclub Moutahed to a 173-141 victory over the Bejjeh in the he Lebanese Division A League quarterfinals. “Thank God for this performance. I think it’s all a result of my practice,” Akkari said Wednesday, according to fibaasia.net. “I also want to thank my coach for letting me play that long and all my teammates for helping.” Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
Baylor women blast Notre Dame; capture national hoops title
AHN Sports Staff Denver, CO, United States (AHN Sports) – It couldn’t have ended any other way for women’s basketball superstar Brittney Griner and her Baylor teammates. The Bears blasted Notre Dame, 80-61 in the women’s basketball championship final Tuesday night at Pepsi Center. Griner, who also swatted 5 shots, had help as Odyssey Sims added 19 points and 7 rebounds. Notre Dame swarmed Griner with as many as three defenders at a time and trailed just 34-28 at intermission, but Baylor was just too much and ultimately seized the title in improving to 40-0. Skylar Diggins scored 20 points for Notre Dame, which capped its season 35-4. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
‘Cats, Coach Cal collect crown: Kentucky clips Kansas in title clash
AHN Sports Staff New Orleans, LA, United States (AHN Sports) – Doron Lamb dropped in 22 points and Marquis Teague added 14, lifting the Kentucky Wildcats to a 67-59 win over the Kansas Jayhawks in the NCAA basketball title game Monday in New Orleans. Tourney Most Outstanding Player Anthony Davis hit just 1 of 10 shots, scoring 6 points, but hauled down 16 rebounds with 6 blocks. Tyshawn Taylor led Kansas with 19 points and Thomas Robinson added 18 with 17 rebounds, but the Jayhawks couldn’t get closer than 6 points late in the contest. Davis forced a late traveling violation and the ‘Cats shut down the Jayhawks to seal coach John Calipari’s first national championship. Kentucky’s defense was stellar in holding Kansas to just 35.5 percent field goal shooting. Article © AHN – All Rights Reserved
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