NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Former Vanderbilt basketball coach Roy Skinner, whose decision to recruit Perry Wallace integrated the Southeastern Conference with its first black player in the mid-1960s, died Monday night of respiratory failure. He was 80.
Skinner was just 28 years old when he became acting coach of the Commodores in 1958, then took the job permanently in 1960 and coached until 1976, compiling a 278-135 record (.673).
• The NCAA overturned a decision that made Louisville center Gorgui Dieng ineligible because of transcript concerns.
• Duquesne junior point guard Eric Evans will be out about two months with a broken right foot.
• Iowa State guard DeMarcus Phillips must take at least a month off to recover from a broken bone in his left hand.
• Memphis guard Jelan Kendrick has been suspended indefinitely while school officials investigate a verbal threat the freshman made against a teammate.
Receiver Blackmon arrested
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma State receiver Justin Blackmon was arrested on a suburban Dallas highway on a misdemeanor DUI complaint.
Coach Mike Gundy said he wasn’t ready to make any immediate decisions regarding discipline for Blackmon, who leads the Football Bowl Subdivision with 158.9 yards receiving per game.
• Kansas third-string quarterback Quinn Mecham is expected to start Saturday against Iowa State as Jordan Webb (shoulder) and Kale Pick (concussion) nurse injuries.
But the Jayhawks will be without receiver D.J. Beshears and running back Deshaun Sands after they were dealt one-game suspensions for unspecified violations of team rules.
• Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros (knee) is questionable for Saturday’s game against Syracuse.
• Tennessee starting quarterback Matt Simms said he will play Saturday against South Carolina despite a sprained left knee.
• North Carolina cornerback Kendric Burney (suspension) has been cleared to play Saturday against William & Mary.
• Wisconsin right tackle Josh Oglesby faces a three- to four- month recovery with a knee injury.
• Demond Dennis, New Mexico’s top running back with 155 yards on 42 carries, has been dismissed from the team because of academic issues.
Footnotes.
Jim Riggleman will return to manage the Washington Nationals in 2011 after the team exercised its option.
• Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg is not expected to end up on the Chicago Cubs’ coaching staff next season despite the team’s need for a bench coach after Alan Trammell left to join the Arizona Diamondbacks.
• Bill Shannon, a baseball historian, author and an official scorer at New York Yankees and Mets games for decades, died in a house fire in West Caldwell, N.J. He was 69.
• Teenager Coco Vandeweghe, a niece of former Nuggets star Kiki Vandeweghe, is joining Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands and doubles specialist Liezel Huber on the U.S. team that will face Italy in the Fed Cup final Nov. 6-7 in San Diego.
Denver Post wire services
