Fast Break
Men’s basketball
PSU’s Bone readers’ choice
Portland State basketball coach Ken Bone is easily the most popular choice among readers to replace outgoing Washington State men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett.
Readers were given a list of candidates and asked to pick the likely successor to Bennett, who was introduced as Virginia’s head basketball coach on Wednesday.
With just over 1,100 votes received as of 10 p.m. Wednesday, Bone had received 40 percent of the votes. Twice Bone has led the Big Sky Conference team to the NCAA tournament.
In a surprise showing, longshot contender Bobby Knight, the long-time Indiana coach and current ESPN studio analyst, is second with 12 percent. Saint Mary’s coach Randy Bennett is third with 11 percent of the vote. Others include Gonzaga assistant Ray Giacoletti, San Diego coach Bill Grier, Long Beach coach Dan Monson, current WSU assistant Matt Woodley and former WSU coach Dick Bennett.
To vote and to see results go to spokesman.com/sportslink.
Boxing
McCain seeks pardon for champ
Sen. John McCain said Wednesday he’s sure that President Barack Obama “will be more than eager” to pardon the late black heavyweight champion Jack Johnson, who was sent to prison nearly a century ago because of his romantic ties with a white woman.
Appearing with three of Johnson’s family members and Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., McCain unveiled a resolution urging a presidential pardon for Johnson, who was convicted in 1913 of violating the Mann Act, which made it illegal to transport women across state lines for immoral purposes. The law has since been heavily amended, but not repealed.
“We need to erase this act of racism which sent an American citizen to prison on a trumped- up charge,” McCain said.
Johnson became the first black heavyweight champion on Dec. 26, 1908.
College athletics
Big Sky making cost-saving changes
Universities in the Big Sky Conference have voted to cancel the 2009 football Summer Kickoff in Park City, Utah to save money.
The schools have also decided to play conference volleyball games on a Friday-Saturday schedule this fall, rather than the traditional Thursday-Saturday schedule, to save travel costs and increase class time for student-athletes.
Commissioner Doug Fullerton says the league will vote on other cost-saving ideas during the league’s spring meetings May 18-20 in Salt Lake City.