Newsmakers
Extended Clemson men’s basketball coach Oliver Purnell has agreed to a two-year contract extension that will keep him with the Tigers through 2016. While the deal hasn’t been signed, Purnell and athletic director Terry Don Phillips have signed a memorandum of understanding that outlines the improved package. Purnell’s base salary jumped $50,000 a year to $275,000.
Introduced Minnesota native Todd Richards has returned home to coach the Minnesota Wild, promising to bring a more exciting, up-tempo style with him. The Wild introduced Richards, 42, as the second head coach in franchise history on Tuesday. The hiring completes a new power structure alignment that includes new general manager Chuck Fletcher. Richards replaces longtime Wild coach Jacques Lemaire.
Released Reigning NASCAR truck champion Johnny Benson has been released from a Grand Rapids, Mich., hospital three days after being injured in a fiery crash. The 45-year-old driver suffered burns and broken ribs after his vehicle collided with another car, slammed into a wall and burst into flames.
Delayed Federal prosecutors have agreed to delay for at least six weeks the trial of a woman accused of trying to extort millions of dollars from Louisville men’s basketball coach Rick Pitino. In a motion filed Tuesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Kuhn says prosecutors are still compiling phone records in the case of Karen Cunagin Sypher and asked to postpone the scheduled June 29 trial.
Resigned Longtime Clemson men’s soccer coach Trevor Adair has resigned, more than two months after his arrest on charges of attacking his teenage daughters. Adair, 48, had coached the Tigers for 14 years and led the team to nine NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the 2005 national semifinals. In April, police charged him with two counts of assault and battery. The cases are pending.
Died Former Southern California football player George Belotti, who was a member of the American Football League’s first championship team with the Houston Oilers, has died. He was 74. Belotti died Monday in suburban Arcadia, Calif., from complications of a stroke, the university said. He lived in Covina, Calif.