WVU may get Bryant back for Final Four

The Truck might not be parked, after all.

West Virginia's medical staff is looking at options that could allow point guard Darryl "Truck" Bryant to play in the Mountaineers' first Final Four since 1959.

Bryant broke his right foot during practice Tuesday and was expected to miss the rest of the NCAA tournament. He didn't play against Washington in the East Regional semifinals or against Kentucky in the final on Saturday, but he might be able to return next weekend in the national semifinals.

Bryant hasn't been cleared to play, but West Virginia trainer Randy Meador told The Sporting News that Bryant could wear a specially designed shoe that would shift weight away from his fractured fifth metatarsal.

In a television interview Saturday on CBS, coach Bob Huggins said Bryant was in Durham, N.C., getting fitted for the special orthotics that are supposed to take pressure off his injured foot.

"We don't know yet whether it's going to work or not," Huggins said.

Starting in place of Bryant, Joe Mazzulla scored a career-high 17 points Saturday night in West Virginia's 73-66 victory over Kentucky.

MORE MEN'S BASKETBALL

Iowa hires McCaffery: Iowa has convinced Fran McCaffery to leave Siena to become the Hawkeyes' men's basket ball coach, athletic director Gary Barta announced in a release Sunday.

A news conference is scheduled for today in Iowa City.

McCaffery went 112-51 in five seasons at Siena, leading the Saints to three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances. Siena lost to Purdue in the first round this year and finished with a 27-7 record.

McCaffery replaces Todd Lickliter, who was fired after Iowa went 10-22 this season.

The Hawkeyes last made the NCAA tournament in 2006, and coach Steve Alford left for New Mexico after the 2007 season.

Once one of the top programs in the Big Ten, the Hawkeyes went 38-58 under Lickliter while sinking to the bottom of the league.

McCaffery, a Philadelphia native who turns 51 in May, has taken three programs to the NCAA tournament as a head coach. He played college ball at Wake Forest and Penn.

McCaffery spent six seasons at UNC-Greensboro, posting a 90-87 record, before taking over at Siena before the 2005-06 season. McCaffery also coached Lehigh for three seasons, guiding it to the NCAA tournament in 1988, before leaving to become an assistant at Notre Dame.

Final Four finally gives Butler reason to party: The school that never celebrates midnight madness to kick off the basketball season finally held a late-night campus party.

Sunday morning's March Madness bash was better.

About 3 a.m., nearly eight hours after Butler beat second-seeded Kansas State 63-56 to reach the first Final Four in school history, the Bulldogs returned home to Indianapolis to a large crowd and loud cheers.

"We've never had midnight madness here," coach Brad Stevens said with a smile. "So I guess this is it for us."

The Hinkle Fieldhouse parking lot looked like a modern-day scene from the movie "Hoosiers." Car horns started blaring at about 12:30 a.m., and the sound of drums kept fans from toddlers to grandparents entertained as they waited for hours.

Women's Basketball Invitational

Appalachian State 79, Memphis 71: The Mountaineers rallied from a 19-point deficit to beat the Tigers and win a new tournament that many didn't know existed a month ago.

Tournament MVP Ashlen Dewart had 21 points and nine rebounds on her 19th birthday, Chakeitha Weldon added 15 points, and Anna Freeman had 13 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as host Appalachian State (23-12) completed a dramatic turnaround after going 9-22 a year ago in coach Darcie Vincent's debut season.

The victory required finding a way to slow Brittany Carter. The Georgia transfer scored 31 points in 27 minutes but was in foul trouble for much of the second half. Ramses Lonlack added 16 points for Memphis (23-12) in a matchup of the top seeds in the 16-team event.

Halfway through the first half, Carter had outscored Appalachian State 14-13 and Memphis had a 36-17 lead.