KNOXVILLE, Tenn. —
The NCAA said it wanted to send a clear message by slapping Bruce Pearl with a three-year show-cause penalty: Coaches are responsible for their programs.
The sanctions announced Wednesday make it harder for Pearl, the former Tennessee men's basketball coach, to get another college job anytime soon. He is prohibited from recruiting during the next three years, and a school would have to convince the NCAA to have that penalty removed if it hired him.
The NCAA said it punished Pearl for lying to investigators about improperly hosting recruits at his home and urging others to do the same. Former Pearl assistants Tony Jones, Jason Shay and Steve Forbes face the same sanctions, except they were only given one-year show-cause penalties for their roles in misleading the NCAA.
Pearl did not immediate respond to a call by The Associated Press seeking comment.
GOLF
Atsedes wins: Lori Atsedes of Litchfield Park, Ariz., shot rounds of 71-71-73 at The Golf Club at Ballantyne in Charlotte to win the LPGA Teaching and Club Professionals National Championship.
Atsedes earned a one-stoke victory over former Arkansas Razorback Amanda McCurdy to capture the $9,000 winner's check and an exemption into the 2012 Wegmans LPGA Championship.
Among the top finishers from the Carolinas: Maggie Will (70-73-76) of Raleigh tied for fourth; Charlaine Hirst (79-69-74) of Pinehurst was eighth and Donna Andrews (74-78-76) of Southern Pines was 14th.
MOTORSPORTS
Panel upholds decision: Ryan Hunter-Reay is still the New Hampshire winner. A three-member IndyCar panel upheld Brian Barnhart's decision to revert the finishing order to what it had been before the crash-marred final restart on Aug. 14.
Barnhart said after the race it was a mistake to restart on a damp track - a decision some drivers and teams, notably Hunter-Reay and Will Power - had vehemently opposed.
Newman/Haas Racing and Target Chip Ganassi said their drivers, Spain's Oriol Servia and New Zealand's Scott Dixon, had passed Hunter-Reay before the yellow flag came out. They believed Barnhart's mistake was changing the finishing order.
All three drivers attended Tuesday's hearing, but all three panelists took Barnhart's side Wednesday.
Brazilian driver Bruno Senna will race for Renault in the Belgian Grand Prix. Senna, replacing German driver Nick Heidfeld, will compete alongside Vitaly Petrov, the Formula One team said, without indicating whether Senna will keep his spot until the end of the season.
CYCLING
Hincapie wins stage: American George Hincapie emerged from a six-rider group to win the crash-marred second stage of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Aspen, Colo., and young compatriot Tejay Van Garderen became the third race leader in three days. Hincapie, 38, a 15-time Tour de France finisher from Greenville, S.C., completed the rainy 130.3-mile leg from Gunnison to Aspen in 5 hours, 26 minutes, 10 seconds.
Daniele Callegarin of Italy, Canadian Andrew Randell and American Sergio Hernandez were taken to a hospital after being part of an eight-rider crash on a cattle guard as the field approached the first of two ascents over 12,000 feet in the stage.
Callegarin suffered a concussion, two broken hands, severe facial lacerations and several other injuries, a team spokesman said. He will require extensive plastic surgery.
Randell and Hernandez were released from the hospital, according to the team's physician.
In Valdepenas de Jaen, Spain, Joaquin Rodriguez won the fifth stage of the Spanish Vuelta, and Frenchman Sylvain Chavanel kept the overall lead.
BASEBALL
Montana, Mexico advance: Ben Askelson hit a high 0-1 curveball onto the hill beyond the left-field fence in South Williamsport, Pa., sending the boys from Billings, Mont., into the U.S. final of the Little League World Series with a 1-0, seven-inning victory against Huntington Beach, Calif. Montana gets to rest up until the U.S. championship game Saturday. California will face Clinton County, Pa., tonight.
The early game was close, too, with Mexico beating Venezuela 2-1 to advance to Saturday's international final on Bruno Ruiz's ninth-inning homer. Venezuela will play Japan today.
GYMNASTICS
Bross injured: The U.S. women just got a lot weaker in their weakest event. Rebecca Bross will miss the world championships in October in Tokyo after dislocating her right kneecap, though agent Brandon Swibel said she is expected to make a full recovery in time for the 2012 season.
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