College Basketball
Auburn finds a (Bruce) Pearl of a new head coach
AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn hired former Tennessee head coach Bruce Pearl to revive a struggling basketball program that hasn’t been to the NCAA Tournament in more than a decade.
The school announced the hiring Tuesday of the charismatic coach, who remains under a show-cause penalty from the NCAA into August because of infranctions while at the University of Tennessee. Pearl is 231-99 in Division I.
Pearl replaces Tony Barbee, who was fired about two hours after the Tigers lost to South Carolina in the first round of the Southeastern Conference tournament. They went 18-50 in the SEC during Barbee’s four-year tenure, which coincided with the opening of the $87-million Auburn Arena.
Cycling
Contador defeats Quintana to win Tirreno-Adriatico
SAN BENEDETTO DEL TRONTO, Italy – Alberto Contador won the weeklong Tirreno-Adriatico cycling race Tuesday to signal a return to form after going all of last year without a victory in multi-stage races.
The five-time Grand Tour winner finished 2 minutes, 5 seconds ahead of Tour de France runner-up Nairo Quintana in the overall standings. Contador’s Tinkoff-Saxo teammate Roman Kreuziger placed third, 2:14 behind.
Adriano Malori, an Italian with Movistar, won the concluding 5.7-mile time trial in 10:13.
Golf
San Diego OKs a U.S. Open; Woods not OK for Orlando
SAN DIEGO – The San Diego city council unanimously approved a proposal that will bring the U.S. Open back to Torrey Pines in 2021.
According to the proposal presented at a meeting Monday, the USGA will pay the city $2.5 million in rent for the golf course and parking lots, up from a $500,000 fee that San Diego received from the 2008 U.S. Open. The city also would get 20 percent of corporate hospitality sales.
Tiger Woods won his third U.S. Open and 14th career major at Torrey Pines when the U.S. Open was first played on the public course in 2008.
ORLANDO, Fla. – Woods pulled out of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Tuesday because of persistent back pains.
Woods is the defending champion at Bay Hill and an eight-time winner. He said it was too early to say how he will be for the Masters next month.
Woods withdrew from the Honda Classic in the final round three weeks ago. He played the next week at Doral and said he felt back spasms during the final round on his way to a 78, the highest score he has shot in a final round.
Soccer
Green wants to switch kits to the red, white and blue
CHICAGO – Bayern Munich forward Julian Green wants to play for the United States national team and has applied to FIFA to change his association from Germany.
The 18-year-old, who was born in Tampa, Fla., played for Germany in three qualifiers for the 2014 European Under-19 Championship, making his debut last Oct. 10 against Belarus and getting assists two days later against Latvia and Oct. 15 versus Scotland.
He made his professional debut for Bayern on Nov. 27 as an 88th-minute substitute in a Champions League match at CSKA Moscow.
Since 2009, FIFA has allowed a one-time change in national team affiliation for a player who has appeared in an official match for a youth national team as long as the player had dual citizenship at the time.
Green trained with the U.S. team in Germany this month ahead of its exhibition game against Ukraine and has been invited to the U.S. training camp ahead of an April 2 exhibition against Mexico in Glendale, Ariz.
PRAGUE – The United States will take on the Czech Republic on Sept. 3 in Prague in its first match after the World Cup.
The U.S. is winless in three career games against the Czechs.
Associated Press
