COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Minnesota hires Claeys
The Minnesota Gophers announced Wednesday morning that they have hired Tracy Claeys as head football coach, removing the interim tag they gave him when Jerry Kill retired Oct. 28. Claeys received a three-year contract that will start in February, carrying through the 2018 season. He is scheduled to make $1.4 million next year, with $100,000 raises each of the following two years. "There was no back and forth on the contract, anything like that," Claeys said at a news conference Wednesday morning. "I wanted the opportunity to be the football coach here. There was no need for an agent or anything." Under the contract language, the university could buy out the remainder of Claeys' deal for $250,000 per year. So if the school decided to fire him after next season, for example, it would cost them only $500,000 to buy out the remaining two years of his deal. Claeys promised there won't be any major changes to the program. Claeys, 46, worked 21 years as an assistant under Kill, mostly as a defensive coordinator. This is the first head coaching job of his career.
BASKETBALL
Green mystery solved?
Miami Heat guard Gerald Green punched a man, then was combative with paramedics and eventually needed to be handcuffed just so rescue personnel could transport him to a trauma center last week, according to police. The Miami police incident report, released Wednesday, said the man who was punched by Green did not wish to press charges. The report sheds some light on the circumstances surrounding Green's mysterious absence from the Heat and subsequent two-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team. Green will serve the final game of that suspension today when Miami plays host to Utah and is expected back on the practice floor on Saturday. According to the report, Green asked the front desk staff at the building where he was staying to call Miami Fire Rescue around 10:20 a.m. Nov. 4. Green had blood on his hands, for reasons not made clear in the report. Green, the report continues, then walked out of the building and collapsed on the valet parking ramp. After getting up, he returned to the lobby with the help of a man who was trying to keep him in the area while paramedics responded.
• Denver Nuggets forward Wilson Chandler will undergo surgery on his right hip and is expected to miss the season. Chandler suffered a labral tear during the preseason and did not play in any of Denver's first seven regular-season games. He will endure a six-month rehab process but is expected to make a full recovery. Chandler, 28, signed a four-year, $46 million contract extension this summer. Chandler missed the first 35 games of the 2012-13 season with a right hip injury but returned to average 13.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in 43 games for the Nuggets. Last season was his best since 2008-09, when he was with New York. Chandler averaged 13.9 points and 6.1 rebounds in 78 games, the most he played since that season. Chandler, the Knicks' first-round pick in 2007, is averaging 13.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in his eight-year career.
• The Oklahoma City Thunder said Wednesday that forward Kevin Durant will miss at least a week with a strained left hamstring. Durant was injured during the second quarter of a 125-101 victory at Washington on Tuesday night. He will be re-evaluated in seven to 10 days. Durant has averaged 28.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.25 blocks to help lead the Thunder and new Coach Billy Donovan to a 5-3 start. Durant was injury free for most of his career and was league MVP in 2013-14 before he ran into problems. He broke a bone in his right foot last preseason, had three procedures on it and played in only 27 games as the Thunder missed the playoffs. Russell Westbrook, last season's scoring champion, will again be called on to step up.
• Gordon "Scotty" Stirling, the former NBA vice president of operations and longtime team executive and scout, died Wednesday. He was 86. The NBA said Stirling died in Sacramento, Calif. "Scotty was a highly regarded league executive who dedicated more than 35 years of his life to our game," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "He exuded passion for basketball and worked tirelessly in front-office roles with the Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, Sacramento Kings and the ABA's Oakland Oaks. "Scotty also set a high standard as the NBA's vice president of operations. With his vast knowledge and keen eye for talent, he earned the respect of his peers and colleagues. We extend our deepest sympathies to Scotty's wife, Pam, and the Stirling family." Stirling was the Warriors' assistant to the president from 1976-82, spent three years in the NBA office as vice president of basketball operations, and was the Knicks' general manager in 1986-87. Stirling also was a sports-talk radio host in the Bay Area.
MOTOR SPORTS
$6M cut from Grand Prix
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office is cutting nearly $6 million in public funds from the United States Grand Prix, raising questions about the future of the Formula One race after just four years in Austin. Race organizers said they've already taken a financial hit this year because of heavy storms that nearly wiped out two days of the race weekend in October. Abbott's office says the race will still get about $19.5 million in state money from the Major Events Trust Fund this year. That's about $6 million less than last year. Race officials say they were promised at least $25 million per year for 10 years, a deal made with former Gov. Rick Perry and former Comptroller Susan Combs. State lawmakers gave Abbott control of the fund this year.
HORSE RACING
Pletcher pair wins
Todd Pletcher added to his nation-best training total Wednesday when stablemates Tommy Macho and Madefromlucky finished 1-2 in the Discovery Handicap at Aqueduct. The sweep banked $120,000 of the $150,000 purse for the Pletcher barn that has over $24 million in earnings this year. Pletcher has won the Discovery, a 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds, a record six times. It was the first stakes victory for Tommy Macho, and it came in his first try on a sloppy track. Javier Castellano immediately sent Tommy Macho after the pacesetting Ocean Knight, the 8/5 favorite. The colt pressed the leader every step, racing that rival into submission at the top of the stretch. Tommy Macho pulled clear to a 4 1/2-length victory, his third in seven career starts. The payoff was $9.30, $4.50 and $2.80. The time was 1:51.67. Madefromlucky, winner of the Peter Pan Stakes and the West Virginia Derby, rallied to return $3.40 and $2.60. Ocean Knight paid $2.40 to show.
GOLF
Tournament moving
The International Crown still plans to be in Chicago next year, just not at Rich Harvest Farms. The LPGA Tour and Rich Harvest Farms announced Wednesday that they have agreed to relocate the biennial event that features match play among eight countries. Plans are for the International Crown to be played July 21-24, and the LPGA Tour said it is committed to keeping the tournament in the Chicago area. It is scheduled for South Korea in 2018. The LPGA said it is trying to complete a deal for a new site for the 2016 matches. No reason was given for why Rich Harvest Farms will not host the International Crown. The course hosted the 2009 Solheim Cup, and the LPGA Tour statement said another tournament could return there in the future.
Sports on 11/12/2015