NCAA BASKETBALL NOTES : Higgins Tells Michigan He Plans to Turn Pro

L.A. Times Archives

March 20, 1990 12 AM PT

From Associated Press

First Michigan lost its bid for another championship, then it lost junior Sean Higgins, who announced he will declare himself eligible for the NBA draft in June.

Higgins, who attended Fairfax High, told teammates of his decision Sunday after the Wolverines lost, 149-115, to Loyola Marymount in the second round of the tournament. He was not with the team when the Wolverines boarded a plane to leave Los Angeles.

Higgins, who fouled out of the game after scoring 15 points, said he was going to his mother’s house in Los Angeles.

A stress fracture he suffered in his left foot in January in a game against Purdue caused him to miss four weeks and five games. Higgins averaged 14.1 points per game this season.

Higgins hinted earlier this year that he planned to leave school to play professionally.

“I’ve done what I’ve come here to do,” Higgins said. “That’s to win an NCAA championship.”

North Carolina forward Kevin Madden, who hit all 10 of his shots in last week’s Midwest Regional, injured a knee in practice Monday and will be lost to the Tar Heels for the rest of the tournament.

Madden, a 6-foot-6 senior, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee while driving past another player on a one-on-one drill. The injury will have to be repaired surgically, according to team physician Dr. Joe DeWalt.

Madden, averaging 10.1 points and 4.7 rebounds, scored 12 points against Southwest Missouri State and 14 against top-ranked Oklahoma as North Carolina defeated the Sooners, 79-77, to advance to the final 16. North Carolina plays Arkansas on Thursday.

Purdue Coach Gene Keady could be facing a reprimand, fine or suspension for his tirade following the Boilermakers’ elimination from the tournament.

Keady ripped into the officiating following his team’s 73-72 second-round loss to Texas on Sunday at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis.

Keady was reprimanded earlier this season by the Big Ten Conference for criticizing officials.

If Keady is disciplined, It wouldn’t be the first time the NCAA has punished coaches for criticizing officials during the tournament.

Indiana was fined $10,000 in 1987 after Coach Bob Knight pounded his fist on a table during a regional game to protest the officiating. Indiana went on to win the NCAA title.

Florida wants to talk to Texas Coach Tom Penders about its vacant coaching job and Penders is expected to interview for it.

Florida Athletic Director Bill Arnsparger and Penders tentatively agreed to a formal interview Monday in Gainesville, Fla., but the interview was canceled when the Longhorns defeated Purdue, the Dallas Morning News reported. Penders is still expected to talk to Arnsparger after the season.

Penders refused to say if Florida has contacted him.

Two men who allegedly set off a water bomb during the Nevada Las Vegas-Utah State game on March 1 have pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of creating a public disturbance.

Jeffrey N. Leishman, 23, of Salt Lake City, and Gavin Washburn, 30, of Logan, Utah, entered the pleas in Logan’s 1st Circuit Court.

Sentencing was set for April 20. A class B misdemeanor carries a possible sentence of up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

THE NCAA TOURNAMENT’S SWEET 16

EAST REGIONAL AT EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. THURSDAY’S GAMES

Connecticut (30-5) vs. Clemson (26-8), 4:40 p.m. PST

Duke (26-8) vs. UCLA (22-10), 30 minutes after first game

SOUTHEAST REGIONAL AT NEW ORLEANS FRIDAY’S GAMES

Minnesota (22-8) vs. Syracuse (26-6), 5 p.m. PST

Michigan State (28-5) vs. Georgia Tech (26-6), 30 minutes after first game

MIDWEST REGIONAL AT DALLAS THURSDAY’S GAMES

North Carolina (21-12) vs. Arkansas (28-4), 5:10 p.m. PST

Xavier, Ohio (28-4) vs. Texas (23-8), 30 minutes after first game