Tyson Decision Is Expected on Friday

New Jersey’s Athletic Control Board is expected to decide Friday whether to award a boxing license to former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.

The board has a public meeting scheduled Friday morning in Trenton and Maureen Sczpanski, spokeswoman for the state Department of Law and Public Safety, said Tuesday a decision is expected then.

Tyson will attend the meeting, according to his attorney, Anthony Fusco Jr.

Tyson, 32, hasn’t fought since June, 1997, when he bit the ears of World Boxing Assn. heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield during a bout in Las Vegas. Nevada regulators revoked his boxing license and said he could apply for another after a year.

But he chose to apply in New Jersey instead, hoping to fight in Atlantic City.

During a hearing before regulators two weeks ago, Tyson lost his temper and cursed after being grilled by state lawyers about the Holyfield incident.

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Holyfield, who failed to line up a lucrative heavyweight unification bout with Lennox Lewis, the World Boxing Council champion, instead will settle for his first hometown fight in seven years when he meets unheralded Vaughn Bean on Sept. 19 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

Jurisprudence

Robert Troy Caron, the Oxnard sports agent whose activities led to the suspension of USC running back Shawn Walters and two other Trojan players in 1995, has been disciplined by the State Bar of California.

Caron was put on probation for a year and suspended for 60 days, although the suspension was stayed, allowing him to continue to practice law.

Walters, who led USC in rushing as a freshman and sophomore in 1993 and ‘94, served a 12-game NCAA suspension after admitting he had accepted thousands of dollars from an intermediary of Caron’s. Linebackers Errick Herrin and Israel Ifeanyi served shorter suspensions for accepting smaller amounts.

Caron previously paid USC $50,000 in an out-of-court settlement in a suit brought by the university, and was censured by the NFL Players Assn.

Tennis

Second-seeded Richard Fromberg of Austria defeated Dinu Pescariu of Romania, 6-4, 6-0, and No. 3 Dominik Hrbaty of Slovakia stopped Davide Scala of Italy, 6-3, 6-4, in opening-round matches of the San Marino tournament.

Pro Hockey

Concussions finally got the best of Pat LaFontaine, forcing one of the best U.S.-born hockey players to retire. “I always said that if there ever was a point where the risk was more than minimal, I would stop playing,” LaFontaine said at a news conference in New York.

LaFontaine, 33, played 15 seasons in the NHL with the New York Islanders, the Buffalo Sabres and most recently the New York Rangers, finishing with 468 goals, 545 assists and 1,013 points.

The Florida Panthers signed two key free agents, leading scorer Ray Whitney and center Viktor Kozlov.

Basketball

Former Santa Ana Mater Dei High standout Schea Cotton has enrolled at Long Beach City College, according to the Orange County Register. Cotton, 6 feet 5, had previously enrolled at and left Long Beach State before being denied for academic reasons at UCLA and North Carolina State.

A new men’s professional basketball league, with ambitions of going global, outlined plans in Baltimore to start play next year in eight U.S. cities.

The International Basketball League intends to begin in November, 1999, with franchises in Albuquerque, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, San Diego, Tampa and Richmond, Va.

Illinois confirmed that the university has reported violations in its women’s basketball program to the NCAA and is waiting to hear about possible penalties.

The university recently reported to the NCAA that coaches supplied alcohol to players on two occasions. Six players have quit the team since last season and four are considering filing a slander lawsuit against Coach Theresa Grentz.

Miscellany

Vanderley Luxemburgo, who twice coached his Brazilian soccer club to league titles, was hired as Brazil’s national coach. Luxemburgo, 46, succeeds Mario Zagallo, who was fired after his team lost to France in the World Cup title game last month, 3-0. . . . Steve Salm, UCLA’s associate athletic director in charge of business and finance, has resigned, effective Sept. 11, to become an executive with Forsythe and Associates, a transportation management company in West Covina. He had worked at the school for 31 years. . . . Dean Crowley, a California high school sports administrator, was elected chairman of the National Assn. of Sports Officials in Indianapolis. NASO is a nonprofit educational association working to improve the skills and conditions for sports officials of all levels.. . . . The NCAA’s Board of Directors set aside its earlier decision to eliminate the so-called BYU Rule, which allowed it to adjust schedules to accommodate schools opposed to Sunday competitions. Schools that have policies against competition on any day for religious reasons now will be heard.