Porter Might Not Play Again for Auburn

The NCAA on Wednesday refused to restore the eligibility of Auburn standout Chris Porter, who said he took $2,500 to help his mother financially not knowing it was being routed from an agent.

The university was preparing an appeal in hopes that the senior forward can return to the team for postseason play. There is no timetable for a hearing before the NCAA reinstatement subcommittee made up of officials from other NCAA institutions.

Auburn (21-8) is 0-3 during Porter’s suspension and plays Friday in the Southeastern Conference tournament and is expected to get a bid to the NCAA tournament.

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CBS announcer Billy Packer has e-mailed an apology to two Duke students after he reportedly made sexist remarks before a Feb. 26 game at Durham, N.C.

Students Jen Feinberg and Sarah Bradley said they were checking credentials for Duke’s game against St. John’s. Feinberg did not recognize Packer, one of the CBS announcers, and asked who he was.

“He said: ‘You need to get a life. Since when do we let women control who gets into a men’s basketball game? Why don’t you go find a women’s game to let people into?’ ” Feinberg quoted Packer as saying.

Feinberg and Bradley said a stadium official who saw the exchange apologized for Packer, saying he must have been joking. They said Packer heard the comment, turned and said, “No, that’s just the kind of guy I am.”

Asked about the incident, Packer told USA Today, “I have no comment to make about that,” indicating his apology spoke for itself.

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Oklahoma said that its review of high school financing for seniors Eduardo Najera and Victor Avila found nothing that would affect their college eligibility. Najera and Avila attended Cornerstone Christian School in San Antonio. The San Antonio Express-News reported that an official of the Texas Assn. of Private and Parochial Schools said the players’ tuition was subsidized by the Mexican National Basketball Federation, but the university ruled the financing was consistent with NCAA rules. . . . Duke freshman Mike Dunleavy, who missed four games because of mononucleosis, is expected to play in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. . . . Trying to head off more severe NCAA sanctions, Minnesota is expected to place limits on the number of scholarships its men’s program can offer, according to Coach Dan Monson. The number of scholarships involved--and how many years each would be unavailable--hasn’t been determined. NCAA Division I teams are limited to 13 scholarship players. . . . Darrell Floyd, an All-American at Furman who twice led the NCAA in scoring, died of cancer at Greenville, S.C. He was 67.