Tarkanian Gets Win No. 750

Fresno State, ranked No. 22, celebrated its first appearance in the Top 25 in more than three years by reaching a couple of milestones in a 108-56 victory over Texas El Paso on Thursday night in Fresno.

The victory was the 750th for Fresno State Coach Jerry Tarkanian at the Division I level. Last Saturday, Tarkanian moved past John Wooden into third place on the NCAA’s all-time winning percentage list. Tarkanian’s .804 percentage trails Clair Bee (.826) and Adolph Rupp (.822).

The victory also allowed Fresno State, 17-2 overall and 6-0 in the Western Athletic Conference, to match a school-record 13-game win streak established in 1980-81. Melvin Ely led the Bulldogs with 19 points.

The loss was the worst in school history for UTEP (15-3, 4-2).

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In a West Coast Coast Conference game, Casey Calvary tied a career-high with 29 points for Gonzaga (13-4, 5-0) in a 70-64 victory over Santa Clara (11-9, 3-2) at Spokane, Wash. . . . . . . Bernard Rock, Shawn Daniels and Curtis Bobb combined for 40 points to lead Big West co-leader Utah State (17-2, 6-0) to a 62-51 victory over Pacific (12-6, 4-3) at Stockton.

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An attorney for Clem Haskins asked a judge to halt the University of Minnesota’s lawsuit against the former men’s basketball coach until completion of a separate federal criminal investigation into academic misconduct. If granted, the university’s suit could be delayed for years.

The university lawsuit seeks recovery of more than $1 million of the $1.5 million it paid Haskins in a 1999 contract buyout. The university alleges Haskins had knowledge of academic misconduct in which about 20 players had course work completed for them, but accepted the buyout anyway, constituting fraud.