Patterson Facing Ineligibility

Andre Patterson, UCLA sophomore forward, is expected to be ruled academically ineligible for the fall quarter and must sit out at least the first three basketball games next season, according to sources.

Patterson, a key reserve as a freshman, is in summer school attempting to gain eligibility for the winter quarter. Although he has reportedly considered transferring, Patterson has told Bruin coaches he wants to remain at UCLA.

UCLA spokesman Marc Dellins would not comment, saying the academic status of students is confidential. A determination would not be made officially until the first day of the fall quarter in late September. Patterson moved to L.A. from Indiana before his senior year of high school and attended Washington Prep in hopes of being recruited by UCLA. As a freshman, he shot 50% and was second on the team with 18 blocked shots, averaging 2.3 points and 2.1 rebounds in nine minutes a game.

Steve Henson

Tennis

Martina Hingis tumbled out of the Rogers AT&T; Cup on Friday night, falling, 6-4, 6-3, to third-seeded Jelena Dokic of Yugoslavia in a windy quarterfinal match at Montreal. Hingis was playing her first tournament since May, when she had surgery for damaged ligaments in her left knee. She also had surgery on the right ankle in October. Dokic will face second-seeded Jennifer Capriati, a 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 winner over fifth-seeded Justine Henin of Belgium. In the other semifinal, seventh-seeded Amelie Mauresmo of France will play eighth-seeded Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia.

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Andre Agassi rallied to defeat Thomas Enqvist, 6-7 (8), 7-6 (5), 6-3, in the quarterfinals of the Legg Mason Tennis Classic at Washington. With Enqvist serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set, Agassi fought back to force a tiebreaker. The top-seeded Agassi advanced to a semifinal match against sixth-seeded James Blake, a 6-4, 6-4 winner over fourth-seeded Alex Corretja.... Greg Rusedski beat Martin Verkerk, 6-4, 7-6 (6), to advance to the semifinals of the RCA Championships at Indianapolis. Rusedski, seeded 14th, will face third-seeded Tommy Haas, who beat sixth-seeded Sebastien Grosjean, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3.

Swimming

Natalie Coughlin broke the oldest U.S. swimming record by winning the 200-meter backstroke in 2 minutes 8.53 seconds in the U.S. national championships at Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Coughlin, from Concord, Calif., beat Betsy Mitchell’s 1986 time of 2:08.60 for the record and her fifth win of the meet. Coughlin is the first person since 1978 to win five events at one national championships, a feat last accomplished by Tracy Caulkins. Michael Phelps held off Ian Crocker in the 100-meter butterfly to break Crocker’s U.S. record with a time of 51.88, just 0.07 off the world mark. USC’s Erik Vendt won the 1,500 freestyle in 15:03.49.

Golf

Brandi Jackson, from Belton, S.C., advanced to today’s 36-hole final of the U.S. Women’s Amateur, beating Venezuela’s Maru Martinez with a birdie on the first extra hole after winning the final three holes of regulation at Scarborough, N.Y. USC’s Becky Lucidi beat Pepperdine’s Lindsay Wright of Australia, 3 and 2, closing out the match with a 16-foot eagle putt on the 16th hole to also advance.

Miscellany

Morocco’s Brahim Boulami broke his world record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Weltklasse Golden League meet at Zurich, Switzerland, and Olympic champion Maurice Greene was fifth in the men’s 100. Boulami finished in 7 minutes 53.17 seconds. Greene, the record-holder in the 100, clocked 10.10. Tim Montgomery won in 9.98.

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As expected, Mike Bibby signed a seven-year, $80-million contract with the Sacramento Kings.... The Chicago Bulls signed free-agent forward Donyell Marshall. Terms were not disclosed.... Nashville defenseman Jere Karalahti, a former King, was suspended for six months without pay by the NHL for a third violation of the league’s substance abuse policy.... King forward Ian Laperriere had abdominal surgery for a hernia and could miss the team’s NHL opener in October.... Chicago Fire forward Josh Wolff, a key player on the U.S. World Cup squad, will miss four to six months after tearing ligaments in his right knee.... NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. beat Kevin Harvick and darkness to win his first pole of the season in qualifying for Sunday’s Pepsi 400 at Brooklyn, Mich.