Huggins to Step Down With $3-Million Deal

Bob Huggins agreed Wednesday to step down as Cincinnati’s basketball coach, ousted by a school president determined to change the program’s image.

One day after Huggins was given a choice of resigning or being fired, he agreed to take a $3-million buyout of his contract. The school’s offer includes a chance to stay for three more months, giving advice on basketball recruits and related matters.

“We are working on the details of the agreement, which may or may not be finalized in the next 24 hours,” said Richard Katz, the coach’s attorney.

Huggins left Katz’s office without comment, dressed in his black Cincinnati jacket, when no final deal was reached Wednesday.

The university sent Katz a letter earlier in the day outlining the $3-million buyout. The letter, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, offered Huggins $110,000 a month for the next three months to stay on and ease the coaching transition.

President Nancy Zimpher sent Huggins an ultimatum Tuesday, giving him 24 hours to either take the buyout, stay in a capacity other than basketball coach or be fired from the job.

Tennis

Juan Ignacio Chela overcame a 4-1 deficit in a tiebreaker and upset top-seeded Nikolay Davydenko, 6-1, 7-6 (5), in the second round of the Pilot Pen tournament at New Haven, Conn.

Second-seeded Fernando Gonzalez advanced with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 win over Justin Gimelstob, but 10th-seeded Filippo Volandri was dominated by unseeded James Blake, 6-1, 6-3.

Alexa Glatch, a 15-year-old player from Newport Beach who received a wild card into the main draw in next week’s U.S. Open, stunned top-seeded Akiko Morigami, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, to advance to the quarterfinals of the Forest Hills Women’s Classic in New York.

Hockey

As expected, the Mighty Ducks re-signed center Samuel Pahlsson to a two-year contract worth $1.275 million. Pahlsson, 27, had eight goals and 14 assists and played all 82 games in the 2003-04 season.

The Ducks also signed Ladislav Smid, their first-round pick in the 2004 draft, to a three-year entry-level contract. Smid, 19, was the ninth overall selection.

The Kings agreed to terms with defenseman Joey Mormina on a multiyear entry-level contract.... Martin St. Louis, the NHL’s most valuable player in 2003-04, signed a six-year contract to remain with the Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning.... The Vancouver Canucks avoided salary arbitration with Swedish defenseman Mattias Ohlund by re-signing him to a four-year, $14-million contract.

Golf

Canadian James Lepp birdied the first playoff hole to beat 64th-seeded Kyle Reifers and advance to the second round of the U.S. Amateur at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa.

Lepp, the 2005 NCAA champion from Washington, rallied from two holes down and forced the playoff by winning the 18th. On the first playoff hole, he hit his approach from 94 yards to within two feet and made the birdie putt for the win.

Lepp will face 32nd-seeded Dane Burkhart, a junior from South Carolina Aiken, in today’s second round. Burkhart advanced with a 1-up win over John Holmes.

Jurisprudence

Police in Tampa, Fla., talked to relatives and acquaintances of Dwight Gooden for a third day in their effort to find and arrest the former baseball star, who fled after being pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving.

Texas Tech starting safety Vincent Meeks could face up to two years in jail and a $10,000 fine after he allegedly violated his probation on a forgery charge.

Meeks’ legal entanglement will not keep him from playing for the Red Raiders, Tech Coach Mike Leach said.

Miscellany

Retired Lt. Gen. Wallace “Chip” Gregson has been named chief operating officer of the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Gregson, 59, commanded thousands of troops in Asia and the Middle East during a 37-year career with the Marine Corps. He was selected for the post because of his extensive experience in international negotiations and financial management, the USOC said.

Ajax America, the North American affiliate of the storied Dutch soccer club from Amsterdam, announced its interest in a Major League Soccer club.

The San Jose Earthquakes and Kansas City Wizards are involved.

The Seattle SuperSonics re-signed restricted free agent Damien Wilkins, matching an offer sheet made by the Minnesota Timberwolves. The deal is for five years and $15 million.... The Chicago Bulls re-signed free-agent forward Othella Harrington.... The Detroit Pistons signed Sacramento swingman Maurice Evans to a three-year, $4.5-million offer sheet.

Mike Skinner led all but 10 laps in the O’Reilly 200 and won in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck series for the first time since 1996 by turning back a late challenge from Todd Bodine at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn.

Rich Corso, who built the North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake High boys’ water polo team into a Southern Section power in 20 years as coach, has been hired as women’s coach at California. Corso served as the U.S. Olympic men’s coach in 1996.

Passings

Bud Tucker, longtime Southern California sports columnist and radio talk show host, died Wednesday at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Yorba Linda from congenital heart failure. He was 80.

Tucker, a native of Canada, wrote exclusively for the San Gabriel Valley Tribune from 1957 to ‘69, and later wrote a syndicated column. During the 1970s and ‘80s, he also worked for radio stations KABC (790) and KMPC (710).

T.J. Simers is on vacation.