Report: Alabama Birmingham Hires Mike Davis

Former Indiana coach Mike Davis accepted an offer Thursday night to take over Alabama Birmingham’s basketball program, the Birmingham News reported.

The newspaper, citing unidentified sources close to the negotiations, said on its web site Thursday that the move was expected to be announced today.

Davis, 45, who played for Alabama, would replace Mike Anderson, who left the Blazers to become coach at Missouri.

Alabama Birmingham interim Athletic Director Richard Margison did not immediately return a call from the Associated Press on Thursday night.

Davis led Indiana to the 2002 national championship game two seasons after taking over the team after Bob Knight’s firing. He was 115-79 in six seasons, including 19-12 this season.

Gib Arnold and Donny Daniels are two of the finalists for the Pepperdine men’s basketball coaching job.

Arnold spent last season as an assistant to Tim Floyd at USC. He has previously been an assistant at Pepperdine, Loyola Marymount, Vanderbilt and Utah Valley State College.

Daniels completed his third season as an assistant under Ben Howland at UCLA. He was also an assistant at Utah under Rick Majerus from 1990 to 2000. Daniels has head coaching experience as well, compiling a 20-64 record in three seasons at Cal State Fullerton.

Athletic Director John Watson would not comment on the school’s interview process, but other sources indicated Pepperdine officials hoped to finish final interviews by next week.

-- Mike Terry

Howland and UCLA came up short in Monday’s NCAA championship game, but Howland won the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year Award.

Howland, who received five first-place votes, edged North Carolina’s Roy Williams in the final voting, which was tabulated on March 12, before the start of the NCAA tournament.

Howland received a total of 52 points.

Williams was second with 44, followed by Tennessee’s Bruce Pearl (36) and Villanova’s Jay Wright (30).

TENNIS

Vaidisova, 16, Is

Upset by Safarova

Lucie Safarova upset fourth-seeded Nicole Vaidisova in the third round of the Bausch & Lomb Championships at Amelia Island, Fla., finishing with 11 aces in a 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 victory.

The 16-year-old Vaidisova had seven double faults. Safarova will play Jill Craybas in the quarterfinals. Craybas beat Julia Schruff, 6-3, 6-2. In other matches, Nadia Petrova beat Meghann Shaughnessy, 6-1, 6-3, and second-seeded Patty Schnyder beat Vera Dushevina, 6-3, 7-5.

AUTO RACING

Hamlin Wins Pole

for Busch Series Race

Denny Hamlin earned his first NASCAR Busch Series pole with a lap of 187.905 mph in a Chevrolet at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Hamlin and Reed Sorenson, who had a lap of 187.188 mph in a Dodge, will start on the front row for Saturday’s O’Reilly 300.

MISCELLANY

Brazilian Forward

Signs With Galaxy

The Galaxy signed Brazilian forward Thiago De Souza. De Souza, 21, who was with the German Bundesliga’s BV Borussia Dortmund, will join the club as a youth international.

Kicker Martin Gramatica, out of pro football last year, was signed by the New England Patriots.

Chris Collins scored three goals to help Boston College defeated North Dakota, 6-5, at Milwaukee and advance to the NCAA men’s hockey title game against Wisconsin, which beat Maine, 5-2.