Rick Pitino among seven elected to basketball Hall of Fame

Louisville Coach Rick Pitino is among seven people elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Joining Pitino in the class of 2013, announced Monday, are former NBA stars Bernard King and Gary Payton, former Nevada Las Vegas coach Jerry Tarkanian, North Carolina women’s Coach Sylvia Hatchell, former University of Houston coach Guy Lewis, and former University of Virginia star Dawn Staley.

The inductions will be in Springfield, Mass., in September.

Inductees announced previously were Edwin E.B. Henderson, a direct elect by the Early African Pioneer Committee; longtime Indiana Pacers guard Roger Brown; Oscar Schmidt of Brazil, the leading scorer in Olympic history; Richie Guerin, a star for the New York Knicks in the 1950s; and Russ Granik, the longtime assistant commissioner of the NBA.

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Bob Cantu, a longtime USC basketball assistant who served as interim coach after Kevin O’Neill was fired in January, will not be retained as part of new Coach Andy Enfield’s staff, the school announced.

Cantu had been at USC since 2001 and served under four coaches.

“I want to thank everyone I worked with at USC the past 12 years,” Cantu said in a statement posted on USC’s website. “It was a great experience. We had some memorable moments. I look forward to following the future success of the program.”

Jason Hart, a Pepperdine assistant who played high school basketball in the Southland and also at Syracuse and in the NBA, will join the USC staff, Pepperdine Coach Marty Wilson announced via Twitter.

“Jason Hart will be joining the new USC staff,” Wilson wrote on his Twitter feed. “They are getting a first class person, family man & hard worker. Much respect”

USC and Pepperdine officials said they could not confirm Hart’s hiring.

Hart played at Inglewood and Westchester highs and then at Syracuse from 1996-97 to 1999-2000 before beginning an NBA career that spanned nine seasons. He was head coach at Woodland Hills Taft High before joining Pepperdine’s staff before the 2012-13 season.

—Gary Klein

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New Mexico guard Tony Snell will forgo his senior season to make himself available for the NBA draft.

The 21-year-old Snell, who played for Riverside King High, made the announcement at a news conference on the school’s Albuquerque campus.

Newly hired Lobos Coach Craig Neal was at Snell’s side when he announced his plan to turn pro. Snell averaged 12.5 points per game this season and made a team-high 64 three-pointers. He was the Mountain West Conference tournament most valuable player.

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ETC.

Flashback out of Kentucky Derby

There’s one fewer contender going to the Kentucky Derby.

Flashback, the second-place finisher in Saturday’s Santa Anita Derby, will not run in the May 4 Kentucky Derby after a small chip was found in the 3-year-old’s right knee, according to the Daily Racing Form. The horse will undergo surgery.

—Eric Sondheimer

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Gael Monfils of France had 15 aces and beat John Blake of the United States, 7-6 (5), 7-5, in the first round of the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships at Houston.

Blake, once ranked No. 4, played his 51st match at River Oaks Country Club, where he is a crowd favorite, but Monfils won cheers for his hustle playing his first match in the city.

Monfils, who played in only 10 tournaments last year because of a knee injury, matched the sixth-highest total of aces in the tournament. He will next face top-seeded Nicolas Almagro of Spain.

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Hillary Knight scored with just over six minutes to play and the United States advanced to the final of the women’s hockey world championships with a 3-0 win over Finland at Ottawa.