Bernie Profato to speak to Curbstone Coaches

Bernie Profato to speak to Curbstone Coaches

BEAVER TOWNSHIP

Bernie Profato, Executive Director of the Ohio Athletic Commission, will be the guest speaker at Monday’s luncheon meeting of The Curbstone Coaches at the Avion Banquet Center.

The event begins at noon and the public is welcome to attend.

Massullo has ace at Firestone Farms

COLUMBIANA

Al Massullo aced the 155-yard 8th hole at The Links at Firestone Farms. He used his 6-iron. Bob Fowler, Tim Fellows and Sonny DiPasquale witnessed the shot.

Cavaliers still talking to PG Derrick Rose

CLEVELAND

Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue says the team’s communication with embattled point guard Derrick Rose has been positive.

Rose is away from the team because of a personal matter. He also has been sidelined by a sprained left ankle.

Lue declined to provide any further details on Cleveland’s dialogue with Rose. The team is expected to provide another update today.

Rose is averaging 14.3 points in seven games. He was originally injured Oct. 20, but returned after missing four games. Rose played in Cleveland’s next five games, but the team announced Nov. 17 he would receive treatment on his ankle and be re-evaluated in two to three weeks.

Rose has been plagued by injuries since being named the league’s MVP for the 2010-11 season.

Supreme Court looks into sports betting laws

OCEANPORT, N.J.

The Supreme Court is taking up a case that could make wagering on sports widely available nationwide.

The high court is weighing whether a federal law that prevents states from authorizing sports betting is constitutional. If the Supreme Court strikes down the law, dozens of states could quickly make sports betting legal.

Monday’s case pits New Jersey and other states against all four major U.S. professional sports leagues and the federal government. The stakes are high.

The American Gaming Association estimates that Americans illegally wager $150 billion on sports each year. In court, the NBA, NFL, NHL and Major League Baseball have fought New Jersey, arguing that expanding gambling would hurt the integrity of their games.

Trailblazing basketball player Wallace dies

Perry Wallace, who broke down a racial barrier by becoming the first black varsity basketball player in the Southeastern Conference, has died. He was 69.

Wallace’s death was announced Friday by Vanderbilt University, where Wallace became an all-SEC player and remains among the Commodores’ all-time rebounding leaders.

Wallace died of cancer at a hospice center in Rockville, Md.

After graduating from Vanderbilt, Wallace went on to earn a law degree at Columbia University and served as a law professor at American University. He also served in the U.S. Justice Department and worked for the National Urban League, The Tennessean reported.

Wallace became the SEC’s first black basketball player to compete in a varsity game in 1967.

Yale alumni funding athlete’s sex case

HARTFORD, CONN.

Court documents show Yale University alumni are helping pay the legal costs of a former basketball star who is fighting his expulsion for sexual misconduct.

Jack Montague told attorneys in a court deposition that between $25,000 and $30,000 has been raised from alumni to help fund his lawsuit. He claims he was wrongly expelled in 2016. He is seeking monetary damages and to be readmitted to the Ivy League school.

Montague says his former teammates also helped raise another $5,000 through an online crowdfunding page.

Staff/wire report