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UNIVERSITY PARK -- The Penn State men's basketball team received its first blow of the season Monday, as it learned sophomore forward Sasa Borovnjak will miss the entire 2010-11 campaign with an anterior cruciate ligament tear in his right knee.
"I feel terrible for Sasa," coach Ed DeChellis said in a news release. "He really had a good summer and came back to school a lot stronger and ready to make a bigger contribution on our front line."
Borovnjak, a 6-foot-9, 235-pounder from Belgrade, Serbia, suffered the injury in noncontact fashion Thursday during a team workout. Borovnjak saw action in 18 games last season.
NCAA Division I teams can officially begin preseason practice Friday.
WVU's Miles injured
The West Virginia women's basketball team learned yesterday that senior guard Sarah Miles will miss 4-6 weeks after undergoing surgery on a right wrist injury.
"Doctors said it went really well," West Virginia coach Mike Carey said in a statement. "She is a fighter and should be back on the court in no time."
Miles was named the Big East's defensive player of the year in the 2009-10 season, when she led the conference in steals (95) and assists (200).
UNC's Austin booted
North Carolina star defensive tackle Marvin Austin was kicked off the football team yesterday and the school said the NCAA has declared receiver Greg Little and defensive end Robert Quinn permanently ineligible.
The announcements from the school and the NCAA came as part of the ongoing investigations into whether players received improper benefits from agents.
The NCAA said Little and Quinn were ineligible because they violated rules governing agent benefits, preferential treatment and ethical conduct, saying they each accepted jewelry, travel accommodations and other benefits. According to facts submitted by the university, Little took nearly $5,000 worth of benefits and the value of Quinn's total exceeded $5,600.
Houston petitions for QB
Houston is asking the NCAA for a waiver to allow injured quarterback Case Keenum to play a sixth season.
The school announced its intention yesterday, but there's no timetable for submitting the appeal. The NCAA also has no deadline for making a decision.
Keenum was nearing several NCAA career records when he tore his anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee while attempting a tackle in a 31-13 loss Sept. 18 at UCLA.
Proven toughness
Virginia Tech left guard Greg Nosal earned tough-guy points Saturday, postponing the reattachment of a torn-off tip of his left pinkie to keep playing.
The school says Nosal lost the finger tip when it got caught between two helmets in the first half Saturday against Central Michigan. After a brief search, team doctors found the severed finger tip inside his glove and determined that it could be reattached.
