LA Tech defeats UTEP for 20th win of the season for the 11th time in 13 years
RUSTON, LA (KTAL/KMSS) — Louisiana Tech put on a shooting clinic in its final game of the regular season, knocking down 12 three-pointers in route to a 76-58 victory over UTEP on Saturday afternoon inside the Thomas Assembly Center. The win meant a lot of things for LA Tech (20-11, 9-9 CUSA). It was win No. 20, a milestone the program has now reached in 11 of the last 13 seasons. It was a bounce-back win following a disappointing loss to New Mexico State two days ago. And it was a win that solidified a No. 6 seed and first-round bye in the CUSA Tournament. It was the three-ball that helped LA Tech gain some separation early in the first half as Al Green buried his first two attempts and then Sean Newman Jr. drilled a triple to give the 'Dogs a 22-14 advantage. Then it was Sean Elkinton who came off the bench and went back-to-back from downtown. He would tack on two free throws to account for eight straight points as LA Tech built a 34-22 halftime lead over UTEP (17-14, 7-11 CUSA). Along with the five first-half three-pointers was the stifling defense by the Bulldogs, limiting the Miners to just 28.1 percent shooting in the stanza and just one three-pointer out of 13 attempts.
LA Tech kept its foot on the gas to start the second half, opening the stanza on a 12-2 run that was anchored in large part by Sean Newman Jr. and Amaree Abram. One of the nation's top assist leaders dished out two of his five dimes during the stretch and added a jumper in the paint while Abram drilled two triples to help make it a 46-26 lead with 15:16 to play in the home finale. The Miners meanwhile could just get to the foul line for the most part, making 15 second-half free throws. While UTEP was getting free throws, LA Tech was getting threes to put the Miners away. Green hit four more from beyond the arc in route to a game-high 20 points. As a team, LA Tech shot 44.4 percent from the field (24-54) and a staggering 70.6 percent from three-point range (12-17). Abram and Newman Jr. joined Green in double figures with 13 and 11 points, respectively. UTEP finished the contest at 31.7 percent shooting (19-60) and were just 2-of-20 from deep. KJ Thomas came off the bench to score a team-high 12 points. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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NBC Sports
18-05-2025
- NBC Sports
Universities cutting sports, others adding ahead of $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement
Over the past three months, a growing number of universities have added or dropped entire sports programs on the eve of dramatic changes coming to college athletics under the $2.8 billion NCAA settlement. UTEP dropped women's tennis, Cal Poly discontinued swimming and diving, Marquette added women's swimming and Grand Canyon shuttered a historically dominant men's volleyball program. It was a dizzying set of decisions that appears to offer no pattern except one: Every school is facing a choice on which programs to carry forward once the money really starts flowing. While top-tier athletes in high-revenue sports like football and basketball can look forward to robust compensation from their university for the use of their name, image and likeness, there is widespread uncertainty for athletes in the so-called non-revenue sports where tens of thousands of athletes compete largely under the radar. For them, harsh cuts are a terrifying new reality as athletic departments weigh more than ever before which sports make the most sense to support financially; each school will be able to share as much as $20.5 million with athletes next year but top performers and revenue draws in the big sports will demand the most to keep them out of the transfer portal. Under-the-radar sports programs are expected to take the back seat at many schools. Patrick Rishe, executive director of the sports business program at Washington University, said college athletics is only at the beginning of a slew of decisions schools will have to make as a result of the settlement. 'There is going to be more competitive pressure on all universities to step up or else they'll fall behind,' Rishe said. 'So when you're faced with that challenge, especially at the mid-majors or smaller Division I schools, then you've got to ask yourself, does it make sense to continue to carry particular programs?' Programs at risk Universities were hit hard financially during the pandemic and sports were affected. In June 2020, for example, UConn announced that it was dropping four sports to save money, a decision that affected more than 120 athletes. Sports programs come and go, subject to budget woes or competitive concerns and wishes. The pace seems to have picked up ahead of the sweeping changes of the NCAA settlement. Among the additions: women's golf (St. Bonaventure and UT Arlington), stunt (Eastern New Mexico) and women's swimming at Marquette, a Big East school with a top men's basketball program but without football since 1960. Among the cuts: women's tennis (UTEP), men's volleyball (Grand Canyon) and the swimming and diving programs with nearly 60 athletes at Cal Poly. Saint Francis, fresh off a March Madness appearance by it's men's basketball team, announced it will move from Division I to Division III over the next year, citing 'realities like the transfer portal, pay-for-play and other shifts that move athletics away from love of the game.' UTEP cited 'upcoming changes to college athletics, including revenue sharing and roster caps.' Cal Poly said the House settlement will result 'in a loss of at least $450,000 per year for our programs.' The key difference from the pandemic-related cuts, Rishe said, is that they are not caused by a loss of revenue but an increase in expenses. Behind the decisions As schools wrestle with the prospect of eliminating sports, Rishe said he thinks some programs are safer than others. He pointed to Title IX, the federal law aimed at ensuring gender equity. 'I would suspect that the sports that are most likely going to be cut are going to be men's sports, and I don't say that with malice,' he said. 'If you're trying to stay compliant with Title IX, I don't know how non-revenue men's sports aren't the sports that are more apt to be eliminated.' The balancing out will be different at every school. Radford recently announced it will drop men's and women's tennis but add women's flag football as a club sport and bolster its options for male runners. At Marquette, athletic director Mike Broeker said the decision to add a women's swim team was years in the making and based on demographics. 'I think it's independent of what's happening in college athletics right now and more about strengthening our position,' he said. 'More females are going to college than males, and that creates differentiation. We want to make sure we're offering an athletics program portfolio that meets our students' interests based on our student population.' What's to come from a future so uncertain that some schools are ending decades of tradition? Rishe said nothing is off the table. 'It may sound crazy, it may have sounded crazy 10 years ago, but now it seems anything is possible,' Rishe said. 'I think you could see a day where your top 30 or 40 universities financially are going to break off and form their own entity, leaving the rest of Division I to basically be their own class. I really do see that as a reality.'
San Francisco Chronicle
18-05-2025
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Universities cutting sports, others adding ahead of $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement
Over the past three months, a growing number of universities have added or dropped entire sports programs on the eve of dramatic changes coming to college athletics under the $2.8 billion NCAA settlement. UTEP dropped women's tennis, Cal Poly discontinued swimming and diving, Marquette added women's swimming and Grand Canyon shuttered a historically dominant men's volleyball program. It was a dizzying set of decisions that appears to offer no pattern except one: Every school is facing a choice on which programs to carry forward once the money really starts flowing. While top-tier athletes in high-revenue sports like football and basketball can look forward to robust compensation from their university for the use of their name, image and likeness, there is widespread uncertainty for athletes in the so-called non-revenue sports where tens of thousands of athletes compete largely under the radar. For them, harsh cuts are a terrifying new reality as athletic departments weigh more than ever before which sports make the most sense to support financially; each school will be able to share as much as $20.5 million with athletes next year but top performers and revenue draws in the big sports will demand the most to keep them out of the transfer portal. Under-the-radar sports programs are expected to take the back seat at many schools. Patrick Rishe, executive director of the sports business program at Washington University, said college athletics is only at the beginning of a slew of decisions schools will have to make as a result of the settlement. 'There is going to be more competitive pressure on all universities to step up or else they'll fall behind,' Rishe said. 'So when you're faced with that challenge, especially at the mid-majors or smaller Division I schools, then you've got to ask yourself, does it make sense to continue to carry particular programs?' Programs at risk Universities were hit hard financially during the pandemic and sports were affected. In June 2020, for example, UConn announced that it was dropping four sports to save money, a decision that affected more than 120 athletes. Sports programs come and go, subject to budget woes or competitive concerns and wishes. The pace seems to have picked up ahead of the sweeping changes of the NCAA settlement. Among the additions: women's golf (St. Bonaventure and UT Arlington), stunt (Eastern New Mexico) and women's swimming at Marquette, a Big East school with a top men's basketball program but without football since 1960. Among the cuts: women's tennis (UTEP), men's volleyball (Grand Canyon) and the swimming and diving programs with nearly 60 athletes at Cal Poly. Saint Francis, fresh off a March Madness appearance by it's men's basketball team, announced it will move from Division I to Division III over the next year, citing 'realities like the transfer portal, pay-for-play and other shifts that move athletics away from love of the game.' UTEP cited 'upcoming changes to college athletics, including revenue sharing and roster caps.' Cal Poly said the House settlement will result 'in a loss of at least $450,000 per year for our programs.' The key difference from the pandemic-related cuts, Rishe said, is that they are not caused by a loss of revenue but an increase in expenses. Behind the decisions As schools wrestle with the prospect of eliminating sports, Rishe said he thinks some programs are safer than others. He pointed to Title IX, the federal law aimed at ensuring gender equity. 'I would suspect that the sports that are most likely going to be cut are going to be men's sports, and I don't say that with malice," he said. 'If you're trying to stay compliant with Title IX, I don't know how non-revenue men's sports aren't the sports that are more apt to be eliminated.' The balancing out will be different at every school. Radford recently announced it will drop men's and women's tennis but add women's flag football as a club sport and bolster its options for male runners. At Marquette, athletic director Mike Broeker said the decision to add a women's swim team was years in the making and based on demographics. 'I think it's independent of what's happening in college athletics right now and more about strengthening our position," he said. "More females are going to college than males, and that creates differentiation. We want to make sure we're offering an athletics program portfolio that meets our students' interests based on our student population.' What's to come from a future so uncertain that some schools are ending decades of tradition? Rishe said nothing is off the table. 'It may sound crazy, it may have sounded crazy 10 years ago, but now it seems anything is possible," Rishe said. "I think you could see a day where your top 30 or 40 universities financially are going to break off and form their own entity, leaving the rest of Division I to basically be their own class. I really do see that as a reality.'
Fox Sports
18-05-2025
- Fox Sports
Universities cutting sports, others adding ahead of $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement
Associated Press Over the past three months, a growing number of universities have added or dropped entire sports programs on the eve of dramatic changes coming to college athletics under the $2.8 billion NCAA settlement. UTEP dropped women's tennis, Cal Poly discontinued swimming and diving, Marquette added women's swimming and Grand Canyon shuttered a historically dominant men's volleyball program. It was a dizzying set of decisions that appears to offer no pattern except one: Every school is facing a choice on which programs to carry forward once the money really starts flowing. While top-tier athletes in high-revenue sports like football and basketball can look forward to robust compensation from their university for the use of their name, image and likeness, there is widespread uncertainty for athletes in the so-called non-revenue sports where tens of thousands of athletes compete largely under the radar. For them, harsh cuts are a terrifying new reality as athletic departments weigh more than ever before which sports make the most sense to support financially; each school will be able to share as much as $20.5 million with athletes next year but top performers and revenue draws in the big sports will demand the most to keep them out of the transfer portal. Under-the-radar sports programs are expected to take the back seat at many schools. Patrick Rishe, executive director of the sports business program at Washington University, said college athletics is only at the beginning of a slew of decisions schools will have to make as a result of the settlement. 'There is going to be more competitive pressure on all universities to step up or else they'll fall behind,' Rishe said. 'So when you're faced with that challenge, especially at the mid-majors or smaller Division I schools, then you've got to ask yourself, does it make sense to continue to carry particular programs?' Programs at risk Universities were hit hard financially during the pandemic and sports were affected. In June 2020, for example, UConn announced that it was dropping four sports to save money, a decision that affected more than 120 athletes. Sports programs come and go, subject to budget woes or competitive concerns and wishes. The pace seems to have picked up ahead of the sweeping changes of the NCAA settlement. Among the additions: women's golf (St. Bonaventure and UT Arlington), stunt (Eastern New Mexico) and women's swimming at Marquette, a Big East school with a top men's basketball program but without football since 1960. Among the cuts: women's tennis (UTEP), men's volleyball (Grand Canyon) and the swimming and diving programs with nearly 60 athletes at Cal Poly. Saint Francis, fresh off a March Madness appearance by it's men's basketball team, announced it will move from Division I to Division III over the next year, citing 'realities like the transfer portal, pay-for-play and other shifts that move athletics away from love of the game.' UTEP cited 'upcoming changes to college athletics, including revenue sharing and roster caps.' Cal Poly said the House settlement will result 'in a loss of at least $450,000 per year for our programs.' The key difference from the pandemic-related cuts, Rishe said, is that they are not caused by a loss of revenue but an increase in expenses. Behind the decisions As schools wrestle with the prospect of eliminating sports, Rishe said he thinks some programs are safer than others. He pointed to Title IX, the federal law aimed at ensuring gender equity. 'I would suspect that the sports that are most likely going to be cut are going to be men's sports, and I don't say that with malice," he said. 'If you're trying to stay compliant with Title IX, I don't know how non-revenue men's sports aren't the sports that are more apt to be eliminated.' The balancing out will be different at every school. Radford recently announced it will drop men's and women's tennis but add women's flag football as a club sport and bolster its options for male runners. At Marquette, athletic director Mike Broeker said the decision to add a women's swim team was years in the making and based on demographics. 'I think it's independent of what's happening in college athletics right now and more about strengthening our position," he said. "More females are going to college than males, and that creates differentiation. We want to make sure we're offering an athletics program portfolio that meets our students' interests based on our student population.' What's to come from a future so uncertain that some schools are ending decades of tradition? Rishe said nothing is off the table. 'It may sound crazy, it may have sounded crazy 10 years ago, but now it seems anything is possible," Rishe said. "I think you could see a day where your top 30 or 40 universities financially are going to break off and form their own entity, leaving the rest of Division I to basically be their own class. I really do see that as a reality.' ___ AP Sports Writer Steve Megargee contributed from Milwaukee. ___ AP college sports: in this topic
