NCAA
GAMBLING STUDY: An NCAA gambling study showed 35 percent of male athletes and 10 percent of female athletes have bet on college sports in the last year, and Division III athletes are the most likely to gamble.
Division I athletes were the least likely to wager on college sports.
The study, called the National Study on Collegiate Sports Wagering and Associated Health Risks, surveyed 21,000 athletes about their gambling practices. The results were released Wednesday in Chicago.
"The scope of sports wagering among intercollegiate student-athletes is startling and disturbing," NCAA president Myles Brand said in a statement. "Sports wagering is a double threat because it harms the well-being of student-athletes and the integrity of college sports."
The study also showed 1.1 percent of football players reported taking money for playing poorly in games. While 2.3 percent of football players admitted they were asked to influence the outcome of games because of gambling debts, 1.4 percent acknowledged altering their performance to change the outcome.
College basketball
ASSISTANT DENIES CHARGE: Tony Harvey, the suspended top assistant to Missouri basketball coach Quin Snyder, confirmed Wednesday he is accused by the NCAA of giving former player Ricky Clemons $250, an allegation he denies.
"I have not given Ricky any money, period," Harvey told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. Harvey, 37, confirmed that Snyder suspended him with pay until the NCAA proceedings, which could last into the fall, are finished. The NCAA alleged members of the Missouri basketball staff repeatedly broke its rules. The university blacked out names of employees before releasing the 19-page notice of allegations on Tuesday.
Pro basketball
SUNS KEEP COACH: Mike D'Antoni got a two-year contract extension to coach the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, and is excited about the future of a team he spent two-thirds of a season rebuilding.
D'Antoni replaced the fired Frank Johnson on Dec. 10 after Phoenix got off to an 8-13 start. The Suns went 21-40 the rest of the way, including beating Utah on the road in their finale — just enough to avoid last place in the Western Conference and tying for the second-worst record in franchise history.
D'Antoni who had a year left on his contract, is signed through the 2006-07 season.
Women's basketball
TEAM USA ADDS TAURASI, CASH: Diana Taurasi and Swin Cash helped Connecticut win NCAA championships. Now they'll get chance to win Olympic gold medals. Taurasi and Cash were added Wednesday to the U.S. women's basketball team that will compete in Athens this summer. One spot on the 12-member team is still open.