BASKETBALL
Rose trial begins
Potential jurors in a $21 million rape lawsuit against NBA star Derrick Rose were asked Tuesday what they know about the case, what basketball team they root for and whether they can set aside their own sexual moral beliefs and biases. Rose, who is returning to the sport with a new team after several injuries, was not in the Los Angeles courtroom because the New York Knicks open their preseason in Houston the same day. He is expected to appear Thursday. His two friends and the woman who accused the trio of gang-rape attended jury selection. Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald gave a panel of 50 prospective jurors an outline of the case, warning that they would hear testimony about sex acts and be exposed to vulgarity and profanity. The woman, who dated Rose on and off for two years, claims he and two friends raped her while she was incapacitated in her apartment after a night of drinking in August 2013. Los Angeles police are still investigating. She was identified in court for the first time and introduced to jurors by name. The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they are victims of sexual assault. Rose and friends Randall Hampton and Ryan Allen denied the allegations and said the sex was consensual.
Pitino: Sanctions OK
Louisville Coach Rick Pitino said he believes the school's self-imposed sanctions are enough to satisfy the NCAA as the governing body continues investigating an escort's allegations that a former Cardinals staffer hired her and other dancers to entertain recruits and players. The school in February announced a postseason ban after its investigation into Katina Powell's allegations determined that violations did occur. Louisville imposed additional sanctions in April, reducing scholarships and recruiting visits and contacts by staff in 2016-17 and '17-'18. Several investigations into the program continue, but Pitino says measures suggested by investigator Chuck Smrt should be enough. During a radio interview Tuesday, Pitino said, "we have to rely on his (Smrt's) expertise, so in his expertise and his feelings, we've done everything that we needed to do."
BOXING
Suit: Jeweler stiffed
Retired boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. is accused of stiffing a Las Vegas jewelry company for $1.4 million of the cost of a diamond-encrusted necklace he bought the weekend after his last fight, according to a lawsuit filed in Nevada state court. It wasn't immediately clear Tuesday if Mayweather or his legal representatives had been served with the civil lawsuit, filed Sept. 23 in Clark County District Court in Las Vegas. Mayweather Promotions chief executive Leonard Ellerbe and Mark Tratos, an attorney in Las Vegas who represents Mayweather in civil cases, didn't immediately respond to messages. The Jewelers Inc. said in court filings that Mayweather paid $1 million when he bought the $3 million necklace consisting of 72 round-cut diamonds in September 2015, and that he made six subsequent $100,000 payments. It alleges that Mayweather hasn't made a payment since May, and accuses him of breach of agreement and unjust enrichment.
FOOTBALL
Ravens release Forsett
Running back Justin Forsett has been released by the Baltimore Ravens, who complied with his request to play elsewhere. Forsett was on the inactive list last Sunday and was expected to drop down the depth chart after the return of injured rookie Kenneth Dixon. So Forsett asked the Ravens to let him go, and General Manager Ozzie Newsome formally cut him Tuesday. Quoted on the team's website, Forsett said, "It was mutual. I felt like my opportunity here was closing. I'm at a phase in my career where I don't want to sit." Forsett started in Baltimore's first three games, rushing for 98 yards and catching 11 passes for 36 yards. But Terrance West took over as the starter Sunday against Oakland and was backed up by Javorius Allen. Forsett ran for 1,266 yards in 2014. He broke his arm last season after playing in 10 games.
TENNIS
Sharapova’s doping ban reduced to 15 months
LONDON — Maria Sharapova will be eligible to return to competitive tennis in April after her two-year doping ban was reduced to 15 months on Tuesday by a sports court that found the Russian star did not bear “significant fault” for her positive drug test.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport cut nine months off the suspension imposed on Sharapova, who tested positive for the banned heart medication meldonium at the Australian Open in January.
Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam champion and former No. 1-ranked player, appealed to CAS in June seeking to overturn or reduce the two-year penalty imposed by the International Tennis Federation.
In a 28-page ruling , the CAS panel found that Sharapova bore “some degree of fault” but “less than significant fault” in the case that has sidelined one of the world’s most prominent and wealthy female athletes.
“The panel has determined, under the totality of the circumstances, that a sanction of 15 months is appropriate here given her degree of fault,” the three-man arbitration body ruled.
While Sharapova did commit a doping violation, “under no circumstances … can the player be considered to be an ‘intentional doper,’ ” the panel said.
Sharapova’s ban, which took effect on Jan. 26, was originally due to run until Jan. 25, 2018. Now she can return on April 26, 2017, a month ahead of the French Open, a Grand Slam tournament she has won twice.
“I’ve gone from one of the toughest days of my career last March, when I learned about my suspension, to now, one of my happiest days, as I found out I can return to tennis in April,” Sharapova said in a statement.
Sharapova acknowledged taking meldonium before each match at last year’s Australian Open, where she lost in the quarterfinals to Serena Williams.
But Sharapova said she was not aware that meldonium, also known as mildronate, had been included on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances from Jan. 1, 2016.
The ITF said she also tested positive for meldonium in an out-of-competition control in Moscow on Feb. 2.
Sharapova’s lawyer, John Haggerty, called Tuesday’s ruling a “stunning repudiation” of the ITF, which he said failed to properly notify players of the meldonium ban.
Sports on 10/05/2016