Columbia University hired former St. Mary's of California assistant coach Kyle Smith as its men's basketball head coach, the Associated Press reported. He replaces Joe Jones, who left to become an assistant coach at Boston College. Jones will be working under former Cornell coach Steve Donahue. In his seven years at Columbia, Jones posted an 86-108 record. Last season, the Lions went 11-17 in regular-season play and 5-9 in the Ivy League. Columbia won its only Ivy League title 42 years ago in the 1967-68 season. Last March, Smith helped to lead St. Mary's to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament. The 10th-seeded Gaels posted wins over the University of Richmond and Villanova University before falling to Baylor University on the second weekend.
It has been determined that junior defensive end and co-captain of the University of Pennsylvania's football team Owen Thomas, who was found dead on April 26 by his roommates, committed suicide, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. His mother, Reverend Katherine Brearsley, confirmed that he hanged himself in the apartment he shared with four teammates. While she said that Owens had no history of depression, Brearsley also acknowledged that, "all the energy that we had seen him put into life spiraled out of control and made him do this," Philly.com reported. Owens was a second-team All selection.
Champion athletic wear has been named the 2010 presenting sponsor of the Ivy League Men's and Women's Lacrosse tournaments, IvyLeagueSports.com reported. As the presenting sponsor, Champion will receive on-site, television and internet broadcast mentions throughout both tournaments. According to the report, Claire Powell, Director of Champion Brand Marketing, credited the partnership to Champion's lacrosse heritage and its strong desire to promote the sport. Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris told IvyLeagueSports.com that she appreciated Champions support and was looking forward to a successful partnership. The women's tournament took place this past weekend, while the men's tournament will be played this weekend from May 7-9. This is the first year that the Ivy League has held a postseason lacrosse tournament. In previous years, the champion of the regular season received the conference's automatic NCAA tournament bid.
