Ex-UCLA basketball coach Steve Lavin to leave ESPN to take St. John's job

NEW YORK — Steve Lavin made his first appearance as coach of St. John's in a building he will soon become quite familiar with — Madison Square Garden.

About four hours after he agreed to take charge of New York City's top college program, Lavin sat down Tuesday for an impromptu news conference during the NIT semifinals.

"Having come here as an assistant coach and then a head coach at UCLA and then as a broadcaster, I have a sense and feel for how special an arena it is. It is the world's biggest stage for college basketball," Lavin said.

Lavin will get a chance to show his coaching ability on that stage.

He will be officially introduced at a news conference Wednesday.

Lavin became an analyst for ESPN after UCLA fired him in 2003. That was the subject of most questions he faced — those seven years away from coaching.

"For starters, the 15 years at Purdue and UCLA as a coach allowed me to build the foundation for my second career as a broadcaster," he said. "The last seven years as a broadcaster allowed me to travel the country as a barnstormer with my partner, observing and studying different styles, different coaches, aspects of game preparation, the game itself sitting courtside, breaking down tape, the scouting reports."

Lavin, 45, had a 145-78 record with UCLA, leading the school to the NCAA tournament's round of 16 five times. St. John's, which fired Norm Roberts after six seasons, has not made the NCAA field since 2002.

UTEP hires Floyd

EL PASO, Texas — Tim Floyd, a former USC and NBA coach, was introduced as coach at Texas-El Paso.

Floyd, 56, a former assistant to ex-Miners coach Don Haskins, is the fifth coach to lead UTEP since Haskins retired in 1999. Floyd replaces Tony Barbee, who left UTEP last week to become Auburn's coach.

Floyd went 85-50 in four seasons at USC. After last season, allegations surfaced that Floyd paid a Los Angeles event promoter $1,000 in cash to steer highly recruited guard O.J. Mayo to USC. A former associate of Mayo's has described the alleged transaction to NCAA investigators. The investigation is ongoing.

"I left a place because I didn't feel supported," Floyd said of USC.

Notes

• Al Skinner is out as Boston College coach.

Athletic director Gene DeFilippo said Skinner's departure was by mutual agreement, but it had all the markings of a firing: Skinner will be paid for the remaining three years on his contract, and DeFilippo referred to the move as "my decision."

In 13 seasons leading the Eagles, Skinner compiled a 247-165 record with seven NCAA berths since 2001. But BC has finished below .500 in two of the last three seasons, including a 15-16 mark this season.

• UCLA dismissed sophomore center J'mison Morgan from the team, making him the second player to exit this season. In December, sophomore forward Drew Gordon left the program.

• Minnesota coach Tubby Smith denied a report in the St. Paul Pioneer Press that Oregon offered him more than $2 million per season to coach the Ducks. Minnesota officials said they are working on a contract extension for Smith.

Meanwhile, Oregon has not contacted Pittsburgh for permission to talk to Jamie Dixon about its coaching vacancy, Panthers athletic director Steve Pederson said.

Oregon terminated Ernie Kent's contract earlier this month.

• Toledo has hired Wisconsin-Green Bay coach Tod Kowalczyk in an effort to revive a team that went 4-28 this season.

• Former Indiana player Todd Leary will stand trial July 20 on charges stemming from an ex-business partner's multimillion-dollar fraud scheme. Leary faces 17 felony charges, and the most serious carries a possible sentence of 4 to 20 years in prison.

Leary was working as an analyst for Indiana radio broadcasts when he was arrested in February.

• West Virginia guard Darryl "Truck" Bryant sat out of practice, and his availability for the Final Four remains a mystery. Bryant broke his right foot at practice March 23.

• Caleb Patterson scored 16 points to lead host Missouri State to a 78-65 victory over Pacific to capture the CollegeInsider.com Tournament championship.