Dave Hart takes over at Tennessee as athletic director

Tennessee introduced Dave Hart as its new vice chancellor and athletic director Monday night.

Hart has worked since August 2008 at his alma mater, Alabama, one of the Volunteers’ top rival programs, where he served as executive director of athletics assisting Athletic Director Mal Moore. Previously he spent 12 years as Florida State’s athletic director.

Under a memorandum of understanding, Tennessee will pay Hart a base salary of $575,000 in his first year of a six-year contract and he might qualify for a 3% increase of his base salary with each passing year. He will also receive $150,000 annually for media appearances and a $50,000 retention bonus each year.

Tennessee had been looking for a new athletic director since Mike Hamilton resigned in June after a lengthy NCAA investigation into the Volunteers’ basketball and football programs that resulted in a self-imposed two-year probation for the athletics department.

BASKETBALL

Gasol has mild ankle sprain

Lakers forward Pau Gasol sat out Spain’s 65-57 loss Monday to Turkey in the preliminary round of the European Championship after suffering what the team termed a mild ankle sprain, according to a report from ESPN.com.

Spain had entered Monday’s game guaranteed first place in Group A and exercised caution with Gasol, who reportedly sprained his ankle during Sunday’s victory over Lithuania.

“He is day to day,” Spain Coach Sergio Scariolo told reporters. “He’s having treatment and the doctors will assess him before the second round begins.”

—Mark Medina

Guard J.T. Terrell is withdrawing from Wake Forest and leaving the team after he was charged with driving while impaired.

Terrell’s attorney, Mike Grace, said in a statement issued Monday through the school that Terrell was arrested by Winston-Salem (N.C.) police about 3 a.m. Saturday.

Grace said the circumstances of the arrest and other signs indicate that Terrell “suffers from a serious medical condition which requires immediate attention.”

In the statement, Terrell apologized and said he will spend the next few months rebuilding his life and hopes to play college basketball again. Coach Jeff Bzdelik said Terrell is “at an important crossroads” and wished him well.

Terrell started 18 of 32 games as a freshman last season and averaged 11 points.

ETC.

Brown gets NHRA double

Antron Brown became the first NHRA racer to win the U.S. Nationals in both top fuel and pro stock motorcycle during his career, beating Del Worsham in the top-fuel final at Clermont, Ind.

Mike Neff topped the funny car field, Greg Anderson won in pro stock and Hector Arana Jr. won the pro stock motorcycle division in the final event before the six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

Brown beat Worsham with a run of 3.813 seconds at 321.73 mph. Brown has five victories this season.

The NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship begins at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals on Sept. 15-18 at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C.

Lee Roy Selmon will be remembered by family, friends and teammates this week in funerals in Florida and Oklahoma City on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

The former Oklahoma and Tampa Bay Buccaneers star died Sunday in Tampa, two days after he was hospitalized following a massive stroke. The Hall of Fame defensive end was 56.