11:40 LRN Sportscast

The NCAA tabbed LSU as a six-seed for the Men’s Tournament, but Will Wade will not be joining the Tigers in Milwaukee, where they will play 11th-seeded Iowa State out of the Big 12 on Friday night. Assistant Kevin Nickleberry takes the reigns after Wade was terminated by LSU for alleged major recruiting violations within the program over a number of years. Nickelberry says the players were heartbroken when they learned of Wade’s firing, but they’ll be ready to play in the NCAA Tournament…

Cut 8 (11) “…with character.”

LSU has now advanced to three straight NCAA Tournaments, but the search for a new head coach will be impacted, just how much will depend on how harsh the NCAA is with its punishment.

Good news on the diamond for LSU as they completed a three-game home sweep of the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats. The Tigers outscored the Wildcats 28-8 over the weekend, including a 15-0 shutout on Sunday. Four players had three RBI and Ma’Khail Hilliard struck out six over six scoreless innings as LSU improved to 13-3.

— Break

Kim Mulkey and the LSU women’s basketball team are staying home for the start of the NCAA tournament. The P-MAC will host first and second-round contests for the first time in 8 years, with the third-seeded Tigers taking on Jackson State this Saturday. When Mulkey was the head coach at Baylor last season, her Lady Bears beat Jackson State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, so she’s familiar with them…

Cut 17 (19) “…with the score.”

Without Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, the Pelicans snapped their four-game losing streak with a 130-105 grounding of the Houston Rockets. Jonas Valanciunas led the way with 32 points and 10 rebounds in just 27 minutes. Rookie Jose Alvarado collected the first double-double of his career with 16 points and 10 assists. The Pels close out their four-game homestand against the Phoenix Suns tomorrow night.