<strong><span class="subhead">CBE Classic offers deal on tickets</span></strong></p><p>The Gazelle Group, which operates the O&#8217;Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic next week at the Sprint Center, announced a two-for-one ticket offer.</p><p>The offer is good for a ticket on either night &#8212; Monday or Tuesday. The Monday semifinals match Florida against Syracuse and Kansas against Washington.</p><p>The third-place and championship games are on Tuesday.</p><p>For more information, contact <a href="http://www.gazellegroup.com/events/cbe/tickets.htm">http://www.gazellegroup.com/events/cbe/tickets.htm</a></p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Mizzou receives Big 12 North trophy</span></strong></p><p>Gary Pinkel isn&#8217;t going to let anything become a distraction for Missouri&#8217;s preparations next week for its Border War football game with Kansas.</p><p>That&#8217;s why Pinkel arranged to have his players receive the Big 12 North division trophy Thursday in Columbia rather than at some public observation in Kansas City.</p><p>&#8220;We wanted to get the formality of the presentation of this trophy over,&#8221; Pinkel said.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">First Lapchick awards bestowed</span></strong></p><p>Pat Summitt, Dean Smith and Lou Carnesecca, all Hall of Fame coaches, were presented the inaugural Joe Lapchick Character Awards on Thursday at New York&#8217;s Madison Square Garden.</p><p>The awards are to honor those in college sports who have conducted themselves in a way Lapchick did throughout his playing career and then as a coach at St. John&#8217;s and with the New York Knicks.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Boise State upset by academics story</span></strong></p><p>Boise State officials are offended at a <em>USA Today </em>story suggesting they and other universities steer athletes into easy classes and majors.</p><p>The report does &#8220;not fairly and accurately reflect the facts and is not a good reflection on the university,&#8221; said Boise State president Bob Kustra.</p><p><em> USA Today </em>reported in its Wednesday edition that 48 percent of junior and senior players on the 2007 Boise State football team majored in communications. Similar clusters are found at other schools, the newspaper reported.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Report faults Rutgers&#8217; oversight</span></strong></p><p>The Rutgers University president and its athletic program were sharply criticized in an independent report, which cited lack of oversight on issues involving the football coach&#8217;s salary and a sports marketing firm.</p><p>The committee was appointed in July after a series of reports in <em>The Star-Ledger </em>of Newark detailed undisclosed contract sweeteners for coach Greg Schiano and the award of a no-bid contract to a sports marketing firm that employed the son of athletic director Robert Mulcahy.