Former Gopher Travis Busch will be eligible next season to play for Colorado State. He won’t have to sit out a season because of an NCAA rule allowing players who have an undergraduate degree to play for their new school if enrolled in grad school. After the first semester Busch is expected to request an extra season of eligibility at Colorado State because as a freshman at Cal Poly he broke his foot in the fourth game of the season. Otherwise, 2009-10 will be the former Mounds View High player’s final season of college basketball.
Busch said the Gophers, who made the NCAA tournament last year, will need to be mentally ready in the Big Ten Conference race, a league that could be among the best in college basketball. “Other teams can break your spirit,” he said. “If you don’t bring it every night, you’re going to get your butt handed to you.”
Busch also said former teammate Jamal Abu Shamala is playing in Europe with the Jordanian national team.
Wheelock Whitney, a longtime civic leader and admired businessman, is friends with Brock Lesnar who defended his UFC championship on Saturday in Las Vegas. Whitney, 83, and Lesnar, 32, became friends as neighbors in suburban Minneapolis.
Nick Blackburn, 8-4 with a 3.06 ERA in his second full season with the Twins, has become the ace of the starting staff. He is now 5-0 in eight home starts this season. His ERA is 2.19 since May 21.
Twins third baseman Joe Crede has hit four of his 14 home runs against his former team, the White Sox.