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• Antoine Davis claims campaign stifled his hopes of beating Maravich's NCAA record at CBI

  Antoine Davis claims there was a concerted effort to block him from breaking 'Pistol' Pete Maravich's NCAA points record after the Detroit Mercy Titans were not invited to the College Basketball Invitational.

  The 24-year-old Davis finished his college career with 3,664 points, three behind Maravich's total, which was the precursor for a five-time NBA All-Star career.

  Maravich scored his points in 83 games over three years for LSU at an average of 44.2 points, while Davis reached his total in 144 games across five seasons, averaging 25.4 points.

  In an interview with the Associated Press, Davis spoke of feeling "upset" and "cheated" out of a possible moment of history.

  Detroit Mercy's 14-19 record meant they were counted out of the reckoning for the CBI, despite initial interest from organisers.

  Davis responded angrily to Twitter user @801bracketology, who posted: "I'm sorry WHAT? Antoine Davis feels he got 'cheated' out of the scoring record AND that the CBI is selfish for not inviting a 14-19 Detroit Mercy team?? Are you joking??"

  In a retort to that comment, Davis suggested there had been pressure put on CBI organisers to exclude Detroit Mercy and deny him an opportunity to go past Maravich.

  Davis posted: "I said they cheated me and 5 other seniors from playing post season play cause people like you are sending emails to the CBI telling them not to invite us so he can't break it. You don't know what you're talking about weirdo.

  "So you should just shut up cause you don't know what's going on or why I said it."

  Rick Giles, president of CBI organiser the Gazelle Group, last week told the Detroit News there had been consideration given to handing the Titans a place.

  Talks took place, and Giles said: "After just weighing all the different factors, we just decided that we would move forward with the teams that we had. It was a number of things. It wasn't one single thing.

  "It didn't turn on us wanting to facilitate him breaking the record or not, being for or against that. It was just weighing everything out. It was interesting."

  Davis, who will hope to make his way in the professional game, also said last week: "My career can't and won't be taken away from me. If people were in my shoes, they would feel the same way. It's weird how people are moving about this."

  Mike Davis, Antoine's father and head coach, said earlier this month: "People would have put an asterisk by his name if he would've broken [the record].

  "Pistol Pete was in a world of his own, and there will never be another Pistol Pete in college basketball.

  "I think there will never be another Antoine, the way he scored in 144 consecutive games."

• Will Still harbours Premier League ambition and may follow Vincent Kompany route

  Will Still has ambitions to manage in the Premier League and would be open to following a similar route to Vincent Kompany by moving to a Championship club.

  The 30-year-old has been one of the most talked about coaches in European football this season after doing a fine job with Ligue 1 side Reims.

  Taking over from Oscar Garcia in October, Reims embarked on a club-record 19-game unbeaten league run until a 2-1 reverse at home to Marseille on Sunday – with Still taking charge for 17 of those.

  Still, whose only other defeat as boss was in the Coupe de France, was brought up by English parents in Belgium before moving to England as a teenager where he studied to become a coach.

  His name was mentioned for recent managerial posts at Leeds United and Southampton and, while he believes it is too soon to have been touted for such positions, Still would love a crack at England's top flight one day.

  "It just seems completely stupid to me that my name is being put up against names that have done so much more and have been so many more places than I have," he told Sky Sports.

  "I wouldn't ever dare to compare myself to those people.

  "I've never really thought about it [managing in the Premier League] because I never expected to be in the position I am so early and so suddenly. Why not? I've done some crazy things in the past; I was head coach at 24 and the same thing happened at 28 back in Belgium and now I'm 30 and people are saying this is crazy.

  "Being English and growing up in an English environment in Belgium, England has always felt like home and a place that I'd love to go back to. It would feel like coming home, just because the English culture is part of me, part of my roots, part of my family, part of who I am.

  "I think if you asked any kid what they would like to do, they'd say they'd love to be a Premier League footballer or manager and I'm no different. I was brought up like everyone else and had the same dreams. I'll keep at them.

  "If it happens one day I'll deserve it, or I hope I will have deserved it, but I realise how much work there is to do before I get there and how much I've got to learn. For now, I will stick it to one side."

  Up until recently, Reims were having to pay a €25,000 fine every time Still took charge of the first team as he did not have a UEFA Pro Licence, but he is now on a course to get his badge.

  Still believes that has amplified the interest in his story along with a comment he once made about the popular computer game Football Manager, that he says was misinterpreted.

  "With the Football Manager thing, for example – people think I'm some spotty geek behind my computer that's just been dropped in at Stade de Reims and is doing an unbelievable job," he explained. "But I've been doing it for 10 years and the experiences I've accumulated or tried to accumulate have helped me and are still helping me today.

  "People say, 'Oh, he's got no coaching badges, no qualifications, he's just played computer games!' I went to university to study football coaching, I've got the highest level diploma you can get, for the moment, in football and I'm studying for the Pro Licence."

  In terms of the future, Still remains open to different career paths and mentioned how former Manchester City captain Kompany has excelled with Championship leaders Burnley after leaving Anderlecht as a potential example to follow.

  "Vincent Kompany was at Anderlecht last year and has gone into the Championship and has done an unbelievable job. I think the Championship rivals many of the top leagues in the world," he said.

  "All the doors are open. I'm not closing anything at any time."

• Kyrie speaks out against Morant's 'overload of judgement from the court of public opinion'

  Dallas Mavericks' All-Star Kyrie Irving took the opportunity in his post-game media appearance to share support for recently suspended Memphis Grizzlies franchise player Ja Morant.

  The comments came after Monday's 112-108 road loss in Memphis, where Irving and Morant were seen embracing after the final whistle.

  Morant had missed his ninth game in a row following an incident at a Colorado nightclub where he was seen on an Instagram live video flashing a gun to the camera.

  An investigation by the NBA found the Grizzlies star guilty of bringing the league into disrepute by "holding a firearm in an intoxicated state", but there was no evidence the weapon belonged to him, or that he brought it onto the team plane, or any NBA facilities.

  He was suspended for eight games, and missed Monday's contest also as he works his way back into game shape.

  Irving said he understands what Morant is going through, and that he feels the public and media have treated him unfairly.

  "I believe any hardship in life builds character," Irving told reporters. "When you’re dealing with particular hardships in the public eye, especially with the media being attracted to just keeping up with what we’re doing, or what’s the next kind of grab or story.

  "I don’t want to assume anything by every media member, but that’s just the way it seems for me and my perspective, which is there was an overload of judgement on Ja. 

  "There was an overload of judgement on what I had going on, and there’s usually an overload of judgement from the public court of opinion."

  He went on to discuss the "initial shock" Morant must have faced "dealing with the public opinion and all of the extra hoopla that comes with it".

  "But then there’s a real human being dealing with emotion," he said. "I care about that aspect. That’s where I’m putting my energy. 

  "I wished his family well wishes, I wished him well wishes, and I just pray for his peace of mind.

  "I was happy to see him out there today, and I just want him to make it through. He has a long career ahead of him. I don’t think anybody should be controlling but him."

  Grizzlies wing Dillon Brooks shared that he feels Morant has nothing to prove to the rest of the group when he returns to action, saying "hell no" to the thought of the All-NBA talent coming off the bench as he works his way back.

  "He's proved everything from the jump," he said. "Love him as a brother. He’s the one who really put this city on the map. 

  "We were a low-market team, just roaming around the NBA. Now we're one of the most talked about teams in the NBA. We have a pride in the sense of a chip on our shoulder every single game.

  "He doesn't have to prove anything to us. We have his back and he has our back."

  Irving ended up leaving the arena in a walking boot, which he called "precautionary" to protect his previously injured and now swollen toe after Brooks fell on it in the third quarter.

  "I just gotta make it back home to Dallas and start my recovery work and do everything I can to prepare for the next day and a half," he said. "Take time, rest and exhaust all my options to be ready to play the next game. 

  "I was really worried about my ankle being sprained, but once we came back here. It wasn't, it was just a re-aggravation of that same spot on the top of my right foot... It went in a position where I could only re-aggravate my big toe. Again, unfortunate, but just looking forward to the next 48 hours."