American college sport was reeling Friday from its second child sex abuse scandal this month, with an associate head basketball coach denying claims that he molested young boys. Bernie Fine, a 65-year-old veteran of 35 seasons on the Syracuse University coaching staff, was placed on administrative leave after accusations by two former ball boys of inappropriate behavior, which he denied in a statement. “Simply put, these allegations are patently false in every aspect,” Fine said in a statement released by his attorney. The allegations center on claims made by a former ball boy in the 1980s and 1990s that were later investigated by police. The university was not informed until 2005, when it conducted its own legal investigation. A second former ball boy has since come forward, prompting the new look at Fine's actions. The allegations surfaced less than two weeks after grand jury testimony revealed that Jerry Sandusky, a former Penn State college football coach, faces 40 counts of sexually abusing boys in his home, hotels and the elite team's locker rooms, shattering the program's iconic image. Fine pointed to the previous investigations in defending himself, mindful of the pressure that forced out officials within a week at Penn State once news of the allegations had broken. NCAA to examine Penn State The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the governing body for US intercollegiate sports, has said it will examine the child abuse scandal at Penn State University. Paterno has cancer Legendary Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, fired last week in fallout from a sex abuse scandal at the university, has a treatable form of lung cancer, one of his sons said Friday. Paterno, 84, was diagnosed during a doctor's visit for a bronchial illness and is undergoing treatment. Doctors are optimistic he will make a full recovery, his son Scott said.
