Sports

WKU head men's basketball coach Ray Harper announced Monday the hiring of 16-year collegiate coaching veteran Shawn Forrest as assistant men's basketball coach. Forrest spent the 2012-13 season at Louisiana-Lafayette, and prior to his time in Lafayette, Forrest had been an assistant coach at North Texas, Arkansas State and Troy, as well as Florida A&M.

Forrest helped the Ragin’ Cajuns to the quarterfinals of the 2013 Sun Belt Conference Tournament after coming to Louisiana-Lafayette after spending four seasons from 2008-09 to 2011-12 as an assistant coach at North Texas.

"I am really looking forward to working with Coach Harper and the rest of the staff and student-athletes here at WKU," Forrest said. "The job Coach Harper has done in the last two seasons is very impressive, and I think that WKU is one of the best basketball jobs in the country. It is not every day you get a chance to coach at a school that has been to the Final Four. I have admired this program for a while, and I could not turn down the job when Coach Harper called."

Forrest received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 1998.

The early favorite for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby is Orb at 7 to 2. Trained by Shug McGaughey,  Orb drew post position number 16 Wednesday evening at Churchill Downs.

The second favorite is Verrazano at 4 to 1. He’ll run from post position number 14. 

Verrazano is one of five Derby starters trained by Todd Pletcher.

The third choice, at 5-1, is Goldencents, trained by Doug O’Neill, who won last year with I’ll Have Another.

O’Neill  says and the horse’s owners are pleased that Goldencents will break from the number eight post.

A full field of 20 horses is entered for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby.