The Associated Press

ATLANTA - Former Georgia basketball player Tony Cole has accused assistant coach Jim Harrick Jr. of paying his expenses and committing academic fraud before and after Cole was enrolled at the school.

In an interview with ESPN that aired Thursday night, Cole said Harrick paid $300 for a phone bill that Cole ran up while staying with the mother of a friend in the summer of 2001. That was just before Cole came to Georgia.

Cole was suspended after 16 games last season when he was charged with sexual assault. The charges were dropped, but he wasn't reinstated.

Eva Harris, the person whom Cole stayed with, said a man who gave his name as Jim Harrick called her and offered to pay any expenses she incurred while Cole was there. When the phone bill came, the money was sent to pay for it, she said.

A receipt from Western Union showed the sender as "Jim Harrick."

"He said he would take care of the phone bill, so I wouldn't have the added expense," Harris said.

Later, when his enrollment was delayed, Cole stayed in area hotels for about two weeks, running up about $1,700 in charges. He said Harrick paid the bills.

In a written statement released hours after Cole's ESPN interview, Georgia athletic director Vince Dooley said he takes accusations "very seriously."

He added that "Tony Cole has been asked on previous occasions if he had received anything that could be considered extra benefits and a document has been signed by him indicating that he had not."

Cole said Harrick took two correspondence courses for him from Lincoln Trail College in Robinson, Ill., receiving an "A" in both. When Cole earlier took the classes himself at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind., he received a "D" in both courses.

"All I asked was that my grade be a 'B,"' Cole said. "Jim Harrick Jr. did it. He had to. I know I didn't do it."

During his first semester at Georgia, Cole took a class on the principles of coaching basketball. The class was taught by Harrick, and Cole said he received an "A," even though he never attended.

Harrick has been on the staff at Georgia for nearly two years under his father, Jim Harrick Sr.

Cole couldn't be reached for comment by The Associated Press, but his attorney, Steve Sadow, said his client spoke out now because his career at Georgia is over.

"Tony believes he has been mistreated by the University of Georgia sports program," Sadow said. "Since he doesn't have the opportunity to play there anymore, he saw no reason to keep quiet."

Cole was arrested in December for trespassing after he refused to leave the weight room in the Georgia student center, and he has since dropped out of school.

Before coming to Georgia, Cole attended at least five high school and five junior colleges. He'd run into trouble before the sexual assault charges; a lawsuit filed last year by two former students of Community College of Rhode Island accused him of sexual assault and harassment.

KANSAS: Kansas forward Wayne Simien will miss the rest of the season because of a dislocated right shoulder.

Coach Roy Williams said Thursday that Simien will have surgery, probably in March.

Simien missed 11 games this season with the injury, and he left Wednesday night's game against Texas A&M after the shoulder popped out of place again.

"Wayne was important to his teammates. We tried everything possible, and so did he," Williams said.

Simien averaged nearly 15 points and eight rebounds for the seventh-ranked Jayhawks and was expected to play a key role in their drive to repeat as Big 12 champions and return to the Final Four.

Simien was trying to block a shot by A&M's Bernard King in the first half when he banged his shoulder into King. His shoulder popped back into place, but he didn't return to the game, which Kansas won 85-45.

"It makes me appreciate what I have," said Jeff Graves, who will start in Simien's place.

Kansas went 9-2 without Simien, and during those games Graves averaged nearly eight points and eight rebounds.

Simien missed six weeks after injuring his shoulder on Jan. 4. A similar injury to the same shoulder required surgery following his senior season in high school. Doctors had planned to operate again after this season.

COLORADO: Colorado center David Harrison will return to the Buffaloes next season, saying he does not believe he is ready for pro basketball.

The 7-foot sophomore's plans were confirmed by the school Thursday. Harrison has left open the possibility of using all four years of his eligibility.

Harrison leads the Big 12 Conference in blocks, averaging 2.9 a game. He is averaging 13.7 points and 8.4 rebounds as Colorado vies for its first NCAA tournament berth since 1996-97.

Harrison said he doesn't want to enter pro ball merely on potential.

"That's what I always hear: 'He has so much potential,"' he said in the Rocky Mountain News. "I think I've been trying to capitalize on that potential and turn it into talent and skill."