erspoon said.Southern Miss (3-6) shot just 23.1 percent (1

President-elect Donald Trump referred to disparaging and sexually aggressive comments he made about women in 2005 as locker-room talk when confronted with video evidence of his remarks while on the campaign trail. His exact words during the second presidential debate being: This was locker-room talk. Im not proud of it. Yes, Im very embarrassed by it, and I hate it, but its locker-room talk.With so few Americans being privy to open and honest male-athlete banter in the locker room, many questioned if there was truth to his statement.However, as fate would have it, over the past month, we have gotten a glimpse into what a limited group of college athletes have actually said behind seemingly closed doors. Sadly, it wasnt far from Trumps description.In early October, a 2012 version of the Harvard mens soccer teams scouting report was released via the schools newspaper,?the Harvard Crimson. The report, as dubbed by its authors, was an annual ranking of the recruits for the universitys womens soccer team, which was based on their perceived likelihood to engage in sexual activity, physical features and overall sexual appeal (in addition to their positions on the soccer field).Not long after the release of the scouting report, we learned the schools mens cross-country team had devised a similar, albeit less explicit, spreadsheet for evaluating athletes on the womens cross-country team.Then in early November, group text messages from Columbias mens wrestling team surfaced. These messages disparaged women for apparently wanting equal treatment, reduced women to mere sexual beings and used homophobic and racist slurs.After school administrators investigated the content of the lists and messages (documents), Harvard canceled the remainder of its soccer teams season and Columbia suspended its wrestling team. But is that enough? And is it just? Many legal professionals have begun questioning the fairness and legality of the suspensions.These legitimate questions (see below) need answers.Im here to provide some.Legally, what disciplinary actions can universities take against student-athletes?Student-athletes have rights, but as representatives of their private universities, those rights are limited by school codes. The First Amendment to our Constitution says, Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech. The key word is Congress, meaning the government. The government generally cannot limit speech, but private schools certainly can. Therefore, if student-athletes at Harvard and Columbia say or write things that are at odds with the schools moral and ethical codes, they can be punished for it. Both institutions have expressed concerns that the behavior is the complete antithesis of what they stand for and the communities they strive to foster.Privacy rights really arent at issue here. Neither institution was responsible for unearthing the documents. Either someone directly involved with their making or some third party provided the documents to school newspapers and officials. Additionally, neither university has revealed the identities of the people involved. Documents provided for public consumption were heavily redacted, protecting the identities of the authors and the subjects.The identities we do know are those of the six brave, eloquent women from Harvards soccer team who issued a statement, Stronger Together. They laid out their feelings about the report and society as a whole in an effort to combat sexism and misogyny and to give themselves a voice in a conversation that had largely focused on the perpetrators, not the victims.Speaking of the ladies referenced or indicated -- do they have any rights?It appears that Harvard has contacted the women in the report, suggesting the school is taking their feelings or reactions into account. Because the ladies statement makes it clear that they suffered emotionally from the content of the report, they may be able to take legal recourse. As such, they might have standing (the ability to bring a lawsuit) against the authors under a theory of intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED). In Massachusetts, where Harvard is located, IIED occurs when someone, by extreme and outrageous conduct and without privilege causes severe emotional distress to another.According to the law, the ladies would have to show:1. The players intended to inflict emotional distress or knew (or should have known) that emotional distress would likely result from their conduct;2. The players conduct was extreme and outrageous, beyond all possible bounds of decency and unacceptable in a civilized community;3. The players actions caused the women distress; and4. The womens emotional distress was so severe that no reasonable woman should be expected to endure it.What about Harvard and Columbia; what is their direct responsibility?Title IX, a portion of the Education Amendments of 1972, states: No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be subjected to discrimination under any education program. This requires that schools actively prevent sexual discrimination and hostile environments based on sex. The release of documents that objectified and disparaged women activated the universities Title IX duties to investigate the conduct, ensure it ceased, tend to the needs of anyone harmed and protect others from future harm. Failure to uphold those responsibilities could lead to costly lawsuits and penalties.But beyond the legal ramifications and limitations surrounding the documents, there are larger societal issues. The documents prove our culture still operates with sexist, misogynistic undertones. In the most elite of educational institutions, some men still look at women as mere sexual objects. These women are both athletes and scholars who have likely busted their butts for hours and years of their lives to get accepted at these prestigious universities, only to be reduced to sexual conquests, nicknames and numbers.The Bottom LineAs a woman and lawyer who works in a male-dominated industry, I write these words with the sincerest understanding of how great the battle is that we face to be respected. We fight it consistently and tirelessly, but we arent in this alone. There are countless men who genuinely respect and champion our causes. Think about all the NBA, NFL and MLB players who spoke up and said this is NOT my locker-room talk.When the conversations that objectify women happen in locker rooms, offices and text messages, both men and women should open their mouths and speak up for womens dignity and valid place on this earth. Fathers should teach their sons to truly respect women, and that masculinity is found in uplifting and supporting women, not degrading them.Cecelia Townes is a proud graduate of UCLA School of Law and the Real HU in Washington. She used to ball so hard on the tennis court. Now she serves it up on her blog, GladiatHers.com, and with student-athletes with Beyond the Game LLC.?Follow Cecelia on Twitter & Instagram @SportyEsquire Cheap Yeezy 350 UK Outlet . -- There were so many positives from the Orlando Magics first victory of the season that it was hard for coach Jacque Vaughn to stop praising his players. Wholesale Yeezy 350 UK . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. http://www.discountyeezy350uk.com/ . LUCIE, Fla. Yeezy 350 UK Sale . LOUIS -- Mike Smith is used to facing plenty of shots, so this was nothing new. Discount Yeezy 350 UK Shoes . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. JACKSON, Miss. -- Mississippi States Drew Davis -- a walk-on who had played three minutes all season until Monday night -- gave a little fake and a shake before letting a 22-footer fly in the waning minutes of a blowout win over Southern Mississippi.Of course, it splashed through the net. The starters danced and celebrated on the bench for another 3-pointer that found its way home.For the Bulldogs, it was just that kind of night.Mississippi State made a school-record 17 3-pointers on the way to an 86-44 victory in a neutral-site game at the Mississippi Coliseum. The Bulldogs made 17 of 29 (58.6 percent) attempts from behind the arc, burying Southern Miss under an avalanche of offense.Quinndary Weatherspoon led Mississippi State with 16 points. Lamar Peters added 15.Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said the Bulldogs were very good on both ends of the court.I was really pleased with how we played tonight, especially defensively, Howland said. Everything starts and ends with our defense. The unselfishness from our team the way we passed the ball and obviously 17 of 29 from three is really special.Mississippi State (7-3) never trailed and had a comfortable lead for most of the night. The Bulldogs turned a reasonable game into a full-scale blowout early in the second half thanks to a 35-0 run that pushed their advantage to 76-29.That was a first for me, Weatherspoon said.Southern Miss (3-6) shot just 23.1 percent (15 of 65) from the field. The Golden Eagles missed 19 consecutive shots during Mississippi States 35-0 run.Their speed -- they just took us out of everything, Southern MMiss coach Doc Sadler said.ddddddddddddaheem Watts led the Golden Eagles with nine points. The Golden Eagles have lost five straight games and have only one win this season over a Division I opponent.The only thing I know to do is put your head down, grind, work and try to get better on the practice court, Sadler said. Thats what weve got to do.Mississippi State jumped out to a 16-4 lead in the opening minutes and cruised to a 39-25 halftime advantage.BIG PICTURESouthern Miss: The Golden Eagles struggled to score consistently against the bigger Bulldogs. Southern Miss hasnt won a game in nearly a month and this loss was particularly ugly.Mississippi State: The Bulldogs young roster continues to show promise. Xavian Stapletons return from knee surgery -- he scored eight points in 11 minutes on Monday -- gives Mississippi State a deeper rotation.Stapleton hadnt played in a game in 18 months because of two consecutive knee surgeries. The 6-foot-6 guard should be a valuable backup for the Bulldogs as they approach SEC play.TOTAL DOMINATIONMississippi State had a 46-37 advantage in rebounding, an 11-1 advantage in blocked shots and a 9-6 advantage in steals. Freshman Schnider Herard had a career-high 12 rebounds.UP NEXTSouthern Miss plays San Diego State in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic on Thursday.Mississippi State hosts Morehead State on Thursday.-----More AP college basketball: www.collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 . ' ' '