The California State University system has issued its formal denial against allegations by former Cal State Stanislaus men's basketball coach Mike Terpstra. Terpstra sued the university in November, claiming he was not rehired because the school wanted to hire an African-American coach.

The next step in the process, according to attorneys on both sides, is to begin depositions. However, CSU's council, Deputy Attorney General Barton Jenks, said the Terpstra suit has been postponed 6-8 weeks while he wraps up other cases.

"It's so early on, I haven't had a chance to initiate discovery (of the claims)," Jenks said. "As far as the merits and allegations, I really haven't had time to get into it yet."

Terpstra's attorney, Bob Lubin, said he wasn't surprised by anything in CSU's response, which was filed Jan. 30 in Stanislaus Superior Court and became available to the public this week.

"We're going to move forward with the case," Lubin said.

In his suit, Terpstra alleges he was not offered a contract extension because he challenged the administration to address what he believed was rising racial tension within the basketball program. Terpstra, who is white, also claims the university has "a policy of avoiding all discussion of racial tension."

Terpstra, who now coaches at Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, Idaho, led Stanislaus to an 18-11 record in his final year as coach in 2002-03. It was Stanislaus' most successful season in a decade.

The Warriors are 5-14 (3-11 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association) this season under first-year coach Keith Larsen, who is white.

Terpstra, a Ripon Christian High graduate and former coach at Modesto Junior College, is seeking at least $25,000 in compensation. His starting salary when he was offered the job at Stanislaus in 2000 was $70,080.