Month: March 2022

By THERESA SMITH Associated Press MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Oakland Athletics outfielders Ramón Laureano and Christian Pache met in the offseason in their hometown of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. They trained together, unexpectedly became teammates and are now developing a mentor-mentee relationship. The 23-year-old Pache was acquired this week from Atlanta in a

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State and Georgia will be looking to end Sweet 16 droughts when they meet in Ames, Iowa, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Greensboro Region.  The Cyclones haven’t made it to a regional semifinal since 2010. Georgia hasn’t been to the Sweet 16 since 2013. The Cyclones will

By PAUL NEWBERRY AP Sports Writer HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Nineteen-year-old Georgian Corey Heim raced to his first NASCAR Truck Series victory Saturday  at Atlanta Motor Speedway, getting a push from the lapped machine of John Hunter Nemechek to deny Chandler Smith a second straight win. Coming off a victory at Las Vegas, Smith —

By JIM VERTUNO AP Sports Writer AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Utah’s offensive philosophy is pretty simple. Some baskets count more than others so the Utes might as well fire away from the 3-point line. Utah made 15 3-pointers against Arkansas in the first round to earn the No. 7 seed Utes a second-round matchup Sunday

By JOHN BOHNENKAMP Associated Press IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa and Creighton have played an annual closed preseason scrimmage for so long that neither coach is sure when it began. The two teams will play Sunday on a bigger stage in front of a sellout crowd in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

By The Associated Press The matchup between Hall of Fame coaches Mike Krzyzewski of Duke and Tom Izzo of Michigan State highlights the final day of the NCAA Tournament’s opening weekend. This will be the sixth time the coaching titans have met in the tournament. Coach K is 3-2 in those games and 12-3 overall

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Naz Hillmon had 24 points and 11 rebounds to help third-seeded Michigan beat No. 14 seed American 74-39 in the first round of the Wichita Regional. Emily Kiser added 13 points and Leigha Brown had 11 for the Wolverines, who will face No. 11 seed Villanova on Monday in the

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Auburn coach Bruce Pearl says he fully supports the initiative of Stanford women’s coach Tara VanDerveer for humanitarian efforts in Ukraine. VanDerveer had pledged $10 for every 3-pointer made in the women’s NCAA Tournament and challenged other coaches to join her. Pearl said Saturday he was concerned about the plight of

By GARY B. GRAVES AP Sports Writer Louisville moved past its painful collapse in the conference tournament to dominate its NCAA Tournament opener. The top-seeded Cardinals aim to keep going against a ninth-seeded Gonzaga squad determined to pull off an upset. Louisville hosts the Bulldogs in Sunday’s second-round game. The Cardinals are seeking their 11th

By TERESA M. WALKER AP Sports Writer KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Alexus Dye scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the fourth-seeded Tennessee Lady Vols held off No. 13 seed Buffalo 80-67 to remain perfect opening an NCAA Tournament on their own floor. Tennessee improved to 24-0 in the first round at home. The

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Right-hander Ryan Tepera and the Angels finalized a $14 million, two-year contract, adding a veteran arm to the Los Angeles bullpen. The 34-year-old was 0-2 with a 2.79 ERA, two saves and 74 strikeouts in 61 1/3 innings for the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, who obtained him in a July

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer A person familiar with the negotiations tells AP the Browns have agreed to trade backup quarterback Case Keenum to Buffalo and signed free agent QB Jacoby Brissett. Cleveland is sending Keenum to Buffalo for a seventh-round draft pick in 2022, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity

By BRETT MARTEL AP Sports Writer BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Jacy Sheldon had 25 points and five steals, and No. 6 seed Ohio State overcame an early double-digit deficit to beat 11th seed Missouri State 63-56 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Sheldon made 10 of 12 free throws for the Buckeyes,

Real Madrid will try to overcome the absence of Karim Benzema when it hosts fierce rival Barcelona and its revamped attack. A leg injury has ruled Benzema out of Sunday’s game against a Barcelona side that is a full 15 points adrift in the Spanish league standings but eager to end a run of six

By PAUL NEWBERRY AP Sports Writer ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons addressed one of their biggest offseason priorities by agreeing to terms on a new contract with all-purpose standout Cordarrelle Patterson. The 31-year-old Patterson confirmed the deal on his Twitter account, saying money was not his primary concern.  ESPN reports that Patterson agreed to

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Keonte Kennedy tossed in 22 points, Souley Boum scored 20 and UTEP breezed past Western Illinois 80-54 in the first round of The Basketball Classic. Jamari Sibley added 11 points for the Miners (20-13). Tamell Pearson had 15 points to lead the Leathernecks (16-16).

By BRIAN HALL Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo will miss Saturday afternoon’s game in Minnesota due to right knee soreness. Coach Mike Budenholzer said the absence is to manage Antetokounmpo’s knees and health. He added that the two-time league MVP “did get banged up” in a recent game. Antetokounmpo has

By SCOTT CHARLES Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Brock Nelson scored three times in the third period for his fourth career hat trick, Semyon Varlamov made 37 saves and the New York Islanders topped the Dallas Stars 4-2. Ryan Pulock also scored for New York, which extended its point streak to six games and

By MIKE COOK Associated Press ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Ryan Hartman scored with 3:13 left in the game, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-1 on Saturday to finish off a four-game season sweep of its Central Division rival. Frederick Gaudreau and Jordan Greenway also scored for Minnesota. Cam Talbot made 21

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Drew Pember tossed in 17 points as UNC Asheville knocked off Stephen F. Austin 80-68 in the first round of the College Basketball Invitational. Tajion Jones added 16 points for the Bulldogs (17-14). Sadaidriene Hall and Gavin Kensmil both had 13 points for the Lumberjacks (22-10).

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee has hired Bart Lundy from Division II Queens University as its coach. Lundy posted a combined 333-103 record in two stints at Queens, located in Charlotte, North Carolina. His overall head coaching record of 429-190 includes a six-year tenure at Division I program High Point from 2003-09. At Milwaukee, Lundy replaces

By NOAH TRISTER AP Sports Writer COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Fourth-seeded Maryland faces 12th-seeded Florida Gulf Coast on Sunday with a berth in the Sweet 16 on the line. The game will feature two of the top five players on the career list in 3-pointers. Maryland’s Katie Benzan is fifth, and Florida Gulf Coast’s

By MITCHELL NORTHAM Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Five North Carolina State players scored in double digits as the No. 1 Wolfpack pulled away from No. 16 Longwood for a 96-68 victory Saturday in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. Raina Perez led the way for N.C. State – which won its

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif (AP) — Kick returner and receiver Brandon Powell has re-signed with the Los Angeles Rams on a one-year deal. Powell joined the Rams’ practice squad midway through the regular season before playing a major role in the turnaround of their special teams on the way to the Super Bowl championship. Los Angeles

By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Felix Rosenqvist earned a much-needed pole in qualifying at Texas Motor Speedway, where IndyCar is desperately trying to develop a second passing lane in what could be the final race between the series and the track. Roseqnqvist turned a lap at 221.110 mph

NEW YORK (AP) — Alejandro Bedoya and Daniel Gazdag scored first-half goals and Andre Blake made them stand up as the Philadelphia Union blanked the New York City FC 2-0 in MLS action. Bedoya staked the Union (3-0-1) to a lead in the 12th minute with his second goal of the season. Julian Carranza assisted

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — The Chicago Cubs have agreed to a one-year contract with Drew Smyly, adding another experienced pitcher to their staff. Smyly’s deal includes a mutual 2023 option. The 32-year-old Smyly went 11-4 with a 4.48 ERA in 29 games, 23 starts, for the World Series champion Braves last year. The Cubs also

CINCINNATI (AP) — Brandon Vazquez scored two goals and assisted on another to spark Cincinnati to a 3-1 victory over Inter Miami 3-1 in MLS action.Ronald Matarrita took a cross from Vazquez and scored in the 18th minute to stake Cincinnati (2-2-0) to a 1-0 lead. Vazquez scored in the 24th minute on a header

NEW YORK (AP) — Carolina Hurricanes forward Nino Niederreiter has been suspended for one game by the NHL for slashing Washington Capitals forward Axel Jonsson-Fjallby during Friday night’s game. The incident occurred at 13:43 of the first period. Niederreiter was assessed a minor penalty for slashing.

STEVE BITTENBENDER Associated Press BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Mackenzie Holmes scored 19 points to lead Indiana to an 85-51 victory over Charlotte Saturday in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. Serving as hosts for the first time in the women’s tournament, the third-seeded Hoosiers (23-8) used a 22-2 run across a nearly six-minute

By KRISTIE RIEKEN AP Sports Writer HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Texans look to move on in the wake of Friday’s trade of quarterback Deshaun Watson to the Cleveland Browns, hoping the three first-round picks they received in the deal will help them improve a team that has been among the league’s worst the past

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Sports Writer STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Francesca Belibi and Lacie Hull got talking the other day as Stanford prepared for the NCAA Tournament about just how special it is to be back hosting the first and second rounds on campus again.It’s been a while. Three years, in fact, and Belibi wasn’t

By STEPHEN HAWKINS AP Sports Writer FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — RJ Davis scored a career-high 30 points and eighth-seeded North Carolina beat defending champion Baylor 93-86 in overtime in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Bears wiped out a 25-point deficit, but the East Region’s top seed never could get ahead at

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer Chelsea’s players are managing to maintain their on-field focus amid a troubling period for the club. It’s now six straight wins since Russian billionaire owner Roman Abramovich announced he’d be selling the London club. Chelsea swatted aside second-tier Middlesbrough in a 2-0 win Saturday to reach the FA Cup

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Maddy Siegrist scored 25 points and 11th-seeded Villanova rallied to beat No. 6 seed BYU 61-57 in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. Kaitlyn Oriehl added 10 points and Lucy Olsen had nine for the Wildcats, who finished second in the Big East. Paisley Harding scored 21 points

By PAT EATON-ROBB AP Sports Writer STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Paige Bueckers started and scored 12 points as UConn began its run toward a 12th NCAA Tournament title with an 83-38 first-round rout of No. 15 seed Mercer. Last season’s national player of the year played 24 minutes, the most in six games since coming

DUBLIN (AP) — Ireland has accounted for Scotland 26-5 in Six Nations rugby and earned the Triple Crown at Lansdowne Road. The Irish were then waiting for a favor from England for a possible trophy upgrade. The four-try bonus-point victory put Ireland on top of the championship by three points before the last match in

LENS, France (AP) — Lens has swapped its traditional “blood and gold” colors for the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag in a 3-1 win over Clermont in the French league. The northern club said its message was aimed at promoting peace following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It rallied from a goal down to

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — Quenton Jackson tossed in 17 points as Texas A&M beat Oregon 75-60 in the second round of the NIT. Manny Obaseki had 11 points for the Aggies (25-12). Wade Taylor IV and Henry Coleman III both scored 10. added 10 points. Tyrece Radford had 11 rebounds and scored eight. N’Faly

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have brought back a couple more of their own players, this time agreeing to terms with kicker Randy Bullock and running back Dontrell Hilliard. The Titans announced the deals Saturday. Bullock joined the Titans after they put Sam Ficken on injured reserve. They cut Michael Badgley after he

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Sports Writer BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — This March Madness, players can monetize their one shining moments. The NCAA lifted its ban last summer on athletes earning money off their name, image and likeness. Since then all kinds of business opportunities have sprung up from modest online endorsement deals to

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — North Carolina’s Brady Manek has been ejected for elbowing Baylor’s Jeremy Sochan in the face in their NCAA Tournament second-round game. Manek had a season-high 26 points when he was ejected. Manek threw the elbow while blocking out Sochan for a rebound in the second half Saturday. Moments earlier, Manek

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Okay Djamgouz had a career-high 20 points as Drake rolled past Purdue Fort Wayne 87-65 in the first round of the College Basketball Invitational. Djamgouz made 6 of 8 shots from 3-point range for the Bulldogs (25-10). Garrett Sturtz and Tucker DeVries added 14 points apiece. Jarred Godfrey had 16

By MITCHELL NORTHAM Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — No. 9 Kansas State overcame a frustrating defensive scheme from No. 8 Washington State and won 50-40 in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. After being held to just five points in the first half, Ayoka Lee, an AP Second Team All-American selection, finished

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — Pitcher Michael Pineda and the Detroit Tigers reached a one-year deal Saturday, the latest move by a team that’s been active before and after the 99-day lockout. Pineda was 9-8 with a 3.62 ERA for Minnesota last season. The 33-year-old right-hander went 5-0 with a 1.85 ERA in his final five

ROME (AP) — AC Milan is displaying more consistency than its rivals amid a tight race for the Serie A title. Milan won 1-0 at relegation-threatened Cagliari to extend its unbeaten run to eight matches. Ismael Bennacer scored with a long-distance volley for Milan near the hour mark. Milan is three points ahead of second-place

SAN REMO, Italy (AP) — Everyone was expecting it to be an uphill attack from two-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogačar to decide the Milan-San Remo race. Turned out it was a risky, high-speed downhill attack from fellow Slovenian Matej Mohorič that proved to be the winning move in the spring classic. French rider

By CIARÁN FAHEY AP Sports Writer BERLIN (AP) — Bayern Munich has opened up a seven-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga with a 4-0 win against Union Berlin. Bayern star Robert Lewandowski scored twice to take his league tally to 31 goals in 27 games. Kingsley Coman and Tanguy Nianzou scored the other

CARDIFF, Wales (AP) — Italy has ended its seven-year wait for a victory in the Six Nations by beating Wales 22-21 thanks to a dramatic 79th-minute try by Edoardo Padovani in Cardiff. The winger went over for the try behind the posts but it stemmed from a remarkable run from fullback Ange Capuozzo, who darted

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Shaun Norris has opened a four-shot lead after three rounds of the Steyn City Championship in South Africa. It puts the home player in prime position for his first European tour title. Norris shot 5-under 67 and moved to 23 under par overall at low-scoring Steyn City. Players have been benefiting from

PARIS (AP) — AC Milan forward Olivier Giroud has been called up to France’s national squad for upcoming friendly matches as a replacement for the injured Karim Benzema. The French football federation says Benzema has been ruled out because of a left calf injury. It’s the first time that France coach Didier Deschamps has selected

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Panthers have brought back their starting cornerback as they agreed to terms with Donte Jackson on a new three-year contract. Jackson was an unrestricted free agent. The 26-year-old Jackson gives the Panthers a solid nucleus at cornerback and will play alongside Jaycee Horn and C.J. Henderson, both former top-10 draft

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball’s labor negotiations had moved at a glacial pace for 11 months before a deal fell into place on March 10. The sides can’t even agree on key moments that led to the five-year agreement. Commissioner Rob Manfred’s fourth deadline was the one

PARIS (AP) — The Paris prosecutor’s office says former Argentina rugby player Federico Martin Aramburu has been killed in Paris. He was 42. Prosecutors confirmed to The Associated Press that a murder investigation has been opened. L’Équipe sports daily first reported Aramburu’s death. According to the newspaper, he was fatally shot in the early hours