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March Madness: Brackets in tatters as 2nd round begins

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

March Madness has truly begun! By the end of the first round, a trio of top seeds were already gone — No. 1 seed Purdue, No. 2 seed Arizona and No. 4 seed Virginia — and gone with them were millions of busted brackets.Here is what to know with Sweet 16 bids on the line at the NCAA Tournament, including the favorites and underdogs as well as key games:TOP SEEDSThe top four seeds in the tournament were given to Alabama, Houston, Kansas and Purdue. Each had its share of headaches to set up what is already proving to be a chaotic tournament and the Boilermakers were the first to fall, ousted in a first-round stunner. Here is the latest from each region:EAST REGION: The Boilermakers got a No. 1 seed for the fourth time, but Purdue was dumped by Fairleigh Dickinson in a near-historic upset. The region appears to be wide open for the likes of No. 2 seed Marquette, Duke, Michigan State and more.SOUTH REGION: Alabama, led by coach Nate Oats in a challenging season, is a No. 1 seed for the fi...

Byron out to validate Hendrick’s strong start despite fines

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Back-to-back wins haven’t stopped William Byron from believing he and his Hendrick Motorsports team have a lot to prove in Sunday’s NASCAR stop in Atlanta.In fact, Byron said Saturday, there’s even more on the line. Drivers of the Hendrick Chevrolets want to show the strong start to the season is not the result of illegally manipulating NASCAR’s rules.NASCAR slammed Hendrick Motorsports on Wednesday with the largest combined fine on one team in series history for allegedly modifying louvers, which direct air through the hoods of cars. The penalty included a combined $400,000 in fines — $100,000 to each of its four crew chiefs — plus four-race suspensions for the crew chiefs — Byron’s, Kyle Larson’s and Alex Bowman’s included. Those suspensions begin with Sunday’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Hendrick is appealing the penalties, which also affected the drivers by losing 100 regular-season points and 10 playoffs po...

Perez on pole for Red Bull in Saudi Arabia for 2nd year

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Sergio Perez stepped up for Red Bull to ensure the team started from the pole at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after a mechanical issue sidelined two-time defending world champion Max Verstappen. Verstappen was fastest in all three practice sessions at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit but his qualifying effort was cut short Saturday when he radioed “I have a problem. Engine, engine problem,” during the second session. The Dutchman drove to the pits, where a driveshaft issue was discovered, and Verstappen’s qualifying effort was over. It left Perez as the lone Red Bull representative in the final round of qualifying and he went on to win pole for the second consecutive year — the only two poles of his career. Verstappen will start 15th. Charles Leclerc qualified second for Ferrari but will drop 10 positions at the start of Sunday’s race because of a grid penalty for exceeding the allotted electronics control unit on the car’s engine in the season-ope...

Indiana State takes down South Carolina Upstate 67-62 in CBI

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

DAYTONA BEACH. Fla. (AP) — Courvoisier McCauley had 20 points and 11 rebounds in Indiana State’s 67-62 win over South Carolina Upstate on Saturday in the CBI Tournament. Cameron Henry scored 19 points and added six rebounds for the Sycamores (23-12). Robbie Avila added 10 points.Jordan Gainey led the Spartans (16-16) in scoring, finishing with 18 points and two steals. Trae Broadnax added 12 points, eight rebounds and two steals for South Carolina Upstate.Indiana State will play Eastern Kentucky or Cleveland State in the quarterfinals on Monday. Eastern Kentucky and Cleveland State play on Sunday.___The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.Source

Strong earthquake shakes coastal Ecuador; damage unclear

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — A strong earthquake shook Ecuador on Saturday, but there was no immediate word on major damage or injuries.The U.S. Geological Survey reported an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 in the country’s coastal Guayas region. It was centered about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Guayaquil, Ecuador’s second-largest city.Videos shared on social media show people gathering on the streets of Guayaquil and nearby communities. People reported objects falling inside their homes in Guayaquil, which anchors an urban area of over 3 million people about 170 miles (270 kilometers) southwest of the capital, Quito.The earthquake was also felt in northern Peru.Source

Tottenham wastes 2-goal lead to draw 3-3 with Southampton

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

SOUTHAMPTON, England (AP) — Tottenham missed out on the chance to move up to third in the Premier League by throwing away a two-goal lead Saturday as James Ward-Prowse’s stoppage-time penalty earned last-place Southampton a 3-3 draw.Tottenham had taken a 3-1 lead after Pedro Porro and Ivan Perisic netted their first goals for the club and Harry Kane scored his 23rd of the campaign.Southampton had only scored twice in its previous five league appearances but the hosts showed the same fight that saw them recently take points off Chelsea and Manchester United to come back and boost their survival hopes.Ward-Prowse’s late penalty, after Pape Sarr had fouled Ainsley Maitland-Niles in the area, added to second-half efforts by Che Adams and Theo Walcott to earn Saints a point.Both teams had to make early substitutions after Tottenham forward Richarlison limped off after five minutes with an injury and Southampton’s Armel Bella-Kotchap was forced off in the eighth with an injury to hi...

Fans cheer Brooks’ return in Bournemouth’s 3-0 loss at Villa

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Aston Villa enjoyed a third win in four Premier League games as it beat Bournemouth 3-0 at home with goals from Douglas Luiz, Jacob Ramsey and Emiliano Buendia on Saturday.Both sets of fans had a reason to cheer when Bournemouth midfielder David Brooks came on in the 79th minute for his first appearance since being diagnosed with cancer in October 2021, a moment that brought applause all around Villa Park.Luiz finished from close range to put Villa ahead in the seventh minute before Ramsey and Buendia added further goals in the last 10 minutes.Bournemouth had gone close to equalizing just past the hour mark through Philip Billing’s free kick that was saved in fine style by Emiliano Martinez.Midtable Villa extended its unbeaten run, adding to the wins over Everton and Crystal Palace and a draw at West Ham.Bournemouth slipped a place to 19th, a point adrift of safety, having failed to further boost its survival bid after the surprise 1-0 win over Liver...

Englewood investigates officer-involved shooting

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) -- The Englewood Police Department investigated an officer-involved shooting in the area of Oxford Avenue and Broadway on Saturday.EPD said at 1:26 p.m. that Oxford Avenue was closed between Broadway and Lincoln Avenue for the shooting. Blake Street Tavern closing after 20 years in Denver Police told FOX31 that the officer was okay. No further details were available and the investigation was ongoing.

Brunson returns with 24 points, Knicks beat Nuggets 116-110

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 24 points in his return from a left foot injury, leading the New York Knicks to a 116-110 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.Brunson had 16 points in the first quarter to get the Knicks off to a quick start, then finished strong to help them come back after trailing by 13 in the second half. New York was protecting a two-point lead when he made two free throws with 43 seconds remaining, then pushed the ball up the court and threw a lob that Mitchell Robinson slammed down to make it 116-110 with 24 seconds to go.Brunson had missed five of the last six games and made it through only half the one game he did play because of soreness. With their point guard back, the Knicks won their third straight and improved to 42-20, guaranteeing just their second winning record in the last 10 seasons.RJ Barrett added 21 points and Julius Randle had 20 for the Knicks. Robinson grabbed nine rebounds. Nuggets clinch spot in playoffs, division title with ...

St. Mary’s defends Div. 3 girls hoop crown, edges CCL rival Bishop Fenwick

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:24:00 GMT

LOWELL — Ever since she first took the court at St. Mary’s (Lynn) a few years back, Yirsy Queliz had lofty goals of winning a state championship.Back then, few could have envisioned exactly what was in store for her or her teammates in the near future.It is now officially safe to say the Spartans have enjoyed a dynastic run. The Northeastern commit closed her decorated high school career in style Saturday, racking up a team-high 18 points to go with four rebounds, four assists and three steals, as top-seeded St. Mary’s secured its third Div. 3 girls basketball title in the last four years by holding on for a thrilling 45-41 victory over No. 3 Bishop Fenwick at the Tsongas Center in Lowell.“I’ve been at the school for five years,” Queliz said. “Out of those five years, we’ve made (the title game) four times, and the only time (we didn’t play) was because of COVID. It feels good to win three out of those four.”To put things into perspective, Saturday’s victory extended St. Mary’s play...