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Pac-12 basketball: Selection Sunday preview for the two NCAA Tournament locks and three bubble teams

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

The Pac-12’s late-season salvage operation appears to have worked as college basketball prepares for the most-anticipated day of the year.During stretches of a decidedly subpar season, the conference looked like it might send just two teams (UCLA and Arizona) to the NCAA Tournament.But solid finishes by USC and Arizona State have improved the outlook for Selection Sunday, with at least one of those teams — and perhaps both — sneaking into the 68-team field.Not that four bids would be a source of pride. But it’s exponentially better than three.Before we dive into the at-large locks and contenders, three reminders about the NCAA selection committee’s process:— Overall record, conference affiliation and conference record are irrelevant.— The committee uses both subjective and objective criteria, with the latter focused on NET ranking, quality wins, bad losses, non-conference strength-of-schedule and performance away from home.— Teams are ...

Harvick goes for win No. 10 at Phoenix in final Cup season

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kevin Harvick has had a big share of his best Cup moments at Phoenix Raceway.While his dominance in the desert has faded slightly over the past five years, Sunday is one of two more chances to get win No. 10 here and join some elite company before retirement, which the Stewart-Haas Ford driver says will be at the end of the current season.Every time he comes to Arizona, Harvick is reminded how good he’s been since he swept both races at the track 17 years ago. And pretty much every time, he deflects praise. “It feels somewhat arrogant and cocky to look at your own stats, especially when they’re good,” Harvick said. “I’m never going to tell you I’m impressed with anything of my stats, because I always feel like they could be better.”Harvick has won nine times at the 1-mile tri-oval and is seeking to become just the sixth driver in Cup history to win 10 times at one track, an exclusive club that includes Richard Petty, Darrell Waltrip, Jimmie Johnson, Dale...

Napoli moves 18 points clear atop Serie A

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

MILAN (AP) — Runaway Serie A leader Napoli extended its advantage by beating Atalanta 2-0 on Saturday.Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Amir Rrahmani scored in the second half for Napoli to go 18 points clear of second-placed Inter Milan.Lazio could leapfrog Inter with a win at Bologna late.Atalanta’s fifth loss in seven matches diminished further its chances of qualifying for the Champions League. Atalanta was placed sixth, five points below fourth-placed Roma ahead of the Giallorossi’s match against Sassuolo on Sunday.Napoli was looking to bounce back from losing to Lazio last weekend, its second league loss.It plays Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday, leading 2-0 from the first leg, but coach Luciano Spalletti opted not to rotate his squad.Napoli dominated and almost broke the deadlock in spectacular fashion at the start of the second half but Victor Osimhen’s overhead kick was straight at Atalanta goalkeeper Juan Musso.Instead, Kvaratskhelia scored an impre...

Poulakidas scores 25, Yale downs Cornell 80-60 in Ivy League

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) — John Poulakidas had 25 points in Yale’s 80-60 win against Cornell on Saturday in the Ivy League Tournament.Poulakidas had seven rebounds and five assists for the Bulldogs (21-7). August Mahoney added 18 points while going 6 of 9 from the floor, including 4 for 6 from distance, and 2 for 3 from the line, and he also had three steals. Bez Mbeng recorded 13 points and shot 6 of 9 from the field.The Big Red (17-11) were led by Guy Ragland Jr., who posted 12 points and seven rebounds. Chris Manon added 12 points and five steals.___The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.Source

Toldeo women head to NCAA, top Bowling Green in MAC 73-58

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

CLEVELAND (AP) — Quinesha Lockett scored 17 points, Jessica Cook had 16 and Toledo led wire-to-wire to capture its ninth NCAA Tournament berth with a 73-58 win over rival Bowling Green in the Mid-American Conference Tournament on Saturday.The Rockets (28-4) scored the first 12 points of the game and pulled away in the fourth quarter to secure their first trip to the NCAAs since 2017 and match the 2000-01 team’s school-record 16-game winning streak.The second-seeded Falcons and top-seeded Rockets split their Battle of I-75 during the regular season but Bowling Green was 3-0 in MAC title game matchups between the rivals and 11-3 overall.“It’s tough,” Toledo coach Tricia Cullop said. “They’re very, very good, they’re very well-coached and they’re very aggressive defensively. We knew if we could just take care of the basketball (we would be fine). I was so proud of the shots we hit. Sometimes late clock we found a way and Quinesha Lockett was at her best to...

Vermont overcomes UMass Lowell for America East championship

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Dylan Penn scored 21 points, Matt Veretto scored 15 and ignited a game-breaking run, leading Vermont to a 72-59 victory over UMass Lowell in the championship game of the America East playoffs on Saturday.Vermont will be making its ninth NCAA appearance. UMass Lowell, in its sixth year of eligibility, finished as the runner-up for the second time in three years.Midway through the second half, Veretto scored nine points in three possessions, first hitting three free throws, then adding two 3-pointers as Vermont built a seven-point lead. After a media timeout, Finn Sullivan scored in the lane to give the Catamounts their largest lead up to that time, 55-46.The River Hawks were in the midst of a nearly four-minute scoring drought and by the time Allin Blunt made two free throws they trailed 57-48 with 4:37 to go. Penn hit a layup and Finn Sullivan’s four-point play put the Catamounts in control, 63-50 near the two-minute mark. Penn made 8 of 12 shots, grabbe...

St. Patrick's Day Parade draws in thousands, and EMTs are keeping them safe

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Saturday morning, Denver’s Saint Patrick’s Day Parade drew in hundreds of thousands downtown to celebrate.FOX31 and Channel 2 served as the proud official media sponsors of the event. The grand marshal for the parade was Noel Hickey. Denver St. Patrick’s Day Parade: Everything you need to know Authorities partnered with Denver Health to ensure safety throughout the festivities.“We’re basically like a rolling ambulance on a bike,” Paramedic Koree Gyer said.Denver Health Emergency Medical Technicians kept parade goers safe on a new fleet of bikes, in which they hauled medical equipment.“We have a dedicated dispatcher that only covers EMS for the event itself,” Gyer said.This was the 61st year of the annual parade.

UK ministers mull how to shield British tech sector from Silicon Valley Bank collapse

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

LONDON — Britain’s science and technology minister pledged Saturday to do “everything we can” to minimize the impact of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank on the U.K.’s tech sector.Ministers held talks with tech industry figures on Saturday afternoon after a run on deposits drove the California-based institution into insolvency, marking the largest bank failure since the financial crisis. Its U.K. arm, Silicon Valley Bank UK, stopped trading on Friday.U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt earlier on Saturday held talks with Andrew Bailey, the governor of Britain’s central bank, the Bank of England, the Treasury said in a statement.In a tweet, Michelle Donelan, who heads the newly created Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, said: “We recognize that the tech sector is often not cashflow positive as they grow and I am determined to stand with them as we do everything we can to minimize impact on the sector.”In an open letter on Satur...

Bruins come back to beat Wings, 3-2, for 50th win

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

The Bruins did not start Saturday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings like they wanted to atone for their performance in Thursday’s loss, but they still managed to send everyone home happy Saturday.After erasing an early 2-0 deficit with a dominant second period, Garnet Hathaway gave the B’s their first lead of the game with his first goal as a Bruin with 6:06 left in regulation. Hathaway scored on a rebound of an AJ Greer shot off goalie Magnus Hellberg to give the B’s a 3-2 lead, capping off a strong afternoon for the fourth line.Linus Ullmark, terrific in the third period, then shut it down the rest of the way for their 50th win of the season. The B’s are the fastest team ever to reach that milestone.But there were some serious blemishes early on.The first 10 minutes of the game represented some of the worst hockey in what has been a magical B’s season season thus far. On an early power play chance, zone entries remained problematic. David Kre...

Speeding boats, fishing gear the leading causes of North Atlantic right whale deaths, conservation experts say

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:39:19 GMT

A top ocean conservation group in the country is calling on the feds to enforce boat speed limits along the Atlantic coast and issue stronger protections to prevent more deaths of North Atlantic right whales.The group Oceana released an analysis Thursday that found hundreds of boats had sped through mandatory and voluntary slow zones designed to protect the critically endangered species in the Virginia Beach area in the weeks leading up to a North Atlantic right whale death.There are just 340 right whales left in the world today, a number that has declined by 25% over the past decade, according to conservation scientists.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration determined blunt force traumatic injuries as the cause of death of the 20-year-old male right whale. The injuries mirrored those of a boat strike, a leading threat to such whales.“Speeding boats and slow swimming whales are a recipe for disaster, but a preventable one,” said Gib Brogan, campaign director at Oceana....