March 22, 2026 8:17 am
PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) — Sungjae Im was in position for a wire-to-wire victory in the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook after a slow start in his return from a wrist injury. Brandt Snedeker was right beside him in the final pairing — with a hot new putter in the bag. Im holed a sweeping 13-foot birdie putt on the par-4 18th hole Saturday for a 2-under 69 and a two-stroke lead over Snedeker, the 45-year-old U.S. Presidents Cup captain playing on a sponsor exemption, and David Lipsky. Snedeker birdied three of the first four holes in a 67, and Lipsky had a 70. After missing two straight cuts in his return, Im led by a stroke after each of the first two days. He has an 11-under 202 total.
March 21, 2026 4:38 am
NEW YORK (AP) — The Cleveland Guardians won’t have to pay indicted pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz while Major League Baseball’s investigation continues into allegations of pitch-rigging for gamblers. Ortiz was placed on paid leave last July 3 and Clase on July 28, and they received their salaries while they didn’t pitch for the remainder of the season. They were indicted on federal charges on Nov. 9 and a trial is scheduled for May 4 but could be delayed. Clase has a $6 million salary in 2026, the final guaranteed season of a $20 million, five-year contract. Ortiz does not have enough service time for arbitration and makes around the minimum salary of $780,000.
March 21, 2026 4:36 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has issued an executive order barring College Football Playoff and other postseason games from airing during the annual Army-Navy matchup in December. Trump directed the commerce secretary and the FCC chairman to coordinate with the playoff committee, the NCAA and media rights partners to ensure an exclusive broadcasting window for the storied rivalry traditionally played the second Saturday each December. Trump’s order makes reference to potential expansion of the CFP that likely would require an earlier start for the playoff. In the first two years of the 12-team format, the first-round games were the weekend after Army-Navy.
March 20, 2026 11:00 am
It March Madness Day Two. Twenty of the original 68 teams have been eliminated, 16 more run out of time today. WJPA-AM (1450) is your home for the NCAA Men’s & Women’s Basketball Championships. Our coverage starts with Tournament Today at 11 am and continues until the final buzzer of the Missouri/Miami game sounds sometime after midnight.
First Round, Friday, March 20
7-Kentucky > 10-Santa Clara, 89-84 OT
5-Texas Tech > 12-Akron, 91-71
1-Arizona > 16-LIU, 92-58
3-Virginia > 14-Wright State, 82-73
2-Iowa State > 15-Tennessee State, 108-74
4-Alabama > 13-Hofstra, 90-70
9-Utah State > 8-Villonova, 86-76
6-Tennessee > 11 Miami (OH), 78-56
9-Iowa > 8-Clemson, 67-61
5-St. John’s > 12-UNI, 79-53
7-UCLA > 10-UCF, 75-71
2-Purdue > 15-Queens (NC), 104-71
1-Florida > 16-Prairie View, 114-55
4-Kansas > 13-Cal Baptist, 68-60
2-UConn > 15-Furman, 82-71
7-Miami (FL) > 10-Missouri, 80-66
March 19, 2026 11:53 pm
Let the Madness Begin! It’s Opening Day of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament. Four of the original 68 teams were eliminated in First Four action Tuesday/Wednesday in Dayton: UMBC, NC State, Lehigh and SMU. Now, 64 teams remain, each with a short-term goal to “survive & advance.” WJPA-AM (1450) is your radio home for all the madness of the Men’s and Women’s Basketball National Championships.
First Round–Thursday, March 19
9-TCU > 8-Ohio State, 66-64
4-Nebraska > 13-Troy, 76-47
6-Lousiville > 11-South Florida, 83-79
12-High Point > 5-Wisconsin, 83-82
1-Duke > 16-Siena, 71-65
5-Vanderbilt > 12-McNeese, 78-68
3-Michigan State > 14 North Dakota State, 92-67
4-Arkansa > 13-Hawaii, 97-78
11-VCU > 6-North Carolina, 82-78 OT
1-Michigan > 16-Howard, 101-80
11-Texas > 6-BYU, 79-71
10-Texas A&M > 7-St. Mary’s, 63-50
3-Illinois > 14-Penn, 105-70
9-Saint Louis > 8-Georgia, 102-77
3-Gonzaga > 14-Kennesaw State, 73-64
2-Houston > 15-Idaho, 78-47
March 20, 2026 4:30 am
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Graham Ike scored 19 points and third-seeded Gonzaga held off tenacious No. 14 seed Kennesaw State 73-64 in a defensive battle that ended with some drama in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Davis Fogle added 17 points for the Bulldogs, who will face No. 11 seed Texas Saturday in the West Region. RJ Johnson and Amir Taylor each had 15 points for Kennesaw State, which made its second March Madness appearance after winning the Conference USA Tournament. The Owls capitalized on a series of fouls by the Bulldogs to make it close late, and Gonzaga coach Mark Few was enraged by some of the calls.
March 20, 2026 4:28 am
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — North Carolina blew a 19-point lead to fall in overtime to VCU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It marked a second straight loss for the blueblood program in the tournament’s first round under Hubert Davis. UNC reached the NCAA title game in Davis’ first season in 2022. But the Tar Heels have reached the round of 32 only once in the four seasons since. This year’s UNC team was derailed by a season-ending injury to NBA prospect Caleb Wilson.
March 20, 2026 4:31 am
MIAMI (AP) — LeBron James started for the Los Angeles Lakers against the Miami Heat, making it the 1,611th regular-season game of his career and tying Robert Parish’s all-time NBA mark. Parish held the record for nearly 30 years. He has now been caught by James, someone who now has yet another record on what seems like an endless resume of accomplishment within the game. James is also the NBA leader in, among many categories, points, seasons played, All-NBA nods and All-Star selections.
March 20, 2026 4:27 am
CHICAGO (AP) — Alex Bregman is hoping to lead the Chicago Cubs to their first NL Central title since 2020 after signing a $175 million, five-year contract with the North Siders in free agency. But the competition is tough in a division that put three teams in the playoffs last year. Cincinnati added a familiar face when it signed Eugenio Suárez to a $15 million, one-year deal. The 34-year-old slugger played for the Reds for seven seasons before he was traded to Seattle in March 2022. The Milwaukee Brewers are the reigning Central champions, and the Pittsburgh Pirates are much improved after acquiring Brandon Lowe in a trade and signing Ryan O’Hearn to a two-year contract.
March 19, 2026 4:30 am
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Sean Walker scored with 28.3 seconds left in overtime as the Carolina Hurricanes beat Pittsburgh 6-5 on Wednesday night, spoiling Sidney Crosby’s return to the Penguins’ lineup. Jackson Blake had a goal and two assists, Logan Stankoven, Taylor Hall and Walker each had a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes. Jordan Martinook and K’Andre Miller also scored and Nikolaj Ehlers finished with three assists. Frederik Andersen made 30 saves. Erik Karlsson had two goals and an assist, Crosby added a goal and an assist, and Bryan Rust and Ben Kindel also scored for Pittsburgh. Stuart Skinner stopped 38 shots
