March 19, 2025 4:27 am
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Amarr Knox’s layup with a second left lifted Alabama State to its first NCAA Tournament win, 70-68 over Saint Francis (PA) in a matchup of No. 16 seeds at the First Four. Knox scored 16 points to help the Hornets earn a date with No. 1 overall seed Auburn on Thursday in a South Region game at Lexington, Kentucky. Saint Francis, which lost its season opener at Dayton, made an unlikely return to the same arena as the 19th team to enter the NCAA Tournament with a losing record. Those teams are now 0-19. Juan Cranford Jr., playing in his hometown, led Saint Francis with 18 points. Valentino Pinedo had 17 for the Red Flash, who led by as many as nine.
March 19, 2025 4:29 am
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — RJ Davis scored 26 points and went 6 of 6 from 3-point range to help North Carolina silence some skeptics with a 95-68 victory over San Diego State in their First Four matchup. Davis’ six 3-pointers tied Caleb Love’s program record for an NCAA Tournament game, and the Tar Heels set a school mark with 14 in all. North Carolina was a controversial NCAA selection on Sunday, but the Tar Heels played like a team with something to prove and certainly looked as though they belonged. Seth Trimble added 16 points as 11th-seeded UNC advanced to play No. 6 seed Mississippi on Friday in Milwaukee.
March 18, 2025 10:21 am
TOKYO (AP) — Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw five strong innings, Shohei Ohtani had two hits and scored twice and the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs 4-1 in Major League Baseball’s season opener at the Tokyo Dome. Playing in front of their home country, Yamamoto and Cubs lefty Shota Imanaga both pitched well in the first all-Japanese starting pitching matchup on opening day in MLB history. Imanaga threw four scoreless innings. Ohtani finished 2 of 5 at the plate, including a double in the ninth.
March 18, 2025 4:28 am
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — March Madness tips off with the First Four in Dayton, with a mix of bubble teams who made the cut and smaller schools hoping to be this year’s Cinderella. North Carolina was a controversial selection, but the Tar Heels can silence some skeptics with a win over San Diego State on Tuesday night. Xavier and Texas meet for the fourth time in the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday night. Saint Francis of Pennsylvania, the 19th school to qualify with a losing record, faces Alabama State. Washington D.C. area schools American and Mount St. Mary’s will play for the 71st time.
March 18, 2025 4:34 am
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The NCAA will abandon a rule that stopped athletes from negotiating potentially lucrative endorsement deals before enrolling in a specific college, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti says as he announced a proposed settlement in a lawsuit over the policy. Skrmetti announced the deal Monday. He and a handful of attorneys general had sued the NCAA over its name, image and likeness recruiting ban, arguing the rule violated antitrust laws. The settlement must still be approved by a federal judge. The agreement, if approved by the court, will allow college athletes to negotiate compensation for name, image and likeness deals before enrolling in a specific school.
March 18, 2025 4:31 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Scotty Miller and Ben Skowronek are back for another go-around with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers have re-signed both veteran wide receivers to new deals. Miller agreed to a one-year contract. Skowronek’s deal is for two seasons. Both receivers were minor role players for Pittsburgh in 2024. Skowronek caught five passes for 69 yards while becoming a fixture on special teams. Miller also caught five passes for 69 yards, though he bounced between the 53-man roster and the practice squad at the end of the season.
March 17, 2025 4:42 am
Auburn is the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, with Duke, Houston and Florida joining the Tigers on the No. 1 line in the March Madness bracket. The NCAA selection committee favored the regular-season champs of the record-setting Southeastern Conference despite three losses in their last four games, along with a loss to Duke back in December. A record-setting 14 teams from the SEC made the tournament.
March 17, 2025 4:43 am
UCLA is the top overall seed in the women’s NCAA Tournament. The Bruins were joined by South Carolina, Southern California and Texas as No. 1 seeds that the NCAA revealed Sunday night. It’s the first time in school history that the Bruins are the top team in the tournament. They had two losses on the season, both of which came to the Trojans.
March 17, 2025 4:40 am
The Cincinnati Bengals have agreed to four-year extensions with receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, assuring that Joe Burrow will have his top two targets with him for some time. A person familiar with the negotiations told the Associated Press that Chase will become the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history, earning $161 million, including $112 million guaranteed. That surpasses the $40 million per year average by Cleveland pass rusher Myles Garrett. Higgins will get $115 million. The Bengals placed the franchise tag on Higgins, but were hopeful of getting a new deal done. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the team has not announced the move.
March 17, 2025 4:44 am
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Rory McIlroy has won The Players Championship in a three-hole playoff against J.J. Spaun that lacked any real drama. McIlroy blasted a drive down the 16th fairway to set up a birdie. And then Spaun sailed over the island green on the par-3 17th and into the water for a triple bogey. McIlroy is the eighth multiple winner of the PGA Tour’s premier championship. It’s also the first time in his career he has won twice early in the season before the Masters. It was the first Monday finish in three years because of a four-hour rain delay on Sunday.
