Associated Press stories, Page 638
CBS announcer Ian Eagle lands in top spot for NCAA Tournament
Even though Ian Eagle is stepping into a new role as the lead announcer for CBS and TNT Sports’ coverage of the men’s NCAA Tournament, plenty of things will make it familiar. One of Eagle’s partners is Bill Raftery, the analyst for Nets games when Eagle moved to the television...
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter fired by Dodgers after allegations of illegal gambling, theft
LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter and close friend was fired from the Los Angeles Dodgers after allegations of illegal gambling and theft from the Japanese baseball star. Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara was let go from the team Wednesday following reports from The Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged...
Creighton’s Isaac Traudt plays through diabetes to make impact
OMAHA, Neb. — When Creighton basketball player Isaac Traudt’s teammates take a break at practice, they might grab a drink of water, chat it up or go over assignments. Traudt does that, too, but not before he checks a device attached to his body that tells him his blood glucose...
Caitlin Clark, freshmen JuJu Watkins and Hannah Hidalgo top AP women’s All-America team
Caitlin Clark has been a mainstay on the Associated Press All-America team the past few seasons. The NCAA’s all-time scoring leader from Iowa was honored for the third straight year Wednesday, becoming the 11th player to earn the distinction three times. She was a unanimous choice from the 35-member national...
March Madness hits different for Tom Izzo at Michigan State this season
EAST LANSING, Mich. — March Madness kept Tom Izzo sleepless for more than 24 hours before he heard and saw Michigan State made it into a 26th consecutive NCAA Tournament. The Hall of Fame coach said he had one of the most anxious days of his career Sunday, sensing his...
Big-time shot-makers return to big stage in NCAA Tournament
Nearly a year has passed since Lamont Butler hit a buzzer-beater that sent San Diego State to the NCAA championship game. He’s seen it so often on social media and TV that he never had search it out himself. “It’s kind of hard to miss it,” he said. Especially in...
United Steelworkers union endorses Biden for president
PITTSBURGH — The United Steelworkers Union has endorsed President Joe Biden, giving him support from another large labor union. The announcement Wednesday by the Pittsburgh-based union came less than a week after Biden voiced opposition to the planned sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel of Japan, saying it’s vital...
New York asks court not to let Trump forgo $454M bond in fraud case appeal
NEW YORK — New York state lawyers urged an appellate court Wednesday not to buy former President Donald Trump’s claims that it’s impossible to post a bond fully covering a $454 million civil fraud judgment while he appeals. The presumptive Republican nominee’s lawyers said earlier this week that he couldn’t...
1 of 6 former officers in Mississippi gets 40 years for racist torture of 2 Black men
JACKSON, Miss. — A fourth former Mississippi sheriff’s deputy has been sentenced for his part in the racist torture of two Black men by a group of white officers who called themselves “the Goon Squad.” Christian Dedmon was sentenced Wednesday to 40 years in federal prison, hours after Daniel Opdyke...
NFL competition committee proposes ban on hip-drop tackles, radical change to kickoffs
The NFL competition committee is proposing a rule to penalize so-called “hip-drop” tackles and a radical change to kickoffs to add more returns without compromising safety. The proposals will be presented to owners at the league meetings later this month, with 24 out of 32 votes needed for approval. The...
NCAA Tournament Midwest Region preview: Purdue looks to bounce back after early exit
Purdue coach Matt Painter, reigning AP Player of the Year Zach Edey and the rest of the Boilermakers have had to carry with them all season the stink of becoming the second No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They can truly put...
AI-aided virtual conversations with WWII vets are latest feature at New Orleans museumVideo
NEW ORLEANS — Olin Pickens sat in his wheelchair facing a life-sized image of himself on a screen, asking it questions about being taken prisoner by German soldiers during World War II. After a pause, his video-recorded twin recalled being given “sauerkraut soup” by his captors before a grueling march....
NCAA Tournament South Region preview: Blue bloods to challenge top-seeded Houston
Houston has a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year but will have to navigate the likes of Duke, Kentucky and Marquette in the South Region if the Cougars are able to reach the Final Four. The Cougars (30-4) were rewarded after winning the Big...
Detroit Lions defensive back Cameron Sutton sought in Florida domestic violence warrant
TAMPA, Fla. — Detroit Lions defensive back Cameron Sutton is wanted on a domestic violence warrant in Florida, where authorities on Wednesday asked for tips to help find him. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, which includes Tampa, said on the X social media platform that the warrant is for domestic...
Prince Harry’s lawyer implicates Rupert Murdoch in cover-up of unlawful snooping by his tabloids
LONDON — Prince Harry’s lawyer leveled explosive new allegations Wednesday that Rupert Murdoch was aware of cover-ups at his British tabloids that used unlawful techniques to spy on the Duke of Sussex and others. Attorney David Sherborne said Murdoch was among the executives who were aware that public statements made...
Federal Reserve still foresees 3 rate cuts this year but envisions higher rates in future
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve officials signaled Wednesday that they still expect to cut their key interest rate three times in 2024 despite signs that inflation stayed surprisingly high at the start of the year. Yet they foresee fewer rate cuts in 2025, and they slightly raised their inflation forecasts. After...
Top seed South Carolina hopes its young talent will fuel March Madness run
COLUMBIA, S.C. — It has been a different run of perfection for South Carolina coach Dawn Staley, fueled by a lot of precocious, talented young players who make it difficult at times to know exactly what comes next. “It feels a little bit different because they’re so young,” said Staley,...
NCAA Tournament West Region preview: North Carolina back in spotlight as No. 1 seedVideo
North Carolina is the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament West Region a year after being left out of the bracket. The fifth-ranked Tar Heels will open March Madness on Thursday just down the road in Charlotte against the First Four winner between Howard and Wagner. “To be given...
Purdue faces the ghost of a shocking March Madness loss. Virginia has some advice on how to move on
Purdue had just fallen unexpectedly in the Big Ten Tournament last week and Braden Smith sat down alongside star Zach Edey and coach Matt Painter to meet reporters. It took three questions to conjure a March Madness specter: the Boilermakers’ improbable loss as a No. 1 seed to 16th-seeded Fairleigh...
Micah Handlogten will rejoin Florida for NCAA tourney after breaking his leg in the SEC title game
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida center Micah Handlogten, who gruesomely broke his left leg two minutes into the Southeastern Conference championship game on Sunday, will be on hand to watch the Gators in the NCAA Tournament. Already using crutches while recovering from surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Handlogten will make...
Florida homeless to be banned from sleeping in public spaces under DeSantis-backed law
Florida’s homeless will be banned from sleeping on sidewalks and in parks and other public spaces under a law signed Wednesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. It also promises the homeless greater access to services for issues such as substance abuse and mental health problems. The state Department of Children...
NCAA Tournament East Region preview: UConn possesses ingredients for repeat
Connecticut opened the season with uncertainty about how well the Huskies would replace major pieces from last year’s run to the national championship. Any questions had been answered well before Selection Sunday. The top-ranked Huskies (31-3) will enter the NCAA Tournament as the overall No. 1 seed, headlining the East...
March Madness as we know it could be on way out amid seismic changes in college sports
Tracking the changes upending college sports can be as frenetic as flipping between all the games going down over the first week of March Madness. Ultimately, those changes could impact what America’s favorite basketball tournament looks like in the future — or whether it exists at all. News about “pay...
Ohtani, Dodgers rally to beat Padres in season opener and 1st MLB game in South Korea
SEOUL, South Korea — Shohei Ohtani’s RBI single capped a four-run eighth-inning rally in his Dodgers debut, and Los Angeles beat the San Diego Padres 5-2 in Wednesday night’s major league opener, the sport’s first game in South Korea. The game turned when a routine grounder went through the webbing...
Did UK hospital staff try to snoop on Princess Kate’s medical records? Privacy watchdog investigates
LONDON — A British privacy watchdog said Wednesday it is looking into a report that staff at a private London hospital tried to snoop on the Princess of Wales ’ medical records while she was a patient for abdominal surgery. The Information Commissioner’s Office said: “We can confirm that we...
