U.S./World Sports category, Page 255
Ohio State player E.J. Liddell speaks out about social-media abuse
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State star E.J. Liddell says he’ll continue speaking out against social-media users who direct racist, abusive and threatening messages at him and other athletes. Liddell was rattled by a social-media rant directed at him after the Buckeyes were upset by Oral Roberts in the first round...
Big Ten alters attendance policy to reflect local guidelines, restrictions on coronavirus mitigation
The Big Ten announced Wednesday it will allow schools to host fans at games in accordance with local health guidelines and restrictions for the rest of the 2020-21 regular season. The policy is effective immediately, and it also covers spring football games. Previously, Big Ten competitions were closed to the...
Analysis: More madness likely in NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16
INDIANAPOLIS — Your bracket is shot. We know it. Ours is, too. A year after the NCAA Tournament was canceled, the madness returned with an opening weekend full of upsets. No. 1 seed Illinois, gone. So is Ohio State. High seeds Texas and Virginia also are out, replaced by upstarts...
Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter receives new ban from FIFA
GENEVA — Sepp Blatter was banned for a second time by FIFA on Wednesday for financial wrongdoing, seven months before the 85-year-old former president’s first ban expires. Blatter has recently been in poor health and was put in an induced coma for one week after undergoing heart surgery in December,...
Drew Timme’s time is now as key to Gonzaga’s bid for perfection
INDIANAPOLIS — He was already enjoying a terrific season, and now Drew Timme is one of the stars of March after two games of the NCAA Tournament. His game? It’s pretty good, as evidenced by what he did in Gonzaga’s second-round victory over Oklahoma, helping keep the top-seeded Bulldogs unblemished...
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, UConn’s Paige Bueckers dominating women’s tourney
SAN ANTONIO — Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark seem to be playing a personal game of horse on the national stage. After one delivers a highlight-filled performance, the other has a top-this moment. The captivating basketball exploits by the heralded freshmen have created a buzz around the women’s NCAA Tournament,...
This date in sports history: March 24
1936 — Detroit’s Mud Bruneteau ends the longest game in NHL history with a goal after 116 minutes and 30 seconds (six overtimes) to edge the Montreal Maroons, 1-0, in the semifinals of the Stanley Cup playoffs. 1941 — Long Island University wins the NIT championship with a 56-42 victory...
Shawnee State wins program’s first NAIA Tournament title
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — James Jones had 27 points and 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season and Shawnee State (Ohio) claimed the program’s first NAIA Tournament championship with a 74-68 victory over Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) on Tuesday night. Shawnee State (31-2), a No. 5 seed, won its...
Jordan Spieth rounding into form for fickle week of Match Play
AUSTIN, Texas — As much golf as Jordan Spieth likes to play, it took as much discipline as he could muster to not play at all. When he left the Masters on Nov. 15, the only two rounds of golf he played were of the recreational variety. One was a...
Preakness to run in front of 10,000 fans in May
The Preakness will be run in front of a limited capacity of 10,000 fans May 15 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. Organizers of the second jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown announced the decision Tuesday. Churchill Downs has said it expects the Kentucky Derby to be run in front...
NCAA President Mark Emmert agrees to meet protesting players after March Madness
The National College Players Association said Tuesday that NCAA President Mark Emmert has informed a group of basketball players who started a social media campaign to protest inequities in college sports that he will meet with them after March Madness. NCPA executive director Ramogi Huma said in a statement he...
Jim Litke: March was bound to be mad; NCAA tourney hasn’t disappointed
Considering how everything else has gone this past year, March was bound to be mad. So far, it hasn’t disappointed. The last perfect NCAA Tournament bracket was busted before the first round was over. The second round just wrapped with an even dozen upsets already in the books — a...
In terms of chaos, this year’s NCAA Sweet 16 field is historic
By at least one measure, this is the most chaotic Sweet 16 field to date. The seed numbers of the 16 remaining teams add up to 94, the highest total since the NCAA Tournament expanded in 1985. The previous record of 89 was set in 1986. This year’s regional semifinals...
Trio of upsets mark 2nd day of women’s NCAA Tournament
After an opening day of top seeds holding serve, the women’s NCAA Tournament became a little less predictable Monday as double-digit seeds BYU, Belmont and Wright State advanced. No. 11 BYU got things started with a 69-66 victory over sixth-seeded Rutgers for the tournament’s first upset. Wright State, seeded 13th,...
This date in sports history: March 23
1939 — Long Island University finishes the season undefeated after a 44-32 victory over Loyola of Chicago in the NIT championship. 1948 — Alex Groza and Ralph Beard combine for 26 points to lead Kentucky to a 58-42 win over Baylor in the NCAA basketball championship. 1956 — Bill Russell...
Column: Love him or hate him, Gragson has NASCAR talking
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Oh, Noah Gragson, what have you done now? Nothing, according to NASCAR, which went with a no-call by not penalizing Gragson for backing into Daniel Hemric’s car on pit road at Atlanta Motor Speedway over the weekend. Nobody was fined, either, for the post-race scuffle after that...
Roger Penske bullish on large crowd for Indianapolis 500
A fully vaccinated Roger Penske is hard at work at Indianapolis Motor Speedway preparing for a full season of racing that will include spectators at his showcase event. There will be fans at this year’s Indianapolis 500, Penske said Monday, but how many remains a moving target based on covid-19...
NCAA Tournament roundup: Oregon routs second-seeded IowaVideo
Chris Duarte scored 23 points, and Oregon showed no signs of rust after a long layoff, beating No. 2 seed Iowa, 95-80, on Monday to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in the past five NCAA Tournaments. The seventh-seed Ducks (21-6) were put in an unprecedented spot, advancing...
Los Angeles Lakers legend, Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor dies at 86Video
LOS ANGELES — Elgin Baylor changed the very direction of basketball when he joined the NBA and brought his vertical feats of athletic brilliance to a largely horizontal game. He filled scoresheets and sparked young imaginations with his trailblazing aerial style, and every high-flying player of the past 60 years...
Freshmen show no signs of jitters in women’s NCAA Tournament
Several freshmen showed no jitters on the opening day of the women’s NCAA Tournament. In fact, they embraced the bright lights of the Big Dance. It came as no surprise that Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, the nation’s leading scorer during the regular season, began a run of impressive performances in the...
Jim Litke: With big upsets in NCAAs, has the mid-major revolution begun?
In any other college basketball season, four upsets in the eight second-round games played at the NCAA Tournament would be a sign that something big is brewing. Were those the opening shots in the long-rumored mid-major revolution? Have enough talented kids and smart coaches finally taken up residence at programs...
Sweet 16 bound: No. 15 seed Oral Roberts stuns Florida
INDIANAPOLIS — Oral Roberts pulled off yet another upset to become just the second No. 15 seed in NCAA Tournament history to advance to the round of 16 with an 81-78 victory over Florida on Sunday night. Kevin Obanor and Max Abmas carried the Golden Eagles out of an 11-point...
NCAA Tournament roundup: Arkansas in Sweet 16 for 1st time in 25 yearsVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Justin Smith had 20 points and played a key role in a final-play defensive stop, helping Arkansas beat Texas Tech, 68-66, on Sunday in the NCAA Tournament, securing the program’s first trip to the Sweet 16 in a quarter-century. In the final seconds of a tense finish, Smith...
Ryan Blaney wins at Atlanta after Kyle Larson fades on old tires
HAMPTON, Ga. — Ryan Blaney knew he had to let Kyle Larson go. Patience was the key, especially on a day when Larson looked unbeatable. In the end, Larson faded on an battered set of tires, and Blaney raced by him for an improbable victory Sunday. “I was not going...
Matt Jones wins Honda Classic by 5 shots, earns spot in Masters
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — When Matt Jones won his first PGA Tour title seven years ago, he needed a 45-foot birdie putt just to get into a playoff and a 40-yard chip-in to take the victory. This win was far less dramatic, yet just as meaningful. It got him...
