Author: NBA Basketball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

SAN DIEGO – The big man of the moment here in Southern California goes by the name of “Zuby,” which is pronounced as “Zoobie” and is the nickname his mom gave him because it was easier to say than his real name – Chukwuebuka Ejiofor.

Get ready to hear it a lot on Sunday.

Zuby Ejiofor, a 6-foot-9 forward, started his college career at Kansas in 2022,  where he played for Hall of Fame coach Bill Self. Then he transferred to St. John’s in 2023 to play for Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino.

Three years later, Ejiofor, Pitino and No. 5 seed St. John’s face off against Self and No. 4 seed Kansas in a second-round men's NCAA Tournament game at Viejas Arena.

“We didn’t want him to leave,” Self said Saturday. “We’re really happy for his success. We just don’t … We just hope it doesn’t come against us.”

CINDERELLA'S TIME: Ranking the most likely upsets in the second round

Unfortunately for Self, Ejiofor happens to be on a monster run right now. He is the reigning Big East Conference player of the year, reigning Big East defensive player of the year and the leader of his team in scoring (16.3 ppg), rebounding (7.3 rpg), assists (121) and blocks (77).

Now comes the peak of his college career against his old team. Just don’t call it a revenge game. It’s not.

Why did Zuby Ejiofor transfer from Kansas to St. John’s?

Ejiofor (pronounced “edge-o-for”) sat in a chair Saturday surrounded by about 15 reporters and photographers at Viejas Arena. They wanted to know the story again: What happened at Kansas and why did he choose St. John’s?

“I had a fun time at Kansas,” Ejiofor said. “I wouldn’t lie: I didn’t really want to leave. But I knew that in order for my future to keep progressing the way I wanted to go, that I had to probably look elsewhere for a bigger opportunity.”

Ejiofor played in 25 games for Kansas as a freshman, when he averaged only 5.1 minutes per game. The Jayhawks finished with a 28-8 record that season and lost in the second round of the tournament against Arkansas. Ejiofor played seven minutes in that game and tallied two rebounds, one block and no points.

PORTAL KING: How Rick Pitino experimented with transfer portal at St. John's — and won

Then Kansas brought in a big transfer from Michigan in May 2023: 7-foot-1 Hunter Dickinson, who made the move in pursuit of more money for his name, image and likeness (NIL).

One day later, Ejiofor announced he was transferring out. He simply wanted more playing time and didn’t see him getting much of it with Dickinson there.

So Ejiofor signed with St. John’s, where Pitino had just been hired and was remaking his roster with 10 transfer players out of a roster of 14, including Ejiofor.

“I don't think I've enjoyed coaching a player as much since 1987 when I coached Billy Donovan (at Providence),” Pitino said of Ejiofor. “And I'm going to miss him terribly.  And I'm just going to appreciate him while I have him.”

No hard feelings between Kansas and Zuby Ejiofor

Self recruited Ejiofor out of Garland, Texas, where he was a late bloomer of sorts. He didn’t start playing basketball until eighth grade. He has Nigerian-born parents and another set of basketball “parents” of sorts, including his “dad,” Andy Philachack, a 5-foot-4 coach who influenced his decision to leave Kansas.

“Everybody embraced me my first year (at KU), so there’s no bad blood there,” Ejiofor said

Self confirmed the same.

“I love Zuby,” Self said.

And he’s not surprised by how well he’s done.

“Rick was obviously a great fit for him,” Self said. “I've enjoyed watching him grow, be a complete player, because when you talk about complete, you're talking about a skill set, posting, drawing fouls, using both hands, passing, stretching it, blocking and altering. When you lead a team that good in four major categories, you know you're a good player.”

Zuby Ejiofor considered other schools besides St. John’s

He took his first visit Villanova and considered Kentucky and Texas.

Why St. John’s?

“New York is a great city,” Ejiofor told USA TODAY Sports. “I had never been to New York before I visited St. John’s. And then everything that Coach Pitino stood for.”

Pitino credited assistant coach Ricky Johns for finding him. He came in for a visit and worked out in front of Pitino.

“I worked him out for about an hour, put him through a really tough work out, and I thought he was a terrific athlete, but he never – I gave him an extra hard workout to see if he could hold up against it, and he never tired,” Pitino said. “He just worked his butt off, and I said to his ‘dad,’ `I'd really love to have him.’”

Ejiofor since helped Pitino restore a dormant program in the heart of New York City. His photo recently even loomed large in Times Square in New York City.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a dream come true,” Ejiofor said. “I never dreamt of my picture ever being in Times Square. But man, it’s just crazy, you know, from where I came from and everything I had to go through.”                    Now comes his next big moment in the spotlight, this time against his old team at 5:15 p.m. ET on CBS. The winner advances to the Sweet 16 in Washington, D.C.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: St. John's star Zuby Ejiofor left Kansas, now wants to beat them

The Celtics went 4-0 since my last column, notching a solid win over the Warriors, and some uneven performances against the Wizards, Suns, and Grizzlies.

The negative way of looking at this is that the C’s really shouldn’t have struggled against the Grizzlies (24-45), and probably shouldn’t have had such a hard time with the Suns (39-31) considering they were hosting Phoenix.

However, there are positive aspects of these games to consider as well. The Celtics have struggled in clutch situations all season, as exemplified by their game against the Thunder the week prior. With Jayson Tatum back, they should be better, but they still need, for lack of a better term, clutch game reps. They need to figure out how they’re going to play out these situations now that they have Tatum back, and that’s the opportunity that games against Phoenix and Memphis presented.

Against Phoenix, Boston wilted in the first half of the fourth quarter, as the Suns went from being down by five at the start of the quarter to being up four with just over four minutes to play. From this point on, however, the Celtics locked down and the Suns did not score another field goal.

In Memphis, the Celtics struggled to put away a team that really had no business competing with them, but again, this enabled the Celtics to get some clutch game reps. The C’s entered the fourth quarter trailing by four, and Memphis managed to push that advantage as high as seven points, when the score hit 98-91 at the 9:08 mark.

The C’s caught up over the next two minutes, with Derrick White tying the game at the 7:21 mark. After two more lead changes, Jaylen Brown gave the Celtics the lead for good with 5:06 to go. That was the beginning of a 10-0 run that put the game out of reach.

Again, you can argue—not unreasonably, in my opinion—that it never should have come to this, but the bright side is that the C’s, on two occasions this week, got to learn how to close out tough games in convincing fashion. Against Phoenix, they relied on their defense, and against Memphis, it was their offense that carried the day.

Expansion on the table, finally

The NBA will be holding meetings starting on Monday to discuss expansion.

Previously, Adam Silver had indicated that the league was considering expansion in 2019, 2023, and 2025, but this is apparently the first time that the league has made expansion a subject of a Board of Governors meeting.

However, this upcoming meeting is not a meeting to award franchises, or even to approve expansion.

The only thing that’s officially being done at this meeting is obtaining a vote on whether the league should investigate expansion specifically to Las Vegas and Seattle.

Mind you, if there’s consensus on whether the league should investigate expansion to these cities, there’s basically consensus on whether the league will expand to these cities.

If you’d like to get a peek into how league meetings work, I invite you to read select chapters of Veeck as in Wreck, as well as The Hustler’s Handbook, in which Bill Veeck discusses his tussles with other Major League Baseball owners on matters such as relocation, sales of teams, and expansion.

The main takeaway you’ll get from Bill Veeck is that owners’ meetings work best when they are purely perfunctory affairs. Nobody wants surprises at these things, so there’s a great deal of time spent before meetings building consensus, lobbying, trading favors, and doing the sort of cajoling and wheeler-dealering that is what really keeps things moving forward.

Naturally, the stakes are a lot higher these days than in Veeck’s day. There’s a lot more money floating around and a lot more teams involved, but people are people, and people haven’t changed much over the past 70 years.

Adam Silver has said that relocation is not going to be on the agenda at this meeting, which is an interesting statement which implies that perhaps it should be.

So which franchises are on shaky ground? One is New Orleans. New Orleans is a small market, with a metro population of just over one million, and that’s riding on the thin edge of what you need to support a professional sports franchise, let alone two of them. There’s currently a conspiracy theory afoot suggesting that the owners are doing little to nothing to retain fans in order to build a case for the inevitability of relocation.

Memphis is another team in a tiny market that has some open questions about its home arena coming up. Their lease ends in 2028, and with a metro population on par with New Orleans, they’re in a similar situation with respect to their ability to support a pro team.

I suspect that the chief objection to expansion was a strong desire to relocate weaker teams to Seattle and Las Vegas in lieu of expansion which will not do much to shore up weaker teams and will ultimately dilute TV and sponsorship revenue for all existing teams.

If I’m going far out on a limb, I would suspect that some of the deal-brokering that has been going on to approve expansion has been support for relocation.

In any case, because expansion is on the agenda, it’s basically a fait accompli at this point. The owners pushing for expansion already have the votes they need in their pocket. What they had to do to get those votes remains to be seen.

Just keep your eyes open for the sudden appearance of news articles talking about how such-and-such a team is losing money or needs a new arena, or something similar.

Cade Cunningham and schedule length

The Piston’s loss of Cunningham to a collapsed lung has prompted a new surge of commentary on the length of the season, and its role in player health.

The league loves the money that this dense schedule brings in. With the league’s streaming deals in place, there are multiple NBA games every night of the week on nationally televised platforms. This is great for both owners and players—or at least it’s great for their wallets.

But nobody loves the seemingly increased toll that it’s taking on player health.

Players are doing far more than they did when the schedule was expanded to 82 games in the 1960s, and games are much more demanding. We are pushing the limits of what the human body is capable of, and we’re seeing the results of pushing those limits too far.

Unfortunately, there’s no good solution here. Or perhaps, I should say there is a good solution here, but nobody wants it. Nobody wants the season to be shortened, and everybody knows that the season is too long.

The irony here is that everyone in the league could easily afford to give up a bit of money in exchange for a shorter season. Basketball salaries are, on average, the highest among the four major sports, and for owners, fixed costs are a fractional aspect of the operating expenses they incur. Or, I should say, fixed costs outside of player salaries, which would be reduced under a shortened season.

Essentially, players and owners, who have more money than they need, are unwilling to give up some of it in order to assure that the game is healthier. Make of that what you will.

LeBron James set the record for the most regular-season games played in NBA history as he helped the Los Angeles Lakers to a dramatic buzzer-beating 105-104 victory against the Orlando Magic in his 1,612th outing.

James, 41, moved one clear of Robert Parish's 1997 record of 1,611 appearances, in a game the Lakers won when Luke Kennard scored a three-pointer with 0.6 seconds left.

"It just kind of happened. It was not on the list of things that I wanted to accomplish," said four-time NBA champion James.

"I wanted to be the best player in this league at some point. I wanted to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest, to ever play this game. I wanted to be an NBA champion.

"I wanted to possibly win rookie of the year, make All-Star appearances, win a gold medal, win some MVPs - those were some of my goals.

"But some of the stuff that's just been happening over the course of the last few years has been super-duper cool."

James - who is the first player to take part in 23 consecutive NBA seasons and is also the NBA's record points scorer - contributed 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals as the Lakers beat Orlando for a ninth straight win.

The Lakers are third in the Western Conference, while Magic are eighth in the Eastern Conference.

"Availability, I've always wanted to be available to my team-mates," added James.

"It's a mental toll, trying to play a lot and being out there. I just give a lot of praise to the man above and [it's about] just loving the game and appreciating the game."

James was not the only player to achieve a milestone as Kevin Durant passed NBA legend Michael Jordan to go fifth in the all-time scoring list in regular-season games.

Durant moved to 32,294 - two ahead of Jordan - courtesy of a 27-point display for the Houston Rockets, who are fourth in the Western Conference, in their last gasp 123-122 win against the Miami Heat, who are ninth in the Eastern Conference.

"It means a lot," said Durant, who passed Jordan with a three-pointer in the fourth quarter.

"I'm grateful to be here and for this incredible journey it's been. I'm looking forward to continuing."

Elsewhere, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points for the Oklahoma City Thunder as four players were ejected in his side's fiery 132-111 win against the Washington Wizards.

The Thunder's Ajay Mitchell, Jaylin Williams and Cason Wallace were ejected, along with Washington's Justin Champagnie, following a mass brawl near the end of the second quarter.

Reigning NBA champions Thunder remain top of the Western Conference, while the Wizards are one place off the bottom in 14th place.

Eventually, the Lakers will lose a basketball game again this season. But for however long their win streak goes, they’ll be hard-pressed to have a more improbable win than Saturday’s.

With 4.7 seconds left, the Magic had a two-point lead, the ball and a timeout. From that point, they lost the ball and gave up two wide-open looks at the basket. The first was at the rim to the all-time leader in points. The second was a three to a shooter having one of the most efficient shooting seasons from range in league history.

Truly an impressive amount of choking, all within five seconds.

This was a very ugly game offensively for the Lakers. Their defense kept them alive in the second half and did just enough to keep them attached late. In a win streak with lots of fun offensive games, both individually and as a team, this was a much different way to win a game.

So, let’s dive into the win. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.

LeBron James

35 minutes, 12 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 5-13 FG, 0-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, +4

This was not a good LeBron showing. Half of his 12 points came in a stretch of three straight possessions in the third quarter where he got out in transition.

Grade: C-

Marcus Smart

31 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 0-3 FG, 0-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, +1

The two most notable plays from Smart first included him doing the splits and limping off the court with a pain every male Lakers fan felt. He was also the recipient of maybe the worst call of the night after being given a technical foul for…falling?

Grade: C-

Deandre Ayton

29 minutes, 9 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 3-4 FG, 3-6 FT, +2

Kudos to Ayton, who inadvertently showed how hard it was for Austin to intentionally miss his free throw and have it carom right back to him.

Grade: B+

Austin Reaves

40 minutes, 26 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 4 fouls, 10-20 FG, 2-8 3PT, 4-4 FT, +8

It was a huge fourth quarter as he really saved the team’s blushes. The team had nine field goals in the fourth quarter and four of them were from Reaves.

Luka Dončić

38 minutes, 33 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals, 1 block, 4 turnovers, 2 fouls, 12-30 FG, 3-13 3PT, 6-9 FT, +10

It probably wouldn’t be much of an overstatement to say the second half was possibly the worst half Luka has played as a Laker. He had one field goal in each quarter and finished 2-13 from the field while missing all seven of his threes.

The good was really good in the first half but that was an atrocious second half, which makes it really hard to grade and I’m sure everyone will agree with what I’m about to give him.

Grade:C+

Rui Hachimura

15 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 block, 1 foul, 1-2 FG, -3

This was a super quiet game from Rui, whose only field goal came in the first quarter.

Grade: D

Jaxson Hayes

19 minutes, 8 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 fouls, 3-3 FG, 2-6 FT, -2

Hayes’ second half was good in a way that is abnormal for him in that he was being very physical, grabbing boards and blocking shots at the rim.

Grade: B+

Luke Kennard

20 minutes, 13 points, 3 rebounds, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 5-7 FG, 3-4 3PT, -6

Kennard was long overdue for a breakout game after a series of quiet offensive games. It was already a strong showing even before he buried the game-winner, which bumps you up a grade or three.

Grade: A

Jake LaRavia

14 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 steal, 4 fouls, 0-5 FG, 0-3 3PT, -9

In the month of March, LaRavia is shooting 32.7% from the field and 15.8% from the 3-point line. Are we nearing a point where Jarred Vanderbilt should get minutes over him?

Grade: F

JJ Redick

We’re going to give JJ a boost on his grade for the final two out-of-bounds plays of the game, which created two open looks. Assistant coach Greg St. Jean drew up the latter, but we aren’t grading assistants. So consider this grade all inconclusive with his staff.

Grade: A-

Saturday’s DNPs: Bronny James, Dalton Knecht, Drew Timme, Jarred Vanderbilt

Saturday’s inactives: Maxi Kleber, Kobe Bufkin, Nick Smith Jr., Adou Thiero, Chris Mañon

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand foundered against South Africa's spinners as the Proteas won the fourth Twenty20 by 19 runs Sunday to level the five-match series at 2-2.

Connor Esterhuizen made a maiden half-century from 33 balls as South Africa scored 164-5 after choosing to bat. Esterhuizen eventually was out for 57 and his innings made the difference between the teams.

New Zealand was ahead at 63-2 after the powerplay with Tim Robinson making 32 from 22 balls at the top of the order. But left-armer Prenelan Subrayen took 2-13 on debut and Keshav Maharaj took 2-22 to cut through the New Zealand middle order and turn the match in South Africa's favor.

Dane Cleaver made 26 from 16 balls, returning to the New Zealand lineup after almost three years. He was looking dangerous when he was beaten and bowled by a Subrayen delivery. Bevon Jacobs was also bowled by Subrayen when the ball dipped under his bat.

Jimmy Neesham (10) was dropped twice then caught in the same over from Ottneil Baartman, who took 2-30 from four overs.

Maharaj removed Nick Kelly (16) and Cole McConchie (10) as the spinners pinned down the New Zealand batters by varying their pace and flight.

“I thought a total of 164 was about par, maybe a bit below par,” New Zealand captain Jimmy Neesham said. "We certainly had a chance going into the second half of the game.

“A few average options and poor execution and we came out on the wrong side of it.”

New Zealand's already depleted lineup was further reduced by the loss of Tom Latham to injury and Devon Conway, Mitchell Santner and Lockie Ferguson for the last two matches of the series.

Esterhuizen rallied South Africa after it had lost Wiaan Mulder to the second ball of its innings, a maiden bowled by Kyle Jamieson.

The right-hander hit a six and a four from the third over, a six and four in the fourth over, a six and two fours among 17 runs in the fifth over, keeping the South Africa run-rate up. South Africa was 50-1 after the powerplay, its best start of the series so far.

Esterhuizen reached his half-century in the 10th over with a boundary from Ben Sears, the sixth four of his innings that also included three sixes.

“I just tried to keep it as simple as possible to be honest,” Esterhuizen said. "I didn't have much time to think about it because I was out there straight away.

“So I just tried to stick to a game plan and it came off tonight.”

Esterhuizen looked set to go big when he was brilliantly caught by Katene Clarke on debut, running in and diving forward from deep square leg.

Tony de Zorzi, who was the quiet partner in an 81-run stand with Esterhuizen for the second wicket, was out next over for 23 from 21 balls.

Rubin Hermann and Dian Forrester put on 38 for the fourth wicket, keeping the South Africa total ticking over. Forrester made 19 from 14 balls before being trapped lbw by a yorker from Zak Foulkes.

Hermann made an unbeaten 28 from 25 balls, Jason Smith scored 19 from 15 and George Linde added 14 from eight but New Zealand reined in South Africa's scoring a little at the death. Only 43 runs came from the last five overs and Sears allowed only one run from the bat in the final over.

The deciding match is at Christchurch on Wednesday.

___

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

PORTLAND, OR — Do you know that feeling when trying on clothes and physically, it fits, but really it doesn’t? 

There’s just something off. Maybe it doesn’t look good. Maybe it’s not the right style. Maybe there really isn’t a reason, other than it just isn’t right.

That’s exactly what’s going on in the NCAA Tournament.

A spectacle that is built on chaos hasn’t had much of it, with the 2026 edition producing just four double-digit first round winners. Only one of them is moving onto the Sweet 16, meaning we’ll get a single Cinderella.

And who will be the lucky one riding the carriage? Texas?

Oh, that’s no Cinderella.

In March Madness, one size does not in fact fit all.

“I don't think we ever really want to sign up to be the Cinderella story,” said Texas coach Sean Miller. “Because we are the University of Texas.”

It’s a puzzling juxtaposition: the tournament always calls for an underdog to root for, but you can’t be much of one when you – checks notes – recorded $331.9 million in operating revenues and $325 million in operating expenses in the 2024 fiscal year.

Even though this was its 11th NCAA Tournament win as a double-digit seed, Texas is so far from a Cinderella, one could argue it’s the evil stepsister.

To their credit, the Longhorns tried to not be one. They just weren’t really successful at it. Sure it had some notable wins but it also: lost to Duke in the season opener, finished sixth in a not-so-loaded Maui Invitational, had a 8-9 Quad 1 record to go along with 1-4 Quad 2 mark and a Quad 3 loss.

“In some ways, the first couple of months of our season were very much a work in progress,” Miller said.

Texas limped into the tournament with a three-game losing streak that pushed them into having to play in the First Four. Not ideal, but it did something that you never want to give teams with potential: an opportunity.

“We had a players-only meeting, and we just talked about that we just needed a chance,” said Texas guard Dailyn Swain.

A chance Texas has taken full advantage of. The Longhorns edged NC State in the First Four, completely outperformed AJ Dybantsa and BYU in the first round and on Saturday night in Portland, were one step ahead of a veteran Gonzaga squad playing in its own backyard.

It’s not so much a Cinderella, but a team playing up to the capabilities and expectations set on them. It just so happens there’s a little No. 11 right next to their name.

“We're all adults here in this room,” said Gonzaga coach Mark Few. “Some of these monikers we put on everybody from Cinderella to blue bloods and all that, I have a hell of a time understanding it. I mean, they make literally no sense.

“That is not a Cinderella team. That's a really talented basketball team with a really, really, really good coach, that has incredible resources and has a great history of doing great things in the tournament. That's just a 11-seed that had some tough losses during the year,” he added.

The result might say something larger about the state of Cinderellas. This will now be back-to-back years without them.

Yes, Texas ensures that there will be a double-digit seed in the Sweet 16, which has happened in every tournament except 2007 since expanding in 1985. But last year’s representative was Arkansas, a program that threw $7 million at John Calipari to get him to leave Kentucky. The one before that barely counts because at the end of the day, NC State is an ACC team with a rich history.

While we frantically wonder if the mid-majors are truly toast from making deep runs in the Big Dance, you do have to give Texas credit. The expectation isn’t for Texas to lose 14 games in a season, but it is expected to do exactly what it’s doing right now. This is not the same team that lost five of its last six games heading into Selection Sunday.

Jordan Pope is playing like the elite guard expected when he transferred from Oregon State in 2024. Matas Vokietaitis is completely commanding the interior, dominating any big man that dares get in his way. Sean Miller is showing why this will be ninth Sweet 16 trip, deciding to put in Camden Heide to hit the 3-point dagger against the Bulldogs. This looks like a real SEC contender.

The road to it wasn’t pretty, and that’s what makes Texas a great story. It figured it out at the right time when a lot of people counted them out. It makes them easy to root for. The Longhorns should celebrate this and have the mindset of a giant slayer when it arrives at the Sweet 16.

They have all the makings of it, but still, don’t try to fit the glass slipper on Bevo.

“Sometimes the lessons you've learned along the way strengthen you. We're a much better team right now than we would have been a month ago. I think we're playing our best, everybody wants to play their best in March, and we just so happen to do it,” Miller said. “Hopefully we can keep going.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Texas a Cinderella? Nope, the Longhorns are just hot at the right time

Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers have extended their win streak to nine straight games following a 105-104 road victory against the Orlando Magic on Saturday, March 21.

Doncic led the way for the Lakers, producing 33 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals against the Magic.

There’s a chance that he might not be available for the Lakers’ upcoming game on Monday.

Doncic earned his 16th technical foul after getting into an argument with Magic center Goga Bitadze. The Lakers were down 85-82 with 1:19 left in the third quarter when the guard was called for the technical foul. Referee Marat Kogut also charged Bitadze with a technical foul.

Crew chief Marc Davis stated in a pool report after the game that a warning had been issued before the technical fouls were initially called.

The Lakers have already appealed to the NBA about rescinding Doncic’s foul, according to ESPN.

"I'm definitely hoping (it is rescinded)," Doncic told reporters after the game. "I let my team down getting that last tech. But honestly, I wasn't trying to. (Bitadze) said at the free throw, he would (expletive) my whole family. And at some point, this is a basketball court. At some point, I just can't stand it. I got to stand up for myself. But I know I've got to do better.”

If upheld, Doncic would have to serve a one-game suspension without pay.

Bitadze offered a different account in a statement to ESPN about the exchanged words. The center claimed that the Laker first started cursing at him in Serbian.

"I have all the respect for Luka and what he has done," Bitadze told ESPN. "And I really respect everybody's family. Where I come from, it's really sacred and we really respect each other's families, and I would never directly say that. He just said some inappropriate things in the Serbian language, which, I played in Serbia, I understand.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lakers' Luka Doncic faces 1-game suspension after 16th technical foul

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Paxten Aaronson scored a goal in each half, Wayne Frederick's first career goal was the go-ahead score and the Colorado Rapids rolled to a 4-1 victory over Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night.

Aaronson gave Colorado (3-2-0) the lead in the 12th minute, but Shapi Suleymanov scored for the first time this season — in the 44th — to pull Sporting KC (1-3-1) even.

The tie lasted until the second minute of stoppage time when Frederick scored unassisted for a 2-1 lead at halftime. It was the 15th career appearance for the 21-year-old midfielder.

Rafael Navarro added an insurance goal in the 71st minute before picking up an assist when Aaronson capped the scoring four minutes later.

Aaronson, 22, has seven goals in 49 matches with 18 career starts. Navarro has three goals and three assists this season and 31 and 13, respectively, in 80 career matches.

Zack Steffen finished with two saves for the Rapids.

John Pulskamp saved four shots for Sporting KC.

Colorado is won of seven clubs in the Western Conference to post three victories through the first five matches.

Up next

Colorado: Visits Toronto FC on April 4.

Kansas City: Visits Real Salt Lake on April 4.

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This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Paxten Aaronson’s name.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Beau Leroux scored in first-half stoppage time and Daniel De Sousa Britto made it stand as the San Jose Earthquakes cooled off Vancouver with a 1-0 victory on Saturday night, ruining the start of a five-match homestand for the Whitecaps.

Leroux scored unassisted in the second minute of stoppage time to give the Earthquakes (4-1-0) the lead for good. Leroux's first goal this season comes after scoring five times in 33 matches as a rookie last year.

Daniel finished with six saves in posting his fourth clean sheet in five starts this season and his 15th in 68 career starts — all with the Earthquakes. He's never had more than five in one season.

Yohei Takaoka saved one shot on goal for the Whitecaps (4-1-0), who outscored their opponents 14-1 in winning their first four matches.

Vancouver falls into a second-place tie with San Jose, one point behind Los Angeles FC in a hotly-contested Western Conference that boasts seven teams with at least three victories through the first five weeks.

The Earthquakes also evened the series at 13-13-12.

Vancouver entered the match with a 20-4-7 all-time record at BC Place under head coach Jesper Sørensen.

St. Louis City was the last team to open with five straight victories — doing so in its 2023 expansion. season.

Up next

San Jose: Hosts San Diego FC on April 4.

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The Suns cannot get out of this funk as of late, and it keeps continuing. These injuries continue to keep this team depleted, and with some late-game offensive struggles again, they fall to the Milwaukee Bucks 108-105. This is very sad for the team as they are now continuing this losing streak at home, but not only that, they lost to a Giannis-less Bucks team.

This team was led by Jalen Green, who had 24 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists. He was able to find his rhythm early and late for this team, like he usually has, but struggled throughout the middle once again. One thing the team needs to figure out is how to work all three of their scorers together effectively, as it hasn’t been clicking lately.

For the Bucks, they were led by Ryan Rollins, a great underdog story, who kept finding his spots against a defense that got lost in the second quarter. He had 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists, leading their team. Kyle Kuzma also had a great game, but left early due to some tightness. preventing an injury. If he had finished the game, who knows, this one could have been out of reach earlier.

One thing is clear, though: they are missing Dillon Brooks, Mark Williams, and the veteran wings tremendously.

Game Flow

First Half

The Suns started this one off on the right note, getting to an early 9-0 lead. The Suns were actively hunting the paint to find baskets going to Oso Ighodaro and Jalen Green early. This hot start is something we are used to, but seeing it strike once again gives the fans hope of breaking this losing streak. The Bucks did answer back, but the Suns were able to maintain the defensive intensity to keep the lead.

Quick 9-0 start for the Suns, as Devin Booker creates this extra possession by crashing from the corner pic.twitter.com/81pfjLGxAZ

— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) March 22, 2026

With the team back home, they want to make sure they show out for their fans, and they did, to start. The Bucks have been able to find ways to the free-throw line, creating opportunities. But it went over 5 minutes without a field goal.

The one scary moment was when Jamaree Bouyea went up for a rebound and fell hard. Luckily, he was able to get up and walk off on his own. But the team could use his energy with them, so, depleted without Giannis, the Bucks are just struggling on both ends, and the Suns lead 26-15 after one quarter of play.

In the second quarter, it sadly was a bit of a different story to start. The Suns’ lead started to shrink after the Bucks had some big shots from Pete Nance and AJ Green. Jalen Green tried his best to keep the team afloat offensively, but it was just not enough as the Suns were forced to take a timeout and stop the bleeding.

Sadly, after that timeout, Phoenix did not change much as the Bucks slowly crawled back into this one, with the Suns struggling at the free-throw line; they are currently 1-5 to start. Once again, Kyle Kuzma is getting hot, too, which allowed the Bucks to tie it up at 37 halfway through this quarter.

If you read the preview for this game, you would know I mentioned that stopping Kyle Kuzma would be key. Unfortunately, he heats up in the second half once again, making some big shots. For the Suns, though, they did find some rhythm here offensively from Green and Goodwin.

The Bucks saw this hot streak continue with Ryan Rollins, who started making some tough baskets and bringing that lead bigger for Milwaukee. At the end of the quarter, though, the Suns woke up a bit and made some tough shots, especially the last one from Bouyea, to only be down five at half. The Suns’ defense has to be stronger on rotations and stopping the Bucks from getting to their spots on offense.

Second Half

In the third, the Suns saw a resurgence, with Collin Gillespie and Oso Ighodaro finding some baskets early. Ighodaro’s growth this season has been incredible, and recently, he has found his way to get some big slams that have brought some nice rewards. Gillespie also made another big three as he looks to be on one so far, with 4 triples. This gave Phoenix the lead back, but not for long.

The Nucks would then continue their onslaught, as they had just been dominating on the glass. Jerachio Sims was controlling every offensive rebound for them, allowing the Bucks more opportunities for second-chance points. This, with Kuzma and Rollins continuing to make threes, left the Suns trailing once again.

Unfortunately for the Bucks, Kyle Kuzma left with right Achilles tightness, and with one of their snipers now out, the Suns found a way back into this one. After back-to-back threes from Rasheer Fleming and Ryan Dunn, the Suns saw the lead and held it into the fourth, up by one, 82-81.

After three. @match_mortgage | #SunsUppic.twitter.com/FwV6NwJfva

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) March 22, 2026

To start the fourth, the Suns went with the man who started it all for them in Jalen Green. He started finding his rhythm again after missing two free throws he had seven straight. Cam Thomas, though, wanted to keep the Bucks alive and made sure they stayed in striking distance.

Ryan Dunn also had some nice plays in this game and really shone when the Suns needed him most. His activity on the glass has been present as the Suns are still without veteran wings and their starting center. He currently leads the team with eight boards and has been an x-factor to give the Suns some much-needed second-chance points.

Even though they tried to fight late, it was just not enough for the Suns. They missed some key shots late, even with Green going crazy for the fourth for a bit. Some big shots late from Myles Turner and Ryan Rollins put this one away, even though Phoenix was in it to the end.

Up Next

The Suns have yet another back-to-back game, this time against the Toronto Raptors again.

Vanderbilt star Tyler Tanner nearly became a March Madness legend against Nebraska on Saturday, March 21, but his potential game-winning halfcourt heave just barely missed and nearly broke the Cornhuskers' hearts.

Nebraska, already having won its first-ever NCAA Tournament game in the first round this season, advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history after its 74-72 win over the No. 5 seed Commodores in Oklahoma City. Tanner's shot was so shocking in the moment that Nebraska's players on the floor took a few moments to even process the shot missed.

"My heart sank as that ball went in the hoop and went out," Sam Hoiberg said after the game. "I think it took me half-a-second to register that it didn't go in, and then I just screamed in elation. I thought it was in."

REQUIRED READING: Nebraska advances to first Sweet 16 in program history, survives Tyler Tanner heave

Braden Frager added: "I had a perfect shot on it from the bench, and I just froze for two seconds. I thought it went in and I didn't know how to react. Everybody started celebrating and I was like, 'yeah, he actually missed it.'"

Tanner, a first-team All-SEC selection this season, ended the game with 27 points, four assists and four steals in front of a heavy pro-Nebraska crowd that traveled over six hours for the Cornhuskers' first-weekend games. When the shot bounced out of the hoop, his Vanderbilt teammates and coaches fell to the court in shock.

HEARTBREAK FOR VANDERBILT 💔

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, @HuskerMBB IS HEADED TO THE SWEET SIXTEEN 🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/u0WSdVjWOu

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 22, 2026

Frager's go-ahead driving layup with 2.2 seconds remaining ultimately led to Nebraska's historic win amid its best season in program history. The true freshman scored a team-high 15 points off the bench, tied with leading scorer Pryce Sandfort.

Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said immediately after the game on the TNT broadcast that he couldn't believe the final shot. Drenched in liquid after the Cornhuskers' postgame celebration in the locker room, he reflected on the shot again.

"That kid is an unbelievable player," he said of Tanner. "When that thing was up in the air I was like, 'Oh, that's going in.' Hit every part of the rim, thankfully bounced out and looking forward to next week."

Tanner, of course, was broken up by the miss after the game.

"It hurts pretty bad," he said.

Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington added: "We were in an inch away from being in the Sweet 16. It's going to take a while for us to get over."

For Tanner, the shot results in the end of his breakout sophomore season that saw him turn into one of the most dynamic guards in the country. He had a minor role of the bench for Vanderbilt last season, averaging 5.7 points per game before increasing his average to 19.7 per contest in 2025-26.

It could be the end of his college career, as he's projected to go No. 28 overall in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft to the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to USA TODAY Sports' latest mock draft. It'd be an end similar to that of Gordon Hayward, whose near-halfcourt make against Duke in the 2010 national championship still lives in college basketball lore.

Nebraska is just happy its unprecedented run is continuing into the second weekend.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nebraska reacts to Tyler Tanner's halfcourt heave: 'I thought it was in'

The Milwaukee Bucks respond to their worst game of the year with a gritty win tonight, beating the Phoenix Suns 108-105 in a nail-biting affair. Ryan Rollins dazzled for the Bucks with 26 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, while Jalen Green led the Suns with 24 points.

NBA.com Box Score

Game Recap

Like their previous game against the Jazz, the Bucks started poorly, allowing a 9-0 run to open. Also, like their game against Utah, Milwaukee turned the ball over at an unacceptably high rate to open, giving it away three times in as many minutes. Ultimately, it was not a pretty first quarter for both teams; from 7:27 to 3:50, there were just three points scored. The Suns got going to close the period, though, up 26-15 after one.

It was the AJ Green resurgence to open the second quarter. The Bucks ran their customary ATO (after timeout) set for Green, and he finally nailed a shot after a rough few games. AJ used that stroke on the next possession to get his defender in the air, driving and dumping off to Pete Nance for the layup. Then, he caught it on the wing with minimal space and let that thing fly, bringing the deficit back to just four, 25-29, after three minutes. It wasn’t as if the Bucks lit the world on fire over the next few minutes, but they collectively bought in on the defensive end and were able to get easier looks running off misses; over a 3:30 stretch, the Bucks went on a 20-7 run to take a six-point lead with four minutes left. Kyle Kuzma was key during the second, scoring 13 points on 5/7 shooting. Bucks up 57-52 at half.

A Ryan Rollins three on Milwaukee’s first possession put the Bucks up eight, but the Suns responded with an 11-2 run, spearheaded by Oso Ighodaro and Collin Gillespie. The visitors hung tough, though, with Prince and Rollins firing right back with a quick seven points between them. The game remained within six (or so) points for the rest of the quarter. I do want to note that Ousmane Dieng was given the job on Devin Booker and, although Booker made shots here and there, Ous did a great job moving his feet and being physical; it really opened my eyes as to what his future role could be on this team. Some late scrappy play by Phoenix had them up one, 82-81, at the end of three.

A nifty Cam Thomas cameo to open the fourth had the game tied at 84 after the opening few minutes. With Devin Booker on the bench, the Suns responded with a 7-0 run primarily through Jalen Green. However, a crucial step-back jack from Gary Trent Jr., followed by a Rollins swing-through and-one, had the Bucks down just one, 93-92, going into the final five minutes. Doc called a timeout after Jalen Green knifed into the lane to put Phoenix up three, drawing up a down-screen set for the aforementioned Trent, who nailed the triple—all tied up at 95 with 4:30 on the clock. Back to my prior point, Dieng would later rip Jalen Green and score on the break, followed by a floater in the lane, and voila, the Bucks were up five with 2:20 left. But of course, this game had more turns to come, with Booker nailing an and-one three to bring the lead back to just one. However, the Bucks would close with one of their best sequences of the year: kick out three to Myles Turner (cash), Dieng stonewalling Booker another time, and Rollins nailing the and-one; Bucks up 108-104 with 23.8 seconds on the clock, grabbing the win.

Stat That Stood Out

The Bucks had 20 assists on 39 made field goals; they moved the ball extremely well.

Kevin Durant continues to move up the NBA’s all-time scoring list.

Durant scored 27 points in the Houston Rockets' 123-122 win against the Miami Heat on Saturday, March 21.

He passed Michael Jordan (32,293 points) for fifth place on the list.

Durant is now one of two active players on the list, joining LeBron James. He trails LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone and Kobe Bryant. James is No. 1 on the list with 43,241.

He needs 1,351 points to pass Bryant for fourth on the list.

🚨 KD PASSES MJ 🚨

With this three, Kevin Durant passes Michael Jordan for 5th on the all-time SCORING list! pic.twitter.com/byqx3AFLer

— NBA (@NBA) March 22, 2026

NBA's top 10 all-time leading point scorers

1. LeBron James - 43,241
2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - 38,387
3. Karl Malone - 36,928
4. Kobe Bryant - 33,643
5. Kevin Durant - 32,293
6. Michael Jordan - 32,292
7. Dirk Nowitzki - 31,560
8. Wilt Chamberlain - 31,419
9. James Harden - 29,160
10. Shaquille O'Neal - 28,596

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kevin Durant passes Michael Jordan for fifth on NBA's scoring list

The Dallas Mavericks continue to lose, this time in a 138-131 overtime thriller to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Darius Garland had a savant performance, pouring in 41 points and 11 assists. Kawhi Leonard also had a great performance, scoring 34 points on just 22 shots.

The Mavericks almost pulled off the upset, but were eventually overwhelmed by the more talented team.

Let’s get to the numbers.

50: Three-point percentage for the Clippers

The Clippers were absolutely red hot from three all game, and consistently relied on outside shooting to outpace the Mavericks.

Garland and Leonard combined to be 13-of-21 from three, and the duo made the same amount of threes as the entire Mavericks team combined.

This game is yet another showcase of why the Mavericks desperately need more three-point shooting next year.

+17: Ryan Nembhard’s plus, minus

Ryan Nembhard has quietly found a resurgence in the last couple of weeks. Nembhard had the best plus/minus on the team, and the offense flowed better with him on the court.

While he didn’t start in the game, he showed his value as a bench guard, as he had nine assists with no turnovers.

The Mavericks guard room will look much different next year, but Nembhard is showing that he cannot be forgotten when discussing next year’s team.

3.5: Cooper Flagg’s assist to turnover ratio

While Cooper Flagg did not have an efficient shooting night, his playmaking was great once again.

His jump shot has been woefully off since returning from injury, but the rest of his game has improved, and his impact hasn’t changed. Flagg’s passing and court vision have always been solid, but he has been at a different level since returning.

If the Mavericks are going to continue the Flagg at point guard plan, than his playmaking chops become even more important.