Thomas Clements is as big an Arsenal fan as anybody. He follows his team home and away and is even named after Mickey Thomas, scorer of Arsenal’s decisive second goal against Liverpool in their 1989 title win. However, whereas the majority of match-goers might take for granted the seemingly small things like travel, the journey to the stadium, entering and exiting the ground – for disabled supporters such as Clements, careful thought and planning goes into arrangements.
Thomas was born with cerebral palsy, a condition that impacts his movement and posture, and requires assistance to be able to attend match days. All of this is facilitated by Arsenal, who, like many Premier League clubs, are striving for inclusivity.
'Arsenal and the disability liaison team is great at facilitating my needs,' says Clements. 'Without them it wouldn't be possible'
No. 1 Michigan beats No. 7 Purdue 91-80 for its 11th straight win
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Elliot Cadeau scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half Tuesday night, and Aday Mara added 10 points and 11 rebounds to send No. 1 Michigan past No. 7 Purdue 91-80.
Trey McKinney, Yaxel Lendeborg and L.J. Cason each had 13 points for the Wolverines, who won their 11th straight and took a big step toward capturing their first outright Big Ten regular-season title in five years.
The win came one day after Michigan (25-1, 15-1) moved into the nation’s top spot for the first time since January 2013.
It was the 7-foot-3 Mara’s early tone-setting presence that helped the Wolverines turn the tables on Purdue’s usually dominant front line as two-time national player of the year Zach Edey watched from the second row. Mara made each of his first four shots on the way to a 10-point, eight-rebound first half. He spent most of the second half in foul trouble, finishing 4 of 6 from the field as Michigan had a 39-31 rebounding advantage.
Trey Kaufman-Renn scored a season high 27 points to lead Boilermakers on a night most of his teammates struggled. Braden Smith added 20 points as the Boilermakers (21-5, 11-4) had their four-game winning streak end. They now trail Michigan by 3 1/2 games in the league race.
Michigan took control quickly by using an early 13-0 spurt to take a 23-10 lead. A 14-4 scoring flurry gave Michigan a comfortable 44-22 cushion with 4:23 left in the first half, forcing Purdue to futilely play catchup the rest of the night.
IOWA 57, NO. 9 NEBRASKA 52
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Bennett Stirtz scored 25 points and Cooper Koch added 10 as Iowa overcame a cold-shooting second half to defeat Nebraska.
Iowa (19-7, 9-6 Big Ten) won despite not making a field goal over the final 4:59. The Hawkeyes were 7 of 28 from the field in the second half, including 3 for 13 on 3-pointers.
Nebraska (22-4, 11-4), which has lost four of six, wasn’t much better. The Cornhuskers went 9 of 23 from the field, including 2 for 12 on 3s, and missed eight of their last 11 shots, going through an 11 1/2-minute stretch with just one basket.
Stirtz scored 10 of Iowa’s final 14 points. His jumper with 5:38 left gave the Hawkeyes a 47-45 lead, then he added a step-back 3 only 40 seconds later.
Iowa was coming off back-to-back losses last week to Maryland and Purdue after a six-game winning streak.
Pryce Sandfort, making his first appearance at Iowa since transferring after last season, led the Cornhuskers with 13 points. Sandfort was booed and taunted by Iowa’s student section throughout the game, but hit two 3-pointers to become Nebraska’s single-season leader with 90.
Jamarques Lawrence added 11 points for Nebraska.
NO. 12 FLORIDA 76, SOUTH CAROLINA 62
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Alex Condon had 20 points and 10 rebounds, Rueben Chinyelu also notched a double-double and Florida handled South Carolina for the second time in three weeks.
Chinyelu finished with 15 points and 17 boards for his 16th double-double of the season. The Gators won their sixth consecutive game and improved to 11-1 since losing at Missouri to open Southeastern Conference play.
This one was much closer than the previous meeting, a 47-point blowout in Columbia, South Carolina, in late January.
Still, the Gamecocks (11-14, 2-11 SEC) trailed by 10 points early and never mounted much of a threat in Gainesville, where Florida improved to 12-1 this season.
It was lopsided enough that 7-foot-9 walk-on center Olivier Rioux played the final minute after the home crowd chanted for him.
The best rebounding team in the country dominated inside, with Florida (20-6, 11-2) mounting a 47-30 rebounding advantage and outscoring South Carolina 44-28 in the paint.
Thomas Haugh added 10 points for Florida, which is trying to win the SEC’s regular season for the first time since 2014 and stay in the Sunshine State to open the NCAA Tournament in Tampa.
South Carolina leading scorer Meechie Johnson, who had 10 points in the first meeting, led the Gamecocks with 22 this time around.
NO. 15 MICHIGAN STATE 82 UCLA 59
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Jeremy Fears Jr. had 16 points and 10 assists, leading Michigan State to a victory over UCLA.
The Spartans (21-5, 11-4 Big Ten) bounced back with a strong performance after losing three of four games and falling five spots in the AP Top 25 this week.
The Bruins (17-9, 9-6) have lost two straight games after winning five of six.
UCLA forward Tyler Bilodeau scored 22 points but didn’t have much help. None of his teammates were in double figures until Skyy Clark made some late shots to finish with 12 points.
Fears made three 3-pointers in the first half and Michigan State took a 43-23 lead into the break. He finished with four 3s, a career high.
The Spartans were 8 of 14 from beyond the arc in the opening period and finished with a season-high 14 3-pointers on 27 attempts.
Coen Carr also scored 16 points for Michigan State. Carson Cooper had 12 and freshman Jordan Scott added 11. Jaxon Kohler provided nine points and 10 rebounds.
NC STATE 82, NO. 16 NORTH CAROLINA 58
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Quadir Copeland scored 20 points while N.C. State held North Carolina to 31.7% shooting in a rivalry win.
Freshman Matt Able added 19 points for the Wolfpack (19-8, 10-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who desperately needed this win to regroup after a 41-point loss at Louisville and a final-minute collapse in a home loss to Miami. And that had pushed Will Wade’s first N.C. State team onto shakier footing when it came to securing its ticket to March Madness.
But N.C. State pressed the attack all night against an injury-depleted rival, backed by a boisterous crowd. The Wolfpack shot 53.1% to build a 16-point halftime lead and never looked back.
By the end, N.C. State had its biggest margin of victory in the series since a 28-point win (85-57) in February 1962, according to College Basketball Reference.
Copeland added six rebounds and seven assists. Darrion Williams added 13 points on a night when he had a scary first-half fall that required stitches, coming after he hit his face on the court and trainers needed multiple towels to tend to the bleeding near his left eyebrow.
RHODE ISLAND 81, NO. 18 SAINT LOUIS 76
KINGSTON, R.I. (AP) — Jonah Hinton made nine 3-pointers and scored 29 points as Rhode Island upset Saint Louis, snapping the Billikens’ 18-game winning streak.
Robbie Avila led Saint Louis (24-2, 12-1 Atlantic 10) with 21 points and Dion Brown added 19. The Billikens committed 18 turnovers and trailed for 36 minutes.
The 18-game run had marked the second-longest active winning streak in the country, and the program’s longest since the 2013-14 squad won a school-record 19 games in a row.
Down 79-76 after URI’s Myles Corey made both free throws with 26.3 seconds remaining, Saint Louis had two chances to tie but Avila and Ishan Sharma each missed from beyond the arc. Tyler Cochran wrapped it up for the Rams (15-11, 6-7) by sinking two free throws with 13.6 seconds left.
Corey had 15 points and was 11 of 11 from the foul line. Cochran scored 11.
SMU 95, NO. 21 LOUISVILLE 85
DALLAS (AP) — Jaron Pierre Jr. scored 25 points and Boopie Miller had 23 points with nine assists as SMU beat Louisville, ending the Cardinals’ five-game winning streak.
SMU (18-8, 7-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) went ahead to stay on Miller’s short floater in the lane with 6:19 left that broke a 76-all tie. That was the second of six consecutive made field goals by the Mustangs, including a pair of 3-pointers by Corey Washington, who finished with 18 points.
Miller’s alley-oop pass to Pierre for a dunk with 1:49 remaining pushed the lead to 91-83 and sent the already-loud Moody Coliseum crowd into a real frenzy.
It was the Mustangs’ second win at home over a ranked ACC opponent this season, and could be significant in their push to reach their first NCAA Tournament since 2017. They beat then-No. 12 North Carolina 97-83 on Jan. 3, which was their first victory over a Top 25 opponent under second-year coach Andy Enfield.
Standout freshman Mikel Brown Jr. had 29 points for Louisville (19-6, 8-5), whose winning streak started with an 88-74 home win over SMU on Jan. 31. J’Vonne Hadley had 14 points and nine rebounds, while Ryan Conwell scored 12.
NO. 22 MIAMI (OHIO) 86, UMASS 77
AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — Miami of Ohio won its 26th straight game to remain the last unbeaten team in Division 1, defeating UMass thanks to 23 points from Peter Suder.
Luke Skaljac had 16 points and seven assists for Miami (26-0, 13-0 Mid-American Conference). Leonardo Bettiol scored 18 points with nine rebounds, Isaiah Placide scored 19 and Danny Carbuccia had 15 for UMass (15-12, 6-8).
Miami led by eight points with 14 minutes left before UMass scored seven straight to make it a one-point game and then added a 5-0 run to take a 62-60 lead. It was tied for the final time at 68-68 when Placide banked in a 3-pointer at the shot clock buzzer, leaving defender Eian Elmer shrugging in disbelief.
But Elmer answered with a 3 for Miami, then Suder hit a layup after a UMass turnover to give the RedHawks a five-point lead.
UMass never got any closer than three points after that.
OHIO STATE 86, NO. 24 WISCONSIN 69
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Bruce Thornton scored 27 points and Devin Royal added 25 for Ohio State as the Buckeyes knocked off Wisconsin.
Ohio State (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten) beat a ranked team for the first time in seven tries this season.
Braeden Carrington made five 3-pointers in the second half and led the Badgers with 20 points while Nick Boyd and John Blackwell each had 14 points.
Wisconsin (18-8, 10-5) entered as one of the hottest teams in the Big Ten, having beaten then-No. 8 Illinois and then-No. 10 Michigan State last week, but the Badgers couldn’t overcome a first half in which they shot 40% from the floor.
Ohio State shot 51.7% in the first half, including going 6 for 13 from 3-point range, to build a 38-26 lead at the break. The Buckeyes were 11 for 21 from behind the arc for the game.
Haggerty, Johnson combine for 67, lead K-State over Baylor 90-74 in coach Matthew Driscoll's debut
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — P.J. Haggerty scored 34 points, Nate Johnson added a career-high 33, and Kansas State cruised past Baylor 90-74 on Tuesday night in the debut of Wildcats' interim head coach Matthew Driscoll.
K-State (11-15, 2-11 Big 12) never trailed and held a double-digit lead for most of the second half to end a six-game skid. Driscoll replaced previous head coach Jerome Tang, who was fired Sunday night after four season at the helm.
Johnson’s layup gave the Wildcats a 21-point lead with 10:39 remaining. He surpassed his previous career-best 31 points with a dunk with 1:37 remaining.
Haggerty shot 15 of 23 overall. Johnson was 11-of-16 shooting and made five of the Wildcats' eight 3-pointers. Johnson also had nine assists and matched a career-high with six steals.
Isaac Williams IV scored 16 points to lead Baylor (13-13, 3-10), which has lost four straight. Tounde Yessoufou added 14 point for the Bears. Cameron Carr chipped in with 12 points and Dan Skillings Jr. scored 11. The Bears made just three of their 24 3-point attempts.
Johnson made four 3s and scored 16 points, and Haggerty added 13 points to help K-State build a 41-34 halftime advantage. The Wildcats shot 5 of 11 from long range while Baylor missed 11 of 12 attempts from beyond the arc.
Williams' layup pulled the Bears to 66-57 with 8:20 left but they didn't get closer.
Up next
Baylor hosts Arizona State on Saturday.
K-State is on the road Saturday to face No. 13 Texas Tech.
___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Swain, Vokietaitas double dip to help Texas past LSU 88-85
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Dailyn Swain scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Matas Vokietaitas recorded a double-double and Texas held off gutty LSU for an 88-85 win on Tuesday night.
Vokietaitas scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Tramon Mark and Jordan Pope each scored 18 for a Texas squad which shot 56% (29 of 52). The Longhorns' 23-of-34 performance from the foul line helped keep the Tigers alive.
Pope, Swain and Mark were each in double figures with 11, 11 and 10 points respectively before halftime after which Texas appeared poised to runaway with it.
In his return from a knee injury, Max Mackinnon came off the bench to score 21 of his 29 points in the second half for LSU. Marquel Sutton scored 19 points, Mike Nwoko 15 and Jalen Reece 14 for LSU.
Pope's jumper with 32 seconds left made it 87-82 to help seal the win. The basket occurred after Nwoko missed a floater in the lane which would've reduced the Tigers' deficit to a point. Pope missed two foul shots with 1:16 left.
The Longhorns (17-9, 8-5 SEC) led 30-25 with 5:17 left before outscoring LSU 18-8 before halftime and led 48-33 at intermission.
LSU (14-12, 2-11) rallied, however, and managed to get within four points on two occasions at the midway point of the second half.
Texas has won five straight conference matchups for the first time since 2021.
Marred by injury all season, LSU has lost four straight and 11 of 13.
Up Next
LSU: Hosts 25th-ranked Alabama on Saturday.
Texas: Travels to Georgia on Saturday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Georgia beats Kentucky 86-78 for the program's 1st first win at Rupp Arena since 2009
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Blue Cain scored 20 points, Jeremiah Wilkinson added 19 points off the bench and Georgia beat Kentucky 86-78 on Tuesday night for its first win at Rupp Arena since 2009.
Georgia (18-8, 6-7 SEC) had lost 12 straight at Kentucky since a 90-85 victory on March 4, 2009.
Cain made two free throws with 4:05 remaining for a 78-69 lead following a Flagrant 1 foul. But the Bulldogs turned it over on the ensuing inbounds play and Otega Oweh raced the other way for a fast-break dunk while being fouled. His free throw cut Kentucky’s deficit to six.
Marcus Millender answered with a long 3-pointer for Georgia to make it 81-72 with 3:33 remaining. The Bulldogs did not score again until Somtochukwu Cyril grabbed an offensive rebound and banked in a shot in the paint with 44.3 seconds left for an 83-78 lead.
Denzel Aberdeen made Kentucky’s last field goal of the game with 3:03 left before the Wildcats missed five straight.
Cyril and Millender each had 14 points for Georgia, which had lost five of its last six overall.
Oweh led Kentucky (17-9, 8-5) with 28 points. Collin Chandler added 18 points on a career-high six 3s and Aberdeen scored 14. The Wildcats entered allowing an average of 65 points per game.
Wilkinson made a 3-pointer with two seconds left in the first half to give Georgia a 39-34 lead at halftime. Cain and Cyril combined for 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting.
Up next
Georgia: Returns home to play Texas on Saturday.
Kentucky: Goes on the road to play Auburn on Saturday.
___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Doug Moe, the rumpled, irreverent coach of the high-scoring Denver Nuggets, dies at 87
Feb 1965; Unknown location, USA; FILE PHOTO; North Carolina guard Doug Moe (35) in action during the 1965 season. Mandatory Credit: Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Malcolm Emmons/Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
DENVER — Doug Moe, an ABA original who gained fame over a rumpled, irreverent and sometimes R-rated decade as coach of the Denver Nuggets in the 1980s, died Tuesday. He was 87.
Moe’s son, David, notified several of the coach’s friends that his father had died after a long bout with cancer, Ron Zappolo, a longtime Denver TV personality and good friend of Moe’s, told The Associated Press.
The Nuggets, in a social media post, called Moe “a one-of-a-kind leader and person who spearheaded one of the most successful and exciting decades in Nuggets history.”
Moe went 628-529 over 15 seasons as a head coach, including stints with the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers. He never won a title — his most memorable run coming in 1985 when his best Denver team fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals. He was the NBA Coach of the Year in 1988.
More than for wins and losses, Moe will be remembered for his motion offense and for the equally entertaining shows he put on while prowling the bench during his coaching days.
His Denver teams led the league in scoring over five straight seasons in the early ‘80s, and he rarely ran a set play.
He called the people he liked the most “stiffs,” (or worse) and used more colorful language to drive points home to some of his favorite foils — Kiki VanDeWeghe, Danny Schayes and Bill Hanzlik stood out.
The coach stalked the sidelines in one of his well-worn sports coats, usually without a tie (he had a small stash of “emergency suits” in his closet for bigger events), his hair a mess and his overtaxed voice barely at a croak by the end of most games.
The Nuggets bench, along with the 10 rows behind it, was no place for children, but within hours, Moe would be at the bar or coffee shop hanging with many of those same players he’d excoriated, often himself wondering where that foul-mouthed man on the sideline had come from.
“Sometimes I think I have a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality. I clown around a lot before and after a game, but once a game starts, my emotions just take over,” Moe said in a 1983 interview with The New York Times.
Years before John Elway arrived, Moe was Denver’s biggest sports personality. Zappolo, the sportscaster, said there was a sweet teddy bear behind the game-day bluster.
“I don’t know if there’s ever been a more important sports figure in Denver, not only because of how successful he was, but how colorful he was and how kind he was,” Zappolo said. “There are a lot of people walking around today who feel like they were Doug’s best friend.”
A legend in Brooklyn and North Carolina before a pro career in the ABA
Douglas Edwin Moe was born Sept. 21, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York. As a teen he became well-known in New York basketball circles, where he would sometimes head to gyms using fake names to play on teams he wouldn’t otherwise be eligible for.
He paired with good friend Larry Brown at North Carolina, where as a 6-foot-5 small forward he twice earned All-America honors. But Moe’s college career was terminated early because of a point-shaving scandal for which he received $75 to fly to a meeting; he refused to throw games.
After a few years in Europe, Moe again became a package deal with Brown, as they winded their way through the new and fledgling ABA. Moe was a three-time All-Star over a five-year career that ended early because of his perpetually ailing knees.
His playing days done, he teamed again with Brown, working as his assistant with the Carolina Cougars, and then with the Nuggets toward the end of the franchise’s ABA days.
Moe insisted he never wanted a head coaching job — didn’t want to work that hard — but Brown coaxed him into taking a job in San Antonio. With the help of George Gervin, Moe won the division twice and made one conference final in four seasons with the Spurs.
Moe’s next stop was Denver, where he took over after another of his Carolina buddies, Donnie Walsh, got fired in 1980. The ensuing 10 seasons marked a golden era for the Nuggets, who played in rainbow uniforms and rewrote record books but never climbed out from the shadows of the Lakers and Celtics dynasties of the era.
Moe coached the top-scoring duo in NBA history and in its highest-scoring game
Alex English and VanDeWeghe finished 1-2 in scoring in the 1982-83 season, a feat no teammates have accomplished since. The Nuggets lost a 186-184 game to the Pistons in 1983 that remains the highest-scoring game in NBA history. Moe won 432 games with the Nuggets, and the franchise retired that number, with Moe’s name attached.
It took more than 30 years after Moe retired and moved back to San Antonio for the Nuggets to break through and become NBA champions.
Oddly enough, one of Moe’s most colorful coaching coups came at the expense of the Nuggets on the last day of the 1977-78 season when he was with the Spurs. In an early game, Denver, coached by Brown at the time, fed David Thompson on the way to a 73-point outburst against Detroit that briefly put him ahead of Gervin in a neck-and-neck battle for the scoring title.
So, that night, Moe told the Spurs to get out of “Ice’s” way. Gervin scored 63 against the Jazz to win the title by .07.
Moe’s coaching peak, however, came with the Nuggets, where his teams got considerably better when Fat Lever and Calvin Natt came via a trade in 1984. But both were injured during that 1985 conference final against the Lakers. The Nuggets dropped the last three games in a 4-1 series loss, and Moe never got closer.
Though the focus of the Nuggets was offense, Moe spent ample time preaching defense — insisting it, not the team’s scoring ability, would make the difference between winning and losing.
Once, incensed at the lack of effort during a blowout loss at Portland, he commanded his team to stop trying on defense and to let the Blazers make layups at will over the final minutes to set the franchise scoring record for a single game. That earned him a fine and suspension, only weeks after he was fined for throwing water on an official.
For the most part, though, Moe made a career out of not taking himself too seriously — a wryly wrinkled counterbalance to the slicked-down Pat Riley and the Laker Showtime teams that dominated the NBA’s Western Conference over the decade.
Moe even punctuated one of his lowest moments — his firing by the Nuggets in 1990 — by wearing a Hawaiian shirt and popping open champagne at the news conference while his wife, whom he called “Big Jane,” looked on. A day to celebrate, he insisted, because he would now be getting paid to do nothing.
Moe finished his head coaching career with an unsuccessful stint in Philadelphia that lasted less than a season before returning to Denver in supporting roles, including a return to the bench as George Karl’s assistant.
“Because I’m stupid, or something like that,” Moe said when asked to explain why he was coaching again.
Far from it.
And despite his insistence that he did little more than throw a ball out there, there was a well-honed, much-practiced method behind what looked like the madness of his always-in-overdrive passing game.
“There will never be another sports figure like Doug Moe,” Zappolo said. “He really was one of a kind.”
From the Pocket: only winners in Lachie Neale media storm are those counting the clicks
Want to get this in your inbox every Wednesday afternoon? Sign up for the AFL newsletter here.
Lachie Neale has what boxers call “ring geometry” – an intrinsic, spatial understanding of safe spots and danger zones. He has fast feet that can dance, decelerate and drive out of a stoppage. But all the things that make him such a magnificent footballer – his timing, judgment, diligence and ability to extricate himself from trouble were apparently absent in his private life. A Lions grand final hero in September, he was tabloid fodder by Christmas.
What follows isn’t some sermon from the puritanical pulpit. I’m more interested in the media’s willingness to cross lines they wouldn’t have once dared, and our voracious appetite for these stories. If the mainstream media had pursued these scandals in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, the printing presses would have short-circuited. If our best sportspeople had been at the mercy of the British press in that same era, their careers would have gone the way of their marriages.
This is an extract from Guardian Australia’s free weekly AFL email, From the Pocket. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions
Continue reading...Donaldson scores Miami's last 15 points, scores 32 to lead Hurricanes past Virginia Tech 67-66
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Tre Donaldson scored Miami's last 15 points and finished with 32 to lead the Hurricanes to a 67-66 victory over Virginia Tech on Tuesday night.
Donaldson made a pair of free throws to pull Miami within 57-54 with 7:36 remaining, and his 3-pointer with 6:50 left sparked a 7-0 personal surge to give the Hurricanes a 61-59 lead with 4:40 left. The Hokies scored six straight points capped by Tobi Lawal’s dunk for a 65-61 advantage.
Donaldson hit a jumper and tied it 66-all with a 3-pointer with 1:18 left. He then made the first of two free-throw attempts with 12 seconds to go before Ben Hammond missed a jumper at the buzzer.
Donaldson shot 13 of 24 and made three of the Hurricanes' four 3s. Dante Allen scored 10 points for Miami (21-5, 10-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), which has won four straight and six of its last seven games.
Amani Hansberry scored 16 to lead Virginia Tech (17-10, 6-8). Jailen Bedford scored 12 points and Hammond 10. The Hokies have lost four of their last five games.
Virginia Tech shot 50% in each half and were 8 of 20 (40%) from long range but just 2 of 3 from the line. Miami was 9-of-13 shooting from the line.
Virginia Tech made 5 of 11 from 3 for a 34-31 halftime lead.
Up next
Virginia Tech hosts Wake Forest on Saturday.
Miami plays at No. 14 Virginia on Saturday.
___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Aussie Test stars caught up in stunning Shield collapse; son of a gun’s statement – LIVE
A stunning collapse ensured Queensland slumped to defeat against South Australia at the Gabba, a result that could have major implications in the race for a Sheffield Shield final berth.
Caitlin Clark on LeBron James giving up cookies: 'I'd rather retire'
Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark is just getting started in her professional basketball career, but if there's one thing that might make her consider giving it all up is saying no baked goods.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James revealed during an episode on his podcast, "Mind the Game," that he gave up eating chocolate chip cookies and drinking wine in the first two months of the season as he returned from a sciatic nerve injury.
For the WNBA star, it's to each their own.
"I'd rather retire than do this. That's why he's him," Clark jokingly commented under an ESPN Instagram post.
LeBron James: 'Mind The Game' episode
Check out James speak on his decision to cut out alcohol and sugar in his latest episode of "Mind the Game."
The biggest stories, every morning. Stay up-to-date on all the key sports developments by subscribing to USA TODAY Sports' newsletter.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Caitlin Clark on LeBron James giving up chocolate chip cookies
RECKONING TIME: The Wolfpack Breaks The Heels 82-58
Game Summary:
Having witnessed the Carolina magic too many times, when Tre Holloman sprained his ankle in the first minute, and then Darrion Williams left blood on the floor – I was beginning to expect the worst.
But I kept feeling better every time the Heels missed one of their 28 MISSED 3PT shots.
Quadir Copeland decided this was his game, and played what has to be one of the best games of his career with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals and NO TURNOVERS. He’s going to make some NBA team very happy.
- TWO GAME LOSING STREAK ENDED
- TWO GAME LOSING STREAK TO UNC ENDED
- 24 points – UNC’S LARGEST DEFICIT OF THE SEASON
- LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY SINCE 1962– Everett Case over Dean Smith
| Teams | eFG% | TO% | OR% | FTR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolfpack | 55.5% | 6.4% | 34.3% | 25.0% |
| UNC | 35.8% | 18.9% | 39.5% | 35.0% |
Overall Takeaways:
- The Pack held UNC to 15% from 3PT
- Excepting Jordan Snell’s 2 late 3PT misses, the Wolfpack was 9-18 (50%) from 3PT
- Only 4 turnovers
- Only lost rebounding total by 2, won defensive rebounds 26-23
- NC State had 7 steals, UNC had none
Coach Wade Post Game Comments
Individual Highlights
- Darrion Williams came back and gave the Pack 13 / 1 / 1 after taking a bad fall and getting stitched up
- Jordan Snell picked up what has to be his only technical foul ever – career high
- Quadir Copeland led scoring with 20, assists with 7, steals with 4
- Paul McNeil led rebounding with 7
- Matt Able had his career high with 19 points
Player Stats and Box Score
| Player | PTS | REB | ASST | TO | BLK | STL | MIN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quadir Copeland | 20 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 32 |
| Matt Able | 19 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 31 |
| Darrion Williams | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| Ven-Allen Lubin | 12 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 28 |
| Paul McNeil | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
| Terrance Arceneaux | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 23 |
| Musa Sagnia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
| Tre Holloman | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Alyn Breed | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Jordan Snell | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
‘Won’t put up with it’: Big names facing axe as historic nightmare threatens Aussies
When Steve Smith strides to the crease in Balagolla on Saturday morning, Australia’s kit bags and suitcases will already be packed, their flight tickets home from a diabolical failure confirmed.
Rhode Island basketball fans rush court following upset win vs No. 19 Saint Louis
Rhode Island men's basketball pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the 2025-26 college basketball season, giving fans a reason to storm the court.
The Rams handed No. 19 Saint Louis its first Atlantic 10 Conference loss of the season with an 81-76 win at Thomas M. Ryan Center in Kingston, Rhode Island, on Tuesday, Feb. 17. As the clock hit double zeros, fans rushed the court to celebrate the upset victory.
RHODE ISLAND HANDS NO. 18 SAINT LOUIS ITS FIRST LOSS IN A-10 PLAY‼️ pic.twitter.com/9QDVodc9CG
— ESPN (@espn) February 18, 2026
The loss dropped Saint Louis to 24-2 on the season and 12-1 in Atlantic 10 play, while Rhode Island improved to 15-11 (6-7). While the loss likely will not be enough to keep the Billikens out of the NCAA Tournament, it is a tough loss to take.
Saint Louis had won 18 straight games since a 78-77 loss to Stanford on Nov. 28. Robbie Avila led the Billikens with 21 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals in the loss.
Jonah Hinton hit nine 3-pointers en route to a 29-point performance on 10-of-17 shooting from the field in the win for the Rams. Myles Corey added 15 points and five rebounds, while Tyler Cochran added 11 points for Rhode Island.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rhode Island basketball fans rush court after win vs No. 19 Saint Louis
Does the NBA have a tanking issue? Mark Cuban doesn't think so
With NBA commissioner Adam Silver fining teams for tanking and making statements about repercussions, there has been a lot of talk in league circles about the process and strategy of tanking its effectiveness and fairness.
The Utah Jazz received a $500,000 fine and the Indiana Pacers got a $100,000 fine for recent game management and roster decisions, the league announced on Feb. 12.
Tanking, in a nutshell, is strategically and effectively losing games through playing or not playing players that can help win. In the long run, the hope is to position oneself in the draft and in free agency to improve the team long term.
One of the latest sports figures to partake in the conversation was Dallas Mavericks minority owner and basketball advisor Mark Cuban, who took to social media to express his take.
Cuban posted on X, formerly Twitter, saying that "tanking isn't the issue" and went on to explain "why the NBA should embrace tanking," even providing his own experience as a previous majority owner of the Mavericks for more than two decades.
"The NBA has [quite] been misguided thinking that fans want to see their teams compete every night with a chance to win. It’s never been that way that way," Cuban wrote. "When I got into the NBA, they thought they were in the basketball business. They aren’t."
"They are in the business of creating experiences for fans. Few can remember the score from the last game they saw or went to. They can’t remember the dunks or shots. What they remember is who they were with. Their family, friends, a date. That’s what makes the experience special."
Cuban, the Mavericks' majority owner for 23 years and now minority owner, said that fans understand when their team isn't good. What fans prioritize more is hope, he implied.
"Fans know their team can’t win every game. They know only one team can win a ring. What fan that care about their team’s record want is hope. Hope they will get better and have a chance to compete for the playoffs and then maybe a ring," Cuban wrote. "The one way to get closer to that is via the draft. And trades. And cap room. You have a better chance of improving via all 3, when you tank."
Did Mark Cuban, Mavericks lose intentionally?
Tanking happens often in the NBA and it has for a better part of the last two decades. At least Cuban said so on X.
He also added that fans "appreciated it" whenever they would willfully lose games.
"We didn’t tank often. Only a few times over 23 years, but when we did, our fans appreciated it. And it got us to where we could improve, trade up to get Luka [Doncic] and improve our team," Cuban wrote on X.
Cuban and the Mavericks acquired Doncic via a trade with the Atlanta Hawks, who selected Doncic with the third overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, for Trae Young, who Dallas chose at the fifth pick, and a protected future first-round pick.
Positioning themselves for that pick, they finished the previous season with a 24–58 record, which included a 3-15 start through their first 18 games, and finished the season winning just two of 14 games.
In the 2025 NBA Draft, the Mavericks received the No. 1 pick, selecting Cooper Flagg out of Duke.
During the 2024-25 season, the Mavericks sent Doncic, along with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, to the Los Angeles Lakers in a controversial blockbuster trade in return for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a first-round pick.
Dallas finished the 2024-25 season with a 39-43 record, losing in a postseason play-in qualification game to the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Mavericks became the second straight team, after the Hawks, to qualify for postseason play and to receive the first overall pick despite only having a 1.8% chance to win the NBA draft lottery.
The bottom NBA standings in the 2025-26 season
The Sacramento Kings have the worst record in the league at 12-44, just above them are the Washington Wizards at 14-39. Here are the bottom ten teams in the NBA standings through the All-Star break in the 2025-26 season.
- Sacramento Kings,12-44
- Washington Wizards, 14-39
- New Orleans Pelicans, 15-41
- Indiana Pacers, 15-40
- Brooklyn Nets, 15-38
- Utah Jazz,18-38
- Dallas Mavericks,19-35
- Memphis Grizzlies, 20-33
- Milwaukee Bucks, 23-30
- Chicago Bulls,24-31
Tank-a-thon predicts 2026 NBA Draft through All-Star break
The following order in the 2026 NBA Draft, according to Tankathon.com, predicts the Kings with the No. 1 pick and the Wizards at No. 2.
The Pelicans would have the No. 3 pick but it goes to the Hawks after a they acquired an unprotected 2026 first-round pick from New Orleans during the 2025 NBA Draft as part of a deal for the 13th pick, which was Derik Queen. The Hawks secured the right to the most favorable 2026 first-round pick between the Pelicans and the Bucks.
Here's the hypothetical order of the 2026 NBA Draft as of Feb. 17, according to Tankathon.com:
- No. 1: Sacramento Kings
- No. 2: Washington Wizards
- No. 3: New Orleans Pelicans (traded to Hawks)
- No. 4: Indiana Pacers
- No. 5: Brooklyn Nets
- No. 6: Utah Jazz
- No. 7: Dallas Mavericks
- No. 8: Memphis Grizzlies
- No. 9: Milwaukee Bucks
- No. 10: Chicago Bulls
Cuban: Bigger issue in NBA than tanking
Cuban stands by that tanking is one of least of the NBA's concerns, or should be. Rather he insisted that the NBA should focus on game attendance.
"The NBA should worry more about fan experience than tanking," Cuban wrote on X. "It should worry more about pricing fans out of games than tanking. You know who cares the least about tanking , a parent who cant afford to bring their three kids to a game and buy their kids a jersey of their [favorite] player. Tanking isn’t the issue. Affordability and quality of game presentation are."
The average cost for a family of four to attend an NBA game during the 2025-26 season is $277.65 for the cheapest available tickets, a parking spot, two beers, two sodas and four hot dogs, according to Bookies.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mark Cuban said tanking for draft position isn't an issue in NBA
Burks, UCF start fast in 82-71 win over TCU to end Knights' three-game losing streak
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Jordan Burks scored 16 of his 23 points before halftime and Themus Fulks scored 14 points and UCF ended a pair of streaks on Tuesday night by beating TCU 82-71.
UCF (18-7, 7-6 Big 12) stopped its three-game losing streak while ending TCU's (16-10, 6-7) three-game winning streak.
Reserve George Beale Jr. added 11 points for UCF.
The Knights built a 9-2 lead and never trailed en route to a 58%-shooting effort (15 of 26) before the break. UCF shot 49% (28 of 57) overall.
Micah Robinson scored 20 points, David Punch 14, Xavier Edmonds 12 and Jayden Pierre and reserve Tanner Toolson 10 each for the Horned Frogs.
Toolson's 3-pointer with 14:37 left before halftime brought TCU within 11-10. Burks countered with his own 3 and Punch followed with a shot in the lane and TCU would never get closer.
UCF went on a 10-2 run to extend the lead to 24-14 with 10:27 before halftime and stayed ahead by double digits with the exception of two seconds late in the second half.
TCU went on a 9-0 run cutting the Knights' 19-point lead to 10, but a Fulks floater pushed the lead to 67-55 with 6:04 left. TCU used a 14-3 run to draw within 78-69 with 59 seconds left before Fulks made two free throws with 57 seconds to go.
Up Next
TCU: Hosts West Virginia on Saturday.
UCF: Travels to face Utah on Saturday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball