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NCAA official: Tournament expansion for men and women unlikely next year

The NCAA has not finalized expansion plans for the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments and a decision is unlikely soon, NCAA senior vice president of basketball Dan Gavitt said in a CBS Sports interview. “It’s not taken in a lighthearted way at all because of the success of the tournaments and how important they are to college basketball overall,” Gavitt said.

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Australia into Champions Trophy semis after washout against Afghanistan

  • Points shared after rain halts Australia’s chase of 274
  • Afghanistan hopes rest on England crushing South Africa

Australia went through to the Champions Trophy semi-final thanks to a no-result in the Lahore rain on Friday night, but looked well on track to get there on their own dime against Afghanistan before the abandonment for a wet outfield 12.5 overs into their chase. According to statisticians, that is too early to use the recalculation formula to award a win, but even those with a far more basic grasp of mathematics could see that 109 was an awfully long way towards a target of 274, and one wicket down was not a factor. With Travis Head rampaging on 59 from 40 balls, Australia were going at 8.5 an over and needed 4.5 from there.

Still, it was a shame not to at least see the possibility of a twist via Afghanistan’s spinners, with Rashid Khan not getting a bowl before the rain. There was extra frisson around this game given it was the first ODI between the sides since the Maxwell miracle at Mumbai in 2023, when the Australian all-rounder became the only player ever to make a double century in the second innings of a one-day game. This time around he wasn’t required to face a ball, though he contributed a very tidy 1 for 28 as a bowler in the first innings.

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