Utah fires men’s basketball coach Craig Smith with Utes as 15-12

The University of Utah fired men's basketball coach Craig Smith on Monday, a day after a 76-72 loss at Central Florida that dropped the Utes to 15-12 this season. Smith was in his fourth season in charge of the program. The 52-year-old Smith will be replaced by assistant coach Josh Eilert on an interim basis as the school searches for a replacement.

Hampton defeats Stony Brook 81-49 for its fifth straight victory

Daniel Johnson scored 15 points as Hampton beat Stony Brook 81-49 on Monday for its fifth straight victory. Johnson shot 5 of 10 from the field, including 2 for 5 from 3-point range, and went 3 for 3 from the line for the Pirates (16-13, 8-8 Coastal Athletic Association). Wayne Bristol Jr. added 12 points while going 5 of 11 (2 for 4 from 3-point range) while he also had 10 rebounds.

Never mind the quality, feel the money: central flaw of football’s ‘greatest show on earth’ | Barney Ronay

Title race and relegation over by February? The Premier League is rich, but there’s no jeopardy and no real sense of excellence, at least not on the pitch

Ladies and gentlemen we have now reached our cruising altitude. The pilot will be putting his feet up and drinking tiny cans of Sprite from here to the middle of May. Sit back, zone out. Stick on a bad film with Seth Rogen in it. You can even watch the football if you like. Just don’t expect much to happen for the next three months.

So much for that excitingly bumpy, turbulence-fuelled Premier League season, all perky upstarts, crumbling certainties and unexpected shifts of altitude, which really did seem to be shaping up just a few short weeks ago. As of game weekend 26 and Arsenal’s defeat against West Ham, followed by Liverpool strolling through Manchester City, the league has reached a stage of premature entropy.

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