Sports

By JOE REEDY AP Sports Writer Mark Grant will be the director for Monday night’s national championship game between San Diego State and UConn. And it’s believed he’s making history as the first Black director for a championship game in any sport. Grant replaced Bob Fishman, who retired last year after doing 39 Final Fours.

LONDON (AP) — Chelsea has fired manager Graham Potter with the club languishing in the middle of the Premier League standings despite spending around $630 million on players in the last two transfer windows. The team announced Potter’s departure a day after a 2-0 loss to Aston Villa that left Chelsea in 11th place. Chelsea

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Tampa Bay’s Jeffrey Springs was pulled after six hitless innings, and Riley Greene got the Detroit Tigers’ first hit with an infield single off Colin Poche in the seventh. Springs struck out a career-high 12 and matched his high of six innings. He threw 58 of 81 pitches for strikes.

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — The Sunday before Masters week is unlike any other major. It’s a blend of kids as young as 7 years old competing in the Drive, Chip and Putt. And then there are Masters champions like Gary Player and Bernhard Langer who are on the putting

By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Pascal Siakam scored 36 points, Fred VanVleet added 20 points and a career-high 20 assists and the Toronto Raptors defeated the undermanned Charlotte Hornets 128-108 to inch closer to securing a spot in the NBA play-in tournament. O.G. Anunoby added 23 points for the Raptors,

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner returned to Phoenix to be evaluated by medical staff after he felt fatigue during his first start this season. The 33-year-old left-hander allowed five runs, four hits and four walks in Arizona’s 10-1 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Trayce Thompson hit a grand slam in

HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis have smashed half centuries to give Royal Challengers Bangalore a perfect start in cricket’s Indian Premier League with an eight-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians. Rajasthan Royals showed plenty of batting muscle at the top of the order while Yuzvendra Chahal grabbed 4-17 in a resounding

By MARK DIDTLER Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Don Zimmer, a popular fixture in professional baseball for 66 years as a manager, player, coach and executive, has become the first person in the Tampa Bay Rays Hall of Fame. Zimmer was honored in a ceremony before Sunday’s game against the Detroit Tigers. He

By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Josef Newgarden won at Texas Motor Speedway for the second consecutive year when a thrilling wheel-to-wheel battle with Pato O’Ward came to a sudden halt by a crash behind them. Newgarden and O’Ward frantically swapped the lead over and over during the final

BREMEN, Germany (AP) — American coach Pellegrino Matarazzo has picked up his second consecutive win as Hoffenheim beat Werder Bremen 2-1 to ease away from the Bundesliga’s relegation zone. New Jersey-born Matarazzo lost his first five games in charge after taking over at Hoffenheim in February but wins over Hertha Berlin and now Bremen have

NEWCASTLE, England (AP) — Joe Willock and Callum Wilson scored second-half goals to lead Newcastle to a 2-0 win over Manchester United in the Premier League and above its rival in the race for Champions League qualification. Willock’s 65th-minute header and a second from substitute Wilson in the 88th inflicted just a second defeat in

By JEROME PUGMIRE AP Sports Writer PARIS (AP) — Monaco’s teenage talent made the difference as it rallied to beat Strasbourg 4-3 in the French league to move three points behind third-place Marseille in the chase for a Champions League spot. Finishing third means entry into the qualifying rounds while second place guarantees automatic qualification

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer It wasn’t long ago that Manchester United was being talked up as a potential outsider for the Premier League title. Now even a top-four finish is looking far from assured for a club up for sale and seeking Champions League qualification as another attraction for potential buyers. United’s 2-0

By MIKE FITZPATRICK AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — San Francisco Giants catcher Joey Bart has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a strain in the middle of his back. The move was made retroactive to March 31, and the team recalled right-handed reliever Sean Hjelle from Triple-A Sacramento before its series

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Providence suspended guard Alyn Breed after he was charged with pointing a gun at his girlfriend and other crimes over the weekend. Maj. David Lapatin said Breed wielded the gun during an exchange with his girlfriend in an off-campus apartment early Saturday, The Providence Journal reported. He also is accused of

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Karim Benzema has scored a hat trick in a seven-minute span as second-place Real Madrid crushed Valladolid 6-0 in the Spanish league. Rodrygo, Marco Asensio and Lucas Vázquez also scored for second-place Madrid which trails leader Barcelona by 12 points after the Catalan club won at

By EDDIE PELLS AP National Writer HOUSTON (AP) — The once semipredictable ground that underpinned college basketball has been changing at lightning speed over the past 24 months. It’s leaving coaches and their bosses scrambling to adjust to whatever comes next. The NCAA Tournament closes out Monday when UConn plays San Diego State, and will