Sports

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) — President Joe Biden picked the Villanova Wildcats to win the 2023 women’s national championship. The Wildcats play Saturday against No. 13-seeded Cleveland State at home at the Pavilion. No. 5 seed-Washington State plays No. 12 Florida Gulf Coast in the other game in the region.

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — The Dallas Cowboys are re-signing quarterback Cooper Rush as Dak Prescott’s backup on a two-year contract. Rush comes back on a deal worth up to $6 million after leading Dallas to a 4-1 record when Prescott was out with a broken thumb last season. Rush also won his only other start

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Joey Hauser scored 17 points and No. 7 seed Michigan State clamped down defensively on No. 10 seed Southern California in the second half for a 72-62 win in the first round of the NCAA Tournament’s East Region. Michigan State ramped up its defensive intensity

By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer GREENSBORO, N.C (AP) — Jack Nunge blocked Terrell Burden’s driving attempt at a go-ahead layup in the final seconds, and Xavier dug out of a 13-point hole against surprising Kennesaw State to escape with a 72-67 victory in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Souley Boum hit four

By ARNIE STAPLETON AP Sports Writer DENVER (AP) — Caleb Lohner scored a season-best 13 points in just 18 minutes, and No. 3 seed Baylor beat UC Santa Barbara 74-56 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday. Adam Flagler led the Bears with 18 points, and LJ Cryer scored 11 of his

By PAT EATON-ROBB AP Sports Writer STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Most coaches know their team’s identity and have a rotation set by the time the NCAA Tournament rolls around. But for Geno Auriemma and second-seeded UConn (29-5), there are still a lot of questions, because former starters Azzi Fudd and Caroline Ducharme only recently returned

NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA has fined Memphis Grizzlies guard-forward Dillon Brooks $35,000 for shoving a camera person on the sideline after chasing a loose ball. Brooks shoved the person with 2:40 left in the second quarter of Memphis’ 138-119 loss in Miami on Wednesday night. Earlier this month, Brooks was suspended for having

By NOAH TRISTER AP Sports Writer COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Cate Reese scored 25 points and Esmery Martinez had a double-double against her former team to help seventh-seeded Arizona to a 75-62 victory over 10th-seeded West Virginia in the women’s NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats started fast and never trailed. They’ll play the winner of

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) — Man, the Washington State women’s basketball team has felt like big winners since they adopted Shania Twain’s monster 1997 hit “Man, I Feel Like A Woman” as the their theme song on their run into March Madness. The Cougars sing Twain’s song in the locker

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Left-hander Jake Brentz and the Kansas City Royals have agreed to a $1.9 million, two-year contract that keeps him with the team as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. The 28-year-old will get salaries of $850,000 this year and $1.05 million next year. He was 5-2 with a 3.66 ERA and

RENTON, Wash. (AP) — The Seattle Seahawks have signed linebacker Devin Bush, inking the former first-round pick to a one-year deal and potentially filling a major void on Seattle’s defense. The 24-year-old Bush was the No. 10 overall pick in the 2019 draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers and had a standout rookie season where he

ST. FRANCIS BAY, South Africa (AP) — Julien Brun tops the leaderboard at the European tour’s SDC Championship on 8 under par. The second round was suspended because of high winds. The Frenchman carded a 5-under 67 on the St. Francis Links course in South Africa but most of the afternoon’s play was lost because

By JEROME PUGMIRE AP Auto Racing Writer Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff accepts the grim “reality” that their Formula One car is not good enough to challenge their main rivals this season. Wolff says ”I don’t think we can beat the teams in front of us.” But he knows where the W14 car’s faults lie.

By JOHN WAWROW AP Sports Writer ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills released receiver Isaiah McKenzie in a salary cap-saving move and following a season in which the sixth-year player struggled in an expanded offensive role. Cutting McKenzie on the day he was due a roster bonus frees up about $2.2 million in

By KYLE HIGHTOWER AP Sports Writer FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — A person with knowledge of the negotiation says free agent long snapper Joe Cardona is returning to the Patriots on a new four-year contract worth $6.3 million. The person spoke to The Associated Press on Friday on the condition of anonymity because the contract hadn’t

By FRANCIS KOKUTSE Associated Press ACCRA, Ghana (AP) — Ghana’s president was among hundreds of mourners who paid their last respects at the funeral of soccer player Christian Atsu. Atsu was a former Premier League player who died last month in the Turkey earthquake. President Nana Akufo-Addo, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, former President John Mahama

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Hockey Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington was disappointed to be suspended by the NHL for two games for his altercation with Minnesota’s Ryan Hartman. Binnington was hoping for less after a hearing that he said made him feel like Matt Damon’s character in ‘Good Will Hunting’

CHELTENHAM, England (AP) — Galopin Des Champs stormed up the hill for a convincing victory in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. The pre-race favorite at 7-5 odds answered questions about his stamina by pulling away from Bravemansgame after the final fence to win by about seven lengths. Conflated was third. The victory made jockey Paul Townend