Mulkey, LSU women reach 1st title game, rally past Va Tech

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Mulkey, LSU women reach 1st title game, rally past Va Tech DALLAS (AP) — Alexis Morris scored 27 points and had two of her misses in the fourth quarter turned into putback baskets by Angel Reese in a big run as LSU rallied to beat top-seeded Virginia Tech 79-72 in a national semifinal game Friday night. Reese finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds for LSU (33-2), which is going to the national championship game for the first time.The win came in the second season since feisty and flamboyantly dressed coach Kim Mulkey — in a carnation pink top this time — returned to her home state to take over a Tigers program that lost five consecutive national semifinal games from 2004-08 the only other times they made it this far.LSU will play Sunday against the winner of the South Carolina-Iowa semifinal.Mulkey, who won three national titles in four Final Four appearances over her 21 seasons at Baylor, is only the second coach to take two different teams to the national championship game. The other was C. Vivian Stringer, with Cheyney in the inaugural ...

Harden, Embiid lead 76ers to 117-110 win over Raptors

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Harden, Embiid lead 76ers to 117-110 win over Raptors PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid had 25 points and 12 rebounds, James Harden had 23 points and 11 assists and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Toronto Raptors 117-110 on Friday night.The Sixers made 30 of 39 shots (77%) in the first half and raced to a 24-point lead that nearly evaporated. Fred VanVleet, who scored 16 points, buried a 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter that pulled the Raptors to 103-101 and silenced the sellout crowd.Embiid, though, steadied the 76ers with a jumper and PJ Tucker buried a 3 that gave them some breathing room. Harden drove to the hoop for a bucket and a 110-101 edge that forced the Raptors to call timeout.The Raptors didn’t have another run in them. Scottie Barnes scored 29 points and OG Anunoby had 19.Harden and Embiid combined to make 12 of 16 shots and Harden made all three 3-pointers in the first half. Embiid and Harden showed no ill effects of injuries that hampered them of late. Embiid is playing through a nagging right calf injury that co...

Schumaker gets 1st win, Marlins top Mets 2-1 behind Chisholm

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Schumaker gets 1st win, Marlins top Mets 2-1 behind Chisholm MIAMI (AP) — Skip Schumaker got his first win as a major league manager behind five shutout innings from Jesús Luzardo and home runs by Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jorge Soler that carried the Miami Marlins over the New York Mets 2-1 on Friday night.Shumaker, an 11-year-big league veteran, got his first managing job last October when he was hired to replace Don Mattingly, The 43-year-old spent last season as the St. Louis bench coach.Luzardo (1-0) struck out five and allowed two hits, while walking four in his first start this season. The 25-year-old left-hander who had a 3.32 ERA with a 30% strikeout rate in 100 1/3 innings last season.Soler, in his first game in right field for the Marlins, made a leaping grab against the wall on Pete Alonso’s sharp fly ball to right center in the second, Soler followed with a leadoff shot in the bottom half off David Peterson (0-1) and ran in for a diving catch that robbed Starling Marte for the final out in the eighth to strand. That stranded Daniel V...

40-acre wildfire near Morrison, Red Rocks, cause identified

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

40-acre wildfire near Morrison, Red Rocks, cause identified JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) -- A brush fire sparked off Interstate 70 in Jefferson County on Friday afternoon, causing pre-evacuations and closing roads and nearby Red Rocks Amphitheatre.The fire was burning along the hogback south of I-70, with smoke visible in the area of I-70 and C-470. It was estimated to be 40 acres in size at 0% containment around 8:45 p.m., according to West Metro Fire. Investigators believe the fire was caused when an electrical line fell on the west side of the hogback.Rooney Road will remain closed through 8 a.m. Saturday from Sixth Avenue and C-470 to Morrison, according to the Lakewood Police Department. All hiking trails on the hogback and Matthews/Winter Park will be closed on Saturday, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said. 9 ways to prepare for a wildfire in your neighborhood Pre-evacuations were issued for several areas, but those were lifted by around 8:30 p.m.Red Rocks Amphitheatre was cleared of visitors in the afternoon. A concert sche...

Pipe failure at JW Marriott Marquis Miami causes water to gush onto street below

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Pipe failure at JW Marriott Marquis Miami causes water to gush onto street below A pipe failure at a downtown Miami hotel caused water to cascade down from several floors onto the street below.7Skyforce captured water flowing out of the side of the JW Marriott Marquis Miami, located at 255 Biscayne Boulevard Way, at around 5:40 p.m. on Friday.The water was spotted on the lower floors of the hotel.Cellphone video sent in by a 7News viewer in a nearby building captured the flooding from across the street.A 7News crew later spotted someone sweeping water off the hotel’s pool balcony.The gushing water surprised guests and people walking downtown.“We came out, and there was a big waterfall over there, and then it just exploded,” said Paul, a hotel guest.“We all grabbed our stuff and just ran away as fast as possible,” said J.J. McGovern.McGovern and his family said they had just checked into the hotel.“I have absolutely no idea what actually happened, but we were walking out to get dinner and it kind of got a little sprinkle on us,” said...

Metsola’s charm offensive jolts EU election campaign to life

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Metsola’s charm offensive jolts EU election campaign to life THE HAGUE — Roberta Metsola never explicitly asked for their votes, but the European Parliament president was clearly campaigning. “Ask me anything,” she declared, kicking off a forum Thursday night with about a thousand students at the University of Leiden, breezing through questions on everything from the war in Ukraine to the Qatargate corruption scandal, and bringing a bit of a rock star feel to the packed lecture hall.The Maltese EU lawmaker was in the Netherlands on a two-day trip to drum up interest in the 2024 EU election — and, perhaps, to boost her own profile amid rumors she is eyeing Ursula von der Leyen’s job running the EU’s executive. Notably, she made a pit stop Friday morning to visit Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, one of the EU’s most senior leaders, who lauded Metsola as “effective” and “strong.”It was, essentially, an unofficial campaign starting gun, kicking off a year of political jockeying ahead of the 27 national votes that could spark...

Through fury and grief, remembering Bucha

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Through fury and grief, remembering Bucha Andriy Yermak is the head of the Office of the Ukrainian Presidency.Even in war, it should be possible to look forward to spring.It’s a time for blossoming hope, for relief from the winter darkness. Yet here in Ukraine, the arrival of spring carries an inescapable burden of fury and grief.It was early April last year when a valiant Ukrainian counteroffensive forced the retreat of Russia’s troops from the city of Bucha, on the northwestern outskirts of Kyiv. What we discovered there after a month of Russian military occupation, we will never be able to forget.Bucha is no longer a quiet Ukrainian suburb, known for its charming neo-Gothic railway station. To speak of Bucha today is to recoil from the horror of its massacres. It has become the 21st-century equivalent of World War II’s Oradour and Katyn Forest, or the Balkan War’s Srebrenica.Under Russia’s control, this city became an inferno of torture, mass murder and unfathomable depravity. And through the efforts of international inv...

Finland’s top political ally: The sauna

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Finland’s top political ally: The sauna THE SAUNA AT THE FINNISH PERM REP, BRUSSELS — It’s very hot in here. But not hot enough, according to my Finnish hosts.The time has come for a ladle’s worth of water to be poured onto the pile of smoldering rocks in the corner, they explain. Only then will the room reach an acceptable temperature, in the vicinity of 100 degrees Celsius.In Finland, the sauna is an institution. It’s on the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List and has famously also played a role in its politics, proving a collaborative atmosphere for officials to bridge divides as they bargain in the buff. There used to be a running joke that the country was “one sauna away” from joining NATO.Of course, it took Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to get Finland’s government to change its tune on joining the military alliance, something that Prime Minister Sanna Marin said was “very unlikely” before the war started. Finland, which goes to the polls on Sunday for a general election, now only needs the Turkish parliam...

Illinois theater roof collapses in storm; injuries reported

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Illinois theater roof collapses in storm; injuries reported By ANDREW DeMILLO (Associated Press)LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Authorities say a theater roof collapsed during a tornado Friday night in Belvidere, Illinois, and that injuries have been reported.The Belvidere Police Department said the collapse occurred as a heavy storm rolled through the area and that calls began coming from the theater at 7:48 p.m. It said that an initial assessment was that a tornado had caused the damage.Numerous media reports said the collapse occurred at the Apollo Theatre during a heavy metal concert.Belvidere is about 70 miles northwest of Chicago. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A monster storm system tore through the South and Midwest on Friday, spawning deadly tornadoes that shredded homes and shopping centers, overturned vehicles and uprooted trees as people raced for shelter. At least one person was killed and two dozen or more were hurt, some critically, in the Little Rock area, ...

Chicago Bears free-agency news: Nathan Peterman reportedly will return as a backup QB

Published Thu, 28 Mar 2024 09:16:36 GMT

Chicago Bears free-agency news: Nathan Peterman reportedly will return as a backup QB In his second offseason with the Chicago Bears, general manager Ryan Poles has had plenty of salary-cap space to help him rework a roster that finished 3-14 in 2022.The Tribune continues tracking all of the Bears’ arrivals and departures and provide insight into what they mean.Key additions on defense — but what’s next for offensive line? Brad Biggs’ 6 thoughts off Bears GM Ryan Poles’ availability.Column: Bears need more from rank-and-file free agents. Robert Tonyan, Andrew Billings and D’Onta Foreman believe they can deliver.New Bears wide receiver DJ Moore, key addition from the trade of the No. 1 pick, aims to ‘elevate the offense’Column: Bears’ aggressive start to free agency has one common thread — young players entering their prime yearsBears trade the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL draft to the Panthers. Here’s what they got in return.Sign up for our free Bears alerts so you don’t miss any newsThursdayThe Be...