Sports

By JOE STIGLICH Associated Press SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Valeri Nichushkin scored two goals and the Colorado Avalanche withstood a late San Jose rally to beat the Sharks 5-3 for their third victory in a row. Cale Makar added a goal and two assists and Nazem Kadri and Darren Helm also scored for Colorado,

By BETH HARRIS AP Sports Writer INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Iga Swiatek rallied from a break down in each set to beat Simona Halep 7-6 (6), 6-4 and reach the final of the BNP Paribas Open. Swiatek saved two set points in the first-set tiebreaker when she overcame deficits of 3-1 and 5-3. She

By JOE REEDY AP Sports Writer SAN DIEGO (AP) — Mike Miles Jr. scored 21 points and ninth-seeded TCU got its first NCAA Tournament victory in 35 years, easily dispatching eighth-seeded Seton Hall 69-42 on Friday night. The Horned Frogs’ last tournament victory was in 1987 against Marshall, when coach Jamie Dixon was a senior

By ANDREW LOGUE Associated Press AMES, Iowa (AP) — Ashley Joens scored a season-high 36 points and third-seeded Iowa State rallied to beat No. 14 seed UT Arlington 78-71 in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. The Mavericks were bidding to be the first 14-seed to ever win a game in the tournament

By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Michigan State was tough enough to take back the lead in a critical moment, then fortunate enough to withstand Davidson’s desperation final charge. “I thought it was a little bit of a roller-coaster,” Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo said. The Spartans survived regardless, getting

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Sports Writer STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Stanford’s Francesca Belibi became the third woman ever to dunk in the NCAA Tournament, slamming one down with one hand in the second quarter for the top-seeded, defending champion Cardinal in their first round game against 16th-seeded Montana State. Belibi’s dunk marked the first by

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Sports Writer STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Francesca Belibi blocked a shot at the 3-point line then drove the length of the floor and slammed the ball home with one hand for her third career dunk in the second quarter of top-seeded Stanford’s 78-37 win against 16th-seeded Montana State in the first

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer PITTSBURGH (AP) — Houston looked like a team capable of making another deep run in March as it opened the NCAA Tournament with an 82-68 win over UAB. Kyler Edwards scored 25 points and Fabian White Jr. added 14 for the Cougars. Edwards made six 3-pointers, including an exclamation

By PAUL NEWBERRY AP Sports Writer ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Braves capped a busy week with another stunning move, signing three-time All-Star closer Kenley Jansen to a $16 million, one-year contract. The deal was announced Friday night. The 34-year-old Jansen finished with 38 saves and a 2.22 ERA in 69 appearances for the Los

DETROIT (AP) — Penn State moved closer to its ninth NCAA wrestling championship in 11 years, widening its lead in the team race as five of its six semifinalists advanced. The Nittany Lions had 108 points. Michigan was second with 84.5 and two finalists competing Saturday night. Arizona State had 63.5 points and Iowa 62

By JOHN COON Associated Press SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Rudy Gobert had 19 points, 16 rebounds and two blocks, and Jared Butler scored a career-high 21 points to lead the Utah Jazz to a 121-92 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. Jordan Clarkson added 20 points, Eric Paschall 17 and Nickeil Alexander-Walker finished with

SEATTLE (AP) — Longtime NFL journalist John Clayton died Friday following a short illness. He was 67.  The Seattle Seahawks announced the death for Clayton’s family in a statement. Clayton worked for the team in recent years as a sideline reporter on radio broadcasts.   Nicknamed “The Professor,” Clayton spent more than two decades covering

By JIM VERTUNO AP Sports Writer AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Aaliyah Moore scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Texas overcame a gritty effort from Fairfield to open the NCAA Tournament with a 70-52 win on the Longhorns’ home court. The No. 2 seed Longhorns smothered fifteenth-seeded Fairfield early and held the Stags under

By ADRY TORRES Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Julius Randle scored 18 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, RJ Barrett had 18 points and the New York Knicks outlasted the Washington Wizards 100-97. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer for the Wizards, who have lost their last six games. Mitchell Robinson

By BRIAN MAHONEY AP Basketball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 38 points, Seth Curry returned to the lineup with seven 3-pointers in his best game as a Net, and Brooklyn rallied to beat the Portland Trail Blazers 128-123. Curry finished with 27 points, his most since coming from Philadelphia last month in

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Taylor Hall scored a power-play goal with 4:47 left in the third period and the Boston Bruins beat the Winnipeg Jets 4-2. Brad Marchand, Trent Frederic and Charlie McAvoy also scored for Boston, which has won four of its last five. Charlie Coyle picked up three assists and McAvoy had one.

By RAUL DOMINGUEZ Associated Press SAN ANTONIO (AP) — C.J McCollum had 20 points and the New Orleans Pelicans strengthened their play-in hopes by beating the San Antonio Spurs 124-91. Jonas Valanciunas had 16 points and 12 rebounds and Jaxson Hayes added 16 points for New Orleans. The Pelicans won for just the second time