Mets’ Scherzer loves ‘cat-and-mouse’ game of MLB’s new rules
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — New York Mets right-hander Max Scherzer described pitching under Major League Baseball’s new rules as a “cat-and-mouse” game. Contrary to previous years, Scherzer feels the pitcher finally has control of the tempo because of the new pitch clock. In his first start of the Grapefruit League schedule, Scherzer was touched for a run in the second inning but struck out five while working the first two innings of the Mets’ 6-3 win over Washington. The average game time through three days of spring training is 2 hours, 39 minutes, down from an average of 3:01 for all of spring training last year.
Houston, Alabama top AP Top 25; Marquette climbing, Pitt in
The top five spots in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll remained the same. The rest of the AP Top 25 was a big jumble. Houston was No. 1 for the second straight week in the poll released Monday, receiving 49 first-place votes from a 62-person media panel. No. 2 Alabama had five first-place votes and No. 3 Kansas received eight. UCLA and Purdue rounded out the top 5. The Boilermakers held at No. 5 despite losing to No. 15 Indiana. The rest of the poll, only No. 20 Providence kept the same position from last week.
No. 1 South Carolina women run AP Top 25 streak to 36 weeks
South Carolina is No. 1 for the 36th consecutive week. That ties Louisiana Tech for the second-longest run atop The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll in history. Only UConn with 51 weeks has a longer streak. Indiana stayed at No. 2 despite a last-second loss to Iowa. Utah was third with LSU and Maryland rounding out the top five. Iowa was seventh with Virginia Tech eighth. UConn fell five spots to ninth after losing to St. John’s. Notre Dame is 10th. South Florida re-entered the Top 25 at No. 25. Florida State dropped out.
AP sources: Haslams agree to purchase Lasry’s stake in Bucks
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Two people with knowledge of the negotiations say Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam have agreed to purchase Marc Lasry’s 25% stake of the Milwaukee Bucks in a deal that puts the value of the NBA franchise at $3.5 billion. The agreement has not been finalized. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither the Bucks nor the Haslams publicly disclosed any element of the agreement. The Haslams would be spending about $875 million for Lasry’s stake of the team. It would be the second-highest valuation in NBA history, behind the $4 billion valuation for the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury when Mat Ishbia acquired them in a deal that closed this month.
AP Interview: Stenmark says Shiffrin ‘better than I was’
Ingemar Stenmark says all this fuss over Mikaela Shiffrin as she approaches his record of 86 World Cup skiing victories is beside the point. Because the 66-year-old Swede believes the American is already on another level. Stenmark says in an interview with The Associated Press that “she’s much better than I was. You cannot compare.” He adds that Shiffrin “has everything” in terms of strength, good technique and a “strong head.” He says he won’t attend upcoming races at the Swedish resort of Are to watch Shiffrin because he doesn’t want to disrespect Swedish skiers competing.
Maple Leafs answer Lightning by making trade with Blackhawks
The Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired forward Sam Lafferty and defenseman Jake McCabe from the Chicago Blackhawks. Their latest big trade comes the day after division-rival Tampa Bay paid a hefty price to acquire forward Tanner Jeannot from Nashville. Talent continues to flow to Eastern Conference contenders ahead of the NHL trade deadline Friday. In recent days, New Jersey got big winger Timo Meier from San Jose and Boston traded with Washington for Garnet Hathaway and Dmitry Orlov.
Rangers’ Miller to have disciplinary hearing for spitting
NEW YORK (AP) — K’Andre Miller of the New York Rangers will have a hearing with the NHL’s department of player safety for spitting at L.A. Kings defenseman Drew Doughty. It was not immediately clear which day the hearing would take place. The Rangers do not play again until Wednesday at Philadelphia. Miller posted a message to social media saying his actions were completely accidental and goes against who he is as a person and player. The 23-year-old said he felt awful about the incident and thanked Doughty for giving him the opportunity to apologize after the game. Garnet Hathaway was suspended three games for spitting in 2019.
Novak Djokovic breaks record for most weeks ranked No. 1
Novak Djokovic has broken the record for the most time spent at No. 1 in the professional tennis rankings by a man or woman. He begins his 378th week in the ATP’s top spot on Monday to surpass Steffi Graf’s 377 leading the WTA. Djokovic already held the men’s mark. He eclipsed Roger Federer’s old ATP standard of 310 weeks in March 2021. Djokovic returned to No. 1 this time by winning the Australian Open in January. After Djokovic and Graf on the all-time No. 1 weeks list are Martina Navratilova with 332 and Serena Williams with 319. The computerized rankings began in the 1970s.
Column: Kyle Busch out to prove he is still best in NASCAR
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Kyle Busch has made a dramatic recovery from losing his job after 15 years at Joe Gibbs Racing. He moved to Richard Childress Racing, the softest landing spot he could find. And even though RCR has long struggled to be competitive, Busch took the team to victory lane in just his third start in the No. 8 Chevrolet. Now he’s launched what could be a season-long redemption tour that should be troublesome to Busch’s competitors.
Terry Holland, who transformed Virginia basketball, dies
Terry Holland, who elevated Virginia basketball to national prominence during 16 seasons as coach, has died. He was 80. Holland’s death Sunday night was announced by the school Monday. He was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2019 and stopped taking his courtside seat at Virginia home games. In 1974, Holland took over a program that had had just three winning seasons in 21 years. He guided the Cavaliers to nine NCAA Tournaments, two Final Fours and the 1980 NIT title. Virginia also won its first Atlantic Coast Conference tournament title in 1976. Future Hall of Famer Ralph Sampson credited Holland as a deciding factor in choosing upstart Virginia over more established programs.
