KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Top-seeded Kansas will begin defense of its Big 12 Tournament title on Thursday against the winner of No. 8 seed West Virginia and ninth-seeded Texas Tech in Kansas City. Those two meet in the first game of a first-round doubleheader Wednesday night with the winner of No. 7 seed Oklahoma State and No. 10 seed Oklahoma advancing to face second-seeded Texas. Two quarterfinal games already are set: No. 10 Baylor, the fourth seed, plays fifth-seeded Iowa State in Thursday’s opener, and No. 12 Kansas State, the third seed, plays sixth-seeded and No. 22 TCU in the nightcap.
UNDATED (AP) — Big 12 scoring and rebounding leader Jalen Wilson of Kansas is the unanimous pick as The Associated Press Big 12 player of the year. Kansas State senior forward Keyontae Johnson joins Wilson as the unanimous first-team All-Big 12 picks. Johnson, a transfer from Florida, was also selected as newcomer of the year. Texas graduate guard Marcus Carr, Baylor senior guard Adam Flagler and K-State junior guard Markquis Nowell round out the first-team picks. First-year Kansas State coach Jerome Tang is the AP coach of the year in the Big 12.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A person familiar with the decisions says the Kansas City Chiefs plan to decline using the franchise tag for the second consecutive year on left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., and they will release pass rusher Frank Clark. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither of the moves has been officially made. The moves leave the Super Bowl champions with gaping holes on both sides of the ball but also free up more than $20 million in salary cap space ahead of free agency.
UNDATED (AP) — Conference tournaments will give AP Top 25 teams a last chance this week to impact their seeding for the NCAA Tournament. Selection Sunday is only days away as those teams play across the country. The American Athletic, Big Ten and Southeastern conferences are among those that will hold their championship games on the day the field of 68 is announced. The Atlantic Coast, Big 12, Big East and Pac-12 conferences are all set to wrap up Saturday. Teams like No. 1 Houston, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Kansas and No. 4 Alabama are all positioned for top NCAA seeds.
UNDATED (AP) — The Baltimore Ravens say they are designating Lamar Jackson as their franchise player. That prevents him from becoming an unrestricted free agent this month after the expiration of his rookie contract. The nonexclusive franchise tag means Jackson can negotiate with other teams, but the Ravens would have a chance to match any agreement. If they choose not to match, they’d receive two first-round draft picks in return. If Jackson plays this season on the franchise tag, he’d make $32.4 million. Jackson becoming available could shake up NFL free agency, which opens later this month.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — The New York Giants have reached a new four-year contract with quarterback Daniel Jones and put a franchise tag on running back Saquon Barkley. The Giants confirmed the deal with Jones on Tuesday night. The team reached an agreement with Jones' representatives with with the deadline for a franchise tag minutes away. The team announced that Barkley received a nonexclusive franchise tag, which means he’s able to negotiate a contract with other teams. He will earn more than $10 million this season if he does not agree to a long-term deal before training camp.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The process of sorting out this year's No. 1 overall draft pick began at the NFL's annual scouting combine. It's far from over. After seeing Anthony Richardson of Florida wow scouts with an impressive workout and Bryce Young of Alabama measure in shorter than expected, the next step for teams will be attending pro days and even more testing. Richardson and Young were just two examples of players who did well in Indianapolis. Many others weren't as fortunate.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — NFL teams shopping for receivers can find a little of bit everything at this year's scouting combine. And the variety reflects the evolving role that receivers, tight ends and even running backs are playing in today's game. The options in Indianapolis include tall and strong players, short and quick ones, deep threats and slot guys, polished receivers and tight ends, even multi-purpose running backs. It's because finding someone with the versatility to stretch the field has become an essential component in today's NFL.
TAICHUNG, Taiwan (AP) — The 20-team World Baseball Classic got underway after a six-year absence with the Netherlands defeating Cuba 4-2 in a Group A game in Taiwan to open the tournament. Play in Group B begins on Thursday in Tokyo with South Korea playing Australia and host Japan — led by Angels star Shohei Ohtani — up against China. Play in Groups C and D begins Saturday in Phoenix and Miami, The United States won the last tournament in 2017 and is among the favorites with the Dominican Republic and Japan. Japan has won it twice (2006, 2009) and the Dominicans once (2013).
DENVER (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo had a rebound taken away by the league a day after his intentional miss of a layup led to him recording a triple-double. Social media had a field day with the incident involving the Milwaukee Bucks' standout. The moment dredged up conversations about “stat padding." While wiping away Antetokounmpo’s last board was probably an easy call for the league, it sometimes can be a fine line between padding one’s stats and just playing the game hard. Russell Westbrook no doubt heard the innuendos when he was a triple-double machine with Oklahoma City. Two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic has recently heard it, too.
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The PGA Tour looks to have stolen a page or two from the LIV Golf playbook. The tour will have 11 designated tournaments next year with small fields, big money and no cuts. Just like LIV. It's guaranteeing to have all its stars for every round. Just like LIV. The difference in the tours comes from asking a question. If the PGA Tour had this plan two years ago, how many would have stayed? What attracted so many to the Saudi-funded LIV circuit was signing bonuses. And where the PGA Tour gets its plan right is providing avenues for new faces.
TUESDAY SCORES
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (9)Gonzaga 77 (16)Saint Mary's (Cal.) 51
INTERLEAGUE
Final Pittsburgh 7 Toronto 2
Final Detroit 16 St. Louis 3
Final Tampa Bay 7 Philadelphia 3
Final Chicago White Sox 5 Milwaukee 2
Final L.A. Angels 5 San Diego 4
Final Chicago Cubs 9 Texas 6
Final Oakland 9 Arizona 3
Final Boston 10 Atlanta 2
Final N.Y. Mets 5 Houston 5
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Minnesota 7 Baltimore 6
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Washington 5 Miami 3
Final Cincinnati 7 San Francisco 3
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Washington 119 Detroit 117
Final Milwaukee 134 Orlando 123
Final Charlotte 112 New York 105
Final Philadelphia 117 Minnesota 94
Final Brooklyn 118 Houston 96
Final Oklahoma City 137 Golden State 128
Final Dallas 120 Utah 116
Final L.A. Lakers 112 Memphis 103
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Toronto 4 New Jersey 3
Final Florida 2 Vegas 1
Final OT Pittsburgh 5 Columbus 4
Final Tampa Bay 5 Philadelphia 2
Final SO Carolina 4 Montreal 3
Final N-Y Islanders 3 Buffalo 2
Final SO Calgary 1 Minnesota 0
Final Colorado 6 San Jose 0
Final Arizona 6 St. Louis 2
Final Seattle 5 Anaheim 2