Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press
UNDATED (AP) — There are just three weeks left in the chase for the regular-season Big 12 title, and not surprisingly, Kansas and Baylor are at the top of the heap. They will meet again Feb. 27 in a massive game in Waco, but in the meantime, every time they step on the floor will be crucial. The sixth-ranked Jayhawks head to West Virginia on Saturday, while the seventh-ranked Bears get a visit from TCU. Neither of those games against NCAA Tournament bubble teams will be easy.
UNDATED (AP) — No. 16 Tennessee visits No. 23 Arkansas in a matchup of two of the SEC's hottest teams. The host Razorbacks have won 10 of 11 and are ranked for the first time since Dec. 13 at No. 24. Arkansas is coming off a 76-57 defeat of Missouri and stands third behind the Volunteers, who have won five in a row. Tennessee topped No. 4 Kentucky 76-63 on Tuesday night to temporarily forge a second-place tie behind No. 2 Auburn.
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Tolu Smith scored 16 points, Iverson Molinar added 13 points and Mississippi State beat Missouri 68-49 in a game delayed 2 hours, 30 minutes due to travel issues for the Tigers. Mississippi State took its first lead of the game during a 10-0 run in the opening 10 minutes and led the rest of the way. Missouri didn't make a field goal in the final five minutes of the first half and trailed 34-23. Andersson Garcia's three-point play with 13:28 left in the second half put Mississippi State ahead by double-figures for good. Smith scored 11 points in the second half, and Molinar had nine in the opening 20 minutes. D.J. Jeffries had 12 points for Mississippi State. Ronnie DeGray III scored 13 points and Javon Pickett added 11 for Missouri.
Update on the latest sports
OLYMPICS
Wise, Ferreira medal
BEIJING (AP) — The United States has gained two more medals at the Beijing Games.
American and two-time Olympic champion David Wise took home the silver in ski halfpipe with his first-run score of 90.75. The 31-year-old Wise was the only winner the men's event had ever known until he was beaten by New Zealand's Nico Porteous.
American Alex Ferreira threw down a strong first run, twirling his right ski pole at the bottom in elation before ending up with the bronze.
Porteous overcame the swirling wind to win on a day when many skiers couldn't land their best tricks due to the strong gusts.
Also at Beijing:
— The last Alpine skiing race of the Beijing Olympics has been pushed back a day because of strong winds. The mixed team parallel event was rescheduled from Saturday to Sunday, the last day of the Winter Games. It was supposed to start Saturday morning and was delayed twice because of gusts of up to about 40 mph before it was scrapped for the day.
— Chinese organizers say a total of 97,000 spectators have attended medal events, less than two-thirds of the 150,000 predicted on the eve of the Olympics more than two weeks ago. The number was revealed at a meeting of IOC members by the executive vice president of the local organizing committee. Plans to sell tickets to international visitors were scrapped last year because of the coronavirus pandemic and the block was extended to residents of China in January.
NBA-ALL-STAR WEEKEND
Cunningham leads Rising Stars
CLEVELAND (AP) — Detroit Pistons rookie Cade Cunningham used the NBA's showcase weekend to demonstrate why he was the first player taken in last year's draft.
Cunningham was named MVP of the NBA's All-Star Rising Stars on Friday night while leading Team Barry to a 25-20 win over Team Isiah. He scored 13 points with six assists and five rebounds in the night's first game. Cunningham had only 5 points in the finale but made several big plays down the stretch, including a clutch 3-pointer.
Cavaliers rookie Evan Mobley was instrumental in Team Barry's victory, scoring 18 points — 12 on dunks — in the two games at his home arena.
BASKETBALL-HALL OF FAME
Ginobili among Hall finalists
CLEVELAND (AP) — Four-time NBA champion Manu Ginobili (MAN'-oo jih-NOH'-blee) headlines this year's group of finalists for induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Former All-Star players Michael Cooper, Tim Hardaway and Marques Johnson will also be voted on for possible induction along with NBA coach George Karl and WNBA stars Swin Cash and Lindsay Whalen.
West Virginia coach Bob Huggins also is up for induction along with Old Dominion and WNBA coach Marianne Stanley, longtime NBA referee Hugh Evans and Texas high school coach Leta Andrews.
MLB-LOCKOUT
MLB cancels spring games through March 4
NEW YORK (AP) — The Major League lockout has begun to cut into the spring training schedule.
Management has canceled the first week of exhibition games through March 4 in the first public acknowledgement of the disruption caused by the lockout.
The announcement Friday came with the work stoppage in its 79th day, and a day after economic talks between the management and the Major League Baseball Players Association lasted just 15 minutes.
Negotiators are set to resume bargaining on core economics on Monday. MLB said members of the owners' negotiating committee will attend the session, just the seventh on the central issues of the dispute since the lockout began Dec. 2.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-PLAYOFF EXPANSION
CFP to remain 4 teams through '25 after expansion talks fail
UNDATED (AP) — The College Football Playoff is set to remain a four-team format through the 2025 season. The administrators who manage the postseason failed to agree on a plan to expand before the current contracts run out.
Executive Director Bill Hancock says the committee decided to abandon efforts implement a new 12-team format for the 2024 season and instead recommended staying with the current model.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL-NO COMBINED FINAL FOUR
No plan for having men's and women's Final Four in same city
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Division I college basketball committees say there won't be a combined men's and women's Final Four in the near future. The unanimous decision was made during a joint meeting of the committees that concluded several months of exploring the concept of one city hosting a joint Final Four.
The bidding process for the 2027-2031 Final Fours will begin later this year with the potential to look at holding the men's and women's Final Fours on different weekend.
NFL-COMMANDERS INVESTIGATION
Ex-SEC chair to investigate Commanders owner Snyder
NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL has hired former Securities and Exchange Commission chair Mary Jo White to investigate Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder.
The basis for the inquiry is an allegation that Snyder sexually harassed a team employee more than a decade ago. The NFL says White will release her findings to the public, unlike the league's decision to keep results of a previous investigation into the team under wraps.
A league spokesman says Commissioner Roger Goodell will determine after the probe "any appropriate action" against Snyder, who last year was fined $10 million after a previous investigation into widespread sexual harassment and mistreatment of women by high-ranking team employees. Snyder also temporarily ceded day-to-day operations of the franchise to his wife, Tanya.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Canes top Predators
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes own a piece of the NHL's Metropolitan Division lead after surviving a wild finish against the Predators.
Andrei Svechnikov delivered two goals and an assist as the Hurricanes handed the Predators their fourth straight regulation loss since the All-Star break, 4-0. Brady Skjei (shay) and Jaccob Slavin (SLAY'-vihn) each had a goal and an assist for Carolina, which is 2-2-2 since the break. Martin Necas (NAY'-chas) and Sebastian Aho had two assists apiece.
The Predators got back into the game by scoring twice with their net empty, but Svechnikov clinched it with an empty-netter.
Frederik Anderson stopped 28 shots for the Hurricanes, who are in a first-place tie with Pittsburgh.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
— Mason Marchment's first career hat trick fueled the Panthers' sixth win in six games, 6-2 at Minnesota. Marchment scored twice in a 2:27 span of the first period to put Florida ahead to stay. Anthony Duclair had a goal and an assist in the rout.
— Adrian Kempe's (KEHM'-payz) second goal of the night gave the Kings a 4-3 overtime win against the Golden Knights. Andreas Athanasiou (ath-ah-nah-SEE'-oo) and Phillip Danault dan-OH') also scored and Jonathan Quick had 21 saves in the victory. Max Pacioretty (pash-uh-REH'-tee) had two goals and Reilly Smith also scored for Vegas.
— The Stars pulled out a 1-0 victory over the Blackhawks as Jacob Peterson scored the deciding goal in the sixth round of the shootout. It was the only successful shootout attempt after Chicago's Alex DeBrincat (deh-BRIHN'-kat) and Dallas' Jason Robertson scored in the first shootout round. Jake Oettinger (AH'-tihn-jur) made 34 saves in his eighth career shootout and first this season.
SPORTS-PANDEMIC
MLSE to drop vaccination requirement
TORONTO (AP) — Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment says it will discontinue the proof of vaccination requirement for fans entering its venues, beginning March 1.
MLSE owns the Maple Leafs, Raptors, Major League Soccer's Toronto FC and the CFL's Toronto Argonauts.
The move follows an announcement from the Ontario government this week that it planned to slightly accelerate plans to ease attendance limits at indoor sports events.
PGA-GENESIS INVITATIONAL
Niemann leads with 36-hold record
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. (AP) — Joaquin Niemann has set a 36-hole record at Riviera Country Club while taking a two-shot lead at the Genesis Invitational.
Niemann fired his second straight 63 for a 16-under total. He hit 6-iron to 4 feet for eagle on the first hole and followed with a birdie. He broke the previous 36-hole record set about 20 minutes earlier by Cameron Young, a 24-year-old PGA Tour rookie who birdied his last four holes for a 62.
Young is alone in second, three ahead of Justin Thomas. Jordan Spieth (speeth) and Adam Scott are at 9 under.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS-CHUBB CLASSIC
NAPLES, Fla. (AP) — Three-time champion Bernhard Langer shot his age Friday to take the first-round lead in the Chubb Classic.
The 64-year-old German star had five straight birdies on the back nine in a bogey-free 8-under 64.
He has bettered his age once and matched it one other time on the tour.
Langer has six Charles Schwab Cup season titles and 42 victories on the 50-and-over tour.
Robert Karlsson and Tim Petrovic are two strokes back.
AUTO RACING-ANDRETTI
Andretti Racing applies for F1 ownership
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Michael Andretti has filed an application to field a Formula One team starting in 2024.
The filing to the governing body of F1, was revealed Friday on Twitter by Andretti's father, Mario. Andretti Autosport initially declined to comment on Mario Andretti's post. The team then reversed its position and confirmed an application had been submitted to the FIA. No further details were revealed.
TRACK-DOPING
Britain relay team loses Olympic silver, Nigerian sprinter gets 10-year ban
LONDON (AP) — Britain's 4x100-meter relay team has been stripped of its silver medal from the Tokyo Olympics after C.J. Ujah's doping violation was confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Ujah did not challenge the anti-doping rule violation, but CAS said he claimed to have not knowingly or intentionally doped. That argument was not accepted.
Also Friday, the Athletics Integrity Unit announced that Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare has received a 10-year ban for being part of what's been described as an "organized doping regimen" ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.
The former world championships silver medalist was initially suspended in July just before she was due to run in the semifinals of the 100 meters at the Olympics.
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