Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Albert Pujols went 1 for 3 against Washington in his spring training debut with St. Louis on the same day his wife underwent successful brain surgery. In his third at-bat, Pujols smacked a line drive to the right side through a hole created by an infield shift. He said afterward it felt good to be back in a real game. Pujols doesn't expect to be in the Cardinals' lineup on Thursday. But if all goes well, he will play Friday against the Mets. He may head to California to see his wife during the off days between the end of camp and the start of the season.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Ryan O'Reilly had a goal and an assist as the St. Louis Blues beat Vancouver 4-3, further dimming the Canucks' faint playoff hopes. Nick Leddy, Robert Thomas and Nathan Walker also scored for the Blues. David Perron added two assists. Elias Pettersson scored twice for the Canucks, who were playing their fifth game in eight nights. Alex Chiasson also had a goal. A 22-save performance earned St. Louis goalie Ville Husso his 18th win of the season. Thatcher Demko stopped 20 shots for Vancouver. The Blues also beat the Canucks on Monday, and swept the three-game season series.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ochai Agbaji of Kansas, Johnny Davis of Wisconsin, Iowa's Keegan Murray, Drew Timme of Gonzaga and Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky are the five finalists for the John R. Wooden Award as college basketball's player of the year. The winner will be announced April 5 on ESPN's "SportsCenter." The finalists have been invited to Los Angeles for the 46th annual presentation on April 8.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals head into this season with a bit of past, present and future in the mix. Zack Greinke, their former Cy Young winner, is returning to the club after more than a decade spent elsewhere. Longtime clubhouse stalwarts Salvador Perez and Whit Merrifield are back. And the future comes in the form ofyoung pitchers such as Brady Singer and Kris Bubic as well as infielder Bobby Witt Jr.. He is the No. 1 prospect in baseball. The Royals open the season at home April 7 against the Cleveland Guardians.
UNDATED (AP) — New St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol takes over a veteran ballclub that reached the NL wild-card game last season. The Cardinals signed slugger Albert Pujols, bringing him back to St. Louis after more than a decade spent in Los Angeles. Pujols is reuniting with Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina for what could be one last run at the NL Central title. The Cardinals open the season at home April 7 against Pittsburgh.
UNDATED (AP) — There's no room for a surprise team at this Final Four. Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and Villanova have combined for 17 national championships. Each of these schools has won at least three titles. That makes this the first Final Four in which each of the teams already had won multiple championships. The closest thing to a Final Four party crasher is North Carolina. The Tar Heels were seeded eighth in the East Region but have won 10 of their last 11 games.
UNDATED (AP) — This year's Final Four is either unprecedented or pretty close. North Carolina is making a record 21st appearance in the Final Four. Its semifinal opponent, Duke, is waiting with the sport's winningest coach. Mike Krzyzewski surpassed 1,200 victories during this postseason run. Kansas arrives having recently taken over the Division I lead in all-time wins. Villanova doesn't have quite the storied history of the other three schools, but the Wildcats are trying for their third national title in seven years. So the quartet of programs in this year's Final Four is truly special. Only a few others can really compare.
UNDATED (AP) — A team-by-team look at the National League Central, including key players each club acquired and lost, top hitters and projected rotations, and outlooks for the 2022 season.
Update on the latest sports
NFL-NEWS
Arians retires, Bowles takes over
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a new head coach.
Bruce Arians has decided to retire and is moving into the Buccaneers' front office. He's being replaced by defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, whose previous head coaching job was with the New York Jets.
Arians will turn 70 this coming season. He coached the Bucs to the Super Bowl title in the 2020 season and was 31-18 in three seasons with Tampa Bay. He called it the right time for him to make the transition to the front office.
There was no public indication at the NFL's annual meetings in Florida that such a move was coming.
Arians is 80-48-1 in eight years as a head coach, including his five years with the Cardinals.
In other NFL news:
— The Vikings have agreed to terms on a new contract with cornerback Patrick Peterson. The 31-year-old Peterson had a solid first season with the Vikings in 2021 and was by far their most reliable cornerback in pass coverage. The eight-time Pro Bowl pick played his first 10 years in the NFL with Arizona.
— Malcolm Jenkins is retiring after a 13-year NFL career in which he established himself as one of the league's best all-around safeties, most durable players and leading voices for social justice. Jenkins helped both the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles win their only Super Bowl and made a major impact off the field as an activist, entrepreneur and philanthropist. The 34-year-old Jenkins was selected by the Saints as a cornerback in the first round of the 2009 draft.
— Quarterback Lamar Jackson says on Twitter that he loves the Ravens amid uncertainty about his contract status beyond this year. Jackson said Wednesday he didn't know who was putting out a "false narrative" that he was having thoughts about leaving. Jackson's contract is an issue in Baltimore for a second straight offseason.
— The Jaguars have signed defensive end Arden Key to a one-year contract, giving them an athletic pass rusher to play opposite defensive end Josh Allen and potentially alongside rookie Aiden Hutchinson. Key is coming off his best year, recording 6 1/2 sacks for San Francisco while playing with Pro Bowler Nick Bosa.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Heat top Celtics to stay atop East
UNDATED (AP) — The Miami Heat remain atop the NBA's Eastern Conference after knocking off the Boston Celtics.
Jimmy Butler had 24 points and Kyle Lowry added 23 in a 106-98 victory over the Celtics. Bam Adebayo (ad-eh-BY'-oh) finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds to help Miami post its second straight win since a season-worst four-game losing streak.
Since briefly taking over the East's top spot Boston has lost two in a row for the first time since late January. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 28 points and 10 rebounds. Jayson Tatum added 23 points and six assists in a game that featured nine ties and 16 lead changes.
Checking out Wednesday's other NBA action:
— Tyus Jones scored 25 points and the Memphis Grizzlies wrapped up their first division title by edging the Spurts, 112-111. Memphis clinched the No. 2 seed in the West as well as the Southwest Division crown despite playing again without All-Star guard Ja (jah) Morant. Dillon Brooks scored 21 points and Desmond Bane and De'Anthony Melton each added 16 as the Grizzlies improved to 19-2 in games missed by Morant this season.
— Devin Booker atoned for a tough shooting night by hitting the go-ahead free throws with 34.2 seconds left in the Suns' 107-103 downing of the Warriors. Booker scored 22 points but shot 5-for-21, including 2 of 8 from 3-point range. Chris Paul hit a key jumper with 1:37 remaining, added a short jumper after Booker's free throws and finished with 15 points and eight assists.
— Luka Doncic (DAHN'-chihch) poured in 35 points and had 13 assists as the Mavericks dumped the Cavaliers, 120-112. Doncic supplied 20 points while the Mavs outscored the Cavs, 39-22 in the third quarter. Dorian Finney-Smith nailed six 3-pointers and finished with a career-high 28 points for Dallas.
— Nikola Jokic (nih-KOH'-lah YOH'-kihch) flirted with another triple-double with 37 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists, helping the Nuggets take a 125-118 decision over the Pacers. Denver blew a 31-point lead and trailed 102-100 before scoring seven straight points. Bones Hyland scored 20 points and Will Barton added 18 for the Nuggets, who shot 62.5%.
— The Raptors rolled to a 125-102 win over the Timberwolves as Pascal Siakam (see-A'-kam) had 12 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high 13 assists for his second career triple-double. Gary Trent Jr. scored 29 points and Toronto strengthened its hold on sixth place in the East, moving two games ahead of Cleveland with its fourth straight win. Karl-Anthony Towns had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Anthony Edwards scored 24 points as the Timberwolves lost for the fourth time in five games.
— Miles Bridges scored 31 points and LaMelo Ball had 20 with 15 rebounds to help lead the Hornets past the Knicks, 125-114. Kelly Oubre (OO'-bray) Jr. chipped in 21 on 8-for-11 shooting from the field, including four 3-pointers. Terry Rozier added 15 points for the Hornets, who have won eight of their last 11 games.
— Trae Young furnished 41 points and eight assists for the Hawks in a 136-118 romp over the Thunder. Young made 13 of 24 field goals and 11 of 12 free throws in three quarters of action. Kevin Huerter (HUR'-tur) and Bogdan Bogdanovic each scored 20 points for the Hawks, who won their third straight and strengthened their hold on the final Eastern Conference playoff berth.
— The Pelicans topped the Trail Blazers, 117-107 as CJ McCollum scored 25 points in his first game back in Portland following a February trade to New Orleans. The Pelicans have a 1-½ game lead over the Los Angeles Lakers for the 9th spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament. A 3-pointer by McCollum gave the Pelicans their biggest lead of the game, 113-100, with 2:59 remaining.
— Kristaps Porzingis (krihs-tahps pohr-ZIHN'-gihs) scored 35 points and Tomas Satoransky had an unusual double-double as the Wizards beat the Magic, 127-110. Satoransky became the third player to finish a game with no points and at least 10 rebounds and 10 assists, providing 13 assists and 10 boards.
— The Kings outlasted the Rockets, 121-118 as Davion (DAY'-vee-ahn) Mitchell, Damian Jones and Trey Lyles scored 24 points each. Houston's Kevin Porter Jr. had his first career triple-double with 30 points, 12 assists and a career-high 12 rebounds. Porter and LeBron James are the only players to have a triple-double and a 50-point game before age 22.
NBA-NEWS
Celtics' Williams out 4-6 weeks
UNDATED N (AP) — The Boston Celtics say center Robert Williams III is expected to miss four to six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair torn cartilage in his left knee.
The team says Williams underwent a partial knee meniscectomy Wednesday morning at a Boston hospital. He was hurt Sunday against Minnesota.
Williams was averaging 10 points, 9.6 rebounds and just over two blocks this season.
In other NBA news:
— Cavaliers rookie star forward Evan Mobley will miss at least two more games with a sprained left ankle, an injury that could keep Cleveland from clinching one of the top six playoff spots. Mobley got hurt in the first half of Monday's win over Orlando and sat out Wednesday's loss to Dallas. The third pick in last year's draft is averaging 14.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 blocks.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL-NEWS
UNDATED (AP) — Shaheeen Holloway is leaving Saint Peter's for Seton Hall just days after helping the little Jesuit school make history by becoming the first No. 15 seed to reach the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight.
Holloway played for the Pirates. His move to replace Kevin Willard has been a hot topic since the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament.
Holloway's Peacocks knocked off No. 2 seed Kentucky, No. 7 Murray State and No. 3 seed Purdue before falling to North Carolina.
In other college basketball news:
— Baylor standout freshman Kendall Brown and junior point guard James Akinjo (ah-KIHN'-joh) have announced they are entering their names into the NBA draft. Brown averaged 9.7 points and 4.9 rebounds while starting all 34 games for the Bears. Akinjo led the Big 12 in assists and was ninth in scoring at 13.5 points a game.
— Ochai Agbaji (OH'-chy ahg-BAH'-zhee) of Kansas, Johnny Davis of Wisconsin, Iowa's Keegan Murray, Drew Timme (TIH'-mee) of Gonzaga and Oscar Tshiebwe (SHEEB'-way) of Kentucky are the five finalists for the men's John R. Wooden Award as college basketball's player of the year. Joining the five finalists on the 10-man Wooden All American Team were Kofi Cockburn of Illinois, Chet Holmgren of Gonzaga, Jaden Ivey of Purdue, Bennedict Mathurin (MATH'-uh-rihn) of Arizona and Auburn's Jabari Smith.
— Three Georgetown men's basketball players have entered the NCAA transfer portal, the latest in a series of members of coach Patrick Ewing's team to leave the Hoyas. The school announced the departures of Timothy Ighoefe, Tyler Beard and Jalin Billingsley, none of whom played significant minutes or provided strong statistics. The Hoyas went 6-25 overall and were the first Big East team to go 0-19 in regular-season conference play.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Rangers rally past Wings in OT
UNDATED (AP) — The New York Rangers are two points closer to the NHL's Metropolitan Division lead after rallying for a win in Detroit.
Andrew Copp scored 1:34 into overtime of the Rangers' fourth straight win, 5-4 over the Red Wings. Chris Kreider tied it with his 46th goal, beating Alex Nedeljkovic (neh-DEHL'-loh-vihch) with 3:38 left in regulation. It was his league-leading 20th power-play goal.
Artemi Panarin (ahr-TEH'-mee pah-NAH'-rihn) had a goal and two assists for the Rangers, who are within three points of the first-place Hurricanes. Carolina has a game in hand.
Ryan Reaves and Filip Chytil (HEE'-tul) also scored for New York.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
— Ryan O'Reilly had a goal and an assist as the Blues upended the Canucks, 4-3. Nick Leddy, Robert Thomas and Nathan Walker also scored and David Perron (peh-RAHN') added two assists for St. Louis. Elias Pettersson scored twice for the Canucks, who were playing their fifth game in eight nights.
— Logan Thompson made 23 saves for his first shutout of the season, leading the Golden Knights to a 3-0 win over the Kraken. Shea Theodore scored in the second period just moments after stepping out of the penalty box. Jonathan Marchessault (MAHR-sheh-soh) added an empty-net goal with 26 seconds left, his team-high 26th goal of the season.
— Leon Draisaitl (DRY'-sy-tul) and Connor McDavid both scored in regulation and then again in the shootout, lifting the Oilers to a 4-3 win over the Kings. McDavid added an assist to get to 100 points, Cody Ceci (SEE'-see) also scored and Mikko Koskinen (MEE'-koh KAHS'-kah-nehn) had 38 saves in Edmonton's eighth straight home win. Los Angeles lost for the third time in four games, wasting goals from Alexander Edler, Quinton Byfield and Carl Grundstrom.
— Blake Wheeler scored once in regulation and furnished the deciding shootout tally in the Jets' 3-2 win at Buffalo. Connor Hellebuyck (HEH'-leh-buhk) made 35 saves and Mason Appleton had the tying goal in Winnipeg's third win in a row.
— Jan Jenik scored twice, including the go-ahead tally in a three-goal third period that sent the Coyotes to a 5-2 decision over the Sharks. Nick Ritchie, Barrett Hayton and Nick Schmaltz also scored as Arizona ended a six-game losing streak.
NHL-WILD-GOLIGOSKI
Keller stretchered off ice
UNDATED (AP) — Coyotes leading scorer Clayton Keller was taken off the ice on a stretcher with an apparent leg injury Wednesday night.
Keller was hurt with 5:15 remaining in Arizona's game against San Jose. He was skating toward the Sharks' net when he got knocked off stride and crashed into the boards behind the goal. He remained prone on the ice for about five minutes before being taken off on a stretcher.
Keller has 28 goals and 63 points this season.
In other NHL news:
— The Wild have signed defenseman Alex Goligoski (goh-lih-GAW'-skee) to a two-year, $4 million contract extension through the 2023-24 season. The 36-year-old has two goals, 26 assists and a team-leading plus-34 rating in 58 games.
SOCCER-WORLD CUP QUALIFYING
US earns trip to Qatar
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — The US men's soccer team did just enough to secure a berth in the World Cup.
The Americans absorbed a 2-0 loss at Costa Rica, but it came on the heels of a 5-1 rout of Panama at home last week. The Panama rout meant the United States would qualify so long as the team didn't lose to Costa Rica by six goals or more.
The Americans are back in the World Cup four years after failing to qualify.
The US was the third team to qualify in its group, finishing behind Canada and Mexico.
MLB-NEWS
Vaughn sidelined with hip injury
UNDATED (AP) — White Sox slugger Andrew Vaughn has been diagnosed with a hip pointer and could return to game action in one to two weeks. Vaughn feared the worst when got hurt making a diving catch on Sunday. But the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 amateur draft ditched his crutches Tuesday and took some swings Wednesday.
In other baseball news:
— Hunter Greene has cracked the Cincinnati Reds' season-opening rotation. The right-hander will pitch behind opening-day starter Tyler Mahle (MAH'-lee) during a weekend series against the World Series champion Braves.
— Yankees minor league manager Rachel Balkovec is nearing a return after being hit in the face by a batted ball during a drill last week. Balkovec was hired by the Yankees as the first woman to manage a minor league affiliate of a Major League Baseball team. She is scheduled to manage her first regular-season game on April 8 at Lakeland.
— Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer has sued The Athletic and former reporter Molly Knight, accusing them of "creating and spreading the false narrative" that he fractured a woman's skull during a sexual encounter. The complaint alleges two counts of defamation. A woman obtained a protection order against Bauer last June and The Athletic reported that "there were signs of a basilar skull fracture," citing a declaration by the woman.
— Former Major League Baseball players Jonny Gomes (gohmz), Adrián González, Geovany Soto and Nick Swisher are going on a home run derby tour to London; Seoul, South Korea; and Mexico City. The league says the four will participate in Home Run Derby X at London's Crystal Palace Park on July 9, in Seoul on Sept. 17 and in Mexico City on Oct. 15.