AP Sports

Caitlin Clark leads Iowa back to Final Four, scoring 41 points in 94-87 win over defending champ LSU

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Caitlin Clark made nine 3-pointers and finished with 41 points and 12 assists in a sensational performance as Iowa knocked defending national champion LSU out of the women’s NCAA Tournament with a 94-87 victory, advancing the Hawkeyes to their second straight Final Four. Top-seeded Iowa will play UConn in the national semifinals Friday night in Cleveland. Monday’s highly anticipated matchup was a rematch of last year’s national championship game won by LSU, which drew a record 9.9 million viewers. With the game tied at 45 after an entertaining first half, Clark took over in the third quarter. She hit four 3-pointers in the period.

Paige Bueckers lifts UConn back to the Final Four with 80-73 win over JuJu Watkins and USC

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — After being a spectator a year ago, Paige Bueckers is headed back to the Final Four after scoring 28 points and lifting UConn to a 80-73 win over Southern California in the women’s NCAA Tournament. Bueckers outdueled fabulous USC freshman All-American JuJu Watkins, sparking a decisive run over the final five minutes that sent third-seeded UConn to its 23rd Final Four, the most of any school. Leading 65-64, the Huskies scored 11 straight points, including seven from Bueckers and a three-point play from Aaliyah Edwards to finally put away the top-seeded Trojans. Edwards finished with 24 points. Watkins scored 29 points for USC.

Houston’s Blanco throws the first no-hitter in the majors this season in a 10-0 win over Toronto

HOUSTON (AP) — Ronel Blanco of the Houston Astros threw the first no-hitter in the major leagues this season, blanking the Toronto Blue Jays 10-0. The right-hander struck out seven and walked two. He walked George Springer to start the game and again with two outs in the ninth. When Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grounded out to end it, Blanco smiled broadly before raising his arms above his head just before being mobbed by teammates. It was the 17th no-hitter in Astros history and the first in the majors since Philadelphia’s Michael Lorenzen threw one against the Washington Nationals on Aug. 9 of last year.

Devin Booker scores 52 points to lift the Suns over the Pelicans 124-111

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Devin Booker scored 52 points, the fifth-highest scoring game of his career, to power the Phoenix Suns to a 124-111 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night, bringing them within a game of the Pelicans for the No. 6 playoff spot in the Western Conference. Kevin Durant scored 20 points and Jusuf Nurkic added 19 for the Suns, who led by as many as 25 points. The Suns built a wall around Zion Williamson who finished with 30 points and five assists. Trey Murphy III added 21 points for New Orleans.

Former Dolphins, Colts player Vontae Davis found dead in his South Florida home at age 35

SOUTHWEST RANCHES, Fla. (AP) — Former NFL cornerback Vontae Davis has been found dead in his South Florida home. Police in the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Davie say the body of the 35-year-old Davis was found Monday morning, but no foul play is suspected. No cause of death has been released pending an autopsy. Davis played for 10 seasons in the NFL after being drafted 25th overall by the Dolphins in 2009 out of Illinois. He played three seasons for Miami before being traded to Indianapolis just before the 2012 season. He played six seasons with the Colts. He signed with the Buffalo Bills for 2018 but retired after the season’s second game, saying injuries no longer allowed him to play.

Future of Chiefs, Royals in KC could hinge on Tuesday vote to help with stadium funding

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The future of the Royals and Chiefs in Kansas City could be shaped Tuesday when voters in Jackson County, Missouri, vote on the extension of an existing 3/8-cent sales tax. The money would help to pay for a new downtown ballpark for the Royals and major renovations to Arrowhead Stadium, the home of the Super Bowl-champion Chiefs. The vote is expected to be close with opponents pointing to vague plans and a lack of transparency in the process. The Royals hope to build a $2 billion-plus ballpark district in an area of Kansas City known as the Crossroads. The Chiefs want to spend $800 million to overhaul their stadium.

The Pittsburgh Pirates see significance in being 5-0 for the first time in 41 years

WASHINGTON (AP) — Let other folks downplay the way the Pittsburgh Pirates have begun 2024. Manager Derek Shelton is thrilled that his club is 5-0 for the first time in 41 years. Pittsburgh also has scored at least a half-dozen runs each time out this deep into a season for the first time in at least 124 years. The Pirates opened a three-game series at the Washington Nationals with an 8-4 victory Monday night. That followed a four-game sweep at the Miami Marlins to open the season. Pittsburgh is coming off a 76-86 record a year ago and a fourth-place finish in the NL Central.

AP Sports Week in Pictures: Vegas fight, Tour of Flanders and flying feet in Marseille

Associated Press photographers have been there for the biggest stories in sports across the globe over the past week. The super lightweight title fight between Isaac Cruz and Rolando Romero in Las Vegas and the Tour of Flanders produced two of the AP’s most memorable sports photos over the past week. Among the best of the best were Cruz connecting a left hook to Romero’s face and Norway’s Vegard Stake Laengen of UAE Team Emirates riding with the pack through the historic center of Oudenaarde, Belgium.

Iowa’s Caitlin Clark matches March Madness 3-point record with 9 in Elite Eight game against LSU

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Iowa’s Caitlin Clark tied a women’s NCAA Tournament record hitting by nine 3-pointers, many from well beyond the arc, in Iowa’s Elite Eight win over LSU. Clark made her ninth 3 midway through the fourth quarter, tying the mark set by Purdue’s Courtney Moses in 2012 and later matched by UConn’s Kia Nurse in 2017. The Iowa star quickly broke a tie with Diana Taurasi for career 3-pointers in the March Madness with her first one. When she hit her seventh 3, Clark passed Oklahoma’s Taylor Robertson for the most in a career among NCAA Division I players. Clark’s ninth gave her 540. She finished 9 of 20 from behind the arc and scored 41 points.

After beating the Hornets, Celtics intently watch TV coverage of Caitlin Clark leading Iowa past LSU

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — After the Boston Celtics beat the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night, the focus of the NBA’s best team quickly turned to something else: watching Caitlin Clark and the final minutes of Iowa’s victory over LSU in the Elite Eight of the women’s NCAA Tournament. With the volume on the television cranked up, 10 Celtics players sat in a row at their lockers icing their feet, and intently watching Clark make nine 3-pointers and score 41 points to lead Iowa to the Final Four with a 94-87 win. Celtics forward Sam Hauser says he can’t remember NBA players being so locked in to a women’s game. He says Clark “is stealing the show of basketball.”