O’Toole repeats as champion
Missouri’s Keegan O’Toole repeated as champion at 165 pounds by defeating Iowa State’s David Carr, 8-2, on Saturday at the NCAA Division I wrestling championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The second-seeded O’Toole, a 2020 graduate of Arrowhead High School and just the third wrestler in Wisconsin history to win four individual state championships at the Division 1 level, avenged two losses to Carr this season by dominating the third period to pull away.
Carr, the champ at 157 in 2021, was unbeaten and the No. 1 seed this season.
Cornell’s Yianni Diakomihalis became the fifth Division I wrestler to win four national titles and Penn State won its 10th team title in 12 years, with former President Donald Trump in attendance for the evening session.
Penn State ran away with the team title, mathematically clinching before the evening session began. The Nittany Lions finished with 137.5 points. Iowa was second with 82.5 points and Cornell placed third with 76.5.
Diakomihalis capped the evening by defeating Ohio State’s Sammy Sasso 4-2 in the 149-pound final. He joined Kyle Dake, Pat Smith, Logan Stieber and Cael Sanderson — Penn State’s coach — as the only four-time champions ever in Division I.
NFL
Roger Goodell is "expected to finalize" a new multiyear contract extension next week to remain in his role as NFL commissioner, according to a Monday report by ESPN.
The matter will be decided at the NFL’s owners meetings in Phoenix during a session with the league’s compensation committee on March 28, according to the report.
The NFL declined to comment on the report when contacted by USA TODAY Sports.
Goodell has been NFL commissioner since Sept. 1, 2006, and has had previous contract extensions in 2009, 2012 and 2017.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Rick Pitino is set to become the new men’s basketball coach at St. John’s, according to a person familiar with the agreement.
Pitino is expected to be formally introduced by St. John’s during a news conference Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Following a successful run at nearby mid-major Iona, the 70-year-old Pitino was plucked away to replace Mike Anderson, fired March 10 after four seasons in charge of the Red Storm without making the NCAA Tournament.
Georgetown brings Cooley aboard: Ed Cooley is the new men’s basketball coach at Georgetown, hired away from Big East rival Providence in the hopes of rebuilding a once-proud program that dropped to new lows under former star player Patrick Ewing.
Georgetown announced the move on Monday, after Providence issued a news release saying that Cooley had resigned.
He leaves the Friars with a 242-153 record after 12 years and seven March Madness appearances with a total of three wins in the tournament; the highlight was a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2022.
GOLF
Taylor Moore delivered the clutch shots to move into contention, closed with a 4-under 67 and won the Valspar Championship on Sunday in Palm Harbor, Florida, when he avoided the mistakes that cost Jordan Spieth and Adam Schenk.
The victory for Moore, who finished at 10-under 274, was worth $1,458,000 and moved him to No. 9 in the FedEx Cup standings. Along with a trip he might not have been expecting to the Masters, he gets in the PGA Championship.
AUTO RACING
Joey Logano dominated early and then passed Brad Keselowski on the final lap to win the NASCAR Cup Seriess race at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday in Hampton, Georgia, and end the early season domination of Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports on Sunday.
Logano won the pole and led a strong showing of three straight Team Penske drivers in qualifying, but Keselowski looked like the Ford driver to beat late in the race. Keselowski had help from Corey LaJoie, but Logano got a push from Christopher Bell that proved decisive on the final lap.
Bell finished third in a Toyota and LaJoie finished a career-best fourth in a Chevrolet.
Logano’s win ended a streak of four consecutive victories by Chevrolet to open the NASCAR Cup season, including back-to-back wins by William
of Hendrick.
Pushed by his Team Penske teammates Ryan Blaney and Austin Cindric, Logano passed Keselowski to regain the lead with 34 laps to go. Keselowski regained the lead to setup the last-lap drama.