Former Warriors center Spencer dies after illness
LOUISVILLE, KY. >> Felton Spencer, who set Louisville single-season and career records in field goal percentage before playing 12 years in the NBA, has died. He was 55.
Spencer's sister, Tammy Pollock, tweeted of his death on Sunday afternoon and the school confirmed information with the family. No cause of death was given.
Louisville tweeted that it was “heartbroken” by Spencer's passing. Former Cardinals teammate and current coach Kenny Payne expressed love and prayers for Spencer's family on social media.
NFL
CHIEFS AGREE WITH OT TAYLOR ON 4-YEAR, $80M DEAL >> Jawaan Taylor has agreed to an $80 million, four-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs to replace Orlando Brown Jr. as the blindside protector for Patrick Mahomes, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Monday because the contract cannot become official until Wednesday, when the NFL's new year officially starts and free agents can begin signing contracts.
The 25-year-old Taylor started all 66 games he's played in since entering the league as a second-round pick of the Jaguars in the 2019 draft. While he primarily held down the right side of the line in Jacksonville, the expectation is that — much as Brown did when he arrived from Baltimore — Taylor will switch to the left side in Kansas City. OLIVER GETS 3-YEAR DEAL WITH VIKINGS >> Former San Jose State tight end Josh Oliver agreed to terms with the Minnesota Vikings on a three-year, $21 million contract, according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal.
The former run-blocking
Ex-San Jose State tight end Josh Oliver agreed to a 3-year, $21million deal with the Minnesota Vikings.
ace for the Baltimore Ravens gets a deal that includes $10.75 million in guaranteed money and has attainable incentives that would push the total value to $24 million.
Oliver was the highestranked tight end in run blocking in 2022 by Pro Football Focus. He was a third-round draft pick by Jacksonville out of San Jose State in 2019, but he played in only four games in two seasons for the Jaguars.
BEARS ADD STANDOUT LINEBACKERS >> The Chicago Bears made two big additions at linebacker, agreeing to contracts with Buffalo Bills two-time Pro Bowler Tremaine Edmunds and former Philadelphia Eagle T.J. Edwards, two people familiar with the situations said.
Edmunds' deal is worth $72 million over four years with $50 million guaranteed. Edwards is due $19.5 million over three years, with $12 million guaranteed.
• Ex-Jaguars tackle Jawaan Taylor has reportedly agreed to an $80 million, four-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs to replace Orlando Brown Jr. as the blindside protector for Patrick Mahomes.
• Atlanta announced Pro Bowl guard Chris Lindstrom has signed a fiveyear extension worth $105 million, reportedly making him the NFL's highest-paid guard.
• The Pittsburgh Steelers have agreed on a twoyear contract with eighttime Pro Bowl cornerback Patrick Peterson.
• Former Raiders quarterback Jarrett Stidham agreed to a 2-year, $10 million deal to be Russell Wilson's backup.
Women's basketball
SOUTH CAROLINA WOMEN CAP WIRE-TO-WIRE NO. 1 RUN IN AP TOP 25 >> South Carolina joined an exclusive group Monday, going wireto-wire as No. 1 in consecutive years in The Associated Press Top 25 women's basketball poll.
The defending national champion Gamecocks (320) became the third school to be the top team in the poll for the entire season in back-to-back years, equaling UConn and Louisiana Tech.
The Gamecocks, who are the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, have been atop the poll for 38 straight weeks, which is the second longest run behind UConn's record 51-week streak (2008-10). Led by Aliyah Boston, the Gamecocks were once again a unanimous choice by the 28-member media panel.
Indiana switched places with Iowa in the final poll, moving back up to second after landing its first No. 1 seed in an NCAA tourney. Virginia Tech and Stanford, the other two top seeds, were fourth and fifth in the final Top 25.
Men's basketball
ALABAMA, HOUSTON TOP FINAL AP TOP 25 >> The overall No. 1 seed for March Madness is No. 1 in the final AP Top 25, too.
Alabama, fresh off an SEC Tournament title to go with its regular-season crown, ascended to the top spot, earning 48 of 61 first-place votes to jump Houston, which lost in the American Athletic Conference final without star guard Marcus Sasser. Alabama also spent a week at No. 1 last month.
Purdue, seeded first in the East Region, earned three first-place votes and was third in the AP poll after the regular-season Big Ten champion won its conference tournament, too. Kansas, which expects to have Bill Self back for the NCAA tourney after a medical scare, was fourth after receiving the No. 1 seed in the West.
Texas routed the Jayhawks in the finals of the Big 12 Tournament and rounded out the top five. STOUDAMIRE HIRED AS GEORGIA TECH'S HEAD COACH >> Georgia Tech moved quickly to put a new leader in charge of its struggling men's basketball program, hiring longtime NBA guard Damon Stoudamire as the new Yellow Jackets coach.
The 49-year-old Stoudamire comes to the Atlantic Coast Conference school from the Boston Celtics, where he had been an assistant coach since 2021. The Celtics were in Atlanta this past weekend to play the Hawks.
Stoudamire's only previous head coaching experience was at Pacific, where he compiled a 71-77 record over five seasons. He was the West Coast Conference coach of the year in 2020.
Georgia Tech didn't take long to replace Josh Pastner, who was fired on Friday after the Yellow Jackets capped a 15-18 season with a second-round loss to Pittsburgh in the ACC Tournament.