Kansas returns to top of rankings
Kansas is back on top of the college basketball world after knocking off Baylor in a matchup of Big 12 heavyweights, while the Bears dropped to No. 2 in the Associated Press men’s poll after their nip-and-tuck loss in Waco, Texas.
The Jayhawks (24-3, 13-1) received 62 of 64 first-place votes from the national media panel to take over the No. 1 ranking for the second time this season. Baylor (24-2, 13-1) received two first-place votes and fell to second after its 23-game winning streak came to an end.
Gonzaga was No. 3 after a loss to BYU, and Dayton jumped San Diego State for No. 4 after the Aztecs lost for the first time in a week when every team in the top 10 found itself in a new position from last week.
Deontay Wilder said an elaborate outfit weighing about 40 pounds that he wore on his ring walk wore him down so much that he didn’t have the legs to withstand Tyson Fury in their heavyweight title fight Saturday night.
Wilder said he would execute a clause in his contract for a third fight with Fury, hopefully sometime this summer. Wilder also said his assistant trainer, Mark Breland, was acting against previously agreed-upon instructions when he threw in the towel to end the fight at 1:39 of the seventh round and would not likely be in the corner in a third fight.
Houston, which was implicated in the sign-stealing scandal that rocked baseball, opened the Grapefruit League against the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. Jose Altuve was loudly booed when he was introduced for his spring training debut, cheered when he struck out and called a cheater by several fans.
Major League Baseball is urging a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by five fantasy contestants over sign stealing by the Houston Astros. The five said they participated in DraftKings fantasy baseball contests.
In a survey conducted by Global Athlete, an athletes’ rights group, more than half of nearly 500 elite athletes across 48 countries said they did not consider themselves financially stable. Even greater majorities said they did not receive “the appropriate amount of financial compensation” from the International Olympic Committee or the national federations that send them to the Games and other major events.
The first board meeting for the Milan-Cortina Olympics was being held by video conference as authorities sought to contain the spreading coronavirus that has made northern Italy the focal point of the outbreak in Europe.
Michael Center, the former men’s tennis coach at Texas, was sentenced to six months in prison for taking a $100,000 bribe as part of the college admissions scam involving William “Rick” Singer. Center pleaded guilty in Boston’s federal court last year to participating in the bribery scheme . ... Indiana football coach Tom Allen suspended tight end Peyton Hendershot indefinitely after his weekend arrest for allegedly entering the apartment of a former girlfriend without her permission and grabbing and shoving her . ... According to the Athletic, Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle sent a letter to members of the 1984-85 hockey team after the sports website reported allegations of sexual abuse against former assistant Thomas “Chico” Adrahtas. Adrahtas denied to the Athletic last week that he ever sexually abused anyone . ... Several men alleging sexual abuse by a deceased Michigan doctor have retained law firms that are representing accusers who sued Michigan State University and Ohio State in similar cases, attorneys said.
The Toronto Maple Leafs signed defenseman Jake Muzzin to a four-year contract extension worth $5.62 million annually.