Women’s NCAA event at one site
The NCAA plans to stage the entire women’s basketball tournament in one geographic area and San Antonio is the likely host site.
The move was made to help mitigate the risks of COVID- 19 and matches that of the men’s tournament, which the NCAA said last month would be played in a single area — most likely Indianapolis.
The women’s Final Four in 2021 was already set for San Antonio and the NCAA has begun preliminary talks with the Texas city to hold the entire 64- team tournament in the area.
For the second consecutive week, the Stanford women were No. 1 in the AP top 25 poll. Stanford received 26 of the 30 first- place votes from a national media panel. Louisville, Connecticut, North Carolina State and South Carolina followed and remained unchanged. ... Kentucky named Kyra Elzy its women’s basketball coach, removing the interim tag. The No. 9 Wildcats are 6- 0.
Florida forward Keyontae Johnson was “following simple commands” after being transferred from Tallahassee Memorial to UF Health in Gainesville, the school said. Officials added that Johnson is undergoing further tests and remains in critical but stable condition two days after he collapsed on the court during a game at Florida State.
The top f ive teams remained unchanged in the latest AP top 25 men’s basketball poll, with Gonzaga and Baylor leading the way and West Virginia and Tennessee cracking the top 10. ... South Carolina postponed its home game with No. 24 Clemson on Saturday night because of continuing COVID- 19 issues.
Vanderbilt’s football season f inale at No. 10 Georgia scheduled for Saturday was canceled after the Commodores fell below both the number of scholarship players available and position requirements. Also, Vanderbilt hired Notre Dame defensive coordinator Clark Lea as its new football coach, bringing back a Nashville native and former Commodores fullback to revive the program. ... Shilo Sanders, the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, is leaving South Carolina and has entered the NCAA’s transfer portal. ... The Atlantic Coast Conference picked Northwestern athletic director Jim Phillips as its next commissioner, replacing John Swofford.
While Cleveland Indians owner Paul Dolan said in an interview with the AP that “it’s time” to stop using a moniker many deem racist, he said the team will continue to be called the Indians until a new name is chosen. That “multistage” process is in its early stages and the team will play — and be branded — as the Indians at least through next season.
Mikaela Shiffrin won her first World Cup ski race since the death of her father nearly a year ago. Shiffrin protected her f irst- run lead in the giant slalom and f inished 0.82 seconds ahead of Federica Brignone in the French Alps. Former world champion Tessa Worley was 1.09 behind in third place.
London’s six Premier League clubs won’t be allowed supporters at games after the city was placed under the toughest level of coronavirus restrictions because of a spike in cases. ... Algerian tennis player Aymen Ikhlef was banned for life and f ined $ 100,000 for match- fixing offenses.
Jeannie Morris, a groundbreaking sports journalist who became the f irst woman to report live from a Super Bowl in 1975, has died. She was 85. ... Gerard Houllier, a Frenchman who won three titles in one season as manager of English club Liverpool following a disappointing spell as the coach of France’s national team, has died. He was 73.