Ready, set, negotiate multi-million contracts. The NFL’s free agency period opens Monday with a 52-hour legal tampering period ahead of the official start of the new league year Wednesday. Edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, six-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans and Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III head the list of high-profile players who will be free to sign a contract with a new team. Quarterbacks Kirk Cousins and Kyler Murray also will be seeking new teams because they’re going to be released by their teams.
VAL DI FASSA, Italy (AP) — Mikaela Shiffrin has moved closer to a sixth career World Cup overall title by scoring points in a rare start in super-G that close rival Emma Aicher did not finish. Shiffrin placed 23rd behind 35-year-old Elena Curtoni winning on home snow at Val di Fassa in Italy. A stellar weekend for the home Italian team saw unheralded 29-year-old Asja Zenere race into third place. Curtoni was 0.26 faster than runner-up Kajsa Vickhoff Lie. Shiffrin earned eight World Cup points and extended her lead over Aicher to 125 with six races left.
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Akshay Bhatia has closed in on Daniel Berger after a rain-delayed third round at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. They finished the last two holes Sunday morning to complete the round that had been halted by darkness. Berger made birdie on the par-5 16th and stretched his lead to three. He drove into the rough on 18 and made bogey after missing a short par putt. Bhatia sank a putt that was on the edge of the cup for about eight seconds before falling for birdie and a 68. Berger shot 72 and leads by one at 13 under.
The first automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament came a little bit early. Long Island University claimed the Northeast Conference’s berth by beating Wagner in the semifinals of that league tournament Saturday. The Sharks will play in the NEC men’s title game Tuesday night, but their opponent (Mercyhurst) is ineligible for the NCAAs because it is still a reclassifying Division I institution. When Mercyhurst topped Stonehill to advance to the championship game, that meant the other semifinal between LIU and Wagner would determine who reached the NCAA field of 68. Later Saturday, Tennessee State beat Morehead State to win the OVC Tournament for that league's automatic bid.
TOKYO (AP) — Defending champion Japan rallied from 1-0 down and beat Australia 4-3 behind a seventh-inning two-run homer with two out by Masataka Yoshida in the World Baseball Classic. Japan had already qualified for the quarterfinals. Australia will advance if it beats South Korea on Monday. In the other Pool C game, Taiwan defeated South Korea 5-4 in 10 innings with Chieh-Hsien Chen — who began as the designated runner — scoring the winning run in the top of the inning on a sacrifice bunt by Kun-Yu Chiang.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Maxx Crosby said goodbye to Raiders fans Saturday. He also said he has one goal in Baltimore and that's winning a Super Bowl. He posted an emotional video that ran nearly 13 minutes. The Raiders traded the five-time Pro Bowler to the Ravens on Friday night for two first-round picks, someone with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. One pick is No. 14 in next month’s draft. Crosby said he has no regrets. He said Las Vegas will remain his home. Baltimore added him to boost a pass rush that struggled last season.
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Cameron Boozer had 26 points, 15 rebounds and five assists to help No. 1 Duke beat No. 17 North Carolina 76-61 on Saturday night in a rivalry rematch. Maliq Brown added 15 points as Duke led by a single possession early after halftime before taking over with 16 straight points. That ballooned to a 24-2 surge. Derek Dixon scored 17 points to lead the Tar Heels. North Carolina was playing a day after learning star freshman Caleb Wilson was lost to a season-ending broken thumb. The Tar Heels had taken the first meeting on Seth Trimble's last-second 3-pointer last month.
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — No. 17 North Carolina lost at No. 1 Duke in its first game since learning star freshman Caleb Wilson had been lost to a season-ending injury. The high-end NBA prospect was on the verge of returning from a broken left hand that had sidelined him since Feb. 10. But he suffered a broken right thumb in Thursday's practice leading up to the Duke game. Wilson was wearing a black brace on his right thumb for the Duke loss. He was active on the North Carolina bench and shouting encouragement to teammates. Coach Hubert Davis says “there's tremendous sadness” for Wilson.
TOKYO (AP) — Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and Princess Aiko arrived at the Tokyo Dome for Japan’s critical game against Australia and the World Baseball Classic. Even members of the royal family are fans of Japanese baseball and superstar Shohei Ohtani. They saw Japan win 4-3, but it was not easy. The defending champions trailed 1-0 until they scored on Masataka Yoshida’s two-run homer in the seventh to lead 2-1. They did not trail again. Japan has qualified for the quarterfinals in the United States.
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — George Russell wins a dramatic season-opening Australian Grand Prix, and Mercedes seals a one-two with Kimi Antonelli. It's Mercedes' 61st one-two result and first since 2024’s Las Vegas Grand Prix. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc jumps into the lead at the first corner and then trades positions with pole sitter Russell. On lap 12, a virtual safety car comes out after Isack Hadjar stops on track. Mercedes pits both cars and gains an edge. Leclerc finishes third as Ferrari’s slow reaction during the yellow flags cost the team. Lewis Hamilton takes fourth. Oscar Piastri crashes before the start and misses his home race.
FINALSMLB SPRING TRAINING
INTERLEAGUE
Final Houston 5 Miami 4
Final Toronto 1 Philadelphia 0
Final Pittsburgh 5 Detroit 3
Final Chicago Cubs 4 Athletics 3
Final Kansas City 6 Cincinnati 2
Final Cleveland 7 San Diego 1
Final San Francisco 7 Texas 5
Final Milwaukee 7 L.A. Angels 1
Final Washington 3 N.Y. Yankees 0
Final Baltimore 2 Atlanta 2
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Boston 2 Tampa Bay 0
Final Baltimore 3 Minnesota 2
Final Chicago White Sox 5 Seattle 1
Final L.A. Angels 3 Athletics 0
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final N.Y. Mets 3 St. Louis 2
Final San Francisco 7 Arizona 4
Final Colorado 6 L.A. Dodgers 4
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Boston 3 Washington 1
Final New Jersey 6 N-Y Rangers 3
Final Buffalo 3 Nashville 2
Final SO Philadelphia 4 Pittsburgh 3
Final OT Winnipeg 3 Vancouver 2
Final Tampa Bay 5 Toronto 2
Final Montreal 4 Los Angeles 3
Final OT Utah 5 Columbus 4
Final Calgary 5 Carolina 4
Final Ottawa 7 Seattle 4
Final OT N-Y Islanders 2 San Jose 1
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (1)Duke 76 (17)North Carolina 61
Final (2)Arizona 89 Colorado 79
Final Marquette 68 (4)UConn 62
Final (5)Florida 84 Kentucky 77
Final (6)Iowa State 86 Arizona State 65
Final (7)Houston 82 Oklahoma State 75
Final BYU 82 (10)Texas Tech 76
Final (13)Virginia 76 Virginia Tech 72
Final (14)Kansas 104 Kansas State 85
Final Wisconsin 97 (15)Purdue 93
Final (16)Alabama 96 Auburn 84
Final (20)Arkansas 88 Missouri 84
Final Louisville 92 (22)Miami (FL) 89
Final (24)Vanderbilt 86 (23)Tennessee 82