PHOENIX (AP) — Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma’s coaching rivalry reached a dramatic peak Friday night. A visibly upset Auriemma went over to Staley in the waning seconds of South Carolina’s 62-48 victory over the UConn in the Final Four and appeared to chastise her before the two shook hands. Staley responded with “don’t do that” while assistant coaches from both teams separated them. Auriemma later said the exchange was about the lack of a traditional pregame handshake between the coaches. Staley said she was confused because she had no idea what happened.
PHOENIX (AP) — Dawn Staley and South Carolina are back in a familiar place, reaching the NCAA championship game for the fourth time in five years. They’ll have to beat a title-seeking newcomer in UCLA to win the ultimate prize. South Carolina will be trying to win its fourth national championship in nine years. The Gamecocks played stifling defense to knock off UConn 62-48 and end the Huskies’ 54-game winning streak in the semifinals Friday night. UCLA played incredible defense of its own in its 51-44 win over Texas. The Bruins spoiled a chance at the first all-SEC title game since 2017, when Staley’s team beat Mississippi State, which was led by current Texas coach Vic Schaefer.
PHOENIX (AP) — Lauren Betts had 16 points and made a huge block late, and UCLA withstood a late charge by Texas for a 51-44 win to reach the women’s NCAA Tournament national championship game for the first time. Manhandled by eventual national champion UConn in their first Final Four a year ago, the Bruins (36-1) dominated their way to another national semifinal with the best season in program history. A chance at a first national championship game appearance had to go through the only team to beat them this season. Overpowered in the first meeting, the Bruins turned the bully tables on Texas (35-4), shutting down All-American Madison Booker while building a 13-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
STAWELL, Australia (AP) — American sprinters Sha’Carri Richardson and Christian Coleman have won their heats and qualified for Monday’s semifinals of the Stawell Gift, an annual race contested over 120 meters on grass in a small Australian town near Melbourne. Both Richardson and Coleman are racing from “scratch” in the 144th edition of the event, meaning they must run the entire distance and chase down opponents who in some cases may start 25 meters ahead of them. Richardson won her heat in 13.815 seconds Saturday and Coleman his in 12.681.
President Trump has signed an executive order aimed at fixing college sports that would give federal agencies authority to cut funding at schools that don’t comply with mandates covering transfers, eligibility and pay-for-play in the rapidly changing industry. The order is a laundry list of proposed fixes that lawmakers and college leaders have been pushing for. Among the notable parts of the order was a call to establish “clear, consistent and fair eligibility limits, including a five-year participation window.”
PHOENIX (AP) — Ta’Niya Latson scored 16 and Agot Makeer added 14 points and South Carolina played stifling defense to beat UConn 62-48 on Friday night, ending the Huskies’ 54-game winning streak and advancing to the women’s NCAA Tournament championship game.The Gamecocks have now reached the NCAA championship game in four of the last five seasons, including the past three. They will be looking to win a fourth national title Sunday when they face UCLA, capping off another March Madness. South Carolina (36-3) will be looking to win its fourth national championship. UConn (38-1) entered the Final Four undefeated for the ninth time in school history and for the third straight time left without a title. The Huskies also lost in the 2017 and 2018 national semifinals.
PHOENIX (AP) — UConn’s Geno Auriemma was not a happy man. The Huskies coach was upset about the officiating, with his team’s performance or South Carolina coach Dawn Staley. The Huskies coach ripped into the officiating during a live TV interview and then got into a heated argument with Staley in the final seconds of their 62-48 loss to the Gamecocks. But a rough night for UConn stars Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd was the main cause of their stunning collapse in the national semifinals of the women’s Final Four on Friday night.
Erling Haaland’s 18-minute hat trick has powered Manchester City to a 4-0 win over Liverpool and into the FA Cup semifinals for a record eighth straight season. Mohamed Salah’s failure from the penalty spot added to the woes of Liverpool. The Reds' meltdown at Etihad Stadium will put more heat on under-pressure manager Arne Slot. Haaland converted a penalty in the 39th minute, headed home a cross from Antoine Semenyo in first-half stoppage time, and then swept in a finish off the crossbar in the 57th to score his first hat trick of the season for City. Chelsea hosts third-tier Port Vale before Arsenal visits second-tier Southampton later.
DALLAS (AP) — Cooper Flagg has scored 51 points to become the first teenager to reach the 50-point mark in an NBA game. The rookie No. 1 pick of the Dallas Mavericks scored 24 points in the fourth quarter of a 138-127 loss to the Orlango Magic. Flagg's fourth-quartery flurry came after coach Jason Kidd and teammate Naji Marshall were ejected over what they thought was a no-call when Flagg was fouled by Desmond Bane. Flagg's previous career high was 49.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luka Doncic will miss the rest of the Los Angeles Lakers’ regular season with a Grade 2 strain of his left hamstring, the team says. Doncic is the NBA’s top scorer and the driving force behind the Lakers’ surge into the third spot in the Western Conference standings, but he injured his leg during Los Angeles’ blowout loss to Oklahoma City on Thursday. An MRI exam revealed the severity of the strain. The Lakers (50-27) have just five games left before the postseason, starting Sunday at Dallas. Doncic is averaging 33.5 points, 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds per game.
Finals
INTERLEAGUE
Final Detroit 4 St. Louis 0
Final N.Y. Yankees 8 Miami 2
Final Boston 5 San Diego 2
Final Cincinnati 5 Texas 3
Final Cleveland 4 Chicago Cubs 1
Final Pittsburgh 5 Baltimore 4
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Chicago White Sox 5 Toronto 4
Final Minnesota 10 Tampa Bay 4
Final Seattle 3 L.A. Angels 1
Final Athletics 11 Houston 4
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final L.A. Dodgers 13 Washington 6
Final Philadelphia 10 Colorado 1
Final Atlanta 2 Arizona 0
Final N.Y. Mets 10 San Francisco 3
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Philadelphia 4 N-Y Islanders 1