KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Tylor Perry scored 21 points, making four pressure-filled free throws down the stretch, and No. 10 seed Kansas State rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to beat seventh-seeded Texas 78-74 in the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday night. The Wildcats advanced to play second-seeded Iowa State in the quarterfinals on Thursday. Arthur Kaluma added 14 points, David N’Guessan had 13 and Dai Dai Ames and Cam Carter finished with 10 apiece for the Wildcats, who gave their flickering NCAA Tournament hopes a big boost. Max Abmas made a series of 3-pointers in the final minute to give Texas a chance and finished with 26 points. But his backcourt mate Tyrese Hunter was held to three points on 0-for-7 shooting.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Dan Skillings Jr. scored 25 points to help Cincinnati beat No. 16 Kansas 72-52 in the Big 12 Tournament. The Jayhawks were missing the league's top two scorers, Hunter Dickinson and Kevin McCullar Jr. Dickinson dislocated his shoulder in a loss to Houston last weekend and McCullar has been dealing with a knee injury. The No. 11 seed Bearcats took advantage on their way to a quarterfinal matchup with No. 14 Baylor in the quarterfinal round. KJ Adams Jr. got banged up during the game but was able to finish for Kansas, and he led the way with 22 points.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Fousseyni Traore had 14 points and 10 rebounds, Richie Saunders scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half and No. 20 BYU beat UCF 87-73 in the second round of the Big 12 Tournament. The Cougars scored the game's first 14 points as part of a 21-3 run to start the game, only for UCF to close within three in the second half. But the comeback fizzled and it was the Cougars who advanced to play No. 25 Texas Tech in the quarterfinal round. Darius Johnson hit six 3-pointers and had 32 points for the Knights, who beat Oklahoma State in the first round.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Emanuel Miller had 26 points and eight rebounds, Jameer Nelson Jr. added 14 points and No. 8 seed TCU beat No. 9 seed Oklahoma 77-70 victory in the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday. The Horned Frogs advanced to play top-ranked Houston on Thursday. TCU dealt the No. 1 seed Cougars one of their three conference losses when they met in the regular season. Jalon Moore and Otega Oweh had 16 points apiece to lead Oklahoma in its last Big 12 Tournament before heading to the SEC. Milos Uzan finished with 15 points and Le’Tre Darthard had 12 for the Sooners.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The NCAA says athletes who have transferred multiple times can compete in the next academic year. The NCAA issued the updated guidance Wednesday, with college basketball’s portal season about to tip off. In December, multiple-transfer athletes who were denied the chance to compete immediately were allowed by a court to play through the remainder of this academic year. The NCAA says while it's not certain whether the preliminary injunction will remain in place during the 2024-25 season, multiple-transfer athletes won’t have to sit out one year. However, transfer window notification rules must be followed. The window for college basketball runs from March 18 to May 1.
UNDATED (AP) — West Virginia has opened a search for a new men’s basketball coach as it tries to put behind one of the worst seasons in school history. Athletic director Wren Baker says he hopes to have a coach hired by early next month. Interim coach Josh Eilert led the Mountaineers to a 9-23 record, including a loss to Cincinnati in the Big 12 Tournament on Tuesday. Baker says he informed Eilert, his staff and the team upon their return that the school is moving forward with its search plans. West Virginia set a school record for losses. Eilert took over last summer after the resignation of Bob Huggins.
UNDATED (AP) — The College Football Playoff is moving toward a revenue-sharing agreement between the participating conferences that it needs to finalize a new television contact with ESPN. But discussions of what the format for the postseason system will be starting in 2026 are being tabled. Conferences officials were meeting separately this week with members to consider a deal that would commit them to the College Football Playoff for another six years, three people with knowledge of the CFP’s latest discussions told The Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the CFP’s internal discussions were not being made public.
UNDATED (AP) — The Tennessee Titans landed wide receiver Calvin Ridley when free agency opened Wednesday. Ridley's four-year, $92 million deal includes $50 million in guarantees, according to a person with knowledge of the agreement. It comes one day after the Titans lost longtime running back Derrick Henry to the Baltimore Ravens. The league's teams are reshaping their rosters in pursuit of two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City. But the Chiefs have made several moves to keep their championship core intact.
UNDATED (AP) — The Las Vegas Raiders kicked off the start of the new league year by releasing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and receiver Hunter Renfrow to give the new regime more room to operate under the salary cap. The Raiders also released backup quarterback Brian Hoyer and defensive tackle Jerry Tillery just minutes after the start of the 2024 league year. The moves create significant salary cap space for the Raiders to use this offseason as a new regime led by general manager Tom Telesco and coach Antonio Pierce looks to build the team into a contender.
UNDATED (AP) — The Indianapolis Colts are proposing a rule change that would allow for challenges of penalty calls in the last two minutes of the half. The NFL released a list of several rule change proposals on Wednesday made by teams that included an option to run a fourth-and-20 play in lieu of an onside kick, the moving of the trade deadline and giving teams an additional challenge if they are successful on one of their first two tries. The competition committee will make its own rule change proposals next week and owners are scheduled to vote on them at the league meetings later this month with 24 votes needed for approval.
UNDATED (AP) — The San Diego Padres have acquired right-hander Dylan Cease in a trade with the Chicago White Sox for reliever Steven Wilson and three prospects: right-handers Drew Thorpe and Jairo Iriarte, and outfielder Samuel Zavala. Cease, who turned 28 in December, was second in AL Cy Young Award voting in 2022 after going 14-8 with a 2.20 ERA. He went 7-9 with a 4.58 ERA last year for a White Sox team that went 61-101. Cease joins a rotation that includes Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove. He agreed in January to an $8 million, one-year contract and is eligible for free agency after the 2025 World Series.
TAMPA, Fla (AP) — New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole traveled to Los Angeles to see specialist Dr. Neal ElAttrache for additional tests on his right elbow. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he has no timetable for how long Cole will be sidelined. ElAttrache is the Los Angeles Dodgers head team physician and is an expert on elbows. Cole, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, has made at least 30 starts in each of the last six full regular seasons. He had an MRI on Monday and X-rays and a CT scan on Tuesday.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Boston Red Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito is expected to miss this season after his right ulnar collateral ligament was repaired with an internal brace. Dr. Jeffrey R. Dugas operated Tuesday at the Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Giolito was able to avoid ligament replacement surgery, which he had on Aug. 31, 2012, with Dr. Lewis Yocum, less than two months after Washington made Giolito its tops pick in the 2012 amateur draft. Red Sox manager Alex Cora says he doesn’t think Giolito will take the mound again in 2024.
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final Cincinnati 72 (16)Kansas 52
Final (20)BYU 87 UCF 73
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
Final Philadelphia 4 Detroit 1
Final Toronto 10 Pittsburgh 3
Final Seattle 8 L.A. Dodgers 1
Final Chicago Cubs 8 Cleveland 3
Final Chicago White Sox 15 Milwaukee 4
Final San Diego 12 Oakland 11
Final Atlanta 7 Baltimore 5
Final N.Y. Mets 6 Houston 5
Final St. Louis 1 Minnesota 1
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Tampa Bay 4 Minnesota 3
Final Boston 9 N.Y. Yankees 4
Final Kansas City 3 L.A. Angels 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Washington 2 Miami 1
Final Colorado 7 Arizona 5
Final Cincinnati 19 San Francisco 11
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Detroit 113 Toronto 104
Final Orlando 114 Brooklyn 106
Final Denver 100 Miami 88
Final Cleveland 116 New Orleans 95
Final Charlotte 110 Memphis 98
Final OT Chicago 132 Indiana 129
Final Dallas 109 Golden State 99
Final Portland 106 Atlanta 102
Final Sacramento 120 L.A. Lakers 107
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final St. Louis 3 Los Angeles 1
Final Nashville 4 Winnipeg 2
Final Edmonton 7 Washington 2