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Agora, Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2024 Financial ResultsKNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nico Iamaleava threw for 209 yards and four touchdowns to lead No. 10 Tennessee to a 56-0 victory over UTEP on Saturday. The Volunteers (9-2) overcame a sluggish start to roll up the impressive win. Both teams were scoreless in the first quarter, but Tennessee found its rhythm. Grad student receiver Bru McCoy, who hadn't caught a touchdown pass this season, had two. Peyton Lewis also ran for two scores. Tennessee's defensive line, which had no sacks in last week's loss to Georgia, had three against the Miners. UTEP (2-9) struggled with two missed field goals and three turnovers. Tennessee's offense came alive with 28 points in the second quarter. In the final four drives of the quarter, Iamaleava completed 11 of 12 passes for 146 yards and touchdowns to Squirrel White, Ethan Davis and McCoy. UTEP was the dominant team in the first quarter. Tennessee managed just 37 offensive yards and, thanks to an interception near the end zone and a missed field goal by the Miners, both teams were scoreless after 15 minutes. POLL IMPLICATIONS Tennessee’s convincing victory, coupled with losses by Mississippi and Indiana, should put the Volunteers in a good position when the next College Football Playoff poll is released. The Vols were ranked No. 11 going into this week’s games. THE TAKEAWAY UTEP: The Miners will head into a very winnable game against New Mexico State having won two of their last five games. First-year coach Scotty Walden will try to build on that success in the offseason to help enhance his roster. Tennessee: Even a lopsided win won’t carry much weight where it means the most — in the College Football Playoff rankings. The Vols will have to rely on a convincing win against Vanderbilt next week, a team that has shown a lot of improvement this season, to help their standing for those coveted spots. UP NEXT UTEP: The Miners will finish their season at New Mexico State Saturday. Tennessee: The Vols will finish their regular season at Vanderbilt next Saturday. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Ric Grenell under consideration to be Trump's point man on Ukraine: reportBy Chidiebere Onyemaizu Almost two years after an impressive electoral outing , Labour party appears to have relapsed into what political analysts have described as its traditional default mode- providing platforms and sanctuary for politicians to contest elections after which such politicians ditch it for parties with more following. This could be evidenced from the waves of defections that have hit the party recently and in the past. Aside recent defections and resignations from the party, prominent politicians who had in the past used the Labour party as a stop – gap measure or a transit camp to contest elections before moving on to a stronger political platforms include former Ondo State governor, Olusegun Mimiko who came to office in 2007 on the party’s platform only to ditch it for the Peoples Democratic party, PDP in 2014, late Senator Ifeanyi Ubah who contested the 2014 Anambra governorship election on the party’s platform but left after he was defeated, Senator Andy Uba(not related to Ifeanyi Uba) who also contested the state’s 2010 governorship election on the LP platform and lost and then left the party, former Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose who contested a Senatorial seat on the LP platform in 2011 and lost and then returned to the PDP in 2011, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Reps, Yusuf Lasun who contested the Osun 2022 governorship election and lost, and then defected to the PDP. Analysts posit that as it is presently, the LP is asphyxiating and haemorrhaging and whether it will survive before the next elections is debatable. Keen watchers of the unfolding evisceration of the party have however told Daily Sun that the recent defections the party suffered are fatal enough to cripple any party, especially a party that lacks taproots as the LP. “The wave of defections the Labour Party has suffered are enough to bring any party without a firm taproot to its knees and LP has no taproot, it has no structure. “Its 2023 presidential candidate and former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi and his Obidients Movement is what can pass as LP’s structure, its tap root and its oxygen but right now, it appears Obi is no longer enthusiastic about the party, so, LP is in a mess; it appears to be on the throes of death”, Godwin Tenebe, a lawyer and social affairs commentator told Daily Sun. However, Iheanyi Nwachukwu, a political analyst who admitted he is a Labour party sympathiser believes the defections and the crisis buffetting opposition parties are engineered by the APC because of 2027. “It is self- evident: The crisis and defections rocking opposition parties are engineered and masterminded by the APC. “The APC is aware that given its dismal performance, if the 2027 election is credibly conducted and contested by a united, virile opposition, it will be voted out of power by Nigerians but the APC wants to cling on to power by all means, whether Nigerians want it or not. So, what you are seeing currently in the opposition parties are antics of the APC to weaken them, destabilise them, compromise them, pocket them and buy them over ahead 2027; the APC wants to win the 2027 elections unchallenged and to achieve this, it is engaging in state capture- APC has captured state institutions critical to free fair elections and has also captured democratic institutions; that is exactly what it has done to the PDP and LP. “In the run up to the 2027 elections, you will likely see a factionalised opposition parties- PDP and LP- with INEC gleefully recognizing the factions sympathic to the APC; these factions will then proceed to adopt the APC, announce a merger with it or field weak presidential candidates to challenge the ruling party”, Nwachukwu told Daily Sun. In July, one of LP Senators, Onyebuchi Francis Ezenwa representing Imo East Senatorial District ditched the party for the APC, offering no cogent reason for doing so. Last week, tsunami visited the party in the House of Representatives when five of its members announced their defections to the APC. The defectors include Tochukwu Okere (Imo), Donatus Mathew (Kaduna), Bassey Akiba (Cross River), Iyawe Esosa (Edo) and Daulyop Fom (Plateau). Two days after the defections, another LP Reps member, Ajang Iliya, representing Jos South/Jos East Federal Constituency, Plateau State also announced he has left the party for the APC. The defections were confirmed during a plenary session when Speaker Tajudeen Abbas read their official letters of defection on the floor of the Green Chamber. Of all the defectors, Mathew’s exit probably rankled the LP the most. Reacting to his defection, the party rued that it was betrayed by Mathew whom it described as an Okada rider. Essentially, Mathew, a commercial motorcyclist popular as Okada, made headlines in 2023 for his remarkable journey from riding Okada and coming from lowly background to winning a parliamentary seat to represent Kaura Federal Constituency in Kaduna State. Apparently hurt and bewildered by the depletion of its House of Reps membership, the LP has barked a threat to the defecting members but ironically, the threat, impeccable sources familiar with the alleged extinction facing the party, told Daily Sun, will not stop many more members of the party across the country, especially those holding elective positions, from leaving. Since its National Chairman, Julius Abure regained the control of the party through the instrumentality of the court, speculations have been rife that he has turned the party over to the ruling APC as its appendage so as to spite Obi and LP’s only Governor, Alex Otti of Abia State who had a few months ago set up an interim caretaker Committee to manage affairs of the party following INEC’s initial derecognition of Abure as National Chairman. The APC, through its lackeys in the LP are allegedly plotting to undermine Obi and put road blocks on his path should he attempt to use the party’s platform to contest the 2027 presidential election. Its protestations notwithstanding, the Abure led LP national leadership is allegedly in bed with the APC as regards the defections. The defection of LP House members to the APC, Daily Sun gathered, are allegedly part of an orchestrated move to have the party subsumed under the APC and then get the defected members rewarded with automatic APC return tickets for the 2027 election. Etanabene Benedict, a member of the Labour Party caucus in the House of Representatives, during a recent Channels TV appearance confirmed many more members of the party are on their way to the APC. Benedict, who represents the Okpe/Sapele/Uvwie federal constituency of Delta, also confirmed the defecting LP House members did so as a strategy ahead of the 2027 general election. Apart from APC’s alleged pocketing of opposition parties including the LP to pave the way for easy victory in 2027, Daily Sun has been informed that some of the LP defectors and many more that will later defect are concerned that the party may have lost its charm and winning appeal following Obi and Obidients movement’s somewhat disenchantment with it. The defected LP House members, it was learnt, feared that the former Anambra Governor may seek alternative platform in 2027 thus leaving them politically stranded. “What some of them have done by defecting is to start chasing or searching for a missing black goat before darkness descends and gets blended with the black goat thus making it difficult to find without light. “Some of these guys are concerned that LP may have lost itself electoral appeal and may therefore not record the kind of magic it recorded in 2023. They also feel that its presidential candidate, Peter Obi is no longer enthusiastic about the party following Abure’s return and is likely to seek an alternative platform in 2027, so what I think they have done by defecting to the APC is to start in earnest to chart a political future outside the LP else they get stranded as 2027 approaches”, Dr Alex Ujah, a university don told Daily Sun. Hon. Benedict somewhat shares this sentiment too. According to him, the defected lawmakers were not confident of winning re-election in 2027 under the LP platform His words: “It is about 2027. The trend of Edo and Ondo is frightening to them, and they do not believe that they are strategically positioned to seek re-election under the umbrella of the Labour Party. That is the main reason. “There are still many others in the Labour Party that are thinking along that line too. So, if it happens tomorrow, I won’t be surprised.” Since its formation in 2002, the 2023 elections represented the Labour party’s best election year ever. Riding on the crest of the country-wide charm, popularity and acceptance of its presidential candidate, Obi, the party proved bookmakers who had earlier, before the election, dismissed it as a fringe party that would make no noticeable impact, wrong with its stunning performance. Not only did Obi almost win the Presidency (in fact his supporters still insist he indeed won the 2023 election but was rigged out by the INEC and the APC), Labour party also recorded an unprecedented electoral feat, winning one Governorship seat(Abia), eight Senate seats, 35 House of Reps seats and 39 House of Assembly seats. However, almost two years after the impressive outing, the party is now a shadow of itself, reverting to the inelegant status of a transit camp for weary politicians who have been schemed out or outsmarted by their parties. Apart from its members in the National and State Houses of Assembly who have switched parties since its 2023 landmark electoral performance, the Labour party has also been losing critical members to the ruling party. For example, Chief Edward Nkwegu, 2023 governorship candidate of the party in Ebonyi State and his deputy, Mr. Nwabueze Aja in July defected to APC. Similarly, its governorship aspirant in Edo State, Kenneth Imasuagbon has since resigned from the party. And last week, the governorship candidate of the party in the 2023 Bayelsa governorship election, Udengs Eradiri, and his running mate, Commodore Benjamin Nathus (retd.) announced their resignations from the party. Ward chairmen of the party in the state, Daily Sun gathered, are also warming up to dump it too. In his resignation letter, Eradiri stated that he made the decision to enable him to pursue his political career on a platform better equipped to provide leadership to Bayelsa State. Meanwhile, the party has threatened to approach the court to declare the seats of its defected members vacant. In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Obinna Ifoh, the LP which had earlier denied being in a liaison with the APC said it was undaunted by the defections but vowed to recover the seats. “The defection, to us, is quite unfortunate and we condemn the action which is irrational, untenable, inconsistent and alien to all known norms for which democracy stands for. Section 68(g) of the 1999 constitution is emphatic on when to defect and what happens when a lawmaker sponsored by a political party decides to jump ship. The Constitution states (g) being a person whose election to the House was sponsored by a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected; Provided that his membership of the latter political party is not as a result of a division in the political party of which he was previously a member or of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored; “Though, the Labour Party leadership is undaunted by the defection, it has however, elected not to allow it slide and has therefore instructed its legal team to commence the legal actions against the defectors and to also commence the process of regaining our mandates in line with the 1999 constitution and 2022 Electoral Act as amended. “The party has also decided to open a ‘Hall of Shame’ register for these lawmakers or any lawmaker or elected officer of the party who engages in fraudulent act of defection without first dropping the mandate gotten under the ticket of the party”, Ifoh said.
(The Center Square) – The University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents has recommended a number of new and revised policies for its institutions, such as a commitment to institutional neutrality, the prohibiting of DEI tactics, and a mandatory education in America’s founding documents. The University System of Georgia (USG) is made up of Georgia’s 26 public colleges and universities as well as Georgia Archives and the Georgia Public Library Service. “USG institutions shall remain neutral on social and political issues unless such an issue is directly related to the institution’s core mission,” the board’s proposed revisions read . “Ideological tests, affirmations, and oaths, including diversity statements,” will be banned from admissions processes and decisions, employment processes and decisions, and institution orientation and training for both students and employees. “No applicant for admission shall be asked to or required to affirmatively ascribe to or opine about political beliefs, affiliations, ideals, or principles, as a condition for admission,” the new policy states. Additionally, USG will hire based on a person’s qualifications and ability. “The basis and determining factor” for employment will be “that the individual possesses the requisite knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with the role, and is believed to have the ability to successfully perform the essential functions, responsibilities, and duties associated with the position for which the individual is being considered.” Beginning in the 2025-2026 academic year, the school’s civic instruction will require students to study founding American documents among other things. USG students will learn from the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights, the Articles of Confederation, the Federalist Papers, the Gettysburg Address, the Emancipation Proclamation, and Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, as well as the Georgia Constitution and Bill of Rights. Sign up to get our free daily email of the biggest stories! When reached for comment, the Board of Regents told The Center Square that “these proposed updates strengthen USG’s academic communities.” The recommended policies allow a campus environment “where people have the freedom to share their thoughts and learn from one another through objective scholarship and inquiry,” and “reflect an unyielding obligation to protect freedom, provide quality higher education and promote student success,” the board said. The board told The Center Square that it proposed strengthening “the requirements for civics instruction” with the inclusion of “foundational primary sources” because of higher education’s duty to students. Colleges and universities “must prepare [students] to be contributing members of society and to understand the ideals of freedom and democracy that make America so exceptional,” the board said. As for ditching DEI, the board explained that “equal opportunity and decisions based on merit are fundamental values of USG.” “The proposed revisions among other things would make clear that student admissions and employee hiring should be based on a person’s qualifications, not his or her beliefs,” the board said. The Board of Regents also said it wants to “ensure [its] institutions remain neutral on social and political issues while modeling what it looks like to promote viewpoint diversity, create campus cultures where students and faculty engage in civil discourse, and the open exchange of ideas is the norm.” USG’s Board of Regents recently urged the NCAA to ban transgender-identifying men from participating in women’s sports, in line with the NAIA rules, The Center Square previously reported .
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With four losses in the previous five games and a losing record overall, there were plenty of things wanted to see from Arizona in its return to action after a week off. But one goal topped the list. “A win,” Lloyd said after the Wildcats thumped Southern Utah 102-66. “It’s what I wanted. Got it. Feeling good.” Arizona posted its fourth win by at least 29 points and fourth scoring 93 or more, getting seven players in double figures and showing aggression on defense to turn steals into points. Now comes another week off before the UA faces old friend/foe UCLA on Dec. 7 in Phoenix. Our game recap can be found . Below is what Lloyd, guard and center said afterward. “It’s like I said earlier in the week. Great programs, good coaches, great players are going to stumble once in a while, and the response is the key, and learning from it and coming back stronger is the objective, and that’s the challenge. We obviously have been challenged early in this season, which is a good thing, and we had a good week to kind of really evaluate a lot of things, and figure out if there’s adjustments we need to make. Even how we practice, how we talk to each other, just a lot of behavioral things. Kind of really get back to the nitty gritty of our culture. All in all, it was a good week. It’s a lot. It’s a lot when you have a week like that for the guys. But they responded.” “I felt like it was a really good first step. You want to come out on Saturday, we’ve had a week of practice, and you want the players to reward themselves for good performance. And I thought for the most part we did tonight. Second half defensively, we could have been better. We kind of backed off that press a little bit, and they got a little bit comfortable, but that’s the right thing to do, because you’re not going to be able to win games, probably night in and night out just pressing. You’re going to have to be great in the halfcourt defensively. So I’m sure there’ll be some things on film we see that we can adjust better.” “It really wasn’t planned on early in the week. KJ came to me the past couple days and asked if I would be open to him not starting. It was his idea. He just felt like maybe it would give other guys some opportunities, get some confidence, and kind of put him in a role similar to Pelle played a few years ago for us. I’m really proud of kJ. What’s cool is, you make a selfess decision—we call it in our program an us decision—you make a decision for the greater good, you don’t always get rewarded right away. I thought he played extremely well, and I’m glad he got rewarded, because I think that was a very unselfish ask of him to come off the bench.” “We’ll just continue reevaluate it. It’s something that I’m not afraid to do. I’m more interested in rotation and finishing games and things like that. I’ve never been afraid to bring a starting-level player off the bench. And I think when we’ve been at our best at Arizona, we quote unquote had seven starters, and that’s what I hope we can get with this team.” “I just think it’s really valuable. When you add guys off the bench that can contribute in a lot of ways, especially some offensive firepower, it’s good. But I think you look at a lot of KJ’s points tonight, it was probably defense to offense. So there’s lots of ways to impact the game, but you know you’re a part of a great program when your bench players are at the level of your starters. Sliding KJ to that spot gives us a real solid feel that that’s what we got.” I also think it’s important at some point to establish a level of certainty with your team, because I think that helps players kind of know when and where their opportunities are going to come from. I don’t want it to be a situation where you’re showing up and right when we get in the huddle we tell you, hey, you’re starting tonight. I don’t know if that’s healthy. But I legitimately feel like we have seven or eight guys that can start. We’ve kind of settled in on this one for now. We’ll give it a look and see how it performs over the next period of time. “You got to get stops, you got to get rebounds, to run the ball. We got to continue to evaluate our running game. It’s a huge part of what we do. It just hasn’t come quite as easy for this group. And the running game could be a lot of things. It could be our first post running down the floor establishing early position. It usually starts with a ball handler, namely your point guard, who is pushing and accelerating the pace of the game and is finding easy opportunities. I thought Conrad (Martinez) came in and did a good job today. Conrad ended up in some numbered fast break situations, where you a 3-on-2, a 4-on-3 advantage. I thought he made really good decisions to get us easy shots. So this is something we got to continue to look at and value and be really opportunistic with.” “It could be how games are officiated. It could be a lot of things that goes into the drawing fouls thing. We’ve really been challenging our guys kind of just home back in on the basics and the fundamentals. Play with two feet on the ground, turn down the tough shot to get the better shot.All the basketball cliches that you guys know and hear of. I think when you do that, I think you start getting rewarded with more foul calls. All those things start falling into place. When you jump off one foot or try to make a really hard shot, it makes it really hard for the official, especially now with verticality is part of our game defensively. I think the officials want to err on the side of not calling the foul, and so when you jump into, when you kind of launch into somebody, and they’re kind of vertical, but you’re moving the ball around, moving your arms around, I think it’s just a lot for the referee to see. The referees don’t want to be guessing, so they’re not usually guessing on the side of the offensive player. They’re guessing and erring on the side of the defensive player. So we gotta be smart there. We gotta be smart, and you gotta be a good enough player to know this is the time I can kind of launch off to and initiate contact and find a way to finish. Or, you know what? This might be a little tough, so maybe I stop on two and play off a shot fake or make a play for a teammate.” “I knew it might take him a little bit of time to adjust coming here, but he did practice really well this fall. And all the scrimmages we had, all the things where we really kept score, he performed. But then you gotta go do it under the lights, and it’s your first time coming off the bench, and so he had to work himself to those things. Your first kind of real moment, away from McKale is a tough one, you’re at Wisconsin. It doesn’t go good. Your second, you come back, try to rebound from that, you’re (against) Duke at home, and you lose a tough game. Then bam, you go right to the Bahamas for three games in three days. He’s worked himself through it, I think. And I think you guys are seeing somebody that, I’m hoping this guy’s a double-figure type scorer in that role. And the way he shoots the ball, I think he’s a guy that can draw a lot of attention and really helps in a lot of other areas.” “I don’t know if he’s going through a funk, I think he’s just kind of finding his way. I thought for stretches in that game, Caleb was great. They were really being aggressive on his ball screen, kind of showing on his ball screen, not on anybody else’s. I thought he was doing a good job moving the ball. I thought he was good in some of those open-side ball screens. He got some layups and some dunks, he was kind of the guy making the play. When you’re a good player, you draw a lot of attention. I thought he did a good job of that. I thought he made a few timely shots. I wish his finishing would have been a little bit better today. I mean, if his finishing is a little bit better today, he’s efficient, instead of being 3 for 12 he’s 6 for 12, 7 for 12 and has 16, 18 points. I think it’s right there. I don’t think it’s any that there needs to be alarm bells going off.” “Tobe is kind of being asked to play a new role, maybe a little bit bigger and more consistent role that he’s played in the past. I think he’s adjusted really well. I was watching some of these games, and the thing I kept noticing he was just always on balance. And he really hadn’t practice like that. So, why? Why in these games are you getting off balance? Are you rushing? Are you breathing? Are you are you relaxing in the moments you need to relax? He kind of got a little wound tight. We really kind of worked on it this week. Tobe is an adult, you can have good conversations with him. I think you see the game, the way he can kind of impact the game the way he did today, he’s a lot to deal with.” “Carter, he’s going through all the experiences he needs to go through right now. I know it’s not coming easy for him, but that’s not because he’s not a good player. He’s just got to kind of figure it out. And then he’s going to have a few Arizona moments where he kind of breaks through. He kind of had them in the second half of that Duke game a little bit. He’ll have some more of those. And when he has more of those, he’ll be able to kind of galvanize and understand what it feels like, and kind understand how to make it happen, but also understand to kind of let it come to a little bit. I’m comfortable with Carter in that role. You look at his stat line today. He has four assists, one turnover. I’ve challenged him to be a connector. What’s that, nine rebounds? He makes a shot and a couple free throws he has a double double (if he) grabs some more rebounds. That’s a really productive night. So let’s not be like just so sensitive on scoring. Some of these bigger wings, like him coming out of high school, it just takes him a little time to adjust to kind of being more like a true perimeter player. Because in high school, Carter was also the biggest guy on him. So you have to understand it takes these guys a little bit of time, and they haven’t had the ball in their hands their entire life dribbling the ball like young point guards have. Young point guards can kind of sometimes adjust a little quicker. True five men are kind of what they are, they’ve just got to figure out the physicality. It’s those in between guys that sometimes this takes a little bit of time, and I think I put Carter in that category. I’m really optimistic about what he did today. To have four assists and nine rebounds in that role today was awesome.” “Every guy that comes to Arizona has never done his life. We’re not taking players that played JV their senior year. Every one of these guys was a star, played in all-star games, had multiple stars next to their name on the recruiting website. So it’s an adjustment for every one of them. Let’s give it a little bit of time. When KJ made the decision, I really thought about it, about how it made sense, let’s put some shooting on the floor early, and we know Carter’s a good catch-and-shoot shooter, we know over time, that’s going to play out where the numbers are going to be what we expect them to be. It gives him an opportunity maybe to spread the floor a little bit early in these games. And KJ comes in the game, and (on) that second unit can kind of become a little bit more of a ball handler and a playmaker.” “I know I can rely on him, now I just have to find the opportunities for him. That’s what I’m I’m trying to figure out. Conrad is an awesome kid. He came in my office a week or two ago. You think it’s going to be the talk, like Coach,what does this mean for me. He said I just want to let you know, when you’re ready to give you the opportunity to play I’m ready, and I’m going to do it with confidence. And I’m like, wow, thank you. So you have a guy telling you that, you have a guy in KJ coming in and saying hey, I think it would be better for the team if I came off the bench. Those are the us decisions that’s going to make us a team. And when you have guys that have that high character and are making those decisions, that bodes well for the future. Those are the things I’m going to really wrap my arms around right now, but Conrad is a guy that I would love to try to find a way to give an opportunity every game. I can’t promise that’s going to happen. But I think when you you see when he gets out there, he brings something to the floor, for sure.” “We’re gonna have a great week of practice. We’re gonna roll up our sleeves, we’re gonna compete. We’re gonna gonna get to work. We’re gonna attack it with the character we want our program to show. But we also gotta understand we know where we’re at, we know we don’t have all the answers, and we know we have a really big game on Saturday, so we’re fired up for that.” “You know what our focus is going to be on? Arizona basketball. UCLA is a good program, and if we go in and then all we’re worried about his UCLA and assume that we’re going to show up and play well we’re going to get out ass kicked. So we got to make sure we go into that game and we do the things to play well to give ourselves a chance.” “It was really good, very important for us. This whole week was probably one of the most, I don’t want to say hardest, but one of the most disciplined weeks that we had since I’ve been here. And it was definitely needed.” “We just knew our standard wasn’t to where we would like it to be. We’ve been focusing on a bunch of us basketball, playing as a team and just moving the ball like Arizona has been before. I think today we had one of the highest assists that we had so far this year, we had 23, so we’re just gonna try to build on this going into next week.” “Just wanting to get on the same page, apologize to him and my teammates for how I’ve been acting emotionally, because I know I’m one of the leaders of this group, so I’m just trying to be better in that aspect.” “I’m going play the same regardless, starting or coming off the bench. I’m always had that edge and play with intensity defensively. Offensively, just letting it come to me and trying to help my teammates be in the best position they can be possibly.” “Whatever is gonna help the team. The conversation me and Coach Lloyd had, I just want to win, and I know the program wants to win, and the fans want us to win, and the team wants to win, so just trying to do whatever it takes to be in a winning position for the team. Making us plays and us sacrifices.” “I’m pretty sure the city of Tucson is disappointed, but it’s a long season. We got a great coach, we got a great coaching staff and a great team. We’re going to get this thing turned around.” “Maybe, but that’s something I gotta control, too. I’m just an ultra competitive guy. I don’t want to say anything about the refs, but I think it just depends how the game is being reffed and how the game is going, and I just got to learn how to find ways to control my emotions. And then when I want to be emotional, be emotional with my teammates.” “I let the game come to me mostly. Play as a team, all week we’ve been building as a team.” “(KJ) faked a back cut and I was in the air so I had to throw it off the glass.” “It’s very important as a team. If you come off the bench you just got to give energy to the guys who were on the court. Whatever it is, like points, rebounds, blocks, defense and effort.”Lindsey Vonn takes another step in comeback at age 40, competes in a pair of downhills
Philadelphia (8-2) at Los Angeles Rams (5-5) Sunday, 8:20 p.m. EST, NBC/Peacock BetMGM NFL odds: Eagles by 3. Against the spread: Eagles 6-4; Rams 4-6. Series record: Eagles lead 23-20-1. Last meeting: Eagles beat Rams 23-14 in Inglewood, Calif. on Oct. 8, 2023. Last week: Eagles beat Washington 26-18; Rams beat New England 28-22. Eagles offense: overall (5), rush (1), pass (22), scoring (7). Eagles defense: overall (1), rush (7), pass (2), scoring (6). Rams offense: overall (17), rush (26), pass (T-7), scoring (21). Rams defense: overall (23), rush (18), pass (22), scoring (22). Turnover differential: Eagles plus-2; Rams plus-4. RB Saquon Barkley. Barkley combined for 198 scrimmage yards and two scores, rushing 26 times for 146 yards (5.6 average) while adding two receptions for 52 yards against Washington. With 1,137 rushing yards through 10 games, Barkley only trails Baltimore’s Derrick Henry for the NFL lead. He had his sixth 100-plus yard rushing game this season, which is the most in the NFL. S Kam Kinchens. The rookie third-round pick from Miami had eight tackles, one tackle for loss, an interception and a forced fumble against the Patriots as he continues to come on strong. Kinchens has three picks in the past three games. Eagles QB Jalen Hurts vs. Rams’ defensive line. Hurts shredded Los Angeles for 303 yards passing and 72 yards rushing last season despite the presence of superstar DT Aaron Donald. After Donald retired, the Rams turned to a committee approach to get after the passer, and it has worked with rookie OLB Jared Verse and DT Braden Fiske fitting in well next to second-year OLB Byron Young and DT Kobie Turner. But they can only unleash their excellent pass rush skills by limiting Philadelphia on early downs. Hurts has been at his dual-threat best over the past five games, accounting for 15 total touchdowns (six passing, nine rushing) against two turnovers. Eagles defensive end Bryce Huff had surgery on his left wrist on Thursday, a move that could allow him to return toward the end of the season. ... WR DeVonta Smith (hamstring) and DT Milton Williams (foot) each missed practice this week. ... Rams RT Rob Havenstein (ankle) looks to be trending toward a return this week. Havenstein sat out the previous two games because of the ailment. The Eagles have won all three games in Los Angeles since the Rams moved back in 2016. ... Overall, Philadelphia has won seven of the past eight. The only setback came in Week 2 of the 2020 pandemic season. Barkley has passed 100-plus scrimmage yards in eight of 10 games. That is tied with LeSean McCoy (2011) and Brian Westbrook (2007) for the most by an Eagle through 10 games. His 198 yards were his second most as an Eagle (199 in Week 9). ... The Eagles have allowed two passing touchdowns during their winning streak. Only one opponent has topped 200 passing yards against them in this stretch, with Cincinnati throwing for 222 in Week 8. ... Hurts leads all NFL quarterbacks with 11 touchdown runs and is second only to Henry's 13 scores for the Ravens. ... WR A.J. Brown leads the league in receptions of 30 yards or longer. He is averaging 18.7 yards per catch, the best mark of any player with at least 30 grabs. ... Even before he hurt his wrist, Huff struggled in his first season in Philadelphia with just 2 1/2 sacks and four quarterback hits. His snap count has dipped since he was injured ahead of a game earlier this month against Jacksonville. Huff had 17 1/2 sacks in four seasons with the Jets before he signed a three-year, $51 million free-agent deal with the Eagles. ... Philadelphia has run for at least 150 yards and two touchdowns in five straight games, something it hadn't accomplished since 1949. ... Rams WR Puka Nacua caught his first touchdown of the season in New England. He has at least seven receptions and 98 yards in three of his past four games, with only a second-quarter ejection in Seattle having limited Nacua since he returned from a knee injury. ... WR Cooper Kupp has 614 receptions through his first 98 games, which is fourth most in NFL history through 100 games. Julio Jones (619) is third. ... RB Kyren Williams averaged a season-high 5.7 yards per carry, finishing with 86 yards on 15 attempts versus the Patriots. ... Verse has 11 tackles for loss and 4 1/2 sacks through his first 10 games. Verse is pressuring the quarterback on 20.2% of pass rush snaps, which ranks second in the league overall. ... The Rams were 2 of 8 (25%) on third down against New England, their third straight game converting 25% or worse. ... QB Matthew Stafford has not been sacked in each of Los Angeles’ past three wins. Don’t be discouraged using Stafford, Kupp and Nacua against Philadelphia's pass defense. All three put up solid fantasy numbers in last season’s meeting, even as the Eagles sat on the ball for nearly 38 minutes. Stafford had 222 yards and two scores, finding Kupp eight times for 118 yards and Nacua seven times for 71 yards and a touchdown, so they'll find ways to produce. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
Air Force secures 69-61 win against Stony Brook
COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. — For a pair of lower-level downhill events, this sure had plenty of Olympic medal-capturing and World Cup-winning ski racers. The stage belonged to Lindsey Vonn, the 40-year-old who took another step on her comeback trail Saturday with her first races in nearly six years. Vonn wasn't particularly speedy and finished in the middle of the pack on a cold but sunny day at Copper Mountain. Times and places weren't the mission, though, as much as getting used to the speed again and gaining the necessary points to compete on the World Cup circuit this season. Vonn accomplished both, finishing 24th in the first downhill race of the day and 27th in the second. She posted on social media after the FIS races that she had enough points to enter World Cup events. The timing couldn't be more perfect — the next stop on the women's circuit is Beaver Creek, Colorado, in a week. Vonn, who used to own a home in nearby Vail, hasn't committed to any sort of timetable for a World Cup return. “Today was a solid start and I had a blast being in start with my teammates again!” Vonn wrote on X. “While I’m sure people will speculate and say I’m not in top form because of the results, I disagree. This was training for me. I’m still testing equipment and getting back in the groove.” Lindsey Vonn reacts after her run at a downhill skiing race at Copper Mountain Ski Resort on Saturday in Copper Mountain, Colo. Her competition — a veritable who's who of high-profile ski racers — applauded her efforts. “I don't expect her to come back and win — just that she comes back and she has fun,” said Federica Brignone of Italy, a former overall World Cup champion and three-time Olympic medalist. “She's having fun, and she’s doing what she loves. That’s the best thing that she could do.” In the first race on a frigid morning, Vonn wound up 1.44 seconds behind the winning time of 1 minute, 5.79 seconds posted by Mirjam Puchner of Austria. In her second race through the course later in the morning, Vonn was 1.53 seconds behind Cornelia Huetter of Austria, who finished in 1:05.99. Huetter is the reigning season-long World Cup downhill champion. “It’s really nice to compare with her again, and nice to have her (racing) again,” Huetter said. “For sure, for the skiing World Cup, we have a lot of more attention. It's generally good for all racers because everyone is looking.” Also in the field were Nadia Delago of Italy, who won a bronze medal in downhill at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, and Puchner, the Olympic silver winner in super-G in Beijing. In addition, there was Marta Bassino of Italy, a winner of the super-G at the 2023 world championships, and two-time Olympic champion Michelle Gisin of Switzerland. “For me, it was really a training, but it was fun to have a World Cup race level right here,” Gisin said. “It was a crazy race.” Vonn remains a popular figure and took the time after each run to sign autographs for young fans along with posing for photos. Lindsey Vonn competes in a downhill skiing race at Copper Mountain Ski Resort on Saturday in Copper Mountain, Colo. When she left the sport, Vonn had 82 World Cup race victories, which stood as the record for a woman and within reach of the all-time Alpine record of 86 held by Swedish standout Ingemar Stenmark. The women’s mark held by Vonn was surpassed in January 2023 by Mikaela Shiffrin, who now has 99 wins — more than any Alpine ski racer in the history of the sport. Shiffrin is currently sidelined after a crash in a giant slalom event in Killington, Vermont, last weekend. Vonn’s last major race was in February 2019, when she finished third in a downhill during the world championships in Sweden. The three-time Olympic medalist left the circuit still near the top of her game. But all the broken arms and legs, concussions and torn knee ligaments took too big a toll and sent her into retirement. She had a partial knee replacement last April and felt good enough to give racing another shot. “It's very impressive to see all the passion that Lindsey still has,” Gisin said. Also racing Saturday was 45-year-old Sarah Schleper, who once competed for the United States but now represents Mexico. Schleper was the next racer behind Vonn and they got a chance to share a moment between a pair of 40-somethings still racing. “I was like, ‘Give me some tips, Lindsey,’” Schleper said. “She’s like, ‘Oh, it’s a highway tuck, the whole thing.’ Then she’s like, ‘It’s just like the good old days.’" Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, foreground right, dives toward the end zone to score past San Francisco 49ers defensive end Robert Beal Jr. (51) and linebacker Dee Winters during the second half of an NFL football game in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus) Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green goes up for a dunk during the second half of an Emirates NBA cup basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr) South Carolina guard Maddy McDaniel (1) drives to the basket against UCLA forward Janiah Barker (0) and center Lauren Betts (51) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer) Mari Fukada of Japan falls as she competes in the women's Snowboard Big Air qualifying round during the FIS Snowboard & Freeski World Cup 2024 at the Shougang Park in Beijing, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong) LSU punter Peyton Todd (38) kneels in prayer before an NCAA college football game against Oklahoma in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. LSU won 37-17. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) South Africa's captain Temba Bavuma misses a catch during the fourth day of the first Test cricket match between South Africa and Sri Lanka, at Kingsmead stadium in Durban, South Africa, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe) Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, left, is hit by Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, center, as Eagles wide receiver Parris Campbell (80) looks on during a touchdown run by Barkley in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough) Los Angeles Kings left wing Warren Foegele, left, trips San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini, center, during the third period of an NHL hockey game Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in San Jose, Calif. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez) Olympiacos' Francisco Ortega, right, challenges for the ball with FCSB's David Miculescu during the Europa League league phase soccer match between FCSB and Olympiacos at the National Arena stadium, in Bucharest, Romania, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru) Brazil's Botafogo soccer fans react during the Copa Libertadores title match against Atletico Mineiro in Argentina, during a watch party at Nilton Santos Stadium, in Rio de Janeiro, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado) Seattle Kraken fans react after a goal by center Matty Beniers against the San Jose Sharks was disallowed due to goaltender interference during the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Seattle. The Sharks won 4-2. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) New York Islanders left wing Anders Lee (27), center, fight for the puck with Boston Bruins defensemen Parker Wotherspoon (29), left, and Brandon Carlo (25), right during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) Jiyai Shin of Korea watches her shot on the 10th hole during the final round of the Australian Open golf championship at the Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake) Mathilde Gremaud of Switzerland competes in the women's Freeski Big Air qualifying round during the FIS Snowboard & Freeski World Cup 2024 at the Shougang Park in Beijing, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong) Lara Gut-Behrami, of Switzerland, competes during a women's World Cup giant slalom skiing race, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Killington, Vt. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin cools off during first period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) Brazil's Amanda Gutierres, second right, is congratulated by teammate Yasmin, right, after scoring her team's first goal during a soccer international between Brazil and Australia in Brisbane, Australia, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Pat Hoelscher) Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers (89) tries to leap over Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Joshua Williams (2) during the first half of an NFL football game in Kansas City, Mo., Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga) Luiz Henrique of Brazil's Botafogo, right. is fouled by goalkeeper Everson of Brazil's Atletico Mineiro inside the penalty area during a Copa Libertadores final soccer match at Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) England's Alessia Russo, left, and United States' Naomi Girma challenge for the ball during the International friendly women soccer match between England and United States at Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) Gold medalists Team Netherlands competes in the Team Sprint Women race of the ISU World Cup Speed Skating Beijing 2024 held at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones (33) reaches for an incomplete pass ahead of Arizona Cardinals linebacker Mack Wilson Sr. (2) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr) Melanie Meillard, center, of Switzerland, competes during the second run in a women's World Cup slalom skiing race, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Killington, Vt. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) Get local news delivered to your inbox!Apia, Samoa – 27 November 2024 – The Central Bank of Samoa (CBS) has launched the CBS Regulatory Sandbox as part of a series of development policies issued for the development of Samoa’s financial sector. The Regulatory Sandbox is part of the CBS regulatory regime and will allow legal entities to test certain new, innovative and completed eligible financial products and services in a safe and controlled environment, prior to its deployment to the market. The Regulatory Sandbox is necessary to ensure the legal certainty for financial innovators and financial technology businesses (FinTech) who are willing to provide products and services which might not yet be fully regulated in Samoa but have significant potential to contribute to enhancing financial inclusion efforts for Samoa’s economic development. It will provide CBS with the opportunity to balance innovation and risks, facilitating innovative products and services to be trialed within stipulated terms and conditions while also ensuring the financial system is not exposed to unnecessary risks. However, the Regulatory Sandbox cannot be used as a means to circumvent existing regulatory and legislative requirements. The Regulatory Sandbox will support the CBS in safeguarding Samoa’s financial system stability and the promotion of financial inclusion as set out in the Central Bank of Samoa Act 2015 . Furthermore, it is also a part of the activities to support the objectives of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy 2022/2023 – 2025/2026 . With the official launch of the CBS Regulatory Sandbox, interested applicants can now submit their applications through the process as prescribed in the CBS Regulatory Sandbox Framework . However, early consultation with the CBS prior to the submission of the application is highly encouraged and recommended. The Regulatory Sandbox was developed with In-Country Implementation support from the Alliance for Finance Inclusion (AFI), a policy leadership alliance of financial regulators and policymakers with the common objective of advancing financial inclusion at the country, regional and international levels. “AFI continues to be an important policy partner of the CBS in its financial inclusion journey and we are extremely appreciative of the facility from AFI that has allowed the technical support to develop our regulatory sandbox – this realizes a major achievement for the CBS and a significant milestone to support developments in the financial sector. We look forward to working with eligible entities through the Sandbox program,“ said CBS Governor Maiava Atalina Ainuu-Enari. The CBS Regulatory Sandbox will also link up with regional efforts to establish a Pacific Regional Regulatory Sandbox. AFI continues to provide the assistance for this work to the Pacific. To access the CBS Regulatory Sandbox Framework which provides more information on this special regulatory regime, please click on the link or scan the QR code below: CBS-Regulatory-Sandbox-Framework-v1.0.pdf Scan the QR Code below:
Palestinian Family Saga ‘Happy Holidays’ Takes Top Honors in Marrakech at Rousing and Politically Resonant Ceremony
