No. 1s Michigan, Arizona anticipate real tournament test

INDIANAPOLIS -- On the weekend the Fab Five is reunited and Michigan celebrates the anniversary of its only men's basketball national title in 1989, Dusty May can't help but feel momentum moving the Wolverines closer to tipoff in the Final Four.

The former Indiana University manager for Bob Knight has Michigan (35-3) hitting a peak at the right time with only Arizona (36-2) between the Wolverines and their eighth national championship game appearance.

"It's really cool just to be back here in a full-circle moment," May said Friday, roughly 36 hours before Michigan takes the court at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Wolverines waltzed through the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region in Chicago, taking the regional final from Tennessee in a landslide, 95-62. Michigan's trail of victims all allowed 90-plus points, 25-plus field goals, 19-plus assists and 10-plus 3-pointers with Big Ten Player of the Year Yaxel Lendeborg (21.0 points per game) leading six Wolverines averaging double figures during the NCAA Tournament.

"He's obviously an elite talent," Lloyd said of Lendeborg. "You put the skill with those physical tools, and looks like to me he's got that alpha dog in him. Dusty has done an incredible job just putting him in positions to utilize all his skills. There's probably not one way to guard him. ... I'm sure that guy, that's going to be a household name in basketball for a long time."

Lloyd said Friday he plans to be a household name in Tucson for a long time. He signed a contract extension through 2031 in the wake of interest from another college basketball powerhouse -- this time North Carolina, last year Villanova -- with a coaching vacancy.

Arizona set a single-season program record with 36 wins. The Wildcats won the Big 12 and, like Big Ten regular-season champ Michigan, haven't had to sweat much in the NCAA Tournament with an average margin of victory of 20.5. This is the first matchup since the NCAA Tournament became a 64-team field in 1985 in which Final Four opponents won four prior games by at least 10 points.

"I feel like we've been tested," Arizona senior point guard Jaden Bradley said. "Big 12 play, Big 12 tournament. I think it's going to go down to the wire. It's definitely going to be a full 40 (minutes)."

Illinois, Arizona and Michigan have been in the top six in offensive efficiency rating all season.

The Wildcats are making their fifth Final Four appearance -- their first since 2001 -- and are back near the site of their 1997 national title celebration at the RCA Dome.

Freshman forward Koa Peat was named West Region Most Outstanding Player, averaging 20.5 points, 5.0 rebounds 2.5 assists in wins over Arkansas and Purdue last week. In a Final Four dominated by transfers and international talent searches, Peat is an anomaly Lloyd applauds.

"Koa is special," Lloyd said. "And I know you guys hear it, but you got to hear it again. Four state championships at the same high school. Didn't go to a prep school. Four gold medals with USA Basketball. No one in FIBA history has ever done that. And helped lead Arizona to a Final Four."

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Classmate Brayden Burries scored 23 points against Arkansas in the Sweet 16, the second-most points scored by an Arizona freshman in an NCAA Tournament game. The pair combined for 1,105 points this season.

The player most responsible for carrying the Arizona flag on the roster is Bradley, who was named Big 12 Player of the Year. He was a third-team All-American and a semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award.

Bradley's matchup with Michigan's backcourt brings intrigue in a game where most of the Xs and Os are fixed on big men. He'll likely get plenty of time against Michigan point guard Elliot Cadeau, who has three consecutive games with seven-plus assists and overcame an allergic reaction and late departure from Ann Arbor to practice Friday.

But Arizona takes pride in its team defense.

"I think their physicality stands out and the way that they play and they sustain physicality for 40 minutes," Michigan freshman guard Trey McKenney said of Arizona.

The Wildcats are not the typical college offense, a point made by Michigan's 7-foot-4 center Aday Mara this week.

They typically are aiming to shoot a higher volume of free throws, not 3-pointers. The Wildcats have attempted only 53 total 3-pointers in four NCAA Tournament games and shot 43.4%; Arizona made an average of 19.7 free throws per game this season. Michigan made 27 free throws in the Midwest Region final win.

Arizona's defense gave Big 12 foes fits all season with 7-foot-2 Motiejus Krivas roaming between the blocks. But Lloyd views Lendeborg as a unicorn. Not because of just his scoring, but because of his unselfish play.

"It took him a while," May said of Lendeborg reaching his current comfort zone. "And I think our guys have constantly reminded him. He's so unselfish. He's so -- I don't know how to say it. He wants to be one of the guys. They've encouraged him to be more aggressive, to shoot more, to hunt some more individual accolades all year, and he simply refused because he didn't care about any of those things.

"It's allowed us to have a real selfless group, and it's improved our environment because he's been so unselfish but he still has no idea how good he is."

A grad student who had 150 career games under his belt before joining the Wolverines, Lendeborg spent two seasons at Arizona Western College and two at UAB. He's also a unique talent because of range -- 10 3-pointers in the past three games -- and length (7-foot-4 wingspan).

If the Wildcats control the lane and force Michigan to launch from deep, they expect positive results. Opponents are shooting 27.9% from 3-point range against Arizona in the NCAA Tournament.

--Jeff Reynolds, Field Level Media

byDaniel Coleman

in

April 03, 2026

No. 1s Michigan, Arizona anticipate real tournament test

INDIANAPOLIS -- On the weekend the Fab Five is reunited and Michigan celebrates the anniversary of its only men's ...

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Travon Walker agrees to four-year, $110 million contract extension with Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars locked in one of the integral pieces of their young defense.

Defensive end Travon Walker agreed to a four-year, $110 million contract extension, his representation announced on X. The deal includes $77 million in total guarantees and $50 million fully guaranteed at signing, per Elite Loyalty Sports.

Walker now ranks 12th among edge rushers in his contract's average annual value.

Walker is coming off a 3 1/2-sack season in 2025, but he registered double-digit totals the previous two years.

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The No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft out of Georgia has long been compared to fellow edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who went No. 2 overall to the Detroit Lions. Hutchinson, who has been selected to two Pro Bowls, has been the more productive pass rusher of the two and signed a four-year, $180 million extension last October. Walker, however, has emerged as a key disruptor for the Jaguars' opportunistic defense, which ranked second in the NFL with 31 takeaways last season.

"The thing that I really appreciate in watching Travon move is how much he loves this place, how much he loves his teammates," Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said in January. "That just seeps out of his soul. Those are the type of people you want to align yourself with. It's the type of players that we want to make sure that are still in our building moving forward."

Walker had been set to play in 2026 on his fifth-year option for $15.2 million.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Travon Walker contract details: Jaguars DE agrees to hefty extension

byDaniel Coleman

in

April 03, 2026

Travon Walker agrees to four-year, $110 million contract extension with Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars locked in one of the integral pieces of their young defense. Defensive end Tr...

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Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo lay their foundations in the WNBA expansion draft

Portland, which is welcoming aWNBAteam back to the city after 24 years, selected veteran forward Bridget Carleton with the first pick in Friday's expansion draft.

WNBA Expansion Draft Basketball

Guard Julie Allemand, who played last season for the Los Angeles Sparks, was selected by the Toronto Tempo with its first pick.

The Tempo won a coin flip and opted to take the sixth pick in the college draft on April 13 over the top pick in the expansion draft. So Portland went first on Friday and will have the seventh pick in the college draft.

Carleton, who played last season for the Minnesota Lynx and averaged 6.5 points a game, was an unrestricted free agent.

"Once we finalized our process, and zoomed in on Bridget, and knew we had our first expansion pick, it was obvious we did not want to have Toronto hold our destiny in their hands," Portland general manger Vanja Cernivec said.

Allemand averaged 5.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 5 assists in 34 games last season.

The league's teams protected five players apiece ahead of the expansion draft but those lists were not made public, leading to speculation about which players were available.

On Wednesday, the Chicago Sky announced trades with the Tempo and the Fire, which prevented the expansion teams from selecting Sky players. In exchange, the Fire got the No. 17 pick in the college draft and the No. 26 pick went to the Tempo.

The expansion draft had two rounds, with up to six picks for each team in each round. The teams alternated picks, with the Tempo picking first in the second round after the Fire got the first overall selection.

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Teams could only lose two players to the expansion draft. If a player was taken in the first round, a second player from that same franchise couldn't be taken until the second round.

Following Allemand, the Tempo selected center Nyara Sabally from the Liberty, guard Marina Mabrey from the Sun, forward Aaliya Nye from the Aces, guard Lexi Held from the Mercury, and forward Maria Conde from the Valkyries.

In the second round the Tempo selected forward Maria Kliundikova from the Lynx, center Adja Kane from the Liberty, center Nikolina Milic from the Sun, guard Kitija Laksa from the Mercury, and guard Kristy Wallace from the Fever.

After Carleton, the Portland Fire selected guard Carla Leite from the Valkyries, center Luisa Geiselsoder from the Stars, forward Emily Engstler from the Mystics, guard Maya Caldwell from the Dream and forward Chloe Bibby from the Fever.

In the second round Portland took guard Haley Jones from the Wings, forward Nyadiew Puoch from the Dream, guard Sara Ashlee Barker from the Sparks, guard Sug Sutton from the Mystics and guard Nika Muhl from the Storm.

Mabry was also an unrestricted free agent. Each team was allowed to pick only one unrestricted free agent.

Portland previously had a WNBA team, also called the Fire, that played from 2000 to 2002.

AP WNBA:https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

byDaniel Coleman

in

April 03, 2026

Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo lay their foundations in the WNBA expansion draft

Portland, which is welcoming aWNBAteam back to the city after 24 years, selected veteran forward Bridget Carleton with th...

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Second Winter Storm Will Bring Snow, Ice To Northern US As April Kicks Off

A second winter storm will blanket parts of the northern U.S. with snow and ice through the weekend from the northern Rockies to the Great Lakes and parts of northern New England as a reminder that April can still deliver wintry weather for some.

Fortunately, neither of these back-to-back winter storms will come anywhere close to the ferocity oflast month's record-setting blizzard. But each will still have impacts on travel into the Easter holiday weekend.

The storms have been named Winter Storm Joseline and Winter Storm Kadence by The Weather Channel.

(MORE:March Had Everything But The Kitchen Sink)

Happening Now

The map below shows where areas of snow, sleet and freezing rain are occurring right now.

Most of Joseline's snow and ice has pushed into eastern Canada, but some wintry precipitation is lingering in parts of northern Minnesota and northern New England.

Joseline blanketed parts of the Dakotas and northern Minnesota with up to 8 inches of snow. It also left one-quarter one half-inch of accumulated ice in parts of northern Wisconsin and northern Michigan, which, combined with strong winds, knocked out power to over 50,000 customers.

The second winter storm, Kadence, is spreading its snow and some ice out of the northern Rockies into the Northern Plains.

Winter Alerts

Winter storm warnings, and even an ice storm warning, have been issued for parts of the upper Midwest just hammered by last month's blizzard, including parts of Minnesota into northern Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Conditions in these areas will make it dangerous to travel.

Forecast Timeline

Friday, the first winter storm will have spread most of its snowy, icy mess into eastern Canada. However, some snow, sleet or freezing rain is expected in parts of northern New England early, before precipitation changes to rain.

Meanwhile, the second winter storm — Kadence — will take shape over the Northern Plains with more snow and ice. Friday night, that wintry mess will once again spread into the northern Great Lakes.

Winter Storm Kadence will persist in the northern Great Lakes with snow and some areas of ice, though some warmer air could change some areas of freezing rain to rain by midday.

Some freezing rain could once again also spread into parts of far northern New England late Saturday night, but it may change to rain by Easter Sunday.

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How Much More Snow, Ice?

As we alluded to earlier, despite being two storms back-to-back, neither storm will produce anywhere near the totals of the blizzard in mid-March.

However, we do expect a swath of 6-inch-plus additional snowfall across parts of the Dakotas into northern Minnesota and perhaps extreme northwest Wisconsin. Extreme northern Maine could see snowfall approach 6 inches, as well.

This could make travel difficult on stretches of Interstates 94, 29, 35 and 90. Leave yourself extra time and be prepared in case any stretches of roads close for a period of time. The combination of wet snow and winds may also lead to some power outages and tree damage in some areas.

The map below shows areas that may see enough ice accumulation to make most roads slippery, for a time, particularly bridges and overpasses.

The combination of accumulating ice and winds may also lead to some tree damage and power outages in these areas, especially areas that see freezing rain from both storms.

What complicates this forecast, however, is that precipitation in the areas below may eventually change to rain, and ground temperatures are warmer due to the recent bout of spring warmth.

For now, the highest concern for accumulating ice in the Great Lakes is early Saturday.

In far northern New England, that icing concern is early Friday, then possibly again early Sunday.

April Snow

You might be wondering how weird snow as late as April is.

The short answer is, "it's typical."

As you can see in the map below, the season's last snow typically happens in April across most of the northern tier, from northern New England to the Northern Plains.

In parts of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and the Rockies, snow usually still falls in May.

Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at weather.com and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him onBluesky,X (formerly Twitter)andFacebook.

byDaniel Coleman

in

April 03, 2026

Second Winter Storm Will Bring Snow, Ice To Northern US As April Kicks Off

A second winter storm will blanket parts of the northern U.S. with snow and ice through the weekend from the northern Roc...

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Russian strikes on Ukraine kill 8 as Kyiv holds door open for Easter truce

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian strikes killed at least eight people across Ukraine on Friday, including in a "massive" missile and drone attack near the capital, local authorities reported.

Russia Ukraine War

Ukrainian officials claim the Kremlin is changing its tactics to increase civilian suffering, shifting to daytime barrages and preparing to target more key infrastructure.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signaled Kyiv's opennessto a potential Easter truce. The holiday is celebrated on April 12 in Ukraine and Russia.

Zelenskyy also said that Ukraine is preparing for a shift in Russian aerial tactics, with intelligence indicating that future attacks will move beyondenergy infrastructure.

Russia's Defense Ministry said 192 Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight across Russia and occupied Crimea.

'I have no words'

"The Kyiv region is once again under a massive Russian missile and drone attack," said Mykola Kalashnyk, head of the regional military administration, in a Telegram post on Friday.

Kalashnyk said one person died and at least eight others were wounded in strikes on three of Kyiv's satellite towns — Bucha, Fastiv and Obukhiv. Earlier in the week, residents of Buchamarked the fourth anniversaryofatrocities committed in the town by Russia's invading forces.

Obukhiv resident Lesia Podoriako, 37, told The Associated Press she was at work with her child when she learned her building had been struck.

"I found out about it through Telegram channels. Then all my friends and acquaintances started calling me, telling me that our building was attacked. I have no words. The main thing is that everyone is alive and healthy," she said.

Another person was killed in Ukraine's northern Sumy region after a Russian guided aerial bomb struck an apartment block, local Gov. Oleh Hryhorov reported. Authorities in the Kherson, Zhytomyr, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions also reported casualties from Friday's attacks.

Ukrainian officials highlighted what they said were increased daytime attacks by Russia, which they said could lead to more civilian deaths. For months, Moscow pummeled Ukraine with nighttime missile and drone strikes that could involve hundreds of drones at a time.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, said in a post on X that "almost half a thousand drones and cruise missiles" attacked Ukraine overnight.

"This is how Moscow responds to Ukraine's Easter ceasefire proposals — with brutal attacks," Sybiha said.

Kyiv floats an Easter ceasefire

Zelenskyy on Thursday signaled Kyiv's continued openness to a potential truce on Easter, which falls next week according to the Julian calendar followed by Orthodox churches in Ukraine and Russia.

Zelenskyy told reporters that the proposal had been communicated to Moscow through U.S. channels. He added that the Kremlin's response remains unclear.

Zelenskyyhas previously offered a ceasefire for the Easter period— but Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said earlier this week that Moscow wants a lasting peace settlement, not a temporary truce.

President Vladimir Putinunilaterally declareda 30-hour ceasefire last Easter, but each side accused the other of breaking it.

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A change in Russian tactics?

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials said Russia was increasingly striking the country during the day, an apparent departure frommonths of nighttime barrages.

Andrii Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation within Ukraine's defense ministry, said that the daytime strikes aimed to "increase civilian casualties."

"That is why the combined attack is carried out on a working day, using a large number of drones and missiles," Kovalenko wrote on Friday in a Telegram post.

Zelenskyy told reporters on Thursday that Ukraine is preparing for Russian aerial attacks that could target water systems, logistics and other critical networks. Aftermonths of sustained strikes on power facilities, Kyiv now expects increased pressure elsewhere.

"According to intelligence documents we have received, the Russians will target logistics – railways and other infrastructure. They will also target the water supply," Zelenskyy said at a press briefing.

Around midday on Friday, Russian forces dropped five aerial bombs on the city of Kramatorsk, in eastern Ukraine. At least two people were killed and three were injured, according to a Telegram update by Vadym Filashkin, who heads the regional military administration.

Elsewhere in Ukraine on Friday, a Russian drone strike damaged a bus in the southern city of Kherson, leaving the driver seriously wounded and at least eight passengers hurt, according to regional officials.

Separately, authorities reported sustained attacks on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, beginning on Thursday and continuing into early Friday. Drone strikes near the city center caused several injuries. Two people later died in hospital, local Gov. Oleh Syniehubov wrote in separate Telegram updates.

Bohdan Hladykh, head of Kharkiv's Department of Emergency Situations, said Russia struck the city at least 20 times during the day on Thursday with explosive drones.

Zelenskyy says battlefield situation has stabilized

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy told reporters that the battlefield situation has stabilized, with recent intelligence assessments pointing to the most favorable conditions for Kyiv in months. Whilefighting remains intense across eastern sectors, Ukrainian forces have disrupted Russian offensives in recent weeks and regained limited ground.

"On Wednesday I received a report from our intelligence and an analysis from British intelligence. I received MI6's assessment of the situation at the front: right now, it is the best situation for Ukraine in the past 10 months," the Ukrainian leader said at a press briefing Thursday.

Zelenskyy added that Ukraine has invited U.S. negotiators to visit Kyiv, as part of ongoing discussions onsecurity guaranteesand abroader framework for ending the war. Recent talks have involved senior American officials as well as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, with Ukraine seeking clearer commitments on long-term defense support and responses to any future Russian aggression.

Ukrainian drones target Russia

Two people were hospitalized on Friday following a Ukrainian drone strike on Russia's Leningrad region, over 1,100 kilometers (684 miles) from the border, said regional Gov. Alexander Drozdenko reported, who added that the drones also set fire to an "unoccupied" building within the Morozov industrial zone.

The settlement of Morozov houses a state-owned plant that makes explosives and components for ammunition, including solid fuel used in Topol-M missile systems. The plant was put under U.S., EU and other Western sanctions following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Twelve people, including at least three Russian soldiers, were injured in a Ukrainian drone strike late Thursday on Russia's Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, local Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov reported.

Four drones were downed during the night on the approach to Moscow, mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported Friday. He did not reference any casualties or damage.

Associated Press journalists Vasilisa Stepanenko in Obukhiv and Derek Gatopoulos in Kyiv contributed.

byDaniel Coleman

in

April 03, 2026

Russian strikes on Ukraine kill 8 as Kyiv holds door open for Easter truce

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian strikes killed at least eight people across Ukraine on Friday, including in a "massive...

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