Sports briefs
By NewsPress Now
Commodores get first
SEC win over Tigers
NASHVILLE, Tenn. | Ezra Manjon scored 17 points, including 5 of 6 free throws in the last 32 seconds, and Vanderbilt beat Missouri 68-61 on Saturday in a battle of teams searching for their first Southeastern Conference victory.
Ven-Allen Lubin, who had 12 points, also had a pair of free throws with 11.6 seconds left, but more important, he had a blocked shot with 5.5 seconds to go that sealed the win.
Tyrin Lawrence scored 14 points for the Commodores (6-15, 1-7) and freshman Isaiah West came off the bench to tie his career high with 12 points on four 3-pointers, doubling his season total from behind the arc.
Evan Taylor had 11 rebounds to go with his nine points and Lawrence and Lubin both had eight boards as Vanderbilt outrebounded Missouri 42-31.
Noah Carter scored 20 points for the Tigers (8-14, 0-9). Tamar Bates added 17 points and Nick Honor had 11, including a 3-pointer from the right wing with 12.9 seconds left that pulled Mizzou within 64-61.
The teams were a combined 0-15 in January, all in the SEC.
Manjon opened the second half with two short jumpers, Taylor added another and Vanderbilt had its biggest lead of the game at 38-29. The closest it got was 57-56 with 1:57 remaining after Honor scored five straight points. Taylor answered with a tough fadeaway jumper from the right wing with 1:30 to go and after a Missouri turnover , Lawrence hit a tough pullup in the lane before the shot clock expired with 45 seconds to go.
Carter scored Missouri’s first nine points, good for a 9-2 lead and shortly after that a 6-0 run had the lead up to 11. The Commodores had a 10-0 run to get within 20-19 but it wasn’t until Lawrence finished his personal 8-0 Vandy run that they took the lead, 25-24.
Vanderbilt closed the half on a 20-9 run to lead 32-29. The Commodores shot 48% while the Tigers were at 37.5% with a 2-13 effort from 3-point range. Carter had 14 points for Mizzou.
Vanderbilt plays host to No. 10 Kentucky on Tuesday. Missouri hosts Texas A&M on Wednesday.
Pitino says NCAA enforcement arm is ‘a joke’
NEW YORK | With legal disputes escalating over the use of name, image and likeness compensation in the recruitment of college athletes, Hall of Fame basketball coach Rick Pitino believes it’s time for the NCAA to stand down when it comes to policing member schools.
“It’s a very difficult time in college basketball, because it’s free agency. And now I think what’s going to happen is, they’re going to say everybody can transfer, and then if they don’t like it, they’re going to take ‘em to court,” the first-year St. John’s coach said Saturday.
“So, I think the NCAA enforcement staff just should be disbanded. It’s a joke. Not because I dislike them. But, they’re of no value anymore. Because just, Tennessee now will take ‘em to court, Virginia will take ‘em to court …”
The attorneys general of Tennessee and Virginia filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA on Wednesday that challenged its ban on the use of NIL compensation in recruiting, and in response to the association’s investigation of the University of Tennessee.
A judge will hear their request on Feb. 13 for a preliminary injunction that would put on hold NCAA rules banning recruiting inducements and pay-for-play, the court posted Friday.
The 71-year-old Pitino volunteered his thoughts on the NCAA following his team’s 77-64 loss to top-ranked UConn at Madison Square Garden. His comments came at the postgame news conference in response to a reporter’s question about stoking a renewed rivalry with the powerhouse Huskies, the defending national champions, as he rebuilds the St. John’s program.
“The enforcement staff needs to go away,” Pitino continued. “We need to stop all the hypocrisy of NIL. We need to stop it. Because they can’t stop it. Whether I’m for it or against it doesn’t matter.
“They are professional athletes. Get professionally paid. It’s not going away. You can’t try to get loopholes, because they take you to court. That’s why I say — so I’m not knocking the enforcement staff — they’re going to get taken to court every time they try to make a rule. So it’s a tough time in college basketball right now. And for us, you can’t really build programs and a culture because everybody leaves.”
Pitino, who won national championships at Kentucky in 1996 and Louisville in 2013, has had his own history of run-ins with the NCAA.
The title at Louisville was vacated for NCAA violations, and another NCAA case related to the FBI’s investigation into corruption in college basketball recruiting led to him being fired by Louisville in 2017.
The final ruling from the NCAA’s outside enforcement arm on the FBI case came down in November 2022 and exonerated Pitino.
After leaving Iona last March to take the St. John’s job, Pitino brought in 12 new players for this season — including 10 transfers. But he said the current college landscape involving NIL and the transfer portal makes it “very tough” to build a consistent culture at a high-level program.
“I think so many football coaches are getting out, so many basketball coaches are getting out, because of this culture,” Pitino said. “It’s tough to build a program. You’ve got to really innovate, get creative and understand these rules right now — or lack of rules.”
Clark drops 38 points
in win for Hawkeyes
COLLEGE PARK, Md. | Caitlin Clark faked the defender off her feet, took a dribble to her left and then released a 3-pointer.
It was no surprise when the ball dropped in, and Iowa was ahead to stay.
“That was probably the loudest the crowd was at that point, all night,” Clark said of the sellout of 17,950 at the Xfinity Center. “That was a huge shot, and then I think Sydney (Affolter) gets that layup, get a couple stops on defense that we string together.”
Clark had 38 points and 12 assists, and No. 3 Iowa withstood a gritty effort by Maryland, outlasting the Terrapins 93-85 on Saturday night. The Terps rallied from an 18-point third-quarter deficit, but Clark and the Hawkeyes had enough answers down the stretch.
The Hawkeyes (21-2, 10-1 Big Ten) won at Maryland for the first time since December 1992, when the Terps were in the ACC.
“This is the first time I’ve ever been happy in this press room,” Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said afterward.
Clark now needs 66 points to pass Kelsey Plum atop the NCAA career scoring list for women’s basketball.
Molly Davis scored 17 points for Iowa, and Kate Martin had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
“Caitlin did natural Caitlin things, which are spectacular, but I thought Molly Davis really had a great game as well,” Bluder said.
A packed crowd in College Park had clearly come to watch Clark — but most of the fans were also cheering for the Terps. Maryland went on a 23-3 run to take a two-point lead in the third. Clark even shot an air ball from the left wing, to the delight of the crowd.
“I didn’t expect them to shrink an 18-point lead in about four minutes, but we fouled too much,” Clark said.
The Terps were up 65-63 before Iowa outscored them 10-1 the rest of the quarter. Clark made a 3-pointer and a layup and also assisted on two layups during that run.
The Terps, struggling through an unusually tough season that has them on the NCAA Tournament bubble, kept it close in the fourth. It was tied at 76 before Clark freed herself with that smooth pump fake and connected from 3-point range. She then fed Affolter for a layup, and Maryland could never pull even again.
“This game felt like March,” Terps coach Brenda Frese said. “Just super proud of this group and how we competed with the No. 3 team in the country, with the best player in the country. There’s no doubt that we’re an NCAA Tournament team.”
Clark would have finished with an even 40 points if she hadn’t missed a wide-open layup on a breakaway in the final minute, but with Iowa comfortably ahead, she could afford to smile.
After Clark began the game with a 3-pointer, Maryland ran off the next 11 points to take an early lead, and the Iowa star was called for a couple traveling violations.
The Terps (12-10, 4-7) couldn’t keep Clark under control for long. A particularly deep 3-pointer from the left wing — beyond former Maryland men’s coach Gary Williams’ signature on the court — capped a 14-2 run by Iowa. She made four of her seven 3-pointers in the opening quarter.
Clark did her damage inside the arc in the second, including a spin move for a three-point play. Iowa led 52-38 at halftime.
Clark now has 3,462 points. Plum scored 3,527 at Washington from 2013-17. Former Kansas star Lynette Woodard holds the women’s major college basketball record with 3,649 points from 1978-81 — before the NCAA took over women’s sports from the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women.
BIG PICTURE
Iowa: Clark showed off her all-around game, and one benefit to her popularity is that the Hawkeyes have plenty of experience playing before big crowds in tough road environments. They were also able to close the game out with Clark scoring only five points in the final quarter.
Maryland: The Terps have lost four straight, but this was an inspired effort in the second half. In addition to Clark’s scoring, Maryland had a hard time with Iowa’s rebounding — the Hawkeyes had 17 at the offensive end.
EFFICIENT
Maryland’s Jakia Brown-Turner scored 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting, and Bri McDaniel added 22.
UP NEXT
Iowa: Hosts Penn State on Thursday night.
Maryland: At Rutgers on Tuesday night.
Middleton, Cardinals finalize one-year contract
ST. LOUIS, Mo. | Right-handed reliever Keynan Middleton has agreed to a $6 million, one-year contract with the St. Louis Cardinals.
The team announced Saturday that the 30-year-old Middleton is joining the organization as its 10th pitching addition this offseason.
Middleton will earn $5 million in 2024 and the Cardinals have a $6 million option for 2025 with a $1 million buyout.
He has played seven seasons in the majors with the Angels (2017-20), Mariners (2021), Diamondbacks (2022), White Sox (2023) and Yankees (2023).
Middleton has a 10-8 career record with a 3.84 ERA, 15 saves and 199 strikeouts over his 194 1/3 innings pitched.
“Acquiring additional proven depth for our bullpen was something we have been focused on,” Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said in a statement. “Keynan’s experience in getting outs in the back half of games offers us another strong addition to the bullpen mix.”
Middleton combined for career bests last season with the White Sox and Yankees. He had 11.4 strikeouts per 9 innings pitched, a .667 opponents’ OPS and 57.4 groundball percentage.
Kurt Hamrin, last living player from the 1958 World Cup, dies
FLORENCE, Italy | Kurt Hamrin, a former Fiorentina and Sweden great who was the last living player to have participated in the 1958 World Cup final, has died. He was 89.
The Swedish soccer federation announced Hamrin’s death on Sunday. No more details were disclosed.
“One of Swedish football’s biggest icons has left us. Rest in peace Kurt “Kurre” Hamrin,” it said in a statement on social media. “”Kurre” Hamrin was a big factor in Sweden’s World Cup silver in 1958. He is a legend at both AIK and Fiorentina for his efforts at the clubs.
“Our thoughts go out to Kurt’s family and friends. Thank you “Kurre” for all the blue and yellow memories you have helped create for so many,” it added.
Hamrin scored 17 goals in 32 matches for Sweden. He netted in the semifinal against West Germany in 1958, but Sweden was beaten 5-2 by Brazil in the final.
The last survivor on Brazil’s side was Mario Zagallo, who died just a month earlier at the age of 92.
Hamrin was also Fiorentina’s record goalscorer — tied with Gabriel Batistuta — with 203 goals in his nine years with the club before leaving for AC Milan in 1967. He was ninth in the list of all-time Serie A goalscorers, with 190 goals for five clubs in the Italian league.
The Swede also played for Napoli and IFK Stockholm before moving back to Florence after retiring. He was living in the Italian city when he died.
“President Rocco Commisso, his family, the Fiorentina board and everyone associated with the club share the pain of Kurt Hamrim’s family and the entire footballing world for his passing,” Fiorentina said.
“Hamrin was and will always be a true legend for all football fans, in particular for Fiorentina fans. He still holds the record for most goals scored for the club, tied on 203 with Gabriel Batistuta. He won the Cup Winners’ Cup and two Italian Cups with the Viola and had strong ties with the city of Florence.”
Hamrin started his career at AIK in Sweden before moving to Italy and Juventus, which was apparently alerted to his skills by a passionate letter from a miner.
He only spent one season there before moving to Padova on loan and then Fiorentina in 1958.
Hamrin helped Fiorentina win the Italian Cup in 1961 and 1966 as well as the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1961, when he finished the competition as the top scorer with six goals.
Hamrin also won the Italian league title with Milan in 1968 and scored both goals for the Rossoneri when they beat Hamburg 2–0 in the Cup Winners’ Cup final that year.
He helped Milan win the European Cup the following season, netting a goal in the semifinal against defending champion Manchester United.
“We grieve the passing of Kurt Hamrin, an unforgettable pillar of Rossonero history,” Milan said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. “All of AC Milan joins his family and friends in sharing their grief and pain on this day.”
—From AP reports
