HOUSTON — On the day Illinois’ Keaton Wagler scored a Mackey Arena-record 46 points at Purdue in January, Kingston Flemings was having a pretty good showing too.

The Houston standout put up 42 points in a loss at Texas Tech. Both continued on from their best performances of the season to become among the six freshmen to be named to ...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Jordan Pope’s homecoming has been a long time coming.

“It’s good to be back in the Bay Area,” Pope said. “I haven’t been here since my days at Oregon State.”

In the brave new world of college basketball, which has moved on swiftly without a requiem for the old Pac-12, Pope swapped one shade of orange for a ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — As the Philadelphia 76ers wrapped Monday’s shootaround, Paul George lingered on the court with rookie VJ Edgecombe to work on midrange moves. A few minutes later, George and All-Star Tyrese Maxey lined up along the baseline for a footrace.

And before the media was permitted to view the team’s session to prepare for that ...Read more

NEW YORK — With one affirmative vote, the NBA appears to be on the doorstep of a return to the Emerald City.

The NBA Board of Governors gave the go-ahead for Commissioner Adam Silver to begin holding formal talks with prospective ownership groups in Seattle and Las Vegas, with the possibility of adding two expansion franchises to the league ...Read more

NEW YORK — The NBA is officially looking into bringing an expansion franchise to Las Vegas after a Wednesday vote by the league’s board of governors.

The board voted to explore expansion in Las Vegas and Seattle, the NBA announced.

“Today’s vote reflects our Board’s interest in exploring potential expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle �...Read more

SAN DIEGO — Darryn Peterson was the last Kansas player to leave the floor Sunday, a slow pace to his final steps in a college uniform. He glanced up ever-so-briefly but closed his eyes as his head tilted toward the sky.

In a matter of months, he will trade the most turbulent half-year of his basketball life to be the face of some NBA team’s...Read more

CHICAGO — The first weekend of March Madness had a little bit of everything, including a Big Ten rager for the ages.

There were buzzer beaters, bracket busters and more annoying commercials than ever, most of which featured Charles Barkley.

All in all, it was four days that lived up to the hype with made-for-March moments that transcend ...Read more

NEW YORK — Not all games against losing teams are created equal. Because some losing teams are better than the sum of their win-loss records, some losing teams are a turn of events away from competing for a playoff spot, if not something greater.

There may not be a team embodying the discrepancy between record and reality more than the New ...Read more

The Orlando Magic were always facing an uphill battle entering Tuesday’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Arena.

For starters, Cleveland had two days of rest while Orlando was playing on the second night of a back-to-back.

In addition, Jamahl Mosley‘s squad was without Jalen Suggs (illness), Anthony Black (left lateral ...Read more

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Hubert Davis will not return for a sixth season as North Carolina’s head coach, the program announced Tuesday night, marking the end of a five-year tenure defined by both historic highs and mounting inconsistency.

Details of the separation were not immediately released, though Davis has roughly $5.3 million in guaranteed...Read more

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Hubert Davis is a nice guy. Let’s stipulate that, first and foremost.

But Davis was ultimately not the right guy to lead the UNC basketball program. He didn’t meet UNC’s standard of success — which is incredibly high, yes, but also means that you get just about all the resources you could ever need or want.

UNC men�...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Paul George will officially return to the Philadelphia 76ers lineup on Wednesday against the Chicago Bulls in his first game back after serving a 25-game suspension for taking “improper medication.”

Ahead of his return to the floor, George answered questions about what happened and what comes next. Here are five takeaways: ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — They had to know it was going to go down like this, right?

Not only would Jared McCain return to Philadelphia as a martyr, but he would do so in the midst of a heater, and on a night when the Sixers were forced to trot out a one-guard starting lineup that featured luminaries like MarJon Beauchamp, Justin Edwards and Dominick ...Read more

GREENVILLE, S.C. — On the night Illinois lost to Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament, coach Brad Underwood lamented that his team didn’t show the requisite toughness to advance beyond the quarterfinal.

The Illini weren’t nasty enough, didn’t give a s−−− enough, he said.

He no longer had those complaints Saturday night after ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — John Middleton flew home Sunday afternoon from spring training just as the March Madness doubleheader neared tipoff in South Philly. He has a season to get back for as the Phillies’ campaign starts on Thursday. But two days of college hoops also means that the team’s managing partner is nearly in the batter’s box for a ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — With less than a month remaining in the NBA regular season, it’s not uncommon for team’s fighting for playoff positioning to face off against teams battling instead for a better draft spot.

Such was the case Monday night at Kia Center when the Orlando Magic hosted the Indiana Pacers, a team that had lost more games in the ...Read more

MIAMI — Jai Lucas kept his emotions in check all season as he rebuilt a University of Miami men’s basketball program that had fallen to the ACC basement a few years after its historic Final Four run.

But Sunday afternoon, in the bowels of the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, his players in tears after a hard-fought loss to Purdue in the ...Read more

MIAMI – Whole, and still not wholly good enough.

With a fully healthy roster for only the sixth time this season, the Miami Heat still were made soberingly aware Monday night of the deficit against the league’s elite.

So make it five consecutive losses for Erik Spoelstra’s team with the 136-111 loss to the San Antonio Spurs at Kaseya ...Read more

DETROIT — The Detroit Pistons were leading the Los Angeles Lakers 105-100 with 3:40 remaining in the fourth quarter. For the Lakers, being only five points behind was reassuring, especially considering they came into Detroit with the league's best record in clutch moments with a 22-6 record.

The Lakers mounted a rally in the final three ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — It ended Sunday night, not with a net being cut down, but with a locker room that was way too somber, a season that was over way too soon, and a group of Florida Gators who walked off the floor in tears.

The run is over.

And what a run it was.

The No. 1-seeded Florida Gators won’t repeat as national champions. Iowa made sure...Read more