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UCF men’s basketball season ends while NBA decision awaits Taylor Hendricks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

UCF’s five-point loss to Memphis in the AAC tournament quarterfinals fit the overall theme of the season.The Knights, who lost 14 games, fell for the 12th time by single digits on Friday night at Dickies Arena.Coach Johnny Dawkins described the close losses as a tribute to his team’s character and leadership.“I’ve been involved with a lot of basketball all [of] my life and there are not too many seasons I’ve had — even with really good [teams] that have gone deep in the postseason — that they didn’t have a game or two where they didn’t have it,” he said after the game in Fort Worth, Texas.“This team, every single night, has given us a chance to win and be successful in games.”He credited CJ Kelly and Michael Durr, who completed their college careers with UCF’s season likely finished, along with other upperclassmen for their poise.“Those guys set the tone for how we’re going to be and they did a...

Dave Hyde: Top 10 offseason steps for Dolphins as free-agent frenzy set to begin

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

Listen up. I’m making my annual foray into fantasy by solving the Miami Dolphins again in 10 simple steps.Forget I said two years ago to keep the young offensive line intact and watch it develop. Remember I said to replace as many as possible last year.Forget I said to chase quarterback Nick Foles in 2019. Remember I said to get Lamar Jackson and Russell Wilson in previous years.The easy groundwork has been done this offseason with the Dolphins creating cap space, writing big checks and making players happy. That’s the easy part. Now comes the harder decisions what to do with that cap space and how to improve this team. Let’s go:1. Let Vic Fangio pick two inside linebackers. People ask if the Dolphins will land a whale in free agency. They already have. Fangio is a star. Change is coming, too. The Dolphins were a 4-3, big blitzing and big press-coverage defense the past four years. Fangio’s 3-4 system doesn’t blitz much and plays more zone than man-to-m...

Storm breaches California river’s levee, thousands evacuate

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

WATSONVILLE, Calif. (AP) — A Northern California agricultural community famous for its strawberry crop was forced to evacuate early Saturday after the Pajaro River’s levee was breached by flooding from a new atmospheric river pummeling the state.Across the Central Coast’s Monterey County, more than 8,500 people were under evacuation orders and warnings Saturday, including roughly 1,700 residents — many of them Latino farmworkers — from the unincorporated community of Pajaro. Officials said the Pajaro River’s levee breach is about 100 feet (30.48 meters) wide. Crews had gone door to door Friday afternoon to urge residents to leave before the rains came but some stayed and had to be pulled from floodwaters early Saturday.First responders and the California National Guard rescued more than 50 people overnight. One video showed a member of the Guard helping a driver out of a car trapped by water up to their waists.“We were hoping to avoid and prevent this situation, but the ...

Bud Grant, stoic coach of powerful Blue Bombers teams, dies at 95

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

Bud Grant, who won four Grey Cups as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers head coach and would later lead the Minnesota Vikings to four Super Bowl losses, has died. He was 95.The Vikings confirmed Grant’s death on social media on Saturday.“We are absolutely devastated to announce legendary Minnesota Vikings head coach and Hall of Famer Bud Grant has passed away this morning at age 95,” the post said. “We, like all Vikings and NFL fans, are shocked and saddened by this terrible news.”We are absolutely devastated to announce legendary Minnesota Vikings head coach and Hall of Famer Bud Grant has passed away this morning at age 95. We, like all Vikings and NFL fans, are shocked and saddened by this terrible news. pic.twitter.com/z2NNlNAY44— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) March 11, 2023The six-foot-three, 199-pound Grant was a three-sport star (football, basketball and baseball) at the University of Minnesota and was selected in both the NFL and NBA drafts in 1950....

Burning eyes, dead fish; red tide flares up on Florida coast

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) — Residents are complaining about burning eyes and breathing problems. Dead fish have washed up on beaches. A beachside festival has been canceled, even though it wasn’t scheduled for another month. Florida’s southwest coast experienced a flare-up of the toxic red tide algae this week, setting off concerns that it could continue to stick around for a while. The current bloom started in October.The annual BeachFest in Indian Rocks Beach, Florida, sponsored by a homeowners’ association, was canceled after it determined, with help from the city and the Pinellas County Health Department, that red tide likely would continue through the middle of next month when the festival was scheduled.“Red Tide is currently present on the beach and is forecasted to remain in the area in the weeks to come,” the Indian Rocks Beach Homeowners Association said in a letter to the public. “It is unfortunate that it had to be canceled but it is the best decis...

Fire severely damages New Jersey house where MLK stayed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) — A dilapidated house where Martin Luther King Jr. stayed in southern New Jersey was severely damaged in an early morning fire Saturday.Chief Michael Harper of the Camden Fire Department told the Courier-Post that the blaze at the three-story row home was reported shortly after 2:30 a.m., and the precarious structure presented challenges to fire crews.“The place was already boarded and heavily fortified when our members got there,” he said. “They had to open the boards but by that time, the fire was pretty well advanced. They couldn’t make entry because of concerns about the structural integrity.”Camden city spokesperson Vince Basara told NJ.com that fire crews reported heavy flames from the rear of the second floor and part of the roof later collapsed. The blaze spread to the home next door and four nearby residents had to evacuate, he said. No injuries were reported.The city’s fire marshal is investigating the cause of the blaze. Basara said it’s poss...

Israelis protest proposed legal changes for 10th week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated Saturday against a contentious plan to overhaul the judiciary as the government pressed ahead with the plan.The nationwide demonstrations have been a regular weekly event for more than two months. Despite the demonstrations, Netanyahu and his allies have pledged to press ahead with a series of bills that would strip the Supreme Court of its ability to review legislation and give coalition politicians control over judicial appointments.Critics say the changes will destroy the country’s system of checks and balances and concentrate power in the hands of the prime minister and his allies.“We are protesting because if not, it’s like compliance and we will never agree to have democracy abolished in this country,” said Einat Gival-Levi, a protester. “It’s really important that we raise awareness all around the world.”Hundreds of Israeli women’s rights activists dressed as characters in the television series, “The Han...

Investigators find 6 bodies, 154 cremated remains linked to illegal California crematorium

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

HAYWARD, Calif. (KRON) — Six bodies and 154 cremated remains were found in a California warehouse earlier this month, prompting investigators to seek out the families of the deceased. The bodies and the remains, discovered on March 1 in the Hayward warehouse, are linked to Oceanview Cremations, a crematorium that had its business license suspended five years ago, the Alameda County Sheriff's Office said. Woman found breathing at New York funeral home hours after being pronounced dead The company's license was suspended back in March 2018, at which time Oceanview Cremations was also prohibited from storing remains on its premises. But the California Cemetery and Funeral Board informed the Alameda County Coroner's Bureau on Feb. 28, 2023, that the business was continuing its operations. The following day, investigators with the bureau went to the warehouse and recovered the remains, which were taken in by Oceanview Cremations in 2020 and 2021. Five of the bodies were identified. One...

‘Gas station heroin’ is addictive, and in some cases, deadly

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

(NewsNation) — Tianeptine is marketed as a dietary supplement, a little something to help you relax. But it's also highly addictive and in some cases, deadly.Its street name is “gas station heroin" and it's easy to get. It can be purchased online and, as its name suggests, at gas stations and in your neighborhood convenience stores.Just because it’s easy to get doesn’t mean it’s safe to use. Among the ingredients in these so-called dietary supplements is tianeptine, a drug the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns is harmful and addictive. Maker of unproven birth drug Makena to pull from US market Dr. Kirsten Smith, a researcher with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said it's dangerous for people to be taking."So far, there's absolutely no understanding of the dosage," Smith said. "And certainly, no — it's not approved for any medical use. And it's absolutely not approved as a dietary supplement. In fact, it's actually on the FDA's list of concerning substances."In po...

When will the car market return to normal?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:58:04 GMT

(NerdWallet) - After years of sky-high car costs, prices for both new and used vehicles may be cooling off, according to automotive experts. But they warn that prices won’t be nearly as low as they were pre-pandemic. Prices skyrocketed during the pandemic, and remained high, due to supply-chain disruptions and a shortage of semiconductor chips, which power cars and more. But now, experts predict that changing conditions in the market will drive prices down.Current factors impacting the price drop include more inventory, higher interest rates (which increase the cost of auto loans) and inflationary concerns, meaning consumers aren’t able or willing to allocate funds to buy vehicles.  “We’ve definitely kind of hit a new paradigm in the car market where these prices are not going to be maintained at these elevated levels we’ve seen for two years,” says Karl Brauer, executive analyst at car search engine iSeeCars.com. New car prices to cool offRecent trends show that prices ar...