Basketball

Mark DeRosa said last week that one of his most important jobs as United States manager during the World Baseball Classic is making sure his players understand the tournament is a competition, not an exhibition. Just two games in, he sort of undercut his own message. DeRosa said he wants nothing more for the U.S. than to defend its 2017 WBC title. But he's also not going to do anything to jeopardize players' health — particularly pitchers. DeRosa had to make difficult pitching decisions multiple times during Mexico's 11-5 win over the U.S. on Sunday. The WBC has limits on how much pitchers are used. Major League Baseball teams also want WBC managers to be careful with high-priced pitchers.

Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry has a postgame workout routine that's paying dividends even though he was recently sidelined. The 6-foot-2 guard is doing all he can to prolong his career even as lingering injuries creep in more often and demand management. The Warriors need him to be at his best. Golden State is battling for homecourt in the postseason, which could be pivotal in defending the title. The champs' road struggles have been well-documented as the team is only 7-26 away from home.

The NBA's West is an absolute mess, and the middle of the pack — the race for the last two guaranteed playoff spots and the four berths into the play-in tournament — is as muddled and murky as possible.

Purdue’s Zach Edey and Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis have given the Big Ten Conference a third straight year with multiple first-team Associated Press All-America picks. Kansas had a second straight first-teamer in Jalen Wilson. 

Drake’s Tucker DeVries is one of several players from one-bid conferences who bear watching in the NCAA Tournament

March Madness isn’t just about filling out — and later trashing — brackets. There are more ways to bet the field in the NCAA Tournament, an event that will consume basketball fans over the next three weeks. 

South Carolina has joined an exclusive group, going wire-to-wire as No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll. They became the third school to be the top team in the poll for the entire season in back-to-back years. UConn and Louisiana Tech are the others. 

Tyler Kolek and David Joplin each scored 17 points, and No. 6 Marquette moved into the Big East championship game for the first time by holding off No. 11 UConn 70-68. UConn had a chance to tie or win in the final seconds, but coach Dan Hurley elected not to call a timeout. Jordan Hawkins missed badly on a contested, desperation 3 at the buzzer. Plus more action from around college basketball on Friday.

The lawyer for former Alabama basketball player Darius Miles says he and Michael Davis have been indicted by a grand jury on capital murder charges for the January shooting death of a 23-year-old woman near campus. AL.com reports that Tuscaloosa County District Attorney Hays Webb told the newspaper that the indictments were issued Wednesday.

Syracuse has formally introduced new men’s basketball coach Adrian Autry on campus. Jim Boeheim was in attendance and gave a goodbye speech. Boeheim says he will have a yet-undefined role with the school moving forward.

More March Madness chaos in the women’s NCAA Tournament could be looming on the horizon if the past few months of upsets are any indication of what’s around the corner.

Bob Huggins knows as well as anyone how difficult it must be for Kansas counterpart Bill Self, who went to the emergency room before the Big 12 Tournament and was hospitalized following an undisclosed procedure. Now the coach at West Virginia, Huggins went through his own health scare just over 20 years ago.

Greg Kampe always liked seeing those graphics on TV, where his name would be sandwiched between Jim Boeheim and Mike Krzyzewski, and his good friend, Tom Izzo. Now, the two names ahead of him are out. And Kampe, well, he's not exactly sure how to feel about that.

Gabe Kalscheur hit six 3-pointers and scored 24 points to help Iowa State beat No. 10 Baylor  in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament. The Cyclones will play Friday in the semifinals. Jalen Bridges was nearly perfect for Baylor, going 10 of 11 from the field, 6 of 6 from the 3-point arc and finishing with a career-best 28 points. Plus other conference tournament action from around college basketball on Thursday.