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No. 17 Holy Family uses “championship habits” to beat No. 2 Resurrection Christian in Class 4A boys basketball final

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

Holy Family boys basketball head coach Peter Villecco went from hoping his team would get into the Class 4A field, to imploring his No. 17-seeded team to use “championship habits” down the stretch in the state championship game.Talk about a whirlwind month for the Tigers.In the end, his team embraced those habits and sprinted to the Class 4A crown, defeating No. 2 Resurrection Christian, 53-43, on Saturday to win its fourth state title in program history and first since 2014.“From where we came in the last month — we were down in the dumps — we were dropping like a rock in the RPI and weren’t even looking at it, and just said ‘we just wanna get in’. They gave us the 17 (seed) and we just had a light switch turn on,” Villecco said.The habits of spacing the floor, ball security, making good decisions and securing rebounds with two hands all helped the Tigers (17-11) to a storied run.Rocco Bridges (5) of the Holy Family Tigers on a shot attempt...

Holy Family’s Ron Rossi wins record-tying 7th state title as Tigers rally to beat D’Evelyn in Class 4A girls basketball championship

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

Amid the din of the Holy Family girls basketball team’s championship celebration, head coach Ron Rossi tearfully embraced his wife off to the side.Stephanie hadn’t been around for all 52 years of her husband’s high school basketball coaching career, but she’d been there for most of them. And she’d most assuredly been there for each of the state championships he’s won over the last two decades leading the Tigers.So, too, had the faded purple tie draped awkwardly over his Holy Family pullover.No way that talisman was staying home with a shot at matching Highlands Ranch coach Caryn Jarocki’s Colorado record of seven girls’ basketball state titles.“It has a lot to do with your kids, your administration. They provide you an environment that you can reach that,” said Rossi, 73, whose top-seeded Tigers rallied to beat No. 2 D’Evelyn 49-44 in the Class 4A championship Saturday inside Denver Coliseum to give him title No. 7.&#...

SF Giants’ Alex Cobb averts worst case after being hit by line-drive comebacker

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Alex Cobb, who was once taken off the field on a stretcher, knows something about the worst that can happen on the pitcher’s mound. For about 10 seconds Saturday, during the Giants’ Cactus League exhibition with the Dodgers, he thought it had happened again.Cobb collapsed to the ground and began writhing in pain after the first batter of the fourth inning, Miguel Vargas, lined a hard-hit comebacker that struck Cobb on the inner portion of his left knee. He felt a shooting pain through his foot, and he thought it was broken.“Every thought that you can have goes through your mind there while you’re down,” Cobb said, about an hour later, after tests revealed no more damage to his knee than a bad bruise and serious swelling. “I was just thinking all these extreme thoughts of what is this going to lead to? Am I going to miss the season with a broken knee? … Fortunately, as of right now, it doesn’t seem like it’s that bad.̶...

Where Marco Luciano will start 2023 after being optioned by SF Giants

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Around this time two years ago, Marco Luciano declared that he would be in the majors by 2022.After an injury-riddled season, that didn’t come to fruition, and it came as no surprise Saturday when Luciano, 21, was optioned to the minors.Luciano is likely destined for Double-A Richmond, the next level up from where he ended last season.The Giants typically move their position player prospects through the system more slowly than their pitchers, but Luciano could move quicker than most, given he has more pedigree than anyone else in the organization. Since signing out of the Dominican Republic for a $2.6 million bonus in 2018, Luciano’s size, strength and hitting ability quickly established himself as one of the most intriguing prospects in the game. From 2019-2022, Baseball America rated him among the top 20 prospects in baseball, with nobody higher in the Giants’ system.However, Luciano’s stock began to drop last season, when a lower back i...

FDIC to Silicon Valley Bank workers. We’ll give you a 50% raise or double-time OT, but you’ll lose your job in 45 days

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

John Sage and Katanga Johnson(Bloomberg) — The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation added a few new employees to its payroll late Friday, taking on workers from shuttered Silicon Valley Bank, at least for a few weeks, as it serves as receiver of the collapsed lending institution.The newly-formed entity, the Deposit Insurance National Bank of Santa Clara, or DINBSC, sent a letter to employees offering 45 days of employment, according to a copy of the message seen by Bloomberg. After the 45 days, the employees will be let go, the letter states.The company and its subsidiaries had more than 8,500 employees worldwide as of Dec. 31, according to its annual filing. SVB’s main office in Santa Clara, California, and all branches will reopen on Monday, the FDIC has said.The FDIC wants to incentivize workers to stay at the bank for those 45 days, offering salaried employees 1.5 times their current wages. Hourly workers who take on overtime will get double pay for it, according to the offer.T...

From California wine country to London, Silicon Valley Bank’s failure shakes worldwide

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

By STAN CHOE and BOBBY CAINA CALVAN (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — It was called Silicon Valley Bank, but its collapse is causing shockwaves around the world.From winemakers in California to startups across the Atlantic Ocean, companies are scrambling to figure out how to manage their finances after their bank suddenly shut down Friday. The meltdown means distress not only for businesses but also for all their workers whose paychecks may get tied up in the chaos.California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Saturday that he’s talking with the White House to help “stabilize the situation as quickly as possible, to protect jobs, people’s livelihoods, and the entire innovation ecosystem that has served as a tent pole for our economy.”U.S. customers with less than $250,000 in the bank can count on insurance provided by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Regulators are trying to find a buyer for the bank in hopes customers with more than that can be made whole.That includes customers like Circle...

Shead leads No. 1 Houston into AAC final, Sasser injured

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Jamal Shead had 16 points and nine assists as top-ranked Houston advanced to its fifth American Athletic Conference championship game in a row with a 69-48 win over Cincinnati on Saturday, even after losing star guard Marcus Sasser to an injury.The Cougars (31-2) led throughout, getting two second-chance layups from J’Wan Roberts in the opening minute. He finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. Sasser, the AAC player of the year, went down with an apparent groin injury with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the first half and did not return. Landers Nolley II had 14 points for Cincinnati (21-12), which shot 25.5% from the field.Houston will play either Memphis or Tulane on Sunday.NO. 4 ALABAMA 72, NO. 25 MISSOURI 61NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Freshman Brandon Miller scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as fourth-ranked Alabama advanced to the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship by beating No. 25 Missouri 72-61 on Saturday.Alabama (28-5) will play i...

Stansbury resigns as Western Kentucky coach after 7 seasons

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — Rick Stansbury has resigned after seven seasons as Western Kentucky’s head coach and cited a need to focus on his health and family.Stansbury missed nine games at midseason with an undisclosed health issue. He was 139-89 with the Hilltoppers, with three Conference USA championship-game appearances and one East Division title. But they failed to reach the NCAA Tournament during his tenure and lost to Florida Atlantic 75-51 in this week’s C-USA quarterfinals to finish 17-16 overall after going 8-12 in league play. The coach said in a release Saturday that he reached the decision to step down after much thought and said he felt good about what the program achieved despite not reaching “our highest goals.”Stansbury added, “This past season has been a challenging one, and I need some time to step away from things and focus on my health and my family. This is a very difficult decision but the right one.”WKU announced that it would conduct a national search for St...

MATCHDAY: Arsenal visits Fulham; Lewandowski back for Barca

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Sunday:ENGLANDArsenal will try to restore a five-point cushion atop the Premier League when it travels across London to face Fulham. Arsenal has won four games in a row since losing to Manchester City at home but is still just two points ahead of Pep Guardiola’s team. Mikel Arteta will be short of attackers, as Eddie Nketiah and Leandro Trossard have joined Gabriel Jesus on the sidelines. Manchester United and Newcastle will both try to reignite their challenges for a top-four spot. Third-placed United hosts last-placed Southampton following its 7-0 loss to Liverpool last weekend. Newcastle looks to end a five-game winless run in all competitions when it welcomes Wolverhampton. Also, West Ham takes on Aston Villa. SPAINRobert Lewandowski is back after missing two games due to injury to help league leader Barcelona in its visit to Athletic Bilbao. Barcelona needs a win to restore a nine-point cushion over Real Madrid a week befor...

Earthquakes signal Hawaii’s Kilauea about to resume erupting

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:53:52 GMT

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii’s second-largest volcano is likely to resume erupting soon after a brief pause.The U.S. Geological Survey said Saturday that a shallow earthquake storm had been detected under the summit of Kilauea. That signals that “resumption of eruptive activity at Kilauea summit is likely imminent,” the USGS said.Scientists just said Tuesday that lava had stopped flowing after 61 days of volcanic activity, but Kilauea is living up to its reputation as one of the world’s most active volcanoes. It also erupted from September 2021 to last December. A 2018 Kilauea eruption destroyed more than 700 residences.For about two weeks last December, Hawaii’s biggest volcano, Mauna Loa, was also erupting on Hawaii’s Big Island.The dual eruptions of Hawaii’s biggest volcanos provided a temporary boost to tourism during the slow season.Volcanic eruptions have deep spiritual and cultural significance for Native Hawaiians. When Mauna Loa started erupting in Novembe...