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PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Scoot Henderson scored a season-high 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the skidding Indiana Pacers 131-111 on Sunday night.

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Jerami Grant and Jrue Holiday added 21 points apiece for the Blazers, who handed Indiana its ninth straight defeat. Henderson also had six assists with no turnovers.

Deni Avdija, who leads Portland in scoring (24.4 points per game) and assists (6.6), returned from a six-game absence caused by a lower back injury. He finished with 18 points and eight assists.

Indiana has dropped its past six games by an average of 20 points. This marks the team's third losing streak of at least eight games this season.

Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 22 points and Jay Huff had 16 points and five blocks. Andrew Nembhard added 14 points and nine assists, and Jarace Walker also scored 14.

Huff has an NBA-leading 39 games this season with at least two blocks, two more than San Antonio center Victor Wenbanyama, who had four in a145-120win over Houston earlier Sunday and leads the NBA in blocks.

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Robert Williams III had his streak of 18 consecutive games with at least one block snapped. It had been the longest active streak in the league.

Henderson scored or assisted on 15 points in a 25-7 run over the final 5 1/2 minutes of the second quarter to help the Blazers take a 69-52 lead into halftime. The Pacers were 2-of-11 shooting with three turnovers during that stretch.

Henderson had 19 points and five assists while going 7 for 9 from the field, including 2 of 4 from 3-point range, before the break. Grant added 14 points, Holiday had 11 and Avdija scored 10.

Up next

Pacers: Wrap up a four-game trip Tuesday at Sacramento.

Trail Blazers: Host the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday night.

AP NBA:https://apnews.com/NBA

Boston College has fired Earl Grant after five seasons, the school announced Sunday.

Grant, 49, posted a 72-92 record during his time with the Eagles, including 11-20 this season with a 4-14 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

"We are grateful to Earl for his dedication to our student-athletes and to the Boston College community over the past five seasons," Boston College AD Blake James said in a statement. "Earl is a man of high character who represented our institution with class. However, we have greater expectations for our basketball program and I believe a change in leadership is necessary to change the trajectory of our program. We wish Earl and his family nothing but the best going forward."

Boston College notched a 77-69 victory over Notre Dame on Saturday to move into position to potentially seize the 15th and final seed in the ACC tournament. However, Pitt wrested it away by toppling Syracuse later in the day.

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"Our goal remains to compete at the highest level of college basketball and provide a world-class experience for our student-athletes," James continued. "We will begin a national search immediately for a new head coach who shares our vision of excellence, both on the court and in the classroom."

Grant was 127-89 during his seven seasons at the College of Charleston. He guided the Cougars to the NCAA Tournament in 2018. He is 199-181 in 12 overall seasons.

Sunday's news comes one week after Boston College parted ways with women's basketball head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee.

--Field Level Media

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luka Doncic had 35 points and eight rebounds, Austin Reaves added 25 points and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame LeBron James' injury absence to grind out a 110-97 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday.

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Rui Hachimura scored 13 points for the Lakers, who never trailed the surging Knicks in their fourth consecutive victory even while Jamesmissed his second straight gamewith a bruised left elbow and a left foot injury.

The Lakers slumped in the fourth quarter, managing just one basket in a 6 1/2-minute span down the stretch while New York cut its 23-point deficit to 10. But the Knicks couldn't hit enough shots to capitalize and committed eight turnovers in the fourth.

Luke Kennard made a 3-pointer with 1:37 left before Doncic iced it on his fifth 3-pointer with 1:05 left.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points and 16 rebounds for the Knicks, who lost for just the second time in six games.

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Jalen Brunson scored 10 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, but New York couldn't overcome 8-of-34 shooting on 3-point attempts in the second stop on its five-game trip, which began withan impressive win at Denver. Mikal Bridges went scoreless in 27 minutes.

The Lakers took a 19-point lead into the fourth quarter after a 20-8 run. Doncic, who hit an absurd fallaway 3-pointer during the surge, had 28 points afterscoring 44 in three quarterswhile beating Indiana two nights earlier.

Up next

Knicks: At the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday.

Lakers: Host Minnesota on Tuesday.

AP NBA:https://apnews.com/NBA

CHICAGO (AP) — Oil prices eclipsed $114 per barrel for the first time since 2022 on Monday as theIran warintensified, threatening production and shipping in the Middle East.

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The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, surged past $114 after trading resumed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. That was up 23% from its Friday closing price of $92.69.

West Texas Intermediate, the light, sweet crude oil produced in the United States, also was selling for about $114 a barrel. That's 25% higher than its close Friday at $90.90.

The war's toll on civilian targets grew early Monday as Bahrain accused Iran of striking adesalination plantvital to drinking water supplies, and oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight Israeli strikes.

The increases followed the U.S. crude price jumping by 36% and Brent crude rising by 28% last week.Oil prices have surgedas the war, now in its second week, ensnared countries and places that are critical to the production and movement of oil and gas from the Persian Gulf.

Roughly 15 million barrels of crude oil — about 20% of the world's oil — typically are shipped every day through theStrait of Hormuz, according to independent research firm Rystad Energy. The threat of Iranian missile and drone attacks has all but stopped tankers from traveling through the strait, which is bordered in the north by Iran, carry oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

Iraq, Kuwait and the UAE have cut their oil production as storage tanks fill due to the reduced ability to export crude. Iran, Israel and the United States also have attacked oil and gas facilities since the war started, exacerbating supply concerns.

The last time Brent and U.S. crude futures traded near the current level was in 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The global surge in oil prices since Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran on March 1 has rattled financial markets, sparking worries that higher energy costs will fuel inflation and lead to less spending by U.S. consumers, the main engine of the economy.

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Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index plunged more than 7% early Monday, while other markets also foundered.

In the U.S., a gallon of regular gasoline rose to $3.45 on Sunday, about 47 cents more than a week earlier, according to AAA motor club. Diesel was selling for about $4.60 a gallon, a weekly increase of about 83 cents.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright, speaking on CNN's "State of the Union," said U.S. gas prices would be back under $3 a gallon "before too long."

"Look, you never know exactly the time frame of this, but, in the worst case, this is a weeks, this is not a months thing," Wright added.

If oil prices stay above $100 per barrel, some analysts and investors say it could be too much for the global economy to withstand.

Iranian authorities said strikes by Israel on oil depotsin Tehranand a petroleum transfer terminal early Sunday killed four people. Israel's military said the depots were being used by Iran's military for fuel to launch missiles. Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the speaker of Iran's parliament, warned that the war's impact on the oil industry would spiral.

Iran exports roughly 1.6 million barrels of oil a day, mostly to China, which may need to look elsewhere for supply if Iran's exports are disrupted, another factor that could increase energy prices.

The price of natural gas also has climbed during the war, though not by as much as oil. It was selling for about $3.33 per 1,000 cubic feet late Sunday. That's 4.6% higher than its Friday closing price of $3.19, after rising about 11% last week.

U.S. stock index futures, a bellwether for the market, fell late Sunday, pointing to Wall Street's main indexes opening down on Monday. The future for the S&P 500 was down 2.2%, while the Dow's fell 2.3%. The future for the Nasdaq composite was down 2.6%.

On Friday, the S&P 500 dropped 1.3% and the Dow plunged as many as 945 points before finishing with a loss of roughly 450. The Nasdaq composite sank 1.6%.

The U.S. struck a vessel in the eastern Pacific on Sunday, killing six people, U.S. Southern Command said.

The kinetic strike, ordered by the commander of Southern Command, Marine Gen. Francis L. Donovan, targeted a boat operated by "Designated Terrorist Organizations," SOUTHCOMsaid on X.

"Six male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No U.S. military forces were harmed," the post added.

The post said the vessel was "engaged in narco-trafficking operations" and "transiting along known narco-trafficking routes." No additional evidence for the claims was provided.

The U.S. has conducted more than 40 strikes in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific since September, killing more than 140 people.

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Thelatest such strike, on Feb. 23, killed three people.

The Trump administration has argued that the strikes are in the country's national security interest, preventing illicit drugs from entering the U.S. But they have drawn criticism from lawmakers and advocacy groups, who have scrutinized the legal justification for them.

Sunday's strike comes only days after the most recent visit of a Cabinet-level secretary to Venezuela, with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum meeting with acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez.

President Donald Trump officially recognized Rodríguez as Venezuela's president Saturday and said the U.S. "formally recognized" its new government following Nicolás Maduro's ouster.

"I'm pleased to say that this week, we have formally recognized the Venezuelan government. We've actually legally recognized them," Trump said at the Shield of the Americas Summit in Miami. "We have also just reached a historic gold deal. It's called the gold deal with Venezuela to allow our two countries to work together to facilitate the sale of Venezuelan gold and other minerals."

Trump convened the summit to bring together the leaders of several "likeminded" Latin American countries to promote anti-drug trade strategies.

So far in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, it's only been a matter of "when" for Team USA following a 9-1 win over Great Britain on Saturday.

The tournament favorite spent half of its second group play game trailing the British, courtesy of a dormant offense and a surprise leadoff homer allowed by the best pitcher on the planet, Tarik Skubal. Two pitchers, indy ball veteran Tyler Viza and Los Angeles Angels minor leaguer Najer Vector, shut down the Americans across four innings.

And then, carnage.

It took only one error from Great Britain to open the floodgates. Ernie Clement reached first on a bad throw from GB third baseman Ivan Johnson. He moved to third on a double from Pete Crow-Armstrong. He scored on a wild pitch.

Two pitches later, Kyle Schwarber hit the ball 427 feet, deep into the second deck.

More runs followed. Gunnar Henderson brought in two more with a bases-loaded single. Alex Bregman, Aaron Judge and Will Smith all notched RBI in a sixth-inning rally. Bregman got another sacrifice fly an inning later.

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The vaunted American lineup ground down Brazil in its first game with 17 walks. It was a bit more aggressive in this one, but maintained an identity of slowly breaking pitchers with little MLB experience.

[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2026 MLB season]

On the pitching side, Skubal was on the mound for what will be his only start of the tournament. As few expected, he left the game facing a loss. The reason why: Boston Red Sox utility man Nate Eaton, who ambushed a fastball on the first pitch of the game for a double that evolved into a homer after replay review.

Skubal shook that off and put down nine of the 10 remaining batters.

From there, the American bullpen took over and maintained dominance. Skubal, Clay Holmes, David Bednar, Griffin Jax and Brad Keller combined for 17 strikeouts while walking none. The only British hitter who managed a hit was Eaton, who was 3-for-4 while his teammates were 0-for-25.

Now 2-0, Team USA is virtually guaranteed a spot in the knockout rounds. However, it will soon face its biggest test against Mexico on Monday, with first place in Pool B likely on the line. Mexico defeated Great Britain 8-2 on Friday.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Tech fired coach Damon Stoudamire on Sunday, one day after the Yellow Jackets' season ended with a 12-game losing streak.

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Georgia Tech athletic director Ryan Alpert announced the move after the Yellow Jackets finished 11-20 overall and 2-16 in the Atlantic Coast Conference following Saturday's79-76 lossat Clemson.

The Yellow Jackets finished last in the conference, failing to qualify for the ACC tournament as Stoudamire was unable to solve thelate-season losing streak.

Stoudamire was fired after posting a 42-55 record in three seasons, including a 19-39 ACC mark.

"On behalf of Georgia Tech, I want to thank Damon for his commitment to the Institute, our men's basketball program and, most importantly, our student-athletes," Alpert said in a statement released by the school. "He is highly respected and admired throughout the Georgia Tech community and has been a strong representative of the Institute. We wish him the very best.

"Georgia Tech men's basketball has a proud history and is an important part of our athletics department and community. We are committed to identifying an excellent basketball coach that will build a championship-level program, and fulfill our missions of academic excellence and preparing our student-athletes for life beyond basketball. Georgia Tech's commitment to men's basketball is unwavering, and we will invest the resources necessary to compete for championships at the highest levels."

Assistant coach Greg Gary, a former coach at Mercer, will serve as interim head coach.

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Alpert will launch a search for a new coach who will be asked to revive a program which once flourished, advancing to nine consecutive NCAA tournaments under Bobby Cremins from 1985-93. Georgia Tech reached the NCAA championship game under Paul Hewitt in 2004.

Georgia Tech's last NCAA tournament appearance came in its last winning season in 2020-21 under Josh Pastner. The Yellow Jackets lost in the first round that year and have not won a game in the tournament since 2010.

Stoudamire, a former NBA point guard,was hiredon March 14, 2023, only three days after Pastner was fired.

Stoudamire's only previous head coaching experience came at Pacific, a West Coast Conference school where he posted a 71-77 record over a five-year tenure. He never reached the postseason but was selected as the league's coach of the year in 2020.

Before being hired by Georgia Tech, Stoudamire had been a Boston Celtics assistant since 2021.

Stoudamire's 13-year playing career in the NBA began when he was named Rookie of the Year in the 1995-96 season with Toronto. Only 5-foot-10, he earned the nickname "Mighty Mouse" and also played with Portland, Memphis and San Antonio.

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