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Connecticut seeks 25th victory this season in matchup against Phoenix

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

Phoenix Mercury (9-26, 2-15 Western Conference) at Connecticut Sun (24-11, 13-4 Eastern Conference)Uncasville, Connecticut; Thursday, 7 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Connecticut will aim for its 25th win of the season when the Sun host the Phoenix Mercury.The Sun have gone 10-6 in home games. Connecticut ranks third in the WNBA with 20.9 assists per game led by Alyssa Thomas averaging 8.1.The Mercury are 1-16 on the road. Phoenix allows 83.8 points to opponents and has been outscored by 7.2 points per game.The teams square off for the third time this season. The Mercury won 90-84 in the last meeting on Aug. 11. Brittney Griner led the Mercury with 21 points, and Rebecca Allen led the Sun with 24 points.TOP PERFORMERS: DeWanna Bonner is averaging 18 points and 5.7 rebounds for the Sun. Thomas is averaging 19.2 points over the last 10 games for Connecticut.Diana Taurasi is averaging 16 points and 4.6 assists for the Mercury. Sophie Cunningham is averaging 11.8 points and 3.1 rebounds while sho...

Washington visits Las Vegas after Young’s 24-point outing

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

Washington Mystics (17-18, 8-10 Eastern Conference) at Las Vegas Aces (30-6, 15-2 Western Conference)Las Vegas; Thursday, 10 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Las Vegas hosts the Washington Mystics after Jackie Young scored 24 points in the Las Vegas Aces’ 94-85 loss to the New York Liberty.The Aces are 16-1 on their home court. Las Vegas averages 21.6 assists per game to lead the Western Conference, paced by Chelsea Gray with 7.2.The Mystics are 5-11 on the road. Washington is eighth in the WNBA with 19.0 assists per game led by Natasha Cloud averaging 5.9.The two teams square off for the third time this season. The Mystics defeated the Aces 78-62 in their last matchup on Aug. 26. Elena Delle Donne led the Mystics with 21 points, and Kelsey Plum led the Aces with 21 points.TOP PERFORMERS: A’ja Wilson is averaging 22 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.2 blocks for the Aces. Plum is averaging 16.7 points over the last 10 games for Las Vegas.Brittney Sykes is averaging 15.5 points, 3.8 assists...

Next of Ken: Belichick, Kraft to blame for recent Pats failures

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

Bill Belichick is a “Ken.”So is Robert Kraft.“Barbie” took in more than $1 billion this summer. The “girl power” flick was powered by a script recycled from pick-your-favorite-1970-something episode of “Maude.” It portrayed the struggles of women suffering under the iron-fist of a male-dominated patriarchy with fun, flair, color, a plush wardrobe, and nifty visuals.Having been married for 34 years come November, the concept of a patriarchy carries as much relevance to me as the latest dining trends in Kyrgyzstan. Yet “Barbie” was immensely popular and packed theatres. Nicole Kidman can go home now.“Ken,” played by a very chiseled Ryan Gosling, was a clueless sort who thought the world revolved around his whims and needs.“Ken” is the type of guy born on 1st-and-goal at the 1 and thinks he drove the first 99 yards himself.“Ken” would believe he won 6 Super Bowls because of coaching acumen. He would deem his skillful stewardship of the Patriots franchise as the key factor that delivere...

Air attack kills 2 in Kyiv while Russia accuses Ukraine of biggest drone attack of the war

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian officials on Wednesday accused Ukraine of launching what appeared to be the biggest nighttime drone attack on Russian soil since the war began 18 months ago. The Kremlin’s forces also hit Kyiv during the night with what Ukrainian officials called a “massive, combined attack” that killed two people.Drones struck hit an airport in western Russia’s Pskov region near the border with Estonia and Latvia, damaging four Il-76 transport aircraft that can carry heavy machinery, Russian state news agency Tass reported, citing emergency officials.The airport strike, which was first reported minutes before midnight, started a massive fire, the regional governor and local media reported. Unconfirmed media reports said up to 20 drones may have targeted the airport.More drones were shot down over the Oryol, Bryansk, Ryazan and Kaluga regions, as well as the region surrounding the Russian capital, according to the Defense Ministry. Three main Moscow region airports — She...

Mutinous soldiers in Gabon say they’ve ousted president whose family has ruled for 55 years

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Crowds celebrated in Gabon after mutinous soldiers said Wednesday they were seizing power in order to overturn the results of a presidential election, seeking to remove a president whose family has held power for 55 years.The coup attempt came hours after the central African country’s President Ali Bongo Ondimba, 64, was declared winner of an election marred by fears of violence. Within minutes of the announcement, gunfire was heard in the center of the capital, Libreville. Later, a dozen uniformed soldiers appeared on state television and announced that they had seized power.Crowds in the city took to the city’s streets to celebrate the end of Bongo’s reign, singing the national anthem with soldiers.“Thank you, army. Finally, we’ve been waiting a long time for this moment,” said Yollande Okomo, standing in front of soldiers from Gabon’s elite republican guard. Shopkeeper Viviane Mbou offered the soldiers juice, which they declined.“Long live ...

Pope says a revised environmental encyclical will be released Oct. 4, feast of St. Francis of Assisi

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis said Wednesday he will be releasing an update to his landmark 2015 environmental encyclical on Oct. 4, the feast of his nature-loving namesake, St. Francis of Assisi.Francis recently revealed he was writing a “second part” to the document “to address current problems.” The Vatican spokesman said the update would take into account in particular recent climate crises.On Wednesday, Francis told his weekly general audience that he intended to publish the update on Oct. 4, the feast of St. Francis and also the start of Francis’ big Vatican meeting on the future of the Catholic Church.The 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si,” or “Praised Be,” is perhaps Francis’ most well-known and important document. In it, Francis cast care for the environment in stark moral terms, calling for a bold cultural revolution to correct what he said was a “structurally perverse” economic system in which the rich exploited the poor, turning Earth into a pile of “filth” in t...

Pakistan’s Imran Khan will be imprisoned for 2 more weeks despite getting bail

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan will remain in a high-security prison for at least another two weeks despite being granted bail the previous day, as an anti-terrorism court extended his detention Wednesday in a case involving the revealing of an official secret document, a defense lawyer said.The anti-terrorism court announced the decision after a brief closed-door hearing that was held at a high-security Attock prison in the eastern Punjab province, lawyer Intazar Hussain Panjutha said. The next court hearing will be on Sept. 2, he said.Khan’s other lawyer, Salman Safdar, told reporters that he is petitioning a court to seek bail for Khan in the latest case. He said he is challenging Khan’s imprisonment and jail trial as “it is illogical and unconstitutional.” The latest development was a blow to Khan and his legal team, which expected his release after a court in the capital, Islamabad, suspended the corruption conviction and three-ye...

EgyptAir will resume direct flights from Egypt to conflict-stricken Sudan

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian authorities said the national carrier will resume direct flights to Sudan this week following high profile talks between the Egyptian president and Sudan’s military chief.Egypt’s Ministry of Civil Aviation said Tuesday that EgyptAir would launch a weekly flight route from Cairo to the Sudanese coastal city of Port Sudan starting Friday. No further details were given.Sudan plunged into chaos in mid-April when simmering tensions between the military, led by Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, commanded by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, exploded into open fighting in the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere.The flight announcement came hours after Burhan and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi concluded talks in Cairo. The visit marks the Sudanese general’s first trip abroad since fighting erupted on April 15. Sudanese authorities reopened the airspace in the east of the country earlier this month, according to local medi...

In the news today: Universities pull course info and BC kids head back to school soon

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…Universities pull course info from public sites for safetySeveral Ontario universities are removing course location, and other information, from their public websites as a safety measure, as faculty representatives look to be more involved in efforts to prevent harassment and hate crimes on campus. The move to pull some information from public pages comes after a triple stabbing at a University of Waterloo gender studies class in June, which police described as a hate-motivated attack. The school removed class locations and instructor names from its public websites after the stabbing and several other post-secondary institutions have either done the same or are considering the measure. In Toronto, York University and the University of Toronto said they were taking down course room locations from the public domain, while Toronto Metropolitan University said it d...

A look at 10 films sparking interest ahead of the Toronto International Film Festival

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:08 GMT

TORONTO — A bombastic bawdy musical, a feel-good soccer-driven popcorn flick and what may be the last film from a revered Japanese auteur are among the cinematic highlights set for this year’s Toronto International Film Festival.While ongoing Hollywood labour strikes have cast uncertainty over who will show up on the red carpet, the big screen is sure to feature plenty of star-packed ventures and intriguing flicks to choose from.Here’s a look at 10 titles that have caught the attention of Canadian Press reporters who will be on the circuit Sept. 7 to 17. “Aggro Dr1ft” — If the marketing gimmick of “shot entirely in infrared” fails to capture interest in the experimental film “Aggro Dr1ft,” the name Harmony Korine just might. Hardly satisfied with keeping things risk-free, the U.S. director behind limit-testing films such as “Kids,” “Gummo” and “Spring Breakers” has built a career out of being divisive, if not interesting. In what TIFF describes as a sensory experiment, “...