By The Associated Press
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Sam Cunliffe scored 17 points, including two free throws with 6.8 seconds remaining, and Evansville silenced Rupp Arena with an improbable 67-64 victory over No. 1 Kentucky on Tuesday night.
K.J. Riley added 18 points as the Purple Aces — coached by Walter McCarty, who won a national title with Kentucky in 1996 — pulled off the biggest upset in program history with their first win over a No. 1 team in three tries.
Evansville (2-0) led much of the game and answered each Kentucky rally with clutch baskets to grab the lead and then maintain it for the season’s biggest upset. The Wildcats (2-1) were a 25-point favorite.
Kentucky had been 39-0 at home against unranked, nonconference opponents when ranked No. 1 in The Associated Press poll. Evansville, meanwhile, got its first-ever road win over an AP-ranked team.
NFL
Colin Kaepernick plans to audition for NFL teams on Saturday in a private workout arranged by the league to be held in Atlanta.
The exiled former Pro Bowl quarterback posted on Twitter: “I’m just getting word from my representatives that the NFL league office reached out to them about a workout in Atlanta on Saturday. I’ve been in shape and ready for this for 3 years, can’t wait to see the head coaches and GMs on Saturday.”
The NFL hasn’t confirmed Kaepernick’s workout details.
A person familiar with the plans told The Associated Press the league’s decision to invite all 32 teams to watch Kaepernick “came out of the blue with no prior communication.” The person said Kaepernick’s team was given a 2-hour window to accept the invitation and was denied a request to schedule the tryout on a Tuesday or another Saturday.
Kaepernick’s representatives have asked the league to provide a rolling list of teams that plan to attend the workout to ensure it’s a “legitimate process,” according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because details haven’t been made public.
Kaepernick hasn’t played since 2016 with the San Francisco 49ers. He helped start a wave of protests about social and racial injustice that season by kneeling during the national anthem at games.
The NFL in February settled a collusion grievance Kaepernick and former teammate Eric Reid filed against the league. Reid now plays for the Carolina Panthers.
—By AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi.
MLB
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Major League Baseball has expanded its investigation into the Houston Astros after The Athletic website reported the team stole signs during home games in 2017 by using a camera positioned in center field.
The report Tuesday quoted pitcher Mike Fiers, who played for the Astros that season, and three other unidentified people with the club. The Astros won the World Series that year — two sources told The Athletic that Houston used the system into the playoffs while another source said it ended before the postseason.
The website said the process was started by a struggling hitter and a coach, neither of whom was identified. The camera at Minute Maid Park was connected to a television monitor in the tunnel between the Astros’ dugout and clubhouse, The Athletic said, and team employees or players would communicate expected pitches by banging a trash can to signal off-speed pitches.
The Astros said in a statement the team “has begun an investigation in cooperation with Major League Baseball” and declined additional comment.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Gabe Kapler has been hired as manager of the San Francisco Giants, a month after being fired from the same job by the Philadelphia Phillies.
Kapler replaces Bruce Bochy, who retired at the end of the season following 13 years and three championships with San Francisco.
The Giants made the announcement late Tuesday and planned a formal introduction to follow. Kapler is the second big hire in a matter of days by Giants President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi, who on Monday introduced new general manager Scott Harris, most recently an assistant GM for the Chicago Cubs.
The 44-year-old Kapler was fired Oct. 10 after going 161-163 over two seasons as manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. With slugger Bryce Harper their blockbuster acquisition, the Phillies finished 81-81 this year for their first non-losing season since 2012.
Zaidi and Kapler are now reunited from their time with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where Kapler served as director of player development.
NEW YORK (AP) — Mike Shildt of the St. Louis Cardinals has edged out Craig Counsell of the Milwaukee Brewers to win NL Manager of the Year.
Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli won the AL prize in a tight ballot over Aaron Boone of the New York Yankees.
Shildt earned the award in his first full season on the job. Counsell received more first-place votes in balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America revealed Tuesday night, but Shildt got more second-place votes and appeared on more ballots.
The club won 91 games and the NL Central crown this year, ending the franchise’s three-year postseason drought.
The 51-year-old Shildt became the first manager of the year who had never played pro ball at any level. Last week, the Cardinals gave him a contract extension through the 2022 season.
Baldelli and Boone received 13 first-place votes, but Baldelli got more second-place nods. The 38-year-old is the youngest to win the award and the eighth to take it in his first full season on the job.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals and Adam Wainwright have agreed to a contract for the 2020 season, increasing the likelihood the veteran pitcher finishes his career with the only major league team for which he has ever played.
The 38-year-old Wainwright was drafted by the Braves in 2000 and traded to the Cardinals three years later. He made his major league debut in 2005 and has been a stalwart for St. Louis the past 14 seasons, going 162-95 with a 3.39 ERA and three All-Star game appearances.
He played last season on a $2 million deal and proved he was still effective, going 14-10 with a 4.19 ERA while helping the Cardinals reach the National League Championship Series.
Wainwright was especially valuable down the stretch. He had a 2.97 ERA in September and a 1.62 ERA in the postseason, where the Cardinals were ousted by eventual World Series champion Washington.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Alabama is fifth in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, behind LSU, Ohio State, Clemson and Georgia, which took over the fourth spot in the selection committee’s second top 25.
LSU replaced Ohio State as No. 1 after the Tigers won at Alabama on Saturday. The Buckeyes were bumped to No. 2. Clemson moved up two spots to No. 3 after two teams ahead of the Tigers lost for the first time last week, including Alabama.
The Crimson Tide fell to 46-41 to LSU and dropped two spots. Penn State, which had been No. 4, lost 31-26 at Minnesota and fell to ninth. The unbeaten Gophers jumped nine spots to eighth.
Georgia moved up two spots to give the Southeastern Conference two of the top four for the second straight week.
SOCCER
The sporting director of the U.S. Soccer Federation says Gregg Berhalter’s job as men’s national team coach is safe despite some disappointing results.
Berhalter was hired last December after the Americans failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. The U.S. lost to Mexico 1-0 in the CONCACAF Gold Cup final in July, was beaten 3-0 by El Tri in a September exhibition and lost 2-0 at Canada last month in the CONCACAF Nations League. The Americans have nine wins, five losses and two draws this year.
“When I evaluate Gregg and the coaching staff and what I’ve seen to date, I’m a pleased man, and an individual result is not going to change that. It’s just not,” sporting director Earnie Stewart said during a conference call with reporters Tuesday.
Stewart, then the men’s national team general manager, made the recommendation to hire Berhalter, which was endorsed by the USSF board of directors. Stewart, who played in three World Cups for the U.S., was promoted to sporting director in August, in charge of the men’s and women’s programs.
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