New York
The extension announced Tuesday goes all the way through 2032. The length of the contract is not unusual for college sports these days, though with the NCAA facing legal challenges on multiple fronts, a lot can change in 16 years.
Provisions in the agreement protect CBS and Turner should the tourney start to look very different. But network executives hope this deal itself increases the odds that March Madness marches on mostly the same.
“One reason we’re confident the tournament will remain the premier event it is, is the financial underpinning that CBS and Turner are providing to the NCAA,” CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus told The Associated Press.
The extension pays an average of $1.1 billion per season, up frommore than $770 million on average under the current contract.
McManus and Turner President David Levy expressed confidence, too, in the value of the terms — what McManus called “a very prudent decision.”
“We believe it will be financially profitable at the end,” Levy said.
The new deal includes the rights to technologies that have yet to be invented. It retains the existing format for TV, with early-round games aired across CBS and three Turner networks: TBS, TNT and truTV. The Final Four will keep alternating between CBS and Turner.
NFL Football
Patriots Keep RB
Boston
The Patriots announced Tuesday they re-signed the 29-year-old veteran, extending a tenure that began in 2013 and resumed in 2014 following a brief stop in Pittsburgh that year.
The Patriots also announced the signings of free agent defensive back Justin Coleman and safety Brandon King.
Blount was having a solid season in 2015, rushing for 703 yards — his most since 2013 — and six touchdowns. But he was placed on season-ending injured reserve in December with a hip injury.
Coleman appeared in 10 games with two starts for New England last season, and finished with 21 tackles. King played in 13 regular-season games and both postseason games, mainly on special teams. He finished with 15 tackles.
The NFL denied suspended Cleveland Browns receiver Josh Gordon’s application for reinstatement.
A league spokesman confirmed Tuesday that the application was denied and that Gordon can apply again at a future date.
On Monday, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press that Gordon “raised a red flag” because of a recent league-administered drug test. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because results of NFL drug tests are not made public, says Gordon didn’t have a positive substance abuse test.
Monaco
Federer hadn’t played since losing to top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open semifinals in late January and undergoing arthroscopic surgery on Feb. 3 for torn cartilage in his left knee.
After Andy Murray had overcome some sloppy serving to beat Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 and reach the third round, Federer followed him onto a sun-soaked center court and was soon trading shots.
Manchester, England
PSG’s fourth successive exit in the quarterfinals leaves the Qatari-owned club still chasing a much sought-after European Cup. Instead, City is celebrating another landmark in the club’s transformation in the eight years since itself coming under Middle Eastern ownership — from Abu Dhabi.
At Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat trick to lead Real Madrid back to the semifinals of the Champions League with a 3-0 win over Wolfsburg.
Chicago
The players will split the one-time payment, campus officials said, and the university Board of Trustees must approve the settlement at its May 19 meeting. The players had sought at least $10 million in damages.
The lawsuit filed last year accused staff of creating a racially hostile environment. A university report found that accusations against coach Matt Bollant and an assistant, Mike Divilbiss, were unfounded. Divilbiss quit after the allegations surfaced.
New Orleans
In a statement, police shed new light on the shocking death of the New Orleans football legend who was shot and killed Saturday night. Police have said that Smith and his wife were shot by Cardell Hayes after a traffic altercation.
Among the other news released in the statement: Hayes told police on the scene that he was the shooter, police also found a loaded revolver inside Hayes’ vehicle and Smith had two other passengers in his vehicle Saturday night in addition to his wife, although neither was wounded.
Authorities said there was no evidence to suggest either weapon found during a search of the vehicles Tuesday morning was fired during the shooting and that the gun in Smith’s vehicle was fully loaded. Police did not say whether the .9 mm handgun belonged to Smith or someone else in the vehicle.
Instead, police said Hayes shot Smith with a different handgun.
The statement Tuesday is the latest twist in a case that has riveted a city where Smith was a fan favorite. Police have said Smith and his wife were driving in the Lower Garden District, an upscale part of the city, when their Mercedes SUV was hit from behind by an orange Hummer driven by Hayes. The impact caused Smith to hit a grey Chevrolet Impala in which two friends of Smith were driving. No one was injured in the Impala.