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Las Vegas Aces become WNBA’s 1st repeat champions in 21 years

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

(CNN) — The Las Vegas Aces defeated the New York Liberty 70-69 in Game 4 of the 2023 WNBA Finals to win the franchise’s second consecutive title on Wednesday.With the win, the Aces became the first team to repeat as champions since the Los Angeles Sparks did so in 2001-2002.Las Vegas played without guard Chelsea Gray and center Kiah Stokes, who both suffered foot injuries in Game 3. But that was no problem as Aces forward A’ja Wilson scored a game-high 24 points and 16 rebounds and guard Jackie Young added 16 points and seven assists in the victory.The Liberty, led by 2023 MVP forward Breanna Stewart and guard Sabrina Ionescu, got off to a hot start on Wednesday, leading the Aces 23-13 after the first quarter. But Las Vegas came storming back into the game.With 8.8 seconds left in the fourth and down one, Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot had a chance to send the series back to Las Vegas and force a decisive Game 5 with a buzzer-beater but missed. With that miss, Aces players celeb...

‘World’s first off-road solar SUV’ just drove across Morocco powered only by the sun

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

(CNN) — Zero-emission cars are soaring in popularity but running an electric vehicle is next to impossible in places with limited charging infrastructure.Stella Terra could change that.The khaki-green SUV uses solar panels on its sloping roof to charge its electric battery, meaning it can drive long distances powered entirely by the sun.Built by a team of students at Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE), “the world’s first off-road solar-powered vehicle” could help connect remote areas “where roads are less developed and energy grids are not as reliable,” and assist with emergency aid and deliveries, says Thieme Bosman, events manager for the team.The team tested the vehicle in Morocco earlier this month, driving more than 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) between the country’s northern coast and the Sahara Desert in the south.“Morocco has a huge variety of landscapes and different surfaces in quite a short distance,” says Bosman, adding that the car was tested “on every type of surf...

Slovakia’s president refuses to back climate change denier as environment minister

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

A climate change denier will not be Slovakia’s next environment minister, the country’s president, Zuzana Čaputová, said Thursday.Rudolf Huliak — who was elected on the ballot of the populist Slovenská národná strana (Slovak National Party) but is not a member of the party — had been put forward for the environment job in Robert Fico’s government. Huliak has long been a climate change denier and has shared inflammatory messages about climate activists, NGOs, and the LGBTQ+ community on social media.“A candidate who for a long time does not recognize the scientific consensus on climate change and, according to him, [believes] no real climate crisis exists, cannot lead and represent a department whose main task, according to the law, is the protection of nature and the Earth’s climate system,” Čaputová wrote in a statement, shared with POLITICO. She asked Fico to nominate a new candidate.The SNS party, however, said it will not change the nomination and w...

Nigel Farage: I’ll be leader of the UK Conservative Party by 2026

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

LONDON — Watch out, Rishi Sunak. Nigel Farage says he believes he’ll be leading the Conservative Party within three years. Speaking to the Politics Home website, the staunch Brexiteer said: “I’d be very surprised if I were not Conservative leader by ‘26. Very surprised.” It’s far from clear how seriously the famously jocular Farage is taking the prospect of a high-profile return to Tory politics. The former Brexit Party leader insisted he was “serious” about aiming for party leadership, then later told the site that he made the statement “in jest.” Farage was a prominent fixture at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester this month, where he gained entrance as an anchor for his upstart TV outlet GB News. The former MEP was greeted as a hero by the Tory faithful and spent much of his time posing for selfies and signing autographs — sparking gossip he may be considering an unlikely return to frontline politics.For Farage, however, the first hurdle would be...

Tyson Bagent’s 159 passing TDs at Shepherd set an NCAA record. 12 numbers to know as the Chicago Bears face the Las Vegas Raiders.

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

The Chicago Bears will look to end a 56-week drought without a home victory Sunday when they face the Las Vegas Raiders at Soldier Field. The Bears are again underdogs, however, and will have to put forth a crisp and complete effort to get back on the winning track.As kickoff nears, here’s a look at a dozen attention-grabbing facts and figures.159Passing touchdowns for quarterback Tyson Bagent during his career at Shepherd University, an NCAA record among all divisions. Bagent made 53 starts for the Rams between 2018 and 2022 and completed 1,400 passes for 17,034 yards, which is a Division II record. He threw for a career-high 518 yards in his college debut — a loss to Notre Dame College in 2018. Bagent threw for a career-high seven touchdowns in a win against West Virginia Wesleyan later that season.6Bagent passes targeted for DJ Moore during the second half of his NFL debut Sunday. Bagent threw 14 passes overall and connected four times with Moore for 44 yards. His fin...

Column: Random thoughts on a fall day, from Kyle Schwarber’s postseason record to the perplexing popularity of Pat McAfee

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

Fall might be the best time of the year to live in Chicago.The changing colors and cooler temperatures are always agreeable. The start of the Blackhawks and Bulls seasons provide hope for better days ahead. And the countdown to the first mock draft gives Bears fans something to look forward to as well. It’s a good time to let your mind wander aimlessly, which leads to random non sequiturs like the following.There was only one Mr. October.Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber tied Reggie Jackson’s postseason home run mark for left-handed hitters Tuesday in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series.Both have 18, so Schwarber figures to set the record soon.The difference is that 10 of Jackson’s 18 home runs came in his five World Series appearances. He had a 1.212 OPS in 98 World Series at-bats, earning the nickname “Mr. October” with his three homers against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 6 of the 1977 Series.Only three of Schwarber’...

Orioles’ John Means looking forward to ‘normal’ offseason, spring training after return from Tommy John surgery

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

As the Orioles packed up their lockers in the visitors’ clubhouse at Globe Life Field last week, John Means had similar — yet also different — feelings of disappointment.Means diligently worked for 16 months to make his way back from elbow surgery and pitched like one of Baltimore’s best starters in September, only to have a flare-up in his left elbow two days before the American League Division Series against the Texas Rangers started.“Yeah, it was tough,” Means said about missing the ALDS after the Orioles’ loss in Game 3. “These guys have been so good all year. But obviously I wanted to be out there, try and help this team, but it just wasn’t in the cards.”That elbow discomfort Means felt during his two-inning simulated game turned out to be something “small,” he said, and the decision to hold him out of the ALDS was “just one of those precautionary things.”Past the disappointment of missing the O...

Ravens vs. Lions staff picks: Who will win Sunday’s Week 7 game in Baltimore?

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

Here’s how The Baltimore Sun sports staff views the outcome of Sunday’s Week 7 game between the Ravens (4-2) and the Lions (5-1) at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.Brian Wacker, reporterLions 24, Ravens 17: The Lions’ offense has scored the third-most touchdowns (21) in the NFL, while the Ravens have given up the fewest (6) of any team in the league. But this is also the most complete team Baltimore has faced this season, with the Lions’ defense also surrendering just 18.8 points per game, ninth-fewest in the NFL. Detroit star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown is also coming off a 12-catch, 124-yard game, and while the Lions are without running back David Montgomery, rookie Jahmyr Gibbs is likely to return from a hamstring injury.Mike Preston, columnistRavens 21, Lions 18: Detroit is one of the most physical teams in the NFL. The Lions have Jared Goff, who isn’t a great quarterback but is the best the Ravens have faced so far this season. This will be o...

French presidential couple attend funeral service of teacher slain in school attack

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

ARRAS, France (AP) — Loved ones and colleagues mourned and celebrated the life of a French-language teacher who was stabbed to death in a school attack blamed on a suspected Islamic extremist. They remembered Dominique Bernard at his funeral service Thursday as a sensitive, crowd-shy man who loved literature, art and nature and was a devoted, playful mentor to his pupils.French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, were among mourners at the cathedral in Arras, the northern French town where Bernard taught at the Gambetta-Carnot school. White flowers adorned the coffin. A crowd, with some people clutching white flowers, also watched the service on a giant screen in an Arras square. Bernard was 57.His wife, Isabelle, described her husband as a great lover of literature, music, art, cinema and “the raking evening light,” who wasn’t fond of computers, crowds and social networks, didn’t have a cellphone and “didn’t like the noise and furor of the worl...

Woman suffers life-altering injuries after being struck by vehicle in Mississauga

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:19:43 GMT

A woman in her 20s is being rushed to hospital with life-altering injuries after she was struck by a vehicle in Mississauga during the morning commute.Emergency crews were called to Kennedy Road and Brunel Road, north of Matheson Boulevard East, just after 6 a.m. on Thursday.Paramedics say the woman has serious life-altering injuries.The driver remained at the scene.Police have blocked off Kennedy from Brunel to Britannia Road for the investigation.