How Trump’s bet on voters electing him managed to silence some of his legal woesGood news on the injury front continues for the Vikings with latest roster move
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W. Va. (AP) — Jordan Sears scored 25 points, Jalen Reed had 21 points and 13 rebounds, and LSU defeated UCF 109-102 in triple overtime on Sunday to take third place at the Greenbrier Tip-Off. LSU trailed by 18 points early in the second half, then failed to hold a lead at the end of regulation and each of the first two overtime periods. The Tigers went up by five with a minute to go in the third overtime. UCF cut it to three, then Vyctorius Miller made a driving layup, Jordan Sears followed with a dunk and the Tigers were able to hold on when leading by seven. Cam Carter scored 20 points, Miller had 16 and Dji Bailey 14 for LSU (5-1). Darius Johnson had 25 points, eight assists and six rebounds for UCF (4-2). Keyshawn Hall had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Jordan Ivy-Curry scored 20. South Florida led by 15 points at halftime and maintained a double-digit lead for all but a few possessions in the first 11 1/2 minutes of the second half. UCF led 62-48 with 8 1/2 minutes remaining but Sears hit three 3-pointers and LSU drew to within 64-59 with 6 minutes to go. The Tigers scored the last six points of regulation to force overtime. In the first half, LSU led 15-13 about eight minutes into the game but the Tigers missed 15 of 16 shots while being outscored 25-3 over the next 10 minutes. South Florida led 40-25 at halftime after shooting 46% to 25% for LSU. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Wicked Director Jon M. Chu advised fans to make a specific request at the movie theaters that had some fans up in arms. Wicked (part one) officially came out Friday, November 22, and Jon took to X, formerly Twitter, to tell fans to ask their theaters to turn up the sound when they watch his film adaption of the hit 2003 Broadway musical. He wrote: "Tell your movie theater to turn it up to a 7.... I’ve gone to a couple screenings and they are more like a 6.4 :/ if you want it the way it was intended 7 is the way." Fans flocked to the post to express their disdained at that request. In a viral call out, one person shaded the director and the sound-mixing of the film. They quote tweeted Jon's post and responded with: "when the sound mixing on your movie is definitely really good." Wicked premieres with rare near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score as fans left speechless Taylor Swift fans brand Ariana Grande an 'enemy' after sweet message to Scooter Braun The continued in another tweet with: "do not ask your theater to change the volume [thumbs up emoji] even if you do, they will lie to you and say they changed it." On the person's post, many shared the same sentiment. A second person said: "Why make a good movie when you could simply tell your legion of fans to harass minimum wage theater employees about it instead." Another said: "Shouldn't this be something the director or studio tells exhibitors directly? I can't think of anything more annoying for theater employees than having a bunch of randos pleading with them before each screening to get the sound turned up to 7" While others criticized, there were some people who were looking to take his advice or were just plain confused by the tweet. There were also comments that expressed support for the Crazy Rich Asians director. One fan said "I’m showing this tweet the moment I walk into a theater." A second said "Wait I thought the volume was low. This validates it." Dolby, the audiovisual technology company, responded "we’ve got you covered." Another said: "idek what this means but yes my king jon chu whatever you say." The first part of Wicked has made globally 164 $164.2 million so far and the second part is set to come out November 25, 2024. The Universal Pictures film adaptation of the 2003 music which starred Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel, follows the story and complicated friendship of Elphaba and Glinda before they respectively become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. In the film, Cynthia Erivo plays Elphaba and Ariana Grande portrays Glinda. DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up here to get the latest news and updates from the Mirror US straight to your inbox with our FREE newsletter.DAZN ADVANCES GLOBAL EXPANSION WITH ACQUISITION OF FOXTEL, A LEADING AUSTRALIAN SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA GROUP
MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — Marcus Adams Jr.'s 25 points helped CSU Northridge defeat Utah Tech 89-79 on Sunday night at the Stew Morrill Classic. Adams added five rebounds for the Matadors (4-1). Keonte Jones added 23 points while shooting 8 of 15 from the field and 5 for 10 from the line while they also had nine rebounds and three blocks. Scotty Washington had 19 points and went 7 of 14 from the field (3 for 6 from 3-point range). Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get any of our free email newsletters — news headlines, obituaries, sports, and more.ABILENE, Texas (AP) — Sam Hicks scored on a 53-yard run in the fourth quarter and finished with 171 yards on the ground to lead Abilene Christian to a 24-0 victory over Northern Arizona on Saturday in the first round of the FCS playoffs. The Wildcats (9-4), ranked No. 15 in the FCS coaches poll and seeded 15th, qualified for the playoffs for the first time and will travel to play No. 2 seed and nine-time champion North Dakota State (10-2) on Saturday at the Fargo Dome. The Bison had a first-round bye. Abilene Christian grabbed a 7-0 lead on its second possession when Carson Haggard connected with Trey Cleveland for a 37-yard touchdown that capped a 10-play 97-yard drive. Northern Arizona (8-5), ranked 17th but unseeded for the playoffs after winning five straight to get in, picked off Haggard on the Wildcats' next two possessions but could not turn them into points. NAU went for it on fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line with 9:30 left before halftime, but Jordan Mukes tackled Ty Pennington for a 4-yard loss. That led to a 46-yard field goal by Ritse Vaes and a 10-0 lead at halftime. The score remained the same until Hicks' big run with 10:16 left to play. Haggard passed 6 yards to Blayne Taylor for the final score with 2:16 to go. Haggard completed 23 of 29 passes for 244 yards with three interceptions. Abilene Christian's defense allowed at least 20 points in every game during the regular season and yielded at least 30 six times. The Wildcats lost their season opener to FBS member Texas Tech 52-51 in overtime. Abilene Christian's last shutout came in a 56-0 victory over Lamar on Sept. 25, 2021. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up . AP college football: and The Associated Press
FOR MONDAY An ongoing court battle has forced the Philippine government and the World Bank to cancel a loan aimed at speeding up customs processes. The World Bank disclosed on Dec. 20 that the Philippines Customs Modernization Project, for which the Washington-based multilateral lender committed $88.28 million back in 2020, is "no longer viable." "The lawsuit filed by Omniprime, an unsuccessful bidder under a different, non-IBRD [International Bank for Reconstruction and Development]-related customs processing modernization project, has prevented the Bureau of Customs (BOC) from procuring the customs processing system (CPS), [which] was the project's most important activity," the World Bank noted. The IBRD is the World Bank's lending arm for developing country clients like the Philippines. The World Bank added that the BOC last May decided to cancel this project via a letter addressed to its supervising agency, the Department of Finance (DOF), as the country's second-biggest revenue collector deemed the court case as "without a foreseeable resolution." On top of this legal impediment, the World Bank cited that it took the BOC two years to procure its project support and quality assurance (PSQA), such that this project "suffered from multi-faceted delays." Last November, the DOF confirmed the BOC's proposal to cancel the project, leading to the World Bank's decision to also end its loan. Since the BOC already disbursed $4.48 million or 5.1 percent of the loan since project launch in 2021, the World Bank requested the Philippine government that "any remaining unspent amount on the designated account upon project closing will be returned to the IBRD within four months of project closing." The current closing date is on June 30 of next year. In a separate Dec. 20 implementation status and results report, the World Bank said this project's overall implementation progress is "unsatisfactory," while its overall risk rating is "high." "Only the PSQA activity, along with the acquisition of information technology (IT) equipment, was under implementation to date," the World Bank pointed out. The World Bank also rated as "unsatisfactory" the progress towards achieving the project's development objective of improving the BOC's efficiency to ultimately reduce trade costs. When the World Bank green-lit this loan four years ago, the Philippines targeted to slash the time to import and export to 80 and 30 hours, respectively, by 2025. Back then, importation processes handled by the BOC were 120-hours long, while exportation took 42 hours.
Real Life Don't miss out on the headlines from Real Life. Followed categories will be added to My News. A $99 item from one of Australia’s biggest supermarkets is being compared to a luxury item that costs more than eight times the price. Coles recently released the $99 Urbanworx 5-in-1 High Speed Hair Dryer as part of its regular Best Buys sales. It comes with two drying barrels, two curling barrels and a styling brush, a similarity some shoppers claim make it a “dupe” of the $849 Dyson Airwrap. Laila Cooke said she spotted it in the special aisle while popping into the supermarket on her lunch break, adding it was a great option for people who “couldn’t justify” splurging on the luxury version. After taking it hope, Ms Cooke dried her hair using the hairdryer attachment, and documented her experience on TikTok . She said she was “pretty impressed” as it didn’t feel too hot - a feature which can be damaging to hair - but said it dried her locks within three minutes. Then she tested out the curling barrels. After putting the attachment through its paces, she said it was “a bit harder to grab” than the Dyson. However, she did say that was expected for its price point. “Considering I got this from my local supermarket, I am pretty impressed and would recommend,” Ms Cooke said. Many asked whether the curls held. Ms Cooke shared a clip of her fully curled hair at midday. Then, at 4.30pm, the hair had clearly started to drop. By 6.15pm all that was left was a wave in her hair. Coles is selling a $99 hair styling device. Picture: TikTok/@laila.cooke Laila Cooke tested it out. Picture: TikTok@laila.cooke Meanwell, Tessa Wells said people needed to “run” to the supermarket immediately in order to get their hands on the product. The item has been available since November 15. There is only limited stock available. “Coles Best Buys is all about offering our customers great value on products you normally wouldn’t see sold in supermarkets – from furniture and homewares to electronics and beauty goods, while always offering competitive prices on comparable products,” a Coles spokesperson told news.com.au. “Each week, our product range evolves with different themes, ensuring that there is always something new and exciting for our customers to discover. Available at 681 Coles supermarkets across Australia, the Coles Best Buys range is designed to offer convenience and affordability. “We reveal upcoming deals every Monday in our catalogue, so check our website for the latest updates.” It's being compared to the $849 Dyson Airwrap. Picture: TikTok/@laila.cooke Coles launched its Best Buys range in 2021 and is only available in-store, but not everywhere. At the time, a spokesperson for the supermarket said it would provide a platform for emerging brands to showcase their limited edition products to a large national customer base. “Free delivery is included across the entire range which is something we’re really proud to offer our customers, by working closely with our brand partners to get products directly into their homes sooner, at the best price possible,” the spokesperson said. “While we want to keep the collection small to ensure we’re offering a good mix of sought-after products, we’re looking forward to expanding our existing brand partners’ range as well as working with new suppliers to continue evolving the Best Buys offer and exciting our customers with a variety of interesting products they cannot get in store.” More Coverage ‘Change the rule’: Calls to overturn school ban Claudia Poposki ‘Ambitious’: Wild way women calling out men Claudia Poposki Originally published as Coles Best Buys item is being compared to luxury product More related stories Real Life ‘Hot’: Star spotted in bikini after shock split A Bali princess has been spotted cooling off in a bikini at Bondi Beach just days after announcing her second marriage was over. Read more Real Life ‘Accidental influencer’ we can’t get enough of A young Aussie who won millions of followers with her relatable approach to life has just won a huge award at a star-studded Sydney event. Read more
The US Navy is to transform three, white elephant, stealth destroyers by fitting them with first-of-their-kind shipborne hypersonic weapons. The USS Zumwalt is at a Mississippi shipyard where workers have installed missile tubes that replace twin turrets from a gun system that was never activated because it was too expensive. Once the system is complete, the Zumwalt will provide a platform for conducting fast, precision strikes from greater distances, adding to the usefulness of the warship. “It was a costly blunder. But the Navy could take victory from the jaws of defeat here, and get some utility out of (the ships) by making them into a hypersonic platform,” said Bryan Clark, a defence analyst at the Hudson Institute. The US has had several types of hypersonic weapons in development for the past two decades, but recent tests by both Russia and China have added pressure to the US military to hasten their production. Hypersonic weapons travel beyond Mach 5, five times the speed of sound, with added manoeuvrability making them harder to shoot down. Last year, The Washington Post newspaper reported that among the documents leaked by former Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira was a defence department briefing that confirmed China had recently tested an intermediate-range hypersonic weapon called the DF-27. While the Pentagon had previously acknowledged the weapon’s development, it had not recognised its testing. One of the US programmes in development and planned for the Zumwalt is the Conventional Prompt Strike. It would launch like a ballistic missile and then release a hypersonic glide vehicle that would travel at speeds seven to eight times faster than the speed of sound before hitting the target. The weapon system is being developed jointly by the Navy and Army. Each of the three Zumwalt-class destroyers would be equipped with four missile tubes, each with three of the missiles for a total of 12 hypersonic weapons per ship. In choosing the Zumwalt, the Navy is attempting to add to the usefulness of a 7.5 billion US dollars (£5.9 billion) warship that is considered by critics to be an expensive mistake despite serving as a test platform for multiple innovations. The Zumwalt was envisioned as providing land-attack capability with an advanced gun system with rocket-assisted projectiles to open the way for Marines to charge ashore. But the system featuring 155mm guns hidden in stealthy turrets was cancelled because each of the rocket-assisted projectiles cost up to one million dollars (£790,000). Despite the stain on their reputation, the three Zumwalt-class destroyers: Zumwalt, Michael Monsoor and Lyndon B Johnson; remain the Navy’s most advanced surface warships in terms of new technologies. Those innovations include electric propulsion, an angular shape to minimise radar signature, an unconventional wave-piercing hull, automated fire and damage control and a composite deckhouse that hides radar and other sensors. The US is accelerating development because hypersonics have been identified as vital to US national security with “survivable and lethal capabilities”, said James Weber, principal director for hypersonics in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Critical Technologies. “Fielding new capabilities that are based on hypersonic technologies is a priority for the defence department to sustain and strengthen our integrated deterrence, and to build enduring advantages,” he said.