ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero scored 36 points, Franz Wagner added 21 and the Orlando Magic beat the injury-riddled New York Knicks 118-100 on Wednesday night in the final game before the All-Star break for both teams. Banchero hit six 3-point shots and the Magic shot 63% against a Knicks team playing with only nine players. “He’s an All-Star. …

The AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll is back every week throughout the season! Get the poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here. VCU Rams (16-8, 8-3 A-10) at Saint Louis Billikens (9-15, 2-9 A-10) St. Louis; Friday, 7 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: Saint Louis hosts the VCU Rams after Sincere …

NEW YORK (AP) — Lyme disease cases in the U.S. jumped nearly 70% in 2022, which health officials say is not due to a major increase of new infections but instead a change in reporting requirements. Reported cases surpassed 62,000 in 2022, after averaging about 37,000 a year from 2017 through 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said …

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. special envoy for Libya warned the country’s feuding political actors Thursday that if they don’t urgently form a unified government and move toward elections the oil-rich North African nation will slide into “disintegration.” Abdoulaye Bathily told the U.N. Security Council there are numerous alarming signs of such a slide and urged all political leaders …

Buffalo Sabres starting goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will miss at least one game with a lower-body injury, the team announced before its home game against the Florida Panthers on Thursday. The Sabres listed Luukkonen as day to day without revealing the nature of the injury or when he was hurt. Luukkonen is coming off a 33-save outing in a 7-0 win …

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — China’s Pan Zhanle backed up his world record in the relays with a victory all his own Thursday, while American Claire Curzan became the first swimmer to claim two individual gold medals on a starring night for teenagers at the World Aquatics Championships. The 19-year-old Pan won the men’s 100-meter freestyle at Aspire Dome, four days …

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A missile strike on the Russian city of Belgorod near the Ukraine border on Thursday killed six people, including a child, and injured 18 others, a Russian official said. It was the latest in exchanges of long-range missile and rocket fire in Russia’s war on Ukraine. Hours earlier, Russia fired two dozen cruise and ballistic missiles …

KANSAS CITY, Missouri, EE.UU. (AP) — El tiroteo masivo que se registró el miércoles en Kansas City en medio de una multitud durante las celebraciones por el triunfo de los Chiefs en el Super Bowl al parecer se debió a una disputa entre varias personas, indicaron las autoridades de la ciudad. La jefa policial Stacey Graves dijo que las 22 …

The AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll is back every week throughout the season! Get the poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here. South Dakota State Jackrabbits (14-11, 7-3 Summit League) at UMKC Kangaroos (11-15, 5-6 Summit League) Kansas City, Missouri; Thursday, 8 p.m. EST FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Jackrabbits -2.5; over/under …

The AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll is back every week throughout the season! Get the poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here. Memphis Tigers (18-6, 7-4 AAC) at North Texas Mean Green (13-10, 6-5 AAC) Denton, Texas; Thursday, 8 p.m. EST FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mean Green -1; over/under is 136 …

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Lottery and casino legislation passed a key test Thursday in the Alabama Legislature as the House of Representatives approved a sweeping gambling proposal with an aim to get the measure before voters in November. The House of Representatives approved the proposed constitutional amendment to allow up to 10 casino sites with table games and slot machines, …

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Egyptian soccer team Al Ahly, the most successful club in Africa, has canceled a trial for South Africa midfielder Teboho Mokoena over his support of a politician. Al Ahly said in a statement Thursday that it was not bringing Mokoena in for a planned tryout after he expressed support for South African opposition party leader Julius Malema, …

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s medical board on Thursday approved some guidance abortion providers would need to follow if the state’s ban on most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy is upheld by the Iowa Supreme Court. The restrictive abortion law is currently on hold as the court considers Gov. Kim Reynolds ‘ appeal of the lower court’s …

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Richard Petty’s signature cowboy hat has been an iconic symbol of NASCAR for decades. Now it’s a work of art. Legacy Motor Club and Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday unveiled the first of 28 unique statues featuring Petty’s famed hat, the feathered Charlie 1 Horse. Titled “The King’s Hat,” the fiberglass and concrete statues are …

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Kuwait’s emir on Thursday dissolved parliament after a lawmaker reportedly insulted the ruler, the latest dissolution to strike the oil-rich nation’s legislature amid years of political gridlock. The state-run KUNA news agency announced the decree from the country’s ruling emir, Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber. It blamed “offensive and uncontrolled” utterances by lawmakers …