COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — After months of just talking among themselves, lawmakers in South Carolina are finally debating making changes in how the General Assembly chooses judges. Senators on Thursday took up a bill altering the procedure for picking who sits on the bench. But there are plenty of warnings that wholesale changes aren’t going to happen in the process …

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. BOSTON (AP) — Reece Beekman had 18 points and eight assists and Virginia held off a last-minute rally to defeat Boston College 72-68 on Wednesday night. Quinten Post’s …

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union took a major step Thursday in ending its standoff with member state Poland, saying it would start releasing billions of euros that were frozen over what the bloc said were the previous Polish government’s backsliding on democratic principles. The move is an important reward for Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who has sought relentlessly …

WASHINGTON (AP) — An inflation gauge favored by the Federal Reserve increased in January, the latest sign that the slowdown in U.S. consumer price increases is occurring unevenly from month to month. The government reported Thursday that prices rose 0.3% from December to January, up from 0.1% in the previous month. But in a more encouraging sign, prices were up …

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. senators declined on Thursday to block the sale of F-16s to Turkey, despite voicing deep disdain for Turkey’s conduct as an ally. They were upholding an unofficial bargain that Turks would get the fighter jets if they stopped blocking Sweden’s accession to NATO. “A deal’s a deal,” said Idaho Sen. Jim Risch, the ranking Republican on …

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Pascal Siakam had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Tyrese Haliburton added 17 points and 13 assists — four on late consecutive possessions — and the Indiana Pacers beat the New Orleans Pelicans 123-114 on Wednesday night. The teams will complete the home-and-home set Friday night in New Orleans. “It’s a massively important win,” said Indiana coach Rick …

KIEV, Ucrania (AP) — Las fuerzas rusas están atacando con fuerza más ciudades y localidades en el este de y el sureste de Ucrania mientras Moscú trata de aprovechar su ventaja en armamento y tropas, dijeron funcionarios de Kiev el jueves. A pesar del aparente impulso de la ofensiva rusa sobre el terreno, Ucrania reportó que derribó 11 aviones de …

HONOLULU (AP) — An upcoming bribery trial against Honolulu’s former top prosecutor won’t be delayed despite an ongoing investigation into allegations that a defendant threatened the judge who had been presiding over the case, which prompted his unexpected recusal last month. The new judge ruled Wednesday there will be only one trial for all six defendants, and it will remain …

LONDON (AP) — Plans to tighten regulation of English soccer club owners will not rule out more state-backed takeovers, a U.K. government minister said on Thursday. The government’s Football Governance Bill would give an independent regulator powers to safeguard the future of clubs and ensure their financial sustainability. It includes strengthened tests over who can run or own clubs. Culture …

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — With flashy celebrity ads and promises of deep discounts, a shop in Iran’s capital had offered consumers in the Islamic Republic one of the hottest products in the country — an iPhone that came out in 2021. But instead of getting their hands on the handsets, police and prosecutors in Iran allege customers found themselves ensnared …

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — One by one the women walked onto the field for the first time, shortly before they departed for a warm-weather camp in Florida, and gazed at the stands towering above them on three sides and the scoreboard looming over them on the fourth. For the first time, they felt as if they were home. That’s …

WASHINGTON (AP) — As Russia makes battlefield advances and Ukrainian soldiers run short on ammunition, U.S. adults have become fractured along party lines in their support for sending military aid to Kyiv, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Democrats are more likely to say the U.S. government is spending “too little” on funding …

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has denied a news report that he pushed for an exception to the state’s new fast-food minimum wage law that benefits a wealthy campaign donor. California’s minimum wage is $16 per hour. But starting April 1, most fast-food restaurants in the state must pay their workers at least $20 an hour …

The AP Top 25 women’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. IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Caitlin Clark’s final regular-season home game at Iowa is likely to bring one of the priciest tickets in women’s college basketball history. The …

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — Toronto Blue Jays reliever Erik Swanson’s son Toby has been discharged from the pediatric intensive care unit. The 4-year-old boy was hit by a car Sunday in Clearwater and was airlifted in critical condition to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg. Swanson’s wife, Madison, shared the update on her son’s recovery in an Instagram …