TOP 25 BASKETBALL
Duke faces Louisville
UNDATED (AP) — In Top 25 basketball tonight, No. 2 Duke takes on No. 16 Louisville. Fifth-ranked Kentucky visits No. 19 LSU and No. 6 Michigan plays Penn State. Tenth-ranked Marquette visits DePaul, No. 11 Michigan State plays No. 20 Wisconsin and No. 12 Purdue is at No. 24 Maryland. It's 18th-ranked Kansas State at Texas and 25th-ranked Buffalo at Akron.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL-KANSAS STATE-DIARRA
K-State loses top backup to hand surgery
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Kansas State guard Cartier Diarra sustained an injury to his hand that will require surgery, robbing the No. 18 Wildcats of their top backup as they cling to the Big 12 lead. Wildcats coach Bruce Weber said Tuesday that Diarra did not accompany the team on its trip to Texas to play the Longhorns. Weber did not say when Diarra would have surgery, nor did he say whether the sophomore would be back this season.
NBA-SIMMONS-JOHNSON
NBA says no rules broken in Simmons-Johnson meeting request
NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA says Los Angeles Lakers president Magic Johnson did not break any league tampering rules when he spoke about Philadelphia 76ers point guard Ben Simmons earlier this week.
The NBA's relatively quick-moving investigation was initiated after it was revealed that Simmons wanted to meet with Johnson to talk about the art of being an elite point guard. Johnson complimented Simmons publicly on Sunday.
"I love his game. I love his vision," Johnson said.
But since that was in response to a media inquiry, the NBA says Johnson was permitted to make such comments.
The Lakers have been fined for tampering violations twice since 2017, those violations costing the team a combined $550,000.
MLB-ORIOLES-YOUNG
Eric Young Jr. has minor league deal with Baltimore
SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) — Outfielder Eric Young Jr. has agreed to a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles and will report to major league spring training.
The 33-year-old hit .202 with one home run and eight RBIs in 41 games for the Los Angeles Angels last year.
Young has a .245 average in 10 big league seasons with Colorado, the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Atlanta and the Angels and Atlanta. He led the NL with 46 stolen bases in 2013.
In other MLB news:
— Cory Seager is running at nearly 100 percent and Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hopes his recovering shortstop can get 50 to 60 at-bats during spring training. Roberts held his first spring training press briefing Tuesday ahead of the start of workouts for the two-time NL champions. Seager was limited to 26 games last season and did not play after April 29. He had Tommy John surgery on May 4 to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament and had arthroscopic surgery on his left hip on Aug. 7.
— A person with knowledge of the negotiations says Jorge Posada has agreed to team up with Derek Jeter again, this time in the front office of the Miami Marlins. The person says Posada will work as a special adviser to Jeter, his longtime New York Yankees teammate and now Marlins CEO. The person spoke to The Associated Press Tuesday on condition of anonymity because the hiring has not been formally announced.
NFL-BILLS-LONG
Bills sign Spencer Long to three-year contract
UNDATED (AP) — The Buffalo Bills have begun addressing their offensive line needs by signing Spencer Long to a three-year contract.
The addition made on Tuesday comes a week after the New York Jets cut Long to free up nearly $6.5 million from next season's salary cap.
The 28-year-old Long has 44 starts in 53 career games over five seasons. He spent his first four seasons in Washington, which selected him in the third round of the 2014 draft out of Nebraska.
Long has versatility in having played both center and left guard.
In other NFL news:
— Mississippi State defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons tore the ACL in his left knee while working out in Florida last weekend. The 6-foot-4, 300-pound Simmons, a potential first-round pick in April's NFL draft, released a statement on Twitter confirming the injury. He said he will have surgery early next week.
— Antonio Brown wants out of Pittsburgh. A person with knowledge of the situation tells The Associated Press the perennial Pro Bowl wide receiver has asked the Steelers for a trade. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not permitted to publicly discuss personnel matters.
NHL-PENGUINS-MALKIN-SUSPENDED
UNDATED (AP) — Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin has been suspended one game for high-sticking Philadelphia's Michael Raffl late in Pittsburgh's 4-1 win over the Flyers on Monday night.
The league announced the suspension on Tuesday following a hearing between Malkin and the league's department of player safety.
Raffl and Malkin were tangled up in the neutral zone in the third period with Raffl engaging Malkin physically while Raffl battled for the puck. When the two players broke apart, Raffl punched Malkin in the back of the head and Malkin retaliated by swinging his stick in Raffl's direction. Malkin received a 10-minute match penalty for the infraction.
The league called Malkin's swing "intentional."The Penguins host Edmonton on Wednesday night.
In other NHL news:
— Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta is dealing with an upper-body injury and is out indefinitely. The 24-year-old played just 4:57 in a 4-1 win over Philadelphia before leaving the game. He did not return. Maatta has one goal and 12 assists in 55 games this season for Pittsburgh.
