Pac-12 MBB power ratings: Arizona on top despite ugly loss while Utah and Colorado complete home sweeps

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

Pac-12 MBB power ratings: Arizona on top despite ugly loss while Utah and Colorado complete home sweeps We’ll start the new year with an old topic — one that plays an essential role in determining the NCAA Tournament field and seeds.Yes, it’s time for our annual NET rankings refresher.By the NCAA’s own admission, the NET rankings serve as “the primary sorting tool for Division I men’s basketball” and “play an important role in establishing a team’s resume.”It is the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) in every sense.The rankings not only consider winning percentage — the foundational metric in the RPI (Rating Percentage Index) — but a slew of other factors, including “game results, strength of schedule, game location, scoring margin, net offensive and defensive efficiency, and the quality of wins and losses.”The “quality” piece is based on the NCAA’s quadrant system, which places each game on one of four tiers based on location and the opponent’s NET ranking.Because it’s easier to ...

BART train derails, catches fire near Orinda Station

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

BART train derails, catches fire near Orinda Station ORINDA, Calif. (KRON) -- According to Bay Area Rapid Transit, there is a major delay Monday morning on the Antioch Line in the Antioch and SFO directions after a train derailed and caught fire between Orinda and Lafayette stations. A train is not able to move between Lafayette and Orinda BART stations. A Yellow Line train heading eastbound was derailed outside of the Orinda Station around 9 a.m. Monday. The passengers self-evacuated and were escorted to Orinda Station by BART personnel, according to the BART Police Department.According to BART, two train cars were on fire. Orinda fire crews were able to extinguish the flames.Photo: Craig ChurchPhoto: Craig ChurchBART police and fire crews are at the scene, BART said.There is no service between Rockridge and Walnut Creek as of 9:47 a.m., the transit agency said. BART suggested on their X account for commuters to seek alternate means of transportation. No bus bridge has been established.This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Child killed by fireworks in SF's Treasure Island neighborhood

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

Child killed by fireworks in SF's Treasure Island neighborhood (KRON/BCN) -- A child died after suffering firework-related injuries in San Francisco, barely an hour after the New Year arrived, police said.The San Francisco Police Department said that at approximately 12:40 a.m. Monday, officers responded to a report of someone injured by fireworks in the 1200 block of Exposition Drive in Treasure Island neighborhood.Upon arrival, they found a child suffering life-threatening injuries, police said. Neighbors told KRON4 the victim was a young girl.(AIO Filmz)The victim was given first aid, but when paramedics arrived, the child was pronounced dead.San Francisco police ask anyone with relevant information to contact them at (415) 575-4444 or text TIP411.Bay City News contributed to this report.

Treasured Berkeley breakfast restaurant closing after 45 years

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

Treasured Berkeley breakfast restaurant closing after 45 years (KRON) – Homemade Cafe in Berkeley closes on New Year’s Day after 45 years of business. The restaurant posted on its Facebook on Friday, “It is with great sadness and disappointment that we have to close. It is just financially impossible to stay open. In today's economics, running a small, locally owned, full-service restaurant that serves Homemade food out of quality ingredients, at relatively reasonable and affordable prices, while valuing its employees and refusing to pay less than a living wage is apparently not possible.”   Beloved Fremont restaurant calls off closure Homemade Cafe was opened in 1979. The current owner and longtime employee Collin Doran bought the restaurant from previous owners Norm Berzon and Janet Hinze in 2011. Doran implemented the “everybody eats” initiative, according to the Facebook post. Customers had the option to donate a $5 “free food” ticket that would a person who could not afford breakfast to eat for free. The restaurant expressed its gratitud...

2 dead after employee shot at Southwest Florida hotel on New Year’s Eve

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

2 dead after employee shot at Southwest Florida hotel on New Year’s Eve COLLIER COUNTY, Florida (WBBH) — Two people are dead, including one victim and a suspect, after a shooting at a Collier County hotel on New Year’s Eve.According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, the deadly shooting happened at Port of the Islands Resort hotel on Sunday afternoon.Detectives say the suspect, a former employee of the 25000 Tamiami Trail East hotel, entered the lobby at 3:25 p.m. and shot a hotel employee. The employee died of their injuries.Deputies evacuated the hotel and searched the facility and surrounding area. The CCSO SWAT, Aviation Unit and Drone Unit; the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; Greater Naples Fire Rescue District; and Collier County EMS all were involved in the response.Deputies found the suspect deceased of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in a hotel office.CCSO said the suspect’s identity will be released once the next of kin has been notified.

An early version of Mickey Mouse is now in the public domain

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

An early version of Mickey Mouse is now in the public domain (CNN) — Mickey Mouse no longer belongs solely to the Walt Disney Company.On January 1, 2024, an early version of the entertainment company’s mascot, featured in Walt Disney’s 1928 short film, “Steamboat Willie,” entered the public domain for the first time.The good-humored rodent, which has been synonymous with the Disney brand for nearly a century, has grown into one of the most iconic characters in American pop culture. But since US copyright law, last updated by Congress in 1998, allows copyright to be held for 95 years, Disney’s sole claim to the character has officially ended.While we might start seeing more of Mickey, there are caveats.In a statement to CNN, a Disney spokesperson said “More modern versions of Mickey will remain unaffected by the expiration of the Steamboat Willie copyright, and Mickey will continue to play a leading role as a global ambassador for the Walt Disney Company in our storytelling, theme park attractions, and merchandise.”There are dif...

More Americans can now get insulin for $35

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

More Americans can now get insulin for $35 (CNN) — More Americans with diabetes will get a break on their insulin costs in 2024.Sanofi is joining the nation’s two other major insulin manufacturers in offering either price caps or savings programs that lower the cost of the drugs to $35 for many patients. The three drugmakers are also drastically lowering the list prices for their products.The moves were announced in the spring, but some didn’t take effect until January 1.Drugmakers have come under fire for years for steeply raising the price of insulin, which is relatively inexpensive to produce. The inflation-adjusted cost of the medication has increased 24% between 2017 and 2022, and spending on insulin has tripled in the past decade to $22.3 billion in 2022, according to the American Diabetes Association.Some 8.4 million Americans rely on insulin to survive, and as many as 1 in 4 patients have been unable to afford their medicine, leading them to ration doses – sometimes with fatal ramifications, according to th...

New Hampshire GOP Gov. Chris Sununu suggests Chris Christie should drop White House bid

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

New Hampshire GOP Gov. Chris Sununu suggests Chris Christie should drop White House bid (CNN) — New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu suggested Sunday that Chris Christie should drop out of the 2024 presidential race before his state’s primary, declaring the former New Jersey governor has reached a “dead end.”Sununu, who has endorsed former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in the Republican primary, told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union” that “the only person that wants Chris Christie to stay in the race is Donald Trump.”“I think all these candidates know it’s always kind of a long shot. And at the end of the day the only person moving is Nikki Haley. Chris Christie isn’t going to make up 30 points in the next three weeks, right?” Sununu said.Haley, Sununu added, is the candidate who “can make up five or 10 points and kind of give Trump that defeat that no one thought was possible in the next few weeks. And I think that’s very likely to happen. So, again, I think the voters are going to come Nikki’s way. I think, ultimately, hopef...

The night sky will have a multitude of delights in store for stargazers in 2024. What to look for

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

The night sky will have a multitude of delights in store for stargazers in 2024. What to look for (CNN) — The night sky will have a multitude of delights in store for stargazers in 2024.Full moons and meteor showers will light up the sky. An increase in solar activity is expected to cause auroras that will create colorful displays. And eclipse chasers have been counting down to 2024 since the “Great American Eclipse” of 2017 — because a total solar eclipse will travel across the United States in April.Many nights, there will be opportunities to spot different planets or look for the International Space Station as it orbits Earth.Keep your telescopes and binoculars at the ready, and don’t forget to snag a pair of eclipse glasses so you can safely watch the total solar eclipse.Full moons and supermoonsTwelve full moons will occur during 2024, and September and October’s lunar events will also be considered supermoons, according to EarthSky.Definitions of a supermoon can vary, but the term generally denotes a full moon that is close...

Hours before dawn, police find man dead in Boston’s first fatal shooting of 2024

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 16:57:08 GMT

Hours before dawn, police find man dead in Boston’s first fatal shooting of 2024 The sun had not yet risen and less than 6 hours of the new year passed before the city of Boston recorded its first shooting death of 2024.According to the Boston Police Department, officers assigned to District 11 in Dorchester were sent to High Street around 5:30 a.m. in response to reports a person had been shot.“On arrival the officers located an adult male victim outside that address suffering from a gunshot wound. The victim was pronounced deceased at the scene,” police said in a statement.Other than to say the department’s Homicide Unit “is actively reviewing the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident,” no other information was offered. Police did not release the name of the deceased man.Anyone with information about the shooting death is “strongly urged” to call the Boston Police Homicide Unit at 617-343-4470.According to data provided by the BPD, the shooting followed an otherwise quiet holiday in the city. The department recorded 138 incidents in the 24 hours af...