The Rock Chalkboard

Dajuan Harris, Bryce Thompson provide 'huge spark' in win at K-State
The combination of freshmen Dajuan Harris and Bryce Thompson, as well as senior Mitch Lightfoot, sparked Kansas’ second-half run. The bench provided only 12 points on offense, but the areas outside of scoring impressed several on the team, including redshirt-freshman Jalen Wilson.

KU basketball at K-State: Who stood out and who didn't...
Wilson was basically a non-factor in the second half, but he was essentially the sole reason for the KU lead in the first half. Wilson hit a 3-point shot in the period, and he also had six of his nine boards in that time. In fact, he was one rebound shy of having half of KU’s defensive rebounds in the period. He out-rebounded David McCormack and Mitch Lightfoot combined in both the first half and the game.

Analysis: The cupcakes are done; now KU basketball must prove itself
The Jayhawks will very soon get to see if their defensive progress — adjusting to a new way of defending ball screens — has been legitimate, or if it's simply been a case of playing the bottom teams in the league. Heading into the first of those tests, a Saturday showdown with Texas Tech, the Jayhawks appear to be riding high.

Three takeaways: Reviewing KU basketball's win at Kansas State
With the win, the Jayhawks moved to 16-7 on the year and 10-5 in Big 12 play. The Wildcats (5-18, 1-13 Big 12) mustered just 41 points, which was the lowest point total scored by a Kansas State team at Bramlage Coliseum.

Photo gallery: KU basketball blows out K-State at Bramlage Coliseum
KU basketball stomped Kansas State on Wednesday, defeating the Wildcats by 18 despite shooting just 45.8 percent from the field, 25.0 percent from 3 and 64.7 percent from the free throw line. The Jayhawks' leading scorer had only 14 points, but a dominant defensive effort kept Wednesday's contest, a 59-41 KU win, from ever being in question.

Bits o Chalk

Amari Bailey, a highly regarded high school junior guard, commits to UCLA basketball a second time
Elite high school junior Amari Bailey has committed to UCLA basketball for a second time, he announced Wednesday night.

New York Mets outfielder Tim Tebow retiring from pro baseball
Tebow, who works for ESPN's SEC Network as a football analyst during the offseason, played 77 games at baseball's highest minor league level in 2019, batting .163 with four home runs. He finishes his career with a .223 average over 287 games.

Serena Williams - 'Wouldn't tell anyone' if this was my last Australian Open
"I don't know. The Aussie crowd is so amazing, so it was nice to see," Williams said, referencing the standing ovation she received when walking from Rod Laver Arena.

Sources - San Diego Padres, Fernando Tatis Jr. agree on 14-year, $340 million deal
Fernando Tatis Jr., the emerging face of baseball, agreed to a 14-year, $340 million contract extension with the San Diego Padres on Wednesday, securing one of the largest guarantees in American sports history and wedding himself to the team with which he quickly established himself as a star, sources familiar with the deal told ESPN.

Australian Open 2021 - Serena Williams' loss to Naomi Osaka sparks questions about future, but not about her legacy
As she made her way off the court on Thursday at Rod Laver Arena, Serena Williams stopped for a moment as the recently returned crowd stood and showered her with applause. She raised her left arm to wave before moving her hand over her heart, as if to let them know the feeling was mutual. She paused for a moment, soaked in the ovation like the Melbourne late-summer sunshine and waved again before disappearing into the tunnel.

Eraser Dust

5 ERCOT board members don’t live in Texas, one from Canada | KXAN Austin
The nonprofit managing 26 million Texans’ access to electricity voted to hand one-third of its decision-making power to five people who do not call Texas home. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, known as ERCOT, manages about 90% of the state’s electric load, according to the organization.

Immigration: Biden plan to include eight year path to citizenship
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill will introduce President Joe Biden's immigration plan in Congress on Thursday, including a proposal for a path to citizenship for roughly 11 million migrants living without legal status in the United States.

U.S. life expectancy plummets amid pandemic - POLITICO
Minorities suffered the biggest impact, with Black Americans losing nearly three years and Hispanics, nearly two years, according to preliminary estimates Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

New Zealand to Roll Out Free Period Products to All Students - The New York Times
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday that all schools would make free menstrual products available to students for the next three years, adding New Zealand to the global effort to reduce “period poverty” — a lack of access to pads or tampons that could negatively affect education, health or employment.

Coffee Buzz in Columbia Falls - Flathead Beacon
For the past 15 years, Judy Morse has run multiple coffee shops all over the country while her husband served in the U.S. Army, documenting recipes and business ideas in a notebook in the hopes of one day owning a coffee shop of her own.

Now that her husband’s military career is nearing its end, the timing was finally right to launch Flitter Bee Buzz Thru, a drive-thru coffee shop in Columbia Falls in the Super 1 parking lot.

Wich Haus Roasted Flathead Pork Sandwich - Flathead Beacon
Now they’re doing just that at Wich Haus in Whitefish, a gourmet sandwich shop that opened in 2018 and was taken over by the couple in 2019. Since they purchased the business on the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and Woodland Place, it has quickly become a local favorite thanks to its quality sandwiches and unique salads.