The Rock Chalkboard

Matchups announced for 2022 Big 12/SEC Challenge
The Big 12/SEC Challenge always provides a nice breath of fresh air for the involved teams and college basketball fans in general each January, as the entire Big 12 and 10 teams from the SEC take a quick break from conference play to face one team from the opposite league. Although the Big 12 has established itself as one of the top three conferences in college basketball alongside the Big Ten and ACC, the SEC actually won the event 5-4 last season — a game between Texas and Kentucky was canceled due to COVID-19, thus only nine games got played.

Trio of Jayhawks earn preseason all-Big 12 volleyball recognition | KUsports.com
For the second year in a row, the Kansas volleyball roster features the Big 12 Conference’s Preseason Freshman of the Year.

New KU football LB Rich Miller stood out at Buffalo with speed, versatility | KUsports.com
“The thing we really like about Rich,” Leipold said not long after Miller joined the Jayhawks as a transfer this summer, “is that of all of our linebackers there (at UB), he was one of the fastest.”

KU's Self, Goff believe Monday Supreme Court ruling, looming NIL laws signal start of big changes for college athletics | KUsports.com
“I believe that this ruling kind of makes (it) even more obvious (that) we’re not putting the genie back in the bottle or the toothpaste back in the tube,” Self said. “It’s out.”

Bits o Chalk

Trae Young scores game-high 48 points in style, leads Atlanta Hawks to Game 1 win
MILWAUKEE -- Trae Young shook free from Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday, one of the NBA's best defenders, and found himself with acres of space between himself and Bucks forward Bobby Portis.

Japan's emperor 'extremely worried' about Olympics amid pandemic
TOKYO -- Japan's Emperor Naruhito is "extremely worried" that the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics could accelerate the spread of the coronavirus, the head of the Imperial Palace said Thursday with the games opening in one month.

Returning gold medalist Kevin Durant, first-time Olympians highlight USA Basketball roster
USA Basketball finalized its star-laden roster for the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday, getting pledges from Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine and Detroit Pistons forward Jerami Grant, while Brooklyn Nets star James Harden had to withdraw because of a hamstring injury, USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo told ESPN.

Boston Celtics finalizing coaching deal with Brooklyn Nets' Ime Udoka, sources say
The Boston Celtics are finalizing an agreement with Brooklyn Nets assistant Ime Udoka to make him the franchise's new coach, sources told ESPN.

Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul listed as probable for Game 3; LA Clippers' Kawhi Leonard remains out
Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul is listed by the team as probable for Game 3 against the LA Clippers.

Meanwhile, Clippers star Kawhi Leonard has been ruled out for Thursday's game in Los Angeles. He hasn't played since June 14 because of a sprained right knee

Eraser Dust

Fight over birth control looms as Missouri lawmakers prepare for special session | Politics | stltoday.com
JEFFERSON CITY — State lawmakers on Wednesday were preparing for an extraordinary legislative session next week that could determine whether low-income Missouri women continue to have access to certain birth control methods through Medicaid.

WATCH LIVE: 1 dead, rescue efforts underway after 12-story condo building collapses near Miami
More than 80 Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units, including technical rescue teams, were called to the scene. Victor Cohen, who lives nearby, told News 6 partner WPLG the building had been undergoing a major renovation when the ocean front wing “collapsed like a pancake.”

Senators say deal reached on infrastructure proposal as bipartisan agenda faces make-or-break moment - CNNPolitics
(CNN)Senators on both sides of the aisle said Wednesday evening there's an agreement with White House officials and 10 senators on a bipartisan infrastructure deal, with senators planning to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday to discuss it.

Things That Surprised a New Yorker About the Midwest
For example, trains in Chicago run every 10 to 15 minutes, while in New York, many run every five to 10 minutes. At restaurants in New York, you typically get served within minutes of sitting down and get the bill shortly thereafter. In the Midwest, you could be sitting at a restaurant for two hours without ever feeling the need to rush out the door.

Ed Asner coming to Whitefish to play God in original show | Whitefish Pilot
TV legend Ed Asner is coming to Whitefish next month for a special production of his original show, “God Help Us!”

Human remains found in Flathead Lake
Lake County 911 took a report that a human skull had been found in the lake at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, according to a news release.

The report was made by operators of a gill netting boat who located the skull inside their net while pulling it in