The Rock Chalkboard

Bill Self tests positive for COVID-19, experiencing 'minor symptoms'
"I was excited to get back on the road today to see some recruits at various tournaments this weekend, but I tested positive for COVID-19 and am in isolation," said Self. "Yesterday afternoon I started having some minor symptoms and wanted to get tested before traveling and being around these young men. That's when I learned my results came back positive, and a second test today confirmed that."

KU basketball updates 2021-22 non-conference schedule
KU basketball has made a small change to its non-conference slate for the 2021-22 season. The Big 12 and Big East collectively announced on Friday that a game between Kansas and St. John's set for early December has been moved back a day and will now be played on Dec. 3.

Source: Texas and Oklahoma - the founding members of the Big 12 - are leaving the league
Texas and Oklahoma, the founding members of the Big 12, are leaving the league - and barring any unforeseen developments, will join the Southeastern Conference, a high-level source close to the situation told Horns247.

Bits o Chalk

Source: Texas and Oklahoma - the founding members of the Big 12 - are leaving the league
Texas and Oklahoma, the founding members of the Big 12, are leaving the league - and barring any unforeseen developments, will join the Southeastern Conference, a high-level source close to the situation told Horns247.

Source -- Oklahoma Sooners, Texas Longhorns on the verge of making SEC move
A Big 12 source told Dinich that neither Texas nor Oklahoma has officially expressed its desire to leave to the rest of the conference membership.

New Zealand vs. United States - Football Match Report - July 24, 2021 - ESPN
The United States women's national team stormed back from their opening defeat in the Olympics to earn an emphatic 6-1 win over New Zealand at the Saitama Stadium on Saturday.

Olympics 2021 - U.S. Water Polo makes history with 25-4 win over Japan before Spain top record
The U.S. women's water polo team made Olympics history with its dominant 25-4 win over host Japan in its opening match of the Tokyo Games, but its record stood for only a couple of hours as Spain's team then recorded its own one-sided record-breaking victory.

2021 NBA free agency - How much cap space does every team have this summer?
The Finals are barely in the rearview mirror, but NBA free agency is just around the corner. Teams can begin negotiating with free agents at 6 p.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 2. The salary cap for 2021-22 is expected to go up only 3%, a pre-negotiated number between the union and the league to help offset losses due to the pandemic in each of the previous two seasons.

Draymond Green feeling 'lot of respect' for NBA Finals players sticking to Tokyo commitment
"I have a lot of respect for those guys for not only committing to do this but actually keeping their word," Team USA forward Draymond Green said. "You're talking about three true professionals, three extremely competitive guys that wouldn't be on their way here if this didn't mean something."

Eraser Dust

Draymond Green feeling 'lot of respect' for NBA Finals players sticking to Tokyo commitment
"I have a lot of respect for those guys for not only committing to do this but actually keeping their word," Team USA forward Draymond Green said. "You're talking about three true professionals, three extremely competitive guys that wouldn't be on their way here if this didn't mean something."

Tennessee radio host doubted and mocked vaccines – now he has Covid | Coronavirus | The Guardian
A conservative radio host in Tennessee who urged listeners not to get vaccinated against Covid-19 has changed track and called on listeners to get the shot, after contracting the virus and ending up in hospital in “very serious condition”.

Bands influenced by Oasis | Oasis' musical influence | Alernative Press
Top of the Blur/Pulp/Suede/Supergrass/Verve pile was Oasis. Which was difficult for American sensibilities to discern when the Mancunians first appeared on U.S. television, playing debut album Definitely Maybe’s lead-off track “Rock ‘n’ Roll Star” on MTV’s 120 Minutes in 1994. The song had plenty of Sex Pistols-meets-Beatles power, but singer Liam Gallagher’s arrogant refusal to entertain—leaning into the mic, standing stock still, his hands behind his back, wearing a blank expression—was off-putting. Songwriter/lead guitarist Noel Gallagher—yes, the singer’s older brother—exerted strict command over the band’s musical direction, emphasizing simplicity and power: Bassist Paul McGuigan was to stick to root notes; guitarist Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs got restricted to barre chords; Tony McCarroll kept basic rhythm patterns; all amplifier dials were set to 10, for maximum distortion.

Mural painting underway on pedestrian tunnels in Kalispell
KALISPELL — Mural painting has begun on the entrances of two pedestrian tunnels along Kalispell’s shared-use trail system.

Menu for Kanye West's 'Donda' listening party goes viral
A photo of the purported menu for the event went viral Friday for its eye-watering prices, like all-beef kosher hotdogs for $40 and $45 for cookies and brownies.

They Waited, They Worried, They Stalled. This Week, They Got the Shot. - The New York Times
On a single day this past week, more than half a million people across the United States trickled into high school gymnasiums, pharmacies and buses converted into mobile clinics. Then they pushed up their sleeves and got their coronavirus vaccines.

Andrew Taake: Bumble match turns in January 6 suspect who allegedly whipped police - CNNPolitics
Prosecutors say Andrew Taake of Texas used the dating app Bumble while in Washington on January 6. The match asked if he was near the Capitol and he said he was there "from the very beginning." He sent several selfies and claimed that he spent 30 minutes in the building.

Are You in an ‘Inter-Intimate’ Relationship? - The New York Times
That was the case for Marsia Belle when she met her husband of four years, Adam Brown. “I am a married woman with a lot of affection to give,” said Ms. Belle, a 27-year-old Ph.D. student at Regent’s University London. “When I first met my husband, he was different and didn’t consider nonsexual physical touch or physical affection a necessity.”