The Rock Chalkboard

Getting to the point: Lead guard showdown will be big in top-seeded Kansas’ Round 1 clash with Howard - KU Sports
“I’ve got the (Big 12) defensive player of the year; I’ll ride with Juan before anybody, even without the accolades,” KU All-American Jalen Wilson said Wednesday. “I’m always riding with Juan, no matter what.”

Former Jayhawk Jeff Boschee sends Gradey Dick a short message about freshman 3-point record - KU Sports
“Cam walked up to me on the bus and said (Boschee) texted him and told me to work on my (mid-range) jump shots and my layups.”

KU guard Kevin McCullar Jr. pain free and ready to roll for top-seeded Jayhawks - KU Sports
“I don’t feel any pain no more. We got it resolved,” McCullar said during Wednesday’s media session at Wells Fargo Arena, ahead of Thursday’s first-round game with Howard. “Back spasms have went away, all the way. So, I’m just ready to go out there and compete.”

Kansas coach Bill Self’s status for Thursday remains ‘day to day’ but Jayhawks confident he’ll be coaching - KU Sports
“He will be coaching,” KU forward Jalen Wilson said during the Jayhawks’ media session on Wednesday at Wells Fargo Arena.

Eraser Dust

U.S. releases video of Russian fighter jet intercepting drone over Black Sea
The U.S. military has released newly declassified video it says shows a Russian fighter jet harassing and colliding with an American drone over the Black Sea.

Biden Administration Seeks TikTok Sale By Chinese Parent ByteDance – Deadline
The Biden Administration appears to be playing hardball, insisting TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance divest the hugely popular video-sharing app in the U.S. According to the WSJ, it’s threatening a ban if that doesn’t happen.

Easy Loans, Great Service: Why Silicon Valley Loved Silicon Valley Bank - WSJ
SVB helped many in the venture world to prosper, and then the market cooled

Disney+’s Mandalorian Crossover Event Gets Official Update
Since the announcement that there would be spin-off shows of The Mandalorian set in the same time period with some of the same characters, rumors of a major event connecting every show that takes place within that specific universe have been presented on more than one occasion.

Kalispell superintendent offered top job at Missoula schools | Daily Inter Lake
Kalispell Public Schools Superintendent Micah Hill has been offered a position as superintendent of Missoula County Public Schools.

Glacier Park International Airport refutes claims of forcing local businesses out | KECI
A spokesperson wrote back, saying, the recent claims “are categorically wrong,” adding the airport authority “prides itself in promoting local businesses and advancing the success of our local residents.”

2023 March Madness predictions: NCAA bracket expert picks against the spread, odds in Thursday's Round 1 games - CBSSports.com
Technically, the 2023 NCAA Tournament began Tuesday with the First Four, but the real mayhem of March gets going Thursday and Friday as first-round action takes place across the country. Between the two days, the field will shrunk in half from 64 to 32 teams as a (nearly) sun up to sun down schedule consumes the sport

Aaron Rodgers Is Ready to Scramble the Jets - WSJ
The quarterback signals his intention to land in New York. Whether it will work is an entirely separate question.

Ja Morant of Memphis Grizzlies suspended 8 games over gun incident : NPR
MIAMI — The NBA suspended Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant eight games without pay on Wednesday after determining that his displaying a firearm at a club in suburban Denver earlier this month was "conduct detrimental to the league."

Baker Mayfield is a fitting replacement for Tom Brady on the Buccaneers - Sports Illustrated
When the Patriots eyed their first year without Tom Brady, it was not lost on Bill Belichick that whoever would replace the greatest quarterback in NFL history had to have the right kind of temperament. They needed a kind of aggressive comfort in themselves and a beautiful naivety about what it would look like to simply walk into the door Brady had just walked out of and say: “What’s up, everybody?”