AP Trending SummaryBrief at 6:40 a.m. EDT (2024)

Doncic's 36 points spur Mavericks to NBA Finals with 124-103 toppling of Timberwolves in Game 5

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Luka Doncic had a 20-point first quarter on his way to 36 points for his high this postseason, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-103 to breeze through the Western Conference finals in five games. Kyrie Irving also scored 36 points for the Mavericks. They built a 29-point halftime lead on 61% shooting to deflate the once-energized crowd and went up by 36 in the third quarter. The Mavs have a week to rest before the NBA Finals begin in Boston. Anthony Edwards scored 28 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 12 rebounds for the Wolves.

Bruhat Soma wins the National Spelling Bee after a slow night concludes with a sudden tiebreaker

OXON HILL, Md. (AP) — Bruhat Soma was unbeatable before he arrived at the Scripps National Spelling Bee, and neither the dictionary, nor his competitors, nor a lightning-round tiebreaker challenged him on the way to victory. Bruhat spelled 29 words correctly in the tiebreaker, beating Faizan Zaki by nine, to win the title on Thursday night. He receives a trophy and more than $50,000 in cash and prizes. The 12-year-old seventh-grader from Tampa, Florida, had won three consecutive bees before arriving at a convention center outside Washington for the most prestigious spelling competition in the English language.

ABBA will get a prestigious Swedish knighthood for their pop career that started at Eurovision

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Members of ABBA, the Swedish pop quartet that triumphed at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest, will receive one of the most prestigious knighthoods in Sweden. It will be handed out by King Carl XVI Gustaf for the first time in almost 50 years. They will be given be given the royal Order of Vasa as Commander of the First Class for outstanding efforts in Swedish and international music. The Eurovision contest turned ABBA into a pop juggernaut, by far the most successful band to win the pan-continental music contest. Their melodic disco pop has sold hundreds of millions of records worldwide. The Swedish monarch also will hand out orders to two 2023 Nobel Prize winners.

A Ghana toddler sets a world record as the youngest male artist. His mom says he just loves colors

ACCRA, Ghana (AP) — A toddler in the West African country of Ghana has set the record as the world’s youngest male artist. Meet Ace-Liam Ankrah, who will be 2 years old in July. His mother, Chantelle Kukua Eghan, an artist herself, says it all started by accident when her son, who at the time was 6 months old, discovered her acrylic paints. She had spread a canvas on the floor of her studio and dropped some paints on it, hoping to keep him busy while she was working. He crawled and spread the colors around — and that's how “The Crawl” was born.

New Mexico judge grants Mark Zuckerberg’s request to be dropped from child safety lawsuit

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico judge has granted Mark Zuckerberg's request to be dropped from a lawsuit that alleges his company has failed to protect young users on its social media platforms from sexual exploitation. The case is one of dozens filed by states across the U.S. against Meta and its platforms over concerns about child exploitation. In New Mexico on Thursday, the judge granted Zuckerberg's motion for dismissal without prejudice. However, the case will proceed against Meta. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez has accused the social media giant of designing platforms that allow for adults to contact and solicit underage users. Meta disputes those allegations.

Officer who arrested Scottie Scheffler criticizes attorney but holds 'no ill will' toward golfer

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The Louisville police officer who arrested Scottie Scheffler said he has “no ill will” toward the pro golfer for injuries he says he suffered. Detective Bryan Gillis says he hurt his knees and wrist falling to the ground. Gillis sent out a statement about the incident Wednesday night. Charges against Scheffler were dropped Wednesday. Gill wished Scheffler “all the best,” but took issue with comments by Scheffler’s attorney that the golfer was “falsely arrested.” Gillis wrote that Scheffler attorney Steve Romines’ claim of a false arrest was “unfortunate and disturbing” and a challenge to his honesty and integrity.

Statue unveiled at the site where Sojourner Truth gave her 1851 'Ain't I a Woman?' speech

AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Hundreds gathered in an Ohio city to unveil a plaza and statue dedicated to abolitionist Sojourner Truth at the very spot where the women’s rights pioneer gave an iconic 1851 speech known as “Ain’t I a Woman?” Truth delivered the speech to a crowd gathered at the Universalist Old Stone Church in Akron for the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention. The statue was unveiled on Wednesday at the site where the church once stood. In the speech, Truth drew upon the hardships she faced while she was enslaved and asked the audience why her humanity and the humanity of other enslaved African Americans was not seen in the same light as white Americans.

Larry Bird Museum officially opens in Terre Haute

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — Boston Celtics great Larry Bird addressed a public ceremony for the official opening of the Larry Bird Museum inside the Terre Haute Convention Center. Bird wondered why he has to keep talking on stage in front of thousands of people. He says “it’s because of the love and respect I’ve had for my fans and the love and respect they’ve shown me back.” The ceremony took place a few days after the Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals by sweeping the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals. Bird took questions from the media after the ceremony. He jokingly said might it be his last interview.

Oh, Nelly! Korda makes a 10 on one hole and posts an 80 in U.S. Women's Open

LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) — For Nelly Korda, this was a most imperfect 10. The No. 1 player in women's golf had a shocker of a start in the U.S. Women's Open when she made a 10 on her third hole. She wound up with an 80, matching her worst score as a professional. Korda hit into the water three times on the par-3 12th hole. Korda hit her tee shot into a back bunker. Her sand shot went through the green into the water. She dropped on the other side of the stream, and her next two chips rolled back into the water. Korda says "today was just a bad day.”

Andrew Tate loses appeal to relax judicial restrictions as he awaits human trafficking, rape trial

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Andrew Tate, the divisive social media influencer who is awaiting trial in Romania on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, lost an appeal on Thursday to relax geographical restrictions that prevent him from traveling outside the Eastern European country. The Bucharest Court of Appeal ruled against Tate’s appeal, which challenged a court’searlier decisionto extend restrictions stipulatingTate may not leave the country. Tate had requested that he be able to leave Romania provided he stayed within Europe’s ID-check-free Schengen zone. There is no date set yet for the trial to begin.

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