Cooper Flagg scores 18, reaches 1,000 career points in return to Mavericks' lineup vs. Magic

Cooper Flagg returned to the Dallas Mavericks' lineup forThursday's 115-114 lossto the Orlando Magic and quickly reached a milestone in his very young NBA career.

Flagg reached 1,000 career points on his first basket of the game, laying in a shot after rebounding a miss by Khris Middleton. That made him the second-youngest player to achieve quadruple figures in his NBA career, following LeBron James.

[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2026 MLB season]

James was 19 years and 41 days old when he reached 1,000 points during his rookie season of 2004. Flagg scored his milestone basket at the age of 19 years and 74 days.

Thenext youngest playersto score 1,000 points were Kobe Bryant (19 years, 127 days), Kevin Durant (19 years, 146 days) and Devin Booker (19 years, 162 days).

Advertisement

Flagg, the 2025 No. 1 overall draft pick, finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 blocks in his first appearance in the Mavericks' past nine games, previously sidelined with a left mid-foot sprain. He gave Dallas a 4-point lead with 37.3 seconds remaining in regulation. After blocking Wendell Carter Jr.'s layup attempt, Flagg cut to the basket, drew a foul and made the basket for a 3-point play.

Orlando quickly cut the deficit to 114-113 on a 3-pointer from Jalen Suggs and Flagg had an opportunity to extend the Mavericks' lead again. But his pull-up jumper from 13 feet missed and Carter got the rebound. Streaking down the court, Suggs found him with an open path to the basket and a dunk with 1.4 seconds left. Dallas could not get off a shot with the time remaining.

Cooper Flagg was activated three hours before tip-off

Flagg was upgraded to doubtful for Dallas' loss Tuesday to the Charlotte Hornets and was listedas questionable for the Magic gamebefore the Mavericks confirmed he would play. Head coach Jason Kidd told reporters that Flagg wouldplay 20 to 25 minutesversus Orlando before seeing an uptick in minutes Friday at the Boston Celtics, his favorite childhood team. He played 26 minutes against the Magic.

The Mavericks won only two of the eight games they played without Flagg during this most recent injury. He also missed time this seasonwith a sprained ankleand an illness.

Through 49 games this season, Flagg averaged 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.2 steals per game. With 20 games remaining in the regular season, Dallas is 21-41.

bySator Tenet

in

March 05, 2026

Cooper Flagg scores 18, reaches 1,000 career points in return to Mavericks' lineup vs. Magic

Cooper Flagg returned to the Dallas Mavericks' lineup forThursday's 115-114 lossto the Orlando Magic and qui...

Read More

Deion Sanders discusses player death: 'Toughest thing for me to digest'

Colorado footballcoachDeion Sandersmade his first extensive public comments about the recent death ofColoradoquarterbackDominiq Ponder, revealing that Ponder had recently earned a new jersey number and was going to wear itfor the first time on March 2, one day after hedied in a car accident at age 23.

Sanders discussed Ponder's death on his weekly talk show on Tubi which aired March 5. Ponder was a non-scholarship backup quarterback at Colorado who had spent two seasons in Boulder and had previously worn jersey No. 22, which is unusual for a quarterback.

But Sanders said he encouraged Ponder to fight for the right to wear a more coveted jersey number - No. 7. He was going to wear it when histeam started spring practice March 2.

"He worked his butt off, and this season he was gonna wear No. 7," Sanders said on the show"We Got Time Today.""But the teammates love him so much. One of the kids came to my office today and said, `Coach, can I wear 22? You know, for my roommate?' I said, 'Yeah, but you know, he was getting ready to wear 7.' Like, the next day, he would have been in 7 for his first time ever."

Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders and his father Deion Sanders on the sideline before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Huntington Bank Field on Dec. 28, 2025. Shedeur Sanders made seven starts during his rookie season with the Browns, going 3-4 in those games.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />

Deion Sanders through the years

Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders and his father Deion Sanders on the sideline before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Huntington Bank Field on Dec. 28, 2025. Shedeur Sanders made seven starts during his rookie season with the Browns, going 3-4 in those games.

Colorado still deciding which number to use on patch

The number change has presented Sanders' team with a decision to make. The Buffaloes plan to honor Ponder's memory with a patch on their jerseys, but is still deciding which number to use in it – the one Ponder was known for (22) or the one he worked hard to get (7).

"Everybody knows he's 22," Sanders said. "But I know how much 7 meant to him. So we're going back and forth with that right now."

What else did Deion Sanders say about Dominiq Ponder?

Sanders said Ponder was "one of my favorites" and a team leader. He also had a nickname for Ponder: "Black Flutie," referring to white former quarterback Doug Flutie, who wore No. 22 at Boston College before switching to No. 7 in the NFL.

Advertisement

Sanders spoke with Ponders' parents after his death.

"It was tough, because I'm like, you send a kid to college to become a man and to get education, and to just soar through life.," Sanders said. "You don't send a kid to college to lose him. And that's the toughest thing for me to digest."

MASSIVE CHANGES:Is Deion Sanders fighting for his job? Not yet, but there are issues

Coloradoheld an emergency meeting on March 1after learning of Ponders' death and elected to start spring practice as scheduled March 2 instead of taking the day off.

"They said, `Dom would have wanted to practice, coach; He wasn't missing no practice,'" Sanders said. "I said, `Wow.' So we went out to work."

Colorado continues spring practice through April 11 and begins the seasonat Georgia Tech on Sept. 3.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer@Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Deion Sanders discusses death of Colorado player Dominiq Ponder

bySator Tenet

in

March 05, 2026

Deion Sanders discusses player death: 'Toughest thing for me to digest'

Colorado footballcoachDeion Sandersmade his first extensive public comments about the recent death ofColoradoquarterback...

Read More

A Lagos rave rewrites the rules of nightlife, drawing young Nigerians priced out of club culture

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — On a recent Friday night, thousands of mostly young people trooped into a large auditorium in Lekki, an upscale part of Lagos.

Nigeria Rave Party

Inside, it was hard to discern the faces of people just meters away. The whole hall was dark, lit only by flashing green strobe lights from the stage. Those gathered had come together for therapy.

But this was Group Therapy, a popular rave in Lagos, where revelers come seeking a different party scene they wouldn't find anywhere in Nigeria's commercial heart of Lagos.

Lagos' nightlife scene had, for decades, been dominated by table culture, a club experience that prioritizes how much people spend on drinks and prime seating. The party environment encourages a competitive atmosphere that young people who live in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, say has shut them out amid skyrocketing inflation.

At Group Therapy, there are no tables. Revelers in Lekki danced shoulder to shoulder. There was only one small bar, selling drinks for much less than the typical Lagos nightclub.

"At raves, the dance floor is present. You go to a usual Lagos party, and there is no dance floor," DJ Aniko, the founder of Group Therapy, told The Associated Press. "We barely have spaces to just dance, spaces you can just go to literally have a nice time. Most places you have to make a reservation, or book a table, it is a lot more complicated."

A Lagos party without tables

Yetunde Onikoyi, 28, started going to raves last year.

"Ever since then, I have been hooked by the neck; it is like a chokehold. I always want to be here," Onikoyi said.

The nightclub culture has been determined by a table culture where partying is often a rat race of who buys the most drinks at the most expensive prices, and seats are reserved in a multitier system, including VVIP, VIP and the regulars.

A bottle of a drink can cost anywhere between 100,000 naria ($72.34) to nearly a million naira, thereby pricing out most of the young residents navigating a tough economic terrain. A parade of bartenders hoisting drinks with an LED board naming the table for some of the highest spenders of the night. A ticket for Group Therapy only costs 21,000 naira ($15.19), without the pressure to purchase drinks.

Advertisement

Experts say raves have grown in response to the table culture at clubs.

"Raves are more democratic," said Oluwamayowa Idowu, founder of Culture Custodian, a leading culture publication in Lagos. "What this says is that people don't have the purchasing power to sustain a club lifestyle. Clubs are still open and busy, but just generally in today's climate, there is more of a focus on you enjoying yourself as opposed to you performing enjoying yourself."

Aniko told the AP that several patrons have reached out to create separate seats, requests which they have declined on several occasions.

"Finding a place that still focuses on the human aspects of things, as against the materialism or need to amass as much as possible, is always a blessing," said Dayo Williams, a consultant who had come to the party.

'House music evokes feelings'

Each DJ worked their decks from the late night to early morning, blaring out an endless loop of high-tempo beats that electrically charged the hall, rising to a pulsating crescendo before dovetailing into another loop. The sea of heads bopped rhythmically and bodies swayed wildly.

Since around 2022 after the post-pandemic crossover of South African music genres, DJs have infused African sonic elements into house music, a subgenre of electronic dance music that has been a choice for raves in Lagos. The raves, deemed more inclusive than clubs, have become prominent among the younger generation, who have railed against Nigeria's conservative society.

House music "evokes feelings," said Zia Yusuf, a content writer and creator who attended. "You just connect to the music, and you connect to the music with other people who connect to the music with you."

Culture experts regard it as one of the crossovers of South African musical influence,similar to amapiano.

Nigeria has, in recent years, taken the spotlight at global stages with an explosive rise of its artists, exporting its music across the world, but it has also, in turn, imported several genres in recent years. The choice of house music is deliberate, according to Aniko. Aniko doesn't want musicians to control Group Therapy like they often do in big clubs, sometimes previewing unreleased songs or dictating the audience's choice for the night.

"Once you are reliant on the mainstream industry for the music, the mainstream creeps into the space," Aniko said.

bySator Tenet

in

March 05, 2026

A Lagos rave rewrites the rules of nightlife, drawing young Nigerians priced out of club culture

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — On a recent Friday night, thousands of mostly young people trooped into a large auditorium in Lekk...

Read More

Tottenham loses again and faces fight for Premier League survival

LONDON (AP) — Tottenham'sPremier Leaguesurvival hopes took another blow with a 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace on Thursday.

Britain Premier League Soccer

Spurs — one of the richest teams in Europe and a founding member of the Premier League — is just one point above the relegation zone and without a domestic win in 2026.

"We know that the position we are in is not where we want to be. We need to figure out how to get out of it as soon as possible," said Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke. "There have been difficulties, but we aren't in the position to make excuses. We need to do the job on the pitch."

Spurs' latest defeat was the fifth in a row and the third under new coach Igor Tudor, who was tasked with the responsibility of turning the season around.

He watched as his team capitulated in front of a home crowd at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium — conceding three goals in the first half, having taken the lead and then gone down to 10 men when Micky van de Ven was sent off.

Palace took full advantage by scoring three times in seven minutes before the break.

Ismaila Sarr struck twice — one from the penalty spot — with Jorgen Strand Larsen getting the other for the visitors.

That was after Solanke had given Spurs the lead in the 34th minute. Van de Ven was red-carded four minutes later for bringing down Sarr in the box and Palace took control.

"I am very disappointed, like the fans," Tudor said. "We know what the moment is and we need to keep working and believe.

Advertisement

"But after this game I believe more than before because I saw something in the team and in the dressing room after the game. When we will be complete it will be good, I believe."

The deepening crisis at Tottenham comes after winning the Europa League last season and advancing to the knockout stage of the Champions League this term, where it faces Atletico Madrid in the round of 16 next week.

But its desperate league form has carried on from last year when it finished one place above the relegation zone — its lowest final position in the Premier League era.

Its plight also comes amid a tumultuous period when it has had seven managers in less than seven years.

Tottenham has spent only one season out of England's top flight since 1950 and has been an established member of the Premier League since the competition's inception in 1992.

It is a two-time English league champion and was a Champions League finalist in 2019.

It's near-63,000 capacity stadium is one of the most impressive in Europe and regularly hosts NFL games, as well as top music concerts.

Deloitte ranked Spurs ninth on its most recent rich list in January with revenues of $781 million. That placed Tottenham above giants like Chelsea, Inter Milan, AC Milan and Juventus.

AP soccer:https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

bySator Tenet

in

March 05, 2026

Tottenham loses again and faces fight for Premier League survival

LONDON (AP) — Tottenham'sPremier Leaguesurvival hopes took another blow with a 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace on Thursda...

Read More