A year after having the first-ever all-female officiating crew at the Final Four, the NCAA has chosen four males and seven females to referee the national semifinals and championship game this weekend in Cleveland.
Melissa Barlow will be officiating her 12th Final Four and Joe Vaszily will be working his 10th. They are the two most senior members of the group. Joining Barlow and Vaszily are Gina Cross, Roy Gulbeyan, Eric Brewton, Katie Lukanich, In'Fini Robinson, Tiffany Bird, Brenda Pantoja, Brian Hall and Angelica Suffren.
“These experienced officials delivered consistent and elite performances throughout the series of tournament games this year,” national coordinator of women’s basketball officiating Penny Davis said. “Their work on the floor has led to their selections for these upcoming assignments. It’s an honor to be selected for any tournament assignment, but to advance to these final games is not only an honor but bears an immense amount of responsibility. This group is prepared and ready!”
Five of the seven women chosen worked the games in Dallas last year, although none of them were on the court for the title game that the NCAA said earlier this season did not meet expectations.
Suffren had to work a game and a half in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament when official Tommi Paris was replaced at halftime after it was discovered she had gotten a masters degree at Chattanooga, which was playing in the game. Suffren had worked the first game at that site between Tennessee and Green Bay.
One official who won't be working this weekend is Dee Kantner, who had officiated in every Final Four since 1992 except for the five years she worked in the NBA from 1997-2002.
The first semifinal pits undefeated South Carolina against N.C. State while the second one has Caitlin Clark and Iowa facing UConn.
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket/ and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
Official Tommi Paris, left, watches as North Carolina State's Saniya Rivers (22) handles the ball during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, March 23, 2024. Paris was replaced at halftime by referee Angelica Suffren, who worked the earlier Green Bay-Tennessee game. NCAA representatives on-site didn’t provide a reason for the change. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown)
LOGAN, Utah (AP) — A Louisiana-based rap artist pleaded guilty Monday to his role in a large-scale prescription drug fraud ring that operated out of his multimillion-dollar home in Utah.
Rapper NBA YoungBoy, whose real name is Kentrell Gaulden, walked into a courtroom in Logan, Utah, with his head hung low as he entered the plea for his part in the alleged scheme, KTVX-TV reported.
The 25-year-old rapper was originally charged in the Logan District Court with 46 charges related to the alleged crime. On Monday, he pleaded guilty to two counts of third-degree felony identity fraud, two counts of third-degree felony forgery, and six counts of misdemeanor unlawful pharmacy conduct. Gaulden entered a “no contest” plea to the remaining charges.
As part of a plea deal, Gaulden will not serve prison time in Utah. Instead, his four felony charges were reduced to Class A Misdemeanors and he was ordered to pay a $25,000 fine, the television station reported.
District Judge Spencer Walsh agreed to suspend a prison sentence as Gaulden is expected to serve a “substantial” 27 months in federal prison for related charges in a case stemming out of Weber County, Utah. Following his release, Gaulden will then be placed on five years of federal supervised probation.
“This is somewhat of a unique case where there have been multiple jurisdictions involved both in the federal and the state systems,” said state prosecutor Ronnie Keller. “This is just really a smaller cog in the bigger wheel of ultimately seeking justice.”
Gaulden had been living in Utah under house arrest having previously been allegedly involved in a 2019 Miami shooting. His relocation to Utah came as part of a deal in 2021 in which his lawyers argued that “moving to Utah would keep YoungBoy out of trouble."
During his hearing Monday, Walsh said it was clear that Gaulden was a very talented young man.
“I’ve seen so many times where you have young men and women who have a lot of talent and potential. They can be robbed of that potential when they start to really struggle with their addictions,” Walsh told Gaulden. “I don’t want that for you.”
Walsh continued saying, “I’m sure that in your future, once you’re done with your federal prison time, you can be really successful on federal probation and have a really bright future where you can reach your full potential in every aspect of your life. Best of luck to you, Mr. Gaulden.”
Gaulden, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, also is known as YoungBoy Never Broke Again and has achieved four No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 and one Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. His music includes “38 Baby,” “Outside Today” and Tyler, The Creator’s song, “Wusyaname,” on which he is featured with Ty Dolla $ign. That collaboration earned them a Grammy nomination in 2022 for Best Melodic Rap Performance.
Billboard reported only pop star Taylor Swift and rapper Drake had more streams in 2022, despite Gaulden having nearly zero radio airplay. According to Spotify, Gaulden has over 16 million monthly listeners.
FILE - Kentrell Gaulden, also known as NBA YoungBoy, smiles as he is led out of the courtroom by his defense attorney Zack Findling following a hearing in 1st District Court, Thursday, May 9, 2024, in Logan, Utah. (Eli Lucero/The Herald Journal via AP, File)
FILE - Kentrell Gaulden, also known as NBA YoungBoy, arrives for a hearing in 1st District Court, on May 9, 2024, in Logan, Utah. (Eli Lucero/The Herald Journal via AP, File)
FILE - In this Aug. 25, 2017, file photo, NBA YoungBoy performs at the Lil' WeezyAna Fest at Champions Square in New Orleans. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File)
