Arizona
Final Four: Yaxel Lendeborg vows to play vs. UConn after finishing win over Arizona with MCL, ankle injuries — ‘I’m gonna play unless I can’t walk’
Michigan All-American Yaxel Lendeborg returned to Saturday’s Final Four win over Arizona after suffering knee and ankle injuries and vowed after the game to play in Monday’s NCAA title game against UConn.
Lendeborg confirmed postgame that he sprained his left MCL and injured his ankle on a fall in the first half. He missed most of the first half, but returned to play briefly in the second half of Michigan’s runaway win.
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He hit two 3s in the opening minutes of the second half to help Michigan extend its lead as the Wolverines cruised to a 91-73 victory.
Lendeborg left the court with 13:32 remaining and Michigan holding a 66-45 lead. He briefly returned later in the half, but finished the game on the bench with a wrap around his knee as Michigan was comfortably in control.
Lendeborg finished with 11 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal in 14 minutes while shooting 3 of 4 from the floor. The attention now turns to his health and availability for Monday’s championship game against UConn, which beat Illinois in Saturday’s first Final Four game.
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Lendeborg: ‘I’m gonna play unless I can’t walk’
Lendeborg told TNT after the game that he’s confident he’ll play Monday night.
“Coach said at worst, like MCL sprain,” Lendeborg said. “ And obviously, I rolled my ankle. I’m gonna push through. There’s no way I’m missing the game on Monday night, no matter what goes on.
“I’m gonna play unless I can’t walk at all.”
Lendeborg maintained a noticeable limp as he walked of the court following Michigan’s win.
Lendeborg in pain after scary fall
Lendeborg left the game with his injuries as Michigan held a 28-14 lead with 8:41 remaining in the first half. He rolled his left ankle after stepping on the foot of Arizona’s Motiejus Krivas on a drive to the basket.
He was in obvious pain as he stood up from his fall. He was fouled on the play and was able to shoot free throws before limping off the court to the Michigan locker room.
Lendeborg was able to briefly return to the Michigan bench before the end of the half, but again limped off the court before halftime. He didn’t return until the second half.
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Arizona reeled off seven straight points after he left the game to cut Michigan’s lead to 28-21. But Michigan withstood the run and went into halftime with a 48-32 lead. The Wolverines dominated the second half despite the limitations of their best player.
Lendeborg is critical to Michigan’s hopes of beating UConn in Monday’s title game. A senior forward, Lendeborg has averaged 15.2 points, 7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.2 steals this season while shooting 52% from the field and 37.2% from 3.
He’s a consensus first-team All-American and was named Big Ten Player of the Year while leading Michigan to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. He’s been Michigan’s most valuable player while leading the Wolverines in a dominant NCAA tournament run to the Final Four and, now, to the title game.
Arizona
Gas, airline prices remain high in Arizona as Iran War reaches 2-month mark
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Two months since the war in Iran began, the conflict shows no clear ending in sight.
President Donald Trump posted on social media that Iran is in a “state of collapse” but offered no additional context for what that means. The Strait of Hormuz remains closed.
The ripple effects of the war are felt around the world, with changes in gas and fuel prices impacting consumers.
Gas prices climb
In the days before the war began, the average price for a gallon of gas in Arizona was $3.59. On Tuesday, April 28, the average is $4.63. That price is even higher in Maricopa County, sitting at $4.76.
“My husband has a diesel truck, and that’s just outrageous right now. I put premium in my car, so it’s very expensive, too,” said Kathie Nunn, who lives in Phoenix.
Airline costs soar
It’s not just drivers feeling the pinch. Flyers are too.
“I would say roughly 15 or 20 percent more is what I’ve noticed that I have to pay more,” one traveler said.
The week before the war started, the price of jet fuel was $2.50 a gallon. On Tuesday, April 28, the price is $4.26, according to Airlines for America.
“I fly Southwest mostly. I was able to get a straight flight home and two from here. It was higher than normal, for sure,” said Patrick Foy, who was flying from Phoenix to Louisiana.
Major airliners have already raised checked baggage fees because of the rising fuel prices, while some of the smaller, budget airlines are asking the federal government for billions of dollars in assistance.
“It’s obviously frustrating. It affects our family’s budget,” Foy said.
Gas experts have said even when the war in Iran ends, the full relief people see at the pump or when buying a plane ticket will most likely not be immediate.
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Arizona
Arizona prison fight not a riot, though injuries reported
Arizona prison chief says incident was a fight, not riot
The incident was a gang-related altercation, not a riot, and staff were not targeted, officials said.
A large-scale fight at the Arizona State Prison Complex–Eyman in Florence, left multiple people injured and at least one person in critical condition, officials said.
Reports of the fight went out on April 26, and according to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry, the “inmate-on-inmate altercation” was related to gang violence, a news release said.
Ryan Thornell, director of the department, spoke about what he classified as a “disturbance” on April 28 to reporters. He confirmed the incident left several incarcerated people injured and required some to be taken to off-site hospitals.
“Roughly a third of them have come back treated,” Thornell said, adding that about 10 people remained hospitalized as of April 28, with all of them in stable condition except for one person who was still in critical condition.
Thornell did not give an exact number of people involved but described the incident as “sizable.”
He said the fight started in the kitchen and spilled into other areas, contributing to the number of people involved. Thornell said what happened was not a riot and that officials would not classify it that way, because at no time was the motivation to destroy property, and the staff was not targeted.
“It started out as a fight and it continued as a fight and it ended as a fight,” Thornell said.
Executive director of the Arizona Correctional Peace Officers Association, Carlos Garcia, called what happened at the prison a “full-blown riot” and the largest in decades.
He also claimed one inmate was left brain dead and that helicopters and ambulances were used to transport the injured.
Garcia and prison reform advocates have raised concerns that high-risk inmates may have been housed in a lower-security unit through classification overrides, similar to issues cited in the 2025 case involving Ricky Wassenaar, who was moved from maximum security to close custody and was later charged in the deaths of three incarcerated men at a Tucson prison.
Thornell said the incident was not related to classification overrides, adding that the people involved were housed in a close-custody unit and were “appropriately” placed.
He also pushed back on concerns about staffing, saying it “had nothing to do with the incident” and that correctional officer vacancy rates are currently below 13% statewide.
Arizona
Arizona Cardinals RB Jeremiyah Love is favorite to win top rookie award
The Arizona Cardinals’ top draft pick is favored to win Offensive Rookie of the Year.
The Arizona Cardinals believe they got a special player in running back Jeremiyah Love. Drafted third overall last week, many considered him the best player in the draft.
That belief is bleeding into the betting markets when it comes to Offensive Rookie of the Year odds.
According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Love is the favorite to win the award at +250, a little ahead of No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, the new quarterback for the Las Vegas Raiders. Mendoza’s odds are +350.
Behind them is Tennessee Titans receiver Carnell Tate at +500, New Orleans Saints receiver Jordyn Tyson at +600, Seattle Seahawks running back Jadarian Price at +750 and Philadelphia Eagles receiver Makai Lemon at +950.
Even Cardinals quarterback Carson Beck, selected in the third round, is a dark horse at +1500.
At +250 odds, Love is considered to have a 28.57% chance at winning the award, about 6% more likely than Mendoza’s 22.22% implied odds.
A running back has not won Offensive Rookie of the Year since Saquon Barkley did in 2018, but Love was the highest running back drafted since Barkley was taken second overall that year.
Since then, it has been quarterbacks or receivers winning the award.
We will see what sort of role Love will have in a pretty crowded running back room and how productive he can be on a team that is expected to struggle.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
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