The conversation around the conditions in San Antonio at the NCAA Women’s Tournament isn’t going away, and legendary UConn coach Geno Auriemma, who is away from the tournament Bubble as he recovers from COVID-19, weighed in on Friday by explaining this struggle has been part of women’s college basketball as long as he’s been part of it.

“It’s never been fair, it’s never been equitable,” Auriemma said. “Not that you expect things to magically be rectified … the world doesn’t move that way.”

Auriemma went on to add that the disparities in how the NCAA is treating female player is a microcosm of the fight across American society for the equal treatment of women.

The story caught fire after a Stanford athletic trainer shared photos of the single rack of weights available to players at the tournament, then was accelerated when Oregon’s Sedona Prince put up a video of the entire space, showing how much room there was to put together a full workout center. Prince and others have also highlighted the poor quality of food compared with the buffets available to men, too.

In a separate session, UConn assistant coach Chris Dailey, who is standing in for Auriemma during his recovery, added that she didn’t believe the disparities were intentional, but is happy there is extra attention on it as a result of the photos and videos going viral.

It remains to be seen what the NCAA is planning to give players additional resources and facilities in their San Antonio bubble, but the problems have everyone talking, so the pressure on the NCAA is heavy.

The Knick, set in New York City in 1900, opens inside an opium den, where a prostitute wakes a bleary-eyed Dr. John Thackery, played by Clive Owen, who stumbles into daylight just in time to catch a carriage into work. On his way to The Knickerbocker hospital, aka The Knick, “Thack” shoots liquid cocaine between his toes to sober himself up enough to perform a graphically-depicted experimental surgery inside an ivory white operating theater surrounded by ornately mustachioed men in top hats. Never has a show hooked me so fast. So begins one of the greatest first seasons of television in history.

The Knick, created by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler and directed by Steven Soderbergh, premiered in 2014 on Cinemax, where its audience was naturally limited to Cinemax subscribers. I think I caught episode one during a free preview and immediately shelled out for a subscription until the end of its run. As a rich, textural history of the Gilded Age set in Gangs Of New York‘s neighborhood featuring drugs, sex, and unsparing surgical gore, The Knick feels like it was designed specifically for me — a person obsessed with Edwardian-era history who watches pimple-popping and pus-draining videos for fun.

Paul Thomas Anderson has said he likes depicting eras in transition, like the porn industry at the dawn of video in Boogie Nights. The Knick has a similar appeal. Depicting three deaths in the first 10 minutes, Thack delivers the eulogy for one. I’m going to quote the whole damn thing, simply because it’s so amazing:

JM Christensen fearlessly took up arms in the battle to oppose the inevitable, throwing himself at an enemy that has never known defeat and as sure as I’m standing here never will. One could not be blamed for wondering whether JM came to see his life’s work as a fool’s errand, a rube finally realizing that the game he’s been playing will be forever rigged against him. But my dear friend JM was a fine man and certainly he was no fool or rube. He and I spent our lives tilting at the very same windmills. So why have I not lost hope like he did? Because those windmills at which we tilted were created by men to turn grindstones that transformed the world’s bounty into flour. From such humble beginnings grew the astonishing modern world in which we now live. We cannot conquer the mountains, but our railroads now run through them with ease. We cannot defeat the river but we can bend it to our will and dam it for our own purposes. We now live in a time of endless possibility. More has been learned about the treatment of the human body in the last five years than was learned in the previous 500. 20 years ago, 39 was the number of years a man could expect from his life. Today it is more than 47. Eventually, the train tunnels will crumble. The dams will be overrun. Our patients’ hearts will all stop their beating. But we humans can still get a few good licks in battle before we surrender.

I’m not sure a single soliloquy has ever so perfectly summed up a show’s id and mission statement. It’s one of the most succinct expressions of humankind’s hope and hubris at the dawn of the modern era, delivered by its thematically perfect mouthpiece, a self-aggrandizing cocaine addict surgeon bragging about his ongoing fistfight with God. Performed perfectly, by the way, by Clive Owen, a brilliant actor who has never quite gotten his due, and who I like to think of as the Jude Law for whiskey drinkers. This flawless scene simultaneously brings tears to my eyes and makes me want to charge shoulder-first through a brick wall like the Kool-Aid man. I love this show.

Of course, Thack, said to be partly based on Dr. William Halstead, isn’t The Knick‘s only great character. He’s just the first one you notice, who draws you into an entire solar system of perfect characters, like McNulty from The Wire (another rascally American anti-hero with an odd accent played by an Englishman). André Holland plays the Paris-trained Algernon Edwards, The Knick‘s first black surgeon, hired by his childhood playmate, the hospital’s idealistic heiress benefactor, Cornelia Robertson (Juliet Rylance). In an early episode, aristocratic Cornelia teams up with the abrasive, pig-like health inspector, Jacob Speight (David Fierro) to find the original “Typhoid Mary.”

The show’s most enduring friendship eventually develops between The Knick’s thuggish, atheistic Irish ambulance driver (who occasionally has to fight with sticks and knives to secure bodies), Tom Cleary (Chris Sullivan) and the dour nurse/nun, Sister Harriet (Cara Seymour), aka “Harry” — two foul-tempered Irish sons of bitches with hearts of gold. Of course, every show needs a Ralphie Cifaretto, the slimy weasel (see also the Little Finger), and more than filling that role is the hospital’s crooked administrator, Barrow (Jeremy Bobb), who seizes every opportunity for skimming and graft in order to pay off his copious debts to gangsters and whorehouses.

Between rat-baiting, tertiary syphilis, and casual cocaine use, it would’ve been tempting to make The Knick simply a send-up of a backwards, violent time, flattering contemporary viewers’ sense of superiority, secure in our knowledge of safe blood transfusions and accessible antibiotics. The anachronisms consistently make it fun, but pedantry isn’t The Knick‘s purpose. The characters are all types (Barrow especially) that have their echoes in “modern” times, and especially in the 20 teens, our new Gilded Age. Mostly it’s about the drastic contrasts, of a time when one could have their life saved by complex hernia surgery or bet on how many meningitis-riddled rats a booze-addled oaf could smash in a bar basement. They’re all cavemen in fine suits, to varying degrees; so are we.

Which is to say, it’s about the place where humanity’s potential runs headlong into all the old biases, superstitions, and mortal failings. It’s about a fascinating time period, but in that way could be about any time period. It’s about grit, grime, and gore, but also possibility; one of my favorite shows of all time.

‘The Knick’ is currently available on HBO Max. Barry Jenkins and Andre Holland are reportedly working on new episodes. Vince Mancini is on Twitter. You can access his archive of reviews here.

It’s official; Saweetie and Quavo are no longer relationship goals. The “Best Friend” rapper confirmed that she and her Migos beau have broken up after a day of wildly circulating rumors. The rumors began when the two unfollowed each other on Instagram and Twitter, prompting speculation from fans that their seemingly perfect relationship had taken a setback.

Saweetie explained the reasons for the split in a tweet, accusing Quavo of infidelity. It’s unknown if the incident in question is related to prior rumors about Quavo cheating on her. “I’m single,” she verified. “I’ve endured too much betrayal and hurt behind the scenes for a false narrative to be circulating that degrades my character. Presents don’t band-aid scars and the love isn’t real when the intimacy is given to other women.”

A second tweet provided more context, establishing that the breakup had been coming for some time. Saweetie wrote, “I emotionally checked out a long time ago and have walked away with a deep sense of peace and freedom. Excited for this new chapter of elevation.”

Quavo hasn’t tweeted since March 7, when he promoted a Foot Locker partnership, and his last Instagram post is a shot from Migos’ appearance on Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards from four days ago. All hope may not be lost, though; his partner-in-rhyme Offset was also accused of cheating in the past, nearly losing his wife Cardi B a few times over the last three years, but Cardi and Offset still seem to be going strong.

Saweetie is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

If you want to watch the best passer in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, we’re going to highly recommend you watch Cade Cunningham whenever Oklahoma State takes the floor. If you want to see the best pass in March Madness this year, well, we’re going to bet that nothing will top this football-inspired dime from Arkansas guard Davonte Davis.

During the fourth-seeded Razorbacks’ opening round game against No. 13 Colgate, Davis drove to the lane and got himself into a little bit of trouble. The 6’3 guard found himself among the trees, as four members of the Red Raiders swarmed him. The good news was that this meant someone was wide open, the bad news was that the someone in question — J.D. Notae — was standing directly behind him.

Instead of continuing to pivot and showing where he was going with this, Davis just bent over and hiked the ball between his legs. The gamble paid off, as Notae got a great look and canned a triple.

But of course, while this was a good looking jumper, it was only possible because of the pass. Despite the fact that they got a test in the first round, Arkansas would go on to win, 85-68. Davis had 12 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one March Madness highlight to remember.

The new season of Fortnite kicked off on Tuesday, and with it came the arrival of a mysterious new character called The Foundation, who fans are convinced is being played by none other than Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. The theories kicked into overdrive thanks to an Instagram video from the massive action star, who dropped some not-so-subtle hints about the new season’s launch even though The Rock never specifically says the word Fortnite. However, the cryptic video does include one word that had players buzzing. Via Polygon:

In the post, The Rock says that March 16 is a very important day and that he wanted to be sure to post this because of how much it meant to certain people — though he doesn’t actually say who those people are. The entire post is strange and mysterious, and more than a little vague, until he gets to the end and says the words, “The Foundation,” which fans are taking a dead giveaway that he is indeed playing the character in Fortnite.

The Rock does a little bit more than say the words, “The Foundation,” though. He makes sure to put a little extra mustard on the phrase by doing his trademark raised eyebrow towards the camera.

Fortnite fans have also noticed that The Foundation’s armor bears a resemblance to The Rock’s shoulder tattoo, which has only added more fuel to the theory fire.

You can see The Foundation show up in the action-packed Fortnite Season 6 trailer (directed by the Russo Brothers) below, and the character does seem to walk, talk, and throw haymakers a whole lot like The Rock. Plus, only the People’s Champ could stand out in a trailer that’s already jam-packed with Master Chief, The Predator, Sarah Connor, and more.

(Via Polygon)

Before Justin Bieber released his new album Justice today, he got the band Justice upset with him over the album art. Now the record is out and it has upset some more people. Justice features audio clips of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which rubbed some folks the wrong way, as they didn’t think Bieber’s use of the samples was appropriate:

That said, King’s family seems to be cool with Bieber. The pop star tweeted that he is “supporting organizations that embody what justice looks like in action” and listed off a handful of them, including The Martin Luther King Jr. Center For Nonviolent Social Change. Bernice King, MLK’s daughter and CEO of The King Center, replied to Bieber, “Each of us, including artists and entertainers, can do something. Thank you, @justinbieber, for your support, in honor of #Justice, of @TheKingCenter’s work and of our #BeLove campaign, which is a part of our global movement for justice. #MLK #EndRacism.”

Additionally, King’s estate must approve and license uses of King’s speeches or papers, so presumably, Bieber got approval. (Then again, Bieber didn’t exactly get Justice’s approval for his album art, so who knows.) The estate doesn’t just let everybody who wants to sample/quote King do so, either. For example, the movie Selma had to paraphrase King because they did not get the go-ahead to use actual King quotes in the film.

In a Vogue feature published today, Bieber explains King’s presence on the album, saying, “What I wanted to do with this was amplify Martin Luther King Jr.’s voice to this generation. Being Canadian, it wasn’t so much a part of my culture. […] This speech was actually during the time when [he had] a feeling that he was going to die for the cause, and what he was standing up against was ultimately racism and division. I think his message was that a lot of people can be afraid to stand up for what is right, but if you’re not standing up for justice, for what is right, what are you doing with your life? I’m sorry to get so deep, but these are the times we’re living in. That’s why I wanted to make this album because I think it’s very timely and very necessary.”

Check out some more reactions to Justice below.

The situation in Houston this season might have seemed like it got out of hand rather quickly, but the reality is that it’s been a steady deterioration for the Rockets on multiple fronts. So when the team finally came to terms on a deal to send the disgruntled James Harden to Brooklyn, it was the culmination of a number of factors.

The Rockets’ underwhelming offseason moves, combined with a horrid start, set the stage for Harden reaching his breaking point and demanding a trade, which had widespread implications for the rest of the organization, namely PJ Tucker, whose tenure with the team was in many ways tied up in all the machinations.

At 35, Tucker would clearly much prefer to be in a situation where he can help a contender rather than the painful rebuilding stages likely ahead in Houston, and thanks to his loyalty and the respect he’s garnered during his time there, the organization did their best to accommodate him, only not exactly in the way he had imagined.

Via Kelly Iko and Sam Amick of The Athletic:

What’s less known is this: Tucker, sources say, had come away from that meeting believing he would be dealt with Harden wherever the former MVP ended up, with Brooklyn and Philadelphia seen as the most likely landing spots. It would be a welcomed change after a failed attempt to negotiate a contract extension left him feeling undervalued. Little did he know more than two frustrating months would go by before his once-celebrated Rockets tenure would finally come to an end.

The Athletic had reported previously that nearly 75 percent of the league had been inquiring about the super-versatile Tucker, which prompted the Rockets to try and maximize their return on a trade via a standalone deal. While Tucker would’ve probably preferred to land in Brooklyn with Harden, where the Nets seem poised to make a serious run in the East, he still ended up with a very good team in Milwaukee that can benefit from his prowess as a defender and three-point threat.

And as a bonus for us, we might get to see Tucker matched up against his old teammate Harden in a playoff series, depending on how the standing pan out.

The bar has been set for the remaining 62 games that we’ll watch in the NCAA Tournament this year. In the first game of the 2021 NCAA Tournament, No. 7 Florida and No. 10 Virginia Tech went blow-for-blow for 40 minutes, and thanks to heroics from Hokies guard Nahiem Alleyne, that was not enough to determine a winner.

The Gators went into the final minute of the game with a five-point lead. But unfortunately for the 7-seed in the South Region, Alleyne caught fire, scoring seven points in the final 49 seconds of the game to tie things up at 64 and force overtime. The biggest moment came following a pair of missed free throws by Anthony Duruji — Florida was up by three, but he was unable to ice things with seven seconds remaining.

From there, Va. Tech’s Keve Aluma hauled in the rebound, found Alleyne, and the rest is history.

Regardless of whether or not the Hokies win the game, this is a shot that fans of the program won’t forget any time soon. They will, however, want to forget this dunk by Duruji that happened right at the start of overtime, because the Gators are going to take a picture of this and put it on posters across their basketball facility.

The best new hip-hop this week includes albums, videos, and songs from Benny The Butcher, Guapdad 4000, and more. The Buffalo bar bruiser and the West Oakland scam rapper have been teasing their respective projects for several weeks in the lead-up to their releases; meanwhile, Brooklyn real-life rhymer Kota The Friend pushed up his own release with respected producer Statik Selektah.

On the singles side of things, this week saw releases from the likes of Lil Durk, whose OTF crew shared their “Jump” video; Mick Jenkins, who linked up with dance Grammy winner Kaytranada for the groovy “Designer Frames“; and Rich Brian, who reflected on his artistic growth over the last few years with “Sydney.”

Friday saw the releases of Key Glock and Young Dolph’s “Sleep With The Roaches,” Lil Tjay, Polo G, and Fivio Foreign’s “Headshot,” and J Balvin’s “Tu Veveno,” along with the releases listed below.

Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending March 19, 2021.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

Benny The Butcher & Harry Fraud — Plugs I Met

On his last full-length project, released a bare five months ago, Benny worked extensively with aptly-named California hitmaker Hit-Boy. On his latest, he sticks to the one producer principle but changes gears with fellow soulful East Coaster Harry Fraud. With both, he delivers stripped-down, bar-heavy kingpin narratives, making sure to share all the dirty details that make his rags-to-riches raps less glamorous than grimy.

El Prez — Angels With Dirty Faces

LA underground veteran El Prez is nearly four years removed from his last project, 2017’s LabTrappinCalifornia. He wears the years on his earnest, straightforward, community-focused raps, including features from fellow fixtures of the West Coast scene Blu and Thurz.

Guapdad 4000 & Illmind — 1176

On the West Oakland native’s last album 2018’s Dior Deposits, he was an ostentatious adherent to the philosophy of “scam or die.” But on his newest release, he looks his demons in the eye on one of the most heartfelt, vulnerable coming-of-age albums in hip-hop history.

Kota The Friend & Statik Selektah — To Kill A Sunrise

Brooklyn indie rap hero couldn’t wait to release his latest and it’s easy to hear why. When you’ve got songs this sincere, they just beg to be heard. While Kota’s penmanship is as crisp as ever, credit must given to Statik Selektah, whose traditionalist rhythms bring out the best in his collaborator — Kota is just spitting on this album, he’s spitting some of the best bars of his career to date.

Tokyo Jetz — Cancel Culture

I’m having a hard time remembering when Tokyo Jetz was ever “canceled,” such as anyone ever can be. But rather than rehashing the debate about whether “cancel culture” is really a thing (it isn’t), I’ll just recommend her album Cancel Culture, which is better than its title might imply (a similar thing happened with Belly and Mumble Rap). The Floridian T.I. protege remains uncowed in the face of whatever misstep led to her album’s title, snapping with all the audacity of her peers — and a lot more finesse.

Singles/Videos

Benny The Butcher — “Thanksgiving”

With a video that directly touches on his 2020 shooting, Benny reels off a string of paranoid raps detailing the devastation the drug game can wreak in its wake.

Courtney Bell — “Deebo” Feat. Icewear Vezzo

Detroit’s grimy underground has received plenty of spotlight in recent months, but Courtney Bell stands out by having one foot in that scene and the other firmly in the progressive styles of predecessors like the rappers on Dreamville and TDE. It makes for an interesting blend.

E-40 — “I Stand On That” Feat T.I & Joyner Lucas”

Over a flute-driven, trappish beat, the two veterans trade rapid-fire, multisyllabic bars with the younger artist, bragging about their accomplishments, hood certifications, and principles.

TheHxliday — “Opps”

The Motown Records rap product takes a respectable swing at reviving the cloud rap style. It’s not a clean hit, but it’s a solid double.

J.I. — “Calling Out 2 You (Intro)”

The melodic rap style that has come to define New York’s biggest standouts in recent years is the foundation of J.I.’s style, and here, he uses it to great effect over some slow-building, regal-sounding triumph music.

L’Orange & Namir Blade — “Corner Store Scandal”

The art rap adherents have been working on a joint project titled Imaginary Everything and inspired by 1970s Blaxploitation movies. That aesthetic is evident in the woozy electric guitars and swanky brass work that buttresses Blade’s sinuous rhymes

Mother Nature — “Cloudz” Feat. Sir Michael Rocks

Chicago rhymes-and-beats traditionalists Mother Nature recruit one of the Windy City’s most well-respected vets for an elevated display of muscular rap over a spacey, futuristic beat that invokes some 5th-dimensional drill.

White Dave — “Appraise”

One of the standout tracks from the Judas And The Black Messiah soundtrack, “Appraise” features a simple, black-and-white video following the South Central native as he explains his worldview, as informed by police violence, Black business ownership, and a community-centered outlook on liberation.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Yung Baby Tate and Flo Milli released their exuberant collaboration, “I Am,” back in December, and today, they share the colorful, artsy video for the song directed by Andre Muir, who previously worked with Mahalia, Vic Mensa, and Adidas. The video, which features what I’m calling a “baby Beyonce” aesthetic, puts Black girl magic at the forefront, while the two women pamper themselves and flex their spiritual wealth.

Both rappers experienced big breakouts in 2020. Yung Baby Tate, who signed with Issa Rae’s Atlantic-backed record label Raedio, followed up her well-received, self-released 2019 debut Girls with After The Rain, a seven-song EP that featured “I Am” and 6lack on “Let It Rain.” She also landed a spot on Dreamville’s compilation Revenge Of The Dreamers III on the song “Don’t Hit Me Right Now” with Bas, Cozz, Buddy, and Guapdad 4000. Last month, she featured on Tkay Maidza’s “Kim.”

Meanwhile, Flo Milli came out with her debut album Ho, Why Is You Here?, in July, becoming one of the biggest breakout stars of the year. Since then, she’s featured on Rich The Kid’s “Nasty” with Mulatto and Rubi Rose and released her own singles “Roaring 20s” and “Back Pack” this year.

Watch Yung Baby Tate’s “I Am” video featuring Flo Milli above.

Yung Baby Tate is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.