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The first game of the 2023 Sweet 16 did not disappoint in the slightest, as Kansas State and Michigan State put on an absolute thriller in Madison Square Garden, with the 3-seeded Wildcats taking down the 7-seeded Spartans in a 98-93 overtime showdown for the ages.

The game was tight throughout, with a 7-point lead being the biggest of the night for either squad, as they went back and forth for 45 minutes, trading blows in a high-scoring shootout. Michigan State had the leading scorer of the game, as AJ Hoggard put up 25 to go along with six assists, but the star of the night was New York native Markquis Nowell, as the diminutive guard continues to steal the spotlight in March with sensational play, putting forth a record-setting performance to lead the Wildcats to the win.

Nowell finished the game with 20 points, most of which came in the final 15 minutes of action, and an NCAA Tournament record 19 assists, alongside 5 steals. He did just about everything, and spent the second half battling through a rolled ankle that he had to get taped up on the sideline.

We’ll start with the closing 90 seconds of regulation, which saw Nowell put Kansas State in front by four with a stepback midrange jumper from the left wing with just over a minute to play.

After a Malik Hall tip-in cut the lead to two, Nowell went for the dagger from way downtown and came up empty, giving Michigan State a chance to tie the game or take the lead on the final possession. The Spartans put the ball in the hands of Tyson Walker, who drove to the rim and hit a runner off glass with five seconds left, with the two biggest points of his 16-point performance.

Walker would put Michigan State in front by three in overtime, but from that point it became the Nowell show, as he had his hands in just about every big play for Kansas State down the stretch as a facilitator. After hitting a pair of free throws to cut the lead to one, Nowell rifled a pass to David N’Guessan for a go-ahead layup.

Down two he again found N’Guessan cutting to the rim, this time on a filthy bounce pass that was his best of the night.

That was the highlight of the night for all of one minute, as with just under a minute to play in a tie game, he set up a gorgeous midcourt lob to Keyontae Johnson, lulling the Michigan State defense to sleep by seeming to pretend to argue with coach Jerome Tang over the playcall.

After another ambitious logo three from Nowell got ever-so-slightly tipped and went out of bounds, the Wildcats needed to draw up a quick hitter with a one-point lead and under five seconds on the shot clock. After a string of timeouts from both teams, they drew up a beauty to get Ismael Massoud open on the baseline, as he connected with a big jumper off Nowell’s 19th dime of the game to put K-State up by three.

On the final possession, Michigan State seemed overly obsessed with finding a perfect look, turning down a few good looks from three before Walker tried to rush into a pullup over Nowell, who stripped him clean and darted to the rim for a layup at the buzzer.

It was a tremendous game, which was good because the other game in the window was a blowout as UConn trounced Arkansas, and Nowell continues to cement his status as a March Madness legend. They’ll know await the winner of FAU-Tennessee in the nightcap at MSG, who they’ll play on Saturday for a chance at the Final Four.

After teasing the project earlier this month, EST Gee finally dropped his new album, Mad last week. One of the instant standouts on Mad is “Kada’s Song” on which, EST Gee reflects on friendships gone wrong, while allowing his friend and collaborator, Kada, to shine.

“You ain’t been backstabbed if you can’t relate / Yeah I got mob ties that I’m not gon’ say / I done been baptized and still don’t pray / You don’t know how that feel moving through God’s will,” EST GEE and Kada rap-sing on the song’s chorus.

In the song’s accompanying video, EST Gee and Kada are seen in a red room, sitting on thrones, surrounded by fire.

Mad arrives just six months after his major label debut album, I Never Felt Nun. In an interview with XXL, EST Gee revealed he plans to drop projects consistently this year.

“I’m gonna drop my album again,” he said. “And then drop another album, and just keep dropping albums and then I’m gonna keep just getting bigger and bigger until it’s bigger than anything.”

In the meantime, you can check out the video for “Kada’s Song” above.

Mad is out now via CMG and Interscope. Find more information here.

There are a few kinds of dog parents: ones that only have outside dogs, those who have inside dogs but they’re absolutely not allowed on the furniture and dog parents who treat their dog as if they birthed them themselves and give them every luxury invented for four-legged fur children.

Clearly, people are going to have feelings one way or the other about dogs and their place within a household, but I think everyone can agree that seeing a dog be pampered will always be adorable. Opie the Pit Bully is one of those lucky doggos who wound up living in the lap of luxury, and the pooch got to do a “pick a card” day to showcase that his owner loves him the mostest.

In a video uploaded to TikTok by Opie’s owner because…ya know, opposable thumbs and all…Opie is faced with two cards that he can’t read: 1) because he’s a dog, and 2) because the cards are facing toward the camera. That doesn’t stop the sweet puppers from playing along, though.

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Opie quickly picks his first card to start off his “pick a card” day where everything is all about him. He starts off strong with the choice of wearing a teddy bear robe. But the choices are so good that he can’t really go wrong. “PetSmart” or “dog park”? Both solid options for a dog date.

By the end of the date, Opie had gone on several adventures that resulted in cuteness overload. The video has over a million views and is full of comments agreeing that the pup is the goodest boy.

Watch the adorable doggy date below:

@opiethepitbully

Do we want to see a part 2? 👀 PJs & robe by @toothandhoney code WILDLY10 to save #pitbulls #bullybreedsoftictok #pitbulls_official #pitbullsaresweet #cutedogs

It’s been an exciting time for a couple of tortoises at the Houston Zoo—and really, for tortoises everywhere.

The zoo announced on its blog that their oldest resident, Mr. Pickles, a 90-year-old radiated tortoise, and his 53-year-old companion Mrs. Pickles (that’s quite an age gap there sir, but no judgment) recently welcomed three new hatchlings.

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any better, here are the new baby names: Dill, Gherkin and Jalapeño.

Clearly, Jalepeño is the spicy one of the bunch.

While this news is certainly momentous for Mr. and Mrs. Pickles, it’s also a huge achievement for the entire species, which is currently critically endangered.

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Mr. Pickles has been a resident of the Houston Zoo for 36 years, and during that time had never produced offspring. So the staff, understandably, weren’t expecting incoming hatchlings any time soon. But then, just as the herpetology keeper was closing up for the day…surprise!

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Apparently it was a very good thing that the keeper noticed the eggs. As the blog explained, the soil in humid Houston “isn’t hospitable” to the drier earth of Madagascar, so without human assistance, the eggs likely wouldn’t have hatched. Talk about divine timing.

Due to overcollection for illegal sales, combined with the fact that radiated tortoises naturally don’t produce much offspring, their numbers in the wild have severely dwindled. So much so that they are expected by some to go extinct in the wild, making captivities all the more important.

First-time father Mr. Pickles has made all the more important of a contribution, since he is considered the most “genetically valuable” radiated tortoise in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan.

Basically, the zoo said it best. “These baby Pickles are a big dill.”

As for Dill, Gherkin and (my favorite) Jalepeño, the trio will live in the zoo’s Reptile & Amphibian House until they grow big enough to reunite with their parents.

Four hundred years ago, copies of William Tyndale’s English translation of the Bible were publicly burned by the bishop of London, with church authorities insisting that the Bible should only be read in Latin (and only by the clergy). In the centuries since, many books we now consider classics such as Daniel Defoe’s “Robinson Crusoe,” Jack London’s “Call of the Wild,” Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass,” Victor Hugo’s “Les Misérables, Charles Darwin’s “Origin of Species”—even Beatrix Potter’s “The Tale of Peter Rabbit” and “Benjamin Bunny”—have been banned or censored in one way or another in various countries.

Battles over books are nothing new, but once in a while, they become particularly ugly or absurd, prompting people to speak out against book bans.

People like 100-year-old Florida resident, Grace Linn, whose speech at a Martin County School Board meeting has gone viral.

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Author Jody Picoult, whose books have been in the crosshairs of the school district’s book policy that saw 92 titles pulled from shelves for removal or review, shared the video to her TikTok channel where it’s gotten a wave of supportive responses.

“I am Grace Linn. I am 100 years young,” the centenarian began. “I’m here to protest our schools’ district book-banning policy.”

Linn explained that her husband, Robert Nickel, was killed in action in World War II at age 26.

“One of the freedoms that the Nazis crushed was the freedom to read the books they’d banned,” she said. “They stopped the free press, banned and burned books.” She went on to say that the right to read is an essential right guaranteed by the First Amendment, yet it is continually under attack “by both public and private groups who think they hold the truth.”

Linn shared that she made a quilt last year, at age 99, in response to the book bans taking place around the country and in Martin County. Each quilt square shows a stack of books with titles of books that have been banned and targeted, including “Harry Potter,” “A Wrinkle in Time,” “Of Mice and Men,” “Beloved” and more. The quilt’s purpose, she said, was “to remind all of us that these few of so many more books that are banned and targeted need to be proudly displayed and protected—and read, if you choose to.”

Linn said that burning books and banning books is done for the same reason: fear of knowledge.

“Fear is not freedom. Fear is not liberty. Fear is control. My husband died as a father of freedom. I am a mother of liberty.”

Watch:

@jodipicoultbooks

I am so inspired by everyone who spoke up against book bánning at the Martin County School Board meeting today, including Grace Linn. Grace is, in her words, “100 years young.” She spoke about witnessing the rise of fascism during WWII, about losing her husband to the war when he was 26, and about protecting our freedom to read. Thank you, Grace, for reminding us that this is a part of history we must not repeat.

People loved Linn’s passionate defense of the freedom to read books, calling her an “inspiration,” a “hero” and a “helluva woman” in the comments.

Naturally, different people have different opinions about what books are appropriate for different ages, what should be required vs. voluntary reading and what kids should be shielded from. That’s the whole point. Librarians have long been trusted to curate generally age-appropriate material for children’s libraries and parents have always had the final say in what they allow their children to read, but laws such as the one passed in Florida are attempting to exert more control over what books are available. Not helping matters is that the law is vague and there has been a great deal of confusion as to whether educators could face felony charges for having offending material in their classrooms. Especially when offending material includes anything considered “critical race theory,” which could theoretically include any books that talk about racism in American history realistically.

Banning books requires setting subjective criteria for problematic material, and as we’ve seen with many of the book-banning policies, that criteria can easily stretch into ridiculousness. Who decides and by what measure are the questions that book bans leave on the table. Thank you, Grace Linn, for standing up for the freedom to decide for ourselves what we and our kids get to read.

Flo, a rising girl group, enlisted none other than Missy Elliott for their latest single, “Fly Girl.” It also samples Elliott’s classic 2002 song, “Work It,” over a fun beat produced by MNEK.

“’Fly Girl’ is all about confidence, good vibes, and feeling your best. It’s a lively, feel-good song that still incorporates clever lyrics and fire vocals, if we do say so ourselves,” the band said, per NME.

They also expressed their gratitude for working with the superstar.

“It’s quite literally a perfect fusion of old school meets modern day R&B, with a nod to and feature from the original fly girl Missy Elliott herself. We love it and are so happy to be putting out a song that can hopefully make whoever plays it feel confident and most importantly, fly.”

“Working with FLO has been nothing less than amazing,” Elliott added. “I remember a few of their fans sent me clips of their performances, and I immediately felt the authentic ’90s vibe. I loved the fact they all sang lead so well – great vocal control – so when I was asked to be a part of the ‘Fly Girl’ record, it was a no-brainer. They used the inspiration from my song ‘Work It’, and I felt they did it justice. I enjoyed it and I believe they have a long, great career ahead of them.”

Listen to Flo’s “Fly Girl” collab with Missy Elliott above.

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

Still riding the highs of his critically-acclaimed 2022 album, $oul $old $eperately, Freddie Gibbs has shared the newest music video from the record. His latest is the Kaytranada-produced Zipper Bags.

On “Zipper Bags,” Gibbs spits fiery bars ruminating on the hustle.

“All I know is go get the bag / …post on the block, we can split the bag / Out here servin’ the neighbors, they sniff a bag / All I know is yayo and them zipper bags,” raps Gibbs.

In the song’s accompanying visual, Gibbs is seen in a motel room, seemingly hiding out after receiving a threatening voicemail. At the end of the video, Gibbs hears a mysterious knock on the door.

While Gibbs had an exciting 2022, this next year will prove even more fruitful. In an interview with XXL this past January, Gibbs revealed his currently working on four different projects.

“I’ma hit y’all with some sh*t that y’all thought y’all was ready for, but you really ain’t ready for,” he said. “Alchemist and Madlib ain’t going nowhere, so keep that in mind. And me and Boi-1da in the studio now real, real, real heavy. I’m making the best music of my life, so it’s no reason to stop. And I’m the king of R&B, so I gotta do that album as well.”

In the meantime, you can see the video for “Zipper Bags” above.

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

We are just weeks away from Beyoncé‘s upcoming Renaissance tour. And while the Beyhive is overjoyed that the Queen Bey will be making a much-anticipated return to the stage, many of us are worried, as she was recently rumored to be having problems with her knees and feet.

Fans began speculating this after her performance in Dubai this past January, after culture critic Gerrick Kennedy had shared that Bey was recovering from foot surgery.

“BEYLANTIS was quite the unexpected show,” he tweeted. “That voice is just getting better and better. Mama was doing her good singing. Mind-blowing to see her and Blue Ivy perform together. Even more in awe to hear she did this after foot surgery. It’s unclear what injury led Bey to the operating table, but it’s good to know she’s doing better.”

Neither Bey nor her team has commented publicly on the matter, however, fans believe a new Chris Martin interview featured the Coldplay lead vocalist also suggesting that she was recovering from a surgery or injury of some sort.

In an interview with Conan O’Brien on his Conan Needs A Friend podcast, Martin opened up about his friendship with Beyoncé.

“You know she’s my hero and sister and everything,” said Martin, “but it’s funny because I’m like, ‘I have a knee problem from the stage,’ and she’ll say, ‘Yeah me too.’”

As expected, this sent the Beyhive into a frenzy, with fans believing this was confirmation that Bey performed her Dubai show while recovering from surgery.

“GIRL CHECK THOSE KNEES BEFORE RWT LIKE OMG,” said one fan on Twitter.

Though, some believe Bey may have been referring to a normal pain, that comes with years of performing.

“everyone reporting on beyonce knee problem is killing me when chris literally mentioned it in passing so clearly it’s not a big deal,” said another fan.

While we’re not sure what to believe, we are certain Beyoncé will deliver in May, when the Renaissance tour kicks off.

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

The Smile, a group led by Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, have officially announced that they’re in the process of recording a follow-up album to 2022’s debut, A Light For Attracting Attention.

The reveal was made at the end of a new email from the band. “More North American tour dates for when we are let out of the studio,” it read. “we’re deep in recording, week 7.”

They’ve also teased a handful of songs, including “Bodies Laughing,” “Friend Of A Friend,” and “Colors Fly,” while on tour in Europe, per NME. Additionally, The Smile is set to embark on a summer tour across North America. More information is available here.

Continue scrolling for a complete list of new dates.

06/21 — Mexico City @ Auditorio Nacional
06/22 — Mexico City @ Auditorio Nacional
06/25 — Austin, TX @ ACL Live at The Moody Theater
06/26 — Austin, TX @ ACL Live at The Moody Theater
06/29 — Miami, FL @ James L. Knight Center
06/30 — St Augustine, FL @ The Saint Augustine Amphitheatre
07/02 — North Charleston, SC @ North Charleston Performing Arts Center
07/03 — Asheville, NC @ Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
07/05 — Richmond, VA @ The National
07/07 — Forest Hills, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium
07/08 — Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall
07/10 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
07/11 — Cleveland, OH @ Agora Ballroom
07/14 — Québec City @ Festival d’été de Québec, Parc de la Francophonie
07/15 — Laval, QC @ Place Bell
07/16 — Ottawa, Ontario @ RBC Bluesfest, LeBreton Flats
07/19 — Kansas City, MO @ Midland Theatre
07/20 — Chesterfield, MO @ The Factory
07/21 — Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Music Festival, Union Park

You know what’s been fun? Every single Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves trailer. The last one before the movie’s release on March 31st is no exception, gleefully frolicking in devil-may-care banter and the kind of high adventure that brings you way too close to the face of an owlbear.

Look, by this point you either want to see it or you don’t, but a few more quips between Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez couldn’t hurt to seal the deal. The questing looks appropriately epic, and Hugh Grant appears to have teleported his Paddington Bear 2 character into a magical fantasy realm. Plus, the trailer wants you to know that people are having an absolute blast with this flick.

The only thing the trailer doesn’t have is a time machine to tell your middle school self that, one day, Dungeons and Dragons will be one of the coolest things on the planet. Maybe leave out all the other stuff going on in the future. No need to give yourself a panic attack before gym class.

The explosion of popularity for the RPG has been an astonishing transformation from the basements of the 1980s. Thankfully, absurdly great podcasts like Worlds Beyond Number and shows like The Legend of Vox Machina should tide you over before Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves critically rolls onto screens.