Latest news with #Musselman
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Iowa basketball transfer portal target commits to fellow Big Ten foe
Iowa basketball transfer portal target commits to fellow Big Ten foe One of the transfer portal targets that Ben McCollum and Iowa basketball had been tied to announced his commitment to a fellow Big Ten program this past Thursday. High Point transfer Kezza Giffa visited Iowa at the end of April. But, a commitment to the Hawkeyes never materialized following that visit. After a lengthy transfer portal recruitment, the former High Point guard announced his commitment to USC and to head coach Eric Musselman on Thursday afternoon. Giffa averaged 14.6 points, 2.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game on 44.0% field goal shooting, 31.3% from 3-point range and 85.1% from the free throw line. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged 16.2 points per game during the 2023-24 season with High Point and was a first-team All-Big South selection in each of the past two seasons. Giffa joins a group of nine USC transfers that also features former Auburn small forward Chad Baker-Mazara. Musselman and USC are also bringing in UNC Asheville point guard Jordan Marsh, Maryland guard Rodney Rice, Robert Morris guard Amarion Dickerson, Utah forward Ezra Ausar, Samford forward Jaden Brownell, Virginia forward Jacob Cofie and Youngstown State center Gabe Dynes. The Trojans finished 17-18 (7-13 Big Ten) in Musselman's first season at the helm. Iowa did add guard Peyton McCollum to its 2025 class on Friday. But, the Hawkeyes also lost a commitment from former Florida International guard Ashton Williamson on Thursday. McCollum joins center Trevin Jirak and guard Tate Sage as part of Iowa's 2025 recruiting class. Iowa has also landed eight transfer portal additions. The Hawkeyes are bringing in Drake transfers Bennett Stirtz, Kael Combs, Cam Manyawu, Isaia Howard, Tavion Banks and Joey Matteoni, Kansas State transfer Brendan Hausen and Robert Morris transfer Alvaro Folgueiras. Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions. Follow Josh on X: @JoshOnREF
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Shapiro Administration looks to recruit more people to EMS workforce
ALTOONA, Pa. (WTAJ) — A week before National EMS Week, the Shapiro Administration kicked off a new statewide initiative to recruit more people to the EMS workforce. First responders and the Department of Health gathered at AMED in Altoona on Wednesday to talk about the initiative. According to the administration, in 2024 alone, over 1,200 emergency agencies responded to more than 2 million calls for service. Kristen Rodack, Department of Health Executive Deputy Secretary, said that equates to nearly five calls per minute every day of the year. 'Providing 24 hour access to emergency care is no easy feat, because every call for help has unique circumstances, and many EMS agencies are stretched thin,' Rodack said. Rodack also noted that urban and rural communities are facing a shortage of EMS professionals. 'The struggle is this in the sense that 30% of AMED's business is now going into other people's areas because small services are failing. 52 ambulance services closed in the last 29 months,' Gary Watters, Chief of AMED said. Watters said it's also due to poor reimbursement rates from insurance providers and low pay rates. Red Cross opens shelter in Somerset County for residents impacted by flooding Next week, as part of National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week, May 18-24, Pennsylvania Regional EMS councils and agencies will be hosting career events across the state where residents can meet EMS professionals and learn about local career opportunities and training. One of those events includes EMS Night at the Curve on Sunday, May 18. There will be a VR Headset at the game for people to experience what it's like to respond to a call. Anyone interested in the profession can also speak to local first responders to learn more about EMS careers and opportunities in the area. James Musselman is a Volunteer Fire Chief with the Friendship Fire Department and is also training to be an EMT with the Conemaugh School of EMS. Since he started taking classes, Musselman said he has a newfound respect for the profession. 'Without that care, preventative care, pre-hospital care, those patients probably would not have made it. So, if you save one life, it's worth it,' Musselman said. Governor Shapiro's proposed 2025-26 budget adds $6 million more a year for the next three years to the Emergency Medical Services Operating Fund, which would be disbursed through the 13 regional EMS councils to local stations. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Los Angeles Times
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
USA Water Polo premieres Olympic documentary in Newport Beach
USA Water Polo set out to produce a documentary on the Olympic women's water polo team, as it prepared to win its fourth straight gold medal in Paris last summer. Then, an unexpected thing happened. Team USA didn't win gold. Or silver. Or bronze. The fourth-place finish, and some of the challenges along the way, are covered in the documentary 'Women of the Water: An Olympic Journey.' It premiered at the Lido Theater in Newport Beach on Monday night. Three members of the team attended the premiere, including Corona del Mar High alumna Maddie Musselman, Rachel Fattal and goalkeeper Ashleigh Johnson, as well as head coach Adam Krikorian. 'You have to earn success,' said Musselman, 26, the Olympic MVP of the Tokyo Games who was attempting to win her third straight gold medal in Paris. ' I think this is a really good premiere because we lost. I think getting fourth, and seeing the work that goes into it, is really important. It's like, you can do all this work and still not be successful. I think that's a hard pill to swallow for us, but I think it's so good for the younger generation. 'When you go to the national team, you're not just going to win all of these gold medals that they won in the past. It's actually going to take a lot of work.' One person working to promote the sport is Flavor Flav, TV personality and founding member of the rap group Public Enemy known for wearing a big clock necklace. Last summer, he signed a five-year sponsorship deal as the official hype man for the U.S. women's and men's national water polo teams, also contributing an undisclosed amount to the 2024 Olympic women's team. 'I really, really feel that all of these Olympic teams need some sponsorship,' Flavor Flav told the crowd in the theater before the movie began. 'Everybody works hard to achieve goals. I want to thank the girls for allowing me to sponsor them. I went over to Paris and had an amazing experience.' 'Women of the Water' is a six-part series with episodes that are roughly 10 minutes long, though all episodes were shown consecutively Monday night. It was shot beginning in early 2024, as Team USA had already secured its Olympic spot. The series explores loss in Musselman's life, as her husband, former Mater Dei High and UCLA men's water polo player Patrick Woepse, whom she'd married in 2023, was diagnosed with a rare form of aggressive stage 4 lung cancer. Woepse made it to Paris to watch Musselman play, but died last October at the age of 31. Team captain Maggie Steffens also had her sister-in-law Lulu Conner, die unexpectedly after arriving in Paris to watch the team play. Suzi Mellano served as executive producer and director of the series, which also takes viewers inside practices and intimate moments, including Flavor Flav himself jumping in the pool during a practice. Greg Mescall produced the project with collaboration from associate producer Sherie Smith. USA Water Polo is aiming to distribute the series broadly, Mescall said, adding that it is the second series that the organization has made. 'Path to Paris,' documenting the journey of the Olympic men's team, debuted last year. 'We'd love to do more of this,' said Mescall, chief of content and growth for USA Water Polo. 'Hopefully, there's an audience for it … What's cool about it is that you don't know what you're going to get, and you document this whole journey. Sure, it didn't end with a gold medal, but I think it gives you some insight into how tough it is to make a team, and how close this group is, given all the challenges they went through.' The audience included plenty of young girls' water polo players and their parents, with Back Bay and Patriot water polo clubs among those with many in attendance. Newport Harbor High water polo sisters Sophia and Valery Verdugo, who were guided by Musselman as she began coaching for the Sailors in January, also attended the premiere along with several of their teammates. 'I think it's just really cool to see a water polo movie made,' said Valery Verdugo, a sophomore who played a key role in helping the Sailors reach the CIF Southern Section Open Division title match this season. 'I've never really seen one, especially about women's water polo. We were really excited when it came out, and we wanted to come. It's in our backyard.' The evening concluded with a panel discussion featuring Krikorian, Johnson and Fattal.
Los Angeles Times
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
USC lands highly coveted transfer guard Rodney Rice, bolstering strong transfer haul
One of the most coveted transfer guards in college basketball has committed to USC, giving Eric Musselman the difference-maker he desperately needed in his second portal class. Rodney Rice chose USC over more established basketball powers Villanova, Tennessee and Gonzaga, all of whom were reportedly willing to shell out major money to reel in the 6-foot-4 junior combo guard. Exactly what it cost for the Trojans to win the bidding war for Rice, their top transfer target, was not immediately clear. As name, image and likeness paydays have skyrocketed for basketball transfers ahead of a House settlement set to change athlete compensation rules, multiple reports suggested Tuesday that USC had paid upwards of $3 million for the former Maryland standout's services. A former four-star recruit, Rice started his college career at Virginia Tech, where he only played in eight games due to injury. He sat out the 2023-24 season, before breaking out as a redshirt sophomore at Maryland last season. Rice started 32 games for the Terrapins, averaging 13.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game, while shooting 37.3% from 3-point range. At USC, the expectation is Rice will play more point guard than he has in the past, handling the ball and facilitating the offense alongside Desmond Claude, who served as the Trojans primary floor general last season. Claude still hasn't made his plans publicly clear for next season. But while he evaluates his NBA draft options, the belief at USC is that he'll return for one more season, giving the Trojans a potent one-two punch in the backcourt. The arrival of five-star freshman Alijah Arenas should only raise that ceiling even further. USC likely could still use more depth at guard, considering Claude is the team's only returning player at the position. Freshman guard Jerry Easter is the only other ball handler on the roster. Musselman has already managed to remake the Trojans' now-supersized front court with six new transfer wings and forwards, all of whom are 6-foot-6 or taller. He brought in a high-potential, 6-foot-10 sophomore big from Virginia in Jacob Cofie, along with a starting-caliber power forward from Utah in Ezra Ausar. Musselman mined the mid-major ranks for rising stars, reeling in the likes of Amarion Dickerson, the Horizon League's Defensive Player of the Year, from Robert Morris; Keonte Jones, an All-Big West first-team selection from Northridge; and Jaden Brownell, a stretch forward from Samford. To solve USC's rim-protection issues, he added the NCAA's leader in blocks last season, 7-foot-3 center Gabe Dynes from Youngstown State. Adding Rice is Musselman's biggest move yet, one that should help soften the blow of losing sophomore star Wesley Yates III, who surprisingly entered the transfer portal earlier this month. He has since committed to Washington, returning to the school he attended prior to USC. As of Tuesday, the final day for college basketball players to enter the transfer portal, the Trojans had the No. 11 transfer class in college basketball according to 247 Sports, while Rice was the 25th-ranked transfer overall, one spot behind Yates. USC still has room to add to its transfer haul. Pending the NCAA's decision on the eligibility of senior forward Saint Thomas, the Trojans will have either two or three available slots on the roster.
Miami Herald
01-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Tulane, down two starters, takes on USC in Crown
The transfer portal is wide open, and Tulane has been viewing it from the wrong side. The Green Wave (19-14) have lost two starting players to the portal as they gear up to play Southern California (16-17) on Tuesday night in the inaugural College Basketball Crown tournament in Las Vegas. Kaleb Banks, who was Tulane's second-leading scorer (14.7 points per game) and leading rebounder (6.7) entered the portal and hasn't yet chosen a new destination. Fifth-leading scorer Kam Williams (9.3) also put his name in and has committed to Kentucky. Leading scorer Rowan Brumbaugh is with the Green Wave in Las Vegas, but he declined to promise a return to the program. He's averaging 15.7 points and also leads the squad in assists (4.8) and steals (1.5). "I love it here and there's nothing more from a people or basketball school perspective that I'd want. It's more of a financial thing at the end of the day," Brumbaugh told reporters. "When you look back five years from now, do you regret not taking advantage of a big opportunity? I love it here and there's nothing more Tulane can do for me at the end of the day." Brumbaugh and Tulane have won eight of their past 12 games. The Green Wave reached the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference tournament before losing to top-seeded Memphis 78-77. USC has dropped nine of its last 12 games, while struggling in its first season in the Big Ten. Trojans coach Eric Musselman is busy working the portal in hopes of adding talent to his squad. A frequent complainer about Big Ten travel, Musselman said his first season at USC has been full of lessons. "We learned a lot," Musselman said. "The first year on any job is to set a culture and a foundation. I think we did that." As of now, it appears USC's best two players are returning. Desmond Claude leads the Trojans with a 16.3 scoring average, while Wesley Yates III chips in 14.1 per outing. Reserves Kevin Patton Jr. (3.1 ppg) and Isaiah Elohim (2.1 ppg) are the only USC players to enter the portal up to this point. The winner faces either Colorado or Villanova on Thursday. --Field Level Media Field Level Media 2023 - All Rights Reserved
