Johni Broome of Auburn, Cooper Flagg of Duke unanimous picks to lead the AP All-America team

One is a fifth-year senior who began his career at a mid-major, the other a first-year wunderkind recruited by everyone. The first is a now leading a program on the rise, while the other is the unmistakable star for a traditional power.

Johni Broome of Auburn and Cooper Flagg of Duke do have something in common, though: The forwards were unanimous first-team picks for The Associated Press men’s college basketball All-America teams released Tuesday.

They were joined on the first team by Alabama star Mark Sears, Purdue's Braden Smith and Walter Clayton Jr. of Florida.

Only Broome, a third-team pick a year ago, and Flagg were among the first five on the ballots of all 61 national media members who vote for the weekly AP Top 25. Broome becomes the Tigers' fourth All-American and first to make the first team, while Flagg is the 19th different Blue Devils player to earn first-team recognition.

“He’s doing things nobody really has ever done before," Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. "And he’s not about numbers. I’m telling you, when this dude goes home, somebody says to him, ‘Man, you had 42, six and seven,’ he’ll say, ‘OK, cool.’ That’s not what he’s about, which to me makes it even better because you can get caught up with that, especially as a young player.”

Maybe that is something else that Broome and Flagg have in common: Both are eyeing a national championship. Auburn spent eight weeks at No. 1 this year, while Duke ascended to the top spot when the Tigers stumbled down the stretch.

Now, the two programs head to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 seed in their respective regions.

“I’ve proved a lot individually through my career but my main goal is a team goal, which is to win the national championship,” said Broome, who played two seasons at Morehead State before spending the past three with the Tigers. "When the team shines, everyone shines individually. Coming from where I came from, it means a lot to me.”

Sears was a second-team pick last season, when he helped to lead the Crimson Tide to their first Final Four. He initially declared for the NBA draft but withdrew in late May, choosing instead to return to Alabama for another run at a national title.

He's the Crimson Tide's second first-team All-American after Brandon Miller two years ago.

Smith was an honorable mention pick last year, when Purdue teammate Zach Edey was a unanimous first-team pick for the second straight season. With Edey off to the NBA, Smith became the go-to player for a bunch of Boilermakers who will be trying to return to the national championship game after losing to UConn there a year ago.

Florida had never had a first-team All-American before Clayton, who helped the Gators climb as high as No. 2 in the Top 25 this season. He's also their first All-American since 2007, when second-teamer Joakim Noah and third-team choice Al Horford led the Gators to their second consecutive national championship.

Perhaps the versatile Clayton will be able to lead Florida back to the top in March Madness.

“Whatever path, I like my guys,” he said. “Me and my guys against whoever.”

JT Toppin transferred from New Mexico to Texas Tech, John Tonje from Missouri to Wisconsin and PJ Haggerty from Tulsa to Memphis, and all took advantage of a change in scenery to have breakout seasons and earn second-team All-America honors.

The trio was joined on the second team by Kam Jones of Marquette and RJ Luis Jr. of St. John's.

Hunter Dickinson of Kansas and fellow big man Ryan Kalkbrenner of Creighton were third-team picks, making it three straight years that each appeared on an All-America team. Both were honorable mention two years ago, while Dickinson was a second-team pick and Kalkbrenner honorable mention again last season.

They were joined on the third team by Zakai Zeigler of Tennessee, Eric Dixon of Villanova and Houston's LJ Cryer, who was the Big 12 player of the year and an honorable mention All-America pick last season.

Chaz Lanier of Tennessee and Trey Kaufman-Renn of Purdue were among the next 10 (including ties) in voting who earned honorable mention recognition. Other honorable mentions included Donovan Dent of New Mexico, Drake's Bennett Stirtz and Chucky Hepburn of Louisville.

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Seton Hall's Dylan Addae-Wusu, left, and Prince Aligbe, right, fights for control of the ball with Villanova's Eric Dixon, center, during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Big East basketball tournament Wednesday, March 12, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Creighton's Ryan Kalkbrenner, right, defends DePaul's CJ Gunn (11) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Big East basketball tournament Thursday, March 13, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Pope Francis reappeared in Argentina's capital a year after his death, but it wasn’t a miracle: It was through the hands of a DJ-priest.

Guilherme Peixoto is a Portuguese Catholic priest who, in his 50s, has become a celebrity in the world of electronic music. He hosted a rave Saturday in Buenos Aires in homage to the Argentine-born leader of the Catholic church who died in April 2025.

As young and old, Catholics and agnostics alike, danced to the music Peixoto controlled from his DJ booth, three enormous screens projected images of the late Popes Francis and John Paul II as well as white doves.

“God bless you, and let’s dance,” a voice-over said before Peixoto appeared in priestly attire and headphones at the historic Plaza de Mayo. He then placed his hands on the console and for the next two hours mixed techno and religious melodies.

“This is a unique opportunity to see him, and it’s free,” said Jesús Martín, a 54-year-old Spaniard and electronic music fan. “In Ibiza, you have to pay 150 euros, and up to 2,000 euros for VIP.”

Peixoto — better known as Padre Guilherme — has become a global sensation, performing around the world to large audiences and amassing a following of 2.8 million people on Instagram and over 220,000 monthly streams on Spotify. He was ordained a priest in 1999, partly out of religious vocation and partly to fulfill a promise his mother made to God when he suffered a life-threatening illness as a child.

Electronic music became a hobby alongside his priestly career. In the 2000s, he began playing at universities and organizing parties to raise funds for his parish, but he asked that no one take his picture for fear of reprisals from his superiors.

Those fears dissipated when Monsignor Jorge Bergoglio assumed leadership of the Catholic Church as Pope Francis in 2013.

“He often said, ‘Don’t be afraid,’ that we had to go out to the peripheries and that ‘We shouldn’t be afraid to use our hands.’ These messages were an inspiration,” Peixoto recalled in an interview with The Associated Press ahead of his performance in Buenos Aires.

So, he enrolled in a DJ school, contacted electronic music producers and began composing his own tracks. Eventually, invitations to participate in festivals and play in clubs across Portugal began to arrive.

The priest burst onto the world stage after his performances at World Youth Day in 2023, before the open-air Mass celebrated by Pope Francis.

“I will never lose this connection with Pope Francis," Peixoto said. "He was the one who touched my heart with this facet of music."

Many attending his Saturday rave knew little about the priest-DJ.

“I learned about him when the tribute to Francis was first announced. I came to remember the Pope, but I think what he does is very original, as long as it’s done respectfully,” Silvia Garaggiola, 60, said.

Saturday’s set list included Peixoto’s hit “El Grano de Mostaza” and remixes of Bad Bunny and Queen.

From the Medusa Festival in Cullera, Spain, to Dreamfields in Mexico, or the Hï Ibiza club — in that Spanish resort town often dubbed the “Vatican” of electronic music — Peixoto broadcasts a message of peace and coexistence to thousands of young people, the vast majority of whom are not practicing Catholics.

Amid the smoke of tobacco and marijuana cigarettes, several groups of teenagers danced and imitated the DJ priest’s hand movements, while laser lights gave Plaza de Mayo the appearance of a nightclub.

“It sounds really good,” commented 17-year-old Ileana González. “I have zero religion, but I’m having fun.”

The Curia’s resistance to modernization, its rejection of sexual diversity and the scandals involving the abuse of minors have erected a wall between the Catholic Church and younger generations —a barrier that Pope Francis sought to dismantle through his revolutionary papacy.

An admirer of English musician Carl Cox and the Italian American artist Anyma, Peixoto seeks to carry forward that mission from behind his DJ decks.

“I believe it is incredibly important to make young people smile, to help them feel happy with themselves, rather than associating happiness with merely possessing this or that material thing,” he said.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Portuguese Catholic priest, Padre Guilherme performs an open-air DJ set at the Plaza de Mayo, honoring the first year anniversary of Pope Francis' passing in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Portuguese Catholic priest, Padre Guilherme performs an open-air DJ set at the Plaza de Mayo, honoring the first year anniversary of Pope Francis' passing in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)