LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Johni Broome and Ryan Kalkbrenner are big men with big-time experience on the March Madness stage.
Just not against each other, which makes Saturday night's NCAA Tournament second-round South Region showdown between overall top seed Auburn and No. 9 seed Creighton so compelling.
Plot lines abound thanks to the Tigers’ and Blue Jays’ multiple strengths, but the matchup of main men in the middle is the most intriguing.
Broome’s ability to collect double-doubles for Auburn (28-8) has made the 6-foot-10 Associated Press first team All-American and Southeastern Conference player of the year a favorite for several national awards, including the Naismith. The senior will square off in Rupp Arena against Kalkbrenner, a 7-1 shot eraser who has scored more than 2,300 points for Creighton (25-10) and matched Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing with four selections as the Big East's top defender — and has nine NCAA wins in 12 contests.
While both tried to deflect questions elsewhere on Friday, they’re mindful that their teams’ national title fortunes center around them and are eager to see how they measure up against each other.
“He’s a really good big, very skilled and really talented,” said Broome, a 2,500-point scorer who averages 18.7 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks. “We know what he does on the inside. He’s going to be a big challenge, but I think it’s one me and my team are up for.”
Kalkbrenner is a third team AP All-American who averages 19.2 points and ranks fourth nationally with 2.74 blocks per game and has more than 375 career rejections. The senior, also a finalist for multiple honors, was similarly complimentary toward Broome because of the challenge he poses on both ends.
He understands the assignment.
“He’s got good touch around the rim and is a really good passer, which makes it really hard to guard him because if you double him, he will pass out of it,” Kalkbrenner said. “But as a competitor and basketball player, you want to go up against the best guys in the game, and I get an opportunity to play against him. So I’m excited and I’m looking forward to it.”
Though Kalkbrenner and Broome factored into first-round victories, it's risky to focus too much of a game plan on trying to stop them.
Creighton showed that in an 89-75 win over No. 8 seed Louisville, during which Blue Jays guard Steven Ashworth and forward Jackson McAndrew alternated four consecutive 3-pointers in a decisive first-half stretch to open a 15-point lead. That opened up the floor for guard Jamiya Neal to score 17 of his 29 points after halftime, while Kalkbrenner added 14 points and six rebounds in a game Creighton shot 57%.
“Game by game, it’s picking your poison,” Neal said.
Added Auburn forward Chaz Baker-Mazara: “You can’t really focus on one player. ... We have to make sure we take care of everybody and make sure we lock down everybody.”
Auburn stumbled at times in its 83-63 rout of No. 16 seed Alabama State, which hung close in the first half. The Tigers’ defense awoke in the second half to hold the Hornets to 33% shooting, while Miles Kelly scored 23 points to lead four players in double figures.
Broome added 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds but also drew eight fouls that helped Auburn shoot 32 free throws and win the glass 46-36. While he’s shooting just 60% at the line this season, his 182 attempts match a career best and demonstrate his will to make something happen.
“I think I’m playing at more of my own pace,” said Broome, who will make his sixth NCAA appearance including one with Morehead State. “I’m seeing a lot of different defenses and stuff, so just kind of doing whatever it takes to win.”
His approach is why Creighton coach Greg McDermott is stressing discipline at both ends against Broome and his teammates. Having his own formidable presence helps, creating a March must-see as both teams look to reach the Sweet 16.
“He’s one of the best offensive players in the country at his position, and I’ve got one of the best defensive players in the country in Ryan Kalkbrenner,” McDermott added. “We can’t let him beat us in multiple ways.”
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Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner (11) moves the basket against Louisville guard J'Vonne Hadley (1) during the first half in the first round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Lexington, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke an 1807 law and deploy troops to quell persistent protests against the federal officers sent to Minneapolis to enforce his administration's massive immigration crackdown.
The threat comes a day after a man was shot and wounded by an immigration officer who had been attacked with a shovel and broom handle. That shooting further heightened the fear and anger that has radiated across the city since an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot Renee Good in the head.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act, a rarely used federal law, to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement, over the objections of state governors. In 2020, for example, he threatened to use the act to quell protests after George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police, and in recent months he threatened to use it for immigration protests.
“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump said in social media post.
Presidents have invoked the law more than two dozen times, most recently in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush to end unrest in Los Angeles. In that instance, local authorities asked for the assistance.
“I’m making a direct appeal to the President: Let’s turn the temperature down. Stop this campaign of retribution. This is not who we are,” Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, said on X.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he would challenge any such action in court. He's already suing to try to stop the surge by the Department of Homeland Security, which says officers have arrested more than 2,500 people since Nov. 29 as part of an immigration operation in the Twin Cities called Metro Surge.
The operation grew when ICE, which is a DHS agency, sent 2,000 officers and agents to the area in early January.
Protesters gathered Thursday night at the federal building that is being used as a base for the crackdown, yelling “shame on you” at the officers guarding the facility.
Demonstrations have become common since Good was fatally shot Jan. 7, but this night's protest was slightly more subdued a day after the governor and mayor implored protesters to remain peaceful.
“This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in and at the same time we are trying to find a way forward to keep people safe,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said Wednesday.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of three people who said they were questioned or detained in recent days. The lawsuit says two are Somali and one is Hispanic; all three are U.S. citizens. The lawsuit seeks an end to what the ACLU describes as a practice of racial profiling and warrantless arrests. The government did not immediately comment.
Similar lawsuits have been filed in Los Angeles and Chicago and despite seeing initial success, have tended to fizzle in the face of appeal. In Chicago, for example, last year a judge ordered a senior U.S. Border Patrol official to brief her nightly following a lawsuit by news outlets and protesters who said agents used too much force during demonstrations. But three days later, an appeals court stopped the updates.
Homeland Security said in a statement that federal law enforcement officers on Wednesday stopped a driver from Venezuela who is in the U.S. illegally. The person drove off then crashed into a parked car before fleeing on foot, DHS said.
Officers caught up, then two other people arrived and the three started attacking the officer, according to DHS.
“Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life,” DHS said. The confrontation took place about 4.5 miles (7.2 kilometers) from where Good was killed.
Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the man who was shot did not have a life-threatening injury. O’Hara's account of what happened largely echoed that of Homeland Security, which later said the other two men were also in the U.S. illegally from Venezuela.
The FBI said several government vehicles were damaged and property inside was stolen when agents responded to the shooting. Photos show broken windows and insults made with paint. A reward of up to $100,000 is being offered for information. The FBI’s Minneapolis office did not immediately reply to messages seeking more details.
St. Paul Public Schools, with more than 30,000 students, said it would begin offering an online learning option for students who do not feel comfortable coming to school. Schools will be closed next week until Thursday to prepare for those accommodations.
Minneapolis Public Schools, which has a similar enrollment, is also offering temporary remote learning. The University of Minnesota will start a new term next week with different options depending on the class.
Madhani reported from Washington, and Golden from Seattle. Associated Press writers Sophia Tareen in Chicago, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Rebecca Santana in Washington and Ed White in Detroit contributed.
Federal immigration officers confront protesters outside Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Law enforcement officers at the scene of a reported shooting Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A woman covers her face from tear gas as federal immigration officers confront protesters outside Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A protester throws back a tear gas canister during a protest after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Federal immigration officers confront protesters outside Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Minneapolis City Council Member Jason Chavez, second from left, blows a whistle with other activists to warn people of federal immigration officers Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Tear gas surrounds federal law enforcement officers as they leave a scene after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A child and family are escorted away after federal law enforcement deployed tear gas in a neighborhood during protests on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A protester holds an umbrella as sparks fly from a flash bang deployed by law enforcement on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Monica Travis shares an embrace while visiting a makeshift memorial for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A protester yells in front of law enforcement after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Tear gas surrounds federal law enforcement officers as they leave a scene after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Protesters shout at law enforcement officers after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Law enforcement officers stand amid tear gas at the scene of a reported shooting Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
