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Federal judge denies NCAA’s restraining order request to make DraftKings stop using ‘March Madness’

By The Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A federal judge on Thursday denied the NCAA’s motion for a temporary restraining order to stop DraftKings from using registered trademarks associated with its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments.

The complaint for trademark infringement, filed in the Southern District of Indiana last week, requested that DraftKings stop using “March Madness,” “Final Four,” “Elite Eight” and “Sweet Sixteen” and variations of those terms to promote its business.

Judge Tanya Walton Pratt ruled the NCAA did not show how the online sports wagering platform’s use of the terms would cause irreparable harm.

“With further discovery the NCAA may be able to show they are entitled to a preliminary or permanent injunction, and those claims remain pending,” Pratt wrote.

DraftKings has been using “March Madness” and other familiar terms to refer to the NCAA Tournament for more than five years and has the legal right to do so, the sportsbook said in a court filing Wednesday in response to a complaint filed by the NCAA last week.

The NCAA has said it actively avoids any appearance of affiliation with gambling and said in the complaint that DraftKings’ use of the terms confuses customers by making it appear the NCAA is on board.

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

Cheryl Reeve steps away from the WNBA grind for a Hall of Fame induction

By The Associated Press
Cheryl Reeve is taking a break from her busy WNBA season to head to Knoxville this weekend and be inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. She's only the second WNBA coach to enter the Hall of Fame, joining former Houston Comets coach Van Chancellor, who was inducted in 2001. “(I appreciate) the magnitude of this recognition of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and the great work that has gone into this institution,” Reeve said. “To walk around and see the history of how much has been done years before I could ever have this opportunity to coach. Grateful to the WNBA because I think there was some consideration given schedule wise.” Reeve will be joined by WNBA greats Candace Parker and Elena Delle Donne in this year's class. Parker and Delle Donne also will be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame later this year. Other inductees include ESPN broadcaster Doris Burke, Kirkwood Community College coach Kim Muhl, Spanish star Amaya Valdemoro, French great Isabelle Fijalkowski and Clemson's all-time leading scorer and rebounder, Barbara Kennedy-Dixon.
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