Regeln und Neuigkeiten » 25, Iowa State and No. 11 Gonzaga. Three others

If you drive a few minutes south of Copacabana, the beach thats currently teeming with American athletes and tourists, youll stumble onto the richest neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. Leblon, named after a French plantation owner, is a quiet, stylish enclave of young investment bankers and affluent families; when I walked through the area Friday night, I passed juice shops, gelato counters and a café selling $14 burgers and Caipirinha-flavored shakes. I stopped to watch the opening ceremony at a bar packed with well-heeled 20-somethings, one of whom told me that the reported turmoil surrounding the Games was overblown. Now its inevitable, he said. People are like: Lets have fun.Marco, 25, is a lawyer who grew up not far from Leblon, in Rios glamorous South Zone. His father is a lawyer too. He said he had heard there were protests near some of the stadiums but that he hadnt seen them firsthand. He complained about the traffic, which was stressful. I asked him if he thought the Olympics would hurt or help the favelas, the sprawling hillside neighborhoods where millions of locals live in abject poverty, and he admitted that, despite being born and raised here, he had never visited one. Didnt have a reason, he said, shrugging.The Olympics might be taking place in Rio this month, but theyre really being hosted by two cities: The glittering beaches and upscale districts where most of the athletes, dignitaries and journalists who have descended on the region are staying this month, and, well, everywhere else. This is a microcosm for Brazil writ large. While spending programs directed at the urban poor have narrowed the wealth gap over the past two decades, those hard-fought gains have slipped during the recent recession. Unemployment and poverty are rising, and the GINI coefficient, which tracks inequality, is up.Nearly half of the billionaires in Latin America, according to Forbes, live in Brazil, where the top 20 percent of the country earns nearly 60 percent of its income. The poor got a lot better off in the past 15 or 20 years -- but the very rich also got a lot richer, said Alex Cuadros, a journalist who recently published a book about the countrys titans of industry called Brazillionaires. Districts such as Leblon, Ipanema and Barra, where the Olympic Park and media village were built, have become hotbeds for Rios ascendant upper class. Many of the people who live in these neighborhoods live cloistered, privileged lives. They send their children to private schools, use private hospitals and live in gated complexes with enviable views. Some millionaires avoid the citys crowded streets altogether: They can skip traffic by flying over Rio in helicopters, which cost more than $1,000 per hour.Cuadros, who spent several years investigating the affluent class, said the rise of Brazils super rich is intimately tied to the current economic crisis, which was caused by a toxic brew of imploding commodity prices, soaring debt and government corruption. The government subsidized large corporations owned by billionaires by giving them huge tax breaks, especially in the last six years, and hundreds of billions of dollars in low-interest government loans, he said. These elites also have benefited disproportionately from the run-up to the Olympics. Construction magnates -- some of whom are caught up in the current political scandal -- were given massive contracts to build overwrought infrastructure projects; officials are investigating some of them for skimming money off the top.While the government has invested in a smattering of projects that will benefit the lower class, Cuadros points out that it has poured money into developments in wealthy southern neighborhoods such as Barra, the new endpoint for the much-touted subway line (which also runs through ritzy Ipanema). Once the Games are over, the athletes village --?built by a billionaire with close ties to Rios mayor --?will be turned into a luxury condominium complex. There is a vast north side of the city where millions of working Brazilians live, and desperately need infrastructure, Cuadros said. Despite the gains of the poor, and despite the social programs of the last decade or so -- the bias has always been toward the interests of the elites in Brazil.Between the financial crisis and the ongoing probe into ties between government and industry -- which has brought several businessmen to their knees -- the citys elites have taken a few hits. But many are already bouncing back. According to Bloomberg News, Brazils billionaires have seen their fortunes rebound this year more than their peers in any other country in the world; as of May, Jorge Paulo Lemann, the countrys richest man, added $1.9 billion to his assets. And while the government is flailing under a mountain of debt, Cuadros said Brazils tax system, which is highly regressive -- dividends, for example, are untaxed --?is unlikely to change.Now theres this crisis, and who is being forced to give things up? he said. Its the poor, far more so than the rich.When cities bid for the right to host the Olympics, they typically hone in on the concept of legacy, painting vivid dreams of how the Games will bring about positive, sustainable change. Rio was no exception. But while the projects littered across the city have lined the pockets of the rich, it seems unlikely that many of them will improve the lives of those who need it most. According to a recent census, some 8 million Brazilians live in urban areas without garbage services. Imagine if the government had invested a fraction of the Games $12 billion budget into those neighborhoods instead.In Leblon, where the cobblestone sidewalks were spotless and the air smelled like orchids, complaints about the event were few and far between. When the ceremony spotlighted the citys favelas, bathing a facsimile of the slums in neon lights, the people in the bar craned their necks. 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Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- No. 21 Iowa State kept firing away until some of its shots finally began to drop.Monte Morris scored 20 points and Matt Thomas shrugged off a cold shooting performance to make a 3-pointer that put his team ahead for good, and the Cyclones held off Indiana State 73-71 in the opening game of the AdvoCare Invitational at Disney World on Thursday.We know we can make shots. Just have to adapt to the atmosphere, Morris said after Iowa State (4-0) remained unbeaten despite shooting 34.2 percent from the field and barely making half its free throws.Nobody on the sideline was out of the game. Everyone was engaged, Morris added. I think we all stayed together. We always had confidence.Thomas was just 2 of 10 from the field. He put the Cyclones ahead with his second 3-pointer with 54 seconds remaining. Nazareth Mitrou-Long made one of two free throws with 7.6 seconds left, and Indiana States hopes for an upset ended when Brenton Scotts 3-pointer rimmed out at the buzzer.Obviously very disappointed. ... We had a chance to be beat an awful good team, Indiana State coach Greg Lansing said.We were right there. Coach drew up a play for us to execute the last second. Unfortunately my shot didnt go in, Scott said. Its a salty loss. Its a salty taste. ... Its going to hurt me for a while.Iowa State (4-0) advanced to the tournament semifinals, despite going 5 for 15 from the foul line over the final 10 minutes. The Cyclones trailed for most of the first half before using an 11-0 run to wipe out a nine-point deficit.Morris, who also had nine rebounds, was joined in double figures by Mitrou-Long and Darrell Bowie with 13 apiece. Deonte Burton and Thomas, who missed eight of 10 shots from the field, each finished with 10.Scott led Indiana State (2-2) with 20 points on 7 of 18 shooting, a pair of long 3-pointerss that gave the Sycamores leads in the closing minutes.dddddddddddd Laquarious Paige came off the bench to score a career-high 20, and reserve TJ Bell had 10 points and 11 rebounds.BIG PICTUREThis tournament provides the first real test of the young season for Iowa State, which won its first three games over Savannah State, Mount St. Marys and The Citadel by an average of 42 points. The Cyclones start five seniors, but Indiana State is an experienced team, too. The Sycamores hung tough, making a final push after falling behind 54-48, but didnt have to enough to put the game away when they climbed back on top.POLL IMPLICATIONSThe AdvoCare field features two teams ranked in the Top 25, Iowa State and No. 11 Gonzaga. Three others teams the Cyclones could wind up facing at Disney World -- Florida, Seton Hall and Miami -- are perched just outside the Top 25 in this weeks Associated Press poll .SHAKY FROM THE LINEIowa State might have been able to put the Sycamores away earlier if not for poor free-throw shooting. The Cyclones went 15 for 29 from the foul line, including just 5 of 15 over the last 9:46.SCOTT LEADS THE WAYScott entered the tournament leading the Missouri Valley Conference in scoring at 22.3 points per game. The junior was 7 of 18 from the field, including 4 of 10 from behind the 3-point line. Paige is a sophomore whose previous career high was 8 points. He had been averaging just 4.7 before Thursday.UP NEXTThe Cyclones will meet Miami (4-0) in the semifinals of the eight-team tournament on Friday. Indiana State falls into the losers bracket, where the Sycamores will face Stanford (4-1).---More AP college basketball: www.collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 ' ' '