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THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM • VOL. 120, NO. 149 • $2.00 HH

Congress passes new round of relief

$1.9 TRILLION: Rescue package, among
largest in history, Biden’s first big win
By Tony Romm
WA S H I NGT ON P O ST
WASHINGTON — Con-
gress approved a sweeping
$1.9 trillion coronavirus re-
lief package Wednesday,
authorizing a flurry of new
federal spending and a tem-
porary yet dramatic in-
crease in anti-poverty pro-
grams to help millions of
families still struggling
amid the pandemic.
The 220-211 vote in the
House of Representatives
almost entirely along party
lines sends to President Joe
Biden’s desk one of the larg-
est economic rescue pack-
ages in U.S. history, which
Democrats had promised
to pass as one of their first
acts of governance after se-
curing narrow majorities in
Washington in the 2020
presidential election.
The bill, dubbed the
American Rescue Plan, au-
thorizes another round of
stimulus payments up to
$1,400 for most Americans;
extends enhanced unem-
ployment aid to millions
still out of work; and makes
major changes to the tax
code to benefit families
Rescue continues on A9
LOCAL AID: Federal cash will help city
close budget gap, avoid service cuts
By Jasper Scherer
STA F F W R I T E R
Houston and Harris
County are expected to re-
ceive more than $1.5 billion
through the stimulus bill
approved by Congress on
Wednesday, providing a
massive cash injection that
city officials say will help
Stefani Reynolds / New York Times close a budget shortfall
Democrats cheer passing the stimulus, which had widened by the pandemic
no GOP support. The president will sign it Friday. for the second year in a
row.
The measure provides
More inside
local governments with
» What’s in the stimulus plan. Page A9 their most generous round
» Deficit hits record $1T; it could go higher. Page B2 of COVID-related funding
yet, and it comes with few-
er spending restrictions
than last year’s aid. Hous-
ton will receive an estimat-
ed $615 million, putting the
city at more than $1 billion
in direct federal relief dur-
ing the pandemic, while
Harris County is projected
to receive $914 million —
more than double its allot-
ment from the first round
of local aid last March.
“I’m hopeful and opti-
mistic that we will be able
to use this money to, essen-
tially, bail the city out of a
very dire financial situa-
City continues on A9

Not 100 percent normal Texans

50 and up
soon can
get shots
Eligibility expands to
1C group next week
By Cayla Harris, Julie Garcia
and Gwendolyn Wu
STA F F W R I T E R S

All Texans 50 and older will be

Good Vibes Burgers & Brews in Pearland isn’t requiring masks for employees or diners, owner Eric Nelson says.
Restaurants, grocers grapple with end of COVID restrictions
By Greg Morago
and Emma Balter
STA FF WRIT E RS
Some of the Wednesday
lunch crowd showed up to
Good Vibes Burgers & Brews in
Pearland with a mask, but most
did not. They were greeted by
an unmasked hostess and
served by a staff almost entire-
ly without face coverings.
And that was OK with owner
Eric Nelson, who met the day
with a pledge to open his res-
taurant full throttle with no
mask requirements for em-
Steve Gonzales / Staff photographer
ployees or diners.
Fainmous BBQ began the
day differently, taping a sign to
the window saying masks are
required inside the Sawyer
Yards restaurant specializing
in Tennessee-style barbecue.
Karen Fain, who owns the bar-
becue joint with her husband,
James, also reminded her
mask-wearing employees to
hand out face coverings to cus-
tomers coming in without
them.
Melissa Phillip / Staff photographer Business as usual? Yes and
Cedar Creek Bar & Grill is opening at 100 percent no. Houston restaurants, like
capacity but is maintaining its mask mandate. Restaurants continues on A11
eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine
starting Monday, expanding the
pool of possible recipients to near-
ly half of the state’s population.
Now the question is how to find
a shot. So far, 4.7 million Texans
have received at least one dose of
the vaccine, a 15.8 percent vaccina-
tion rate that is one of the worst in
the nation.
State officials say they are going
as fast as they can. They have com-
plained the federal government is
not sending enough vaccine be-
cause it is using old population da-
ta to calculate the Texas share.
More than half of the Texans
over 65 have received at least their
first dose, a milestone the state
reached last week.
Texas is now vaccinating mem-
bers of priority groups 1A and 1B —
a subset of more than 10 million
people that includes health care
workers, Texans 65 and older, and
anyone16 and older who has a co-
morbidity.
Last week, officials made the
state’s 1.3 million teachers and
child care employees eligible for a
dose, a victory for educators who
argued they deserve earlier access
because of their on-the-job expo-
sure to students. The U.S. Depart-
ment of Health and Human Servic-
es had directed all states to make
the change.
Those 50 and older will be in-
Eligibility continues on A11

Vaccine rates ramp up, but experts advise not to drop guard
By Gwendolyn Wu
STA F F WRIT E R
The Texas Medical Cen-
ter, in partnership with the
city, is now administering
232,000 COVID-19 vaccine
doses per week, and ex-
perts expect that number
to ramp up as more vac-
cines are shipped to the
state.
While vaccination rates
are increasing and CO-
VID-19 cases are trending
downward again, medical
officials said the public
shouldn’t get too comfort-
able. Medical Center lead-
ers said there is currently
no strong correlation be-
tween vaccination and hos-
pitalization rates.
Experts are anxious that
there could be another
surge as students go on
spring break this month.
There’s more virus in Hous-
ton, and it’s spreading fast-
er as more infectious vari-
ants circulate in the area.
“We’re not seeing the
rapid decline we want to
see,” Bill McKeon, Medical
Center president, said at a
Wednesday webinar on the
state of COVID-19 in Hous-
ton.
Harris County surpassed
1 million COVID-19 vaccine
doses Tuesday. Vaccine
providers in the county are
now using Pfizer-BioNTech,
Moderna and Johnson &
Johnson’s products.
Although February’s
winter storm set back most
providers by a few days,
medical leaders say the
sites are catching up. About
19 percent, or 681,720 peo-
Mark Mulligan / Staff photographer ple, of Harris County resi-
Military personnel administer vaccines Monday at dents 16 and older have re-
NRG Park. The county has surpassed 1 million doses. ceived at least one dose of
the vaccine, according to a
Chronicle data analysis.
Part of that comes from
more vaccination sites
coming online, experts
said. The addition of a vac-
cine supersite at NRG Park
run by federal and county
officials has boosted the im-
munization rate, as has the
addition of pharmacy pro-
viders.
“Pharmacies have much
greater breadth and reach
into those communities
who cannot travel or have
access,” McKeon said.
Vaccine continues on A11

Index
Business .........B1 Directory .......A2 Lottery ...........A2 Sports..............C1
Comics...........D7 Editorials .....A12 Markets .........B3 TV....................D6
Crossword ...D6 Horoscope...D8 Obituaries.....B7 Weather........B8
A2 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

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SOUTHWEST SIDE AROUND THE REGION MCALLEN

2 men found 3.8 million fish

dead inside
apartment Conroe church celebrates were killed by
frigid weather

its revival after 2016 storm

Police found two men Last month’s winter
dead in a southwest freeze that led to fish kills
Houston apartment com- across the Rio Grande
plex following a lengthy Valley and all along the
SWAT standoff with an entire Texas coast caused
armed man who has been the death of 3.8 million
arrested, authorities said. fish, according to Texas
Officers responded Parks and Wildlife.
shortly after 2 a.m. to This fish kill consisted
Arboles Drive after a of at least 61 species and
neighbor reported a 91 percent were non-
suspicious person with a recreational species like
firearm, said Police Chief silver perch, hardhead
Art Acevedo. They heard catfish, pinfish, bay an-
loud arguing inside an chovy and striped mullet.
apartment, and a man The other nine percent of
who was visibly armed the dead fish included:
threatened to kill officers. spotted seatrout, black
Someone escaped drum, sheepshead, sand
through an upstairs win- seatrout, red drum, gray
dow and told officers that snapper, and red snap-
other people were inside, per.
Acevedo said. Parks and Wildlife said
The suspect came out fish that can’t make it to a
of the apartment about 9 refuge in deeper, more
a.m. and was detained temperature-stable water
after the SWAT team during cold weather then
busted through a win- die when water tempera-
dow. tures get too low.
Inside, officers found
two bodies, Acevedo said. HOUSTON
Police suspect the men Firefighter
may have died of drug
overdoses.
Gustavo Huerta / Staff photographer dies in off-duty
Congregants join in a prayer during a dedication ceremony Saturday at HopeWell Community
Church in Conroe. The newly built church is 5,000 square feet. cycling accident
MONTGOMERY COUNTY
A Houston firefighter
Commissioners Faith rewarded as community comes together to build bigger was killed Tuesday in an
OK incinerator off-duty cycling accident,

for shelter facility after a large tree crashed through old house of worship
Montgomery County CONROE — Faith and friendship
commissioners gave the paid off as a Conroe pastor bowed
green light Tuesday for his head and gave passionate
the county’s animal shel- praise for the newly rebuilt Hope-
ter to replace its aging Well Community Church.
incinerator. “It hasn’t been easy, but I always
In December, the shel- say, ‘There are some things and
ter’s director asked the some assignments that God gives
court for $125,000 to you that you cannot avoid,’ and
have the incinerator this was one of them,” Pastor Mil-
rebuilt. Commissioners
ton Taylor said as he stood with his
asked for a replacement wife, Daisy, in the 5,000-square-
cost estimate, but in
February balked at the
foot building during the dedication
ceremony Saturday.
$315,000 price tag and In May 2016, high winds during a
tabled the issue. storm sent a large pecan tree crash-
Shelter director Aaron ing through the old 1,600-square-
Johnson said the animal foot church at 504 Avenue F. The
shelter not only process- damage totaled the small wood-
es sick and injured ani- framed church beyond repair and
mals at its facility but also devastated church members.
disposes of deceased When Taylor’s wife and the
wildlife, including deer, members of the congregation
from around the county. asked about a plan to rebuild, the
The motion passed pastor had none to offer. Instead,
unanimously. he put his faith to the test, believ-
FOURTH WARD
ing that God would show him His
plan.
Police suspect “Many would ask me, ‘Taylor,
drugs in fatal how are you going to do it? When
are you going to start?” he contin-
shootings of 2 ued Saturday. “I’d tell them I don’t
Two men were killed know. It’s not for me to know.”
Tuesday night in Fourth Some members were confident
Ward in a suspected the 80-member church would
drug-related shooting, bounce back.
police said. “It was very emotional,” Conroe
Officers responded resident Danda Crawford, who has
around 11:20 p.m. to an been a member since 2011, said af-
apartment complex near ter the 2016 storm destroyed the
West Dallas Street and church. “The little church on the
Bluebonnet Place Circle hill has been knocked down. But
where they found one we know with God’s grace it is go-
gunshot victim, then a ing to be OK.”
second victim inside a car On Saturday, Taylor echoed that
parked at an intersection point.
blocks away, police said. “We tried everything, but noth-
Fire Chief Sam Peña
announced via Twitter.
By Meagan Ellsworth for church — some charging only in Walter Luna, an engi-
STA F F W R I T ER prayer. neer operator, served the
Construction began in Decem- department for about 26
ing would work,” Taylor said. “And ber 2019. As the work carried on, years. He last worked at
I said, ‘Well, if I would have torn the members remained resolute in Station 72 in southeast
down the church myself with the faith as they attended worship ser- Houston.
intent of building another one, vices in the Conroe Tower, com- “Please keep the Luna
then I would have had to have a munity centers and even out- family in your prayers,”
plan. But … the tree is not my tree — doors. Peña said.
it’s His tree. He’s the one that On Saturday, members and
MONTGOMERY
moved it. community leaders, including
“The storm that had the wind those who played a role in the re- City will move
blew the tree over on His house,” building process, finally came to- forward with
he continued to laughter and ap- gether in celebration. The assem-
plause from the church members. bly included Jim Ward with Excali- street projects
“He’s the one that has to have a bur Clearing, David Staat, Patrick The city of Montgom-
plan. So, I said to myself, well, I Johnson with Questar Construc- ery plans to move for-
don’t know when he’s going to do tion, Ron Saikowski with Quest En- ward with street projects
it. It ain’t my house.” gineering and Conroe City Coun- postponed by the pan-
Taylor said many people doubt- cilman and Vineyard Church Pas- demic.
ed him for not revealing a plan, but tor Raymond McDonald. The City Council unan-
he said he laid his problems down Each of the men took a turn re- imously approved the
and surrendered to faith. As days flecting on the project, how they resolution requesting
turned into months, Taylor would connected, and the religious expe- street construction, re-
be led to the minds and talents of rience. pair and maintenance.
community members who came “What happened to the church, An estimate was pro-
together to rebuilding a fully paid to me, is a reminder that some- vided in early 2020 to
times you are led into the storm,” Precinct 1 under the for-
said Johnson, whose company mer commissioner Mike
constructed the new church, as he Meador, but the approval
paused to fight his emotion. “God was put on hold due to
will reward those who remain COVID-19 budget reduc-
faithful.” tions last year, city ad-
“You see a tree crashing through ministrator Richard
HopeWell Church was a tragedy Tramm said.
and a blessing,” he continued. At the time, the esti-
The church members raised mate was approximately
their hands, shouted “hallelujah,” $60,000 to repave both
and cried in joy to witness the re- streets from FM 149 to the
vival of their church on the same western dead ends.
spot where the old one stood. Since a year has
“God put it together,” Taylor passed, the city officials
Conroe Courier file photo said. “I am humbled. … There is so said it is possible for the
A storm in May 2016 caused a much to be said, but the good part cost to go up from the
massive pecan tree to topple is: We are home.” early 2020 estimate.
and destroy the old HopeWell From staff and wire reports
Community Church. mellsworth@hcnonline.com

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 CITY | STATE
HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • PAGE A3 HH

SBC strife Texas braces

drives off
Christian for border surge
luminary
‘This is not who I am,’ Moore
says of Southern Baptists
By John Tedesco
STA F F WRIT E R

Beth Moore, a popular Christian author and

Bible teacher in Houston, has decided to leave
the Southern Baptist Convention as the largest
coalition of Baptist churches in the U.S. wres-
tles with controversies about sexual abuse,
race and the role of women in ministry.
“I am still a Baptist, but I can no longer iden-
tify with Southern Baptists,” Moore told the Re-
ligion News Service in an article published
Tuesday. “I love so many Southern Baptist
people, so many Southern Baptist churches,
but I don’t identify with some of the things in
our heritage that haven’t remained in the
past.”
News of Moore’s departure landed like a
bombshell in churches across the country
where her Bible lessons are widely studied and
enjoyed.
“Beth Moore leaving the Southern Baptist
Convention is the religion news equivalent to
Prince Harry leaving the royal firm,” wrote
Christian author Diana Butler Bass on Twitter.
“A big and unthinkable deal.” Photos by Jerry Lara / Staff photographer
An outspoken advocate for survivors of sex- Hidalgo County deputy constables guide migrant families to a U.S. Border Patrol processing area Feb. 24
ual abuse, Moore has spoken publicly about after smugglers began crossing mostly Central American families across the Rio Grande from Mexico.
her own experience as a young abuse survivor
and how she didn’t feel safe in her home, but
felt safe at her local Baptist church.
Moore continues on A10
Border Patrol says crossings up 28% last month
By Benjamin Wermund agency said about 25,000
WASH I N GT O N BU R EAU of those immigrants had

Foster care WASHINGTON — Border

Patrol reported more than
been apprehended before.
The Biden administra-
tion acknowledged some

system hit 100,000 encounters with

migrants crossing into the
U.S. from Mexico in Febru-
responsibility for the surge
on Wednesday, saying it is
at least in part attributable

‘crisis point’ ary, according to figures

the agency released Wed-
nesday that illustrate the
to the hope offered by his
administration’s shift to a
more “humane” immigra-

last month growing surge of people

seeking amnesty that has
quickly become a major
tion system.
But officials stressed the
administration is still turn-
By Anna Bauman political dilemma for the ing away the vast majority
STA F F WRIT E R Biden administration. of migrants who arrive,
The 100,441 encounters and blamed the Trump ad-
More children slept in Texas Department of reported in February rep- ministration for pushing
Family and Protective Services offices last resent a 28 percent in- The migrants surrendered to U.S. Border Patrol policies that “didn’t just ne-
month than during any other month in at least crease from January. The agents after crossing near Mission. Surge continues on A10
five years, officials said, as the pandemic exac-
erbates foster care capacity shortages.
In February, 186 children across Texas, in-
cluding 33 in Harris County, slept in offices un-
der staff supervision for at least two nights be-
cause there was nowhere else to put them, said
Melissa Lanford, spokesperson for the state
SpaceX plans to expand at Boca Chica
agency. The number has crept up for years, By Andrea Leinfelder Earth — two orbital launch
but skyrocketed last fall. The same month last STA F F W R I T ER pads, two landing pads, two
year, for example, there were 34 children with- test stands, a new parking
out placement. SpaceX plans to add lot, stormwater ponds and
Many of the youth staying in offices are launch and landing pads, more.
teens with complex psychological or emotion- along with other structures, The company has already
al needs, Lanford said. The agency tries to pro- to the place Elon Musk wants built some of this infrastruc-
vide beds when possible, but children may to be known as Starbase, Tex- ture in Boca Chica, which
sleep on cots or air mattresses if necessary, she as. Musk wants to incorporate
said. Details of the company’s into the city of Starbase. For
“Certainly, staying temporarily in an office plans to expand its presence instance, it has one suborbit-
building isn’t ideal, which is why DFPS has ex- outside of Brownsville were al launch pad and a landing
panded efforts to work with community agen- in a public notice released by pad, and it’s in the process of
cies and churches to find alternatives that pro- the U.S. Army Corps of Engi- building other components,
vide more of a home-like feel,” Lanford said. neers. such as a second suborbital
The number of children without placement SpaceX would like to have launch pad and an orbital
is a symptom of the foster care system’s lack of two suborbital launch pads — launch pad, according to the
adequate capacity, which has been a problem suborbital vehicles enter William Luther / Staff photographer document.
for years, said Katie Olse, CEO of Texas Alli- space and then come back Elon Musk plans more improvements for the area, The proposed expansion
Foster care continues on A7 down without having circled which he wants to incorporate as the city of Starbase. SpaceX continues on A10

A peaceful day of painting in the park

Council OKs plan to lower
high water bills from freeze
By Jasper Scherer
STA F F W R I T ER
City Council on Wed-
nesday unanimously ap-
proved a plan by the pub-
lic works department to
lower residents’ water
bills that spiked due to
pipe damage from the re-
cent winter storm.
Under the plan, Public
Works will calculate a
household’s February wa-
ter bill based on its aver-
age monthly water con-
sumption during the 12
previous months, unless
the household used less
water than usual last
Brett Coomer / Staff photographer month. Residents will be
Kin Hoester, left, works on her watercolor landscape as Keiko Tanabe, center, charged whichever
helps Al Alsup with his piece Wednesday during an outdoor painting class amount is lower.
through the Watercolor Art Society-Houston in Menil Park. This weekend’s The change automati-
weather is looking pleasant for painters wanting to get out. Weather on page B8. cally will apply to every
single-family home that
received an increased city
water bill for last month.
Residents of multi-fami-
ly homes, such as apart-
ment complexes, and
commercial and industrial
facility owners, must ap-
ply for the bill adjustment
and provide evidence of a
claim from a private insur-
ance company or the Fed-
eral Emergency Manage-
ment Agency.
In some cases, those
without such documenta-
tion may be eligible to pay
only half their full rate on
excess water consump-
tion from last month un-
der a city ordinance that
allows for bill adjustments
due to an “inexcusable de-
fect” in a customer’s water
line.
City officials also are
suspending late fee penal-
ties for water bills due be-
tween Feb. 15 and March
15, and continuing a mora-
torium on water service
disconnections ordered
by Mayor Sylvester Turner
near the beginning of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
During Wednesday’s
council meeting, District
G Councilman Greg Travis
asked how the city is han-
dling situations in which
residents already paid the
higher charge because
they have automatic pay-
ments turned on for their
water bills.
Sherri Winslow, Public
Works’ deputy director
for customer account ser-
vices, said officials are try-
Water continues on A7

Garland, Fudge confirmed in bipartisan votes
By Michael Balsamo
and Mary Clare Jalonick
A S S OC I AT E D PRE SS
WASHINGTON — The Senate on
Wednesday confirmed Merrick Gar-
land to be the next U.S. attorney gen-
eral and Marcia Fudge to head the
Department of Housing and Urban
Development in strong bipartisan
votes.
The confirmation of Garland, a
widely respected veteran judge,
comes as President Joe Biden has
vowed to restore the Justice Depart-
ment’s reputation for indepen-
dence.
Democrats have praised Garland,
a federal appeals court judge who
was snubbed by Republicans for a
seat on the Supreme Court in 2016,
as a highly qualified and honorable
jurist uniquely qualified to lead the
department after a tumultuous four
years under former President Don-
ald Trump.
Many Republicans praised him as
well, saying he has the right record
and temperament for the moment.
He was confirmed 70-30.
Chauvin jurors grilled over views on police
A man walks through a makeshift memorial honoring former Houston resident George Floyd on Wednesday in Minneapolis.
By Steve Karnowski
and Amy Forliti
A S S OC I AT E D PRE SS
MINNEAPOLIS — Attorneys in
the trial of a former Minneapolis
police officer charged in George
Floyd’s death probed potential ju-
rors Wednesday about their atti-
tudes toward police, trying to de-
termine whether they’re more in-
clined to believe testimony from
law enforcement over evidence
from other witnesses to the fatal
confrontation.
Judge Peter Cahill seated two
more jurors to go with the three
picked Tuesday for Derek Chau-
vin’s trial on second-degree mur-
der and manslaughter charges.
It’s been a grinding process dur-
ing which attorneys ask prospec-
tive jurors one by one whether
they could keep an open mind,
what they think of the criminal jus-
Cuomo accused of reaching under aide’s shirt
A S S OC I AT E D PRE SS
ALBANY, N.Y. — An aide to New
York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says he
groped her in the governor’s resi-
dence, a newspaper reported Wed-
nesday, in the most serious allega-
tion made yet by a series of women
against the embattled Democrat.
The Times Union of Albany re-
ported that the woman was alone
with Cuomo late last year when he
closed the door, reached under her
shirt and fondled her.
The newspaper’s reporting is
based on an unidentified source
with direct knowledge of the wom-
an’s accusation. The governor had
summoned her to the Executive
Mansion in Albany, saying he need-
ed help with his cellphone, the
newspaper reported.
“I have never done anything like
this,” Cuomo said through a spokes-
person Wednesday evening.
NATION
HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • PAGE A4 HH
Garland will inherit a Justice De-
partment still shaken from working
under Trump, who insisted that the
attorney general and the depart-
ment must be loyal to him person-
ally, battering the department’s rep-
utation.
In the last month of Trump’s
presidency, Attorney General Wil-
liam Barr resigned after refuting
Trump’s false claims that wide-
spread electoral fraud had led to his
defeat.
Trump’s pressure on officials,
particularly on Barr and former At-
torney General Jeff Sessions over the
department’s probe into his cam-
paign’s ties to Russia, prompted
abundant criticism from Democrats
over what they saw as the politiciz-
ing of the nation’s top law enforce-
ment agencies.
“After Donald Trump spent four
years — four long years — subverting
the powers of the Justice Depart-
ment for his own political benefit,
treating the attorney general like his
own personal defense lawyer,
America can breathe a sigh of relief
that we’re going to have someone
tice system and racial justice is-
sues, how they resolve conflicts
and much more.
In a separate development, the
Minnesota Supreme Court de-
clined to hear Chauvin’s appeal to
block a third-degree murder
charge from being reinstated.
At issue is whether the convic-
tion of another former Minneapo-
lis police officer in the unrelated
killing of an Australian woman es-
tablished a precedent for prosecu-
tors to restore a third-degree mur-
der count that the trial judge dis-
missed earlier.
The Minnesota Court of Appeals
last week said it settled the law
with its ruling last month affirming
the conviction of Mohamed Noor
in the 2017 shooting death of Jus-
tine Ruszczyk Damond.
The new decision from the
state’s highest court left open the
possibility that Cahill could add
Mary Altaffer / Associated Press
A VOCAL-NY activist is
arrested after the group
blocked traffic outside Gov.
Andrew Cuomo’s New York City
office and demanded he resign.
“The details of this report are gut-
wrenching,” Cuomo said, adding
that he wouldn’t speak to the specif-
ics of this or any other allegation, giv-
en an ongoing investigation over-
seen by the state attorney general.
The three-term governor faces
Garland Fudge
like Merrick Garland leading the Jus-
tice Department,” Majority Leader
Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said ahead
of the vote. “Someone with integri-
ty, independence, respect for the
rule of law and credibility on both
sides of the aisle.”
Senate Republican Leader Mitch
McConnell — who prevented Gar-
land from becoming a Supreme
Court Justice in 2016 when he
blocked his nomination — said he
was voting to confirm Garland be-
cause of “his long reputation as a
straight shooter and a legal expert”
and that his “left-of-center perspec-
tive” was still within the legal main-
stream.
Garland’s nomination was widely
seen as a redemption after McCon-
nell had blocked his Supreme Court
the charge back, lessening the
chances that Chauvin’s trial would
be delayed over the dispute.
The first juror picked Wednes-
day, a man who works in sales
management and grew up in a
mostly white part of central Min-
nesota, acknowledged saying on
his written questionnaire that he
had a “very favorable” opinion of
the Black Lives Matter movement
and a “somewhat unfavorable” im-
pression of the Blue Lives Matter
countermovement in favor of po-
lice.
Yet he also “somewhat agreed”
that police don’t get the respect
they deserve. He said he agrees
that there are bad police officers.
“Are there good ones? Yes. So I
don’t think it’s right to completely
blame the entire organization,” he
told the court under questioning
from prosecutor Steve Schleicher.
He also said he would be more
harassment allegations from several
other women and increasingly ur-
gent calls for his resignation or im-
peachment from at least some fel-
low Democrats. Cuomo repeatedly
has said he won’t resign.
“He’s openly said he will not re-
sign. And with further mounting al-
legations that are deeply credible,
we are in a position now where I
think we should impeach,” said As-
sembly member Jessica Gonzalez-
Rojas, a Democrat who had previ-
ously pushed for his resignation.
The woman whose account was
reported by the Times Union said
Cuomo had touched her and made
flirtatious comments on multiple oc-
casions. According to the newspa-
per, her allegations came to light as
Cuomo staffers watched the gover-
nor’s March 3 news conference, his
first after a new round of sexual ha-
rassment claims made in late Febru-
ary.
nomination, taking a huge political
gamble after the death of Justice An-
tonin Scalia by saying that the next
president should get the pick, not
outgoing President Barack Obama.
Trump was then down in the
polls, but McConnell’s bet paid off
when the Republican won the presi-
dency. Garland’s nomination floun-
dered for nine months, and he nev-
er got a hearing.
“We can never erase the sad
memory of what happened to Judge
Merrick Garland five years ago in the
United States Senate, but we can
give this remarkable man an oppor-
tunity to write a new chapter of pub-
lic service in his life,” Senate Judicia-
ry Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said
before the vote.
Earlier, senators voted voted 66-
34 to make Fudge the first Black fe-
male HUD secretary.
Fudge, who has represented
parts of Cleveland and Akron in the
House since 2008, is a former may-
or and a longtime advocate for the
needy.
She said at her confirmation
hearing in January that her first pri-
Chandan Khanna / AFP via Getty Images
inclined to believe an officer, all
things being equal, over the word
of another witness. But he main-
tained he would be able to set
aside any ideas about the inherent
honesty of an officer and evaluate
each witness on their own.
The second, a man who works
in information technology securi-
ty, marked “strongly agree” on a
question about whether he be-
lieves police in his community
make him feel safe. His communi-
ty wasn’t specified — jurors are be-
ing drawn from all over Hennepin
County, which includes Minneap-
olis and many of its suburbs.
“In my community, I think
when there is suspicious activity
the police will stop by, they will ask
a question,” he said. “I think that
sense of community is all we want,
right? We want to live in a commu-
nity where we feel safe regardless
of race, color and gender.”
In it, he denied ever touching a
woman inappropriately. The aide
subsequently became emotional
and told a female supervisor who
approached her about her encoun-
ters with the governor. At least one
supervisorreportedthe allegation to
an attorney in the governor’s office
Monday, the newspaper reported.
Before Wednesday’s report, the
allegations against Cuomo include a
combination of claims that he made
the workplace an uncomfortable
place for young women, ranging
from flirtatious comments to a non-
consensual kiss.
At least five accusers — Charlotte
Bennett, Lindsey Boylan, Ana Liss,
Karen Hinton and the latest accuser
— worked for the governor in Albany
or during his time in President Bill
Clinton’s Cabinet. Another, Anna
Ruch, told the New York Times that
she met Cuomo at a friend’s wed-
ding.
ority would be protecting the mil-
lions of people who have fallen be-
hind on rent or mortgages during
the pandemic, telling senators that
“we cannot afford to allow people in
the midst of a pandemic to be put in
the streets.”
Shortly after she was confirmed —
and minutes before she resigned —
Fudge took the last vote of her
House career in support of the $1.9
trillion COVID-19 relief bill, which
would provide billions in housing
assistance to low-income house-
holds.
Like Garland, Fudge won the sup-
port of numerous Republicans, in-
cluding McConnell.
“These aren’t the nominees that
any Republican would have picked
for these jobs,” McConnell said
ahead of the vote. “But the nation
needs presidents to be able to stand
up a team so long as their nominees
are qualified and mainstream.”
In another 66-34 vote later Wed-
nesday, the Senate confirmed Mi-
chael Regan, making him the first
Black man to lead the Environmen-
tal Protection Agency.
BRIEFS
WISCONSIN
Murder trial delayed
for Illinois suspect
The trial for an 18-year-old
from Illinois accused of killing
two people and wounding a
third during a protest against
police brutality in Wisconsin
was pushed back Wednesday by
seven months and could be
delayed even longer.
Kyle Rittenhouse’s trial was
scheduled to begin March 29,
but both sides told a judge that
they needed more time to pre-
pare. Kenosha County Circuit
Judge Bruce Schroeder set a
Nov. 1 trial start date, with a
May 17 status hearing.
IOWA
Reporter acquitted
in protest case
A jury Wednesday acquitted a
journalist who was pepper-
sprayed and arrested by police
while covering a protest, in a
case that critics have derided as
an attack on press freedoms
and an abuse of prosecutorial
discretion.
After deliberating for less
than two hours, the jury in
Iowa City found Des Moines
Register reporter Andrea Sa-
houri and her ex-boyfriend
Spenser Robnett not guilty on
misdemeanor charges of failure
to disperse and interference
with official acts.
MISSOURI
Mom gets 5 years for
starving baby to death
A St. Louis-area woman ac-
cused of starving her 2-month-
old son to death has been sen-
tenced to five years in prison.
Makayla Hill, 27, of Bridgeton
was sentenced Tuesday after
she pleaded guilty to a reduced
charge of child endangerment
in the 2018 death of her son,
Samuel Williamson Jr. Hill was
given credit for more than two
years of jail time already
served.
In exchange for her plea,
prosecutors dropped a second-
degree murder charge.
NEW MEXICO
Ex-husband arrested,
questioned in deaths
A man considered a person
of interest in the deaths of his
ex-wife and three other people
in New Mexico was charged
Wednesday with a separate
killing in New Jersey.
Sean Lannon was arrested in
St. Louis on Wednesday morn-
ing after a manhunt stretching
from New Jersey to Missouri.
Hours later, authorities in Glou-
cester County, N.J., charged the
47-year-old with murder, rob-
bery, burglary, theft of a motor
vehicle and other offenses in
the death of 66-year-old Mi-
chael Dabkowski.
Dabkowski was killed Mon-
day in his home in East Green-
wich, about 20 miles south of
Philadelphia. The cause of
death was blunt force trauma,
according to the Gloucester
County prosecutor’s office.
From wire reports

NATION
Greene vows to keep obstructing ‘far-leftist’ foes
By Marianna Sotomayor
and Mike DeBonis
WA S H I NGT ON P O ST
WASHINGTON — One day after
Democrats made an unprecedent-
ed move to strip Rep. Marjorie Tay-
lor Greene of her committee as-
signments, the Georgia Republi-
can countered that she’d now have
plenty of time to obstruct her op-
ponents’ “far-leftist” proposals
and push her GOP colleagues
harder to the right.
Greene, an ardent supporter of
former President Donald Trump,
has kept her promise. Her repeat-
ed motions to adjourn legislative
debate over the past several weeks
have forced members to scramble
to the House floor and vote to re-
main in session, a move that’s infu-
riating Democrats and, increasing-
ly, members of her own party.
On Wednesday, she moved to
adjourn as the House was prepar-
ing to debate the coronavirus relief
package. The motion was defeat-
ed, with 40 Republicans joining
Democrats in opposing it.
That marked the fourth time in
recent weeks that Greene moved
to adjourn. Each time, the number
of Republicans voting against her
increased, including some of the
chamber’s most conservative
members Wednesday.
In an interview, a defiant
Greene stressed that her col-
leagues of both parties should get
used to her trying to delay consid-
eration of Democratic priorities.
“These are tactics I will definite-
ly use, and I’ll have more tactics to
use. You see the difference in me is
I’m not one of those that gets in
line and says, ‘Yes, sir’ and does as
I’m told,” she said Tuesday.
“When people go against me —
I’m an honest person, I have no
After blasting mail-in ballots, Trump requests his own — late
By Timothy Bella
WAS H I NGT ON P O ST
Former President Donald
Trump recently requested a
mail-in ballot for a municipal
election in South Florida, ac-
cording to Palm Beach County
records, voting by mail despite
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., has voiced support for the QAnon conspiracy theory. Greene
has made comments on social media suggesting that some mass shootings were staged.
problem saying, ‘Hey guess what,
if you’re whining about walking
down to the floor and having to
vote and it may have interrupted
what you’re doing, well guess
what, your voters back at home
and the American people don’t
really care. They’d rather see you
govern, and they want you to do
the job that they elected you to
do.’ ”
Greene isn’t the only Republi-
can in recent weeks to use delay-
ing tactics.
Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson de-
manded a reading on the floor of
the roughly 630-page American
Relief Plan, which delayed consid-
eration of the coronavirus relief
bill for 11 hours.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch
McConnell of Kentucky requested
a motion to adjourn late Friday
months of repeatedly promoting
false claims of election fraud
without evidence.
Records from the Palm Beach
County Supervisor of Elections
show that a mail-in ballot for the
town’s local election this week
was requested Friday for the for-
mer president’s residence at
HH
evening to delay the final vote on
the $1.9 trillion bill. The motion
was defeated.
But Greene, who entered Con-
gress two months ago, has ob-
structed more often and attracted
sharper criticism. Democrats de-
nied Greene her committee as-
signments last month in a rebuke
of her embrace of extremist ideol-
ogy.
“Marjorie Taylor Greene is
clearly in need of an intervention,
and she needs to find a hobby, oth-
er than engaging in unproductive
activity and miring herself in con-
spiracy theory after conspiracy
theory,” Democratic Caucus Chair-
man Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said
Tuesday.
Greene has made comments on
social media suggesting that some
mass shootings were staged by
Mar-a-Lago. The completed bal-
lot was received Monday, before
Tuesday’s election.
The county elections website
shows that the request was made
about a week past the Feb. 27
deadline for voters to request a
mail-in ballot.
Because county rules state
Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 |
Katherine Frey / Washington Post
supporters of gun control, that 9-11
was orchestrated by government
entities, and that a Jewish cabal
had sparked a deadly California
wildfire with a laser beam directed
from space.
As recently as late last year, she
touted false QAnon conspiracy
theories.
She has renounced some of her
most outlandish claims.
After Greene’s gambit Wednes-
day, Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I.,
was so irritated he said he will pro-
pose a rule that only a member of a
committee can make a motion to
adjourn. “I’m dead serious,” he
said.
Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger,
one of 11 Republicans who voted
with Democrats to remove Greene
from committees, released a state-
ment Tuesday criticizing Greene’s
that mail-in ballots requested
through Tuesday could be deliv-
ered at a voting location in-per-
son, Trump probably had some-
one drop off his ballot Friday at
the Morton and Barbara Mandel
Recreation Center, less than 3
miles from his Mar-a-Lago Club.
Judy Lamey, a spokeswoman
A5
motions.
“Representative Greene is do-
ing a further disservice to her con-
stituents by obstructing the work
of Congress for her own personal
satisfaction and wasting the time
of Members who actually want to
get things done for the people they
represent,” the statement said.
Some of the most combative Re-
publicans support Greene, howev-
er, noting that Democrats should
have expected her to get creative
with expressing her opinion after
they eliminated her committee as-
signments. It was the first time a
majority party voted to remove a
member of the minority from
committees.
“The Democrats are the ones
who created that situation, and
that’s ridiculous what they did. It’s
wrong what they did, and now
they’re all upset that Marjorie’s
asking them to do their job. I don’t
have a problem with it,” said Rep.
Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a member of
the staunchly conservative Free-
dom Caucus. “I walked on the
floor when she made a motion to
adjourn and I said, ‘Marjorie,
you’re doing your committee
work.’ ”
Greene is undeterred by the
criticism and has not been shy
about criticizing colleagues who
oppose her. She immediately went
on Twitter to call out the Repub-
licans who confronted her for a re-
cent motion, saying she wasn’t
“sorry for interrupting fundraising
calls & breakfast.”
“Our Republican voters want to
see Republican members in the
House standing up and fighting
back,” Greene said, “not whining
about, ‘Oh, we had to get off our
Zoom call’ or ‘Oh, this interrupted
my meeting with the Chamber of
Commerce back home.’ ”
for the Palm Beach County Su-
pervisor of Elections, said she
couldn’t comment on Trump’s
ballot, citing a Florida statute
prohibiting her from doing so.
Trump spokesman Jason Mill-
er didn’t immediately respond to
a request for comment Wednes-
day.

Media take up positions outside Buckingham Palace on Wednesday after the palace’s response to the Oprah Winfrey interview.
Royal response fails to end anger
over Meghan’s claims of racism
By Danica Kirka
A S S OC I AT E D P RE SS
LONDON — Buckingham Palace’s
response to Prince Harry and Megh-
an’s allegations of racism and mis-
treatment has failed to quiet the
controversy, with some observers
criticizing the royal family for not
forcefully condemning racism and
for suggesting the couple’s version
of events may not be accurate.
“Too little, too late” was the ver-
dict of royal commentator Peter
Hunt, who also criticized the palac-
e’s 61-word statement for saying the
issue would be dealt with privately
as a family matter.
“This delayed, tame statement
went for predictability when unpre-
dictability — stepping out of the
Windsor comfort zone — was what
was needed,” Hunt wrote on the
website of the influential British
magazine The Spectator.
The statement, issued on behalf
the queen, was released 36 hours af-
ter Oprah Winfrey’s interview with
Russia slows Twitter
over ‘banned content’
By Anton Troianovski
and Andrew E. Kramer
N EW YO RK T IME S
MOSCOW — The Russian govern-
ment said Wednesday that it was
slowing access to Twitter, accusing
the social network of failing to re-
move illegal content and signaling
that the Kremlin is escalating its of-
fensive against U.S. internet compa-
nies that long have provided a haven
for freedom of expression.
It was a landmark step in a coun-
try where the internet essentially
has remained free despite President
Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian rule.
But it didn’t go off without a hitch:
As media regulators tried to slow ac-
cess to Twitter, dozens of Russian
government websites went offline
for about an hour, a crash that some
experts said likely stemmed from a
technical glitch in the state’s move
against the social network.
Russia’s telecommunications reg-
ulator said it was reducing the speed
at which Twitter loaded for users in
Russia, and pictures and videos in-
deed at times took longer than usual
to load. The regulator, Roskomnad-
zor, accused the U.S. company of
failing for years to remove posts
about illegal drug use or child por-
nography or messages “pushing mi-
nors toward suicide.”
“With the aim of protecting Rus-
sian citizens and forcing the internet
service to follow the law on the terri-
tory of the Russian Federation, cen-
tralized reactive measures have
been taken against Twitter starting
March 10, 2021 — specifically, the ini-
tial throttling of the service’s speeds,
in accordance with the regulations,”
the regulator said in a statement.
“If the internet service Twitter
continues to ignore the demands of
the law, measures against it will con-
tinue in accordance with the regula-
tions, up to and including blocking
WORLD
HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • PAGE A6 HH
Harry and Meghan was broadcast in
the United States.
“The whole family is saddened to
learn the full extent of how challeng-
ing the last few years have been for
Harry and Meghan,” the palace said.
“The issues raised, particularly that
of race, are concerning. While some
recollections may vary, they are tak-
en very seriously and will be ad-
dressed by the family privately.”
The comments were the palace’s
first word since the interview
rocked the royal family — and
touched off conversations around
the world about racism, mental
health and even the relationship be-
tween Britain and its former colo-
nies.
The controversy already has cost
a prominent British TV personality
his job.
Piers Morgan left ITV’s morning
news chat show amid a row over his
on-air criticism of Meghan. More
than 41,000 people complained to
Britain’s communications regulator
about Monday’s edition of the show,
it,” it added.
In a TV appearance Wednesday,
the deputy chief of Roskomnadzor,
Vadim Subbotin, said Twitter stands
out as the only social network that
has “openly ignored the Russian au-
thorities’ demand to remove the
banned content.”
In a statement, Twitter said it was
aware of reports that its platform
was “being intentionally slowed
down broadly and indiscriminately
in Russia due to apparent content
removal concerns.”
Twitter said it had a zero-toler-
ance policy regarding child sexual
exploitation, and that it didn’t allow
the use of its platform for any unlaw-
ful behavior or to further illegal ac-
tivities, including the buying and
selling of drugs.
The action against Twitter, a site
with a limited following in Russia,
was intended as a warning to other
U.S. internet companies, Alexander
Khinshtein, a member of parlia-
ment who helped write a law that al-
lowed the regulator to slow traffic,
said Wednesday.
He said putting the brakes on
Twitter traffic “will force all other
social networks and large foreign in-
ternet companies to understand
Russia won’t silently watch and
swallow the flagrant ignoring of our
laws.”
Twitter — and to a much greater
extent, Facebook’s Instagram and
Google’s YouTube — have given Rus-
sians ways to speak, report and or-
ganize openly even though the
Kremlin controls the television air-
waves.
Those social networks, along
with Chinese-owned TikTok, played
a pivotal role in the anti-Kremlin
protests that accompanied the re-
turn and imprisonment of opposi-
tion leader Alexei Navalny this year.
The Washington Post
contributed to this report.
during which Morgan said he didn’t
believe anything Meghan had said.
Meghan herself complained to
the British TV channel about the
comments, focusing on their im-
pact on people dealing with mental
health issues, ITV News reported.
Meghan, who is biracial, said in
the interview she was so isolated
and miserable as a working mem-
ber of the royal family that she had
suicidal thoughts, yet when she
asked for mental health assistance
from the palace’s human resources
staff, she was told they couldn’t help
because she wasn’t a paid employ-
ee.
She also said Harry told her there
were “concerns and conversations”
about the color of her baby’s skin
when she was pregnant with their
son, Archie.
The interview, seen by almost 50
million viewers worldwide, has di-
vided opinions.
Many people have backed Megh-
an, saying the allegations demon-
strate the need for change in an in-
In November, a Long March-5 rocket carrying the Chang’e-5
lunar mission lifted off at the Wenchang Space Launch Center.
Beijing and Moscow agree
to explore moon together
By Steven Lee Myers
N EW YO R K T I ME S
China and Russia have agreed to
jointly build a research station on or
around the moon, setting the stage
for a new space race.
The United States and the Soviet
Union, followed by its successor
state, Russia, long have dominated
space exploration, putting the first
astronauts in space and on the
moon and later collaborating on the
International Space Station that has
been in orbit for two decades.
The joint announcement by Chi-
na and Russia late Tuesday has the
potential to scramble the geopolitics
of space exploration, again setting
up competing programs and goals
for the scientific and, potentially,
commercial exploitation of the
moon. This time, though, the main
players will be the United States and
China, with Russia as a supporting
player.
In recent years, China has made
huge advances in space exploration,
putting its own astronauts in orbit
and sending probes to the moon
and to Mars. It effectively drafted
Russia as a partner in missions that it
already has planned, outpacing a
Russian program that has stalled in
Rob Pinney / Getty Images
stitution that hasn’t kept pace with
the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter
movements.
Others stand behind the royal
family, criticizing the couple for
making their damning allegations at
a time when Harry’s 99-year-old
grandfather Prince Philip remains
hospitalized in London after a heart
procedure.
Many Black people have said
Meghan’s comments highlighted
the reality of racism in Britain,
where the issue too often is charac-
terized as an American problem.
Bell Ribeiro-Addy, a Black mem-
ber of Parliament from the opposi-
tion Labour Party, said she was dis-
appointed the royal family planned
to deal with Meghan’s allegations
privately.
“The monarchy is a public insti-
tution that receives public money,
and any criticism of the institution
should really be met with a forceful
response from the institution about
what they are going to do,” Ribeiro-
Addy told the BBC.
Mark Schiefelbein / Associated Press
recent years.
In December, China’s Chang’e-5
mission brought back samples from
the moon’s surface, which have
gone on display with great fanfare in
Beijing. That made China only the
third nation, after the United States
and the Soviet Union, to accomplish
the feat.
In the coming months, it’s expect-
ed to send a lander and rover to the
Martian surface, hard on the heels of
NASA’s Perseverance, which arrived
there last month.
A memorandum of understand-
ing signed in a video conference
Tuesday by Zhang Kejian, head of
the Chinese space program, and his
Russian counterpart, Dmitri Rogo-
zin, referred to the Chang’e-7 mis-
sion, a Chinese probe expected to be
launched to the moon’s southern
pole in 2024.
China was never invited to the
ISS, as U.S. law prohibits NASA from
cooperating with Beijing. That
meant China “had no choice but to
set and pursue its own goals,” said
Joan Johnson-Freese, a professor of
national security affairs at the U.S.
Naval War College.
The U.S. has its own plans to revis-
it the moon by 2024 through an in-
ternational program called Artemis.
S. Korea
will pay
more for
U.S. troops
By Choe Sang-Hun
NEW YO R K T I M E S
SEOUL, South Korea — This na-
tion said Wednesday that it had
agreed to increase its share in cov-
ering the cost of the U.S. military
presence by 13.9 percent this year,
ending a prolonged dispute in the
alliance before a joint visit by Secre-
tary of State Antony Blinken and
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.
Differences over how to share
the cost of keeping 28,500 U.S.
troops in South Korea have kept
the allies at odds for years.
The issue became particularly
contentious under former Presi-
dent Donald Trump, who demand-
ed that South Korea drastically in-
crease its payments — by up to five
times, according to some reports.
Even as he warmed to North Ko-
rea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, Trump
often accused South Korea of free-
loading on U.S. military power.
Negotiations dragged on for 18
months, but they began making
progress after President Joe Biden
took office and vowed to restore al-
liances around the world.
Over the weekend, the U.S. and
South Korea agreed to a five-year
deal to increase the military pay-
ments, subject to legislative ap-
proval in both capitals.
Under the agreement, South Ko-
rea will pay $1 billion this year, 13.9
percent more than its annual pay-
ments in 2019 and 2020, officials
said Wednesday.
From next year through 2025,
South Korea will increase its por-
tion annually at the same rate it
boosts its defense budget — at an
average of 6.1percent per year until
2025.
“By smoothly addressing the
key pending alliance issue early on
after the launch of the Biden ad-
ministration, South Korea and the
United States demonstrated the ro-
bustness of the firm alliance,” the
South Korean Foreign Ministry said
in a statement Wednesday.
BRIEFS
UNITED NATIONS
Myanmar military
urged to use ‘restraint’
The U.N. Security Council
unanimously called for a reversal
of the military coup in Myanmar
on Wednesday, strongly con-
demning the violence against
peaceful protesters and calling for
“utmost restraint” by the military.
A presidential statement ap-
proved by all 15 council members
including Myanmar’s neighbor
and friend China was formally
adopted at a very brief virtual
meeting.
A presidential statement is a
step below a resolution but be-
comes part of the official record of
the U.N.’s most powerful body.
UNITED KINGDOM
Officer held in case
of missing woman
A police officer has been arrest-
ed on suspicion of kidnapping and
murder in connection with a
woman who went missing in
London last week, Britain’s Met-
ropolitan Police said. The force
said Wednesday the fact that the
man is a serving police officer is
“shocking and deeply disturbing.”
The force said the man, who is
in his 40s, was arrested late Tues-
day in Kent, southeast of London,
as part of the investigation into
the disappearance of Sarah Ev-
erard, a 33-year-old marketing
executive who vanished while
walking home from a friend’s
apartment in south London on
March 3.
GAZA STRIP
Hard-liner wins vote
to remain Hamas chief
Hamas firebrand Yehiyeh Sin-
war was re-elected as the Palestin-
ian militant group’s leader here,
leaving a figure closely aligned
with the hard-line military wing in
charge of the group’s strategy in
its main stronghold.
Sinwar, 58, fended off a chal-
lenge from Nizar Awadallah, one
of Hamas’ founders. Sinwar will
serve another four-year term.
From wire reports
 HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | A7
CITY | STATE

Friends mourn death Local firm gets NASA

of rapper and activist a seat on Russian ship
By Julian Gill
STA F F WRIT E R
Xavier Roberson
marched in the streets of
Houston and Washington
D.C., for his friend George
Floyd, a mentor to Roberson
and other young residents of
Third Ward’s Cuney Homes.
Floyd’s death at the hands
of Minneapolis police in May
2020 sparked a national
push for racial equality and
ignited Roberson’s own de-
sire for change. In addition
to protests, Roberson used
his music as a vehicle to
highlight systemic racism
and police brutality, rapping
under the moniker Obe
Noir. He also began hosting
voter registration drives at
the project housing com-
plex where he and Floyd
grew up.
Now, as the murder trial
of the officer who killed
Floyd begins, Third Ward is
mourning again.
Roberson, 31, was killed
early Monday in a Midtown
shooting, police said. Wit-
nesses heard gunfire around
3:40 a.m. before spotting
him running down the
street. A vehicle drove
around the block “as if chas-
ing Roberson,” police said.
Two men got out of the car
in the 2900 block of Fannin
Street, opened fire and fled.
Friends and family do not
know the possible motive.
They said Roberson’s music
career was blossoming. He
had a young daughter. He al-
so played professional bas-
ketball in multiple countries
overseas, including Colom-
bia, where local news re-
ports about his death hailed
him as a “great figure” on
the team, Titanes de Barran-
quilla.
“That was my protégé,
like my son. He was my
heart,” said Cal Wayne, a
Houston rapper who also
grew up with Floyd in Cuney
Homes. “It’s devastating be-
cause honestly, I always felt
like he was better than me,
and he didn’t realize.”
Houston police have not
made an arrest in the killing,
and a detailed description of
the suspects was not avail-
able by Wednesday.
Wayne said Roberson was
a young teenager when he
displayed a talent for music
and storytelling. He stuck
out among other aspiring
Xavier Roberson, an aspiring rapper and activist,
was shot and killed early Monday in Houston.
rapper “because of his vo-
cabulary — how fluent he
was. How much he could ar-
ticulate a story on any top-
ic,” Wayne said.
Roberson recently won a
rap competition hosted by
Wylcef Jean on social media.
He has also worked with oth-
er renowned Houston rap-
pers such as Bun B and Trae
tha Truth.
“Every once in a while,
you’ll come across situa-
tions like, why them?” Trae
the Truth said.
Roberson’s talent extend-
ed to the basketball court.
As a teenager, he moved
in with his grandmother in
Lufkin after police arrested
other family members in
Houston. Playing for Lufkin
High School, he caught the
eye of Chip Cunningham,
who at the time was looking
to recruit skilled underprivi-
leged athletes to join an AAU
team in Tyler.
Eventually, Roberson be-
come one of several players
living with Cunningham and
his family in East Texas.
“He was just such a good,
kind person,” said Cunning-
ham, now an assistant bas-
ketball coach for Boston Col-
lege. “We had extra beds in
our house, and he would
want to do a lot of workouts.
So he would just stay with us
… he just soaked it all up.”
Among Roberson’s peers
at Lufkin was Baltimore Ra-
vens wide receiver Dez Bry-
ant, who referred to Rober-
son as a brother in multiple
social media tributes. Ro-
berson also become close
with Cunningham, often in-
troducing him to friends as a
“god brother.”
Roberson returned to
Houston his senior year and
joined the team at Jack Yates
High School, where George
Courtesy Chip Cunningham
Floyd also played. He went
on to play for TCU and later
the University of South Ala-
bama.
Cunningham said Rober-
son’s mental toughness
shined on the court, but a
criminal charge stymied his
momentum in college.
He continued to pursue
basketball along with an ed-
ucation. He joined the team
at Our Lady of the Lake Uni-
versity in San Antonio,
where he became the lead-
ing men’s basketball scorer
in the National Association
of Intercollegiate Athletics.
He also earned his bache-
lor’s degree.
“He was just a very, very
tough tough kid on all fronts
— in life and in basketball,”
Cunningham said. “And
that’s what made him spe-
cial on the court.”
After graduation, Rober-
son traveled the world as a
professional player in coun-
tries such as Mexico, Argen-
tina and Germany.
Through it all, he kept in
touch with Cunningham
and his family.
Before the pandemic, he
had been living with Cun-
ningham’s stepmother, Mi-
chelle Cunningham, in
Houston. After learning of
his death, she found a collec-
tion of letters he had saved
from people thanking him
for his support.
She was reminded of his
desire to give back. She said
he had planned to honor
Floyd by forming a nonprof-
it to help Third Ward resi-
dents.
“He was just extremely
driven,” she said. “He never
gave up on his dream for a
better life. He never gave
up.”
julian.gill@chron.com
By Andrea Leinfelder
STA F F W R I T ER
NASA astronaut Mark
Vande Hei has a seat on
the Soyuz spacecraft
scheduled to launch April
9, thanks to a deal be-
tween NASA and Houston-
based Axiom Space.
Axiom Space, which fa-
cilitates rides into space
for private astronauts and
professional astronauts
from other countries, pre-
viously purchased a seat
on a Russian Soyuz space-
craft. It then traded this
seat with NASA in ex-
change for a seat in 2023
on a Commercial Crew
Program spacecraft devel-
oped by SpaceX or Boe-
ing.
“Axiom is always seek-
ing new opportunities to
provide access to the Sta-
tion to non-traditional us-
ers,” the company said in
a statement. “The Axiom
astronaut we provide for
the 2023 flight will be se-
lected from among the
various countries with
whom we are in discus-
sions and must be ap-
proved by the Internation-
al Space Station Multilat-
eral Crew Operations Pan-
el for a flight assignment.”
As such, Vande Hei gets
to join cosmonauts Oleg
Novitskiy and Pyotr Du-
brov in the April 9 launch
from the Baikonur Cosmo-
drome in Kazakhstan. The
contract announced earli-
er this week “contains no
exchange of funds,” NASA
said in a news release,
“because the services are
determined to be of com-
parable value to both par-
ties.”
On the most recent Soy-
uz launch carrying peo-
ple, NASA paid $90.3 mil-
lion to send one American
astronaut to the Interna-
tional Space Station.
NASA previously spent
Courtesy NASA
NASA astronaut Mark
Vande Hei will return to
the space station on the
Soyuz spacecraft.
nine years relying on the
Soyuz spacecraft to carry
its astronauts to the space
station. The agency re-
tired the space shuttle in
2011, and it was waiting for
SpaceX and Boeing to
complete their capsules
that would replace the
shuttle.
NASA did not want to
own this vehicle and de-
termine its every feature.
Instead, it wanted to pur-
chase seats on privately
owned and operated
spacecraft. So NASA pro-
vided funding and techni-
cal expertise to SpaceX
and Boeing through the
Commercial Crew Pro-
gram. Both companies
contributed their own
money, too.
Last year, SpaceX be-
gan ferrying NASA astro-
nauts to the space station.
Boeing has yet to launch
people, though it should
launch an uncrewed cap-
sule to the space station in
the near future. This will
be a redo, as the first un-
crewed launch in Decem-
ber 2019 had a software er-
ror that prevented the
spacecraft from reaching
the space station.
NASA said having
Vande Hei on the April 9
Soyuz launch will ensure a
continuous U.S. presence
on the space station.
“Securing this addition-
al Soyuz seat assures at
least one U.S. crew mem-
ber will be aboard the In-
ternational Space Station
at all times to maintain
safe operations of the or-
biting laboratory,” NASA
said in the news release.
“Flying integrated crews
assures the back-up capa-
bility in the event of a
problem with any crew
spacecraft or an emergen-
cy aboard the station that
requires a crew to return
to Earth sooner than
planned.”
Russian space agency
Roscosmos said the con-
tract is based on its exist-
ing liabilities in the agree-
ment with Axiom Space.
“The crew composition
change came as a result of
an earnest request from
the US side,” Roscosmos
said in its news release.
“NASA voiced its request
only in the end of 2020
meaning the Russian side
had to change the already
confirmed and approved
launch program. Roscos-
mos has taken this deci-
sion confirming its adher-
ence to the joint agree-
ments and the spirit of
joint usage of the Interna-
tional Space Station.”
The crew currently
aboard the station will re-
turn on Soyuz and Crew
Dragon spacecrafts in
April or May. NASA’s
SpaceX Crew-2 mission is
scheduled to launch April
22. The SpaceX Crew
Dragon will carry NASA
astronauts Shane Kim-
brough and Megan McAr-
thur, Japan Aerospace Ex-
ploration Agency astro-
naut Akihiko Hoshide and
European Space Agency
astronaut Thomas Pes-
quet.
andrea.leinfelder@chron.com
twitter.com/a_leinfelder

FOSTER CARE require support, clinical

From page A3
ance of Child and Family Ser-
vices, a network of organiza-
tions serving families and
children in the foster care
continuum. Right now, she
said, the count is “incredibly
high.”
“Which is a signal to all of
us that we are at a crisis point
with regard to being able to
meet the needs of all the kids
in the foster care system,” said
Olse, whose organization is a
DFPS partner.
The number of children
lacking placement has topped
100 each month since Octo-
ber; in January, it reached 148
children. The monthly aver-
age of children without place-
ment has climbed from 36 in
2017, 37 in 2018, 56 in 2019 and
70 in 2020, according to infor-
mation from the family servic-
es department.
Often, youth who lack
placement in foster care are
older youth with specialized
needs, the department said.
Employees with the family
services department are
working to streamline place-
ment practices to quickly
identify beds for youth wait-
ing for placement, Lanford
said. In some cases, commu-
nity or faith-based organiza-
tions provide temporary
placement.
Beyond a bed, children
who have experienced ne-
glect or abuse in their homes
services and therapy, as
well as typical needs like
schooling and play time
with friends, Olse said. In
the office spaces, kids are
under the supervision of
CPS caseworkers, not
trained caregivers, she
said.
“They’re not homes —
they’re offices,” Olse said.
“It’s what you would imag-
ine it to be like, as a child
without a home living in an
office.”
The number of children
being removed by the state
from their homes and en-
tering foster care has de-
clined in the last two years,
Olse said. The number bot-
tomed out just shy of
16,500 in fiscal year 2020
after hitting a peak of more
than 20,600 children in fis-
cal year 2018, according to
information from the Texas
Alliance organization.
However, a reduction in
children entering the sys-
tem does not necessarily
equal greater capacity, Olse
said. That’s because kids re-
moved from their homes
are staying longer in the
foster care system and typ-
ically have greater needs,
she said. Roughly half of
the children removed from
their homes in 2019 remain
in foster care to date.
“It’s really not just about
the number of kids and the
number of beds,” Olse said,
advocating for a holistic
look at the needs of chil-
dren. “We do not have
enough foster care place-
ment and services for the
highest needs children in
care.”
Meanwhile, the pan-
demic has made it difficult
to hire, train and retain a
workforce in the foster care
system, Olse said, as work-
ers cope with their own
personal pandemic-related
challenges. It’s difficult for
careteakers in group home
settings to help children
wear masks, social distance
or quarantine. Some foster
care homes went offline as
caretakers in high-risk
groups declined to take
more kids, but Olse said
most caretakers are “doing
everything they can.” The
pandemic has also disrupt-
ed the courts system, slow-
ing even juvenile and child
protection court cases.
The state remains re-
sponsible for implement-
ing foster care reforms de-
manded by U.S. District
Judge Janis Jack after a 2011
class-action lawsuit. In Feb-
ruary, Jack said she would
give state officials until May
to make progress on her or-
ders before sanctions, the
Texas Tribune reported.
Last year, the judge held
Texas officials in contempt
of court for failing to follow
her orders to make re-
forms.
anna.bauman@chron.com

WATER Turner added that cus-

From page A3
ing to “supersede that ac-
tion” when possible.
tomers who overpaid
cent of Public Works cus-
tomers had a leak on their
their water bill would re- property during the
ceive a credit applied to storm.
their April bills.
An estimated 25 per- jasper.scherer@chron.com
 CORONAVIRUS HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • PAGE A8 HH

Biden boosts U.S. vaccine stockpile by 100M

By Zeke Miller
A S S O C I AT E D PRE SS
WASHINGTON — President
Joe Biden on Wednesday direct-
ed his administration to order
another 100 million doses of the
Johnson & Johnson coronavirus
vaccine, growing a likely U.S.
surplus of doses later this year
while much of the rest of the
world struggles with deep short-
ages.
Even before Wednesday’s or-
der, the U.S. was to have enough
approved vaccine delivered by
mid-May to cover every adult
and enough for 400 million peo-
ple total by the end of July.
Enough doses to cover 200
million more people are on or-
der should vaccines from Astra-
Zeneca and Novavax receive ap-
proval from the Food and Drug
Administration. The new J&J
doses, which would cover an-
other 100 million people, are ex-
pected to be delivered in the lat-
ter half of the year.
White House aides said Bi-
den’s first priority is ensuring
that Americans are vaccinated
before considering distributing
doses elsewhere.
“We want to be oversupplied
and overprepared,” White
House press secretary Jen Psaki
said Wednesday, saying Biden
wanted contingencies in the
event of any unforeseen issues
with the existing production
timeline.
“We still don’t know which
vaccine will be most effective on
kids,” she added. “We still don’t
know the impact of variants or
the need for booster shots. And
these doses can be used for
booster shots as well as needed.
Obviously that’s still being stud-
ied by the FDA, but again we
want to be over-prepared as I
noted earlier.”
Biden’s announcement
comes as the White House has
rebuffed requests from U.S. al-
lies, including Mexico, Canada
and the European Union, for
vaccine doses produced in the
United States, where months of
production runs have produced
vaccine solely for use in the
country.
Meanwhile, Russia and China,
whose leaders don’t face voters
in free and fair elections, have
used their domestically pro-
duced shots for strategic lever-
age.
China has pledged roughly
half a billion doses of its vac-
cines to more than 45 countries,
according to a country-by-coun-
try tally by the Associated Press.
Four of China’s many vaccine
makers are claiming they will be
able to produce at least 2.6 bil-
lion doses this year.
Russia has sent millions of
doses of its Sputnik V vaccine to
countries around the world,
even as it vaccinates its own pop-
ulation. Analysts say a goal of
this vaccine diplomacy is to bol-
ster Russia’s image as a scientif-
ic, technological and benevolent
power, especially as other coun-
tries encounter shortages of CO-
VID-19 vaccines because richer
nations are scooping up the
Western-made versions.
Israel, which has vaccinated
more than half of its population
with Pfizer vaccines produced in
Europe, also has tried to use vac-
cine diplomacy to reward allies.
Biden did move to have the
U.S. contribute financially to the
United Nations and World
Health Organization-backed CO-
VAX alliance, which will help
share vaccine with more than 90
countries with lower and mid-
dle-income nations, but it hasn’t
commited to sharing any doses.
Biden’s purchasing strategy
has come under criticism from
nongovernmental organizations
who have encouraged the White
House to develop clear plans
and thresholds for sharing vac-
cine with the world.
“The only way to defeat this
virus for good is to defeat it ev-
erywhere — and that requires an
immediate plan for sharing ex-
cess vaccine doses globally,”
said Sarah Swinehart, senior di-
rector for communications at
The ONE Campaign.
Asked about the surplus Wed-
nesday, Biden told reporters
that “if we have a surplus, we’re
going to share it with the rest of
the world.”
“This is not something that
can be stopped by a fence no
matter how high you build a
fence or a wall. So we’re not go-
ing to be ultimately safe until the
world is safe,” Biden said. “So
we’re going to start off making
sure Americans are taken care of
first, but we’re then going to try
to help the rest of the world.”

L.A. district
reaches deal
to reopen
classrooms
A S S OC I AT E D PRE SS

LOS ANGELES — Students in the

nation’s second-largest school dis-
trict could return to class next
month under a tentative deal an-
nounced late Tuesday with the pow-
erful teachers union.
The Los Angeles Unified School
District and the union said the tenta-
tive agreement provides a number of
“safety parameters“ that would al-
low a partial reopening of campuses.
As with most other California
public schools, LAUSD’s more than
600,000 students have been learn-
ing online for almost a year because
of the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s our shared commitment to
the highest safety standards and
spirit of trust and collaboration we
will take with us back to schools,” Su-
perintendent Austin Beutner and
United Teachers Los Angeles Presi-
dent Cecily Myart-Cruz said in a joint
statement.
The plan, which needs ratifica-
tion by the school board and the
union membership, lays out a road
map for reopening schools after Los Emilio Morenatti / Associated Press
Angeles County drops from the Francisco Espana, 60, receives treatment for COVID-19 on Sept. 4 in a makeshift “hospital” by the sea in Barcelona, Spain.
state’s most-restrictive COVID-19 tier,

A year later, world looks back

purple, into the red tier, which coun-
tyofficials said couldhappenasearly
as this week.
Preschool and elementary
schoolers would return in mid-April.
Middle and high school students
would follow at the end of April.
Crucially, the agreement says
teachers, along with nurses and oth-
er union members, won’t have to re-
turn to work until they have been ful-
ly vaccinated for COVID-19.
The teachers union had demand-
ed such a requirement in refusing to
accept an earlier mid-April target
date.InastatementTuesday,howev-
er, Myart-Cruz said the agreement
meets “all of our key safety proto-
cols.“
The Board of Education appeared
ready to approve the agreement.
“It’s been a long tough year, but
this is truly the best possible out-
come,” member Jackie Goldberg
said.
Under the plan, preschoolers
would have full-day in-person in-
struction, while elementary school-
ers will use a hybrid model combin-
ing some time in class and the rest
online.
Class sessions will be staggered,
with some students going in the
morning and others in the afternoon
to keep classes small enough to per-
mit social distancing.
Students would still have the op-
tion of remaining entirely in distance
learning.
For now, students in middle and
high schools will continue learning
online, although they can return to
campus “for peer interaction, social-
emotional learning and lessons for
college and career exploration,“ ac-
cording to the statement.
All students and staff still must
wear masks and practice social dis-
tancing.
COVID’s anniversary
brings bad memories
for survivors globally
By Michelle R. Smith
and Andrew Meldrum
AS SOCIATED PR E S S
No one has been untouched.
Not the Michigan woman who awakened
one morning, her wife dead by her side.
Not the domestic worker in Mozam-
bique, her livelihood threatened by the
virus.
Not the North Carolina mother who
struggled to keep her business and her
family going amid rising anti-Asian ugli-
ness.
Not the sixth grader, exiled from the
classroom in the blink of an eye.
It happened a year ago.
“I expected to go back after that week,”
said Darelyn Maldonado, now 12. “I didn’t
think that it would take years.”
On March 11, 2020, when the World
Health Organization declared a pandemic,
few could foresee the long road ahead or
the many ways in which they would suffer
—- the deaths and agonies of millions, the
ruined economies, the disrupted lives and
near-universal loneliness and isolation.
A year later, some are dreaming of a
return to normal, thanks to vaccines that
seemed to materialize as if by magic. Oth-
ers live in places where the magic seems to
be reserved for wealthier worlds.
At the same time, people are looking
back at where they were when they first
understood how drastically life would
change.
On March 11, 2020, confirmed cases of
COVID-19 stood at 125,000, and reported
deaths stood at fewer than 5,000. Today,
117 million people are confirmed to have
been infected, and according to Johns
Hopkins, more than 2.6 million people
have died.
On that day, Italy closed shops and res-
taurants after locking down in the face of
10,000 reported infections. The NBA sus-
pended its season, and Tom Hanks, filming
a movie in Australia, announced he was
infected.
On that evening, President Donald
Trump addressed the nation from the Oval
Office, announcing restrictions on travel
from Europe that set off a trans-Atlantic
scramble. Airports flooded with unmasked
crowds in the days that followed. Soon,
they were empty.
And that, for much of the world, was
just the beginning.
Today, thanks to her vaccination, Mag-
gie Sedidi is optimistic: “By next year, or
maybe the year after, I really do hope that
people will be able to begin returning to
normal life.”
But it is a hard-earned optimism. Sedidi,
a 59-year-old nurse at Soweto’s Chris Hani
Baragwanath hospital, the largest hospital
in South Africa and the entire continent,
recalls she was devastated when the first
cases appeared there last March.
And she recalls being terrified when she
got COVID-19. Her manager fell ill at the
same time and died.
South Africa has had by far Africa’s
worst experience with the virus. The coun-
try of 60 million people has had more than
1.5 million confirmed cases, including
more than 50,000 deaths.
“You can imagine, I was really, really
frightened. I had all the symptoms. except
dying,” she said, with a survivor’s grim
smile. Her recuperation period was
lengthy.
“I had shortness of breath and tightness
of the chest. It lasted for six months,” she
said. “I didn’t think it would ever go away.”
But she mended, and she’s back at work
in the surgical ward. Others have not been
so lucky.
In the United States — the world’s most
COVID-wracked country — 29 million have
been infected, and 527,000 have died.
Latoria Glenn-Carr and her wife of six
years, Tyeisha, were diagnosed at a hospi-
tal emergency room near their home out-
side Detroit on Oct. 29. Despite Latoria’s
qualms, they were sent home.
Tyeisha, 43, died in bed next to her wife
three days later.
“I woke up on Sunday, and I didn’t feel a
pulse,” Glenn-Carr said.
One month later, COVID killed Glenn-
Carr’s mother, too.
In quiet times, in prayer, Glenn-Carr
thinks she should have pushed for the
hospital to keep Tyeisha, or should have
taken her to a different hospital. She’s also
angry at America’s political leaders — in
particular, Trump, who she believes was
more worried about the economy than
people’s lives.
“If he was more empathetic to the issues
and concerned about people, in general,
he would have taken it more seriously,”
she said. “And because of that, 500,000
people are dead.”
She joined a survivor’s group for people
who lost loved ones to COVID. They meet
weekly on Zoom, text each other and help
with the grieving process. Glenn-Carr
knows she will dread birthdays and Moth-
er’s Days that will go uncelebrated.
“Nothing goes back to the way it was,”
she said.

Coronavirus at a glance
117,978,628 29,149,380 2,700,187 2,618,403 529,067 44,896 Source: WHO,
CDC,
Johns
Confirmed cases Confirmed cases Confirmed cases Deaths Deaths Deaths Hopkins
University
worldwide in U.S. in Texas worldwide in U.S. in Texas

FROM THE COVER
CITY
From page A1
tion,” said City Controller Chris
Brown, who monitors the spend-
ing of Houston’s more than $5 bil-
lion city budget.
Many local governments, in-
cluding Houston, have seen their
sales tax revenues plummet as
the pandemic slowed consumer
spending on dining, tourism and
other leisure activity. And while
rising appraisal values mean the
city is projected to take in more
money from property taxes this
year than last, officials say the
pandemic’s true toll on property
tax revenue may not be felt until
early 2022, when homeowners
make payments for this year’s
not-yet-certified tax rolls.
Much to the relief of local offi-
cials, the latest round of federal
aid allows cities and counties to
spend the funds to replace reve-
nue lost due to the pandemic.
Trump administration rules
barred local governments from
using the first round of local CO-
VID relief to plug budget holes,
stipulating it could only cover ex-
penses tied directly to the pan-
demic, though Mayor Sylvester
Turner’s administration still was
able to use the funds to avoid fur-
loughing city employees.
‘Very optimistic’
Marvin Odum, the former Shell
executive appointed by the may-
or to oversee the city’s COVID re-
covery, said Wednesday he is
“very optimistic the funds will be
able to be used to mitigate the
city’s budget shortfalls resulting
from COVID-19.” Still, he noted
that beyond the broad language
in the bill, federal officials have
yet to release specific rules for
how local governments can
spend the funds.
“I’ll just caution that clarity on
the guidelines for these programs
tends to come over time. It’s not
RESCUE
From page A1
with children.
It couples the new pandemic
relief with what Democrats have
come to describe as one of the
most robust legislative responses
to poverty in a generation, seek-
ing to assist low-income families
who struggled financially long be-
fore the coronavirus took root.
Lawmakers also set aside tens
of billions of dollars to fund coro-
navirus testing, contact tracing
and vaccine deployment as they
aim to deliver on Biden’s recent
promise to produce enough inoc-
ulations for “every adult in Amer-
ica” by the end of May.
And the bill approves more
money to help schools reopen, al-
low restaurants and businesses to
stay afloat, and assist state and lo-
cal governments trying to meet
their financial needs.
“The Biden American Rescue
Plan is about the children, their
health, their education, (and) the
economic security of their fami-
lies,” said House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi, D-Calif., just before law-
makers gave the bill a final green
light, prompting cheers among
Democrats in the chamber. “This
legislation is one of the most
transformative and historic bills
any of us will ever have an oppor-
tunity to support.”
Widespread public support
Republicans banded together
in opposition Wednesday, much
as they had against an earlier ver-
sion of the proposal in the House
last month and the Senate bill’s
over the weekend.
The GOP approach evinced the
tough political climate Biden like-
ly will face even after preaching
political unity when he took of-
fice. Partisan tensions threaten to
overshadow his expected work in
the coming months to shepherd
major new investments in infra-
structure, overhaul the immigra-
tion system, and rethink other ele-
ments of the U.S. tax code.
“This isn’t a rescue bill. It isn’t a
relief bill. It is a laundry list of left-
wing priorities that predate the
pandemic and do not meet the
needs of American families,”
House Minority Leader Kevin Mc-
Carthy, R-Calif., said when the bill
was debated.
Republicans also pointed to an
increase in the deficit — which the
Treasury Department reported
Wednesday had soared by 68 per-
cent to $1 trillion in just the past
five months — arguing that the
package would add to an already
crushing debt burden.
But even as Republicans argued
that the plan was bloated and un-
affordable, surveys have found
that it has widespread support
among Americans, with 70 per-
City officials will have fewer restrictions in this round of stimulus funds, meaning some of the
money can be used to plug gaps in the budget that have widened because of the pandemic.
always available immediately,”
Odum said.
Republican lawmakers bitterly
opposed the local aid, including
Senate Minority Leader Mitch
McConnell, who accused Demo-
crats of sending “wheelbarrows
of cash to state and local bureau-
crats to bail out mismanagement
from before the pandemic.”
Meanwhile, local officials across
the country have warned they
would have to enact deep cuts to
city services, such as fire, police
and trash collection, without fed-
eral aid to offset their revenue
losses.
“Every mayor, every county
judge, every local official that I
visited with since before Decem-
ber, they all need help,” said U.S.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, a
cent favoring it in a Pew Research
Center poll released this week.
The bill now heads to Biden,
who’s expected to sign it Friday,
White House press secretary Jen
Psaki said. The signing will come a
day after the president is set to de-
liver his first prime-time television
address on the country’s response
to the pandemic.
“For weeks now, an over-
whelming percentage of Ameri-
cans — Democrats, Independents,
and Republicans — have made it
clear they support the American
Rescue Plan. Today, with final pas-
sage in the House of Representa-
tives, their voice has been heard,”
Biden said in a statement.
“This legislation is about giving
the backbone of this nation — the
essential workers, the working
people who built this country, the
people who keep this country go-
ing — a fighting chance,” he added.
With the American Rescue
Plan, lawmakers adopted their
sixth major coronavirus relief
package since the pandemic first
encroached on the country
roughly a year ago.
The sheer vastness of aid Con-
gress has adopted to date reflects
the contagion’s toll, with 29 mil-
lion cases, more than 529,000
deaths, and deep economic scars,
including 10 million fewer jobs
than at the start of the crisis.
The situation appeared espe-
cially grim in January, prompting
Biden to put forward the first de-
tails of his nearly $2 trillion stimu-
lus plan before he officially en-
tered the White House.
Since then, though, infections
have ticked downward, and vac-
cines have reached Americans
more efficiently. More workers
have returned to their jobs, spark-
ing concern among some lawmak-
ers and economists that the new
stimulus may be mismatched for
the moment.
Still, Democrats say the rate of
recovery hasn’t been robust
enough, and they stress that the
$1.9 trillion package given a final
green light in the House on Wed-
nesday will prevent the economy
from backsliding.
“We promised relief, the presi-
dent promised relief, and now
help is on the way,” Rep. John Yar-
muth, D-Ky., the chairman of the
House Budget Committee, said as
the House debate began Wednes-
day.
The newly adopted legislation
includes another round of $1,400
stimulus checks, which Biden and
his top aides have said should
reach a large number of Ameri-
cans by the end of the month.
Democratic leaders pledged to
authorize the payments in the fi-
nal days of the 2020 campaign,
seizing on the highly popular idea
to give them an electoral boost in
Georgia, where they later picked
up two Senate seats and ultimate-
HH
former Houston controller and
county commissioner. “Every
city in America will get dollars to
help with their revenue short-
falls. And that’s huge, because
they can keep the firefighters
working, they can keep police de-
partments open, they can get the
garbage picked up.”
Aid split in half
Even before the pandemic,
Houston officials in recent years
have scrambled to close major
city budget gaps, often dipping
into reserves to balance spending
and revenue. The city’s public
safety costs, which make up more
than half of spending on core ser-
vices, have steadily increased as
the budget remains capped by a
limit on how much property tax
President Joe Biden says the American Rescue Plan gives “the
working people … a fighting chance.”
ly took control of the chamber.
Millions of Americans who
were set to lose unemployment
benefits in a matter of days now
will received continued, en-
hanced federal payments of an ex-
tra $300 each week until early
September. Many workers who
collect unemployment also are set
to receive a tax break on those
benefits.
Adds to budget deficit
The new stimulus also includes
a dramatic expansion of the child
tax credit, for the first time seek-
ing to send out periodic, perhaps
monthly, payments to families
with kids. Biden and his congres-
sional Democratic allies have esti-
mated the changes could cut child
poverty by up to half.
The bill authorizes a wide vari-
ety of additional aid, including a
$5 billion expansion to federal
programs that help Americans af-
ford food in the pandemic and a
$7 billion effort to help students
get internet access.
In total, it includes $1.8 billion
in federal spending and is expect-
ed to add $1.85 billion to the deficit
over the next 10 years, according
to a congressional estimate.
In High Point, N.C., Sonya Rop-
er said she’s eager to start seeing
some of the help show up in her
bank account. The 51-year-old
home health aide has seen her
hours slashed, and her bills rise,
while caring for four grandchild-
ren who have been learning from
home during the pandemic.
Roper said the forthcoming aid,
including a $1,400 stimulus check,
would help her cover much-need-
ed car repairs.
Her Honda Pilot has broken
down twice and needs new tires,
brakes and an oil change, forcing
her to rely on her daughter’s car.
And she said the new child tax
changes could prove instrumental
once they’re in place, allowing
her to receive periodic payments
because she claims her grand-
children as dependents.
Yet Roper fears all of the new
money still might not be enough.
Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 |
Steve Gonzales / Staff photographer
revenue the city can take in each
year.
“It’s going to solve, in the short
term, some of these problems,
but the real challenge is, you can-
not solve a structural problem
with one-time financing sources,”
Brown said. “You actually have to
do the hard work to cut recurring
expenses. And that’s the only way
you can narrow that budget gap
over time.”
Local governments will receive
half their federal aid within 60
days of Friday, when President
Joe Biden will sign the bill into
law, according to White House
press secretary Jen Psaki. They
will receive the second half of the
funds at least a year later.
That means Houston will re-
ceive more than $300 million to
Oliver Contreras / Washington Post
“The $1,400 check comes
months after the last stimulus, so
all that check is going to do is help
people catch up,” she said, adding
that she needs “something ongo-
ing.”
Democrats didn’t get every-
thing they initially sought.
An earlier version of the stimu-
lus, which passed the House last
month, coupled the aid with the
first increase in the federal mini-
mum wage in decades. The idea
died in the Senate, where moder-
ate Democrats proved unwilling
to support the aggressive proce-
dural maneuvering that would
have been required to raise the
hourly rate.
The changes at the time ran-
kled some party lawmakers in the
House, as liberals felt they had a
broad mandate from voters in the
2020 election to enact sweeping
economic overhauls. But Demo-
crats soon lined up behind the bill
anyway, stressing that it still con-
tained significant relief that prom-
ises to help families amid the pan-
demic.
“Today, we are putting money
in the pockets of ordinary people,
of poor people, of the middle
class, and they will be an engine
that creates a healthy, prosperous
future for all of us,” Rep. Jan Scha-
kowsky, D-Ill., said during a
speech on the House floor.
Opposition’s reasons
Only one Democrat voted
against the measure: Rep. Jared
Golden of Maine, who has said the
party should have focused on a
narrower measure targeting vac-
cine funding.
In a statement describing his
vote, he said the Senate’s changes
didn’t assuage his concerns while
removing elements he did sup-
port, including the increase to the
minimum wage.
Republicans, meanwhile,
sought to portray the bill as waste-
ful and unnecessary. They cited
the fact that sums still remain
from past congressional packag-
es, including a nearly $1 trillion
law adopted in December. And
A9
offset its revenue losses next fis-
cal year, along with any potential
shortfall before the current fiscal
year ends June 30. Odum said the
city finance department is pro-
jecting a budget gap of between
$160 and $200 million next year,
while Brown — whose office gen-
erates its own estimates separate
from Turner’s administration —
said he expects the shortfall to be
even higher.
Brown noted that while fi-
nance department projections
assume the city will see a less-
than-1 percent reduction in sales
tax revenue this year, the actual
decrease has been 7 percent.
“The (Turner) administration,
I don’t think, has properly evalu-
ated the reductions in sales and
property tax,” Brown said.
“There’s a $40 million variance
between us and (the) finance (de-
partment) in sales tax alone.”
Other possible fund uses
Brown estimated city officials
will have to lay off about a dozen
city employees for every $1 mil-
lion trimmed from the budget,
meaning Houston could have
been looking at more than 2,000
layoffs without any federal aid.
Instead, Houston’s relief will
far exceed its budget deficit. The
city also is expected to devote a
chunk of the aid to direct COVID
relief, such as testing and vaccina-
tions. Turner’s administration
exhausted the previous round of
aid, totaling $405 million, in De-
cember. Those funds covered
contact tracing efforts, city work-
ers whose jobs were consumed
by COVID, and relief to renters
and small businesses, among oth-
er areas.
Turner, who proposes the an-
nual budget to city council each
year, did not respond to ques-
tions Wednesday about how he
intends to spend the new round
of relief aid.
jasper.scherer@chron.com
Plan highlights
Stimulus checks: The bill will
send $1,400 stimulus checks on
top of the $600 payments issued
through the stimulus bill passed
in December. Roughly $400
billion of the package will go
toward another round of checks.
Individuals earning $75,000 per
year and couples earning
$150,000 will get the full $1,400-
per-person benefit. But the bene-
fit would disappear for individu-
als earning more than $80,000
annually and couples earning
more than $160,000.
Child tax credit: Most Amer-
icans will get $3,000 a year for
each child ages 6 to 17, and
$3,600 for each child under age
6. The provision in the bill will
last one year and be sent by
direct deposit on a “periodic”
basis. It’s a major expansion of
the existing child tax credit,
which currently provides $2,000
a year for children from birth
through age 16.
Unemployment benefits: The
package extends the existing
$300 weekly unemployment
benefit through Sept. 6 and pro-
vides a tax break on $10,000 in
unemployment benefits.
State and local aid: The pack-
age designates $350 billion for
states, cities, tribal governments
and U.S. territories.
Pandemic response: Tens of
billions of dollars will fund coro-
navirus testing and contact trac-
ing; increase the size of the public
health workforce and fund vac-
cine distribution.
Washington Post
party leaders faulted Democrats
for focusing relief on aid programs
they say aren’t immediately relat-
ed to the pandemic.
“Democrats made a choice: a
choice to put their own partisan
political ambitions ahead of the
needs of the working class, ahead
of the needs of the American peo-
ple,” Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri,
the top Republican on the House’s
budget panel, said ahead of the
vote. “When our Democratic col-
leagues speak of unity, they mean
keeping their party together, not
keeping this country together.”
But Democrats countered that
the absence of GOP support — af-
ter lawmakers crossed the aisle to
approve prior stimulus packages
— reflected the party’s own politi-
cal calculations.
“There’s only one thing that’s
changed since we passed those
first five bills,” said House Major-
ity Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md.
“The need is there, the virus is still
with us, the economy is strug-
gling, but now we have a Demo-
cratic president.”
The New York Times contributed to
this report.
A10 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
CITY | STATE
MOORE
From page A3
After the Houston Chron-
icle published Abuse of
Faith, an investigation in
2019 that revealed how SBC
church leaders, employees
and volunteers had sexually
abused 700 people over the
past 20 years, Moore urged
SBC leaders to do more to
protect church members.
“Maybe you’re not the
abuser or the abused, but
you’re in a family where it’s
happening rampantly,”
Moore said at the SBC’s an-
nual meeting in Birming-
ham in 2019. “Our family is
sick. How do we get well?”
But in recent years, the
conservative wing of the
SBC has tried to silence
Moore. She said the push-
back started when she crit-
icized Donald Trump after
an Access Hollywood re-
cording caught him on tape
boasting about grabbing the
genitals of women and forc-
ing himself on them. Moore
SURGE
From page A3
glect our immigration sys-
tem, they intentionally
made it worse.”
“We’ve seen surges be-
fore,” Roberta Jacobson, a
former diplomat serving as
Biden’s border czar, said
during a White House me-
dia briefing Wednesday.
“Surges tend to respond to
hope, and there was a signif-
icant hope for a more hu-
mane policy after four years
of pent-up demand.”
The new figures come as
outlets including the New
York Times and CBS News
report that the number of
migrants apprehended at
the border has tripled in the
last two weeks.
Texas Republicans have
led the charge to pin the in-
flux on President Joe Bi-
den’s shift away from
Trump-era immigration re-
strictions as the GOP angles
HH
said she was shocked when
fellow evangelicals, who
had roundly criticized Bill
Clinton’s affair with Monica
Lewinsky, rallied around
Trump.
In 2019, when Moore and
SBC leaders called for re-
forms to prevent sexual
abuse in churches, conser-
vative pastors accused
Moore of overstepping her
biblical bounds as a woman
by delivering a sermon at a
church. Women are prohib-
ited from becoming pastors
in Southern Baptist church-
es.
Russell Moore, the head
of the SBC’s public policy
entity who is no relation to Jon Shapley / Staff photographer
Beth Moore, rebuked her Popular author Beth Moore has left the SBC amid
critics. controversies over sex abuse, race and women’s roles.
“A Southern Baptist Con-
vention that doesn’t have a SBC struggles to attract new of Black Baptist churches,
place for Beth Moore members. Charlie Dates in Chicago
doesn’t have a place for a lot The SBC has officially and Ralph West in Houston,
of us,” he said in 2019. apologized for its early announced they were leav-
Now Moore has decided stance on slavery, which ing the SBC after seminary
the SBC has no place for had split Baptists in 1845. leaders declared that criti-
her, raising questions about But controversies over race cal race theory, an academ-
whether supporters will fol- continue. ic field that examines how
low in her footsteps as the Two prominent pastors white supremacy perme-
Jerry Lara / Staff photographer
The Border Patrol says agents encountered 71,598 single adults in February,
along with 19,246 families and 9,457 unaccompanied children.
to make the surge the first surprising at all — this is tration is doing,” said U.S.
major political crisis of Bi- what you get when you in- Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a Hous-
den’s term. centivize illegal immigra- ton Republican. “CBP is
“These numbers aren’t tion like the Biden adminis- overwhelmed and this is un-
sustainable. We can stop
this by simply enforcing fed-
eral immigration laws and
reimplementing the poli-
cies that discourage illegal
immigration.”
Several Texans joined a
group of House Republicans
who held a news confer-
ence outside the Capitol on
Wednesday blaming Biden
for the increase reflected in
the new Border Patrol data.
“It’s a tragedy that could
be completely avoided,”
said U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-
Austin. “This is the Biden
border crisis. It is owned
completely and entirely by
President Biden and his ad-
ministration.”
Even some Democrats
along the border, mean-
while, have warned of an
emerging “crisis” and urged
the Biden administration to
do more.
‘The migrant president’
The vast majority of en-
counters the Border Patrol
reported in February —
71,598 — were with single
adults, though the number
of families and unaccompa-
nied children grew rapidly
from January. Border Patrol
reported encounters with
19,246 families, up from
7,399 the month before.
The agency reported en-
counters with 9,457 unac-
companied children, up
from 5,858 in January.
More than half of all fami-
lies trying to enter the U.S.
in February crossed
through the Rio Grande Val-
ley section of the border, a
sign that region of Texas will
continue to see capacity
challenges, said Jessica Bolt-
er, an analyst with the Mi-
gration Policy Institute.
“While the number of un-
accompanied kids arriving
has not surpassed past
peaks yet, if we continue to
see increases like the one in
February, it could surpass
past peaks by next month,”
Bolter said. “The biggest in-
creases were among fami-
lies from El Salvador, Guate-
mala, and especially Hon-
duras. This could end up
looking very similar to the
influx we saw in 2019, when
families ended up being the
biggest share of the flow.”
Jacobson said the admin-
istration is trying to expand
ates society, was “incom-
patible” with Baptist
faith.
“What the SBC semi-
nary presidents have
done has brought division
and confusion to the body
of Christ,” West wrote in
an opinion piece pub-
lished by the Baptist Stan-
dard that explained his
departure.
“American history has
been tainted with racism.
America codified it. And
more, our public and pri-
vate institutions propa-
gated it,” West wrote.
Moore said the SBC’s
publishing arm, Lifeway
Christian Resources, will
continue distributing her
books but will no longer
publish them or help or-
ganize Moore’s live
events, which have drawn
thousands of people.
“At the end of the day,
there comes a time when
you have to say, this is not
who I am,” Moore said.
john.tedesco@chron.com
legal avenues for people
to immigrate to the U.S.
The administration an-
nounced Wednesday it is
restarting a program that
allows parents legally in
the U.S. to request refugee
status for their children
living in certain Central
American countries.
Trump had ended the
program, which was
launched by the Obama
administration.
Jacobson said officials
are also looking at ways to
legally process people
who could qualify for asy-
lum in those countries be-
fore they leave for the U.S.
“This administration’s
belief is that we can get
our message across that it
is a more humane policy
by opening up avenues of
legal migration, which
will encourage people to
take those legal options
and go through the asy-
lum process,” Jacobson
said. “The message is:
‘You have another op-
tion.’”
“The border is not
open,” Jacobson said.
The administration
faces an uphill climb con-
vincing thousands of mi-
grants that’s the case.
“They see him as the
migrant president, and so
many feel they’re going to
reach the United States,”
Reuters reported Mexican
President Andrés Manuel
López Obrador saying of
Biden the morning after a
virtual meeting with his
U.S. counterpart on
March 1.
Overhaul proposed
Biden was quick to end
some Trump-era policies
that limited legal immigra-
tion and the president has
proposed a sweeping
overhaul in Congress.
That immigration package
includes $4 billion to fix
problems in the countries
that are causing migrants
to flee, including boosting
assistance to El Salvador,
Guatemala and Hondu-
ras, conditioned on those
nations’ ability to tackle
corruption, violence and
poverty.
That bill’s chances of
becoming law, however,
are slim as Republicans
have voiced strong oppo-
sition to elements of the
legislation that would
offer a pathway to citizen-
ship to up to 1.7 million
Texans who are in the
country without legal au-
thorization.
Nineteen Republicans
on the House Oversight
Committee, including U.S.
Reps. Michael Cloud of
Victoria and Pat Fallon of
Sherman, blasted the pro-
posal in a letter to Home-
land Security Secretary
Alejandro Mayorkas last
month: “The Biden Ad-
ministration’s policies
limiting immigration en-
forcement and weakening
border security, coupled
with its proposal to grant
amnesty to illegal immi-
grants, are signaling to the
world that our immigra-
tion laws can be violated
with little, if any, conse-
quence.”
ben.wermund@chron.com
SPACEX
From page A3
comes as SpaceX acceler-
ates the testing of its Star-
ship prototypes, which are
being developed to carry
humans to Mars.
“Thank you, South Texas
for your support!” Musk
tweeted in December.
“This is the gateway to
Mars.”
The Brownsville area has
waited years to see this up-
tick in activity. SpaceX for-
mally announced the Boca
Chica launch site in 2014 —
though the gossip, environ-
mental reviews and battle
for public opinion began
even earlier.
The plan was to launch
Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy
rockets, but progress was
slow.
Construction was de-
layed when SpaceX discov-
ered the ground was unsta-
ble. The company had to
truck in 310,000 cubic
yards of soil, enough to cov-
er a football field that's 13 to
14 stories tall. It was put on
top of the sand and left to
settle and compress before
construction.
Then a rocket broke
apart during an uncrewed
cargo flight to the Interna-
tional Space Station in 2015.
Another rocket exploded
during a test on the launch
pad in 2016. Both incidents
grounded SpaceX launches
temporarily, and Boca Chi-
ca was put on the back
burner.
So the Brownsville area
waited. And as residents
waited, Musk changed di-
rection. Instead of launch-
ing the Falcon 9 and Falcon
Heavy rockets, he would
build and test Starship pro-
totypes. One day, the Star-
ship spacecraft and Super
Heavy rocket might launch
humans into space from
South Texas.
Starhopper, an early
Starship prototype, took its
first hop in 2019 to test one
Raptor engine. It’s now a
beloved relic that, accord-
ing to the Army Corps of
Engineers document, will
be displayed near the
launch site’s primary vehi-
cle entrance.
The Starhopper was re-
placed by larger three-en-
gine Starship prototypes.
The most recent prototype
SN10, standing for Serial
No. 10, rose 6 miles above
South Texas last week and
then landed in an upright
vertical position — for a lit-
tle bit, anyway. The proto-
type exploded after sitting
on the landing pad for sev-
eral minutes.
To accommodate future
launches at Boca Chica, the
company’s proposed ex-
pansion will impact 10.94
acres of mud flats, 5.94
acres of estuarine wetlands
and 0.28 acres of non-tidal
wetlands, according to the
Army Corps of Engineers’
public notice.
SpaceX efforts to mini-
mize its impact on wet-
lands would include build-
ing the parking area in a
predominantly upland
area. Mitigation efforts are
in the works.
“SpaceX stated they are
developing a comprehen-
sive, multifaceted mitiga-
tion strategy for the Boca
Chica Launch Site,” accord-
ing to the public notice,
which is seeking comments
on the proposed expan-
sion. “This information will
be updated as the mitiga-
tion strategy is finalized.”
On Twitter, the SpaceX
development plans had
some people concerned
about the proximity of
launch and landing pads to
tanks holding propellant.
Others simply expressed
their excitement for the fu-
ture exploration of Mars.
And then there was,
well, Twitter being Twitter:
“Oh this map is just for
the public,” said @sagard-
goswami. “The original one
has special UFO landing
pad for Elon.”
Neither SpaceX nor
Cameron County, where
the SpaceX property is lo-
cated, responded to re-
quests for comment. Star-
ship prototype SN11 is get-
ting ready for its launch
day.
andrea.leinfelder@chron.com
twitter.com/a_leinfelder

FROM THE COVER
RESTAURANTS
From page A1
grocery stores and other busi-
nesses in Texas, entered brave-
new-world mode Wednesday
with no statewide mask mandate
and the ability to operate at 100
percent capacity. For the state’s
battered restaurant and bar in-
dustry, the day signaled the op-
portunity to recapture revenue
lost during a yearlong upheaval
from COVID-19.
It was a day of both relief and
anxiety as operators grappled
with what was best for their busi-
ness, workers and customers.
For the dining public and gro-
cery shoppers, Wednesday also
brought a new level of decision-
making about how to best negoti-
ate a new maskless realm.
While Texas continues to de-
bate Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision
to lift mask restrictions and open
business to 100 percent as the
country continues its pandemic
battle, the onus is on businesses
to decide how to operate. And
they are all over the board.
Differing approaches
Cedar Creek Bar & Grill in the
Heights opened Wednesday at
100 percent capacity but re-
quired servers to wear masks
and asked customers to mask up.
“We walked in without a mask
and we felt kind of awkward,”
said real estate agent and yoga
instructor Nicole Buechner, who
came in with her friend John De-
Leon.
As soon as Buechner and De-
Leon saw people were wearing
masks, they put theirs on.
Alan and Patience Stoddard
knew Wednesday was the first
day of lifted restrictions when
they went for lunch at Good
Vibes. If the restaurant had in-
sisted on masks, Alan Stoddard
said they would have turned
around. The couple, who sup-
port Abbott’s decision, said they
will not go to a business that now
requires masks.
“Most people don’t have
masks on for 95 percent of the
time they’re here anyway,” Nel-
son, the restaurant’s owner, said,
because people are eating and
drinking. “So not having to wear
a mask inside a restaurant is a lit-
tle bit of a relief.”
VACCINE
From page A1
Another boost, experts said, is
the emergency use authorization
of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine
in late February. The first ship-
ments of the one-dose shot start-
ed arriving last week.
“There are some points of care
where a one-dose vaccine is
hugely advantageous,” said Dr.
Esmaeil Porsa, Harris Health Sys-
tem CEO.
ELIGIBILITY
From page A1
cluded in priority group 1C, which
will expand eligibility to an esti-
mated12 to14 million people. More
than 93 percent of Texans who
have died from the virus have
been over 49 years old.
“We’ve seen a remarkable de-
crease in the number of hospital-
izations and deaths since people
65 and older started becoming ful-
ly vaccinated in January,” Imelda
Garcia, the chair of the state’s Ex-
pert Vaccine Allocation Panel, said
Wednesday. “Expanding to ages
50 to 64 will continue the state’s
priorities of protecting those at the
greatest risk of severe outcomes
and preserving the state’s health
care system.”
There are an estimated 5 million
Texans between the ages of 50 and
64, a group that has accounted for
more than 20 percent of the state’s
fatalities. More than 1 million Tex-
ans between those ages have al-
ready received at least one dose of
the vaccine, health officials said.
Still, the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention
recommend that essential work-
ers — including police officers, fire-
fighters, grocery store employees,
food service workers and journal-
ists — be prioritized for the vaccine
ahead of individuals over 50.
This week, Texas received more
than 1 million first doses of the CO-
VID-19 vaccine, a record number
mostly attributable to the addition
of 240,000 units of the one-shot
Johnson & Johnson vaccine. But
next week, Texas won’t receive
any doses of that vaccine due to a
federal shortage, Garcia said.
She expects the weekly supply
to rise again at the end of the
month.
Patrons enjoy lunch Wednesday at Woodshed Smokehouse in Levy Park. The restaurant is
keeping its safety measures in place, but chef Tim Love says, “We’re not the mask police.”
He added: “I think we’ll see a
bump in business, because we’re
in a good area that will allow us to
flourish a bit more with no
masks.”
Damian’s Cucina Italiana in
Midtown inched up to 75 percent
capacity but kept tables dis-
tanced and required staff and
guests to wear masks.
“Our business is suffering big
time, but at the same time we
want to make sure everyone is
safe,” said Johnny B. Mandola,
Damian’s general manager. “If
you come here and are worried
about exposure or enjoying
yourself, what’s the point? If we
can’t take care of our customers,
why would you want to come
here? As much as we suffered in
the last year, we want this to
end.”
So does the dining public, he
said, adding that since Abbott an-
nounced lifting the restrictions,
Damian’s has fielded calls asking
if the restaurant would continue
safe dining practices.
Chef Tim Love’s many restau-
rant concepts in Texas, including
Woodshed Smokehouse in Levy
Park, met Wednesday with safe-
ty measures that have been in
place since May: temperature
checks at the door, masks re-
quired for staff and highly sug-
gested for diners.
Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine
could be used to immunize peo-
ple who are homeless and people
who are unable to leave their
homes, Porsa said. The single
dose will be helpful in reaching
populations who may be harder
to find or do not have access to
transportation and could miss a
second dose.
The Texas Medical Center up-
date comes as Gov. Greg Abbott’s
rollback of pandemic restrictions
goes into effect. As of Wednes-
day, masks are no longer re-
Three vaccines have been ap-
proved for distribution in the Unit-
ed States. Two of them, made by
Pfizer and Moderna, require two
shots — administered about a
month apart — for full immuniza-
tion. The third is the single-shot
vaccine developed by Johnson &
Johnson.
The 1C announcement came on
the same day that Texas lifted its
COVID restrictions, including the
mask order Gov. Greg Abbott im-
plemented last July to slow the
spread of the virus. Abbott has cit-
ed the rapid increase in vaccina-
tions as part of the reason for re-
moving the state mandates.
“Most seniors have already re-
ceived a shot,” the governor tweet-
ed Wednesday. “Seniors who have
not received a shot & want one will
still be prioritized. Always volun-
tary.”
Local officials lauded the an-
nouncement as another step to-
ward normalcy.
“I think it’s a good thing,” said
Stephen Williams, the director of
the Houston Health Department.
“With the vaccine, we can certain-
ly see the light at the end of the
tunnel, but we can’t let our guard
down.”
While the federal government
continues to increase supply sent
to state and local vaccine provid-
ers, cities still need additional dos-
es to maintain the flow of vaccines
going into the communities at
highest risk for the virus, he said.
Officials have launched a series
of new initiatives in recent weeks
to reach those vulnerable groups,
including two mobile vaccination
programs for homebound seniors
and rural Texans. The state has al-
so partnered with the Federal
Emergency Management Agency
to open three vaccine mega-sites
in the Houston and Dallas-Fort
HH
“We’re not the mask police.
We never should have been. We
hope (guests) respect it and do
the right thing,” Love said. “If
you don’t like it, don’t come.
There’s no hard feelings. You de-
cide.”
But he hopes diners do come
and do decide to wear masks.
Love’s big barbecue restaurant
was in the unenviable position of
opening — along with two other
concepts in Levy Park — the day
after the Houston Livestock
Show and Rodeo shut down on
March 11 and a few days before
Harris County ordered bars and
restaurants closed.
“We’re doing everything the
best we can to earn a living and
support the 450 people we em-
ploy,” Love said. “It’s been a tu-
multuous year in our industry
without a doubt. None of us have
ever been in a situation like this
before.”
According to the Texas Restau-
rant Association, more than
10,000 restaurants have closed
during the pandemic, and more
than 80 percent of restaurants
reported lower sales from Janu-
ary 2020 to January 2021. Follow-
ing Abbott’s new directive to re-
open Texas businesses, the asso-
ciation suggested that restaurant
employees continue to wear
masks and pass health screen-
quired statewide and businesses
can reopen at 100 percent capac-
ity.
New recommendations from
the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention allow those who
have been fully vaccinated (peo-
ple who received their second
COVID-19 shot at least two weeks
ago) to gather in private spaces
with other fully vaccinated peo-
ple. However, the federal agency
advised the continued use of
masks in public.
Texas Medical Center leaders
Over 50 and want the COVID-19 vaccine?
HARRIS COUNTY PUBLIC
HEALTH
How to register: Harris County
Public Health is registering any-
one regardless of age or occupa-
tion on its online waitlist. The
system will prioritize people
according to state criteria for
vaccination. You won’t be al-
lowed to schedule an appoint-
ment until you’re in a prioritized
group. https://vacstrac.hctx.net/
landing
Patients who go to Harris Health
can call 713-873-8777 to schedule
a COVID-19 vaccine appointment.
HOUSTON HEALTH
DEPARTMENT
How to register: The department
now has two waitlists available
for the COVID-19 vaccine: one for
Pfizer and Moderna’s two-dose
series, and another for Johnson &
Johnson. You can sign up for
automated email, text message,
voice call or mobile app push
notifications for appointments at
https://HoustonEmergency.org/
covid19.
MONTGOMERY COUNTY
How to register: Montgomery
County has launched a waitlist at
https://mcphd-tx.org/. The The
county’s public health district is
filling vaccine appointments from
the waitlist. District officials said
to monitor the county’s Facebook
and Twitter pages for updates.
Worth areas, aiming to inoculate
underserved communities.
Black and Hispanic Texans have
been disproportionately impacted
by the pandemic but have also re-
ceived the vaccine at lower rates
Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 |
Brett Coomer / Staff photographer
ings and encourage guests to
wear masks when not seated at
their table. A survey of more
than 700 TRA members taken af-
ter Abbott’s announcement
found that 72 percent stated they
would continue to require em-
ployees to wear masks after
March 10.
Karen Fain said requiring
masks of employees and guests is
the right thing to do until COVID
numbers come down.
“For us, we feel that opening
up business to 100 percent is
fine. What we didn’t agree with
was the mask,” she said of Ab-
bott’s order. “That was prema-
ture and rushed. For us it didn’t
create a hardship because we felt
good about our current position
that we’ll continue to strive that
our customers feel safe and our
staff is comfortable and feels
safe. That’s what matters to us.”
Sean Stauble, owner of Rise
Rooftop bar in Midtown, said
he’s ready to open at 100 percent
capacity but cautiously. His staff
at the two-level, 13,000-square-
foot bar with a retractable roof
will continue to wear masks. Cus-
tomers will undergo tempera-
ture checks at entry and are en-
couraged to wear masks as they
move throughout the space.
“It’s not ‘Let’s go crazy; it’s
spring break.’ It’s not that way at
urged the public to continue fol-
lowing social distancing and
mask-wearing guidelines to pre-
vent spread.
The U.K. variant is now active-
ly spreading in Houston, accord-
ing to wastewater samples. The
city has also detected South Afri-
can and Brazilian variants but
does not have data on how preva-
lent they are in the community,
said Dr. David Persse, Houston
Health Department chief medical
officer.
It’s now a race against time to
FORT BEND COUNTY
How to register: Visit their site at
https://vaccinewaitlist.fortbend-
countytx.gov/ to register for the
waitlist. The county’s Health and
Human Services department
recommends taking the vaccine
elsewhere if given the opportuni-
ty.
GALVESTON COUNTY
How to register: Galveston County
and the University of Texas Medi-
cal Branch have launched their
own waitlist, accessible by phone
or web. People interested in get-
ting the vaccine can register re-
gardless of where they live or
whether they’re a UTMB patient.
Visit their website at
https://www.utmb.edu/covid-19/
vaccine or call 877-389-2318.
BRAZORIA COUNTY
How to register: Visit the Brazoria
County government website at
https://www.brazoriacoun-
tytx.gov/ or call one of four clinics
to make an appointment:
• Angleton 979-864-1484
• Alvin 281-585-3024
• Lake Jackson 979-265-4446
• Pearland 281-485-5344
• UTMB is also vaccinating at its
Angleton Danbury campus. To
sign up for the waitlist, visit
https://www.utmb.edu/covid-19/
vaccine.
than white people.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidal-
go welcomed the move.
“There is hope on the horizon,
and little by little, we’ll continue
getting through our population,”
A11
all,” he said. “I need to make
money, but I don’t want to be
marked as a spreader.”
While a few operators gave lo-
cal bars a bad name during the
pandemic, Stauble said this is a
time for bars to show leadership
in slowing the spread.
“There are bars here that are
doing everything right. It’s time
for those people to be reward-
ed,” he said. “We’re ready to
show the world we can be safe
again. We have to show Houston,
Texas, and the United States we
are being responsible at 100 per-
cent capacity.”
Kroger customers masked up
Masked customers walked in
and out of the city’s grocery
stores Wednesday as the state-
wide mask mandate lifted.
Gov. Greg Abbott’s rollback
made no difference to Blanca Lo-
pez, wearing a thick mask as she
neared the entrance to Kroger on
Buffalo Speedway.
“If people don’t want to wear
masks, that’s their problem,” she
said. Lopez said the virus spared
her family, early mask adopters,
so she plans to keep wearing
them. “I don’t want to get sick or
make other people sick,” she
said.
Sandy Dial, too, wore a thick,
colorful mask as she loaded gro-
ceries into her trunk. “I feel like
people should wear it continual-
ly, because we’re so close.”
Vaccinated shoppers such as
Brooke Stroud changed their
habits in recent weeks as a sec-
ond dose helped them breathe
easier in crowded spaces. Still,
he’s wearing a mask.
Stroud used to avoid busy
times, opting to shop at 7 a.m.
But since he got his second shot
last week, he said it feels safer to
shop in the afternoon.
Before Louise Brown got her
second shot last month, she’d get
her groceries only curbside.
“I really like being back in the
store,” she said, wearing two
masks while loading groceries in-
to her trunk.
“I’m double masking because
the CDC still recommends that.”
Amanda Drane contributed to this
report.
greg.morago@chron.com
emma.balter@chron.com
vaccinate the public against the
more infectious variants, said Dr.
Paul Klotman, Baylor College of
Medicine president.
“If we can continue to be rigor-
ous in mask wearing and public
health measures like physical dis-
tancing when appropriate, we’ll
be OK,” Klotman said. “But if not,
we’ll see a surge. And remember,
every surge is larger than the pre-
vious one.”
gwendolyn.wu@chron.com
twitter.com/gwendolynawu
Hidalgo said. “This is the time to
continue wearing our masks, con-
tinue avoiding crowds, and getting
the vaccine as soon as it becomes
available to us.”
County officials will continue to
push state and federal partners for
more vaccines, she said. In Harris
County,1.1million doses have been
administered, and more than
351,000 people have been fully
vaccinated, according to Hearst
Newspapers data.
The challenge, Hidalgo said, is
not having enough doses to hand
out to everyone on the wait lists.
“We knew it would be well into
the summer until we hit most of
our population. That’s going to re-
quire continued patience and per-
severance, and we ask the commu-
nity to continue to stick with us on
this,” she said.
In Galveston, the county health
department works in conjunction
with the University of Texas Medi-
cal Branch on mass vaccination ef-
forts.
“What I think DSHS is doing is
taking the temperature around
the state, and particularly for
places that have waitlists like us,
and finding that we’re getting the
people we’re targeting and decid-
ing it’s time to move on,” said Dr.
Philip Keiser, a professor of medi-
cine at UTMB and the local health
authority for Galveston County.
“We have a lot of people on our
waitlist between 50 and 64, and
don’t have that many people over
75. We have some over 65, but not
many. It’s not enough to continue
to vaccinate people at the same
rate.”
Jeremy Wallace contributed to this
report.
cayla.harris@express-news.net
julie.garcia@chron.com
gwendolyn.wu@chron.com

EDITORIAL
‘We cannot wait’
An analysis finds the VA denies more than
80 percent of claims tied to Gulf War Illness.
“Delay, deny, wait until we die.”
That “little saying,” a Gulf War veteran
recently told an interviewer for the Na-
tional Public Radio program “Here and
Now,” is what you’re likely to encounter
when you walk into a Veterans Adminis-
tration hospital complaining of debilitat-
ing symptoms from your combat experi-
ence 30 years ago. The symptoms almost
surely result from your exposure to pesti-
cides used in Kuwait or air-borne toxins
from massive open-air pits, some larger
than a football field, where trash and
human waste were burning. Anti-nerve
agents you and your comrades were or-
dered to take also might be culprits.
“It’s all in your head,” you’re likely to
hear, even though the symptoms may
include chronic diarrhea, constant pain
and fatigue, a persistent cough or serious
breathing problems. Gulf War vets also are
suffering from memory and neurological
issues. They’re dying from lung cancer.
No matter. The VA, claiming the absence
of sufficient scientific evidence, denies
more than 80 percent of claims related to
what has come to be called Gulf War Ill-
ness, according to a 2017 analysis by the
U.S. Government Accountability Office.
The same report noted that the VA esti-
mates 44 percent of veterans who served
in the Persian Gulf during 1990-1991 have
medical issues related to the illness, and
thousands of veterans who have since
served in the Global War on Terror have
reported similar conditions.
It seems we never learn that soldiers in
combat sacrifice their lives for their coun-
try, even when they survive bombs and
bullets. We owe them not only the best
care available but also an inclination to
trust that there is, in fact, a connection
between what they experienced in war-
time and what they’re enduring today.
The comedian Jon Stewart has become
a spokesperson for service members
dealing with Gulf War Illness, just as he
became an outspoken advocate for fire-
fighters and other first responders who
plunged into the lethal, smoldering wreck-
age of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.
“War after war after war, we treat them
as expendable,” Stewart told the Washing-
ton Post in an interview last fall. “And
when they come home, we’re done with
them. If an enemy did this to us, we’d …
bomb them into oblivion. We did it to
ourselves and we’re ignoring it.”
If the response to Gulf War Illness
sounds like a dreary rerun, it’s because it
is. For years, Vietnam War veterans ex-
posed to the chemical defoliant Agent
Orange had to combat similar levels of
skepticism from the VA. Fortunately,
things have changed for the better for the
Vietnam vets. Today the VA presumes
certain conditions are related to exposure
based on deployment history rather than
relying on veterans to prove they encoun-
tered the chemical at a certain place.
The estimated 3.5 million veterans of
the Gulf War or the post-9/11 Global War
on Terror who were potentially exposed
to burn pits and pesticides must still prove
any illness is connected to their service. It
Enveloped by loss, we’re still no good at grief
By Chris Vognar
The Facebook comment took the wind
out of me as I read it and sent the blood
rushing to my head. The sender was an
old teacher and friend.
“So what if your girlfriend died?” he
asked. “You’ve had plenty of girlfriends.”
He told me to man up, except he threw
some profanity into the command. It was
bizarre. He seemed angry with me for
expressing my grief.
I was shocked, but not surprised. The
United States has had a tragic amount of
practice grieving thanks to the COVID-19
pandemic. More than 500,000 deaths
mean more than 500,000 souls to
mourn, a wave of profound sadness con-
suming family and friends. We should be
good at this by now. But we’re not.
The grief expert and counselor David
Kessler likes to say we, as a culture, are
grief-illiterate. We don’t know how to act
around grief. And, a great deal of the
time, we don’t know what to say. My
now-former friend isn’t the only one to
bully the bereaved. Heck, he isn’t the only
one to bully me. Before Kate even died, of
a brain illness last July, I heard from an-
other friend who basically told me to stop
feeling sorry for myself.
It should be obvious, but apparently it’s
not: These aren’t things you should say to
the bereaved. The bereaved are fortunate
if they can get out of bed in the morning.
The bereaved look at the future without
their loved ones and wonder how, exact-
ly, they’re supposed to keep living. Many
of us fight survivor’s guilt on a daily basis,
an irrational plague that knows no logic.
Verbally abusing the bereaved is like
OPINION
HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • PAGE A12 HH
creates a hurdle that many affected veter-
ans can’t get past, despite efforts by Con-
gress over the years to improve their care.
Retired Marine Capt. David K. Winnitt
of New Braunfels, a disabled Gulf War
veteran who has worked as a review pan-
elist for congressionally directed medical
research programs, has seen the struggle
up close.
“On one hand you have Congress allo-
cating millions of dollars to the Congres-
sionally Directed Medical Research Pro-
grams each year for Gulf War Illness re-
search while another arm of the govern-
ment (the VA) continues to make it almost
impossible for veterans of that war to have
their illnesses service-connected,” he told
the editorial board Wednesday. “I’ve been
at both ends of the spectrum — a Veteran
suffering from Gulf War Illness and an
eight-year programmatic review panelist.
… The bureaucratic BS needs to end.”
Legislation co-sponsored by U.S. Sen.
Kirsten Gillibrand, D-New York, and U.S.
Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., an emergency
room physician, could signal a break-
through. If their bill passes, the VA would
drop the burden of proof and presume
veterans with certain conditions had been
exposed if they had service medals from
either the Gulf War or the Global War on
Terror or had been deployed to one of 34
countries named in the bill.
U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., also has
expressed support for toxic exposure-
related legislation. Bost is the ranking
Republican on the U.S. House Veterans
Affairs Committee.
Recently, advocates for Gulf War and
Global War on Terror veterans have found
another powerful advocate in the White
House. President Joe Biden has said he
suspects toxic exposure may have been
the cause of his son Beau’s fatal brain
cancer. The younger Biden served with
the Delaware Army National Guard at
Balad Air Base in Iraq, where the U.S.
military burned an estimated 140 tons of
waste daily in open-air pits. He was diag-
nosed with stage 4 glioblastoma.
“Eighteen months he lived, knowing he
was going to die,” Biden has said of his
son, who died in 2015 at age 46.
During his presidential campaign, Bi-
den promoted a plan to expand the list of
presumptive health conditions to include
exposure to burn pits and other environ-
mental toxins, extend the claim eligibility
period from one to five years, and to
pump $300 million into research to better
understand the impact of traumatic brain
injury and toxic exposures.
“Burn pits are our generation’s Agent
Orange,” Ruiz says. “We cannot wait or
delay or deny. …”
The Gulf War ended 30 years ago last
month. Later this year will mark 20 years
since the first deployments following 9/11.
Too many veterans are still suffering. Too
many are dying. It’s past time we paid
attention.
It’s time for action. We urge Biden, who
ends his speeches by asking God to pro-
tect our troops, to get busy assisting in
that endeavor.
Godofredo A. Vásquez / Staff file photo
Pallbearers put a casket in a hearse
during a service at Compean Funeral
Home in August.
kicking someone when he or she is down.
Kessler, who set up a Facebook grief
group when the pandemic cut down the
capacity to hold in-person meetings, is
also a grieving father: His 21-year-old son,
David, died of an accidental drug over-
dose four years ago. While grief has no
timeline, he says early grief often lasts
two years. That’s at least two years of
deep pain, usually with much more to
come. The second year, when the shock
has often worn off and reality sets in, can
be worse than the first.
Things you shouldn’t say to the be-
reaved during those two years (or, really,
ever): “Man up.” “Get over it.” “Quit feel-
ing sorry for yourself.” “Stop crying.” At
first I tried to roll with the punches of
such tone-deaf sentiments. They’re just
confused and ignorant, I would tell my-
self. I’ve since grown less tolerant. If you
LETTERS
Shame on the queen, royals
Silent or silenced?
Regarding “Meghan says life as royal
made her suicidal,” (D6, March 9): What
a royal mess! Shame on the queen be-
cause it was ultimately she who threw
Harry and Meghan under the bus.
Bill Silkowski, Galveston
Enough already! I’m astonished that
the American people are so interested in
England’s royal family. We see a steady
diet of what some call news about every
relationship between members of the
family and what may have been said or
not said. I will admit that Oprah’s in-
terview with Meghan and Harry got me
Joe Pugliese/Harpo Productions / TNS
when we learned that an unnamed mem-
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, opens
ber of the family was wondering about
up in her interview with Oprah
the color of the skin of their yet unborn
Winfrey on Sunday night.
son.
I wish the news media would drop the
was created. A far better location would
incessant coverage of the royals and
have been the Redstone Arsenal in
focus more on American people who are
Huntsville, Ala., where all of the rocket
struggling through the pandemic. I also
development was (and continues) being
urge the citizens of England to reject
done. But, what’s done is done.
supporting the royals and their castles to
NASA has chosen to locate a number
the tune of some $86 million in 2019 as
of new directorates associated with
estimated by Forbes. Kings and queens
flights beyond low Earth orbit to Hunts-
should disappear from all countries and
ville. Since I’m not privy to the factors
the focus should be on spreading democ-
associated with San Antonio or Colorado
racy throughout Mother Earth. I admire
Springs versus Huntsville, I won’t com-
Meghan and Harry for leaving the royal
ment on the current decision on the
family and joining the rest of us.
location of the U.S. Space Command
Jimmy Dunne, Houston
headquarters, but I will say from my
experience that Houston brings very little
Location, location, location to the party for a major military joint
Regarding “Space Command decision command and its proximity to the face of
reeks of politics,” (B6, March 8): Politics U.S. civilian international low Earth orbit
are always a factor in major basing deci- operations would be bad optics to the
sions. Locating the “Manned Spaceflight rest of the world. Plus, it’s location is
Center” in Houston was just such a politi- very risky given current climate trends.
cal decision. It became the “Johnson Ted Ankrum, former special assistant to the
Space Center” for obvious reasons. But, a administrator of NASA and former deputy
logical look at basing criteria would sug- director of facility engineering at NASA,
Houston
gest that Clear Lake was a poor choice.
The Mission Control Centers for, first, the
manned rocket launches and, now, the
Space Station were and are regularly put BIBLE VERSE
on reduced status because of hurricane
threats. Flooding of the low-lying area of We are careful to be honorable before
JSC is now a consideration. JSC was a the Lord, but we also want everyone else
greenfield site for relocation of manned to see that we are honorable.
activities from Norfolk, Va., when NASA 2 Corinthians 8:21
tell me to man up, I will probably never under the heading of basic human kind-
speak to you again. Life, as grief teaches ness. “How are you today?” “What can I
us, is way too short to keep listening to do?” “I’m so, so sorry.” “I’m thinking of
the insensitive. Now I tell myself that such you.” “Love you, man.” It’s hard to over-
people are in some way emotionally sick estimate the impact of such simple words
and incapable of basic human under- on someone who has lost hope.
standing. That’s unfortunate for them, Better yet, share your own story of
but I refuse to make it my problem. grief and survival. Tell me how you made
Then there are old friends who decide it to the other side. I read grief stories and
it’s best to say nothing at all. Some of memoirs largely for the evidence that the
them disappeared immediately. They writers survived. The same holds true for
wanted nothing to do with my grief and a conversation with a fellow griever. “You
the madness it brought out of me. Others made it through that? Wow. Maybe I can
expressed sympathy, and, as I plummeted make it through this.”
deeper into depression, concern. Still The truth is I’m no longer the same
others insisted they weren’t going any- person I was, because nobody who sur-
where, only to peel off once they realized vives grief comes out the same. The new
just how unforgiving grief could be. A me will respond differently to your words
select few showed up, dug their heels in, than the old me did. Sometimes it’s not
committed to sticking around — and then you. It’s me.
actually stuck around. My soul has been scraped raw, but I’m
Which brings us some of the things you still here, listening to you.
should say to someone who has turned
into a grief zombie. Some of these fall Vognar is a Houston-based freelance writer.
F o u n d e d 1 9 0 1 • A H e a r s t N e w s pa p e r
John C. McKeon, Publisher | john.mckeon@chron.com
Jack Sweeney, Chairman | jack.sweeney@chron.com
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OUTLOOK
Exhausted nurses
ask you to mask up
By Whitney Thurman
and Karen Johnson
As public health nurses working to
educate our future nursing workforce and
vaccinate Texans every day in our com-
munity, we have witnessed firsthand the
enormous toll that the pandemic, and
now the winter storm, has taken on
health care professionals and other front-
line workers. They have been forced to
work in unsafe conditions, without prop-
er PPE and even having to remove feces
from toilets without running water. And,
despite just learning that the U.S. would
have enough vaccines for every adult who
wants one in just three short months and
that Houston was the first city in the Unit-
ed States to record all major COVID
strains, Gov. Greg Abbott declared, “It is
now time to reopen Texas 100 percent.”
The governor once again gambles with
our safety, rescinding his single most
effective pandemic policy: a statewide
mask protocol.
While experts have been sounding the
alarm for weeks about more contagious
and potentially vaccine-resistant strains,
our governor has decided to sacrifice
hard-working Texans in order to gain
political favor. We were not altogether
surprised that he turned his back on
science that clearly tells us we are not
ready to go maskless. We are, however,
disappointed and frustrated with the
decision, as it goes against strong public
support for masks and sends a confusing,
dead wrong message to Texans that masks
are no longer needed. The science on
mask-wearing is settled: wearing masks
protects you and your neighbors, and
they work best when everyone is wearing
them. Our state lags behind other states
in its vaccination rates and is in danger of
never reaching herd immunity due to the
number of Texans who have stated they
would not get the vaccine. Masks are
indispensable in our fight to end the pan-
demic.
Despite the enormous toll that the
pandemic has taken on all of us, had we
cared to look, the experiences of the past
year could have taught us many valuable
lessons. We are all deeply connected, and
Paramedics transport a patient in need of dialysis to a hospital that still had
running water during the winter storm on Feb. 17 in Houston.
Manchin betrayed his ‘Republican friends’ on COVID
Marc A. Thiessen says the
W.Va. Democrat is signaling that he
will do the same on the climate and
infrastructure spending bill.
WASHINGTON — On Feb. 2, after 10
Senate Republicans went to the White
House and offered President Joe Biden a
path to a bipartisan filibuster-proof CO-
VID relief bill, Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-
W.Va., publicly backed their effort.
Speaking to Fox News’ Bret Baier, Man-
chin declared: “I have made it very clear
… we’re going to make this work in a
bipartisan way. My friends on the other
side are going to have input. And we’re
going to do something that we agree on.
I’m not just going to do it just down the
lines of, just saying party-line vote.” He
further told MSNBC, “If (Democrats)
think that they’re going to … just shove it
down people’s throats, that’s not going
to happen.”
Well, that is precisely what happened.
Biden rebuffed an offer from Repub-
licans to negotiate a compromise bill,
and Senate Democrats jammed his $1.9
trillion spending plan down people’s
throats on a party-line vote, using the
budget reconciliation process that re-
quires only a simple majority to pass.
And Manchin provided the deciding vote
that let them do it.
the task of public health is to think about
how to protect the common good. This
requires thinking of consequences of our
actions beyond our own individual
spheres, yet Abbott has once again ab-
dicated his responsibility to use the pow-
er of public policy to protect our intercon-
nected interests.
Individuals play a crucial role in stop-
ping the spread of COVID. We certainly
saw the power of individual goodwill
during the energy crisis last month as
concerned citizens across this great state
sprang into action to rescue stranded
neighbors and deliver food and water.
However, individuals as independent
actors simply do not have the resources
or authority to solve collective problems.
More than dictating personal behavior,
state protocols reinforce the importance
of the common good and provide political
cover for individuals and businesses who
want to do the right thing but are faced
with backlash from others.
Weeks and months from now, we will
look back on what could have been done
to prevent yet another foreseeable catas-
trophe. We, as nurse educators, will once
again encourage our students and col-
leagues who work in critical care to “hang
in there” despite the constant insults to
their sacrifice. And, just like with the
power grid catastrophe for which Abbott
holds substantial responsibility, he will
seek a scapegoat other than himself for
why we are facing another crisis of our
leaders’ making. On behalf of our
exhausted colleagues and those who have
unnecessarily lost their lives, we urge our
fellow Texans to remain diligent and prac-
tice more personal responsibility than our
governor has. Continue to double mask,
wash your hands, avoid crowds, get your
vaccine as soon as it becomes available to
you, and vote for leaders who will protect
and honor the wonderful people of this
state. We all deserve much better than to
be left in the cold dark, fending for our-
selves when crises hit.
Thurman and Johnson are faculty members
at the University of Texas at Austin School
of Nursing. This piece was first published in
the Dallas Morning News.
Godofredo A. Vásquez / Staff photographer
The lesson for conservatives is clear:
Manchin is not going to save us.
He’s from West Virginia, one of the
reddest states in the country, so he
needs to make a show of standing up to
his party. But a show is all that it is.
When Manchin announced he would
oppose Biden’s nomination of Neera
Tanden to run the Office of Management
and Budget, some saw it as a sign of his
willingness to buck his party. In fact, it
was nothing more than political cover
for his coming capitulation on his par-
ty’s $1.9 trillion miasma of special-in-
terest spending.
To provide further cover, Manchin
voted (along with seven other Demo-
crats) against an effort by Sen. Bernie
Sanders, I-Vt., to eviscerate the Byrd rule
and include a minimum-wage increase in
the budget reconciliation bill. He voted
for Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman’s
amendment to continue unemployment
benefits at the current level (before flip-
flopping and voting with the Democratic
leadership to wipe out the very provi-
sion for which he had just voted). But in
the end, he voted with his party to run
HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 |
Time to move beyond
the two-party system
By Chris Harte and Bill King
Today most Americans accept the two-p
arty system as an inevitability. Some even
believe that it is somehow written into our
Constitution. It is not and as recent events
have so vividly demonstrated, it has bec
ome a cancer on our national character. It
is past time to discard this fundamentally
corrupt and corrupting institution.
Our Founders were nearly unanimous
in their condemnation of political parties,
which they frequently referred to as “facti
ons.” John Adams best summarized their
sentiments:
“There is nothing which I dread so
much as a division of the republic into two
great parties … this, in my humble appreh
ension, is to be dreaded as the greatest
political evil under our Constitution.”
But the Founders had also guaranteed
the right of association in the Bill of Rights
and quickly discovered that people’s natu
ral desire to join in common cause and the
practicalities of running campaigns swam
ped their ideals of individuality. As soon as
George Washington exited the national
political stage, political parties quickly
became the dominating feature of our
politics.
However, the two-party system did not
achieve its current stranglehold until after
the Civil War. Before that there was a chur
ning of political parties, with various gro
ups rising and falling in popularity. The
Whig, Republican, Democrat, National
Republican, Free Soil, Anti-Masonic and
various factions of the Democratic-Republi
can parties competed for dominance.
But gradually the modern Democrat
and Republican parties began to consolid
ate their power and work together to cre
ate the duopoly that exists today through
various statutory schemes to exclude other
parties. The parties also increasingly use a
variety of methods to discipline or exclude
those who stray from ideological purity.
Frankly, the two-party system served
the country reasonably well for most of
the 20th century, mostly because, as Lee
Drutman points out in his book “Breaking
the Two-Party Doom Loop,” there was
considerable diversity of viewpoints within
the two major parties. But the rise of gerry
mandered districts, primary elections,
social media and 24-hour news channels
has amplified the extreme elements of our
body politic.
Even in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 atta
cks on the Capitol, the Republican Party
appears to remain the party of Donald
Trump while its principled leaders who
stood up to lies about the election have
been censured. That’s unacceptable, but
we’ve come to this point in part because
the two-party system is corrupted by spec
roughshod over the Republican minority
and pass one of the largest government
spending bills in history on a partisan
basis — exactly what he had promised
not to do.
Already, Manchin is signaling that he
will do the same on Biden’s next big
priority — a $2 trillion to $4 trillion cli-
mate and infrastructure spending bill.
Once again, he is talking tough for his
constituents back home.
“I’m not going to do it through recon-
ciliation,” as with the COVID spending
bill, Manchin told Axios’ Mike Allen. “I
am not going to get on a bill that cuts
(Republicans) out completely before we
start.” The message to the White House
is clear: Make a pretense of actually
negotiating this time, but in the end I’ll
be with you.
That’s not all. Manchin has said he
will “never” provide Democrats with the
deciding vote they need to eliminate the
legislative filibuster. Just last week, when
a reporter asked if setbacks to Biden’s
agenda would cause him to reconsider,
he replied: “Jesus Christ, what don’t you
understand about ‘never’?” But now, all
of a sudden, Manchin says he is open to
reforming the filibuster. On “Meet the
Press” on Sunday, he said “now if you
want to make it a little bit more painful,
make him stand there and talk, I’m will-
ing to look at any way we can” do that.
This makes no sense. The Senate elim-
inated the “talking filibuster” to help the
A13
Stefani Reynolds / Bloomberg
The authors note that the nation’s
founders were nearly unanimous in
condemning political parties.
ial interests.
According to a Gallup poll, for the last
decade over 40 percent of Americans have
refused to identify with either political
party. That number recently jumped to 50
percent. For those of us in that 40 percent
to 50 percent, we have mostly been forced
to go to the polls and make the least odorif
erously disgusting choice. We are tired of
doing that — no, we are sick and tired of
doing that.
The most imposing obstacle to creating
a multi-party system in our country is the
brainwashing the incumbent parties have
done on us that a new or third party can
never be successful. But we know from our
own history that is not the case — in fact,
the current Republican Party began as a
new, third party when the Whig party fell
out of favor.
Also, most democracies in the world
today, especially largerWestern democraci
es, have multiple parties. Indeed, the
handful which have only two viable parties
are outliers.
It is time for a new American party. One
that breaks the left-right dichotomy. One
where people of good faith can come and
reason together to reach common sense
solutions. One where people can civilly
disagree, where someone who disagrees
with us is not our enemy or un-American.
One where practicality is valued over
ideology and compromise is not a dirty
word.
We look at our grandchildren today and
we are determined not to leave them a
legacy of the current political dysfunction.
It takes nothing more than those of us who
still believe in civility, in reasonable discuss
ion and debate, in love of our country over
love of any party — to stand up!
As an ancient rabbinical saying asked
centuries ago — If not us, then who? If not
now — especially after what we have seen
in the last year — then when?
Harte is formerly the publisher of the
Minneapolis Star Tribune and chairman of
Harte-Hanks. King is a former mayor of
Kemah and a former editorial writer for the
Houston Chronicle.
majority party, not the minority. Repub-
licans would have no trouble sustaining
a talking filibuster, and unlike with the
current system, no other Senate busi-
ness — confirmation votes, other leg-
islation, etc. — could proceed. Returning
to a talking filibuster would make filibus-
ters more effective, not less. More likely,
Democrats will try to “reform” the fili-
buster by exempting legislation Biden
wants to pass and Republicans want to
block (such as granting statehood to the
District of Columbia), or creating a pro-
cess to overturn Supreme Court deci-
sions by simple majority, hollowing out
the filibuster until it is all but meaning-
less. Based on his COVID relief capitu-
lation, Republicans should not count on
Manchin to stop them.
For a short time, it looked as though
this was Manchin’s Senate. It looked as
though he was someone who would
stand by his commitments to those he
calls his “Republican friends” and that
there was hope the bipartisan group that
he started with Sen. Susan Collins, R-
Maine, to pass bipartisan COVID relief
during the Trump administration had a
future under Biden.
But it’s now clear: Manchin and the
other so-called moderate Democrats are
only interested in unity and compromise
when Republicans are in power. When
Democrats are in power, power rules.
twitter.com/marcthiessen
A14 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH
 BUSINESS
HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • SECTION B HH

9 DOW: 32,297.02, up 464.28 (1.5%) | 9 S&P: 3,898.81, up 23.37 (0.6%) | 9 OIL: $64.44, up 43 cents (0.7%) | 9 NATURAL GAS: $2.69, up 3 cents (1.1%)

“These families can’t squat in their houses forever.

It’ll turn it into a public health issue.” Home sales
in Houston
City Council member Tiffany Thomas, housing and community affairs committee member

set records
Market shows resiliency despite storm
By Katherine Feser What’s selling
STA F F W R I T E R
Change in sales volume
in February by price
The winter storm put a
category from previous year:
chill on Houston’s housing
Sales activity, by price range
market in February, ending
a five-month streak of dou- Up to $99,999 -40.6%
ble-digit sales gains. $100,000-$149,999 -42.8%
The number of single- $150,000-$249,999 -16.8%
family home sales rose to $250,000-$499,999 16.0%
6,049 in February, a 1.2 per- $500,000-$749,999 55.3%
cent increase over Febru- $750,000 and above 64.9%
ary 2020 and the ninth Share of sales
straight month of gains, the $100,000- $150,000-
$149,999 $249,999
Houston Association of Re- 34.1%
4.1%
altors reported Wednesday.
Year-over-year sales had
jumped more than 25 per- Less
than $250,000-
cent each month since Sep- $100,000 $499,999
tember. 2.0% 46.5%
“The Houston housing $750,000 $500,000
and up 5.0% $749,999
market showed resiliency 8.2%
Source: Houston
again last month, coming Association of Realtors Staff graphic
through strong despite the
brutal winter storm that in April and May of last year.
caused widespread power The median February
outages, property damage sales price reached a record
and briefly held up transac- $275,900, a 12.6 percent in-
tions and showings,” HAR crease over the previous
Chairman Richard Miranda year, according to HAR. The
said in the housing report. average also set a record,
Home sales during the rising 16.2 percent to
pandemic have been $349,963.
strong, rebounding a drop Housing continues on B7

Mark Mulligan / Staff photographer

Haitham Nash fills up bottles Sunday from a spigot outside a building at the Villas del Paseo to use inside
the apartment he shares with his parents. Nash was left without water for weeks after February’s storm.

Renters demand repairs

after weeks without water
By R.A. Schuetz
STA F F W R I T ER

F
or three weeks,
Haitham Nash did Courtesy Sonya Bertolino
not have running The home of a towering figure in the real estate
water. development world, the late Gerald D. Hines, is on
Three times a day, he’d the market for $34.5 million.
find time outside of running
a Mediterranean grocery
store in Katy to take seven
Hines’ River Oaks
5-gallon jugs and search for
the water his family needed
estate placed on the
to drink, clean and flush the
toilet. Three times a day, he
market for $34.5M
carried the 5-gallon jugs By R.A. Schuetz pool and a full-sized tennis
filled with water back to his STA F F W R I T E R court. It was designed by
Robert A.M. Stern Archi-
Villas del Paseo apartment.
The home of a towering tects and built in 1992.
His back started to feel the figure in the real estate de- Hines, who founded a
strain. Brett Coomer / Staff photographer velopment world, the late development company
Then, on Tuesday, the Daniel Ford packs up belongings to donate before moving from his Gerald D. Hines, is on the with the same name, is fa-
water finally returned. Montrose apartment because he still does not have reliable water there. market for $34.5 million. mous for developing bil-
The Hines Villa, which lions of dollars’ worth of
Nash was one of hundreds of Houston renters who conditions. Some are ending their leases. Others are drew inspiration from real estate across the world
were left without water for weeks after a bitter February organizing rent strikes. Hines’ trips to Tuscany, Ita- and bringing sought-after
winter storm left millions of Texans without power. Prop- There is no official tally of how many renters across ly, sprawls across 4.5 acres architects to his projects.
erty management companies face many of the same Houston were without access to potable water three in River Oaks between Buf- His developments include
problems as homeowners: difficulty booking a plumber weeks after the storm, because the city and Houston falo Bayou and Kirby Drive, Pennzoil Place, with its two
and a shortage of parts. As a result, many renters who Tenants’ Union are only aware of the apartment com- within walking distance of trapezoidal towers that
have abandoned their units — resorting to crashing with plexes at which tenants reach out. River Oaks Country Club. seem to face one another,
friends or family because they cannot cook, shower, do City Council member Tiffany Thomas, who chairs the The 17,000-square-foot es- and the Galleria mall.
their laundry or flush the toilet — think landlords should housing and community affairs committee, said she has tate at 2920 Lazy Lane Blvd.
give them concessions in recognition of uninhabitable Renters continues on B7 features five bedrooms, 11 rebecca.schuetz@chron.com
bathrooms, an enclosed twitter.com/raschuetz

Are ‘mask free’ areas the new smoking sections?

Texas gyms try new ment, there’s really no workout you
can’t do in that sectioned off area,”
Jennifer
Conerly of
approaches as state’s said Greg Johnson, general manag- Houston
mask mandate lifted er of the 24 Hour Fitness on West
18th. “So there’s options for both
works out in a
smaller gym
sides.” inside 24
By Amanda Drane It’s been a tough year for the Cali- Hour Fitness
STA F F WRIT E R fornia-based company. It filed for in the Heights
bankruptcy in June as the pandem- on Tuesday.
The statewide mask mandate for ic ravaged the in-person fitness in- With the
businesses lifted Wednesday, and dustry, closing a dozen gyms in the statewide
with it local gyms are expecting a Houston area as part of its reorgani- mask
lift of their own. zation. mandate
The rollback of the indoor mask Nearly a year after the pandemic lifted, 24
requirement presents an opportu- first hit Houston, Gov. Greg Abbott Hour Fitness
nity for gym operators such as 24 told Texans he is lifting an order re- will have a
Hour Fitness, which will create sep- quiring masks inside businesses. “gym within a
arate “masks required” areas with- For many gyms across Houston, gym” for
in its clubs across Texas, leaving the where operators have taken a more those who
main floors open for people who relaxed approach to mask man- want to wear
choose not to wear them. dates, members won’t notice a masks.
“We’ve got a good mix of equip- Gyms continues on B7 Elizabeth Conley / Staff photographer
B2 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
BUSINESS
BRIEFS
Airlines add
jobs; cargo
carriers soar
U.S. airlines are adding jobs as
industry employment extends a
rebound from a low in October,
when tens of thousands of airline
workers were briefly laid off after
federal payroll aid expired.
Cargo airlines have added jobs
while passenger airlines have
shed workers, mostly through
incentives for workers to quit or
take early retirement.
The Transportation Depart-
ment said this week that 713,949
people held full-time or part-
time jobs at airlines in mid-Janu-
ary, up from 694,638 in Decem-
ber.
However, the industry’s Janu-
ary employment was still down 5
percent from January 2020,
before the U.S. felt the brunt of
the coronavirus pandemic,
which has devastated air travel.
Delta Air Lines has made the
sharpest reduction in its work-
force, cutting nearly 28,000
jobs, or 30.9 percent of its work-
ers, since January 2020, accord-
ing to Transportation Depart-
ment data.
United Airlines cut more than
15,000 jobs, or 16.7 percent, in
the 12 months. American Airlines
eliminated 8,700 jobs, or 8 per-
cent of its workers, and South-
west shed more than 4,600 jobs,
or 7.5 percent. Hawaiian, Repub-
lic and JetBlue all reduced their
Deficit hits a record $1.05 trillion
Latest stimulus bill
could push that
to $3.4T for the year
By Martin Crutsinger
A S S OC I AT E D PRE SS
WASHINGTON — The U.S. gov-
ernment’s budget deficit through
February hit an all-time high of
$l.05 trillion for the first five
months of this budget year, as
spending to deal with the corona-
virus pandemic surged at a pace
far above an increase in tax reve-
nue.
The Treasury Department re-
ported Wednesday that the Octo-
ber through February deficit was
68 percent larger than the $624.5
billion deficit recorded during
the same period last year.
It easily surpassed the previ-
ous five-month deficit of $652 bil-
Airline
prices
$10 billion
debt sale
B L OOM BE RG
American Airlines Group Inc.
priced a $10 billion bond and loan
offering backed by its frequent-
flyer program as investors clam-
ored for the protection provided
by the special structure.
The carrier received around
$45 billion in orders on the total
$10 billion deal, according to peo-
ple with knowledge of the matter.
Roughly $30 billion of the de-
mand was for the bond portion.
On Wednesday, the company
boosted the size and cut borrow-
ing costs on the debt sale, making
it the largest ever by an airline.
American increased the bond
size by $1.5 billion total.
American’s record deal sur-
passed Delta Air Lines Inc.’s $9 bil-
lion sale in September, and a $6.8
billion transaction from United
Airlines Holdings Inc. in June.
All three used a special struc-
ture, pioneered by United, that
backstops the debt with the com-
pany’s frequent-flyer program.
Extracting value from rewards
programs has become a critical
lifeline for carriers that have
faced disrupted air travel for
more than a year due to the CO-
VID-19 pandemic.
Loyalty programs carry a lot of
value — around $18 billion to $30
billion, in American’s case —
which in part contributes to high-
er credit ratings on such deals.
Proceeds from American’s of-
fering will help refinance its $7.5
billion Treasury loan, of which
$550 million has been drawn to
date, according to an investor
presentation Monday. The re-
maining proceeds will be used for
general corporate purposes.
Travelers walk through Salt Lake City International Airport on
Tuesday. Airlines are extending their rebound and adding jobs.
workforces by more than 10
percent.
While passenger airlines have
totaled billions in losses during
the pandemic, it has been a
different story at cargo carriers.
FedEx’s express-delivery divi-
sion grew by about 24,000 jobs,
or 9.8 percent, United Parcel
Service added 183 jobs, or 2.9
percent, in its air-shipment busi-
ness, and smaller cargo carriers
such as Atlas Air also added jobs.
EARNINGS
Lego sales stack up to
records in lockdown
Sales of Lego sets surged last
year as consumers of all ages
turned to its iconic toy bricks
during global pandemic lock-
downs.
Net income rose 19 percent to
9.9 billion kroner ($1.6 billion),
lion set in 2010 when the govern-
ment was spending to try to lift
the country out of the deep re-
cession caused by the 2008 fi-
nancial crisis.
The Congressional Budget Of-
fice has projected that the deficit
for the budget year that ends on
Sept. 30 will be $2.3 trillion.
However, that estimate does not
include the cost of President Joe
Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID relief
measure, which cleared Con-
gress on Wednesday.
Last year’s deficit, also driven
higher by virus relief packages,
was a record $3.1 trillion.
Nancy Vanden Houten, senior
economist at Oxford Economics,
said she estimated the latest re-
lief measure will drive this year’s
deficit up to $3.4 trillion.
The deficit for the month of
February was $310.9 billion, up
from $236.3 billion in February
American Airlines canceled furlough notices for 13,000 workers after Congress passed the latest
round of stimulus funds, which includes $14 billion for the struggling airline industry.
American Air drops furloughs
as aid is extended six months
By Kyle Arnold
DALLAS M OR NING NEWS
American Airlines will cancel
furlough notices sent to 13,000
employees after Congress passed
a $1.9 trillion aid package, the
third pandemic-relief legislation
since the beginning of COVID-19 a
year ago.
Airlines are in line for $14 bil-
lion in grants and loans in ex-
change for promises not to fur-
lough or lay off employees until
the end of September.
That means that the govern-
ment will once again be subsidiz-
ing jobs for Fort Worth-based
American Airlines, which has al-
ready taken more than $9 billion
in stimulus aid and is likely in
line for another $3.1 billion with
this package.
“The bill is now on its way to
President Biden for his signature
so that it can be signed into law,”
said a letter to employees from
American Airlines CEO Doug
Parker and President Robert
Isom on Wednesday. “Once that
happens, it will extend the com-
mitment that all U.S.-based
American Airlines team mem-
HH
Rick Bowmer / Associated Press
the company, which is based in
western Denmark, said Wednes-
day. Sales gained 13 percent to
43.7 billion kroner, the most
Lego has ever brought in during
a single year.
Lego has invested heavily in
online platforms and products
that couple its colorful building
blocks with digitized elements,
and added about 25 percent to
its branded physical stores last
year, bringing its global presence
to 678 stores.
Lego, which is controlled by
the family of billionaire Kjeld
Kirk Kristiansen, said Wednes-
day it won market share globally
as well as in all its 12 largest mar-
kets in 2020.
Consumer sales grew by dou-
ble digits in all regions, with
especially strong growth in Chi-
na, the Americas, Western Eu-
rope and Asia Pacific.
2020, the month before the pan-
demic hit with force, shutting
down businesses and triggering
millions of job losses.
From October through Febru-
ary, government revenue is up 5.1
percent to $1.44 trillion while out-
lays are up 24.7 percent to $2.48
trillion. The deficit is the gap be-
tween revenues and outlays.
The deficit was pushed higher
by trillions of dollars in support
approved by Congress starting
last March, including a $900 bil-
lion measure approved in De-
cember that extended emergen-
cy unemployment benefits that
had expired.
Some of the big spending in-
creases noted in the Treasury De-
partment report include an addi-
tional $148 billion for the Labor
Department, with most of that in-
crease going to pay for unem-
ployment benefits for the mil-
bers will continue to receive pay
and benefits through Sept. 30,
2021.
”For our 13,000 colleagues
who received Worker Adjust-
ment and Retraining Notification
(WARN) notices last month,
those are happily canceled — you
can tear them up!,” the letter
said.
Southwest Airlines has re-
ceived about $5 billion in govern-
ment aid so far and would be in
line for roughly $1.7 billion more
under the new bill. The bill keeps
some of the same restraints on
airlines as previous stimulus
deals did, namely restrictions on
executive pay and dividends and
prohibitions against pay cuts.
Dallas-based Southwest said in
early January that it would not
furlough any employees or cut
pay in 2021.
The December stimulus bill
came nearly three months after
airlines began laying off employ-
ees Oct. 1. Those employees were
recalled and received paychecks
just before Christmas, including
17,500 at American Airlines.
However, many of them still have
not started working yet as air-
EARNINGS
Roblox shows gaming
is ‘swimming in cash’
For video game companies,
pandemic-related lockdowns has
meant gushers of cash. A record
$56.9 billion was spent on gam-
ing last year in the U.S., up 27
percent from 2019. On Wednes-
day, the pandemic’s booming
effect on gaming was even more
starkly on display when Roblox,
a gaming platform aimed at
children, went public.
Roblox opened its first day of
trading at $64.50 a share, up
more than 43 percent from a
reference price of $45 that was
set Tuesday. That valued Roblox
at $41.9 billion, up from $4 bil-
lion just over a year ago.
“The game industry’s swim-
ming in cash,” said Joost van
Dreunen, a New York University
professor who studies the busi-
ness of video games. “It’s just
raining money on these people,
on these companies.”
On average, 32.6 million peo-
ple a day logged into Roblox,
nearly double the 2019 average
of 17.6 million. While Roblox is
unprofitable, its revenue surged
82 percent to $924 million last
year.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Man sues over receipt
that proved innocence
A Michigan man who spent
nearly five years in prison is
suing a car rental company for
failing to produce in a timely
manner a receipt that would
have proved his innocence long
lions of workers who lost jobs
when the pandemic hit. There
was also an increase of $24 bil-
lion in support for the Agricul-
ture Department, with much of
that going to pay for increases to
government food assistance pro-
grams.
Mayra MacGuineas, president
of the Committee for a Responsi-
ble Federal Budget, said that if all
the temporary provisions in the
relief plan passed Wednesday get
extended or made permanent it
could end up adding $4 trillion to
the national debt over the next
decade, double the $1.9 trillion
advertised price tag.
“For all its flaws, we are hope-
ful this package will help end the
pandemic and will restore the
economy to its prior strength. At
that point, we’ll need a plan to
tackle our high and rising nation-
al debt,” MacGuineas said.
Lynda M. Gonzalez / Tribune News Service
lines struggle to bring back thou-
sands of workers with air travel
demand still depressed.
The December stimulus pack-
age gave airlines four months of
support and airlines issued fresh
furlough notices in early Febru-
ary, targeting April 1 for nearly
30,000 workers. This new pack-
age gives six months of support
as airlines are hoping travel de-
mand will accelerate as vaccine
distribution grows.
“For flight attendants and oth-
er aviation workers this bill pas-
sage means continuing the his-
toric workers-first Payroll Sup-
port Program that we achieved in
the CARES Act a year ago,” said a
statement from Sara Nelson,
president of the Association of
Flight Attendants, the country’s
largest flight attendants union
which includes some workers at
American Airlines subsidiaries.
“Aviation workers will receive a
paycheck and health care
through September, and stay
current on our certifications so
we’re in place to meet demand as
vaccinations are readily avail-
able and travel returns to the
skies.”
before he was convicted of a 2011
murder.
The evidence from Hertz was
finally obtained in 2018, leading
to Herbert Alford’s exoneration
last year.
Alford filed a lawsuit against
Hertz on Tuesday seeking fi-
nancial compensation.
Alford was convicted of sec-
ond-degree murder in 2016 in
the shooting death of Michael
Adams after Hertz failed to re-
spond to requests for records,
attorney Jamie White said.
In 2018, Hertz finally pro-
duced a receipt that showed
Alford was renting a car at a
Lansing-area airport at the time
that Adams was shot. The con-
viction was thrown out in 2020.
RENEWABLE ENERGY
GE now world’s top
wind turbine installer
General Electric Co. became
the top wind turbine installer in
the world last year as generous
subsidies supercharged the mar-
ket.
Renewable power developers
added a record 96.3 gigawatts of
wind turbines in 2020, up 58
percent from the year before,
according to research from
BloombergNEF. With solar, wind
is becoming one of the cheapest
ways to produce electricity and
help eliminate governments
dependence on fossil fuels.
GE led the way in the booming
U.S. and China markets, bump-
ing Vestas Wind Systems A/S
from the top spot for the first
time in five years.
From wire reports
Inflation
remained
mild as
gas prices
increased
By Nelson D. Schwartz
N EW YOR K T I M E S
Inflation rose modestly in Feb-
ruary, nudged by an increase in
gasoline prices that lifted the over-
all Consumer Price Index by 0.4
percent.
Excluding the volatile food and
energy categories, the index rose
by 0.1 percent, the Labor Depart-
ment reported Wednesday. With
the prospect of faster economic
growth on the horizon, investors
and market watchers have been
paying close attention to the
threat of heightened inflation, al-
though it has yet to materialize for
the most part.
The imminent passage of the Bi-
den administration’s $1.9 trillion
stimulus package has intensified
those worries, with some con-
cerned that the money will pour
fuel on an economy that is already
poised to heat up as businesses re-
open this spring and the pandem-
ic recedes in the face of wide-
spread vaccinations.
Gasoline prices alone were up
6.4 percent in February. But over-
all, the data matched expecta-
tions, suggesting inflation re-
mains under control, despite a re-
cent rise in prices for commodi-
ties like oil and copper.
“Outside of another buoyant
advance in energy prices in Febru-
ary, consumer price inflation re-
mains very tame,” said Kathy
Bostjancic, chief U.S. financial
economist at Oxford Economics.
Over the long term, inflation is
a concern because it erodes the
value of assets, especially stocks
and bonds. An uptick in bond
yields in recent weeks, which cor-
relate with inflation fears, helped
prompt a sell-off on Wall Street,
particularly among high-flying
tech stocks.
What’s more, once inflation be-
comes entrenched, it can be hard
to subdue, reawakening memo-
ries of the 1970s, when rampant
inflation haunted the U.S. econo-
my.
But conditions are far different
than they were back then, and
most mainstream economists
doubt a sustained bout of inflation
is on its way. The Federal Reserve,
which is committed to preserving
price stability, has signaled that it
intends to maintain its support for
the economy and not tighten
monetary policy anytime soon.
“The inflation narrative has
switched to concerns about rising
prices,” said Rubeela Farooqi,
chief U.S. economist at High Fre-
quency Economics. “For the Fed,
price response to the economy re-
opening is seen as transitory and
is unlikely to cause too much
angst, given inflation pressures
are not expected to be sustained.”
 HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | B3

MARKET SUMMARY
ENERGY FUTURES BLOOMBERG COMMODITY PRICE OUTLOOK ENERGY PRICES ETFs - $1,000 INVESTED IN EACH
Prices in U.S. dollars per unit for energy commodities for the contract closest to The median price of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg: Cash price in U.S. dollars paid at delivery for Performance of various index-based investment products:
delivery: various commodities:
2021 Forecast 2022 Forecast 2023 Forecast
ENERGY
Name C Date Open High Low Settle Chg Unit Name Last Price Pvs Day Unit $1K $1K $1K
Lt Sw Crude Apr 21 63.84 64.96 63.13 64.44 0.43 barrel Crude oil 53.82 57.00 57.00
Unleaded Gasoline - NY 2.06 2.01 gallon return return return
Natural Gas 2.75 2.70 2.70 Ticker Name 1mo 3mo 1yr
Natural gas Apr 21 2.65 2.71 2.62 2.69 0.03 MMBtu North Sea Brent 67.89 66.92 barrel XLE Energy Select Se 1,195 1,302 1,607
Gas blend Apr 21 2.04 2.09 2.02 2.08 0.03 gal W. Texas-Int. - Cushing 64.44 64.01 barrel XES SPDR Oil & Gas E 1,207 1,373 2,341
Heating oil Apr 21 1.90 1.93 1.88 1.92 0.01 gal Nat Gas - Henry Hub 2.60 2.55 MMBtu USO US Oil Fund 1,114 1,362 755
Ethanol Apr 21 1.80 1.80 1.80 1.80 0.01 gal
METALS
$1K $1K $1K
BLOOMBERG/CHRONICLE ENERGY INDEX return return return
Ticker Name 1mo 3mo 1yr
Top and bottom performers among Houston-based and other major energy companies: Performance of a basket of Houston-based and IAU iShares Gold T 935 939 1,048
Last Last other major energy companies over the past 12 66.77 SLV iShares Silver T 970 1,090 1,546
months:
Tick Name Price % Chg Volume Tick Name Price % Chg Volume
HDYNQ Hyperdynamics Corp 0.01 72.5 5,274 CDVIQ Cal Dive International 0.00 -14.9 543,377 Aug. 2007=100 SOFT/LIVESTOCK/GRAIN
RIG Transocean Ltd 4.68 18.5 76,039,562 DOFSQ Diamond Offshore Drilling 0.16 -5.8 648,240 $1K $1K $1K
70 return return return
SWN Southwestern Energy Co 4.40 13.7 30,752,130 EGY VAALCO Energy Inc 3.05 -5.3 1,495,623 Ticker Name 1mo 3mo 1yr
HUSA Houston American Energy 2.38 10.2 5,019,586 BHP BHP Group Ltd 72.97 -3.5 3,325,137 JO DJ-UBS Coffee 1,064 1,061 1,047
CNX CNX Resources Corp 14.86 9.4 1,272,679 MCF Contango Oil & Gas Co 4.89 0.0 2,839,999 CORN Teucrium Corn 1,026 1,212 1,215
HLX HelixEnergySolutionsGroup 6.68 7.6 3,174,140 DVN Devon Energy Corp 23.90 0.3 3,487,309 50 CANE Teucrium Sugar 1,024 1,145 1,139
NBR Nabors Industries Ltd 130.43 6.9 39,070 CKH SEACOR Holdings Inc 41.24 0.6 222,588 CATL ETFS Live Cattle 966 1,014 948
WTI W&T Offshore Inc 4.05 6.6 5,796,386 HES Hess Corp 70.89 0.6 1,082,677 COW iPath DJ-UBS Liv 1,008 1,096 967
VLO Valero Energy Corp 81.37 6.3 994,348 EPD Enterprise Prod Prtnrs 23.25 1.0 7,019,480 30
*Trades on London Stock Exchange
TTI TETRA Technologies Inc 2.79 6.1 2,555,617 EPM Evolution Petroleum Corp 4.17 1.5 115,068 M A M J J A S O N D J F M

AMC gains after virus losses begin to ebb

By Kelly Gilblom
B L OOMBE RG
AMC Entertainment Holdings
Inc., the largest movie-theater
chain in the world, rose in late
trading after posting a fourth-
quarter loss that was smaller
than analysts expected, benefit-
ing from the continued reopen-
ing of cinemas.
The company reported an ad-
justed fourth-quarter loss of $3.15
a share on Wednesday, com-
pared with the average analyst
expectation of a $3.53 loss. Reve-
nue slumped to $162.5 million.
AMC took noncash impairment
charges of $466.1 million. AMC’s liquidity profile,” Chief Ex- some listeners streamed it live on Attendance will probably still
The outlook is improving: The- ecutive Officer Adam Aron said in YouTube. Aron said their “enthu- be muted. Last year, 8.1 million
aters in the two largest U.S. mar- a statement. The company has siasm” for the company made customers visited the chain in the
kets, Los Angeles and New York raised about $2.2 billion from him optimistic. fourth quarter, down about 90
City, are opening back up, sug- new debt and equity since March About 90 percent of the Lea- percent from the same period
gesting ticket sales should contin- 2020, he said. wood, Kansas-based chain’s do- last year. In 2021, box-office re-
ue their rise from nearly zero AMC shares rose more than 11 mestic locations were open as of ceipts will probably be at least 50
during parts of 2020. The compa- percent extended trading. They March 5, while the company ex- percent below what they were in
ny has more than $1 billion in have more than quadrupled this pects most European locations to 2019, and the chain wouldn’t pre-
cash on hand and is confident it year, largely due to “meme” in- be back by May 7, when Walt Dis- dict when revenue would return
can ride out the rest of the pan- vestors who have pumped up the ney Co. is expected to release its to pre-pandemic levels.
demic without the risk of bank- stock. newest Marvel film, “Black Wid- While Reddit traders have
ruptcy. The appetite for AMC news ow.” The chain is now focused on caused AMC’s stock to soar, and
“Our most important single among Reddit-following inves- accommodating a “surge” of Aron said he is “ebullient” about
point of focus, after ensuring a tors was so strong that AMC’s moviegoers. It said about 40 ma- prospects in the next year, ana-
safe and clean environment for conference call reached capacity jor films were delayed in 2020 lysts have raised concerns that
our theater guests and work- and was offline for about 30 min- due to COVID and will start show- the underlying business remains
force, has been to strengthen utes for some users. Meanwhile, ing in the spring. troubled.

S&P 500 MOVERS MARKET INDEXES

Top and bottom performers based on one-day percentage change in stock price: Daily close of the Nasdaq Composite index and the S&P 500 over the past six months:
DAILY GAINERS DAILY LOSERS
Last 1-month Last 1-month NASDAQ 13,068.83 0.0% S&P 500 3,898.81 0.6%
Tick Name Price % Chg % Chg Volume Tick Name Price % Chg % Chg Volume
BEN FranklinResources 28.62 9.8 4.2 2,057,894 GE GeneralElectricCo 13.25 -5.4 16.2 29,713,028
MOS Mosaic Co/The 33.06 7.4 18.5 1,593,723 NRG NRG Energy Inc 40.74 -4.9 -5.4 851,511 15,000 4,000
BA Boeing Co/The 245.34 6.4 15.8 3,880,563 LRCX Lam Research Corp 518.70 -4.6 -2.6 762,006
VLO Valero Energy 81.37 6.3 25.0 994,348 PKI PerkinElmer Inc 120.35 -4.5 -18.3 405,484
HWM Howmet Aerospace 31.45 5.7 11.0 762,072 MU Micron Technology 85.41 -4.4 3.7 5,855,115
DISCK Discovery Inc 56.01 5.7 45.7 7,694,014 HOLX Hologic Inc 68.76 -4.3 -13.6 1,281,405
HFC HollyFrontier 40.97 5.6 29.1 551,077 TWTR Twitter Inc 64.83 -4.0 -4.3 5,414,255
CTVA Corteva Inc 47.00 5.1 9.2 1,143,923 WDC Western Digital 66.58 -4.0 10.3 1,456,212
3,600
OKE ONEOK Inc 50.95 4.7 13.9 587,993 TER Teradyne Inc 108.91 -3.9 -15.4 1,054,569
WAB WstnghsAirBrkTech 76.25 4.5 -8.2 284,997 KLAC KLA Corp 283.45 -3.6 -4.8 582,713 12,000 3,500

BLOOMBERG HOUSTON CHRONICLE 150 3,400

11,000
The Bloomberg Houston 150 includes major companies based in Houston and significant employers in the area. 3,300
Last Chg % Chg 52W Div Last Chg % Chg 52W Div
Name Ticker Price Day YTD 52W Low High Yld Name Ticker Price Day YTD 52W Low High Yld
10,000 3,200
AcdmySprts ASO 24.58 -0.51 18.6 12.05 28.00 - Luby's Inc LUB 3.30 0.01 16.2 0.46 3.43 -
AdmsRes & AE 31.99 0.99 32.7 15.16 33.80 3.00 LyndllBsll LYB 108.90 1.73 18.8 33.71 110.71 3.86 S O N D J F M S O N D J F M
AllgncBncs ABTX 41.84 0.80 22.6 20.88 42.27 1.15 Macy's Inc M 16.95 -0.16 50.7 4.38 22.30 -
Amazon.com AMZN 3057.64 -5.21 -6.1 1626.03 3552.25 - MainStCap MAIN 37.59 0.49 16.5 14.11 38.15 6.54
AmerNatGrp ANAT 101.51 1.49 5.6 63.93 101.59 3.23 Marthn Oil MRO 12.22 0.22 83.2 3.02 13.29 0.98 U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL STOCK INDEXES
APA Corp APA 21.63 0.03 52.4 3.80 23.85 0.46 MgnlOil & MGY 12.65 -0.13 79.2 3.23 13.24 -
Archrock AROC 10.49 0.26 21.1 2.09 10.80 5.53 MRC Global MRC 9.92 0.44 49.6 3.31 9.96 - Daily close and change in value for selected stock indexes:
AT&T Inc T 29.99 0.35 4.3 26.08 35.89 6.94 NatEnSvcsR NESR 13.32 -0.28 34.1 4.04 14.25 -
U.S. INDEXES
BHP Group BHP 72.97 -2.66 11.7 29.78 81.82 5.54 NblMdstPrt NBLX 15.42 0.29 48.0 1.81 15.56 4.86
Index Last Price Chg. % Chg YTD
Bk of Amer BAC 37.37 1.05 23.3 17.95 37.73 1.93 Nbrs Indst NBR 130.43 8.42 124.0 9.79 133.61 -
Dow Jones Ind. 32,297.02 464.28 1.5 5.5
BkrHghsCo BKR 24.38 0.43 16.9 9.12 25.64 2.95 NewparkRes NR 3.73 -0.02 94.3 0.65 4.08 -
Nasdaq Composite 13,068.83 -4.99 0.0 1.4
BlckStnMin BSM 9.56 0.19 43.1 4.04 10.13 7.32 NineEnSvc NINE 3.43 0.11 26.1 0.38 6.59 -
S&P 500 3,898.81 23.37 0.6 3.8
BncBlbVzcy BBVA 5.63 0.01 14.0 2.49 5.86 - NOV Inc NOV 16.76 0.64 22.1 7.70 17.50 -
BBG Houston 150 633.93 8.98 1.4 9.8
BnchmrkElc BHE 30.99 0.50 14.7 14.06 31.34 2.06 NOW Inc DNOW 11.68 0.43 62.7 4.03 11.75 -
DJ US Total Stk 41,060.42 274.90 0.7 4.7
Boeing Co BA 245.34 14.73 14.6 89.00 246.80 - NRG Energy NRG 40.74 -2.09 8.5 19.54 43.54 3.19
Russell 2000 2,285.68 40.62 1.8 15.7
BP PLC BP 26.65 0.54 29.9 14.74 28.57 4.73 NtrlResPrt NRP 17.69 -0.13 28.7 8.50 19.52 10.18
BristowGrp VTOL 28.49 0.62 8.2 10.50 30.82 - NxTrOlfldS NEX 4.93 0.18 43.3 1.00 5.74 -
Cactus Inc WHD 33.46 0.98 28.3 8.16 39.07 1.08 OccdntlPtr OXY 29.36 0.71 69.6 8.52 32.52 0.14 INTERNATIONAL INDEXES
Index Last Price Chg. % Chg YTD
CadenceBcp CADE 22.73 1.16 38.4 4.63 22.94 2.64 Ocnrng Int OII 14.87 0.80 87.0 2.01 15.40 -
FTSE 100 6,725.60 -4.74 -0.1 4.1
Cardtroncs CATM 38.67 0.15 9.5 15.71 42.09 - OilSttsInt OIS 9.25 0.35 84.3 1.52 9.49 -
Hang Seng 28,907.52 134.29 0.5 6.2
Carrg Svcs CSV 36.79 1.00 17.5 13.54 36.85 1.09 OrionGroup ORN 6.03 0.18 21.6 1.53 6.25 -
Mexico IPC 47,591.61 488.01 1.0 7.9
CbtOil & G COG 19.19 0.66 17.9 13.16 22.67 2.08 OssMdstPrt OMP 18.51 0.69 57.8 2.80 22.00 11.67
Nikkei 225 29,036.56 8.62 0.0 5.8
CBTX Inc CBTX 31.71 0.64 24.3 12.50 31.95 1.26 ParPacific PARR 19.13 1.00 36.8 5.72 19.47 -
S&P/Toronto SE 18,690.00 90.81 0.5 7.2
CenterPtEn CNP 21.32 0.42 -1.5 11.58 25.39 3.00 Penn VA PVAC 18.05 0.96 77.8 0.99 20.18 -
ChampionX CHX 24.43 1.82 59.7 2.89 24.52 - Phillips66 PSX 88.44 3.04 26.5 40.04 90.59 4.07
Chevron CVX 111.37 1.87 31.9 51.60 112.01 4.63 Phllps66Pr PSXP 31.08 0.72 17.7 19.00 48.51 11.24
ChnrEnPrtn CQP 42.36 1.74 20.2 17.75 42.66 6.18 Plains GP PAGP 9.90 0.44 19.6 2.78 12.00 7.27
CllnPtrCo CPE 38.73 1.81 194.3 3.90 40.98 - PlnsAllAme PAA 9.76 0.37 18.4 3.00 12.35 7.38
WHAT A U.S. DOLLAR IS WORTH IN . . .
CmdnPropTr CPT 103.82 1.33 3.9 62.48 110.00 3.20 PROS Inc PRO 46.89 0.32 -7.6 19.73 51.83 -
Value of the U.S. dollar in selected currencies:
CmfrtSysUS FIX 74.70 0.39 41.9 27.54 75.63 0.62 PrsprtyBnc PB 77.40 0.73 11.6 42.02 78.98 2.53
CntngOil & MCF 4.89 0.00 113.5 0.84 5.56 - Pttrsn-UTI PTEN 9.55 0.46 81.6 1.61 9.74 0.84 Currency Last 1-Mo Ago 6-Mo Ago 1-Yr Ago
Comcast CMCSA 57.21 1.64 9.2 31.71 57.69 1.75 Pwll Indst POWL 35.17 0.76 19.3 15.62 35.45 2.96 Australian Dollar 1.29 1.30 1.38 1.54
ConcPhllps COP 59.42 1.52 48.6 20.84 59.94 2.89 QnxBldngPr NX 27.30 0.45 23.1 7.90 27.81 1.17 Brazilian Real 5.67 5.38 5.32 4.64
Conn's Inc CONN 16.41 0.72 40.4 2.83 16.93 - QuantaSvcs PWR 85.49 2.26 18.7 23.77 87.67 0.28 British Pound 0.72 0.72 0.78 0.77
CrstwdEqyP CEQP 25.75 1.59 35.7 2.65 26.69 9.70 RylDtchShl RDS/A 44.38 1.18 26.3 21.26 44.48 3.00 Canadian Dollar 1.26 1.27 1.32 1.37
CrwnCstlIn CCI 151.94 0.90 -4.6 114.18 180.00 3.50 SchlmbrgrN SLB 29.95 0.60 37.2 11.87 30.07 1.67 Chilean Peso 726.25 726.16 770.47 835.73
CVR Energy CVI 24.58 1.38 65.0 9.81 25.74 - ShllMdstPr SHLX 13.34 0.75 32.3 5.70 16.18 13.79 Chinese Ren (yuan) 6.51 6.46 6.83 6.96
CVS Health CVS 72.70 1.47 6.4 52.04 77.23 2.75 SlctEnSvcs WTTR 6.94 0.26 69.3 2.22 7.58 - Colombian Peso 3,551.30 3,560.79 3,706.97 3,760.39
Devon En DVN 23.90 0.07 51.2 4.60 26.13 1.84 SlrsOlfldI SOI 14.02 0.73 72.2 4.50 14.10 2.99 Euro 0.84 0.83 0.85 0.89
DPntdeNmrs DD 76.69 1.05 7.8 28.33 87.27 1.56 SnnvEnInt NOVA 37.29 -2.02 -17.4 6.12 57.70 - Indian Rupee 72.91 72.85 73.46 74.09
DR Horton DHI 82.09 2.35 19.1 25.51 84.41 0.97 Spark En SPKE 10.62 0.05 11.0 5.25 12.40 6.83 Japanese Yen 108.40 104.59 106.13 105.64
Dril-Quip DRQ 39.43 0.85 33.1 22.25 40.62 - SprtofTXBn STXB 24.18 0.41 43.9 8.96 24.50 1.49 Mexican Peso 20.90 20.04 21.44 20.83
DXPEntrpr DXPE 32.71 0.32 47.1 10.44 35.98 - SthwstrnEn SWN 4.40 0.53 47.7 1.15 4.69 - Norwegian Krone 8.43 8.46 9.08 9.59
EntrprsPro EPD 23.25 0.23 18.7 10.27 23.58 7.74 StrlngCnst STRL 22.42 1.04 20.5 6.72 24.49 - S. African Rand 15.08 14.75 16.91 15.94
EOG Res EOG 75.11 1.50 50.6 27.00 77.15 2.20 StwrtInfoS STC 53.24 1.36 10.1 20.26 55.93 2.48 S. Korean Won 1,142.50 1,106.85 1,184.80 1,193.15
Exterran EXTN 4.40 -0.14 -0.5 3.23 8.93 - Sunoco LP SUN 31.81 0.46 10.5 10.46 33.00 10.38 Singapore Dollar 1.34 1.33 1.37 1.39
ExxonMobil XOM 61.77 1.84 49.9 30.11 61.92 5.63 Svc Int/U SCI 47.20 -0.37 -3.9 33.93 54.67 1.78 Taiwan Dollar 28.33 28.00 29.36 30.00
Fltk Indst FTK 2.20 0.06 4.3 0.66 3.09 - SWArlnsCo LUV 58.51 -0.42 25.5 22.47 60.70 -
Fluor Corp FLR 19.94 1.19 24.9 2.85 21.50 - Sysco Corp SYY 81.23 1.87 9.4 26.00 83.19 2.22
FrmEnTech FET 23.06 0.34 93.8 3.00 24.12 - Talos En TALO 13.53 0.53 64.2 5.00 16.81 - TREASURIES, INTEREST RATES
Frprt-McMR FCX 34.46 0.60 32.4 4.82 39.10 - Targa Res TRGP 34.40 1.01 30.4 3.66 35.27 1.16
GenElctrCo GE 13.25 -0.75 22.7 5.48 14.42 0.30 Target TGT 178.58 -0.60 1.2 90.17 199.96 1.52 Yields for the most recently issued securities:
Genesis En GEL 8.99 0.33 44.8 2.58 12.08 6.67 TC Energy TRP 46.03 0.70 13.0 32.37 49.95 5.97 TREASURIES
Gespc Tech GEOS 10.83 0.06 26.5 4.61 12.40 - Team Inc TISI 12.50 0.06 14.7 3.75 13.84 - Last Yld Pvs Yld 1Day Yld Wk Yld Mo Yld 3-Mo Yld Yr
Bill/Note Yld Day Clo Net Chg Ago Ago Ago Ago
Godrch Ptr GDP 10.88 0.82 7.8 2.92 13.30 - TechnipFMC FTI 9.09 0.42 30.0 3.34 9.70 1.43
3-month t-bill 0.04 0.03 0.00 0.04 0.04 0.07 0.46
Grp 1 Auto GPI 168.41 7.58 28.4 26.26 171.18 0.74 TETRA Tech TTI 2.79 0.16 223.9 0.22 2.84 -
6 month t-bill 0.05 0.05 0.01 0.06 0.05 0.08 0.45
Hess Corp HES 70.89 0.39 34.3 26.06 76.24 1.41 Tidewater TDW 14.38 -0.09 66.4 4.09 15.92 -
2-year t note 0.16 0.16 -0.01 0.14 0.11 0.14 0.54
Hess Midst HESM 23.23 0.08 18.7 5.70 23.66 7.70 TOTAL SE TOT 49.61 1.36 18.4 22.13 49.64 6.46
5-year t note 0.79 0.81 -0.01 0.73 0.45 0.39 0.67
Hllbrtn Co HAL 24.14 0.67 27.7 4.25 24.74 0.75 Transocean RIG 4.68 0.73 102.6 0.65 4.81 -
10-year t note 1.53 1.53 -0.01 1.48 1.12 0.91 0.81
HlxEnSolGr HLX 6.68 0.47 59.0 0.99 6.70 - Untd Arlns UAL 53.92 0.49 24.7 17.80 55.93 -
30-year t bond 2.25 2.24 0.01 2.28 1.91 1.63 1.28
Howrd Hghs HHC 96.49 1.35 22.2 35.10 103.00 - UntdPrclSv UPS 165.23 1.96 -1.9 82.00 178.01 2.47
HstnWire & HWCC 3.90 0.00 39.8 1.67 4.75 - US Silica SLCA 14.47 0.65 106.1 0.79 15.16 -
Huntsman HUN 28.60 0.99 13.8 12.23 29.49 2.27 Valero En VLO 81.37 4.79 43.8 31.00 82.60 4.82 PRIME, FED FUNDS
HwlttPckrd HPE 15.15 0.29 27.8 7.43 15.27 3.17 Verzn Comm VZ 57.08 0.88 -2.8 48.84 61.95 4.40 Rate 6-month change 1-year change
Bloomberg Prime Rate 3.25 0.00 -23.53
IES Inc IESC 51.91 -0.33 12.7 13.73 55.30 - W&T Offsh WTI 4.05 0.25 86.6 1.07 5.00 -
Fed Funds Target 0.25 0.00 -80.00
Insperity NSP 93.13 0.41 14.4 22.59 95.78 1.72 Walmart WMT 132.18 3.29 -8.3 102.00 153.66 1.66
IONGeophys IO 2.86 0.07 17.7 1.13 5.35 - Wast Cnnct WCN 102.90 0.41 0.3 70.87 111.04 0.80
JcbsEngGrp J 124.75 3.10 14.5 59.29 124.98 0.67 Waste Mgmt WM 121.69 2.09 3.2 85.34 125.56 1.89 COMMODITY PRICES
JPMrgnChs JPM 155.13 3.30 22.1 76.91 156.16 2.32 WhtstnREIT WSR 10.10 0.30 26.7 4.71 11.75 4.26
Closing values for the most active contract of various commodities:
KBR Inc KBR 33.35 1.26 7.8 12.00 33.39 1.20 WlgrnsBtsA WBA 50.52 2.06 26.7 33.36 55.49 3.70
Kindr Mrgn KMI 16.24 0.57 18.8 9.42 17.97 6.47 WllsFrg & WFC 39.58 1.45 31.1 20.76 39.70 1.01 METALS
Kirby Corp KEX 67.24 1.79 29.7 32.76 67.35 - WngrtnRlty WRI 26.93 0.24 24.3 12.01 27.41 4.46 Name C Date Last Price Pvs Close Day % Chg YTD % Chg Unit
Kraton KRA 39.86 0.75 43.4 4.45 45.89 - Wstlk Chem WLK 93.72 2.08 14.9 28.99 95.36 1.15 Copper May 21 4.03 4.01 0.7 14.6 usd/pd
Kroger Co KR 35.24 0.78 11.0 27.33 42.99 2.04 WstlkChemP WLKP 24.98 0.53 4.8 10.31 25.00 7.55 Gold Apr 21 1,721.80 1,716.90 0.4 -9.3 usd/oz
LGI Homes LGIH 137.94 3.94 30.3 33.00 140.26 - WstrnMdstP WES 20.10 1.43 45.4 2.90 20.90 6.19 Palladium Jun 21 2,293.20 2,292.20 0.3 -6.6 usd/oz
Platinum Apr 21 1,201.80 1,175.40 2.2 11.4 usd/oz
BLOOMBERG HOUSTON CHRONICLE 150 MOVERS Silver May 21 26.13 26.18 0.4 -0.7 usd/oz
Daily Gainers Daily Losers
Last 1-day 1-month Last 1-day 1-month AGRICULTURE
Tick Name Price % Chg %Chg Volume Tick Name Price % Chg %Chg Volume
RIG Transocean Ltd 4.68 18.5 28.2 76,039,562 GE General Electric Co 13.25 -5.4 16.2 218,739,293 Name C Date Last Price Pvs Close Day % Chg YTD % Chg Unit
SWN Southwestern Energy Co 4.40 13.7 0.5 30,752,130 NOVA Sunnova En International 37.29 -5.1 -28.6 2,895,305 Live Cattle Jun 21 1.19 1.20 -0.5 3.8 usd/pd
GDP Goodrich Petroleum Corp 10.88 8.2 3.6 91,118 NRG NRG Energy Inc 40.74 -4.9 -5.4 4,480,695 Coffee May 21 1.31 1.30 0.3 0.5 usd/pd
CHX ChampionX Corp 24.43 8.0 41.5 3,730,468 BHP BHP Group Ltd 72.97 -3.5 4.5 3,325,137 Corn May 21 5.34 5.46 -2.4 10.2 usd/bu
WES WesternMidstreamPartners 20.10 7.7 21.1 4,814,662 EXTN Exterran Corp 4.40 -3.1 -12.5 344,228 Cotton May 21 0.85 0.84 1.1 8.3 usd/pd
HLX HelixEnergySolutionsGroup 6.68 7.6 38.9 3,174,140 NESR Natl En Services Reunited 13.32 -2.1 8.8 540,675 Lumber May 21 903.70 909.10 -0.6 40.7 usd/bd ft
NBR Nabors Industries Ltd 130.43 6.9 53.1 159,250 ASO Academy Sports & Outdoors 24.58 -2.0 -3.8 1,797,967 Orange Juice May 21 1.14 1.12 1.6 -9.8 usd/pd
WTI W&T Offshore Inc 4.05 6.6 38.2 5,796,386 MGY Magnolia Oil & Gas Corp 12.65 -1.0 27.9 2,314,186 Soybean May 21 14.10 14.40 -2.2 7.8 usd/bu
CEQP Crestwood Equity Partners 25.75 6.6 21.1 875,948 M Macy's Inc 16.95 -0.9 10.6 18,506,275 Wheat May 21 6.53 6.57 -0.7 2.0 usd/bu
BA Boeing Co/The 245.34 6.4 15.8 27,352,445 SCI Service International/US 47.20 -0.8 -11.7 1,376,027
B4 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

BUSINESS

Long-term scars left on global job market

COVID-19 recession has been cruel
to those at bottom of the pay scale
By Paul Wiseman and
Alexandra Olson
A S S OC I AT E D PRE SS
Esther Montanez’s houseclean-
ing job at the Hilton Back Bay in
Boston was a lifeline for her, a 31-
year-old single mother with a 5-
year-old son.
The pay was steady and solid —
enough to pay her bills and still
have money left over to sock away
savings for her child.
But when the pandemic
slammed the U.S. economy a year
ago, it swept away her job — and
millions of others. Since then,
Montanez has siphoned away
money from her son’s savings to
meet expenses. She’s getting by
on unemployment aid and, for
the first time, has applied for food
stamps.
“The truth is, I want my job
back,” Montanez said.
Getting back the jobs lost to the
pandemic is likely to prove a
struggle. Even as viral vaccines in-
creasingly promise a return to
something close to normal life,
the coronavirus seems sure to
leave permanent scars on the job
market. Millions of jobs lost likely
won’t come back — especially at
employers that require face-to-
face contact with consumers: ho-
tels, restaurants, retailers, enter-
tainment venues.
If the habits that many picked
up during the pandemic — work-
ing, shopping and enjoying enter-
tainment from home — persist
when the health threat has reced-
ed, demand for waiters, cashiers,
front-desk clerks and ticket takers
may never return to its previous
highs.
Jose Maria Barrero of Mexico’s
ITAM Business School, Nick
Bloom of Stanford University and
Steven Davis of the University of
Chicago have concluded that 32
percent to 42 percent of COVID-
induced layoffs will be perma-
nent.
The coronavirus recession has
been especially cruel, victimizing
people at the bottom of the pay
scale. Lael Brainard, a Federal Re-
serve governor, said last month
that the poorest 25 percent of
American workers were facing
“Depression-era rates of unem-
ployment of around 23 percent”
in mid-January — nearly quadru-
ple the national jobless rate.
Services workers had long
been thought to be safe from the
threats that menaced factory em-
ployment: foreign competition
and automation. But more and
more, as employers have sought
to save money in a time of uncer-
tainty and to promote social dis-
tancing in the workplace, ma-
chines are reaching beyond the
factory floor and into retail, res-
taurants and hotels.
“The truth is, I want my job back,” said Esther Montanez, a
housekeeper at the Hilton Back Bay in Boston. She won’t give
up hope of returning to her cleaning job at the hotel.
Tamura Jamison, for instance,
came back to a changed job when
she was recalled to work in June
as a front desk agent at the Paris
Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, owned
by Caesars Entertainment. Her
hours were cut from 40 to about
32 a week, resulting in a pay cut of
about $700 a month.
Just 26 of 45 workers on her
team were brought back. Existing
self-service kiosks used to be op-
tional for guests checking in. No
longer. Now, agents must direct
guests to the kiosks and intervene
only if needed. That means fewer
commissions for room upgrades;
guests can request them on their
own.
Jamison wonders whether the
Charles Krupa / Associated Press
front desk operation will eventu-
ally be eliminated, the jobs lost as
guests use keys on their smart-
phones to go straight to their
rooms. “The front desk doesn’t
really have to be there,” Jamison
said. “There are ways to eliminate
our jobs.”
The pain is widespread.
In Egypt, Mohammed Gamal
used to earn a decent living work-
ing six days a week at a cafe in Gi-
za, twin city of Cairo. But pan-
demic restrictions and dwindling
business shrank his workweek
and slashed his income by more
than half. It didn’t help when the
government banned “sheesha,”
the hookah water pipe that’s pop-
ular across the Middle East and a
major moneymaker for cafes.
Now, he shares a room to save
on rent. “I just work three days a
week, and this is not enough even
for a single person,” said Gamal,
31.
In New York, Bill Zanker is envi-
sioning a comeback after being
forced to close his luxury gym,
Grit Bxng. He’s raising money to
launch an at-home fitness busi-
ness in the fall, which will mean
eventually hiring to support a on-
line business, including customer
service and supply specialists.
Still, Zanker is hopeful that his
Manhattan gym, known for its
cocktail bar and backed by bil-
lionaire Tony Robbins and others,
will eventually come roaring
back. “There is so much pent-up
demand,” Zanker said. “People
after class are going to want to
hang out and socialize. It’s like af-
ter Prohibition: Party like there’s
no tomorrow.”
However things shake out, mil-
lions of displaced workers will
need to find new careers. Review-
ing the job outlook in eight major
economies, McKinsey consulting
firm estimated that 100 million
workers — 1 in 16 — will need to
change occupations by 2030.
Researchers at the Massachu-
setts Institute of Technology
warned last year that low-paid
workers without college degrees
who’ve lost their jobs “may suffer
significant hardship as they seek
new work, potentially in occupa-
tions where they have no experi-
ence or training.“

Legislation involves media

negotiating with Big Tech
By David McLaughlin
and Sara Forden
River Walk Education Foundation Is seeking E-Rate services for E-Rate Funding BLOCK Builders, LLC has been awarded The Apart- BL O O MBERG
Year 2021 (July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022) ments on Caroline, 3300 Caroline, Houston, Texas.
All interested vendors please visit: https://portal.usac.org/suite/ This permanent supportive housing development is
Form 470 Application Number: 210021251 funded by the City of Houston and Harris County
Please see RFP at https://erate.esc12.net/R12 and is subject to MWSBE, Section 3, Pay or Play The battle between news
and Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, 3 buildings, 4-
story residential wings, parking, shared common
publishers and Alphabet
YES Prep Public Schools will be accepting Request for Qualifications for areas, 149 efficiency units surrounding a courtyard, Inc.’s Google and Facebook
RFQ# YESP21-01 Architectural Design Services. Qualifications must be received 90,722 SQFT. We are seeking bids from qualified Inc. that flared up in Aus-
no later than 2:00PM Tuesday March 23, 2021 at 5515 South Loop E FWY STE B, subcontractors. City of Houston Certified MWSBE
Houston, TX, 77033. Proposals and RFQ delivery instructions can be accessed at and Section 3 Business concerns are encouraged to tralia recently is coming to
https://www.yesprep.org/rfps. submit proposals. The bid due date is April 22,
2021 at 11:00AM. The Pre-Bid Meeting will be held the U.S.
via Webex video conference on March 18, 2021 at 2
p.m. Join: https://blockcompanies.webex.com/block Lawmakers re-intro-
companies/j.php?MTID=m971b881020a381f52f4b88 duced legislation Wednes-
c0f7ee536d or Join by phone: +1-408-418-9388,
NOTICE TO BIDDERS Access code: 187 940 1082. This is a City of day to allow news organiza-
Houston Project with DR requirements. Please tions to band together to
CORNERSTONES MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT will receive electronic bids for contact Lydia Knoerr at
construction of "SANITARY SEWER REHABILITATION PHASE 3, Project No. 2259-carolineestimating@blockcompanies.com negotiate with the technol-
007-03, Contract No. 1; HARRIS COUNTY, Texas" using the Civcast USA (“Civ-
Cast”) website; www.civcastusa.com. The project includes rehabilitation of ap- ogy companies over pay-
proximately 5,700 L.F. of sanitary sewer lines by method of CIPP, pipebursting The Houston Planning Commission has received an ment for content and the
and heavy cleaning. A Pre-bid teleconference will be held on Thursday, March application to allow the partial replatting of Replat of
11, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. Local Time, and bids will be publicly opened and read via Woodland Acres being all or part of Lots 21 & 22, data the companies have
teleconference on Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. Local Time. The P- Block 1 as recorded in Volume 23, Page 27 of the
re-bid teleconference is not mandatory. For Access to the teleconference for Harris County Map Records for the purpose of creat-
about readers.
both the Pre-Bid and the bid opening, dial (978) 990-500, and use access code: ing one unrestricted reserve.
356847.
The legislation, which
The new subdivision name is Woodland Acres Replat
partial replat no. 2. was proposed in the Senate
Proposals must be accompanied by a certified or cashier’s check or a bid bond The City will send out written notice of a public hear-
from a surety company holding a permit in the State of Texas for an amount and House with bipartisan
ing to all owners of property within 250’ of the boun-
equal to 5% of the amount bid. The amount of said certified or cashier’s check dary of the plat and all parcels along or across from a support, shows the U.S. is
or bond will be forfeited to the OWNER and the bank or surety shall be liable to blockface that abuts any street or private roadway
the OWNER for the amount in the event the successful bidder shall fail or refuse extending 500 feet from the plat as measured along becoming the next front in Handout/congress.gov / Tribune News Service
to enter into a contract or furnish bonds as hereafter required within ten (10) Rep. David Cicilline helped sponsor legislation to
the centerline of any street or private roadway that
days after the date of notice of award. If a certified or cashier’s check is provid- abuts the boundary of the plat. the news industry’s war
ed, the successful bidder shall deliver, at the ENGINEERS office (IDS Engineer- The Houston Planning Commission will hold a virtual against Facebook and Goo- allow news organizations to negotiate with
ing Group, 13430 Northwest Freeway, Suite 700, Houston, Texas 77040), the meeting and public hearing on this replat on Thurs-
original certified or cashier’s check within twenty-four (24) hours of the bid day, April 1, 2021 at 2:30 PM via Microsoft Teams .
gle. Publishers scored a ma- technology companies over payment for content.
opening. The video conference will allow for a two-way video/ jor victory last month when
audio communication with the Houston Planning
The successful bidder must furnish a performance bond and a payment bond on Commission. Australia passed a law to tools to counteract the trust exemptions are low,
the forms provided, each in the amount of 100% of the Contract price from a For information on how to join the meeting or submit
surety company licensed by the State of Texas. comments as a speaker, visit our website: www.
force the companies to pay power of Google and Face- “while the benefits of pre-
Copies of the bidding documents may be reviewed and obtained from
houstonplanning.com or Call: 832-393-6624. Con- for news content. In Eu- book. serving access to high-qual-
tact the applicant at (713) 538-5364 or the City of
www.CivcastUSA.com: search “Cornerstones UD San Sewer Rehab Ph III”. Bid- Houston Planning Department at (832) 393-6600 for rope, publishers have been “The reason that we’re ity journalism are difficult
ders must register on this website in order to view and/or download specifica-
tions, plans, and other related documents for this project. There is NO charge to
any additional information. lobbying European Union brought to this moment is to overstate.”
view or download documents. lawmakers to copy parts of that they have an unfetter- Australia’s initial propos-
The OWNER reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to waive informalities the Australian law. ed monopoly,” Klobuchar al would have forced the
or irregularities in bidding. In case of lack of clarity in stating prices, the OWN-
ER reserves the right to consider the most advantageous construction thereof, or “Local news is on life said in an interview. Google companies to submit to ar-
reject the bid. support in this country,” and Facebook “thought bitration to determine how
CORNERSTONES MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT Democratic Representative they had so much power much to pay publishers if
David Cicilline of Rhode Is- they could literally exit a deals couldn’t be struck. In
YES Prep Public Schools is seeking a Request for Proposal (RFP) YP2021- land said in an interview. major country,” she added. response, Google threat-
CN01 for Food Service Management in Houston. Please send two sealed hard Cicilline who chairs the Klobuchar said the legis- ened to shut down its
copies of your proposal to Attention: YES Prep Procurement-Child Nutrition,
8787 Tallyho Road, Houston, TX 77061 on or before 10:00 AM CST on April 20, House antitrust subcom- lation has a better shot at search engine, while Face-
2021. Late proposals will not be evaluated. An optional Pre-Proposal Conference
will be held on April 6, 2021 at 8:15 AM CST. Location: a virtual recorded meet- mittee is one of the spon- passage this time because book imposed a news
ing via Microsoft Teams - the link will be emailed out upon request and available sors. “And so this approach of bipartisan interest in blackout on its platform in
on YES Prep’s website. The conference is for interested offerors to review the
specifications and to clarify any questions. A virtual tour of YES Prep facilities creates an opportunity to antitrust issues today. Sen- the county.
can be arranged. Questions should be emailed in advance on or before April 2,
2021 at 4 p.m. to ChildNutrition@yesprep.org so that answers can be prepared. protect a free press and ate Minority Leader Mitch Google is moving to ne-
All bid documents will be available at https://www.yesprep.org/rfps. YES Prep make certain that they have McConnell will be a co- gotiate deals with publish-
reserves the right to reject any or all proposals or waive any or all irregularities.
the ability to negotiate the sponsor of the bill, she said. ers, while Facebook backed
use content,” he said. Ken Buck, a Colorado Re- down after concessions
Publishers have long publican and the ranking from the government al-
2017 Dodge Ram 3500 vin # 3C63RRJLXHG762816 NOTICE OF PROPOSED complained that Facebook member of the House anti- lowing the companies to
towed by Motorsports Wrecker & Recovery from TOWER CONSTRUCTION
6800 Gaston on 01/19/21 and stored @ Owner: Centro NP Hold- and Google are profiting off trust committee, is a co- choose which commercial
ings 12 SPE, LLC File #
909 6th St. Rosenberg, TX.77471.If not picked up it 21-T- 0747 their content by siphoning sponsor of the legislation in deals to pursue, and only
will be sold @ public auction on being 3/12/21 @ Site Location: 909 2/3 N
Shepherd Dr, Houston, TX
ad revenue and controlling the House along with Cicil- subjecting them to arbitra-
2pm @ 909 6th St. Rosenberg, TX. 77471.
77008 valuable data about read- line. tion as a last resort. The
RES A BLK 1, Merchants
Park Shopping ers. “Local journalism plays Australian Parliament
Notice of Data Incident
Use: Cellular Height 100’ Media organizations ar- such an important role in passed the legislation last
On February 16, 2021, Walmart was informed by one A public hearing will be
of its suppliers that a data hosting service they used held at the Tower Com- NOTICE TO ALL PERSONS HAVING CLAIMS gue that to gain negotiating keeping the American peo- month.
mission meeting on April AGAINST THE ESTATE OF ROBERT J. NEWTON,
was compromised on January 20, 2021. An unauthor-
26 at 3:30 p.m virtually DECEASED leverage and level the play- ple informed, but many of Facebook’s standoff with
ized party accessed the service and stole records
from that service provider. Some of those records in- on Microsoft Teams. Notice is here given that original Letters Testamenta-
ry for the Estate of Robert J. Newton, Deceased, were
ing field, they must be able our community newspa- Australia prompted Cicil-
cluded information about a confined number of You can find the link at
Walmart pharmacy patients. Walmart’s information https://www.houstontx. issued on February 24, 2021, under Docket No. to collectively bargain with pers have been crushed by line to lash out at the com-
gov/planning/ 489009 pending in the County Probate Court No. 4
systems were not affected by this incident, but we
Commissions/commiss_ of Harris County, Texas, to Ann Gillette Smith, the platforms, something the threat of big tech,” Buck pany.
immediately began investigating to determine wheth-
er any personal information handled by our supplier tower.html Independent Executor. that’s prohibited under said in a statement. “This “Threatening to bring an
Additional information Claims may be presented in care of the attorney for
was affected.
may be obtained by the estate addressed as follows: Carl Dawson, Ryan U.S. antitrust laws. bipartisan bill will send a entire country to its knees
& Dawson, 770 S. Post Oak Ln., Ste. 600, Houston,
Our investigation revealed the information affected writing or calling: Tower
Applicant: Crown Castle Texas 77056. All persons having claims against this The proposed legislation lifeline to local news orga- to agree to Facebook’s
may have included some patient names, addresses,
dates of birth, telephone numbers, information about c/o Vincent Gerard & estate, which is currently being administered, are re- would grant them a safe nizations struggling to sur- terms is the ultimate admis-
Associates quired to present them within the time and in the
medications such as drug name and strength,
512-328-2693 manner prescribed by law. harbor from that restric- vive because Google and sion of monopoly power,”
prescription numbers, prescriber information such as Dated this 9th day of March, 2021.
prescriber name, and dates associated with the 1715 S. Capital of Texas
/s/ Carl Dawson
tion, but it doesn’t include Facebook have decimated he tweeted.
prescription, such as fill dates. A very small number Highway #207 Austin, TX
of health insurance subscriber identification numbers 78746 Attorney for the Estate a proposal for forced arbi- the news industry.” Danielle Coffey, senior
City of Houston: Planning 770 S. Post Oak Lane, Suite 600
also was impacted.
& Development Dept 832 Houston, Texas 77056 tration between the tech The House will wade into vice president and general
393 6600 PO Box 1562 State Bar No. 05599100 companies and the pub- the issue Friday when the counsel of the News Media
Walmart takes this matter very seriously and we are
fully committed to protecting the privacy and security Houston TX 77251-1562
of our patients’ health information. Our supplier im-
lishers, a provision that’s antitrust panel holds a Alliance, said the group is
mediately stopped using the affected service. NOTICE TO CREDITORS: Notice is hereby given that included in the Australian hearing as part of its initia- working with the lawmak-
Although Walmart’s systems were not impacted, we original Letters of Testamentary for the Estate of
will be reviewing our supplier’s security practices and Ruth Evelyn Pruitt, issued on March 9, 2021, in cause law and which the tech tive to consider antitrust re- ers to include an oversight
monitoring the circumstances surrounding this event. No. 490981, pending in the Probate Court at Law
Number One of Harris County, Texas to Mary Ruth companies fought. Face- forms following a 16-month mechanism in an expand-
Walmart is sending individual notices to affected pa- Tyler. All persons having claims against this Estate
which is currently being administered are required to
book even went so far as to investigation that accused ed bill.
tients regarding this incident. If you have any ques-
tions, we encourage you to contact our dedicated call present them to the Independent Executor, c/o Travis blackout its news feed in tech companies of squash- “I’m sure they will look
Owens, Owens Law Group, PLLC, PO Box 8605, The
center at (855) 908-1012. As a reminder, please be
vigilant when reviewing explanations of benefits and Woodlands, Texas 77387, within the time and in the the country before winning ing competition. at Australia in considering
other information pertaining to you and always be manner prescribed by law. some concessions. In its report on the find- what to do,” said Coffey.
cautious about requests to provide any personal or fi-
nancial information over the phone, by text, or by Amy Klobuchar of Min- ings of the investigation, “The most important thing
email. Be sure to always verify the source of any re- nesota, who is leading the the committee recom- is the goal to get equitable
quest for such information.
initiative in the Senate, said mended providing publish- terms for small and local
Walmart places great value in its patients’ trust and
we are fully committed to protecting the privacy the legislation is necessary ers the antitrust safe har- publishers and to require
and security of patients’ personal information. to help publishers better bor provision, saying the good faith negotiations by
negotiate by giving them risk associated with anti- the platforms.”

BUSINESS
Crude prices up despite
more U.S. oil inventories
By Marcy de Luna
STA F F WRIT E R
Crude prices rose slight-
ly Wednesday in an unchar-
acteristic move after the
Energy Department said
U.S. crude inventories
jumped last week.
The amount of oil in
commercial storage in-
creased by 13.8 million bar-
rels to 498.4 million barrels
during the week ended
March 5 compared with
484.6 million barrels the
previous week, the Energy
Information Administra-
tion said.
Typically, such a boost
would push crude prices
lower, but U.S. gasoline
stockpiles marked their
largest two-week decline
on record and refineries
showed they were ramping
up operations after a winter
storm in February shut
down many of them. The
result: West Texas Interme-
diate, the U.S. benchmark,
on Wednesday afternoon
settled 43 cents higher at
$64.44 and global standard
Brent was trading 67 cents
higher at $68.19.
The amount of gasoline
in storage decreased by 11.9
million barrels last week
and are about 6 percent be-
Paxton scoffs at attempt
by Twitter to halt inquiry
A S S OC IAT E D PRE SS
DALLAS — Texas Attorney
General Ken Paxton said
Wednesday that a lawsuit by
Twitter won’t deter his of-
fice from investigating the
content moderation practic-
es of the social media giant
and four other major tech-
nology companies.
Twitter sued the Republi-
can official this week in an
effort to halt his probe,
which the company claimed
was retaliation for banning
the account of former Presi-
dent Donald Trump follow-
ing the deadly January insur-
rection at the U.S. Capitol.
Days after the riot, Paxton
announced an investigation
of what he called “the seem-
ingly coordinated de-plat-
forming of the President.”
His office demanded a vari-
ety of records and internal
Buffett sixth to amass $100B
By Simon Hunt,
Katherine Chiglinsky
and Devon Pendleton
©2021 BL OOMBE RG L . P.
Warren Buffett has been
a fixture at the top of the
world’s wealth rankings for
decades, but in recent
years he’s slipped down
the list as tech fortunes
soared and his hot hand
cooled.
Now, at 90, his net worth
has blown past $100 bil-
lion.
The Berkshire Hathaway
Inc. chairman’s wealth
jumped on Wednesday to
$100.4 billion, according to
the Bloomberg Billionaires
Index, making Buffett the
sixth member of the $100
billion club, a group that in-
cludes Jeff Bezos, Elon
Musk and his friend Bill
Gates.
The group’s combined
wealth has grown rapidly,
fueled by government
stimulus, central bank pol-
icy and the surging equity
market. On Wednesday,
President Joe Biden’s $1.9
trillion COVID-19 relief bill
cleared its final congressio-
nal hurdle as the House
voted to approve the legis-
lation, adding to the $3 tril-
lion or so in stimulus Wash-
ington has already disburs-
ed in the past year.
Berkshire Hathaway, the
source of virtually all of
Buffett’s wealth, has had a
good start to 2021. The
firm’s A shares are up 15
percent this year, outpac-
ing the 3.8 percent gain of
the S&P 500 Index. That’s
been helped by Buffett’s re-
cent push to spend record
amounts buying back Berk-
low the five-year average
for this time of year, the EIA
said. The diminishing fuel
inventories caused by the
historic arctic blast comes
just weeks before the sec-
ond summer driving sea-
son of the pandemic. But
with vaccination rates ris-
ing and the number of new
cases plunging, demand
could soar this year.
Jet fuel inventories, how-
ever, rose by 1.4 million bar-
rels last week as coronavi-
rus-related fears of air trav-
el continue to haunt the in-
dustry.
Refineries took in an
average of 12.3 million bar-
rels a day last week, some
2.4 million barrels per day
more than the previous pe-
riod, the EIA said. The in-
crease had refineries oper-
ating at about 69 percent of
capacity. Gasoline produc-
tion increased to about 9
million barrels a day, an in-
crease over the four-week
average of 8.1 million bar-
rels a day, but still 11.2 per-
cent less than during the
same period last year.
Despite the price rally
and the hope that demand
will surge this year, oil com-
panies have not returned
production to full strength.
Many have said they will re-
communications from Goo-
gle, Facebook, Twitter, Am-
azon and Apple.
On Monday, Twitter
asked a federal judge in Cali-
fornia to effectively stop the
probe and affirm that its de-
cision to ban Trump was
protected by the First
Amendment. Paxton re-
sponded Wednesday that
“most of the companies
have cooperated” and
called Twitter’s suit “re-
markable.”
“Apparently they have
some fear of disclosing what
they’re actually doing if
they’re asking a California
judge to rule on Texas law,”
he said during an online fo-
rum hosted by the conserva-
tive Media Research Center.
In its demand for records,
Paxton’s office cited the au-
thority of Texas’ Deceptive
Trade Practices-Consumer
Warren Buffett has spent billions of dollars buying
back stock recently.
shire’s own stock, a nota-
ble shift for an investor
who previously preferred
to use the $138 billion cash
pile to buy other business-
es or common stocks.
Buffett’s been struggling
in recent years to find siz-
able deals to spark Berk-
shire’s growth, partially
due to the sheer size of the
conglomerate. That’s
caused the business to un-
derperform the S&P 500
over the past five years. But
last year, Buffett spent a re-
cord $24.7 billion on buy-
backs and filings indicate
he’s already bought at least
$4.2 billion worth of stock
through mid-February.
Surpassing $100 billion
is all the more notable con-
sidering how much the
Omaha billionaire has giv-
en away. A co-founder of
the Giving Pledge, a cam-
paign to encourage billion-
aire philanthropy, Buffett
has donated more than $37
billion in Berkshire stock
since 2006. Without those
gifts, which have cut his
HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | B5
main focused on returning
money to shareholders and
luring investors with more
conservative spending. U.S.
oil production has dropped
to about 1o million barrels
per day from 13 million bar-
rels a day about a year ago.
“To the extent crude oil
prices move higher, we
would expect public pro-
ducers” to boost output,
said Brian Kessens, a port-
folio manager at Tortoise, a
firm that manages roughly
$8 billion in energy-related
assets. “Still, the U.S. mar-
ket has a long way to go to
get anywhere close to even
where we were a year ago.”
Oil production across
American shale patches
over the coming year is ex-
pected to climb as produc-
ers take advantage of the re-
bound, according to a gov-
ernment report on Tues-
day.
OPEC and its allies,
which last week pledged to
keep output steady despite
oil’s price hike, may “have
sufficiently overtightened
the market, such that new
shale production could
again be profitable,” TD Se-
curities commodity strate-
gists said.
Bloomberg contributed.
Protection Act.
Lawyers for Twitter
wrote in their complaint
that the company had
sought for weeks to “put rea-
sonable limits on the scope”
of Paxton’s demands but
were unable to reach an
agreement with his office. A
spokeswoman for the com-
pany declined to comment
Wednesday.
The legal wrangling
comes as states, in addition
to federal lawmakers and
governments outside the
U.S., are cracking down on
tech companies that they
see as having amassed too
much power.
Separately, Texas is lead-
ing 10 Republican attorneys
general who are party to a
lawsuit accusing Google of
running an illegal digital-ad-
vertising monopoly in ca-
hoots with Facebook.
Nati Harnik / Associated Press
Services
ExpErt CarE 10
holdings of Berkshire Class
A shares nearly in half, he’d
be worth more than $192
billion.
The staggering amount
of wealth accumulated by
the ultra-wealthy — $1.8 tril-
lion by the world’s 500
richest in 2020 alone —
highlights the K-shaped re-
covery that’s taking shape
as the U.S. emerges from
the pandemic. While mil-
lions of disproportionately
poor, working-class and
minority people remain
unemployed, wealthy
Americans have seen in-
comes and net worth levels
rise thanks to a buoyant
stock market and rising
home prices.
Meanwhile more than 8
million Americans — in-
cluding many children —
fell into poverty in the sec-
ond half of last year, ac-
cording to an analysis by
University of Chicago econ-
omist Bruce Meyer, Univer-
sity of Notre Dame’s James
Sullivan and Zhejiang Uni-
versity’s Jeehoon Han.
B6 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
BUSINESS
Hackers access 150,000 security cameras
Group views footage
from inside prisons,
hospitals, schools
By William Turton
B L O OM B E RG
A group of hackers say they
breached a massive trove of secu-
rity-camera data collected by Sili-
con Valley startup Verkada Inc.,
gaining access to live feeds of
150,000 surveillance cameras in-
side hospitals, companies, police
departments, prisons and
schools.
Companies whose footage was
exposed include carmaker Tesla
Inc. and software provider Cloud-
flare Inc. In addition, hackers
were able to view video from in-
side women’s health clinics, psy-
chiatric hospitals and the offices
of Verkada itself. Some of the cam-
eras, including in hospitals, use fa-
cial-recognition technology to
identify and categorize people
captured on the footage. The
hackers say they also have access
to the full video archive of all Ver-
kada customers.
In a video seen by Bloomberg, a
Verkada camera inside Florida
hospital Halifax Health showed
what appeared to be eight hospital
staffers tackling a man and pin-
ning him to a bed. Halifax Health is
featured on Verkada’s public-fac-
ing website in a case study titled:
“How a Florida Healthcare Provid-
er Easily Updated and Deployed a
Scalable HIPAA Compliant Securi-
ty System.” A spokesman for Hali-
fax confirmed Wednesday that it
uses Verkada cameras but added
that “we believe the scope of the
situation is limited.”
Another video, shot inside a
Tesla warehouse in Shanghai,
shows workers on an assembly
line. The hackers said they ob-
tained access to 222 cameras in
Tesla factories and warehouses.
The data breach was carried
out by an international hacker col-
lective and intended to show the
pervasiveness of video surveil-
lance and the ease with which sys-
tems could be broken into, said
Tillie Kottmann, one of the hack-
ers who claimed credit for breach-
ing San Mateo, Calif.-based Verka-
da. Kottmann, who uses they/
them pronouns, previously
claimed credit for hacking chip-
maker Intel Corp. and carmaker
Nissan Motor Co. Kottmann said
their reasons for hacking are “lots
of curiosity, fighting for freedom
of information and against intel-
lectual property, a huge dose of
EPA eyes Trump rule on
lead in drinking water
By John Flesher
A S S O C I AT E D PRE SS
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — The
Biden administration said Wed-
nesday it was delaying the effec-
tive date of a policy intended to
prevent lead pollution of drinking
water, continuing a decades-old
debate over how to remove a seri-
ous health hazard to children.
The Environmental Protection
Agency said it was suspending a
regulatory rewrite completed by
the Trump administration in De-
cember, which is being chal-
lenged in court by numerous
states and advocacy groups.
The agency hasn’t decided
whether to seek changes but
wants to review the revised rule,
take public input and consult with
affected parties, a spokeswoman
said.
Critics contend the new mea-
sure is weak and gives public util-
ities too long to replace aging,
lead-tainted pipes such as those
that contaminated drinking water
in Flint, Mich.
“It is essential that EPA takes
the time now to review this impor-
tant rule to ensure that we are pro-
tecting current and future genera-
tions,” said Radhika Fox, acting as-
sistant administrator for water.
The overhaul had been sched-
uled to take effect March 16. In-
stead, the date was pushed to June
17 to allow comments on an addi-
tional proposed delay until Dec.
16.
Also, the agency wants to bump
the compliance deadline to Sept.
16, 2024, giving drinking water
systems three years to meet the
new requirements.
The regulatory update was
completed six years after Flint be-
came a national symbol of the
longstanding threat from lead,
which can disrupt children’s brain
development, causing learning
and behavior problems. Adults al-
so can suffer nervous system and
A security camera is shown on the second floor of a row of rooms at a motel in March 2020 in
Kent, Wash. Hackers gained access to footage of hospitals, schools, factories, jails and offices.
The security-camera data breach at Verkada Inc. includes the
offices of the San Mateo, Calif.-based startup itself.
anti-capitalism, a hint of anar-
chism — and it’s also just too much
fun not to do it.”
“We have disabled all internal
administrator accounts to prevent
any unauthorized access,” a Ver-
kada spokesperson said in a state-
ment. “Our internal security team
and external security firm are in-
vestigating the scale and scope of
this issue, and we have notified
law enforcement.”
The company is working to no-
tify customers and set up a sup-
port line to address questions.
“This afternoon we were alert-
ed that the Verkada security cam-
era system that monitors main en-
try points and main thoroughfares
kidney damage.
Residents of the majority Black
city and advocacy groups say sys-
temic racism affected decisions
that caused the contamination
and the slow government re-
sponse.
The Trump administration’s
overhaul requires utilities to test
water at schools and day care cen-
ters and to disclose the location of
lead-containing service lines,
which run from main water pipes
to homes. It also toughens testing
procedures.
But environmental groups said
it would give water systems up to
33 years to replace an estimated 6
million remaining lead service
lines, instead of 14 years under the
previous rule.
Andrew Wheeler, former EPA
chief, said in December when the
rule was announced that loop-
holes in the old rule were letting
pipe replacements take too long.
The Biden administration’s
proposed delay is “a positive sign
that the agency is finally going to
get serious” about strengthening
the regulations, said Erik Olson,
senior strategic director for health
with the Natural Resources De-
fense Council, one of the groups
that sued EPA in federal court over
the Trump policy.
“It’s about time we saw action
to fix this scourge that has been
with us for more than 100 years of
contaminated water across the
country,” he said.
Water systems will continue de-
veloping lead service line invento-
ries and replacement plans as the
review takes place, said Steve Via,
director of federal relations for the
American Waterworks Associa-
tion, which represents water util-
ities and supports the Trump pol-
icy.
“What will be great from a wa-
ter system perspective is having
some certainty so funds can be al-
located to get the tasks done that
need to be done,” Via said.
HH
Ted S. Warren / Associated Press file photo
David Paul Morris / Bloomberg
in a handful of Cloudflare offices
may have been compromised,”
San Francisco-based Cloudflare
said in a statement. The company
said it disabled the cameras and
disconnected them from office
networks.
The hackers also obtained ac-
cess to Verkada cameras in Cloud-
flare offices in San Francisco, Aus-
tin, London and New York.
Tesla said that, “based on our
current understanding, the cam-
eras being hacked are only in-
stalled in one of our suppliers, and
the product is not being used by
our Shanghai factory, or any of our
Tesla stores or services centers.
Our data collected from Shanghai
Southwest nears large jet deal
in boost to Boeing’s 737 Max 7
By Julie Johnsson, Mary
Schlangenstein and
Charlotte Ryan
BL O O MBERG
Southwest Airlines Co. is clos-
ing in on a large order for Boeing
Co.’s 737 Max 7 jetliners after
weighing a rival Airbus SE model,
according to people familiar with
the matter.
The talks have been underway
for months and are in the final
stages as the largest Max custom-
er prepares to resume flights with
the plane Thursday, said the peo-
ple, who asked not to be named
because the discussions are confi-
dential. Southwest is studying a
deal in the range of 150 to 200
firm orders and commitments for
the jet, one of the people said
Wednesday.
The Dallas-based carrier has
determined that it may eventually
need a fleet of about 300 aircraft
to replace the Boeing model at the
heart of its operation, the 737-
700, the people said. In addition
to the Max 7, Southwest also con-
sidered ordering Airbus’s A220-
300, a move that would have di-
factories and other places men-
tioned are stored on local serv-
ers.”
Other companies identified in
this story didn’t immediately re-
spond to requests for comment.
Representatives of the jails, hospi-
tals and schools named in this arti-
cle either declined to comment or
didn’t immediately respond to re-
quests for comment.
A video seen by Bloomberg
shows officers in a police station in
Stoughton, Wis., questioning a
man in handcuffs. The hackers say
they also gained access to the se-
curity cameras of Sandy Hook Ele-
mentary School in Newtown,
Conn., where a gunman killed
more than 20 people in 2012.
Also available to the hackers
were 330 security cameras inside
the Madison County Jail in Hunts-
ville, Ala. Verkada offers a feature
called “People Analytics,” which
lets a customer “search and filter
based on many different attri-
butes, including gender traits,
clothing color, and even a person’s
face,” according to a Verkada blog
post. Images seen by Bloomberg
show that the cameras inside the
jail, some of which are hidden in-
side vents, thermostats and defi-
brillators, track inmates and cor-
rectional staff using the facial-rec-
ognition technology. The hackers
say they were able to access live
feeds and archived video, in some
cases including audio, of inter-
views between police officers and
Mark Ralston / AFP via Getty Images
versified the airline’s all-737 fleet
and severed its exclusive relation-
ship with Boeing.
For the U.S. planemaker, re-
taining Southwest would repre-
sent an important victory as the
Max returns to the skies following
two deadly crashes and the lon-
gest jetliner grounding in U.S. his-
tory. Southwest Chief Executive
Officer Gary Kelly approached
the carrier’s board about consid-
ering other aircraft types in Octo-
ber 2019, seven months after the
flying ban began. The board initi-
ated a formal review last year.
The coronavirus pandemic
and resulting slump in travel de-
mand have presented the best op-
portunity for Southwest to con-
sider whether to add another air-
craft type to its fleet, Kelly has
said. Pressures from the pandem-
ic “changed our priorities quite a
bit,” he said late last year.
The Max 7, a slow-selling model
with 150 seats, was a “major com-
ponent” of negotiations with Boe-
ing as Southwest sought to re-
work schedules for its Max deliv-
eries, he said. The airline has a
need for a smaller plane on some
criminal suspects, all in the high-
definition resolution known as 4K.
Kottmann said their group was
able to obtain “root” access on the
cameras, meaning they could use
the cameras to execute their own
code. That access could, in some
instances, allow them to pivot and
obtain access to the broader cor-
porate network of Verkada’s cus-
tomers, or hijack the cameras and
use them as a platform to launch
future hacks. Obtaining this de-
gree of access to the camera didn’t
require any additional hacking, as
it was a built-in feature, Kottmann
said.
The hackers’ methods were un-
sophisticated: they gained access
to Verkada through a “Super Ad-
min” account, allowing them to
peer into the cameras of all of its
customers. Kottmann says they
found a user name and password
for an administrator account pub-
licly exposed on the internet. After
Bloomberg contacted Verkada,
the hackers lost access to the vid-
eo feeds and archives, Kottmann
said.
The hackers say they were able
to peer into multiple locations of
the luxury gym chain Equinox. At
Wadley Regional Medical Center, a
hospital in Texarkana, Texas,
hackers say they looked through
Verkada cameras pointed at nine
ICU beds. Hackers also say they
watched cameras at Tempe St.
Luke’s Hospital, in Arizona.
The hack “exposes just how
broadly we’re being surveilled,
and how little care is put into at
least securing the platforms used
to do so, pursuing nothing but
profit,” Kottmann said. “It’s just
wild how I can just see the things
we always knew are happening,
but we never got to see.” Kottman
said they gained access to Verka-
da’s system on Monday morning.
Verkada, founded in 2016, sells
security cameras that customers
can access and manage through
the web. In January 2020, it raised
$80 million in venture capital
funding, valuing the company at
$1.6 billion.
Kottmann calls the hacking col-
lective “Advanced Persistent
Threat 69420,” a light-hearted ref-
erence to the designations cyber-
security firms give to state spon-
sored hacking groups and crimi-
nal cybergangs.
In October 2020, Verkada fired
three employees after reports sur-
faced that workers had used its
cameras to take pictures of female
colleagues inside the Verkada of-
fice and make sexually explicit
jokes about them.
A Southwest
Airlines
Boeing 737
MAX aircraft
is parked in
California.
Sources say
Southwest is
considering a
deal for 150 to
200 of
Boeing’s
smaller 737
Max 7
jetliners.
routes than its current 175-seat
Max model, and Chief Operating
Officer Mike Van de Ven reiterat-
ed that Southwest was still consid-
ering the A220.
Reuters reported earlier that
Southwest was close to ordering
dozens of Max jets.
Boeing and Airbus declined to
comment. Southwest declined to
comment on discussions about
future fleet decisions.
“We’re marking 50 years as a
single fleet airline and have
shared consistently our hope to
keep that simplicity,” the airline
said. “We’ve also shared that we
consistently evaluate the perfor-
mance and availability of other
fleet types that could potentially
work within our strategy and
business model.”
Adding Airbus jets to the air-
line’s all-737 fleet would require
major changes in flight opera-
tions, pilot training, parts inven-
tory and other items. Van de Ven
said last year that a decision likely
would have to be made by the lat-
ter part of 2021 to get the selected
150-seat aircraft on Southwest’s
property by 2025.
 HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | B7
BUSINESS

HOUSING Sales trends home now, especially with the

From page B1
The gains were tempered by
the winter storm in mid-February,
when millions of Texans lost heat
and electricity as temperatures
plunged below freezing. Wide-
spread power outages led to burst
pipes in properties throughout
the city, causing delays in closings
while plumbing related repairs
were made.
Closings were delayed as sellers
struggled to find plumbers and
parts to make the necessary re-
pairs and insurance adjusters
were backed up because of the
volume of claims, said Amy Bern-
stein of Bernstein Realty.
Some lenders required a visit to
the site to make sure there was no
damage, further delaying some
closings, Bernstein said. All the
while, interest rates ticked up, po-
tentially costing buyers more if
their rate expired.
“There was a period for about
two weeks where it was very in-
convenient for both buyers and
sellers,” Bernstein said, adding
that most of her transactions in
process are back on the path to
close.
Figures for sales of single-family homes in the
Houston area in February of each year:
Median price
$275,900
300 thousand
250
200
150
100
+12.6%
+12.6%
50
Change
Changefrom
from2020
2020
0 0
’13 ’14 ’15 ’16 ’17 ’18 ’19 ’20 ’21
Source: Houston Association of Realtors
The cold weather and lack of
power kept people at home rather
than out touring houses.
“We saw a dramatic slowdown
in showing activity,” said Michael
Lane, president of ShowingTime,
a showing management and mar-
ket stats technology provider.
After a strong start to 2021, for
the 10 day stretch starting on Feb.
10, home showings in major Texas
markets dropped 64 percent, ac-
cording to ShowingTime.
For the full month, February
showings in Houston were down 9
percent from January levels.
Lane said showings typically
Number of sales 6,049
8 thousand
6 Homes that sold in February
4 market, selling 20 days faster than
2 +1.2%
+1.2%
Change
Changefrom
from2020
2020
’13 ’14 ’15 ’16 ’17 ’18 ’19 ’20 ’21
Chronicle
rebound after weather-related
stalls. The storm’s timing came as
people may have been preparing
to list their homes for the spring as
pandemic restrictions ease in Tex-
as and many parts of the nation
experience a shortage of listings,
Lane said.
In Houston, active listings of
single-family homes fell to 12,954
in February, down from 24,100 in
Feb. 2020, according to HAR.
“As we head into spring, we ur-
gently need more listings to enter
the marketplace or we risk having
extremely limited inventory for
consumers that want to buy a
prospect of rising mortgage inter-
est rates,” said Miranda of HAR.
Months of inventory, which es-
timate the time it would take to
sell all the houses on the market
based on recent activity, dropped
to a record low of 1.6 months.
spent an average of 48 days on the
a year ago, according to HAR. Six
months of inventory is considered
a balanced market. Inventory was
3.3 months in February 2020.
Housing inventory nationally is
also at a historic low of a 1.9-
months supply, according to the
National Association of Realtors.
Leasing momentum slowed,
according to HAR. Single-family
home rentals fell 26.1 percent for
the year in February, while the
average rent went up 8.7 percent
to $1,924.
Buyers are trying to purchase
homes before interest rates rise.
Last week, the average interest
rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mort-
gage passed 3 percent for the first
time since July 2020, according to
a survey Freddie Mac. Rates had
sunk as low as 2.65 since the start
of the pandemic.
Sales of luxury homes pushed
prices to record territory. Sales of
homes priced at $750,000 and up
rose 64.9 percent compared to
February 2020. For homes priced
from $500,000 to $749,999 the in-
crease was 55.3 percent, while
sales of homes of from $250,000
to $499,999 rose by 16 percent, ac-
cording to HAR.
Homes selling from $150,000 to
$249,999 fell by 16.8 percent, ac-
cording to HAR.
Pending sales, an indication of
future closings, climbed 11.6 per-
cent to 8,288, according to HAR.
Banny Lim, a real estate agent
with Century 21 Olympian, said it
is not unusual for homes in the
$250,000 to $300,000 price
range to receive multiple offers
above the list price.
His buyers in that popular price
segment are crafting their best of-
fers to stand out, often offering to
waive the appraisal addendum.
That means even if the home’s ap-
praisal comes back with a value
that is less than the sales price, the
buyer puts more money down to
push the deal through.
Lim said updated houses sell
for asking price or more.
katherine.feser@chron.com
twitter.com/kfeser

RENTERS Property Management, the

From page B1
delivered water in the past
week to five complexes
where at least some units
still have water turned off.
But the size of complexes
without water until this
week, when repairs were fi-
nally made, placed the
number in the hundreds.
Daniel Ford, a tenant at
the Vintage in Montrose, is
moving out. Nearly three
weeks after the hard freeze
busted water pipes in the
apartment complex, he, his
dog, Gizmo, and his cat,
Dexter, are still drinking
bottled water.
Randall Stewart, who
rents at Arcadia at West-
heimer, appealed to local
officials, phoning into a City
Council meeting about go-
ing two weeks without wa-
ter.
And Esteban Rodríguez,
another Vintage tenant, is
attempting to apply finan-
cial pressure on his land-
lord, withholding rent be-
cause of the situation.
Mark Mulligan / Staff photographer
Haitham Nash had to fill up water jugs three times a
day from a spigot outside his apartment complex.
“How do you keep these
people accountable in a
fair, decent manner?” he
asked.
At Villas del Paseo, a
1970s-era garden-style
apartment with nearly 400
units where the rent for a
two-bedroom ranges from
$655 to $1,050, more than
half of renters are withhold-
ing March’s rent.
“Si no tenemos agua, no
hay pago!” a Houston Ten-
ants’ Union video shows
one resident saying to a
crowd of cheering neigh-
bors outside of the com-
plex. “No water, no rent!”
The tenants intend to
continue withholding rent
until a list of demands — in-
cluding either an immedi-
ate return of water supply
or the option to relocate to
other housing until water is
returned — are met, said the
Houston Tenants’ Union.
As of Tuesday, water had
been returned to most of
the property, according to a
spokesperson for Comuna
complex’s property man-
agement company.
Villas del Paseo residents
are also requesting rent to
be prorated for the days
tenants were without run-
ning water, with any late
fees or water fees waived.
Water fees also jumped
out to Ford when March’s
rent came due for his apart-
ment at the Vintage and wa-
ter service had not been
fixed. “They still charged us
water on our rent even
though we haven’t had wa-
ter the entire month,” he
said. He went ahead, paid
the bill and gave notice.
Thomas called on Hous-
ton renters without water to
call 311 so the city can begin
investigating their situa-
tions. Houston Public
Works is currently working
with nine apartment com-
plexes without consistent
water service, based on 311
calls. “These families can’t
squat in their houses forev-
er,” she said. “It’ll turn it in-
to a public health issue.”
“If you don’t have water,
the sprinkler systems are
not working,” Mayor Sylves-
ter Turner pointed out dur-
ing the March 2 City Council
meeting. “So the Fire De-
partment will be exercising
its authority to aggressively
force the apartment owners
and managers to make the
necessary repairs in a time-
ly fashion.”
He said the city legal de-
partment, Public Works
and the Department of
Neighborhoods were also
working to address the is-
sue.
While many homeown-
ers experienced the frustra-
tions of looking for replace-
ment parts and plumbers
first-hand, renters depend-
ed on their property man-
agers to communicate the
steps being taken and the
likely timeline for water be-
ing restored.
For example, when
Shannon Carter, a resident
at the Vintage in Montrose,
received an email Feb. 26,
10 days after water went
out, saying that it might be
three weeks before it re-
turned, she felt a stab of
frustration. She had been
showering at friends’
homes during that time; if
she had realized it would be
more than a month without
water, she would have just
set up camp with her fami-
ly. “There’s no way I can
drift around for weeks,” she
said. She said her water re-
turned Friday, but a note
from management indicat-
ed that hot water was still
out at half of the complex.
When asked if there was
someone to speak to about
the water issues, a Vintage
representative responded,
“No, ma’am, there is not,”
and hung up.
On Friday, as a plumber
attempted to fix the pipes at
Villas del Paseo in west
Houston, the problem in
Nash’s apartment, which he
shares with his brother and
their elderly parents, inten-
sified. Water began leaking
through their ceiling and
walls, soaking the carpet.
“I don’t want to stay
there any more,” Nash said.
“It’s impossible.”
rebecca.schuetz@chron.com
twitter.com/raschuetz

David Tisdale
of Houston Ford, Robert Sr. Meshberger, John
works out in a
smaller gym
Hart, Dan
inside 24 Hour
Fitness in the
ROBERT FORD, SR.
Heights on 1930-2021
Tuesday. The Robert Ford, Sr. a long-
chain is time funeral director in Texas
and Louisiana who worked
creating
for many Houston Funeral
separate Homes, expired (Friday)
closed-off March 5, 2021 A Walk
“masks Through Visitation will be
required” areas held (Friday) March 12, 2021
within its clubs from 10-10:55 a. m Funeral
across the Service will be begin at 11:00
state. a.m. both services will be held
at Trinity Missionary Baptist
Church, 5530 Van Fleet,
Interment Houston Memo-
rial Gardens.

COACH DAN HART

GYMS
From page B1
change.
At the YMCA of Greater
Houston, which owns 20
active gyms in the Houston
area, members are re-
quired to wear masks but
are allowed to remove them
while exercising.
Steven Ives, president
and CEO of the local YMCA,
said his organization will
continue operating as it has
since July — masks are not
required while working
out, but they are required
while walking around the
gym and locker rooms.
“We’re gonna stick with
what’s working,” Ives said.
“We’ve been able to keep
our workforce healthy and
in place.”
Equinox will no longer
require masks at its Texas
gyms, including its Hous-
ton location in River Oaks, a
spokesperson for the New
York company said. All of
its locker rooms, steam
rooms and spas will also re-
open.
Gyms have more control
over their environments
than the average restau-
rant, said Tiny Meeker, a
powerlifter and trainer who
is co-owner of Monster
Gym in Kingwood. That
helps them as they’re try-
ing to keep the coronavirus
out, he said.
“We can see if people
aren’t feeling well, most of
the time, and keep those
people out of the gym,” he
said. “Even if you’re sniff-
ing because of allergies …
you might be asked to
leave.”
Some clients wear masks
and others don’t, he said.
His gym doesn’t get crowd-
ed, so it’s easy enough to
separate people based on
their comfort levels.
Still, heavy breathing
sends viruses farther into
the air, said Catherine L.
Troisi, an infectious disease
epidemiologist at the Uni-
versity of Texas Health Sci-
ence Center at Houston.
“I understand that wear-
ing a mask while exercising
is not comfortable, but you
are endangering people
around you if you happen
to have an asymptomatic
infection,” she said.
That said, “it’s a conun-
drum because it is difficult
to work out with a mask
on,” she added.
A YMCA member her-
self, Troisi said she some-
times leaves the gym be-
1931-2021
Elizabeth Conley / Staff photographer
Funeral services for Coach
Dan Hart, 89 of Houston,
cause there are too many
maskless people around
Texas are scheduled for 10:00
a.m. on Thursday, March 11,
her. She tries to go at quiet 2021 at Phillips & Luckey
times. Funeral Home in Giddings
She called the 24 Hour with Brother Daryl Parsons
Fitness approach a clever officiating. Burial will follow
adaptation. The YMCA of- in the Giddings City Cem-
fers outside classes, and etery. Visitation will be held
she said those are also a on Thursday, March 11, 2021
from 7:00 a.m. until 10:00 is preceded in death by his
great option. parents, John & Myrtle Hart;
a.m. at Phillips & Luckey
“I’m just not so worried Funeral Home in Giddings. brother, Maurice Hart; three
about spreading the virus Coach Dan Hart was born sisters, Bernice Wright, Anita
outside as I would be inside on November 30, 1931 in Campbell, and Baby Ruth,
where people are breathing San Angelo, Texas to John as well as a nephew, Darrell
really heavy,” she said. and Myrtle (Echols) Hart. Musgrove. Coach Dan is
At his 24 Hour Fitness in He graduated from Milby survived by his wife, Betty
the Heights, Johnson’s staff High School, attended the Hart of Houston; the 1200
University of Houston, and yearly students of the Kinkaid
moved equipment onto the
received his master’s degree School student body in
basketball court, now the from Rice University. During Houston whom he considered
new “masks required” World War II, he served in his children; sister-in-law,
area. the Coast Guard Reserves. On Barbara Hudetts of Bryan;
“So that way they won’t July 2, 1955, he was united niece, Juliette Campbell of
have any contact with those in marriage to Betty Lee New York; two nephews,
that do not want to wear a Parrish in Houston, Texas. Mike Musgrove and his wife,
mask,” he said. “As far as I Coach Dan was a member Vickie of Ledbetter, and
know we’re the only fitness of the American Football Johnny Musgrove and his
Coach Association and the wife, Joann of Ledbetter, as
company in the country well as numerous cousins,
Texas Taxpayers for Equal
that is doing that.” Appraisal. He enjoyed teach- extended family, and friends.
Earlier in the pandemic, ing football, fishing, hunting, Memorials may be made
he said those not wanting to traveling around the world, to the American Football
wear a mask pushed back, going to football games, and Coaches Foundation, 100
and now that restrictions assisting people with their Legends Lane, Waco, Texas
are loosening, it’s the oppo- property taxes. Coach Dan 76706, Giddings Church of
site. Having a separate passed away the morning of Christ, 424 South Chambers,
Saturday, March 6, 2021 at Giddings, Texas 78942 or to a
“club within a club”
his home in Houston. He charity of one’s choice.
seemed like a way to ac-
commodate both, he said.
JOHN R. MESHBERGER 8-17-1941 in Adam County,
amanda.drane@chron.com Indiana, died 6-29-2020.
1941-2020
twitter.com/amandadrane Ain’t that some s**t!
John R. Meshberger, born
B8 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

WEATHER

HOUSTON’S SEVEN-DAY FORECAST | Go to AccuWeather.com COASTAL FORECAST

GALVESTON BAY: Wind from
81 80 80 74 81 78 77 the southeast at 7-14 knots
67 66 64 51 55 59 57 today. Seas 1-3 feet. Visibility
generally unrestricted. Tonight:
TODAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY Wind from the southeast
Breezy with clouds Partly sunny, breezy Breezy with times of Not as warm with rain Warmer with some sun A t-storm around in the Cloudy with a at 7-14 knots. Seas 1-3 feet.
breaking for sun and warm clouds and sun and a t-storm afternoon thunderstorm possible Becoming cloudy.
MATAGORDA SHIP
METRO AREA NORTH AMERICA TODAY INTERNATIONAL CHANNEL TO HIGH ISLAND
OUT 20 TO 50 MILES: Wind
OUTLOOK Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. Today Fri.
from the south-southeast at
TODAY: Clouds giving way to 110s Saskatoon Africa
Vancouver
Cairo 83/57/pc 74/51/s 8-16 knots today. Seas 1-3 feet.
some sun and breezy. High 78 100s Calgary Visibility generally unrestricted.
to 83. Winds south-southeast Seattle Regina Winnipeg Cape Town 75/60/pc 77/60/pc
90s Casablanca 67/47/s 65/53/s Tonight: Wind from the
10-20 mph. TONIGHT: Low Thunder Bay
80s Portland Montreal Dakar 75/64/pc 80/66/s southeast at 8-16 knots. Seas
clouds and mild. Low 64 to 69. Johannesburg 87/60/s 80/59/t 1-3 feet. Cloudy.
70s Ottawa
Winds southeast 7-14 mph. Lagos 93/80/t 93/79/t
60s
Minneapolis Toronto Boston Asia/Pacific
50s Beijing 62/46/c 54/46/sh
40s Detroit Ho Chi Minh City 95/77/s 94/77/pc
AIR QUALITY 30s Salt Lake City
Chicago Hong Kong 75/68/pc 78/68/s
New York Islamabad 69/57/sh 72/55/sh
Today’s forecast for the entire
20s San Francisco Jakarta 86/75/sh 87/75/t
metro area by the TCEQ: Denver
10s
Washington Karachi 87/70/s 91/67/s GALVESTON TIDES
0s
Kuala Lumpur 93/76/t 90/75/sh Highs Feet Lows Feet
Manila 92/78/pc 92/79/c
-0s New Delhi 91/65/pc 82/60/pc 1:22 a.m. 1.1 9:10 a.m. -0.2
Ozone watch Los Angeles Seoul 59/41/c 55/37/c 4:39 p.m. 1.1 9:36 p.m. 0.9
-10s
Phoenix Little Rock Shanghai 54/50/sh 56/43/c
Good Unhealthy Singapore 90/77/pc 87/76/t
T-storms
Atlanta Sydney 79/70/t 80/69/sh
RIVERS, CREEKS AND
Moderate Very unhealthy Rain
Unhealthy Hazardous Showers
El Paso Dallas Taipei 81/63/s 74/63/c BAYOUS
Tokyo 58/49/s 62/53/c Flood Latest 24-hr.
for sensitive Snow Hermosillo Houston Canada Location stage stage chg.
groups New Orleans Calgary 39/25/pc 49/27/pc
Flurries Chihuahua
Edmonton 35/19/pc 42/21/pc Brays Bayou South Main 54 16.70 -0.03
Ice Brazos River Bryan 43 7.99 -0.12
POLLEN AND MOLD Jet stream
Miami Montreal
Toronto
52/34/c
60/33/pc
43/18/pc
49/22/s Hempstead 50 11.79 -0.09
Yesterday’s readings by the Monterrey Vancouver 48/35/pc 50/37/pc Richmond 48 10.51 -0.27
Houston Health Department: Havana Winnipeg 27/10/pc 40/27/s Buffalo Bayou Piney Point 50 28.17 -0.05
Countpercubicmeterofair Europe Shepherd Dr. 23 1.67 -0.40
Cancún Amsterdam 51/41/sh 47/42/sh
Tree pollen Medium 70
Guadalajara Athens 54/42/sh 57/47/pc
Clear Creek Friendswood 12 0.86 -0.17
Mérida
Weed pollen None 0 Anchorage Berlin 53/40/r 50/39/sh Colorado R. Austin 29 10.85 -0.64
Mexico City Bastrop 25 2.53 none
Grass pollen None 0 Veracruz Copenhagen 45/38/r 45/37/sh
Mold spores Low 6334 Villahermosa Forecasts and
Dublin 47/38/sh 46/37/pc La Grange 32 2.63 +0.05
Honolulu Acapulco Belmopan Frankfurt 56/40/r 52/41/sh Columbus 34 9.53 +0.05
graphics provided by Geneva 58/36/sh 51/39/sh
Low Heavy Cold Warm Stationary
AccuWeather, Inc. Istanbul 46/35/r 47/37/pc Wharton 39 8.18 -0.05
front front front
Medium Extremely heavy ©2021 London 51/42/sh 50/42/sh Bay City 44 3.08 +0.52
Madrid 63/44/pc 59/33/pc Greens Bayou Eastex Fwy. 61 39.02 -0.01
Note: No measurements on weekends; Moscow 16/-3/s 21/18/pc
charts in Sunday and Monday papers reflect
Guadalupe R. Hunt 12 7.75 none
forecast ratings from the previous Friday. FOR THE RECORD TEXAS NATIONAL cont. Paris
Prague
58/41/r
48/39/sh
54/46/sh
47/37/sh
Comfort 26 3.40 +0.03
George Bush Intercontinental Today Fri. Today Fri. Rome 58/51/s 61/47/pc Spring Branch 36 2.08 -0.02
Airport through 3 p.m. yest. Abilene 79/63/c 80/63/c Cleveland 66/37/r 53/27/pc Stockholm 35/32/sn 39/34/sh New Braunfels 13 9.58 none
COMFORT INDEX Amarillo 73/47/s 68/47/c Columbus 66/45/c 59/33/pc Vienna 46/41/c 53/37/sh Gonzales 31 11.88 +0.95
The comfort index takes into
Temperature Degrees F Austin 81/67/c 82/65/pc Denver 47/28/c 40/28/c Warsaw 39/34/sh 45/34/sh Cuero 20 7.81 -0.11
account how the weather will High 77 Beaumont 77/64/pc 78/62/pc Des Moines 55/33/pc 56/38/c Zurich 60/38/sh 50/39/pc
Low 60 Brownsville 83/71/pc 82/70/pc Detroit 62/34/r 55/25/pc Victoria 21 5.74 -0.03
feel based on a combination of Latin America
Bryan/College St. 82/67/c 81/64/pc Duluth 41/14/pc 32/23/s Dupont 20 9.26 +0.13
factors. A rating of 10 feels very Normal high 72 Bogota 63/50/sh 61/51/sh
comfortable while a rating of 0
Corpus Christi 80/68/pc 82/67/pc Fairbanks -1/-22/pc -5/-24/s Buenos Aires 85/68/pc 80/69/s Little River Little River 30 1.54 +0.01
Normal low 51 Dallas/Ft. Worth 79/65/c 77/62/c Great Falls 44/24/s 49/23/s Cameron 30 1.74 +0.03
feels very uncomfortable. Caracas 83/74/c 81/75/sh
Record high 89 in 1980 El Paso 75/51/pc 78/43/s Hartford 65/50/pc 62/29/c Havana 83/65/s 83/63/s Navasota R. Easterly 19 4.80 -0.02
Today Fri. Sat. Sun. Mon. Tue. Record low 27 in 1932 Galveston 74/65/pc 73/65/pc Honolulu 81/69/sh 79/68/sh Kingston 87/76/sh 86/75/sh
Kingsville 82/71/pc 84/71/pc Indianapolis 64/43/r 59/37/c Neches River Evadale 19 10.85 +0.50
10 10 10 5 9 9 Precipitation Inches Lima 80/71/pc 80/72/s
Pine Island B. Sour Lake 25 14.21 -0.58
Laredo 90/70/pc 91/71/pc Jackson, MS 80/60/pc 81/58/c Rio de Janeiro 84/75/pc 84/75/pc
24 hours through 3 p.m. yest. Trace Longview 79/63/c 79/61/pc Juneau 37/25/sn 36/18/sn San Juan 85/72/pc 84/71/pc Sabine River Bon Wier 30 24.28 -0.06
UV TODAY Month to date 0.43 Lubbock 79/57/pc 76/55/pc Kansas City 61/41/c 54/44/r San Salvador 89/66/pc 89/66/s Deweyville 24 23.98 +0.26
McAllen 88/71/pc 87/71/pc Las Vegas 53/40/c 54/42/sh
Values indicate the exposure to Normal month to date 1.15 Midland/Odessa 78/58/pc 82/57/c Little Rock 74/61/sh 74/61/c
Santiago 84/56/s 84/55/s Orange 4 1.58 -0.27
the sun’s Ultraviolet rays. Sao Paulo 84/66/t 83/66/t Burkeville 43 23.86 -0.06
Year to date 4.60 San Angelo 80/62/c 83/63/c Los Angeles 58/42/t 58/43/pc St. Thomas 84/74/s 84/73/s
8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m. Normal year to date 7.73 San Antonio 80/68/pc 82/67/pc Memphis 74/63/c 75/62/c San Bernard R. E. Bernard 17 6.88 -0.08
Texarkana 78/67/c 79/65/c Miami 77/69/pc 79/68/pc Mexico E. San. Jac. R. Cleveland 19 4.90 -0.08
1 2 5 3 2 0 Other readings Acapulco 86/69/s 86/70/s
Victoria 81/69/pc 81/67/pc Milwaukee 54/34/pc 50/27/pc W. San. Jac. R. Conroe 116 94.39 -0.08
Waco 80/65/c 80/63/c Minneapolis 49/28/pc 43/29/s Cancun 81/73/pc 82/74/s
0-2, Low 8-10, Very high Top wind speed 20 mph Guadalajara 88/49/s 89/52/s San Jacinto R. Sheldon 10 1.62 -0.20
Nashville 75/60/c 69/54/c
3-5, Moderate 11+, Extreme High barometer 30.18 in. Guanajuato 84/48/s 84/49/s Sims Bayou Telephone Rd. 30 1.55 -0.34
Low barometer 30.08 in. NATIONAL New Orleans
New York City
80/64/pc
68/55/pc
78/63/pc
66/36/pc Mazatlan 76/56/pc 76/54/s Trinity River Goodrich 36 12.81 -0.82
6-7, High Today Fri. Merida 93/70/s 93/67/s
High dewpoint 64° Oklahoma City 71/55/pc 71/59/t
Mexico City 80/53/s 81/54/s Liberty 26 16.42 -0.03
Low dewpoint 58° Albany, NY 63/44/c 54/25/pc Orlando 79/58/s 81/56/pc
Puerto Vallarta 81/58/s 83/60/s Village Creek Kountze 20 5.64 -0.37
SUN AND MOON Average dewpoint 61°
Albuquerque 62/36/s 61/35/s Philadelphia 71/56/pc 67/38/sh
Tampico 80/71/pc 80/71/pc White Oak B. Heights Blvd. 48 8.38 +0.17
Anchorage 17/3/sn 19/-2/s Phoenix 65/50/pc 59/44/pc
New First Full Last Veracruz 81/72/s 82/72/s
moon quarter moon quarter High humidity 90% Atlanta 75/52/pc 78/55/c Pittsburgh 67/44/c 58/27/pc
Low humidity 59% Baltimore 76/58/pc 69/40/sh Portland, OR 59/34/pc 60/33/s Middle East TEXAS LAKES
Billings 46/26/s 53/26/s Sacramento 58/35/pc 66/38/pc Baghdad 88/63/c 68/48/pc
Birmingham 76/52/pc 79/54/c St. Louis 65/46/r 58/46/r Beirut 70/55/sh 63/51/pc Full Latest Release
Boise 54/28/s 53/28/s Salt Lake City 45/31/s 50/33/c Dubai 86/69/s 95/78/s pool level cfs
Mar 13 Mar 21 Mar 28 Apr 4 KEY TO CONDITIONS Boston 66/51/pc 61/31/pc San Diego 59/48/t 60/50/pc Jerusalem 62/49/c 54/46/pc Canyon Dam 909 903.18 64
s-sunny r-rain Buffalo 63/36/sh 46/24/pc San Francisco 58/45/pc 62/48/pc Kabul 55/42/r 60/44/c Conroe 201 200.98 0
Sunset tonight 6:27 p.m. pc-partly cloudy sf-snow flurries Charleston, SC 73/51/s 77/53/pc Santa Fe 59/27/s 61/30/s Mecca 97/68/s 97/69/s
Sunrise Friday 6:35 a.m. c-cloudy sn-snow Charlotte 75/53/s 77/58/s Seattle 53/34/pc 55/36/s Riyadh 89/72/s 98/63/s Houston 41.73 42.51 N.A.
Moonrise today 5:53 a.m. sh-showers i-ice Chicago 60/35/pc 56/31/pc Tucson 68/43/pc 61/40/pc Tehran 56/51/c 55/33/sh Lake Travis 681 658.76 179
Moonset today 5:00 p.m. t-thunderstorms Cincinnati 68/49/c 60/38/r Washington, DC 76/59/pc 68/44/sh Tel Aviv 68/58/c 64/55/pc Livingston 131 131.22 N.A.
 SPORTS
HOUSTON CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 • SECTION C HH

ASTROS

Plan doesn’t include 100 percent capacity

Officials reveal Phase 1 attendance details tros introduced a phased ap- many people inside and outside Rangers, like the Astros, will have
proach that, depending on de- baseball by announcing Globe Life “socially distanced” seating for
as Rangers ready for full stadium for opener mand, could increase their origi- Field will operate at 100 percent fans who desire it. Sehgal did not
nally planned 25 percent capacity capacity for their two March exhi- provide a specific capacity for any
By Chandler Rome are currently “not planning” to fill for the April 8 home opener bition games and April 1 season Astros games in April. Demand
STA F F WRIT E R Minute Maid Park at 100 percent against the Oakland A’s. Phase 1, opener. from season ticket holders will de-
capacity in April, senior vice presi- the only phase described in the e- “Our focus was never to operate termine the amount of socially dis-
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Al- dent of marketing and communi- mail, covers Houston’s 14 home the building at 100 percent in tant seating in Minute Maid Park
though Texas’ relaxed coronavirus cations Anita Sehgal said Wednes- games in April. April,” Sehgal said. “At this point in and, eventually, the capacity. Seh-
regulations now allow it and the day. At almost the same time the As- time, we are not planning for 100 gal said the team did not establish
Rangers are planning for a full sta- In an email sent to their season tros sent their email to season tick- percent in April.” a capacity threshold it was unwill-
dium on opening day, the Astros ticket holders Wednesday, the As- et holders, the Rangers stunned After their home opener, the Astros continues on C3

HIGH SCHOOLS BRIAN T. SMITH

Commentary

Sports back
to normal?
It’s closer
than before
What a difference a year
makes.
March 11, 2020: “NBA To Sus-
pend Season Following Tonight’s
Games,” the league announced
at 8:46 p.m. in an official press
release that instantly and drasti-
cally changed the sports world,
just as the coronavirus pandemic
was starting to become unavoid-
able in America.
March 10, 2021: The Rangers
teased the possibility of packing
their 40,518-seat stadium at 100
percent capacity in Arlington for
opening day.
It’s hard to call Texas’ other
Matt Young / Staff Major League Baseball team
The Alamodome was ready for teams from around the state, but only a few hit the floor before the shutdown. crazy when the governor of the
state abruptly ends mask require-

No hoopla
State tournament set in motion new landscape for all sports
By Adam Coleman
STA FF WRITER
Coldspring-Oakhurst, a Class 3A school
62 miles northeast of Houston, had
reached halftime of its UIL boys basketball
state semifinal against Dallas Madison
when coach Greg Devers heard the news at
the Alamodome last March.
He wasn’t sure if his players were aware.
He preferred they not be. Coldspring
ments and allows businesses to
again operate at 100 percent
capacity.
It’s also clearer than ever that
we’re getting closer and closer to
how life was, in the sports and
real world, before March 11, 2020.
Sort of.
When James Harden returned
as a Brooklyn Net to Toyota Cen-
ter last week, you still needed a
mask to sit among a crowd of
THE DAY trailed Madison by only 10 at the break and 3,615 in an 18,055-seat arena. And
cut the deficit to six mid-third quarter. Dev- you’ll still need a face covering
SPORTS ers wanted his players focused on finish- when the Astros return to Minute
STOPPED ing. Maid Park on April 8.
Last in a series Who knew? Maybe with a win, the UIL But Houston’s MLB club an-
of articles look- would invite Coldspring back to San Anto- nounced Wednesday that it
ing at the week nio to finish the tournament once all the could increase the attendance
when sports COVID-19 mess cleared away in a few allowed inside its ballpark when
were stopped by
weeks. Dusty Baker’s 2021 team debuts
the coronavirus
Having seen college basketball tourna- against the Oakland Athletics in
pandemic.
State continues on C6 an American League West match-
Smith continues on C6

ROCKETS

Wood’s imminent return brings

hope of fresh start, halting skid
By Jonathan Feigen
STA F F WRIT E R
Christian Wood trash-talked his
way through practice, seeking to
get his struggling team back where
it was before he was hurt.
The Rockets are not over the in-
juries that helped send them to a
13-game losing streak. Wood is not
cleared to play in games. But with
everything he did Wednesday, go-
ing through the entirety of practice
for the first time since spraining his
right ankle Feb. 4, and everything
he said, it was clear he is close and
the Rockets might finally have a
way out of their tailspin.
“I felt great,” Wood said. “A few
more days, and I’ll be back. It’s
been tough. I’ve been lifting a lot of
weights. It’s been a grind for me.
This rehab has been way harder
than the games. It’s actually very,
very different. I’ve never been hurt
and out this long. I’m ready to be
back and help this team out and get
us out of this slump.”
Rockets update
Record: 11-23.
Today: at Kings, 9 p.m.
TV/radio: ATTSW; 740
AM, 790 AM, 1010 AM (Spanish).
If the All-Star break was sup-
posed to give the Rockets a chance
to start over, to leave the frustra-
tions and losing skid behind, the Mark Mulligan / Staff photographer
realities of the season still won’t let Watching the Rockets’ 13-game losing streak while recovering
Rockets continues on C2 from a sprained ankle has been tough on Christian Wood.
C2 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

PRO BASKETBALL

NBA AT A GLANCE SPURS

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Utah
Phoenix
W
27
24
L
9
11
Pct
.750
.686
GB
_
2 1⁄2
L10
6-4
8-2
Str
L-2
W-4
Home
15-2
12-6
Away Conf
12-7 12-5
12-5 15-7
Aldridge out after 6 years
L.A. Lakers 24 13 .649 3 1⁄2 3-7 L-2 11-8 13-5 17-8 Veteran center uniform, bringing his ca-
L.A. Clippers 24 14 .632 4 4-6 L-3 12-6 12-8 14-7 reer total to seven. He also
Portland 21 14 .600 5 1⁄2 6-4 W-3 11-6 10-8 11-9 was in bench role twice made an All-NBA
Denver 21 15 .583 6 6-4 W-4 9-7 12-8 13-9 before mutual team since coming to San
San Antonio 18 15 .545 7 1⁄2 5-5 L-2 9-10 9-5 12-14 Antonio.
Dallas 19 16 .543 7 1⁄2 8-2 W-4 10-8 9-8 10-10 decision to part With 7,325 points scored
Memphis 17 16 .515 8 1⁄2 6-4 W-1 8-11 9-5 8-10 with the Spurs, Aldridge fin-
Golden State 19 18 .514 8 1⁄2 5-5 L-3 12-6 7-12 9-10 By Jeff McDonald ishes his San Antonio career
New Orleans 15 21 .417 12 4-6 L-2 10-9 5-12 8-13 STA F F W R I T ER in eighth place on the
Oklahoma City 15 21 .417 12 4-6 W-1 6-11 9-10 7-16 team’s all-time scoring list.
Sacramento 14 22 .389 13 2-8 L-1 8-12 6-10 7-11 SAN ANTONIO — For a His 3,020 rebounds also
Houston 11 23 .324 15 0-10 L-13 5-10 6-13 8-11 moment in the summer of rank eighth on the franchise
Minnesota 7 29 .194 20 1-9 L-9 4-13 3-16 4-15 2015, LaMarcus Aldridge charts.
EASTERN CONFERENCE made San Antonio the cen- The Spurs brought Al-
W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away Conf ter of the NBA free agency dridge to town in 2015 to
Philadelphia 24 12 .667 _ 6-4 W-2 16-3 8-9 18-6 universe. team with up-and-coming
Brooklyn 24 13 .649 1
⁄2 9-1 W-2 13-6 11-7 11-9 A multiple-time All-Star star Kawhi Leonard and
Milwaukee 22 14 .611 2 6-4 W-1 14-5 8-9 12-7 in Portland, Aldridge forge a bridge from the “Big
Boston 19 17 .528 5 6-4 W-4 12-5 7-12 14-10 agreed to a four-year, $80 Three” championship era
New York 19 18 .514 5 1⁄2 7-3 W-1 11-7 8-11 13-10 million deal to join the of Tim Duncan, Tony Park-
Miami 18 18 .500 6 7-3 W-1 10-8 8-10 9-12 Spurs, a coup for a team un- er and Manu Ginobili.
Charlotte 17 18 .486 6 1⁄2 5-5 W-1 9-8 8-10 9-9 accustomed to such event- The Spurs won three
Toronto 17 19 .472 7 5-5 L-2 8-8 9-11 12-11 ful Julys. playoff series in Aldridge’s
Chicago 16 18 .471 7 6-4 W-1 7-11 9-7 7-8 It was ballyhooed as the first two seasons with the
Indiana 16 19 .457 7 1⁄2 4-6 L-1 7-11 9-8 10-11 greatest free-agent signing club, and in 2017 advanced
Atlanta 16 20 .444 8 5-5 W-2 8-9 8-11 11-12
in club history. By snagging to the Western Conference
Washington 14 21 .400 9 1⁄2 6-4 L-1 7-10 7-11 5-14
the biggest fish in that year’s finals before losing to Gold-
Cleveland 14 22 .389 10 4-6 L-1 9-10 5-12 10-10
free agency pond, the Spurs en State.
Orlando 13 23 .361 11 4-6 L-5 8-12 5-11 9-13
had struck a blow for small- After Leonard forced a
Detroit 10 26 .278 14 3-7 L-1 6-10 4-16 7-15
market teams across the trade to Toronto in 2018, the
Results/schedule league. team’s All-Star partnership
Aldridge’s time with the faded. The Spurs missed
Tuesday’s result Friday’s games
Spurs ended abruptly Wed- the playoffs last season for
No games scheduled Cleveland at New Orleans, 7 p.m.
Denver at Memphis, 7 p.m. nesday, upon the news he the first time since 1997.
Wednesday’s results Philadelphia at Washington, 7 p.m. and the team had decided Popovich made clear
Dallas 115, San Antonio 104 Miami at Chicago, 8 p.m.
Memphis 127, Washington 112
to part ways. there were no hard feelings
Orlando at San Antonio, 8 p.m.
Houston at Utah, 9 p.m.
“We’ve mutually agreed Ronald Cortes / Getty Images between Aldridge and the
Thursday’s games
Indiana at L.A. Lakers, 9:30 p.m. to work on some opportuni- LaMarcus Aldridge (12) was averaging a career-low Spurs and thanked him for
Detroit at Charlotte, 6 p.m.
Atlanta at Toronto, 6:30 p.m. Saturday’s games ties for him,” Spurs coach 4.5 rebounds per game along with 13.7 points. his service.
Boston at Brooklyn, 6:30 p.m. New York at Oklahoma City, 1 p.m. Gregg Popovich said before “He’s been a great team-
Minnesota at New Orleans, 7 p.m. Detroit at Brooklyn, 6 p.m. Wednesday’s game in Dal- trending. win for LaMarcus and for mate,” Popovich said. “He’s
New York at Milwaukee, 7 p.m. Milwaukee at Washington, 6 p.m.
Orlando at Miami, 7 p.m. las. “That will be else- Aldridge, who is in the fi- the club,” Popovich said. done everything we’ve
Toronto at Charlotte, 6 p.m.
Philadelphia at Chicago, 7 p.m. Sacramento at Atlanta, 6:30 p.m. where.” nal season of a contract that “When the opportunity asked. At this point, we just
Dallas at Oklahoma City, 8 p.m. Portland at Minnesota, 7 p.m. Aldridge, 35, was averag- will pay him $24 million, arises, and that will be up to like to do something that
Houston at Sacramento, 9 p.m. Dallas at Denver, 9 p.m.
Golden State at L.A. Clippers, 9 p.m.
ing 13.7 points and a career- will remain away from the management and his agent, will work for him, as much
Indiana at Phoenix, 9 p.m.
Phoenix at Portland, 9 p.m. low 4.5 rebounds through 21 team while the Spurs work we’ll all move forward.” as for our club, because he
games this season. to find a new opportunity Despite a somewhat un- deserves that.”
With 25-year-old Jakob for him, Popovich said. ceremonious end to his ten- It was premature Wed-
Poeltl having emerged as That could come in one ure, Aldridge mostly lived nesday to speculate where
NBA BOX SCORES/LEADERS the Spurs’ starting center of of two ways. The Spurs up to billing in six seasons Aldridge might end up next.
the present and future, Al- could attempt to trade him with the Spurs. It just won’t be San Anto-
Mavericks 115, Spurs 104 Leaders dridge had moved to the in advance of the March 25 His best season came in nio. The Spurs’ latest post-
San Antonio: DeRozan 12-19 5-8 30, K.Johnson 4-8 2-2 Through March 9
12, Poeltl 2-3 2-2 6, Murray 5-15 0-0 11, White 1-8 4-4 6, bench for three games be- deadline or buy out what re- 2017-18, when he averaged season push will com-
Scoring
Bates-Diop 0-0 0-0 0, Lyles 0-0 0-0 0, Samanic 0-0 0-0 0,
Walker IV 5-8 0-112, Eubanks 0-0 0-0 0, Gay 4-12 2-2 13, G FG FT PTS AVG
fore the start of the All-Star mains on Aldridge’s con- 23.1 points and 8.5 re- mence without him.
Jones 0-1 0-0 0, Mills 5-9 1-1 14. Totals 38-83 16-20 104. Beal, WAS 32 368 243 1053 32.9 break. It was a flashing ne- tract and allow him to sign bounds.
Dallas: Finney-Smith 1-5 4-4 7, Kleber 4-7 0-0 11, Porz- Embiid, PHI 30 285 298 905 30.2
ingis 11-17 4-5 28, Doncic 9-20 2-3 22, Richardson 4-9 2-2 Lillard, POR 34 315 237 1013 29.8
on sign about where Al- elsewhere. It marked one of two All- jmcdonald@express-news.net
12, Hardaway Jr. 3-11 2-2 9, J.Johnson 1-1 1-1 3, Cauley-
Stein 5-6 0-010, Brunson 3-41-2 8, Burke 2-3 0-0 5. Totals
Curry, GS 35 343 184 1039 29.7 dridge’s Spurs career was “We think this is a win- Star appearances in a Spurs twitter.com/jmcdonald_saen
Antetokounmpo, MIL 35 368 240 1015 29.0
43-83 16-19 115.
LaVine, CHI 34 350 156 976 28.7
San Antonio 32 27 27 18 — 104
Doncic, DAL 32 319 193 916 28.6
Dallas 27 25 35 28 — 115
Irving, BKN 26 269 94 708 27.2
3-point goals: San Antonio 12-28 (Gay 3-6, Mills 3-7,
K.Johnson 2-3, Walker IV 2-4, Murray1-3, White 0-4), Dal-
las 13-40 (Kleber 3-6, Porzingis 2-5, Richardson 2-5, Don-
Jokic, DEN
Leonard, LAC
36
30
379
287
163
165
977
799
27.1
26.6 ROCKETS game and try to get off this
skid.”
Rockets vs. Kings
When/where: 9 p.m. today; Golden 1
cic 2-10, Brunson1-2, Burke1-2, Finney-Smith1-4, Harda- Rebounds From page C1 The Rockets’ injury issues
way Jr.1-6). Rebounds: San Antonio 30 (Gay 9), Dallas 51 Center, Sacramento, Calif.
(Porzingis14). Assists: San Antonio18 (DeRozan11), Dal-
Capela, ATL
G
32
OFF
159
DEF
294
TOT
453
AVG
14.2
have been so pervasive that TV/radio: ATTSW; 740 AM, 790 AM, 1010
las 29 (Doncic12). Total fouls: San Antonio19, Dallas19.
A: 3,813 (19,200) Gobert, UTA 36 120 352 472 13.1 go. when Silas sought to spend AM (Spanish).
Kanter, POR 35 146 269 415 11.9
Grizzlies 127, Wizards 112 Antetokounmpo, MIL 35 64 344 408 11.7 There is no do-over. They his break studying video, he So far: Rockets 11-23; Kings 14-22.
Washington: Hachimura 3-10 4-4 11, Mathews 2-3 3-3 9,
Wagner 2-9 2-2 6, Beal 6-22 8-8 21, Westbrook 10-19 0-1 Embiid, PHI 30 65 283 348 11.6 are still in 14th place. Worse, could find little that applies Lately: The Rockets brought a 13-game losing streak into
Vucevic, ORL 36 69 348 417 11.6
20, Avdija 5-8 0-0 13, Bertans 5-10 0-0 13, Brown Jr. 1-3
3-3 5, Len 0-10-0 0, Lopez 2-5 3-4 7, Neto 2-5 2-2 7. Totals Ayton, PHO 35 118 282 400 11.4 they are still waiting to be to the team he hopes to the All-Star break and have dropped their past seven road
38-95 25-27 112. Valanciunas, MEM
Sabonis, IND
27
35
93
91
213
298
306
389
11.3
11.1
whole, even with signs they have. games. The Kings have split their past four games, top-
Memphis: Anderson 5-11 2-2 13, Brooks 4-7 1-2 10, Va-
lanciunas12-215-7 29, Bane 7-131-120, Morant 7-14 7-12 Randle, NY 37 52 357 409 11.1 are getting closer. Wood, Oladipo and Wall ping the Lakers and losing in Portland in a back-to-back
21, Tillman 2-4 2-2 6, Clarke 3-4 0-0 6, Winslow 4-131-2 9,
Assists Wood will need as much have played together in just before the break. That followed a nine-game losing skid.
Jones1-5 0-0 2, Melton 5-7 0-111. Totals 50-9919-29127.
Washington 26 36 23 27 — 112 G AST AVG as another week of condi- three games. Silas mostly
Memphis 35 32 27 33 — 127
3-point goals: Washington 11-36 (Avdija 3-5, Bertans
Harden, BKN
Westbrook, WAS
31
27
345
265
11.1
9.8
tioning to be cleared to play watched video from the last SCOUTING SCOUTING
3-7, Mathews 2-3, Hachimura1-3, Beal1-8, Brown Jr. 0-2, Young, ATL 34 321 9.4 after the long layoff, coach weeks of the season and THE ROCKETS THE KINGS
Westbrook 0-3, Wagner 0-4), Memphis 8-23 (Bane 5-8, Doncic, DAL 32 287 9.0
Brooks 1-2, Melton 1-2, Anderson 1-4, Morant 0-2, Valan- Paul, PHO 34 300 8.8 Stephen Silas said, though practice, addressing espe- The Rockets have won The Kings rank last in
ciunas 0-2). Fouled out: Washington 1 (Wagner), Mem-
phis 1 (Tillman). Rebounds: Washington 39 (Avdija, Ha-
Green, GS 31 267 8.6 Wood indicated he hopes to cially the issues with offen- the previous two meetings the NBA in defensive rat-
Jokic, DEN 36 309 8.6
chimura, Lopez 6), Memphis 60 (Valanciunas 20). As-
Lillard, POR 34 271 8.0 be back as soon as Sunday. sive execution and pick-and- with the Kings this season, ing, allowing an average of
sists: Washington 23 (Westbrook 10), Memphis 31 (Mo-
rant 10). Total fouls: Washington 26, Memphis 26. A: James, LAL
Morant, MEM
36
24
280
184
7.8
7.7
Danuel House Jr. remains roll coverages that were both in Toyota Center, and 119.1 points per 100 pos-
1,912 (18,119)
out with a sore knee. David most glaring. have a four-game winning sessions, and in opponent
Nwaba has not had progress “I’ve never had this be- streak in Sacramento. … field-goal percentage. …
on his strained right wrist fore,” he said Wednesday. Houston opponents have Sacramento is tied for
NBA while hoping to avoid sur- “Never. Improvement made a better percentage second in the NBA in
gery. Eric Gordon remains would be getting healthy of their shots in 12 consec- points scored in the paint,

Doncic, Mavericks questionable to play against and getting our whole group utive games. The Rockets averaging 54.2 per game,
the Kings on Thursday. on the floor. Today in prac- are 11-4 when outshooting and last in points allowed
There are even questions tice it was good to have al- foes and 0-19 in games in the paint, giving up 52.4.

rally to top Spurs remaining about healthy

players, with guard Victor
Oladipo uncertain to play
most everybody out there. It
was good to see those guys
play together. You forget
with a worse shooting
percentage. ... In their final
game before the All-Star
… Guard De’Aaron Fox,
averaging career highs of
23 points and 7.6 assists,
break, the Rockets made 18 averaged 22.5 points and
DALLAS — Luka Doncic GRIZZLIES 127, WIZARDS 112 Friday in the second half of how important guys are to 3-pointers on 41.9 percent five assists in the first two
had 22 points, 12 rebounds Jonas Valanciunas the back-to-back, when the our group … the continuity shooting, their most 3s and meetings with the Rockets.
and 12 assists in his 33rd scored a season-high 29 Rockets go from facing the and the chemistry between best 3-point percentage … Guard Buddy Hield
triple-double, Kristaps points and matched his Kings in Sacramento to the our starting group, most of since hitting 19 3-pointers scores 71.9 percent of his
Porzingis had 28 points season best with 20 re- front-running Jazz in Salt all John, Victor and Christian on 42.2 percent shooting in 16.4 points per game on
and 14 rebounds and the bounds to lead host Mem- Lake City in Utah’s first game playing together. Memphis in the first game 3-pointers, the second-
Dallas Mavericks used a phis over Washington. after the break. “When we’re whole and of the losing streak. … largest percentage in the
late run to pull away and Ja Morant added 21 Still, the Rockets can at we have our full comple- Guard John Wall scored 32 league. Hield’s 3.2 assists
beat the San Antonio points and 10 assists for least see reasons for opti- ment of players, I feel really and 36 points, respectively, per game are a career high.
Spurs 115-104 on Wednes- Memphis, while rookie mism. good about this team. I just in his last two games be- … Forward Harrison Barnes
day night. Desmond Bane finished “We have a lot of guys that do.” fore the break — his top- is making 49.2 percent of
Dallas finished with a with a season-high 20 like to compete,” guard John In some respects, that scoring games of the sea- his shots, the best of his
17-4 run against a Spurs points, going 5 of 8 from Wall said. “We’re not guys was the message Wood was son. His five 3-pointers nine NBA seasons. … Cen-
team that will no longer 3-point range. that are just going to bow determined to deliver. He against the Nets matched ter Richaun Holmes made
have seven-time All-Star Bradley Beal scored 21 down and accept losing. We said waiting through the end his career high. … Guard 14 of 21 shots in two games
LaMarcus Aldridge in the know we’re on a losing of his rehab could be the Victor Oladipo had 33 against the Rockets, aver-
points for the Wizards but
lineup. streak, but we look at it as it toughest part. But he took a points in his final game aging 16.5 points and 11
was 6 of 22 from the field,
before the break, eclipsing rebounds. … Tyrese Halli-
Before the game, coach including only 1 of 8 from is a 0-0 start for us in the sec- significant step toward a re-
his previous season high of burton was the Western
Gregg Popovich an- 3-point range. Russell ond half of the season and turn he hopes will be the
32 in his first game with the Conference rookie of the
nounced that Aldridge, 35, Westbrook finished with judge ourselves off that.” start of a Rockets turn-
Rockets. … Forward Jae- month for December/
in his sixth season in San 20 points, while Davis Much will depend on how around. ’Sean Tate, with 12 points January and February.
Antonio, would no longer Bertans and Deni Avdija the Rockets rebuild them- “I got guys riled up in and 10 rebounds against Halliburton’s 13.2 points
be with the team by mutu- scored 13 apiece. selves when Wood returns. practice purposely, just be- the Nets, is the first Rock- per game ranks third
al agreement. The game tipped off the Wall said Wood “looked cause I felt like we’re a better ets rookie since Steve among rookies and he is
DeMar DeRozan had 30 second half of the season great.” Though there are team than what we’ve Francis during the 1999- making 49.4 percent of his
points, 11 assists and four for both teams sitting other concerns, with the ab- showed,” Wood said. “When 2000 season to record shots and 43.3 percent of
steals for the Spurs. Patty outside of the playoff pic- sence of House a greater is- we’re healthy, we’re a hard double-doubles of points his 3s. He ranks second
Mills added 14 points and ture, looking to rally for a sue with Nwaba certain to team to beat. Me, Vic, E.G. and rebounds and points among rookies in assists
Rudy Gay had 13. postseason spot. miss time, much of the Rock- and John have only played and assists. (5.4) and steals (1.4.).
Doncic is tied with Bob Washington wanted to ets’ plans and hopes point to two games together. We
Cousy for 11th place in prevent Memphis from Wood. need everybody for the sec-
career triple-doubles. “Having ‘C-Wood’ out ond-half push. INJURY/STATUS REPORT
scoring inside but had
The Mavericks’ late there for some minutes “The chip on my shoulder NUMBER Rockets: Center Christian Wood
little success, as the Griz-
TO NOTE (sprained right ankle), forward David
spurt began midway zlies had 78 paint points. made it better and let us see gets even bigger. I wasn’t an
Nwaba (strained right wrist), forward
through the fourth quarter
when the Spurs’ Derrick
The Grizzlies took ad-
vantage of Washington
what our team could be
when he is there, the differ-
All-Star. My team lost 13
games in a row. I didn’t like 2 Danuel House Jr. (bruised right knee),
guard Dante Exum (right calf strain)
White fouled Josh Rich- shooting struggles in the ent dynamic he can bring,” watching us lose games that Rockets’
losses and forward Rodions Kurucs (left
ardson with 1.2 seconds early stages of the first Wall said. “He made it more I thought we could have
away from oblique strain) are out. Guard Eric Gor-
left on the shot clock. half, building the lead to 19 competitive, more chippi- won. I just want to go out
matching don (sore left knee) is questionable.
The Spurs led 59-52 at points in the second quar- ness, brought some firepow- there and help my team win Kings: Center Chimezie Metu (frac-
their lon-
intermission, which ter. The Wizards closed er we need. It was fun. We games and try to make a tured right wrist), center Hassan White-
gest losing
matched their largest lead the half with a 21-7 rally to probably won’t have him out playoff push.” side (health and safety protocols) and
streak in 20
of the half, led by DeRo- cut the deficit to 67-62. there (Thursday), but the years. forward Robert Woodard II (left ham-
zan’s 14 points, eight as- From wire reports most important thing is to jonathan.feigen@chron.com string strain) are out.
sists and three steals. try to translate that to a twitter.com/jonathan_feigen Jonathan Feigen

PRO BASEBALL
ASTROS REPORT
Altuve working on bouncing back
JUPITER, Fla. — Between the
sixth and seventh innings of Wed-
nesday’s Grapefruit League game
against the Marlins, an army of
Astros regulars grabbed their bags
and walked toward the right-field
clubhouse. Manager Dusty Baker
played most of his everyday lineup
for a second consecutive night,
easing the team into the sort of
grind a 162-game season will pres-
ent.
Carlos Correa sauntered across
the outfield grass. His double-play
partner remained in position — the
only established Astros player to
see time in the seventh inning.
Jose Altuve felt in rhythm. He
wanted to carry it into a fourth
plate appearance.
“I’ve been feeling good,” Altuve
said. “It was particular today that I
wanted that extra at-bat because I
was feeling good. I actually hit the
ball hard in the last one. I’m just
trying to do everything I can to get
ready every day.”
Altuve crushed Nick Neidert’s
elevated four-seam fastball into
right field. It found a glove, but it
carried a 99.4 mph exit velocity.
Hitters preach process over results
in spring training. Altuve struck
out twice Wednesday but finished
his outing with the well-struck fly
ball.
Altuve is just 2 for his first 10 in
Grapefruit League play. He’s
worked three walks and struck out
three times.
“It’s going good,” Altuve said.
“I’m trying to follow my game plan
and my approach, no matter the
results I have. In every single at-
bat, I want to be confident, and I
want to trust in the plan I have. I
don’t know about spring training,
but I feel like in a long season like
we’re going to play, it’s going to be
good for me.”
Altuve entered spring training
with renewed optimism. Last sea-
son was the worst of his major
league career. Altuve’s path to a
rebound included what he called a
“game plan” and “better ap-
proach” than in his 2020 cam-
paign.
What exactly it entails is a mys-
tery. Altuve offered few specifics.
Asked how many at-bats he’d like
to get, Altuve said anywhere from
three per game to 30 total. He and
the other starters will get Thursday
off after playing a back-to-back.
“The only thing I can say right
now is I feel really good, and I like
where I’m at,” Altuve said.
Castro working back
from strained oblique
Catcher Jason Castro strained
his oblique this week but returned
to workouts Wednesday, manager
Dusty Baker said.
Castro hasn’t appeared in a
Grapefruit League game since
March 2. Baker said the team is
being “cautious” with Castro, the
33-year-old catcher signed to a
two-year deal this winter. It is
unclear when Castro will return to
game action.
Lorenzo Quintana caught
Wednesday’s Grapefruit League
game against the Marlins to give
Martin Maldonado and Garrett
Stubbs the day off.
ASTROS
From page C1
ing to cross.
“Our focus has been to assess de-
mand as opposed to forcing a cap,”
Sehgal said of Minute Maid Park’s ca-
pacity. “We looked at what all 30
clubs are doing, and everyone is in a
fluid position based on the state of
the virus. We’re going to continue to
be flexible.”
Most of the 30 major league
teams have either received permis-
sion to allow fans or officially an-
nounced they will welcome specta-
tors back to the ballpark. The Balti-
more Orioles announced Tuesday
they’ll have 50 percent capacity at
Camden Yards to start the season,
while the Colorado Rockies will have
42.6 percent capacity at Coors Field.
Two of the Astros’ other AL West
rivals — the Oakland Athletics and
Los Angeles Angels — announced
they will have fans at their home sta-
diums on opening day, but capacity
is contingent on the virus numbers
in their home county and only Cali-
fornia residents are permitted to at-
tend. The Astros open the regular
season April 1 at Oakland. Houston’s
home opener is seven days later
against the A’s.
“I think as a player, you want to
play with fans like we normally play
with,” Astros second baseman Jose
Altuve said. “Last year wasn’t a lot of
Astros second baseman Jose Altuve is coming off the worst season of his career last year and only has
two hits so far in Grapefruit League action but is happy with his progress so far in spring training.
Only Baez tested
positive for COVID-19
Reliever Pedro Baez is the only
Astros player among the eight
quarantined pitchers to test posi-
tive for COVID-19, manager Dusty
Baker said Wednesday, but none
of the seven other righthanders
have resumed workouts.
“They are cleared, but they have
to clear Major League Baseball
protocols as well as our local proto-
cols here,” Baker said. “That’s what
we’re in the process of doing. We
could have them back within a day
or two, hopefully.”
Baez gave the team permission
to reveal his diagnosis, but general
manager James Click did not
disclose whether the 32-year-old
pitcher is suffering from any symp-
toms. Baker indicated Wednesday
that the seven other quarantined
pitchers were labeled as close
contacts.
MLB mandates a seven-day
quarantine for all players sidelined
due to health and safety protocols.
The Astros revealed the absence of
pitchers Bryan Abreu, Ronel
Blanco and Luis Garcia on March
4 — the same day Baez, according
to Baker, threw a simulated game
at the Astros’ facility.
Baker reported Baez, Cristian
Javier, Hector Velazquez, Fran-
cis Martes and Enoli Paredes
absent on March 5. It is unknown
whether Abreu, Blanco and Gar-
cia’s absences are related to anoth-
er positive test or if all eight players
are sidelined as a result of Baez’s
positive test. Presumably, the team
did not know about Baez’s positive
test when it allowed him inside the
facility on March 4 — a day that
began without Garcia, Abreu or
Blanco in camp.
The group’s return “may not be
so long” away, according to Baker.
The manager said a portable pitch-
ing mound was set up in the park-
ing lot of a hotel where the players
are quarantining, enabling them to
Though Minute Maid Park will soon have Astros fans in some
capacity, there will be guidelines in place to enhance safety.
fun playing with an empty ballpark.
I just hope we get to a situation
where we all feel safe and we all can
have a lot of people in ballparks.”
For their 14 home games in April,
the Astros presented season ticket
holders four options: keeping their
existing seats, relocating elsewhere
in the ballpark to ensure social dis-
tancing, pausing their accounts for
April or donating their April tickets
to health care workers or first re-
sponders.
If season ticket holders keep their
existing seats, the Astros cannot en-
sure social distancing around them.
Socially distant seating locations will
be placed around the ballpark, but
HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | C3
MLB
Britton
to be out
at least
until May
TAMPA, Fla — New York
Yankees lefthander Zack
Britton is scheduled for
surgery Monday to remove
a bone chip from his pitch-
ing elbow and seems likely
to be out until at least May.
Britton will not be able
to throw for several weeks
while the incision heals
after the operation by
Yankees head team physi-
cian Dr. Christopher Ah-
mad in New York. Britton
will then need to build
arm strength.
“It’s going to get taken
care of and I’ll be able to
pitch this year and help
the team. And so that’s the
most important thing,” he
said Wednesday. “Could I
rehab through it and pos-
sibly come back and it
wouldn’t impact me?
Karen Warren / Staff photographer There was a chance. But
we like the chances better
of me coming back this
season and pitching at a
keep their arms in shape. The Marlins 4, Astros 4 high level if I just got it
players have a throwing sock, too, Houston ab r h bi Miami ab r h bi removed now. If this was
which allows them to throw a
C.Crrea, ss
Je.Pena, ph
3
2
0
0
3
0
2
0
S.Marte, cf
Brinson, pr
3 0 1 0
2 0 0 0 during the season, I’m not
baseball without requiring a catch- K.Tcker, rf 2 0 0 0 Dckrson, dh 3 1 2 0
sure surgery would be the
Sza, Jr., rf 2 0 0 0 Encrncn, ph 1 0 1 0
er. J.Altve, 2b 4 0 0 0 Aguilar, 1b 2 1 0 0 decision.”
Brntley, lf 3 0 1 0 Le.Diaz, 1b 1 0 0 0
Lefthander Aroldis
R.Dwson, lf 1 0 0 0 G.Coper, rf 2 0 1 1
Odorizzi’s contract Gurriel, 1b
Ab.Toro, 1b
3
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
M.Serra, rf
Andrson, 3b
2 0 0 0
3 0 1 1
Chapman is the Yankees’
closer, and manager Aaron
has strange structure Al.Diaz, 3b
R.Grcia, 3b
2
1
1
0
2
0
0
0
J.Dvers, ss
A.Dvall, lf
1 0 0 0
3 0 0 0 Boone said he will mix and
Qintana, c 3 0 1 1 Hrrison, lf 0 0 0 0
The structure of the contract for Kor.Lee, c 1 0 0 0 Chsholm, 2b 2 0 0 0 match during the sixth,
righthander Jake Odorizzi, who M.Straw, cf 3 0 1 0 Is.Diaz, ph 2 0 0 0
seventh and eighth innings
J.Myers, cf 1 0 0 0 J.Alfro, c 2 0 0 0
was introduced Tuesday, is com- De, Goti, dh 2 1 1 1 Sa.Leon, c 2 0 0 0 with righthander Chad
plex. Daniels, ph 2 0 0 0 M.Rojas, ss 1 1 0 0
Green, righthander Darren
J.Berti, 3b 1 1 1 0
The Astros kept their payroll Totals 35 4 10 4 Totals 33 4 7 2 O’Day, lefthander Justin
under the competitive balance tax Houston 031 000 000 — 4
Wilson and righthander
Miami 102 000 100 — 4
threshold with an oddly construct- E—Pop (1). DP—Houston 0, Miami1. LOB—Houston 8, Miami 6. 2B—Diaz Esteban Loaisiga.
ed two-year deal that includes a (2), De Goti (1), Marte (2), Cooper (2), Berti (1). SB—Harrison (1).
CS—Encarnacion (1). “Obviously, Zack’s so
third-year player option valued at Houston IP H R ER BB SO important to our team and
$6.5 million but could be worth as
Urquidy
Cishek H, 1
21⁄3 3 3
12⁄3 1 0
3
0
1
1
3
3 the back end of our bull-
much as $12.5 million. Solomon, H, 1 2 1 0 0 0 3 pen. So it’s certainly a
Conine, BS, 0-1 2 2 1 1 0 1
Odorizzi’s average annual value LaRue 1 0 0 0 2 0 blow,” Boone said. “But it’s
in 2021 — used to calculate the Miami IP H R ER BB SO also one that we know he’s
competitive balance tax — amounts
Rogers
Bleier
21⁄3
1 ⁄3
2
5
4
3
1
3
1
1
0
5
0 going to be back and,
to $7.833 million, according to a Neidert 3 1 0 0 1 4 especially again in a weird
Pop 1 0 0 0 1 1
person with knowledge of the Cimber 1 0 0 0 0 1 season, maybe in a way,
contract’s terms. Balk—Urquidy. Umpires—Home, Chris Conroy; First, Larry Vanover; Sec- this can be something that
ond, Jerry Meals; Third, Mike Estabroo. Time—3:07. Att—1,255.
According to FanGraphs, the allows him to stay fresher
added money puts Houston’s CBT throughout the season.”
payroll at $208,532,143. The luxury player option for 2023. The $6 Britton, 33, is a two-
tax threshold, which the Astros million signing bonus is deferred time All-Star who was 1-2
crossed last season, is $210 million. over three years, totaling $2 mil- with a 1.89 ERA and eight
There is little room to maneuver if lion payments in July 2021, 2022 saves in 20 appearances
the team intends to stay below the and 2023. during the pandemic-
threshold but requires an in-season There is a $3.25 million buyout shortened 2020 season.
addition at, say, the trade deadline. on the 2023 player option. Odoriz- He filled in as closer for
“We still have room (to add), zi’s player option can max out at a the first 3½ weeks while
and those kind of things are some- $12.5 million base salary and a Chapman missed 21 games
thing we’re going to keep a con- $6.25 million buyout — but only if recovering from COVID-19.
stant eye on,” general manager he pitches in 30 games in which he
James Click said. records 12 or more outs in 2021-22. Gambler made
If Houston crosses the compet- Performance bonuses during
itive balance tax threshold for a the two guaranteed years on the threats to Rays
second consecutive season, it will contract can take Odorizzi’s total A sports gambler faces
pay a 30 percent tax on all overag- guaranteed money to more than up to five years in federal
es. Any 2022 draft-pick compensa- $30 million. prison for threatening
tion the club receives this winter Odorizzi’s $5 million base salary social media messages
from declined qualifying offers in 2022 increases by $500,000 if sent to players with the
would come later in the draft, too. he throws 100 innings, by $1 million Tampa Bay Rays.
According to a person with incrementally if he reaches 110, 120, Benjamin Tucker Patz,
knowledge of the deal, Odorizzi’s 130, 140 and 150 innings, and by 24, of Napa, Calif., pleaded
contract contains $23.5 million in $1.25 million if he reaches 160 in- guilty Wednesday in Tam-
guaranteed money — a $6 million nings. So if Odorizzi throws more pa federal court to trans-
signing bonus, a $6 million base than 160 innings, his base salary in mitting threats in inter-
salary in 2021, a $5 million base 2022 will grow to $11.75 million. state or foreign commerce,
salary in 2022 and a $6.5 million Chandler Rome according to court records.
No sentencing date was
immediately set.
Patz had made numer-
tros were prepared to have “around
25 percent” capacity inside the
ous violent threats in 2019
against athletes and their
44,000-seat stadium for their home family members through
opener April 8. anonymous Instagram
“We really do not know what our accounts, according to a
capacity will be for April,” Sehgal criminal complaint. In
said. “We know that our No. 1 priori- many messages, Patz
ty is to make sure people come to threatened to enter the
Minute Maid Park and have an en- athletes’ homes and be-
joyable, safe experience.” head them or their family
Season ticket holders have until members, the FBI said.
March 18 to inform the team of their The Rays lost a game in
decision. The Astros plan to make July 2019 to the Chicago
single-game tickets available for pur- White Sox. An account
chase during the week of March 22. linked to Patz later sent
Though Abbott’s statewide mask threatening Instagram
mandate was lifted Wednesday, face messages to four players
Elizabeth Conley / Staff photographer coverings will still be required inside for the Rays and one for
Minute Maid Park for fans not active- the White Sox, according
ly eating or drinking, in adherence to authorities. None of the
to Major League Baseball’s proto- players were identified by
demand will dictate how many seats cols. All ballpark employees will name, only initials.
are available. wear masks, too. The Astros will
“It will be somewhat dependent place hand sanitizer around the ball- Reds’ Votto tests
on what our season ticket holders park, which is now a “contactless
decide to do,” Sehgal said. “We got environment.” positive for virus
input from our season ticket holders Wednesday’s email detailed only Cincinnati Reds first
in order to come up with this plan, the Astros’ plans for April games. baseman Joey Votto is out
and as they choose whether to move Sehgal said the team could alter its for an indefinite period
to a socially distanced area or stay in approach on a month-to-month ba- after testing positive for
their seat, if we have a high demand sis, but Phase 2 — for now — will en- COVID-19 at spring train-
for the socially distanced area, we compass all May home games. ing, the team said.
will adjust accordingly.” “As cases continue to decrease The Reds put Votto, 36,
The team surveyed its season tick- and vaccinations continue to in- on the injured list and he
et holders about their attendance crease, our hope is we will expand gave the team permission
preferences earlier this month and capacity,” Sehgal said. to announce he was side-
received one of the largest respons- lined because he had test-
es in recent franchise history. Before chandler.rome@chron.com ed positive for the virus.
Abbott reopened the state, the As- twitter.com/chandler_rome From wire reports
C4 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
One job that never gets old Leftover business
At 65 and thriving,
Sampson to keep
lacing them up
In 32 seasons as a college bas-
ketball coach, Kelvin Sampson
has 660 victories.
He has won five regular-season
conference titles.
He’s been to 16
NCAA Tourna-
ments with four
different schools.
And he still has
a winning record
JOSEPH against the most
DUARTE formidable seed
On the Cougars
in his age bracket:
Father Time.
“I still think I’m very young for
my age. I’m vibrant. I can still do
a bunch of stuff,” the 65-year-old
University of Houston coach said
with a laugh during a Zoom call
with reporters Wednesday.
At this point of his Hall of Fame
career, Sampson has nothing left
to prove. He could walk away
tomorrow with a treasure chest of
memories and a phone directory
filled with the names of former
players and assistants, many of
whom still regularly call or text.
“I have very few regrets,”
Sampson said. “Very few com-
plaints.”
Asked if he’s given thought
when might be the right time to
step away, Sampson replied: “No,
I don’t look at it that way.” He
then proceeded to give reasons
why, much to the relief of UH
basketball fans, he has no plans
to retire any time soon.
Sampson is averaging nearly 25
wins over the last six seasons. He
has led a renaissance of the UH
basketball program, which is
about to make a fourth straight
NCAA appearance. Yes, he counts
last year and, to mark the
achievement, put up a 2020
banner inside the Guy V. Lewis
Development Facility. He still
enjoys the challenge, although he
admits to the “daily stress” of
playing this season in the shadow
of the coronavirus pandemic.
On Tuesday, UH announced a
two-year extension — worth at
least $7.3 million — that will keep
Sampson with the Cougars
through the 2026-27 season.
Sampson will be 71 at the end of
the contract.
“The good Lord and Mother
Nature’s winning some battles,
but there’s other ones that I still
feel like I’m hanging in there on,”
Sampson added. “As long as I’m
standing on the plus side of the
battles, I’m good.”
In recent years, Sampson has
had two hip replacements and
surgery for lower back pain.
There were concerns this season
because of Sampson’s age and the
disclosure the entire roster tested
positive for COVID-19 since testing
Three UH players earn AAC honors
By Joseph Duarte
STA F F WRIT E R
The University of Houston
claimed three American Athletic
Conference individual postseason
awards Wednesday, headlined by
guard Quentin Grimes’ selection as
co-player of the year.
Grimes, who was second in scor-
ing in the AAC, shared the top hon-
or with Tyson Etienne, a sopho-
more guard for regular-season
champion Wichita State.
UH senior guard DeJon Jarreau
was also honored as the league’s
defensive player of the year and se-
nior forward Justin Gorham was se-
lected as most improved player.
SEC: VANDERBILT 79, TEXAS A&M 68
Aggies’ comeback comes up short vs. Commodores
By Brent Zwerneman
STA F F WRIT E R
Texas A&M’s season crashed to
an apt, haphazard end Wednes-
day night with a double-digit loss
to an SEC opponent.
“Texas A&M deserves better,
and we’re going to do better,” Ag-
gies coach Buzz Williams prom-
ised following Vanderbilt’s 79-68
victory over A&M in the opening
game of the SEC tournament in
Nashville, Tenn.
Williams should enter his third
season with a roster entirely his
own for the first time at A&M, and
Wednesday’s outcome offered a
microcosm of the many things
that went haywire for the Aggies
in a COVID-19-interrupted season.
“We can’t start the game like
that — we have to play better from
the start,” A&M guard Hassan
HH
TEXAS
looms for Horns
By Nick Moyle Big 12 results/schedule
STA F F WR I T E R First round
Wednesday’s games
Kansas St. 71, TCU 50
AUSTIN — A helpless feeling Oklahoma 79, Iowa St. 73
washed over Courtney Ramey Quarterfinals
as the Sprint Center’s thump- Thursday’s games
Oklahoma St. vs. West Virginia, 10:30 a.m.
ing pregame soundtrack went Kansas St. vs. Baylor, 1:30 p.m.
silent. Oklahoma vs. Kansas, 5:30 p.m.
Texas Tech vs. Texas, 8:30 p.m.
It was the morning of March Semifinals
12, 2020, and all around the Friday’s games
Texas guard, Big 12 officials, Oklahoma St.-West Virginia winner vs.
Kansas St.-Baylor winner, 5:30 p.m.
coaches and staffers were Oklahoma-Kansas winner vs.
Texas Tech-Texas winner, 8:30 p.m.
forming tight groups and
Championship
speaking in frantic whispers. Saturday’s games
Elizabeth Conley / Staff photographer Something was up. Semifinal winners, 5 p.m.
Kelvin Sampson is a sage in the coaching ranks, readily dis- Shortly after the arena went
pensing advice, with Reggie Chaney on the receiving end here. quiet, conference officials
pulled Texas and Texas Tech conversation he had with Tex-
AAC schedule Why does Sampson still go off the court ahead of their 11 a. as athletic director Chris Del
First round through the daily grind? m. quarterfinal matchup in the Conte moments before the
Today’s games Because of the phone call at conference basketball tourna- 2020 tournament was shut
Temple vs. South Florida, 11 a.m.
Tulane vs. Tulsa, 2 p.m. 11:30 p.m. from a former player ment. Half an hour later, Big 12 down.
East Carolina vs. UCF, 6 p.m. asking for advice. An invitation commissioner Bob Bowlsby “I was in the locker room,
Quarterfinals from another former player to slogged to a podium and an- and (Del Conte) said they can-
Friday’s games
Temple-South Florida winner vs. Wichita St., 11 a.m. attend his Hall of Honor induc- nounced the men’s and wom- celed the tournament,” Smart
Cincinnati vs. SMU, 2 p.m.
Tulane-Tulsa winner vs. Houston, 6 p.m.
tion. A call from a friend who has en’s tournaments had been remembered. “So we call the
East Carolina-UCF winner vs. Memphis, 9 p.m. spina bifida and has known canceled. Soon, everything guys back in the locker room,
Semifinals Sampson since his days as head else would be, too. and at that point we didn’t
Saturday’s games
Temple-South Florida_Wichita St. vs. Cincinnati-SMU winner, 2 p.m.
coach at Montana Tech in the “During that time, I was know what we know now
Tulane-Tulsa winner vs. East Carolina-UCF_Memphis winner, 4:30 p.m. early 1980s. “He’s a huge inspira- pretty mad,” Ramey said Mon- about the severity of COVID
Championship tion to me,” Sampson said. “Al- day, nearly a year to day since and just the long, long-lasting
Sunday’s game
Semifinal winners, 3:14 p.m.
ways has been.” On his desk is a COVID-19 stopped sports. “I impact. But I had a feeling that
stack of emails from “old Coogs” wanted to play. I it would be the last time that
expressing their appreciation. had family we would be addressing that
began last summer. He and wife Sampson welcomes giving there, so I want- team in a locker room in that
Karen recently received their back to younger coaches like Lew ed to perform season.
second dose of the COVID vac- Hill, the former coach at UT-Rio for them. But, in “I won’t name any names,
cine. Grande Valley who died unex- the grand but we had one player that I
The latest contract discussions pectedly this season. scheme of think was really relieved that
— less than two years after Samp- “I think about him just about things, I under- we were not playing, did not
son signed a six-year extension every day and the job he did, his Ramey stood why they feel like it was safe to play. We
following interest from Arkansas wife and his two kids. There’s my pulled us off the had another player that was
— began in December when balance,” Sampson said. “I think court. And we have a team- extremely upset — you can
Sampson’s agent began talking to about Lew Hill. ‘Coach, how mate of our own at risk (leuke- probably guess, based on
school athletic officials. would you handle this, or what mia survivor Andrew Jones), knowing our guys — that was
“They wanted to give me an do you think about that?’ I think so I had to think about him as really mad and disappointed
extension. I said, ‘OK.’ I think it that’s one of the experiences you well.” and felt like we had an oppor-
took about 30 seconds,” Sampson go through when you become an No. 15 Texas (17-7, 11-6 Big 12) tunity taken away from us. But
said. older coach is younger coaches returned to Kansas City this it was outside of our control.”
Sampson admitted to being feel comfortable enough to ask week for the Big 12 tourna- Texas isn’t naive enough to
embarrassed at the congratulato- you those things. I welcome that, ment. COVID-19 remains, and believe it has total control over
ry text messages he received after because part of what we do is the American death toll con- its situation in Kansas City. But
the announcement. giving back.” tinues hitting gruesome mile- if the Longhorns can just make
“When you’re 65, the last thing Whether it was his 2002 Okla- stones, though hope, knowl- it to tipoff, they feel confident
you’re worried about is being homa team that advanced to the edge and, thankfully, vaccines about being able to make one
extended,” he said. “Just glad to Final Four, his 13-19 squad in his now exist to light the way for- more compelling impression
be here.” first year at UH, the 33-win squad ward. on the NCAA men’s basketball
Sampson told a story about from 2018-19 or this year’s group Sports remain, too. And the committee before Selection
how he and Tim Floyd, both head that some believe could make a Longhorns have made it to Sunday.
coaches in their early 30s, would deep run, Sampson said he has tournament season intact, The stoppages and CO-
sit at the kitchen table and “talk no favorite. Each team is special. though not without some mis- VID-19 hangovers battered
ball until midnight or 1 in the And when this season ends, fortune. Texas after a thunderous 10-1
morning.” At the time, Sampson Sampson will do it all over again. The coronavirus ravaged start. It was only in the final
was at Washington State and “It’s been a blessing. It’s been a the team for the better part of tacked-on week of the regular
Floyd at Idaho. fun ride,” he said. “I’m going to three weeks. Coach Shaka season that the Longhorns
“Million pieces of paper just ride with this team until they tell Smart had to watch one game were able to recapture some of
exchanging ideas, trying to get us we can’t play. Then we’ll pack in quarantine. The bout with their early-season swagger.
better, trying to learn,” Sampson our uniforms and put them up COVID-19 rattled him, casting Senior big man Jericho Sims
said. and get ready for next year. We’ll doubt upon the merit of actu- is playing the most inspired
All these years later, Sampson see who we’re going to have on ally playing out this entire sea- basketball of his life as a two-
is still trying to learn, still trying the team, we’ll add a few and put son amid a viral minefield. way devastator. Ramey, Cole-
to improve. He admits “my stuff our uniform back on next year, Then Winter Storm Uri ar- man and Jones have learned
doesn’t work sometimes,” and he lace them up and go play again.” rived, and Texas froze over, how to cook in the kitchen all
does a lot behind the scenes that went dark and cold, and at once. Big 12 sixth man of the
“nobody knows how many times joseph.duarte@chron.com turned inescapable. year Kai Jones is a bucket-get-
I fail.” twitter.com/joseph_duarte All told, Texas had six games ting cyclone in transition and a
canceled or postponed this versatile defender. Freshman
season due to COVID-19 proto- Greg Brown keeps growing
cols or weather. It made up
three of those games last
week, hopscotching from Iowa
and soaring. Shooting guard
Jase Febres is finally healthy
and sniping from the arc.
It’s just the second time UH has (68) ranks second scoring (17.9 State to Oklahoma to TCU and Swingman Brock Cunningham
won three individual awards in the points per game), fifth in 3-point leaving with three wins in tow. is still the mad king of hustle
same season — following Bo Out- percentage (38.9) and eighth in re- That thunderous 3-0 close plays.
law, who won Southwest Confer- bounding (6.2). locked the Longhorns into a If Texas can just make it
ence player of the year and defen- Jarreau, a senior guard, was a No. 3 seed in this year’s tour- through pregame shoota-
sive player of the year, and Antho- catalyst for one of the nation’s top nament, which Big 12 officials round without the world col-
ny Goldwire, who was newcomer defenses. He tied for the league expect to be played in full at lapsing again, Ramey believes
of the year, in 1993. lead with 35 steals. Kansas City’s Sprint Center. there’s no more “dangerous”
Grimes becomes the seventh Gorham leads the AAC in re- The Longhorns will face No. 6 team in the field.
UH player to be named a league bounding (9.4) and is fourth in de- seed Texas Tech (17-9, 9-8) in “Knock on wood,” Coleman
player of the year, joining Outlaw, fensive rebounds (5.2). His 4.3 of- Thursday’s quarterfinals in a said, “but it’s why you come to
Hakeem Olajuwon (1984), Clyde fensive rebounds per game are rematch likely to conjure some college, to play in March. And
Drexler and Michael Young (shared third nationally. tense memories. for us, knowing that we’re not
in 1983), Rob Williams (1981) and In addition, Grimes was a unani- Players like Ramey and se- going to get that taken away
Otis Birdsong (1977). All six previ- mous first-team selection and Jar- nior Matt Coleman still feel from us, it’s even more excit-
ous winners did so as members of reau and Gorham were named to like the rug might be pulled ing.”
the SWC. the second team. Guard Marcus from under them at the last
In his second season at UH, Sasser was also named to the sec- second all over again. And nmoyle@express-news.net
Grimes leads the AAC in 3-pointers ond team. Smart still anguishes over the twitter.com/nrmoyle
Diarra said. “That was the main is- bad job of continuing that mo- SEC results/schedule Vanderbilt 79, Texas A&M 68
sue.” mentum.” First round Texas A&M (8-10)
The Commodores, playing Guard Scotty Pippen Jr. paced Wednesday’s result Aku 0-0 2-4 2, Miller 11-16 0-0 22, Gordon 1-11 0-0 2, Jackson 4-10 1-2
Vanderbilt 79, Texas A&M 68 10, Flagg 3-9 2-2 9, Chandler 4-111-2 11, Diarra 3-7 1-2 10, McGhee 1-1
about two miles from their home Vanderbilt with 22 points despite 0-0 2, Hefner 0-1 0-0 0, Robinson 0-0 0-0 0, Bradford 0-0 0-0 0, Marfo
Second round
arena, are the tournament’s No. 12 missing 14 of his 17 attempts from 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-66 7-12 68.
Thursday’s games Vanderbilt (9-15)
seed, and the Aggies were the No. the field. He made all 15 of his free Mississippi St. vs. Kentucky, 11 a.m.
Vanderbilt vs. Florida, 1:30 p.m. Brown 2-3 0-0 4, Evans 5-9 0-112, Harvey 4-6 6-817, Pippen 3-1715-15
13 seed, but only because A&M (8- throws, however. Georgia vs. Missouri, 6 p.m. 22, Wright 4-5 0-0 9, Stute 2-6 0-0 6, Millora-Brown 0-0 0-0 0, Thomas
3-6 0-0 9, McBride 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 23-55 21-24 79.
10, 2-8 SEC) didn’t play enough Vanderbilt (9-15, 3-13) faces South Carolina vs. Mississippi, 8:30 p.m.
Halftime: Vanderbilt 37-27. 3-point goals: Texas A&M 7-25 (Diarra
SEC contests to officially qualify fifth-seeded Florida in the second Quarterfinals 3-5, Chandler 2-7, Jackson 1-3, Flagg 1-4, Hefner 0-1, Gordon 0-5),
Friday’s games Vanderbilt 12-34 (Harvey 3-5, Thomas 3-5, Evans 2-5, Stute 2-6,
for tournament seeding, per round at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Mississippi St.-Kentucky winner vs. Alabama, 11 a.m. Wright 1-2, Pippen 1-8, Brown 0-1, McBride 0-2). Rebounds: Texas
A&M 38 (Miller 9), Vanderbilt 32 (Brown, Evans, Harvey, Millora-Brown
league rules. There is no 14th seed this year Vanderbilt-Florida winner vs. Tennessee, 1:30 p.m.
Georgia-Missouri winner vs. Arkansas, 6 p.m. 5). Assists: Texas A&M 17 (Gordon 5), Vanderbilt 16 (Pippen 6).
Vanderbilt led 45-32 four min- because Auburn is not taking part South Carolina-Mississippi winner vs. LSU, 8:30 p.m. Total fouls: Texas A&M 22, Vanderbilt 16.
utes into the second half before in the postseason following a self- Semifinals
A&M scored the next 13 points to imposed ban prompted by an Saturday’s games
Mississippi St.-Kentucky-Alabama winner vs.
tie the game with 12 minutes re- NCAA investigation involving for- Vanderbilt/Florida-Tennessee winner, noon first half,” Miller said of A&M’s
Georgia-Missouri/Arkansas winner vs.
maining. The Aggies used all their mer assistant Chuck Person. South Carolina-Mississippi-LSU winner, 2:30 p.m. falling behind by 13 points 13 min-
gas in the brief comeback, howev- A&M did not play a game in Championship utes into Wednesday’s game. “We
er, and Vanderbilt outscored A&M February because of COVID-19 is- Sunday’s game went on runs and did everything
Semifinal winners, noon
by double digits (34-23) the rest of sues within the program and were we could to fight back.”
the way. unable to play eight of their 18 Brent Zwerneman reported from
“That was a great run with scheduled SEC games in the reg- they’re to make the NCAA Tour- College Station.
great momentum,” said forward ular season. nament next year for the first time
Emanuel Miller, who led the Ag- The Aggies realize they need to since 2018. brent.zwerneman@chron.com
gies with 22 points. “We just did a work on their starts to games if “We just weren’t there in the twitter.com/brentzwerneman

COLLEGE BASKETBALL
TOURNAMENTS
TCU’s Dixon has first losing season
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Nijel
Pack hit five 3-pointers and
scored 23 points, Mike McGuirl
added 17 and ninth-seeded Kan-
sas State used a pair of big runs
to beat eighth-seeded TCU 71-50
in the first round of the Big 12
tournament Wednesday night.
Pack also had six rebounds
and five assists in a dynamic
showing by the freshman as the
Wildcats (10-19) advanced to play
second-ranked Baylor, the tour-
nament’s No. 1 seed, in the quar-
terfinal round Thursday.
RJ Nembhard had 11 points and
Mike Miles nine to lead the
Horned Frogs (12-14), who lost
four straight and seven of their
last eight to give coach Jamie
Dixon his first losing season in 18
years as a college head coach.
In another opening-round
game, Austin Reaves scored 11 of
his 21 points in the closing min-
utes, helping No. 25 Oklahoma
answer Iowa State’s late run and
hold on for a 79-73 victory.
The Sooners, who had lost
four straight, will play No. 11
Kansas on Thursday night.
SWAC
Jawaun Daniels scored 36
points as Prairie View A&M rout-
ed Mississippi Valley State 91-64
in the quarterfinals of the South-
western Athletic Conference
tournament at Birmingham, Ala.
The Panthers (15-4) advance to
Friday’s semifinals against the
winner of Thursday’s Grambling
State-Southern game.
ACC
Freshman Mark Williams set
CONFERENCE USA: RICE 72, MARSHALL 68
Olivari, Owls advance to quarterfinals
By Ryan Herrera
STA F F W RIT E R
Rice is a team with enough fire-
power to score in bunches.
The Owls proved it in their pre-
liminary round victory over
Southern Miss on Tuesday. They
used an 11-0 run in the first half
and an 18-3 run in the second to
move on to Day 2 of the Confer-
ence USA men’s basketball tour-
nament.
Though Rice found itself with a
seven-point lead midway through
the second half against Marshall
on Wednesday, the Owls missed
seven straight field goals as a 9-0
run put the Thundering Herd up
two.
But led by a trio of 3-pointers
from Quincy Olivari, Rice found
another quick burst to go on a 14-2
run, moving ahead for good in its
72-68 win over Marshall.
“When we went down two, it
could’ve been easy for us to just
give up and say, ‘Aw, we’re not
gonna come back,’ ” Olivari said.
“But we just huddled up as a team
and said, ‘We can still do this.’ ”
Olivari barely missed a double-
double with 23 points and nine re-
bounds, and Max Fiedler had 15
points on 7-of-10 shooting. The
Owls next play No. 2 UAB at 6 p.m.
Thursday.
“This program has been in
CONFERENCE USA WOMEN
Rice tries to add to dominance of league
By Ryan Herrera
STA F F WRIT E R
For the third consecutive sea-
son, the Rice women’s basketball
team sits atop the Conference USA
standings heading into the post-
season tournament.
The Owls have won four regu-
lar-season titles in their history, in-
cluding the last three years in a
row.
“I have so much respect for the
young women in this program that
are currently here and the ones
who have come before, as well as
the staff,” coach Tina Langley said
Saturday after a loss to North Tex-
as in the regular-season finale. “I
just think we have had a tremen-
dous group of people, and I’m so
grateful for them all.”
The program’s recent success in
conference play coincides with
the turnaround started by Lang-
ley, who in six seasons has
changed the culture and brought
in the players needed to build a
sustainable winner at Rice. The
one arguably most responsible for
that success is Nancy Mulkey, a
transfer from Oklahoma.
On Tuesday, Mulkey was named
C-USA Defensive Player of the Year
for the third consecutive season,
Kansas State’s Mike McGuirl comes up with a steal against TCU’s
Taryn Todd in the Wildcats’ rout in the Big 12’s first round.
season highs with 23 points and
19 rebounds for his second dou-
ble-double, Matthew Hurt added
20 points, and No. 10 seed Duke
eased by seventh-seeded Lou-
isville 70-56 to advance to the
quarterfinals of the Atlantic
Coast Conference tournament at
Greensboro, N.C.
Duke (13-11) plays No. 15 Florida
State, the second seed, on Thurs-
day in their first matchup of the
season. The Devils will be seek-
ing their third victory in as many
days while needing five in a row
to win the tournament and earn
some tough times, for a long
time,” coach Scott Pera said when
told his team has two tournament
wins for the first time in 14 years.
“I vowed when they hired me to
change that, but it was going to be
a process. We’re still in that pro-
cess, but we’re starting to grow.”
Like the first half of Tuesday’s
game, Rice and Marshall strug-
gled to string together buckets.
Just five times did either team
score back-to-back baskets
throughout the first half, and only
once did they knock down three
in a row (during a 7-0 Rice run).
Both teams each went on extend-
ed scoring droughts, the Owls
from 13:20 to 9:26, the Thunder-
ing Herd from 11:24 to 6:29.
Heading into halftime with a 31-
29 lead, Olivari and Fiedler both
had eight points to pace Rice
while Jarrod West matched it with
eight of his own for Marshall.
Fiedler was particularly effi-
cient, needing just five shot at-
tempts to get to his total. He went
into the game shooting 68.7 per-
cent from the field, by far the high-
est on the team.
To start the second half, Fied-
ler’s efficiency was once again the
catalyst for a big Rice run. After
Jannson Williams threw down an
alley-oop dunk to tie it at 31, Fied-
ler scored on three straight pos-
sessions to help put Rice up by
Long a defensive
whiz, Nancy
Mulkey has
added to her
game and is one
of the nation’s
top centers.
matching a feat accomplished by
Janell Burse (Tulane, 1999-01) and
Sandora Irvin (TCU, 2003-05).
Mulkey’s 6-9 frame puts her in
the perfect position to dominate
defensively. She finished fourth in
the conference with 6.4 defensive
rebounds per game, and her 59
blocks put her 18 ahead of the sec-
ond-place finisher.
But she hasn’t just taken the
reins of the Owls’ defense. Mulkey
also finished the regular season
ranked first on the team with 15.5
points, 3.1 blocks and 8 rebounds
per game.
Her overall dominance for the
No. 1 team in C-USA led to her be-
ing named a top-10 candidate for
the Lisa Leslie Award, which rec-
ognizes the top center in women’s
NCAA Division I basketball.
“She’s arguably one of the best
players in the country,” Langley
said after Rice’s Feb. 12 win over
Western Kentucky. “There’s a lot
of posts that can either rebound or
Jamie Squire / Getty Images
NCAA fields
Men
Appalachian State, Sun Belt
Cleveland State, Horizon
Drexel, Colonial
Gonzaga, West Coast
Liberty, Atlantic Sun
Loyola Chicago, Missouri Valley
Morehead State, Ohio Valley
Mount St. Mary’s, Northeast
Oral Roberts, Summit
UNC Greensboro, Southern
Winthrop, Big South
the ACC’s automatic bid.
BIG EAST
Chuck Harris was clutch for
Butler, drilling a straightaway
Results/schedule
First round
Tuesday’s results
Rice 61, Southern Miss. 52
Middle Tennessee def. FIU, forfeit
Second round
Wednesday’s results
UTSA 72, Charlotte 62
Rice 72, Marshall 68
FAU 76, UTEP 70
North Texas 76, Middle Tennessee 56
Quarterfinals
Thursday’s games
UTSA vs. Western Kentucky, 5:30 p.m.
Rice vs. UAB, 6 p.m.
FAU vs. Louisiana Tech, 8:30 p.m.
North Texas vs. Old Dominion, 9 p.m.
Semifinals
Friday’s games
UTSA-W. Kentucky winner vs.
Rice-UAB winner, 11 a.m.
FAU-Louisiana Tech winner vs.
North Texas-Old Dominion winner, 2 p.m.
Championship
Saturday’s game
Semifinal winners, 7:30 p.m.
eight.
“He’s been like that for a lot of
games this year, and our kids en-
joy seeing each other’s success,”
Pera said. “They all wanted Max to
do well, they wanted to throw him
the ball. They actually had a cou-
ple turnovers trying to force it into
him, but I knew if we could score
inside, it might loosen things up
outside for the shooters.”
As quickly as Rice built its lead
however, the 9-0 Thundering
Herd run put Marshall up two. But
as one of the most prolific 3-point
shooting teams in the country, it
didn’t take long for the Owls to get
block shots or score or assist, (but)
she can do all of those things, and
that’s what makes her elite.”
That game against the Hilltop-
pers also happened to be the Owls’
first game back on the floor in al-
most four weeks. Rice opened
conference play with six straight
wins, but as with other teams
around the country, COVID-19
quickly forced the Owls off the
floor. Three series in a row were
called off due to health and safety
protocols before Rice could play
another game.
Though the postponements dis-
rupted the Owls’ rhythm during
their best stretch of the season, the
team didn’t make any excuses. In-
stead, Rice shook off the rust and
won six of its last eight games to
finish conference play on top.
The Owls’ 12-2 C-USA record
earned them a double-bye in the
conference tournament, so their
first game will be at 11 a.m. Thurs-
day in a quarterfinal against Flori-
da International.
As a team that has received
votes in the Associated Press Top
25 and USA Today/WBCA Top 25
Coaches polls throughout the sea-
son, Rice already has an NCAA
Tournament-worthy résumé.
A run to the C-USA champion-
HHHH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | C5
SLC: LAMAR 62, HBU 52
Huskies
3-pointer and then sinking the not able
to handle
game-winning free throws with
three seconds left in overtime as
the 10th-seeded Bulldogs ousted
Xavier 70-69 in the Big East
tournament at New York.
Xavier (13-8) shot 59 percent in
early hole
building a 40-26 halftime lead. By Richard Dean
But the loss to 10-14 Butler dam- CO R R E S P O ND E NT
ages Xavier’s waning chances of
earning an NCAA bid. Tournament basketball. That’s
what March is all about.
Women Houston Baptist answered the
AMERICAN ATHLETIC bell a night earlier in its opening
UCF led nearly from start to game of the Southland Conference
finish in eliminating cold-shoot- tournament. On Wednesday,
ing Houston 61-39 in the semifi- Lamar delivered an early blow from
nals of the American Athletic which the Huskies couldn’t recover.
Conference tournament at Fort Playing from behind throughout
Worth. in its second game in as many
Laila Blair had 11 points for the nights, HBU fell 62-52 to Lamar at
Cougars (16-7), who hit only 26.4 the Merrell Center in Katy.
percent of their shots from the Lamar advances to play third-
field, including 2 of 16 3-pointers. seeded Sam Houston State at 8 p.m.
Thursday, while HBU’s season
SOUTHLAND comes to an end.
Julija Vujakovic scored 20 Sixth seed Lamar and 10th seed
points and N’Denasija Collins HBU split the 2020-21 season series
had 18 points and 13 rebounds as with each team winning on its
Houston Baptist advanced with a home court.
74-60 victory over McNeese State To its credit, HBU didn’t let
Women
in the Southland Conference Lamar run away, but overcoming
Belmont, Ohio Valley tournament at Katy. another early deficit proved diffi-
Connecticut, Big East
Gonzaga, West Coast HBU (11-10) will play Central cult for the Huskies, who shot 33.3
Mercer, Southern
North Carolina State, ACC
Arkansas in the second round at percent, making 21 of 63 shots.
South Carolina, SEC 11 a.m. Thursday. “We knew Houston Baptist mak-
South Dakota, Summit
Stanford, Pac-12 ing shots would be a problem,”
Troy, Sun Belt SWAC Lamar coach Tic Price said. “We
Wright State, Horizon
Wyoming, Mountain West Te'Aire Hambrick scored 18 went in with a goal to try to hold
points for Texas Southern in an them to 32 percent and for the most
85-69 loss to Alabama State in part accomplished that.”
the Southwestern Athletic Con- Pedro Castro was one of the few
ference tournament at Birming- Huskies who was accurate. The 6-6
ham, Ala. The Tigers ended their forward made10 of19 shots en route
season at 5-11. to 24 points. Castro was 4 of 7 on 3-
From wire reports pointers.
A big, physical, athletic team,
Lamar was also the fresher squad,
having not played Tuesday. The
Cardinals shot 47.2 percent from
the field. HBU enjoyed a 40-35 re-
bounding edge.
“We faced a lot of adversity to-
Rice 72, Marshall 68 night,” HBU coach Ron Cottrell
Rice (14-12) said. “But (our) guys never gave up.
Fiedler 7-101-215, Evee 3-8 2-2 9, Mullins 2-5 2-2 7, Olivari 8-19 2-2 23, We just kept coming and coming.”
Sheffield 2-6 4-410, Ege Havsa1-2 0-0 2, Abercrombie 2-3 0-0 5, Moore
0-0 1-2 1. Totals 25-53 12-14 72. The Huskies gave up the first sev-
Marshall (15-6) en points Tuesday but composed
Beyers 7-15 0-0 17, Williams 4-10 1-2 11, Kinsey 5-15 1-2 11, Taylor 4-9 themselves and pulled away from
0-0 8, West 7-12 0-019, Anochili-Killen 0-10-0 0, Miladinovic 0-10-0 0,
Early 0-3 0-0 0, George 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 28-67 2-4 68. Incarnate Word. On Wednesday,
Halftime: Rice 31-29. they couldn’t overcame a 10-0 start
3-point goals: Rice10-28 (Olivari 5-13, Sheffield 2-6, Abercrombie1-1,
Mullins 1-2, Evee 1-6), Marshall 10-34 (West 5-9, Beyers 3-9, Williams by the Cardinals (9-17).
2-8, Anochili-Killen 0-1, Early 0-2, Taylor 0-2, Kinsey 0-3).
Rebounds: Rice 29 (Fiedler, Olivari 9), Marshall 31 (Beyers 8).
Lamar was up by 10 by the first
Assists: Rice 14 (Ege Havsa 4), Marshall 13 (West 7). media timeout four minutes in.
Total fouls: Rice 11, Marshall 14.
From there, the Huskies played
catch-up.
things going from deep. HBU’s first points came at the
Olivari immediately knocked 14:32 mark on a Darius Lee layup.
down back-to-back 3s to put Rice HBU (6-19), which trailed 35-21 at
up four, and after a jumper from halftime, made only one of its first
West, Travis Evee hit a 3 to make it 10 shots.
a five-point game. Two minutes After having a big game in Tues-
later, Olivari drained his fifth tri- day’s 80-68 victory over Incarnate
ple of the night to put the Owls up Word, Castro again was the team’s
10. main scoring threat. Only two Hus-
Marshall managed to trim the kies scored in double figures.
lead to as low as three but could Zach Iyeyemi enjoyed an active
get no closer, and Rice now moves game for the Huskies with 15 points
on to Thursday’s quarterfinal. and 12 rebounds from the post.
“I wouldn’t say this is a sur- Hunter Janacek, who poured in
prise,” Olivari said about the Owls 19 points against Incarnate Word,
making it to the Day 3. “We’ve al- struggled with his shot Wednesday,
ways believed in ourselves, and missing all eight of his attempts.
we believed we could go deep into A dunk by Castro drew the Hus-
this tournament before we got kies within 47-37 with nine minutes
here.” remaining. But HBU just didn’t
Ryan Herrera reported from have enough defensive stops
Houston. against Lamar, which had 38 points
in the paint.
ryan.herrera@chron.com Lamar’s scoring was balanced,
twitter.com/ryan_a_herrera with Davion Buster providing a
team-high 18 points. The Cardinals
came in as one of the conference’s
hottest teams, winning their final
four games of the regular season.
Lamar raced to 12 fast-break
points in the first half.
“We felt like running transition
Results/schedule since we were fresh and they played
First round (Tuesday),” Buster said.
Tuesday’s results
Old Dominion 83, Western Kentucky 77 (OT)
UAB 80, UTSA 66
Second round Results/schedule
Wednesday’s results First round
Florida International 85, Southern Miss 75
Old Dominion 71, North Texas 66 Tuesday’s results
SE Louisiana 71, McNeese 68
Louisiana Tech 50, Marshall 48
Florida Atlantic 72, UAB 66 Houston Baptist 80, Incarnate Word 68
Quarterfinals Second round
Today’s games Wednesday’s results
New Orleans 80, SE Louisiana 63
Florida International vs. Rice, 11 a.m.
Old Dominion vs. Charlotte, 11:30 a.m. Lamar 62, Houston Baptist 52
Louisiana Tech vs. Middle Tennessee, 1 p.m. Quarterfinals
Florida Atlantic vs. UTEP, 2:30 p.m.
Thursday’s games
Semifinals New Orleans vs. Northwestern St., 5 p.m.
Friday’s games Lamar vs. Sam Houston, 8 p.m.
FIU-Rice winner vs. Old Dominion-Charlotte winner, 4:30 p.m. Semifinals
La. Tech-Middle Tenn. winner vs. FAU-UTEP winner, 7:30 p.m.
Friday’s games
Championship New Orleans-Northwestern St. winner vs.
Saturday’s game Nicholls, 5 p.m.
Semifinal winners, 4:30 p.m. Lamar-Sam Houston winner vs.
Abilene Christian, 8 p.m.
Championship
Saturday’s game
ship game might be enough to get Semifinal winners, 8:30 p.m.
the Owls into the tournament. But
a clean sweep would give them the
automatic bid. Lamar 62, HBU 52
“We’re ready to showcase what Houston Baptist (6-19)
we’ve been working on all season, Iyeyemi 7-12 1-4 15, Janacek 0-8 0-0 0, Long 0-3 0-0 0, Tse 2-8 5-5 9,
Castro 10-19 0-0 24, Pierre 1-5 0-0 2, Boothman 0-5 0-0 0, Thompson
(through) nonconference and con- 0-0 0-0 0, Lee 1-1 0-0 2, McKenzie 0-1 0-0 0, Gomes 0-1 0-0 0. Totals
21-63 6-9 52.
ference play,” Mulkey said Satur-
Lamar (9-17)
day. “We’re going to take one Sullivan 3-5 0-1 6, Muoka 3-6 0-0 6, Buster 6-11 4-4 18, Harrison 5-14
game at a time and focus on this 4-7 14, Jefferson 3-6 0-0 6, Kopp 2-6 2-2 6, Smith 3-5 0-0 6. Totals
25-53 10-14 62.
first conference game that we will
Halftime: Lamar 35-21. 3-Point Goals: Houston Baptist 4-16 (Castro
have Thursday.” 4-7, Boothman 0-1, Janacek 0-8), Lamar 2-14 (Buster 2-6, Harrison
0-2, Smith 0-2, Kopp 0-4).
Fouled out: Tse.
ryan.herrera@chron.com Rebounds: Houston Baptist 32 (Iyeyemi 12), Lamar 32 (Harrison 8).
Assists: Houston Baptist 7 (Janacek 3), Lamar 8 (Harrison 3).
twitter.com/ryan_a_herrera Total fouls: Houston Baptist 15, Lamar 17.
C6 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
HIGH SCHOOLS | ETC.
CYPRESS CREEK GIRLS BASKETBALL
Senior center Taylor Jackson, right, reached the 1,000-point mark for her Cy Creek career but is much more
interested in blocks, rebounds and steals.
Mother Hen leaving a mark
By Adam Coleman
STA F F WRIT E R
Cypress Creek’s Taylor
Jackson was involved in a mi-
nor dust-up against Con-
verse Judson during Satur-
day’s Class 6A state semifi-
nal in Goliad.
Teammates Rori Harmon
and Kyndall Hunter, both
McDonald’s All-Americans,
were quick to come to the se-
nior center’s defense.
Tempers flare in competi-
tion sometimes. It’s part of
basketball, especially when
it involves a team that has
handed out mostly beat-
downs in 73 of its last 74
games ahead of Thursday’s 7
p.m. state title game against
DeSoto inside the Alamo-
dome.
This moment, however,
signified something bigger
the Cougars stand by: Don’t
mess with the Mother Hen.
“I think that describes her
perfectly,” Hunter said of
Jackson. “Taylor’s going to
protect all of us. She’s going
to always be ready. She’s go-
ing to uplift us when we
need it. Taylor’s just amaz-
ing. Off the court, she’s just a
great person. She’s a friend.”
Added Hunter: “We’re a
family, so when someone
comes for your family,
you’re not going to like that.
We know it can get a little
crazy, so we also try to calm
each other down, and we
don’t let it get too heated.
But at the end of the day,
we’re not going to let any-
body intrude on our family.”
Harmon and Hunter com-
STATE
From page C1
ments, NHL and NBA halt-
ed, the UIL announced af-
ter Coldspring and Madi-
son finished their matchup
that the other 3A semifinal
between San Antonio Cole
and Peaster would be the
last game before the sus-
pension of the tournament.
The league eventually can-
celed the boys basketball
state tournament, leaving
14 games unplayed among
six classifications.
Texas high school athlet-
ics were changed, seeming-
ly forever.
“After I got back from
San Antonio, I didn’t see
my (players) until August,”
said Devers.
Houston-area basketball
state qualifiers Stafford,
Yates, Hightower and Dick-
inson never even reached
the Alamodome.
The chaos and aftermath
are ingrained forever.
“We actually had just
drove by the stadium and
pulled in at (Raising Cane’s)
to get something to eat,”
Yates coach Greg Wise said.
“We were going to go check
into the hotel and go to our
shootaround.”
Instead, Yates returned
to Houston with nothing
but bewilderment and the
wasting of gas. Ask Wise,
and he laments Yates’ 2019-
20 team never getting a
chance to finish the job.
The Lions had just broken
their own national record
Senior center Jackson paces defense,
uplifts Cougars in their run to 6A final
mand the headlines, and
rightfully so. The unsigned
Jackson’s growth and im-
pact can’t be understated,
however. She’s been a cen-
tral figure in Cy Creek’s
reaching three state tourna-
ments in four years.
While Harmon and Hunt-
er flash with elite guard play,
Jackson is enamored with
the dirty work. She sur-
passed 1,000 career points
this season, which Cy Creek
coach Jennifer Alexander
says is a major accomplish-
ment.
But ask Jackson if she’d
rather have 1,000 blocks or
rebounds and steals, and
her eyes light up.
“I feel like I have im-
proved offensively, but I love
playing defense,” Jackson
said. “I know defense wins
games, so when push comes
to shove and I need to go
block or get a rebound, I’m
always that person you can
count on.”
Asked the origin of her
motherly instincts regarding
her teammates, Jackson
said: “I think it comes from
my upraising. I’m very car-
ing, so I take out the time to
check on my teammates and
just make sure we’re fo-
cused. We’re all family at the
end of the day.”
Jackson was a force
against Judson last week,
helping Cy Creek turn de-
fense into superb transition
offense. The Cougars will
with 16 consecutive games
scoring 100 or more points.
Confidence was at an all-
time high for the group.
Hightower coach Ste-
phen Woods and his team
were in their hotel. He was
emotional about having to
break such news.
“It’s like getting so close
to something and then see-
ing it snatched away, and
you have no control over
it,” Woods said.
Stafford spent the night
in San Antonio, hoping to
get some semblance of the
state tournament experi-
ence. Dickinson was one
game away from its first
state final since 1955.
The debate was naïve at
the time — when and how
could teams get back on the
court to finish the tourna-
ment? Even UIL officials
initially intended to finish
the event. There was an
idea floating around on so-
cial media for teams to host
their own state tournament
independently of the UIL.
The UIL eventually opt-
ed to award trophies — not
co-championships like
states such as Arkansas did
— and host virtual awards
ceremonies for the state-
qualifying teams.
Those didn’t include
Coldspring, which lost its
state semifinal 90-73.
What would you rather
have? A participation tro-
phy without the experi-
ence of playing inside the A-
lamodome? Or a state semi-
finalist trophy after a loss,
with the experience many
HH
need her to be a force again
Thursday.
“They’re long,” Alexan-
der said of DeSoto. “They
get out and extend their 2-3
zone and rebound the ball
really well. We’ve got a good
game plan on how to attack
that and how to counter
what they bring.”
Legacy at stake
Now an associate director
of athletics with Cypress-
Fairbanks ISD, former Cy-
press Woods girls basketball
coach Virginia Flores knows
the look of a champion.
Her 2014-15 team could be
considered one of the Hous-
ton area’s best all-time, re-
gardless of gender. It fin-
ished 35-1 with a Class 6A
state championship and fea-
tured a WNBA draft pick in
Erica Ogwumike; a three-
time Conference USA Defen-
sive Player of the Year in Ric-
e’s Nancy Mulkey; Cate
Reese, now playing at the
University of Arizona; and
Division I players Tatyana
Perez and Jasmine Williams.
Cy Creek, which has a
chance to finish 33-0, was
No. 1 in the state at regular
season’s end, according to
the Texas Association of Bas-
ketball Coaches, and is No. 5
in the country, according to
ESPN.
Would a win Thursday
place Cy Creek on its own
tier compared to the best
Houston has produced?
“It’s like getting so close to something
and then seeing it snatched away,
and you have no control over it.”
Hightower coach Stephen Woods, on the state tournament shutdown
strive for?
“I felt sorry for Dickin-
son and Stafford and Hight-
ower and Yates,” Devers
said, referring to Coldspr-
ing’s first state tournament
appearance. “Those kids
did not get the opportunity
to play on that court. At
least my kids got the experi-
ence.”
The ripple effect was just
beginning.
UIL soccer teams were
about to begin the postsea-
son. The baseball and soft-
ball seasons were still fresh.
The year’s first track and
field times were barely
posted.
More ideas on how to fin-
ish the spring sports season
floated around. The Ken-
tucky state senate recently
passed a bill allowing cur-
rent high school seniors an
extra year of athletic eligi-
bility in 2021-22. There was
talk of that across the coun-
try last March.
Perhaps in Texas, a dis-
trict tournament for soft-
ball and baseball would
work. How about just host-
ing a regional and state
meet for track and field?
None of it occurred.
Schools shut down. Fear
was at an all-time high.
Elsik soccer coach Vin-
cenzo Cox, whose team is
Eric Christian Smith / Contributor
If there is a debate, it
starts inside Cy Creek’s own
district. Cy-Fair ISD is also
home to the oldest Ogwu-
mike sisters — Nneka and
Chiney — who won state
championships at Cy-Fair
High School in 2008 and
2010.
Brianna Turner and Jor-
dan Hosey’s 2013-14 Manvel
team can’t be forgotten. Nor
can Westfield’s 2003-04
team. Both Manvel and
Westfield beat Duncanville
— often a bane for state title
contenders in girls basket-
ball — in their state title
games.
In general, the Houston
area’s great girls basketball
state champions easily stand
out because there haven’t
been many. Cy Creek looks
to become just the sixth girls
basketball state champion
from the area since 2000.
“Any team that goes to
state, if you’ve been there,
you know that didn’t just
happen that year,” said Flo-
res, touting Cy Creek’s pro-
gression and swagger and
the ability of Harmon and
Hunter to make their team-
mates better. “It’s a buildup,
and it’s all the work that’s
gone into years prior. Really,
if you look at this team, three
of the last four years they’ve
gone to the state semifinals
or finals.
“To be able to do that con-
sistently, that’s hard to do.
There’s a lot of buy-in, a lot
of trust.”
adam.coleman@chron.com
twitter.com/chroncoleman
always a state title contend-
er, remembers thinking
that if a basketball state
tournament could be
stopped, everything was in
doubt.
His team was mostly un-
aware of the basketball
news from San Antonio. El-
sik was headed into prac-
tice, and Cox turned it into
a spirted scrimmage, which
he never does.
Elsik players were con-
fused but happily obliged.
“Something in my gut
made me ask myself, ‘What
if this is the last day?’ ” Cox
said. “So I split up the
teams and said, ‘All right,
we’re going to scrimmage.’
They scrimmaged. We
went home. We never saw
each other again.”
Now, COVID-19 is the in-
visible opponent on every-
one’s schedule, from the
smallest school in the most
remote town to the largest
in the middle of a metropo-
lis.
The California Depart-
ment of Public Health just
greenlighted youth sports
to return this spring, and
other states have gone
without high school sports.
In Texas, the UIL and pri-
vate school leagues TAPPS
and the Southwest Prepara-
tory Conference roll on,
SMITH
From page C1
up.
Dallas owner Jerry Jones
told reporters he plans to
have a full venue next
season when Dak “$160
Million” Prescott and the
2021 Cowboys play inside
humungous AT&T Stadi-
um.
And on the same day
when MLB moved nearer
to a fan-filled opening day
and the NFL inched closer
to an explosive free-agency
period — following a full
16-game season and playoff
slate that once seemed
impossible — the NBA
announced that among the
465 players tested for
COVID-19 since March 3,
only two new players
returned confirmed posi-
tive tests.
For too long, something
was better than nothing.
Now, something really is
happening.
Real life became confus-
ing, sci-fi surreal and ghost
townish. It also became
sad, distant, dangerous
and deadly.
Sports disappeared for
months.
Simply getting NASCAR
and the PGA back on tele-
vision was a huge deal.
Remember when all the
national and regional
sports channels were
forced to televise classic
games (and not-so-classic
games) because there
literally was nothing going
on?
But a year after Utah
Jazz center Rudy Gobert
spent way too much time
in the international spot-
light, optimism keeps
refusing to go away.
It arrives in small, un-
expected places. It’s often
discarded by the latest
daily annoyance or nation-
al controversy. But it keeps
returning and shining
through.
You might have to keep
refreshing and refreshing a
Baylor fans saw their team denied a shot at an NCAA
Tournament title last season due to the pandemic.
and those involved are
grateful.
Not that there haven’t
been hurdles.
The state champion Sev-
en Lakes volleyball team
shut down in mid-October
because of a COVID-19 out-
break. Seven Lakes played
catch-up with five district
games in the span of a week
before November’s playoffs
started. Seven Lakes coach
Amy Cataline used the tur-
bulent time as a motiva-
tional springboard for the
team.
Shadow Creek boys bas-
ketball coach David Presi-
dent did the same when a
midseason shutdown
forced his team to play six
games in seven days. The
Sharks won each one.
Senior Night, a cher-
ished custom on every
team’s schedule, is often
celebrated early this year
so COVID-19 doesn’t jeopar-
dize it like it did last year for
spring sports teams.
Athletes altering their
social lives or spending
time exclusively with team-
mates is common now.
Many athletes attend
school virtually, showing
up on campus only for
practice and games.
The SPC has not hosted
championship games this
year in response to the pan-
demic.
The UIL’s COVID-19 risk
mitigation plan touches ev-
erything — mask mandates,
social distancing, prohibit-
ed use of shared water bot-
tles, attendance limits to 50
website, just to lose a
potential first-dose spot for
the 500th time in a single
day. But there is a vaccine,
the once unthinkable is
gradually making its way
across America, and the
best things about the real
world are returning again.
The same buzz applies
to a sports world that we
aren’t the same without.
I’m excited about the
NCAA Tournament. Kelvin
Sampson’s No. 7 Cougars,
who keep looking more
and more like a serious
Final Four threat. Gon-
zaga, Michigan, Baylor, the
Big 12 … and screaming at
the TV because some small
school just did something
crazy against a big school.
I’m excited about base-
ball starting in April,
again, and the grand ol’
game always being on the
tube, inning after inning,
day after day, month after
month.
I also want the NBA
regular season to end so
the playoffs, the real sea-
son, can begin.
Was it all really that bad
if it only lasted a year,
43-year-old Tom Brady
won another Super Bowl,
the NBA held an All-Star
Game and an MLB stadium
could soon be packed to
100 percent capacity?
1. It’s not over yet.
2. Yes, it really was that
bad. And unbelievably
surreal.
But here we are, one
year later.
We’re fractured (poli-
tics, masks) yet united (the
Texans are a mess).
We’re a week away from
the first March Madness in
two years and less than a
month from the first real
roar inside the Astros’
home since Game 7 of the
2019 World Series.
What a long, strange
trip it’s been.
What a difference a
pandemic year makes.
brian.smith@chron.com
twitter.com/chronbriansmith
Darren Abate / Associated Press
percent, split football sea-
sons among small and large
schools, and more.
High school recruiting is
affected. The NCAA Division
I Council recently extended
the recruiting dead period
through May 31. It’s been a
year since those college
coaches have been able to
physically recruit on the
road.
A year ago, many be-
lieved the virus wouldn’t af-
fect football season. It did in
every way, and even now
spring football training is up
in the air. Football coaches
such as Hightower’s Joseph
Sam and Dawson’s Mike Alli-
son have had to quarantine
from their teams, with Sam
having to do so during the
playoffs. In basketball, Dev-
ers contracted COVID-19,
missing three games.
The Elkins and George
Ranch football teams for-
feited first-round playoff
games over COVID-19 out-
breaks, but the delayed sea-
son finished in January, and
Katy hoisted a champion-
ship trophy.
Ask coaches and players,
and they’ll say, “Anything to
play.” It’s the mantra for the
new world they live in.
adam.coleman@chron.com
twitter.com/chroncoleman
 HHHH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | C7
FOR THE RECORD Sports editor, reid.laymance@chron.com | 713-362-2734 | sptletters@chron.com @chronsports Houston Chronicle Sports

NFL SCOREBOARD ON THE AIR Florida 4, Columbus 2

N.Y. Islanders 2, Boston 1 (SO)

Crennel will be
Washington 5, New Jersey 4 (OT)
Carolina 3, Nashville 2 (OT)
America’s Line Television Tampa Bay 4, Detroit 3 (OT)
Home team capitalized Wednesday’s results
Col. basketball Maryland vs. Nebraska (w) FS2 10 a.m. Minnesota 4, Vegas 3

Texans adviser
MLB Col. basketball Maryland vs. Michigan St. Big Ten 10:30 a.m. Edmonton 7, Ottawa 1
Colorado 2, Arizona 1 (OT)
Spring Training Col. basketball Oklahoma St. vs. West Virginia ESPN2 10:30 a.m. Los Angeles 5, Anaheim 1
Favorite Odds Underdog Col. basketball Syracuse vs. Virginia ACC 11 a.m. Montreal at Vancouver, late
TWINS -$140 Red Sox Thursday’s games
Nationals -$120 MARLINS Col. basketball South Florida vs. Temple ESPNU 11 a.m.
Florida at Columbus, 6 p.m.
Yankees -$125 PHILLIES Col. basketball Georgetown vs. Villanova FS1 11 a.m. N.Y. Rangers at Boston, 6 p.m.
Romeo Crennel will Romeo PIRATES -$120 Orioles Nashville at Carolina, 6 p.m.
Col. basketball Kentucky vs. Mississippi St. SEC 11 a.m.
remain on the Texans’ Crennel BRAVES
BLUE JAYS
-$125
-$155
Rays
Tigers Col. basketball Michigan vs. Northwestern (w) FS2 12:30 p.m.
New Jersey at N.Y. Islanders, 6 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Buffalo, 6 p.m.
coaching staff after oper- was the RANGERS -$110 A’s Col. basketball Ohio St. vs. Minnesota Big Ten 1 p.m. Washington at Philadelphia, 6 p.m.
ROCKIES -$120 Cubs Winnipeg at Toronto, 6 p.m.
ating as an interim head Texans’ ANGELS -$125 Giants Col. basketball Georgia Tech vs. Miami ACC 1:30 p.m. Tampa Bay at Detroit, 6:30 p.m.
coach last season. interim PADRES -$135 Indians Col. basketball Baylor vs. Kansas St. ESPN2 1:30 p.m. Chicago at Dallas, 7:30 p.m.
Montreal at Calgary, 8 p.m.
BREWERS -$130 Royals
Crennel was named head coach ASTROS -$120 Mets
Col. basketball Arizona St. vs. Oregon Pac-12 1:30 p.m. Friday’s games
senior advisor of football Col. basketball Florida vs. Vanderbilt SEC 1:30 p.m. Arizona at Minnesota, 7 p.m.
last year. DODGERS
REDS
-$200
-$115
Mariners
White Sox Vegas at St. Louis, 7 p.m.
Col. basketball San Diego St. vs. Wyoming CBSSN 2 p.m.
performance Wednesday Los Angeles at Colorado, 8 p.m.
NBA Col. basketball Tulane vs. Tulsa ESPNU 2 p.m. Ottawa at Edmonton, 8 p.m.
by new coach David Cul- 2011, which followed an Col. basketball Seton Hall vs. St. John’s FS1 2 p.m.
San Jose at Anaheim, 9 p.m.
Favorite Pts O/U Underdog
ley. uncapped season. HORNETS 3 NL Pistons Col. basketball Boise St. vs. Nevada CBSSN 4:30 p.m.
Crennel went 4-8 as the Free agency begins next NETS
t-RAPTORS
31⁄2
21⁄2
234 1⁄2
NL
Celtics
Hawks Col. basketball Oregon St. vs. UCLA Pac-12 4:30 p.m. Tennis
replacement for Bill Wednesday, though the HEAT 7 NL Magic Col. basketball Creighton vs. Butler FS1 5 p.m. ATP World Tour — Marseille Open
76ers 31⁄2 NL BULLS Wednesday at Marseille, France
O'Brien when he was fired “legal tampering” period PELICANS 81⁄2 239 1⁄2 T’Wolves
Col. basketball Indiana vs. Rutgers Big Ten 5:30 p.m.
Col. basketball Florida St. vs. Duke ESPN 5:30 p.m. Men’s singles
after an 0-4 start. Crennel, starts Monday. BUCKS 10 1⁄2 222 1⁄2 Knicks
Round of 32
Mavericks 4 1⁄2 NL THUNDER Col. basketball Kansas vs. Oklahoma ESPN2 5:30 p.m.
73, became the oldest CLIPPERS 4 NL Warriors Egor Gerasimov, Belarus, def. Yannick Hanfmann,
Col. basketball Indiana vs. Michigan St. (w) FS2 5:30 p.m. Germany, 6-2, 6-0.
head coach in NFL history Odds and ends KINGS
Suns
3
21⁄2
NL
NL
Rockets
BLAZERS Col. basketball Central Florida vs. East Carolina ESPNU 6 p.m. Cameron Norrie, Britain, def. Constant Lestienne,
last season. t-Tampa, Florida Col. basketball Georgia vs. Missouri SEC 6 p.m.
France, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-3.
The Vikings made their Men’s singles
The Texans officially College basketball Col. basketball Southern Cal vs. Utah Pac-12 7:30 p.m.
costliest move yet for Round of 16
announced their entire Mid-American Conference tournament Col. basketball Wisconsin vs. Penn St. Big Ten 8 p.m. Matthew Ebden, Australia, def. Emil Ruusuvuori,
salary cap compliance by Favorite Pts Underdog Finland, 6-2, 6-2.
coaching staff, including Col. basketball UNLV vs. Utah St. CBSSN 8 p.m.
terminating the contract Toledo 8 Ball St
Col. basketball Virginia vs. North Carolina ESPN 8 p.m.
Karen Khachanov (3), Russia, def. Mackenzie Mc-
Lovie Smith as defensive Ohio U 2 Kent St Donald, United States, 7-6 (4), 6-4.
of left tackle Riley Reiff Buffalo 81⁄2 Miami-Ohio Col. basketball Connecticut vs. DePaul FS1 8 p.m. Jannik Sinner (5), Italy, def. Hugo Gaston, France,
coordinator, retaining Tim Akron 1 Bowling Green 6-4, 6-1.
with one year left on it, Col. basketball Rutgers vs. Iowa (w) FS2 8 p.m.
Kelly as offensive coordi- Big Ten Conference tournament
Col. basketball Texas vs. Texas Tech ESPN2 8:30 p.m. ATP World Tour
weakening an offensive Favorite Pts Underdog
nator and hiring Frank Col. basketball Mississippi vs. South Carolina SEC 8:30 p.m. Qatar ExxonMobil Open
line that was already in Maryland 1 Michigan St
Ross as special teams Ohio St 81⁄2 Minnesota Col. basketball Central Florida vs. South Florida (w) ESPNU 9 p.m. Wednesday at Doha, Qatar
need of some upgrades. Rutgers 2 Indiana Men’s singles
coordinator. Col. basketball Colorado St. vs. Fresno St. CBSSN 10:30 p.m.
…The Saints have in- Atlantic Coast Conference tournament
Col. basketball Colorado vs. California Pac-12 10:30 p.m. Round of 16
Favorite Pts Underdog Andrey Rublev, Russia, def. Richard Gasquet,
formed receiver Emman- Col. lacrosse High Point at Duke (w) ACC 4 p.m.
Weeks won’t be
Virginia 51⁄2 Syracuse France, walkover.
uel Sanders and lineback- Georgia Tech
Florida St
71⁄2
21⁄2
Miami-Florida
Duke
Col. lacrosse North Carolina at Virginia ACC 6 p.m. Roberto Bautista Agut (5), Spain, def. Alexander
Bublik, Kazakhstan, 6-4, 6-3.
coming back er Kwon Alexander they’ll N Carolina 3 Virginia Tech Golf Qatar Masters Golf 5:30 a.m. Denis Shapovalov (4), Canada, def. Vasek Pospisil,
Canada, 7-5, 6-4.
be released in moves that Virginia Tech 21⁄2 Notre Dame Golf The Players Championship Golf 11 a.m.
Jon Weeks, who never American Athletic Conference tournament Pro baseball N.Y. Yankees vs. Philadelphia MLB noon
Dominic Thiem (1), Austria, def. Aslan Karatsev,
will save the club nearly Russia, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2.
had a bad snap in his 11 Favorite Pts Underdog
Pro baseball Seattle vs. L.A. Dodgers MLB 7 p.m. Nikoloz Basilashvili, Georgia, def. Malek Jaziri, Tu-
$20 million against the Temple 2 Usf nisia, 6-2, 6-2.
seasons with the Texans, Tulsa 3 Tulane Pro basketball NBAGL: Delaware vs. Lakeland ESPN2 3:30 p.m. Taylor Fritz, United States, def. David Goffin (6),
salary cap. … The Titans Ucf 6 E Carolina Belgium, 6-1, 5-7, 7-6 (9).
said he was informed Pro basketball Boston at Brooklyn TNT 6:30 p.m.
have cut starting safety Big East Conference tournament
Pro basketball Rockets at Sacramento ATTSW 9 p.m.
Roger Federer (2), Switzerland, def. Daniel Evans,
Wednesday he would not Favorite Pts Underdog Britain, 7-6 (8), 3-6, 7-5.
Kenny Vaccaro and start- Pro basketball Golden State at L.A. Clippers TNT 9 p.m. Marton Fucsovics, Hungary, def. Lloyd Harris,
be re-signed. Villanova 91⁄2 Georgetown
South Africa, 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2.
ing cornerback Malcolm Seton Hall 11⁄2 St. John’s Pro hockey Chicago at Dallas FSSW 7:30 p.m.
Weeks, who made Creighton 91⁄2 Butler
Sailing America’s Cup: Races 3-4 NBCSN 9 p.m. ATP World Tour — Chile Open
Butler. …
$1.050 million in the last Southeastern Conference tournament
Tennis ATP Open 13 Tennis 4 a.m. Wednesday at Santiago, Chile
The Bills released re- Favorite Pts Underdog
year of his contract, said Kentucky 21⁄2 Mississippi St Tennis ATP Qatar Open Tennis 4 a.m. Men’s singles
ceiver John Brown and Round of 16
he wants to continue Florida 71⁄2 Vanderbilt Tennis WTA Dubai Championships Tennis 4 a.m.
defensive lineman Quin- Missouri 51⁄2 Georgia Laslo Djere (4), Serbia, def. Pedro Sousa, Portugal,
playing and will try to get Mississippi 71⁄2 S Carolina Tennis ATP Chile Open Tennis 4 a.m. 5-7, 7-5, 6-3.
ton Jefferson. … The Gi- 3 p.m. Facundo Bagnis, Argentina, def. Frances Tiafoe
a job with another team. Big 12 Conference tournament (5), United States, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2).
ants have released starting Favorite Pts Underdog Tennis WTA Albierto Zapopan Tennis 4 a.m. Federico Delbonis (8), Argentina, def. Andrej Mar-
guard Kevin Zeitler. … W Virginia 21⁄2 Oklahoma St 3 p.m. tin, Slovakia, 6-0, 6-3.

League salary cap Broncos running back

Baylor
Texas Tech
18 1⁄2
11⁄2
Kansas St
Texas Radio WTA
Abierto De Guadalajara
drops 8 percent Melvin Gordon will likely Big Sky Conference tournament
Favorite Pts Underdog
Col. basketball Texas vs. Texas Tech
Pro baseball Astros vs. N.Y. Mets
950 AM
790 AM
8:30 p.m.
5 p.m. Wednesday at Guadalajara, Mexico
avoid NFL discipline after Southern Utah 51⁄2 No Colorado
The NFL’s salary cap Montana St 2 Idaho St Pro basketball Rockets at Sacramento 740 AM, 790 AM 9 p.m. Women’s singles
his drunken driving In Spanish 1010 AM
will be $182.5 million per E Washington 14 1⁄2 No Arizona Round of 16
charge was dismissed and Big West Conference tournament Marie Bouzkova (2), Czech Republic, def. Mihaela
team in the upcoming Buzarnescu, Romania, 6-3, 6-2.
he pleaded guilty in Den- Favorite Pts Underdog Lauren Davis, United States, def. Danka Kovinic
season, a drop of 8 per- Cal-Santa Barb 14 Long Beach St (6), Montenegro, 6-2, 6-2.
ver County Court to lesser CS-Bakersfield 31⁄2 Cal-Davis Fresno St. vs. Colorado St., 10:30 p.m. San Diego at Drake, 1 p.m.
cent from 2020. The Cal-Irvine 14 1⁄2 Cal-Poly SLO
Sara Sorribes Tormo (4), Spain, def. Leonie Kung,
charges of excessive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Youngstown St. at S. Dakota St., 2 p.m. Switzerland, 6-3, 6-3.
league’s loss of revenues Cal-Riverside 5 Hawaii Illinois St. at N. Dakota St., 2:30 p.m. Eugenie Bouchard, Canada, def. Kaja Juvan (8),
speeding and reckless Pac 12 Conference tournament Quarterfinals Slovenia, 6-4, 6-3.
due to the coronavirus Wednesday’s results
Southwest Astra Sharma, Australia, def. Leylah Annie Fernan-
driving. Favorite Pts Underdog
Nicholls at Sam Houston St., noon dez (7), Canada, 6-4, 6-4.
pandemic caused the first Oregon 61⁄2 Arizona St Iona 55, Siena 52
Grambling St. vs. Prairie View, 3 p.m. Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Italy, def. Nadia Podoroska
From staff and wire reports Ucla 5 Oregon St Fairfield 79, Monmouth 60
decrease in the cap since Usc 61⁄2 Utah Thursday’s games West (1), Argentina, 7-5, 7-5.
Rider vs. St. Peter’s, 4 p.m.
Mountain West Conference tournament Niagara vs. Marist, 6:30 p.m. UC Davis at Weber St., 2 p.m.
Favorite Pts Underdog
Missouri Valley Conference
Idaho at N. Arizona, 2 p.m.
S. Utah at Cal Poly, 3 p.m.
Transactions
San Diego St 15 Wyoming
E. Washington at Idaho St., 5:05 p.m. BASEBALL
AROUND SPORTS Boise St 4 Nevada First round
Tarleton St. at Dixie State, 8 p.m.
Colorado St 81⁄2 Fresno St Wednesday’s results
Sunday’s games National League

Kansas athletic
Metro Atlantic Conference tournament Wyoming 111, San Jose St. 80 MIAMI MARLINS: Optioned RHP Edward Cabrera to
Duquesne at Wagner, 11 a.m.
Favorite Pts Underdog UNLV 80, Air Force 52 Triple-A. Reassigned Cs Cameron Barstad and San-
LIU at Sacred Heart, noon
Fresno St. 85, New Mexico 77 tiago Chavez, OFs Peyton Burdick, Victor Victor Me-
St. Peter’s 6 Rider E. Illinois at Tennessee St., 1 p.m.
Marist PK Niagara
Quarterfinals Jacksonville St. at UT Martin, 1 p.m. sa, Brian Miller, Kameron Misner and Connor Scott,
Thursday’s games MVSU at Jackson St., 1 p.m. LHPs Jake Eder, Zach King, Dylan Lee and Will

director resigns
Kansas athletic director
Jeff Long resigned Wed-
nesday, less than two days
after the school mutually
parted with Les Miles
amid sexual misconduct
allegations dating to the
football coach’s time at
LSU and one day after
Long vowed he would lead
the Jayhawks’ search for a
replacement.
Kurt Watson will serve
as the interim athletic
director as the school
searches for both an AD
and football coach.
“We will immediately
begin our search for a new
athletics director. I will
lead the process with the
assistance of a search firm
and four alumni advisors,
each of whom have experi-
ence in collegiate athlet-
ics,” Kansas Chancellor
Douglas Girod said in a
statement. “My hope is to
have a new athletics direc-
tor in place within the next
few weeks.”
Girod said the new
athletic director will take
will now be a week later.
No reason was given for
the changes.
PRO HOCKEY
ESPN, NHL have
7-year agreement
The National Hockey
League and ESPN an-
nounced a seven-year
agreement beginning next
season that includes four
Stanley Cup Finals, the
NHL All-Star game and
comprehensive streaming
rights.
Under the new agree-
ment, the Stanley Cup
Final will air on ABC in
four of the seven years,
beginning next season. It
also includes 25 regular-
season games with the
likely breakdown being 15
on ESPN and 10 on ABC.
TENNIS
Federer returns
from long hiatus
After more than a year
out, Roger Federer start-
Conference USA tournament Wyoming vs. San Diego St., 2 p.m. Stewart, RHPs Tommy Eveld, Zach McCambley,
Murray St. at Tennessee Tech, 1:30 p.m.
Favorite Pts Underdog Nevada vs. Boise St., 4:30 p.m. Austin Peay at SE Missouri, 2 p.m. Kyle Nicolas, Max Meyer and Josh Roberson.
Uab 81⁄2 Rice UNLV vs. Utah St., 8 p.m. Bryant at Merrimack College, TBA NEW YORK METS: Agreed to terms with INF Luis Guil-
N Texas 31⁄2 Old Dominion Fresno St. vs. Colorado St., 10:30 p.m. lorme, OF Khalil Lee, Cs Patrick Mazeika and Tomas
Old Dominion 11 1⁄2 Middle Tenn St Nido, RHPs Yennsy Diaz, Franklyn Kilome, Sean
Pac-12
Western Athletic Conference tournament
First round
Golf Reid-Foley, Drew Smith and Jordan Yamamoto and
LHPs Joey Lucchesi, David Peterson, Thomas Sza-
Favorite Pts Underdog Holes-in-one
Wednesday’s results pucki, Stephen Tarpley and Daniel Zamora. Re-
Seattle 11⁄2 Cal-Baptist
Arizona St. 64, Washington St. 59 (Name, course, hole, yards, club) newed contracts with INFs Pete Alonso and Jeff
New Mexico St 10 UT-Rio Grande Gary Edwards, Lakeside, 10, 109, 8-iron
Utah 98, Washington 95
California 76, Stanford 58 Bruce Winslow, The Woodlands CC, 16, 145
McNeill.
NHL Atlantic League
Quarterfinals
Favorite Odds O/U Underdog HIGH POINT ROCKERS: Agreed to terms with RHPs
Thursday’s games
FLYERS -$110/-$110 6 Capitals Arizona St. vs. Oregon, 1:30 p.m. High schools Kyle Halbohn and Craig Stern for a one-year con-
tract.
Panthers
MAPLE LEAFS
-$125/+$105
-$180/+$160
5 1⁄2
6 1⁄2
BLUE JACKETS
Jets
Oregon St. vs. UCLA, 4:30 p.m.
Utah vs. USC, 7:30 p.m.
Boys basketball
State championship Frontier League
HURRICANES
ISLANDERS
-$220/+$180
-$200/+$170
5 1⁄2
5
Predators
Devils
California vs. Colorado, 10:30 p.m.
Patriot League
Class 6A EVANSVILLE OTTERS: Agreed to terms with C Dakota
Phillips to a contract extension.
Penguins -$185/+$165 6 SABRES Austin Westlake (30-1) vs. FLORENCE Y’ALLS: Agreed to terms with LHP Gray-
BRUINS -$180/+$160 5 1⁄2 Rangers Semifinals Duncanville (28-1) son Huffman.
Lightning -$340/+$280 5 1⁄2 RED WINGS Wednesday’s results 7 p.m. Saturday
STARS -$140/+$120 5 1⁄2 Blackhawks Loyola (Md.) 67, Army 63 BASKETBALL
Class 5A
FLAMES -$110/-$110 5 1⁄2 Canadiens Colgate 105, Bucknell 75
Beaumont United(30-0) vs.
NBA
SWAC
Dallas Kimball (26-8) HOUSTON ROCKETS: Released G Mason Jones.
Quarterfinals 7 p.m. Friday
Baseball Wednesday’s results
WNBA
Spring training Class 4A WASHINGTON MYSTICS: Signed G Natasha Cloud to
Wednesday’s results
Jackson St. 74, Ark.-Pine Bluff 62
Prairie View 91, Mississippi Valley St. 64 Huffman Hargrave (31-1) vs. Argyle (30-1) multi-year contract.
Houston 4, Miami 4 Thursday’s games 2 p.m. Saturday FOOTBALL
Washington 3, St. Louis 2 Alcorn St. vs. Texas Southern, 2 p.m.
Baltimore 4, Toronto 3 Southern vs. Grambling St., 8:30 p.m.
Class 3A NFL
Tatum (25-3) vs. San Antonio Cole (26-5)
Minnesota 6, Tampa Bay 2
Philadelphia 6, Detroit 4 Women’s basketball 2 p.m. Friday
ARIZONA CARDINALS: Released CB Robert Alford.
Re-signed LB Tanner Vallejo.
Boston 5, Atlanta 3 Conference tournaments Class 2A BALTIMORE RAVENS: Tendered RB Gus Edwards, C
L.A. Angels 4, Cleveland 2 Trystan Colon-Castillo and LB Kristian Welch.
Kansas City 9, Cincinnati 3 AAC Grapeland (29-1) vs. Clarendon (24-4) BUFFALO BILLS: Released WR John Brown and DL
10 a.m. Saturday Quinton Jefferson.
San Francisco 7, Chicago Cubs 6
Oakland 9, Milwaukee 1 Semifinals CAROLINA PANTHERS: Re-signed LS J.J. Jansen.
Wednesday’s results Class 1A
Texas 17, Seattle 5
South Florida 51, Tulane 47 Slidell (29-3) vs. Texline (25-4)
CINCINNATI BENGALS: Re-signed QB Brandon Allen
Colorado 7, San Diego 5 to a one-year contract.
N.Y. Yankees 6, Pittsburgh 5 UCF 61, Houston 39 10 a.m. Friday DALLAS COWBOYS: Released FB Jamize Olawale.
L.A. Dodgers 3, Arizona 2 Championship MIAMI DOLPHINS: Released LB Kyle Van Noy.
Thursday’s games Thursday’s game
Girls basketball MINNESOTA VIKINGS: Released LT Riley Reiff.
State championship
Washington vs. Miami, 12:05 p.m. South Florida vs. UCF NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: Released LB Kwon Alexan-
der and WR Emmanuel Sanders. Re-signed RB
Baltimore vs. Pittsburgh, 12:05 p.m.
Big 12 Class 6A
Boston vs. Minnesota, 12:05 p.m. DeSoto (27-2) vs. Cypress Creek (32-0)
Dwayne Washington.
Tampa Bay vs. Atlanta, 12:05 p.m. First round NEW YORK GIANTS: Released RG Kevin Zeitler.
N.Y. Yankees vs. Philadelphia, 12:05 p.m. Thursday’s games
7 p.m. Thursday at the Alamodome PITTSBURGH STEELERS: Re-signed WR Ray-Ray
Detroit vs. Toronto, 12:07 p.m. Kansas vs. TCU, 5 p.m. Class 5A McCloud.
TENNESSEE TITANS: Released CB Malcolm Butler
Oakland vs. Texas, 3:04 p.m. Kansas St. vs. Texas Tech, 8 p.m.
Cleveland vs. San Diego, 3:09 p.m.
Cedar Park 46, Frisco Liberty 39
and S Kenny Vaccaro.
Big Ten Class 4A WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM: Tendered QB Kyle
Kansas City vs. Milwaukee, 3:09 p.m.
Chicago Cubs vs. Colorado, 3:09 p.m. Second round Canyon (30-1) vs. Hardin-Jefferson (29-0)
Allen.
San Francisco vs. L.A. Angels, 3:09 p.m. Wednesday’s results HOCKEY
2 p.m. Thursday at the Alamodome
N.Y. Mets vs. Houston, 6:04 p.m. Nebraska 72, Minnesota 61
Chicago White Sox vs. Cincinnati, 8:04 p.m. Northwestern 67, Illinois 42 Class 3A NHL
Seattle vs. L.A. Dodgers, 8:04 p.m.
Michigan St. 75, Penn St. 66
Iowa 83, Purdue 72
Brownfield 68, Fairfield 64 NASHVILLE PREDATORS: Suspended D Dante Fabbro
two games for elbowing.
Class 2A
NEW JERSEY DEVILS: Assigned F Mike McLeod to taxi

control of the football ed his 24th season on tour

Colleges Mountain West Conference Lipan (29-3) vs. Martin’s Mill (28-4) squad. Reassigned D Connor Carrick and F Brett Se-
Championship 10 a.m. Thursday at the Alamodome ney to Binghamton (AHL). Recalled D Josh Jacobs
Men’s basketball
coaching search. with a win. ACC
Wednesday’s result
Wyoming 59, Fresno St. 56
Class 1A and F Nick Merkley from Binghamton to taxi squad.
ECHL
“I understand time is of It was far from easy for Second round Southland
Dodd City 30, Nazareth 21
FORT WAYNE KOMETS: Released F Travis Howe form
the essence and that our the former No. 1, though, Wednesday’s results First round specialty player contract.
football student-athletes as he was pushed hard by
Syracuse 89, NC State 68
Miami 67, Clemson 64 Wednesday’s results Hockey GREENVILLE SWAMP RABBITS: Activated D Tim Davi-
son from injured reserve and F Matthew Wedman
Duke 70, Louisville 56 Houston Baptist 74, McNeese St. 60 NHL
are eager to know who will Dan Evans at the Qatar North Carolina 101, Notre Dame 59 Abilene Christian 81, Incarnate Word 70 East GP W L OT Pts GF GA
from reserve. Recalled G John Lethemon by Ontar-
io.
Second round
be guiding them,” he said. Open in Doha before win- Quarterfinals
Thursday’s games
N.Y. Islanders 26 16 6 4 36 75 57 INDY FUEL: Traded F David Broll to Greenville.
Thursday’s games Washington 25 15 6 4 34 84 80 JACKSONVILLE ICEMEN: Acquired F Jake Elmer.
“But we are making long- ning the second-round Syracuse vs. Virginia, 11 a.m. Cent. Arkansas vs. Houston Baptist, noon Pittsburgh 25 15 9 1 31 81 77 KANSAS CITY MAVERICKS: Added F Jason VanWorm-
Nicholls St. vs. Abilene Christian, 2 p.m.
term decisions on an ath- match 7-6 (8), 3-6, 7-5. Miami vs. Georgia Tech, 1:30 p.m.
Duke vs. Florida St., 5:30 p.m.
Boston 23 13 6 4 30 66 56 er to active roster. Placed F Brendan Robbins on re-
serve.
SWAC Philadelphia 23 13 7 3 29 76 73
letics director and a foot- It was Federer’s first North Carolina vs. Virginia Tech, 8 p.m.
Quarterfinals
N.Y. Rangers 24 10 11 3 23 68 67 SOUTH CAROLINA STINGRAYS: Activated D Ryan
New Jersey 22 8 11 3 19 55 71 Cook and F Graham Knott from reserve. Placed D
ball coach, and we cannot match in 405 days after Big East Wednesday’s results
Buffalo 24 6 14 4 16 56 80 Casey Johnson and F Cameron Askew on reserve.
Alabama St. 85, Texas Southern 69
sacrifice the quality of a having knee surgery fol- First round
Jackson St. 70, MVSU 47 Central GP W L OT Pts GF GA
TULSA OILERS: Acquired D Cecere Garrett. Activated
D Stephan Beauvais from reserve.
Wednesday’s results
search simply for expedi- lowing the 2020 Australian Georgetown 68, Marquette 49 Thursday’s games Tampa Bay
Carolina
24
25
18
18
4
6
2 38
1 37
87
88
51
66
WHEELING NAILERS: Added G Taran Kozun to active
Butler 70, Xavier 69 Southern vs. Alcorn St., noon roster. Placed G Taran Kozun on reserve and F Hay-
ency. While there will be a Open. DePaul 70, Providence 62 Grambling St. vs. Alabama A&M, 5:30 p.m. Florida 25 16 5 4 36 84 72 den Hodgson on injured reserve.
Chicago 27 13 9 5 31 83 86 WICHITA THUNDER: Activated D Alex Peters and F
lot of speculation regard- “Feels good to be back,” Quarterfinals Football schedule Columbus 27 10 12 5 25 71 89 John Albert from reserve.
Thursday’s games
ing potential candidates Federer said in an on- Georgetown winner vs. Villanova, 11 a.m.
Saturday’s games Nashville 26 11 14 1 23 63 85 SOCCER
Dallas 21 8 8 5 21 62 55
for both searches, I urge court interview. “I’m hap- Seton Hall vs. St. John’s, 2 p.m.
Butler vs. Creighton, 5 p.m.
East
Detroit 27 7 16 4 18 57 91 MLS
Albany (N.Y.) at Maine, 11 a.m.
Jayhawks to have faith in py to be standing here DePaul vs. UConn, 8 p.m. Holy Cross at Lehigh, 11 a.m. West GP W L OT Pts GF GA PORTLAND TIMBER: Terminated MF Tomas Conech-
Vegas 23 16 6 1 33 73 51 ny’s contract.
the process and in those regardless of if I won or Big Ten Monmouth (N.J.) at Robert Morris, 11 a.m.
Stony Brook at Delaware, 11 a.m. St. Louis 26 14 8 4 32 83 82
who are devoting their lost. But obviously winning First round Rhode Island at Villanova, noon Minnesota 24 15 8 1 31 75 63
Wednesday’s results Colgate at Lafayette, 2:30 p.m. Colorado 24 14 8 2 30 72 59
time to assist.” feels better.” Minnesota 51, Northwestern 46 Fordham at Bucknell, ppd. Los Angeles 25 11 8 6 28 78 72
Penn St. 72, Nebraska 66
In other news: Playing for nearly 2½ Second round South Arizona 26 12 10 4 28 69 77
Anaheim 27 8 13 6 22 62 86
• Texas A&M will start hours tested the 39-year- Thursday’s games Morehead St. at Presbyterian, 11 a.m. San Jose 23 9 11 3 21 66 88
Michigan St. vs. Maryland, 10:30 a.m. Charleston Southern at Kennesaw St., noon
spring drills on March 29, old Swiss player’s stamina Minnesota vs. Ohio St., 1 p.m. Davidson at Stetson, noon North GP W L OT Pts GF GA
Indiana vs. Rutgers, 5:30 p.m. Furman at ETSU, noon Toronto 27 18 7 2 38 93 67
and the annual spring following his long break. Penn St. winner vs. Wisconsin, 8 p.m. Lamar at McNeese St., noon Edmonton 28 17 11 0 34 93 83
game has been pushed Federer saved a set point Mountain West Conference
Richmond at Elon, noon
The Citadel at W. Carolina, noon
Winnipeg 25 16 8 1 33 83 72
Montreal 24 11 6 7 29 79 68
back a week to April 24. at 6-5 down in the first-set First round Wofford at Samford, noon Vancouver 29 12 15 2 26 83 94
Delaware St. at SC State, 12:30 p.m.
A&M coach Jimbo Fish- tiebreaker and saved two Wednesday’s results
Wyoming 111, San Jose St. 80 Mercer at VMI, 12:30 p.m.
Calgary
Ottawa
26 11 12
29 9 19
3 25 71 80
1 19 77 115
er originally had planned break points at 3-3 in the UNLV 80, Air Force 52 William & Mary at James Madison, 3 p.m.
Northwestern St. at SE Louisiana, 6 p.m.
Note: Two points for a win, one point for overtime
Fresno St. 85, New Mexico 77 loss.
on starting spring drills on deciding set before sealing Quarterfinals Midwest Tuesday’s results
March 22, following a the win with a break of Thursday’s games Valparaiso at Butler, 11 a.m. Pittsburgh 4, N.Y. Rangers 2
Wyoming vs. San Diego St., 2 p.m. North Dakota at W. Illinois, noon Philadelphia 5, Buffalo 4 (SO)
shortened spring break for Evans’ serve. Nevada vs. Boise St., 4:30 p.m. N. Iowa at S. Illinois, noon Dallas 6, Chicago 1
UNLV vs. Utah St., 8 p.m. Winnipeg 4, Toronto 3
A&M students, but that From wire reports Missouri St. at South Dakota, 1 p.m.
C8 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
OUTDOORS
Bears witness: Crew releases pair in Texas
Rehabilitated
animals provided
a new home at
Devils River SNA
By Matt Wyatt
STA F F W RIT E R
VAL VERDE COUNTY —
Deep in the desert shru-
blands of the Devils River
State Natural Area, Texas
history was made.
A landscape so harsh
and so beautiful was the
setting last week for the
release of two black
bears, the first from Texas
to go through the rehabili-
tation process.
Momma Tex, a 4- or
5-year-old black bear, was
the first to freedom. After
arriving in rehab com-
pletely emaciated and
encumbered with para-
sites, she lumbered from
her cage healthy and
elegant, as if enjoying the
photo opportunity.
Miss Texas, about a
year old, was camera shy.
She darted from her cage
as soon as it opened.
Miss Texas arrived at
Cottonwood Wildlife Re-
habilitation Center in
Española, N.M., as a 10-
month-old orphan cub
that weighed less than 20
pounds. Her mother was
killed by a Del Rio resi-
dent after she was likely
attracted to a feral cat
feeding station. Miss Tex-
as emerged from her cage
plump and energetic.
Both entered their new
home miles apart among
the staggering canyons in
the rocky-yet-semi-lush
paradise of the Devils
River SNA.
Overseeing the scene
was Kathleen Ramsay, a
veterinarian who has
rehabilitated more than
600 bears in more than
40 years of veterinary
practice and an intriguing
character whose knowl-
edge, experience and
charisma could easily
command a room. Ram-
say and her crew from
Cottonwood (her son, Ty
Horak, his wife, Nirankar,
and James Robinson)
worked in collaboration
with Texas Parks and
Wildlife Department to
turn these bears into
success stories.
Ramsay overcame the
challenges of rearing
these two bears that are
unlike any she’s come
across in her career. The
Mexican subspecies that
are found in West Texas
are genetically distinct
and behave far differently
than the ones from New
Mexico of which she is
accustomed. They don’t
hibernate the same way
her usual bears do.
Ramsay had to find
native food and teach
these bears to fear hu-
mans in order to give
them the best chance of
survival. She also had to
put up with Miss Texas,
who has been described
as a “hoot,” “riot” and
“wild child.”
Two black bears — like this one — were brought from a rehab facility in New Mexico to Val Verde County.
“I’m going to miss this
bear even more, because
she is just nothing like any
other bear,” Ramsay said.
Miss Texas is an alpha
that loved to wrestle with
a male bear twice her size
and cause miscellaneous
mischief.
“She’s been a trip from
the very beginning — a
total trip,” Ramsay said.
“She is just perpetual
motion. I have never
caught her sitting still.”
Ramsay overcame the
obstacles while caring for
several other bears from
New Mexico and an Arizo-
na bear named Miss Nah-
ghizi (Navajo word for
squash) and numerous
other animals. She is a
renowned raptor rehabili-
tator and will care for any
animal under any circum-
stance, no matter if it be
elk, lizard, eagle or bear.
“It’s an honor,” Ramsay
said of being the first to
rehab Texas bears. “I
hope I did a really good
job.”
The two bears will have
plenty of room to roam on
the 37,000-acre Devils
River SNA, where they
will be able to avoid hu-
man interaction. Having a
permanent water source
and the riparian areas
that accompany it should
help. And though the
terrain is no country for
old men, these bears are
tough enough to handle it.
“Bears are habitat gen-
eralists,” said Jonah Ev-
ans, TPWD’s state mam-
malogist. “They’re able to
survive in a very wide
variety of habitats. They
eat all kinds of foods.
They are opportunistic.
And historically they
HH
occurred everywhere in
the state.”
A discovery was made
shortly before the trip to
Texas. Momma Tex had
her name changed from
Mr. Tex after it was re-
vealed she is not a boar,
as previously thought.
That bodes well for what
these bears can do for the
local population in the
future.
“It’s much better. Be-
cause another male would
mean potential problems
for females,” said Evans,
noting how males can
sometimes kill the fe-
males.
Two females added to
the breeding population is
substantial, too, although
bear population growth is
a slow process. The bears
in West Texas usually
breed every other year
and often have one or two
cubs, compared to the
four to six cubs East Coast
bears can have.
If Texas bear popula-
tions continue to grow
gradually, instances of
human conflict and inter-
action will likely rise.
“My predecessor
worked for the depart-
ment for 35 years and he
put his hands on two
bears his entire career,”
TPWD wildlife biologist
Ryan Schmidt said while
driving to release the
second bear of the day.
“We’re seeing a huge
uptick. Because of the
drought in Mexico, the
mountains are in such
poor shape out there and
that’s what’s driving these
bears northward, trying
to find better habitat.”
While that uptick is
happening in West Texas,
black bear activity has
increased on a much
smaller scale along the
Red River due to flourish-
ing populations in south-
east Oklahoma and south-
west Arkansas. Louisiana,
too, is working to restore
its own subspecies of
black bear.
The bears in northeast
Texas are limited to tran-
sient males, so far. Here in
the borderlands of West
Texas, though, black
bears appear to have
gained a foothold.
“We’ve actually docu-
mented cubs being born
here, where we have little
Hardin County News
ones that couldn’t have
made the trek 50-75 miles
inland,” said Schmidt.
“They had to have been
born in Texas.”
But how far can black
bear restoration go in
Texas? The idea of bears
roaming the suburbs of
Houston seems preposter-
ous.
“You’ve got deer. You
can have bears,” Schmidt
quipped of a reality that is
more jarring than the
rugged road into Devils
River SNA.
And that is why TPWD
is heightening its focus on
educating the public
about bears.
As bears expand their
range in the state, Texans
will need to learn — as
residents of many other
states have done — how to
change behaviors to coex-
ist. The return of bears to
the landscape they have
been extirpated from
since the 1950s depends
on the willingness of hu-
mans to make it happen.
The changes are sim-
ple: Secure trash, pet food
and other odor-producing
attractants. Bird feeders
can also attract bears. So
can deer feeders. Attrac-
tants habituate bears, and
a bear without fear of
humans is a problem.
Evans said Texans do
not need to fear bears.
They are mostly vegetari-
an and rarely attack peo-
ple. Black bears are shy
and elusive.
If you do encounter a
bear, don’t panic. Make
yourself as big as possible.
Don’t run.
These measures can
help prepare Texans to
live with bears while pre-
venting another tragedy,
like what happened to
Miss Texas’ mother, and
the need for rehabilitation
in the future. Though
humans remain the only
hindrance for successful
black bear restoration in
the state, they also have
the power to help.
Perhaps no one ex-
emplifies that more than
Ramsay, who will be pick-
ing up two eagles in need
of rehab on the way back
to Española, where her
life work does not stop.
As the bears were
freed, she watched with
maternal concern and the
hope that she “did a good
enough job” over the last
several months.
The person who could
do a better job likely
doesn’t exist.
matt.wyatt@chron.com
twitter.com/mattdwyatt
 HOUSTON CHRONICLE  THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021  SECTION D HH

RENEW
HEALTHY LIVING IN HOUSTON
renewhouston.com

Photos by Elizabeth Conley / Staff photographer

Special delivery
Nurses administer COVID vaccines to homebound patients during big freeze
By Julie Garcia | STA F F W R I T ER

E
very morning for peratures had one positive effect:
three days during Keeping the stored vaccines cold
February’s winter during delivery, Young said. The
blast, Jennifer Pfizer vaccine must be stored
Young and Tammie between -112 degrees and -76 de-
Michael stopped at grees Fahrenheit, according to the
the Bucee’s in Texas City and Centers for Disease Control and
bought all of the prepared break- Prevention. But once thawed and
fast tacos, water bottles and hot diluted, the vaccine’s temperature
coffee. can hover between 33 and 76
Their vehicles were loaded up degrees Fahrenheit for six hours.
with the food, warm drinks, blan- According to the digital data log-
kets and 90 Pfizer COVID-19 vac- ger inside Young’s vaccine kit, the
cine doses. Once it was safe cooler’s temperature stayed in
enough to drive without risk of that required sweet spot for the
sliding on icy roads, the two Uni- cross-county relay.
versity of Texas Medical Branch Patients were surprised when
nurses and four other health care they saw the nurses at their front
workers set out to deliver second door. Many had been concerned
doses to 90 homebound patients they would not receive their sec-
in Galveston County, many of ond doses on time. “They thought
whom were still without electric- they would just have to go without
ity or safe water. it,” she said.
The region’s record cold tem- Homebound continues on D10

Top: UTMB nurse Jennifer Young, left, chats with Olivia Webb before administering Webb’s second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine
in League City during the week of the big freeze. Above: Health care workers had a limited time to administer 90 doses of the vaccine.

FUEL UP TRANSFORMATION CORONAVIRUS

Picking the plant-based diet Runner refuses to let muscle A high BMI may get you
that works for you. Page 2 disorder slow him down. Page 3 vaccinated earlier. Page 9
D2 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

RENEW HOUSTON Senior Editor, melissa.aguilar@chron.com @MelissAguilar Houston Chronicle Life & Entertainment

FUEL UP

What does it mean to

eat plant-based?
T
he plant-based eating
movement is sweeping
the nation as a trendy,
yet health-conscious,
eating pattern. While
dietitians certainly give a plant-
forward diet the seal of approval,
we frequently see “plant-based”
used as a buzzword and market-
ing tactic to entice consumers into
viewing that particular product as
being healthier. I recently saw a
peanut butter product advertised
as “plant-based,” when peanut
butter is inherently made from a
plant and therefore, plant-based.
Many consumers are fast to
equate anything related to a plant
— greens, leaves, earth, you name
it — to health.
On the other end of the spec-
trum, some consumers are skepti-
cal of eating more plant-based and
perceive this eating pattern
as the complete elimination
of meat and seafood and
becoming exclusively vegan,
which is more appealing to
some than others. Following
a vegan diet can be a won-
WILLINGHAM
derful way to incorporate
more plant-based, nutrient-
dense foods into your daily rou-
tine. However, not all plant-
sourced foods equate to better
nutrition, which can be confusing.
For example, french fries are
technically a plant-based food. As a
result of deep frying or flash fry-
ing, traditional fries are high in
unhealthy fats like saturated and
even trans fats, which are associat-
ed with poor cardiovascular and
metabolic health. Similarly, fruit
juices are also plant-based. While
fruit juice can be a way to increase
intake of certain vitamins
and minerals, such beverag-
es are often packed with
extra sugars. If you struggle
with blood sugar manage-
ment, drinking fruit juice
EMMA frequently can make it even
harder.
Because there is not a
clear or universal definition of
what plant-based means, consum-
ers are either all in, or all out. The
good news is that plant-based
eating is not black and white.
There is a gray area that allows
you to determine what works best
for you, your health goals, your
values and your routine. By defini-
tion, eating plant-based means
that the majority of foods you eat
come from plants. This is a simple
definition with a lot of room for
interpretation.
Despite robust research on the
benefits of following a more plant-
forward eating pattern, national
and global consumption of fruits
and vegetables continues to fall
short of recommended amounts.
Eating plant-based can be an excel-
lent way to increase your intake of
healthy, whole-plant foods that are
minimally processed, such as col-
orful fruits and vegetables, whole
grains, nuts, beans, legumes, plant-
based oils and even tea and coffee.
People often associate eating plant-
based with the complete elim-
ination of meats and meat prod-
ucts. But it is absolutely possible to
eat plant-based without eliminating
lean, animal-based proteins. To
find the most enticing plant-based
eating pattern for you, here is a list
of various eating patterns that are
all classified as plant-based:

iStockphoto iStockphoto

Pescatarian
Pescatarians eat all plant-based foods, eggs, dairy foods, fish and
seafood. Pescatarians do not eat poultry or other types of meat.
Semi-vegetarian
Eating semi-vegetarian is also known as eating a flexitarian diet. The
basis of this eating pattern focuses on whole, minimally processed
plant-based foods and plant-based proteins, such as beans, legumes,
quinoa, nuts, seeds, whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Flexitarians
also consume eggs and low-fat dairy on a regular basis, with the major-
ity of meat consumption coming from seafood and fish. Poultry and
other types of meat are consumed less often. A flexitarian diet is
viewed as a less strict version of plant-based eating; a good example of
this pattern is the Mediterranean diet.

Claudia Totir / Getty Images

Ovo-vegetarian
Ovo-vegetarians eat all plant-based foods and eggs but do not eat
dairy foods, seafood, fish, poultry or other meats.

Alexander Spatari / Getty Images

Getty Images
Vegetarian
A vegetarian is often formally referred to as a lacto-ovo vegetarian. A
lacto-ovo vegetarian diet includes all plant-based foods, eggs, dairy
foods but no seafood, fish, poultry or other meats.
Vegan
A vegan diet excludes all animal foods — eggs, dairy, seafood, fish,
poultry and other meats. Veganism often is viewed as a lifestyle and is
ethically motivated, rather than just an eating pattern.
As you can see, the main difference in these various plant-based
eating patterns comes down to the amount and types of proteins in-
cluded in your diet. I personally teeter somewhere between a flexitar-
ian and pescatarian approach because I enjoy the taste of seafood and
fish but also because it can be challenging to meet daily protein re-
quirements when eating vegetarian or vegan. Plant-based foods do
include protein but are not as protein-dense as animal- and marine-
based proteins, like fish or chicken. You can absolutely meet the daily
protein recommendation through plant-based foods, you just have to
work a little harder and be more strategic about food choices.
A plant-forward eating pattern has been shown to have a beneficial
effect on inflammatory blood values, fat metabolism and decreased
risk in disease mortality, both with and without lean proteins as part of
the overall eating pattern. The key is the base of meals being plant-
based foods. Stay tuned for the next article in my plant-based series
that will focus on how to increase intake of plant-based foods, potential
nutrition concerns and plant-based myth busters.

Emma Willingham is a registered dietitian who practices in an outpatient hospital clinic and through her private practice, Fuel with Emma.
Willingham specializes in sports-performance nutrition, weight management and nutrition counseling, and aims to promote a resilient relation-
ship between food, mind and body. You can find her on social media at @fuelwithemma.
 HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | D3
RENEW HOUSTON

TRANSFORMATION

Hitting full stride

A childhood muscle disorder made sports difficult. Now he tackles half-marathons.

By Lindsay Peyton
C ORRE SP ONDENT

G
reg Griffin, 39, has
given himself a year to
prepare for the 2022
Houston Marathon.
He has spent a life-
time, however, overcoming physical
challenges to get here.
Recently, Griffin embarked on
the keto diet and a new fitness
routine — rotating between running,
cycling and Les Mills BodyPump
classes at his local YMCA in Spring.
He’s also using a “Couch to 5K” app
to guide his journeyand has
dropped 26 pounds.
“I’ve already seen a noticeable
difference, working out and eating
well,” he said.
Griffin focuses on the incremen-
tal goals, the steps along the way,
instead of concentrating on the final
marathon.
“I’m very goal-oriented,” he said.
“But I achieve the little stuff first in
order to get to the big ones.”
For Griffin, that means thinking
of it all as one foot in front of the
other, as opposed to a race to the
finish line. After all, for most of his
life, running was completely out of
the question. A series of medical
issues left him concerned for years,
thinking that exercise was too dan-
gerous.
When Griffin was 1, he was diag-
nosed with cerebral palsy, a dis-
order that affects muscle tone,
movement, balance and posture.
Growing up in Waco, the youn-
gest of three brothers, Griffin never
crawled. Instead, he simply scooted
around. When Griffin was 10
months old, his aunt, Francis Grif-
fin, noticed stiffness in his limbs
while playing with him.
“Something’s not right with
Greg,” she thought. “He’s not mov-
ing properly. He’s not flexible.”
The medical tests and the trips to
specialists began. Finally, Griffin
was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.
“The doctor told my mom to go
home, that I had a slight case, but I
should be fine,” Griffin said.
Then, he began having regular
fits.
“My brother remembers that
they would have to hold me down
while I screamed bloody murder,” Photos by Yi-Chin Lee / Staff photographer
Griffin said. Greg Griffin, 39, diagnosed with continuous muscle fiber activity syndrome when he was younger,
He would sweat profusely, and avoided exercise because he didn’t feel in control of his body. Now he’s a memeber of a running club.
his mother, Elle Benson, began to
question his diagnosis. Doctors said Griffin’s continuous Griffin competed in his first half-
“He would appear to be doing OK muscle fiber activity syndrome had marathon in 2015 and his second in
and then have these spells,” Benson somehow resolved “spontaneously,” 2017. Now, he has several 5Ks and
recalled. “There was something that according to his medical records. 10Ks under his belt.
bothered me about the whole Still, he continued to experience Benson was surprised when her
thing.” muscle cramps and spasms, to feel son started racing.
A family friend recommended his feet almost go to sleep out of “He wasn’t that athletic in school,
they go to the Shriner Hospital in nowhere or to have a tightness in and of a sudden, he said, ‘I’m going
Houston for a second opinion, to his lips. to run a half-marathon,’” she said.
determine whether his symptoms When Griffin was 17, doctors said “He stuck with it. It was persever-
were related to cerebral palsy or the cause of his symptoms re- ance and determination on his
something altogether different. mained unclear and that the origi- part.”
Griffin was 2 when he became a nal cerebral palsy diagnosis no Benson cheered him on as he
regular patient at Shriner’s. Blood longer fit. completed one race after another.
tests were routine. He still has a To this day, he continues to have “I’m always there for him at the
scar from a muscle biopsy at the episodes in his face, hands and leg finish line,” she said. “I’m proud of
time. — usually every two or three days, him for running. But I’m proud of
The doctors diagnosed him with lasting about 10 minutes. Over the him for so many other reasons,
“continuous muscle fiber activity years, he has learned to treat the too.”
syndrome,” which can result in muscle spasms as a fact of life. Along the way, Griffin has gained
stiffness, as well as muscle twitch- “People only know if I point it the confidence to try new challeng-
ing. out to them,” he said. “I know how Griffin still has a scar from a es.
“It’s basically like someone lifting to disguise it. I’ve learned my whole muscle biopsy procedure that He used to stand on the sidelines,
weights and their muscles are fir- life how to deal with them.” he received in 1983. concerned that others would judge
ing,” Griffin explained. “That’s what Nonetheless, getting involved in him for not having the right skills,
my muscles were always doing.” sports has always made Griffin This time, Griffin signed up for speed or even shoes. Now, he
He was prescribed a medication anxious, especially since he never the Power in Motion (PIM) club. He knows better.
that treats seizures and convul- felt completely in control of his remembers the first week, runners “When you’re out there, no one
sions, usually for epilepsy patients. body and spent 17 years of his life were split based on endurance. is judging you,” he said. “Everyone
“They were like, we don’t know if thinking he had cerebral palsy. He “They asked, ‘Can you run a is so proud of you. They’re your
you’ll get better, we don’t know if remembers playing football in ju- minute?’ and I said, ‘No.’ That was biggest champions.”
you’ll walk, but take this medica- nior high and having his legs sud- me. I couldn’t run a mile,” he re- Griffin does not allow fear of
tion for epilepsy,” Benson recalled. denly give out. That pushed him to called. muscle spasms to stop him from
The pills would make him sick, give up sports. By high school, But by spring 2014, Griffin com- running. In fact, he had an episode
inducing vomiting and sweating. Griffin stopped running completely. peted in his first run. His goal was during a half-marathon in 2017 —
“As his mother, I felt this medica- He stuck to academics instead. simply to finish. and it didn’t stop him from com-
tion was making him worse,” Ben- And he shied away from exercise “I was not trying to beat anyone,” pleting the race.
son said. “When you looked at the for years. he said with a laugh. “Just finishing “I felt like I had gremlins running
side effects, the list was so long.” “I always held myself back from was such a great feeling. I never through my calves and thighs,” he
She decided to stop giving him running and fitness,” he said. “I thought in my life I’d finish a race.” said. “It’s just something I have to
the pills. He never took medication knew I had this disease, and I used The next night, he was celebrat- deal with.”
for his muscle issues again. it as a crutch.” ing with a friend, who asked, “Do Unlike other sports or fitness
“As time went on, I’d almost Griffin moved to Houston in 2005 you want to run the half-mara- pursuits, where you have to train to
forget about him having this prob- and continued building his career thon?” even get started, with running, you
lem,” Benson said. “He was still in marketing. In 2013, Griffin decid- “No way,” Griffin replied. just have to tie your shoes, Griffin
having episodes, but it was minor. ed to join a running club and try a But his friend convinced him; the said.
He’d kind of keep it to himself.” Couch-to-5K program. next morning, he signed up for the “With running, it doesn’t even
She initially was worried when “I went like two times,” he ad- event. Then, he joined Houston Fit, matter if you’re going to win. As
doctors said her son might not mits. “I didn’t stick to it.” a training group. long as you finish, you’re accom-
walk. Eventually, Griffin decided to give “It became my life,” Griffin said. plishing your goal,” he said. “That’s
“But it did not turn out that way,” the running club a second shot. “Running took over in a good way.” my biggest advice: Just get out there
Benson said. “I knew I had to do something,” Plus, he made friends who sup- and do it.”
Griffin developed normally. As a he said. “I wanted to be healthier. I ported and pushed one another.
teenager, he returned to Shiner’s to wanted to be the best version of “I found a family in running,” he Lindsay Peyton is a Houston-based
further understand his condition. myself.” said. freelance writer.
D4 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

RENEW HOUSTON

THE EXPERTS

Low-fat vegan And the 2018 Atheroscle-

rosis Risk in Communities
study found that while the

diet targets weight

risk of heart attack is
going down for older
DRS. MICHAEL ROIZEN folks, those ages 35 to 54
AND MEHMET OZ are seeing an increase,
Drs. Oz and Roizen
especially women. High
blood pressure and Type

Q: I hear that it is
easier to lose weight on
a healthy vegan diet. Is
that true?
Frankie J., Gary, Ind.
A: Everyone is differ-
ent. For some folks, a
low-fat diet is the most
effective way to lose
weight, for others it’s
low-carb, and for some,
the Mediterranean diet is
easier to stick with, and
therefore a more effective
way to shed pounds.
That being said, there
is an interesting random-
ized, crossover study in
the Journal of the Amer-
ican College of Nutrition
that found a low-fat vegan
diet leads to greater
weight loss, healthier
cholesterol levels and
increased insulin sensitiv-
ity compared with the
Mediterranean diet.
For 16 weeks, research-
ers from the Physicians
Committee for Responsi-
ble Medicine had one-half
of study participants go
on a low-fat vegan diet
focused on fruits, vegeta-
bles, whole grains and
legumes. The other half
went on the Med diet,
focusing on fruits, vegeta-
bles, legumes, fish, low-fat
dairy and extra-virgin
olive oil — while limiting
red meat and saturated
fats. Both groups then
went back to their ordi-
nary way of eating for four
weeks before switching to
the opposite diet for an-
other 16 weeks.
The results: Partici-
pants lost an average of 13
pounds on the vegan diet
(improving insulin resis-
and cholesterol
tance) — but nothing on
the Mediterranean one.
Those eating a vegan diet
also lost about 7.5 pounds
more fat mass than Med
diet folks. Lousy LDL
cholesterol went down
15.3mg/dL for the vegans;
no change on the Med
diet. The only benefit
from the Med diet was to
systolic blood pressure —
it declined by 9.3 mmHg;
only 3.4 on the vegan diet.
Overall, the vegan diet
came out ahead, accord-
ing to the researchers,
because of lower calorie
intake, increased fiber
intake and decreased fat
and saturated fat con-
sumption. So you can give
vegan a try — just remem-
ber your goal is to adopt a
healthy eating style you
can stick with indefinitely,
so you can sustain better
health.
Q: My cousin Ellen,
who’s only 48, had a
heart attack. What
makes a younger wom-
an vulnerable? I’d like
to dodge that bullet.
Katie R., Santa Rosa, Calif.
A: We used to think
women weren’t at risk for
heart disease until after
menopause. But these
days, risk factors such as
chronic stress, a seden-
Getty Images
tary lifestyle, smoking,
diabetes and obesity are
affecting younger and
younger women and can
cancel out the “estrogen
advantage.”
New research, pub-
lished in European Heart
Journal — Quality of Care
and Clinical Outcomes,
found that since 2010, the
death rate from heart
disease in U.S. women
under age 65 has gone up.
2 diabetes are major con-
tributing factors.
Fortunately, most risk
factors can be reduced
with upgrades to nutri-
tion, physical activity,
sleep habits and stress
management. Medications
also can help control high
blood pressure, cholester-
ol levels and diabetes.
That’s why everyone
should have a baseline
heart health checkup to
assess their risk:
• Get your cholesterol
level checked at age 20. If
it’s normal, then check it
every four to six years. If
HDL is low or LDL is high,
check it every six months
to see if medication (sta-
tins) or lifestyle changes
(better nutrition, more
exercise) are helping.
Over 20 and never been
checked? Do it now.
• At any age, if you’re
overweight or obese, get a
fasting blood glucose test
to check for pre- or full-
blown diabetes. Even if
you don’t have prediabe-
tes or diabetes, consult a
nutritionist so you can
dodge that bullet in the
future.
• If you’re plagued
with chronic stress, get
150-300 minutes of exer-
cise weekly and do 10
minutes of mindful med-
itation morning and
night.
When it comes to
avoiding heart disease,
remember, you have the
power to eliminate your
risk for this this largely
preventable disease!
Contact Drs. Oz and
Roizen at sharecare.com.

Onion syrup serves as cough medicine

JOE AND TERESA GRAEDON
The People’s Pharmacy
Q: When I was a child,
I frequently suffered
from colds. My aunt
would make a cough
medicine of soft-cooked
onions with butter,
brown sugar, ginger and
a bit of vinegar. I never
fussed about taking it. I
liked it, and I always
stopped coughing.
A: Onion cough medi-
cine appears to be popular
in many parts of the
world. We have heard of
various versions from
India, Hungary and the
North American frontier.
Some people sweeten
the onion syrup with hon-
ey rather than brown
sugar. There is some evi-
dence to suggest that hon-
ey has antiviral activity
(Molecules, Oct. 29, 2020).
A meta-analysis of six
randomized controlled
trials found that honey
worked better than place-
bo to alleviate coughs in
kids (Cochrane Database
of Systematic Reviews,
April 10, 2018). Honey
should never be given to
babies less than a year old
because it might contain
botulinum toxin.
Q: After reading an-
other of your columns
about someone having
sleep problems, I just
had to write to tell you
of my newfound cure.
Originally, my husband
found this for me on the
internet as a help for leg
cramps. They were wak-
ing me up and then I
would find it hard to fall
back asleep.
I started taking a mag-
nesium supplement. Not
only did it cure my leg
cramps but it also
helped me fall back to
sleep faster, especially if
I have to visit the bath-
room in the middle of
the night.
This supplement has
been a godsend to me.
In addition to magne-
sium, it contains ash-
wagandha, Rhodiola
and melatonin. Al-
though melatonin usu-
ally makes me feel like I
want to jump out of my
skin, this has so little in
it, I don’t feel that effect.
With one pill a night, I
get a great night’s sleep.
A: Thank you for shar-
ing your experience. A
recent review of dietary
supplements to improve
sleep found that there is
evidence for the benefit of
low-dose melatonin, but
more research is needed
on magnesium (Postgradu-
ate Medical Journal, Jan.
13, 2021). Ashwagandha
root can also improve
sleep quality ( Journal of
Ethnopharmacology, Jan.
10, 2021).
Although many readers
find magnesium helpful
against leg cramps, a sys-
tematic review of research
concluded that it is un-
likely magnesium helps
prevent nighttime cramps
(Cochrane Database of
Systematic Reviews, Sept.
21, 2020). People with
impaired kidney function
must avoid extra magne-
sium.
You can learn
more about nondrug
approaches for better
sleep, including ashwa-
gandha, in our eGuide to
Getting a Good Night’s
iStockphoto Sleep. This online resource
Honey is often added to onion syrup to sweeten the is available in the Health
taste and boost the mixture’s antiviral activity. eGuides section of
PeoplesPharmacy.com.
Q: I had been suf-
fering with painful
cracked fingertips for
years. I even went to the
doctor for it. However,
the prescription creams
I got didn’t work.
Then I decided to stop
eating whole-wheat
bread and other wheat-
based products. Within
two weeks, my finger-
tips were healed, and
my digestive troubles
resolved. I think I could
be gluten-intolerant.
That was a few years
ago, and I have not had a
single split fingertip
since.
A: You should ask your
doctor if you might be at
risk for celiac disease. If
you have been scrupulous
about avoiding gluten,
though, an antibody blood
test for this condition will
not be accurate. Even a
biopsy may not tell the
story. A genetic test might
reveal your susceptibility,
but it won’t determine if
you actually have celiac
disease.
Contact the Graedons at
peoplespharmacy.com.

FITNESS EVENTS
KidsK run, presented by Karbach
TAI CHI
Brewing Co. Masks are required at all
An internal Chinese martial art that fo- times except on the race course. 7:30 a.m.
cuses on slow, graceful movements and March 13; Houston Running Co. Ware-
relaxed, meditative breathing. Open to all house, 21215 FM 529, Suite 110, Cypress;
ages and levels. 9-10 a.m. March 12; Levy houstonrunningco.com/lucky-charm-5k.
Park, 3801 Eastside; levyparkhouston.org.
VIRTUAL BAYOU CITY
HATHA YOGA CLASSIC 10K & 5K FUN RUN
Vinyasa yoga class, led by Andria Dugas, Participants can run anywhere, anytime
for enhanced awareness and a strong, between March 13-27. Proceeds from the
healthy body. 9-10 a.m. March 13; Dis- Bayou City Classic are donated to the
covery Green, 1500 McKinney; Houston Parks and Recreation Depart-
discoverygreen.com. ment. Presented the Houston Area Road
Runners Association. bayoucityclassic.org.
LUCKY CHARM 5K Dave Rossman / Contributor

St. Patrick’s Day-themed 5K, 10K and Virtual Bayou City Classic ana.khan@chron.com

RENEW HOUSTON
When it’s wise to quit social media
Social media makes me
a worse person.
I wonder if this may be
familiar to you, too.
I find
that it
churns up
subtle
judgments
and blatant
compari-
MARCI sons, then
SHARIF an extra
dose of
shame and discourage-
ment when I beat myself
up for not being better
than that.
The whole charade
drives me nuts. Social
media is an incredible
resource. It’s possible it’s
even how you came across
this article. Some of you
will find it from my own
account.
But I’ve had to put
some ground rules in
place for how I interact
with Facebook, Instagram
… really, all of it, because
the trap is real. Like the
other night, when I found
myself hunched over my
phone in bed, doom
scrolling, deep in the
rabbit hole, viewing
photos of an ex’s glamor-
ous wife, feeling like an
unaccomplished loser.
I love my life. I’m in-
credibly blessed. I also
genuinely love seeing
other people thrive and
succeed. But the truth is
that I’ve been in a bit of a
rut lately, and social me-
dia is the opposite of help-
ful in times such as these.
The short story is that
my daughter is in the
middle of an intensive
therapy program that
required we pack up our
Houston home to spend a
month at a special clinic
in Dallas.
I’ve written about her
before. She is a tremen-
dous source of joy and
HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | D5
FEELING MATTERS
There are so many
things that I see this situa-
tion calling for. Allowing.
Acceptance. Compassion.
Gratitude. All of which are
the opposite of what so-
cial media stirs up. At
least for me, scrolling
social media often in-
volves avoidance and the
antithesis of gratitude —
comparison. It’s the anti-
cure.
My inner work here is
laid out — and practicing
gratitude for this little
gem of a person is exceed-
ingly easy. Internal recon-
ciling aside, I’ve also add-
ed a few apps to my
phone so that when I have
down time and feel mag-
netized to a screen, I can
view something interest-
ing, even if it’s less en-
thralling than Facebook.
My plan is to keep redi-
recting my attention to-
ward this other content
when there’s not an acute
pain-point on my radar,
too.
These social platforms
simply aren’t designed to
bring out our best. If
they’re not used with a
specific intention, like
connecting with people,
getting the word out on
Courtesy photo something or posting
Marci Sharif is taking a break from social media to focus on the successes of her 3-year-old daughter, Leia. something helpful, they
discreetly bring us down.
pride, and she has been that’s where I was last work with Leia and give simultaneously juggling That’s what I find anyway.
through so much. She was weekend. her lots of time and sup- the logistical challenges of So, outside of very pur-
born with an undiagnosed We’re in this program port, she will eventually the moment, has been poseful interactions, I’m
genetic condition that’s trying to help her slowly learn to eat, but what hit tricky. And that night, taking a break.
presented with a list of but surely work through a me over the weekend, is browsing social media If any of this resonates,
diagnoses so long, people swallowing disorder that that she may not. didn’t make it any better. I invite you to join me.
always expect to see makes eating a physical I’m an optimist in my I’m honestly still com- Right after you share this
someone who struggles to and psychological uphill core. I believe in miracles ing to terms with all this, column.
function. battle. Essentially 100 and the value of grit and and intensively research-
That’s not our girl percent of her nutrition is dedication, so it actually ing our path forward. I Marci Izard Sharif is an
though. She’s absolutely through a feeding tube. By took me this long — until want my daughter to have author, yoga teacher,
incredible. And, her path, the time we leave the my daughter is 3 years old a rich and wonderful life. I meditation facilitator, and
along with mine and my Dallas program, if all goes and during our second think she will, whether mother. In Feeling Matters,
husbands’ as we walk this really well, tube depen- stint at this hospital — to she eats or not, but this is she writes about self-love,
road with her, has not dency might be down to finally realize she might unknown territory. It’s sharing self-care tools,
been easy. She is strong. about 95 percent. always need a tube. easy to worry and natural, stories, and resources that
We are strong. But some- This is a very long road. Swallowing that (we’ll I think, to feel a level of center around knowing
times we all break — and My sense is that as we go with the pun), while grief. and being kind to yourself.
D6 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

PUZZLES & TV
WORD SLEUTH JUMBLE DAILY CROSSWORD
Find the listed words in the diagram. They run in all directions — forward,
backward, up, down and diagonally. ©2021 King Features Syndicate Inc.
ACROSS 55 Trig. function 12 Term of affection
1 John follower 57 “I can take __!” 13 Gush on stage
Wednesday’s unlisted 2020 FIRST-ROUND NBA DRAFT 5 Whack, biblically 59 Team at a drug 18 Diamond VIPs
clue: TWO PAR. CHOICES
10 Behold, to Cicero bust 21 Freedom, in
Thursday’s unlisted
clue hint: A COLOR
14 Young Adult novel 64 Green on a Swahili
BETWEEN BLUE AND by Carl Hiaasen weather map 22 Chi.-based flier
YELLOW. about an owl 65 Largest portion 23 Some Balkans
habitat 68 Miranda __ of 28 “Mazel __!”
Anthony 15 Wore “Homeland”
29 Quads on roads
Avdija 16 Devise, with “up” 69 “Solutions and
Edwards 30 Breakout stars?
17 Blue-green Other Problems”
Haliburton 19 Garage occupant writer Brosh 32 Surprise attack
Hayes
20 Meeting of 70 Wheelhouse 34 Cinematographer
J. Smith Nykvist
Lewis Jr.
powerful nations 71 Retreat
22 One looking at a lot 72 Blind parts 36 Sermon subject
Nesmith
Okongwu of tickets 73 Old autocrat 38 Curved sabers
Okoro 24 Berliner’s 39 Butter __
Stewart “Blimey!” DOWN 41 Jersey type
Toppin 25 School contest 1 “Got it!” 42 “On the Floor”
Vassell 26 “It’s __ good” 2 __ au vin singer
Williams
27 2016 US Open 3 Compassionate 46 Put away
Wiseman
champ Wawrinka but strict approach 48 Stein’s partner
31 Possessive 4 Put on 50 Makes illegal
pronoun 5 Carpet type 52 LeBron’s
33 Landlocked Asian 6 “All Rise” actress
SUDOKU CRYPTOQUIP country Helgenberger
hometown
53 Do lutzes, say
Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains The Cryptoquip is a substitution cipher in which one letter
35 Native Nebraskan 7 “Got it” 54 Vaudeville fare
the numbers 1 to 9. ©2021 King Features Syndicate, Inc. stands for another. If you think that X equals O, it will equal 37 Carpenter’s tool 8 Island kingdom
56 Ability
O throughout the puzzle. Single letters, short words and 40 Campbell’s whose capital is
words using an apostrophe give you clues to locating vowels. 58 Percussion pair
Solution is by trial and error. concoction Nuku’alofa
43 Spotted 9 “Romanian 60 One in a sailor’s
©2021 King Features Syndicate, Inc.
44 Breeze (through) Rhapsodies” repertoire
45 Vegas rollers composer 61 Beverage nut
47 Ping-Pong table 10 Answer to the 62 Make mittens, say
need riddle “What 63 Exploits
49 Messy one cheese is made 66 Irish actor Stephen
51 Goat’s cry backward?” 67 Mr. Potato Head
52 Braying beast 11 Roomba pickup piece

strokes of good luck: Fluke Skywalker.

©2021 Conceptis Puzzles, Dist. by King Features Syndicate, Inc. ANSWER: “Star Wars” character who always had astonishing

YESTERDAY’S ANSWERS -- OVER --

By Craig Stowe ©2021 Tribune Content Agency 3/11/21

What
his relationship with Eric (George Salazar). ACES ON BRIDGE
Dina (Lauren Ash), Glenn (Mark McKinney) By Bobby Wolff
and Cheyenne’s (Nichole Sakura) plan to

to watch
boost the scores creates new and bigger
problems, and Jonah (Ben Feldman) tries to
convince Sandra (Kaliko Kauahi) and other
workers to value themselves.
See how you would fare as
declarer here after a slightly
off-center no-trump opening.
(Nothing else is much better.)
Partner bids Stayman, and you
show your hearts. When West

THURSDAY ‘Cold Courage’

March 11, 2021
All times Central. Start times can vary based
on cable/satellite provider. Confirm times on
your on-screen guide.
Cold Courage
AMC+  New Series
Based on the award-winning and bestselling
novels from Finnish journalist Pekka
Hiltunen, this drama follows two women
(portrayed by Pihla Viitala and Sofia Pekkari)
as they collide during a series of murders
in present-day London. As they are drawn
together through a clandestine group called
the Studio, they seek to right the wrongs
of the powerful, influential and corrupt
— starting with a dangerous, charismatic
politician (John Simm) looking to put the
“Great” back into Great Britain. The first
three episodes debut today, with subsequent
episodes released every Thursday.
BattleBots:
Bounty Hunters
discovery+
In each episode, challengers compete for
the right to become a Bounty Hunter and
fight a Legend. The prize: a unique place in
BattleBots history and the major share of a
$25,000 cash prize payout in every episode.
BERNARD WALSH, AMC
Genera+ion
HBO Max  New Series
This half-hour dramedy follows a diverse
group of high school students exploring
modern sexuality in their conservative
community.
Station 19
ABC, 7 p.m.  New Episodes
In “Train in Vain,” after a powerful and
shocking winter finale, the firefighter drama
returns for its spring premiere. Grey Sloan
Memorial surgeon Andrew DeLuca (Giacomo
Gianniotti) is like a dog with a bone when he
believes in something. That has never been
more true than on tonight’s Station 19, the
first half of a tension-filled crossover with
Grey’s Anatomy, as DeLuca and his protective
older sister, Carina (Stefania Spampinato),
try to stop a child sex trafficker.
Hell’s Kitchen
FOX, 7 p.m.
In the new episode “There’s Something
About Marc,” the eight remaining chefs
cook various types of burgers, finding their
additional ingredients in a massive deck of
cards.
Grey’s Anatomy
ABC, 8 p.m.  New Episodes
In “Helplessly Hoping,” after nearly three
months off the air, one of TV’s top dramas
returns tonight for its spring premiere.
Call Me Kat
FOX, 8 p.m.
In “Moving In,” with her own love life heating
up, cat cafe owner Kat (Mayim Bialik) has to
decide how to tell her employee Randi (Kyla
Pratt) about the skeleton she discovered
in her boyfriend Daniel’s (Lamorne Morris)
closet while helping them move in together.
Last Man Standing
FOX, 8:30 p.m.
In the new episode “Granny Nanny,” Vanessa
(Nancy Travis) refuses to believe that she
needs to slow down, going above and beyond
in her grandma responsibilities.
A Million Little Things
ABC, 9 p.m.  New Episodes
In “Non-Essential,” the drama returns with
Boston heading into a COVID lockdown,
Rome (Romany Malco) realizing his movie
may have to halt production, Maggie (Allison
Miller) being forced to return home early
from Oxford and Eddie’s (David Giuntoli)
delayed back surgery perhaps speeding up
his painkiller abuse.
Clarice
comes in with a helpful takeout
double, partner raises you to
game.
West kicks off with a trump,
and you can identify three top
losers, even though West is
almost sure to have the spade
king. Additionally, the likely
bad trump split could leave
you with control problems.
Attempting two more ruffs in
hand will not work if East ruffs
in with a high trump at some
stage, but something can be
done if you combine a ruffing
line with the establishment of
dummy’s spades.
You should win the heart ace, with dummy’s heart five. Now
retaining the queen in hand to you lead dummy’s low spade,
overruff East. Without drawing and East is stuck between a
any more trumps, you cash the rock and a hard place.
spade ace and lead another East can either discard, where-
toward dummy. West grabs the upon you score the heart eight
king and plays three rounds of and finish with a high cross-
diamonds, forcing your hand. ruff, or he can ruff high. But
At this stage, you do not then you just overruff and draw
have the entries both to ruff trumps, finishing with dummy’s
dummy’s long spade and draw
spade queen.
trumps ending in dummy. You A club shift at trick four would
must deliberately surrender work no better, so long as
trump control instead, cashing
the club tops and ruffing a club
declarer is careful.
LEAD WITH THE ACES ANSWER: Playing two-over-
one, the modern style is to
respond two clubs here, to set
up a forcing auction. If partner
has four spades, you can surely
locate your fit at the two-level.
Starting with one spade would
mean you would have to bid
a nebulous three clubs over
a two-diamond rebid, which
would consume a lot of bidding

My Beautiful Stutter Superstore CBS, 9 p.m.

discovery+
This documentary follows five kids ages 9 to
18 who stutter, whose lives are transformed
when they meet others who stutter at an
interactive, arts-based program in New York.
space. Similarly, over a two-
heart rebid, no forcing option
NBC, 7 p.m. In the new episode “Get Right With God,” would be very attractive.
In “Customer Satisfaction,” when Jeff Clarice (Rebecca Breeds) experiences intense
©2021 Dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication for UFS
(Michael Bunin) returns to push customer- hallucinations after she is drugged and
satisfaction surveys, Mateo (Nico Santos) confined to a hospital bed by a serial killer in
enlists Garrett’s (Colton Dunn) help to hide the medical profession. LOOKING BACK BIRTHDAYS
1954: the U.S. Army Today’s Birthdays:
charged that Sen. Joseph Former ABC News

CATCH A CLASSIC what are now recognized as problematic

themes and characterizations —
accompanied by discussions of the cultural
R. McCarthy, R-Wis.,
and his subcommittee’s
chief counsel, Roy Cohn,
correspondent Sam
Donaldson is 87. Singer
Bobby McFerrin is 71.
Special Theme: contexts in which they were created and why
they should still be viewed as classics, even if
had exerted pressure to
obtain favored treatment
Movie director Jerry
Zucker is 71. Actor
Reframed: Classic Films in a new light — includes Woman of the Year for Pvt. G. David Schine,
a former consultant to
Terrence Howard is
52. Rock musician Rami
(pictured) (1942), Guess Who’s Coming to
in the Rearview Mirror Dinner (1967), Gunga Din (1939), Sinbad
the subcommittee. (The
confrontation culminated
Jaffee is 52. Actor Johnny
Knoxville is 50. Rock
TCM, beginning at 7 p.m. the Sailor (1947) and The Jazz Singer in the famous Senate Army- singer-musicians Benji
Tonight’s lineup of classic films featuring (1927). EVERETT COLLECTION McCarthy hearings.) and Joel Madden (Good
1955: Sir Alexander Charlotte; The Madden
Fleming, the discoverer of Brothers) are 42. Actor
penicillin, died in London David Anders is 40. Singer
at age 73. LeToya Luckett is 40.
 HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | D7
COMICS

FAMILY CIRCUS ZIGGY ZITS

MUTTS

WALLACE THE BRAVE

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE

BABY BLUES

DILBERT

PEANUTS

BREAKING CAT NEWS

LUANN

RHYMES WITH ORANGE

HEART OF THE CITY

WUMO

HI & LOIS

CRANKSHAFT

BALDO

FUNKY WINKERBEAN
RED & ROVER

F MINUS
SALLY FORTH
D8 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle HH

HOROSCOPES, ADVICE & COMICS

BIZARRO
ROYAL STARS
Your Horoscope for Thursday, March 11
ARIES (March 21-April 19) HHH
Memories of a lost love must be kept in
perspective. Your interest in helping the
disadvantaged grows. Quietly, you will
act and do much good in the world.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) HHHH
You will enjoy chance meetings with
those from your past. A reunion with a
longtime friend is likely.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20) HHHHH
MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM Today is all about professional aspira-
tions and your ambitions. You will
attract attention. Pursue opportunities
that showcase your capabilities.
CANCER ( June 21-July 22) HHHHH
Expect an increase in energy and moti-
vation. Take time to exercise. Travel is
favored, as are journeys of the mind and
spirit. There is much to learn. If you’ve
always yearned to write, now is the time.
LEO ( July 23-Aug. 22) HHHH Today
puts you in tune with your potential.
Fate is at work in your life. Some things
just are or are not meant to be.
HAGAR THE HORRIBLE
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) HHH
Reality is clouded. If in doubt, wait for
the facts to be revealed before making
choices. Revel in the attraction of op-
posites.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) HHH Your
sense of adventure deepens. You’ll yearn
to wander and explore. Dreams and vi-
sions must not be taken literally.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) HHHH
Today ushers in a cycle of happiness.
Reach out to those you care about, (even
one you haven’t talked to in a long time),
visit an art display or complete creative
projects. Get all the facts before acting.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)
HHHH Seek inner harmony and release
stress. A family member is feeling very
adventurous and may surprise you by
taking a gamble.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) HHH A
sibling or neighbor is changing. Don’t be
in denial when obvious signs are being
sent. Be diplomatic when discussing
controversial issues.
AQUARIUS ( Jan. 20-Feb. 18) HHHH
Thoughts mostly revolve around your
earning power. You work hard for your
family’s security.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) HHHHH
Today marks one of the most promis-
ing times all year. Career and personal
opportunities abound. Enjoy life and put
plans in motion for future dreams.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY (March 11)
Intuitive, tasteful and trendsetting,
your outer world is fast and competitive
while your inner world is dreamy and
relaxed. Bravo. If single, you can only
have the best, so it’s quite a search. I
see it finalizing in September 2022. If
attached, you yield more power than
you realize. Let things go. ARIES is crazy
about you.
King Features Syndicate

BLONDIE

BREWSTER ROCKIT: SPACE GUY!

BEETLE BAILEY

GARFIELD

CURTIS

SHERMAN’S LAGOON

B.C.

DEAR ABBY

Dear Abby: When the parents started calling your

I am an out-and-proud les-
bian who recently celebrated
10 years as a couple and
three years of marriage to my
wife. I worked as a profes-
sional nanny for many years,
ABBY
and I’m still extremely close
to the first family I worked
for. Although we have known each other
for years, they still ask me not to men-
tion my marriage when I’m around their
kids. They refer to my wife as my “room-
mate.” It’s all I can do to bite my tongue.
I have ignored this for too long.
I recently invited them over to see my
new home. Because of their conservative
views, I warned them in advance about
the wedding photos I have displayed. I’m
not ashamed of my life. I am extremely
proud of myself and my wife. I am hurt
and offended by their requests. I feel
they only accept certain parts of me.
I realize it’s unhealthy to continue this
way, but I’m terrified of losing them. I’m
usually a straightforward person. How
can I be honest without angering this
couple, and what’s the best way to start
this conversation?
— Outspoken Nanny
Dear Nanny:
If your former employers think they
can censor their children’s world to
omit the fact that perfectly nice people,
including one they love, are gay, they’re
dreaming. Kids today are very worldly.
wife your roommate, you should have
corrected them then and TOLD them it
was offensive and hurtful.
Invite them to your home and leave
your wedding photos displayed. If they
can’t handle the truth, you and your
wife are better off without them. REX MORGAN, M.D.
Dear Abby:
My husband’s brother has two kids,
both of whom are now adults. The older
one is in their second year of college;
the younger one will graduate from high
school this spring. We haven’t missed a
single birthday for either one. The only
time we see them is when there’s a birth-
day or it’s Christmas. I think it’s time to
stop the annual birthday gifts. We’re not
particularly close, and I’m tired of the
forced merriment when it’s clear they PHANTOM
are only after the gift. How do I tell the
parents and the grandparents there will
be no more gifts for birthdays without
sounding like a stingy old aunt?
— Gifted Out in Michigan
Dear Gifted Out:
Unless you want to make a change
immediately, hang in there until the
younger child reaches 21. At that point,
put the parents/grandparents on notice
that because “the kids” are now adults,
you will be sending cards rather than HOCUS FOCUS
gifts.
ARGYLE SWEATER
www.DearAbby.com
Andrews McMeel Syndication

HINTS FROM HELOISE

Dear Readers: Infrared thermometers can read your

One of the first symptoms
of COVID-19 is a fever. But
how should you check for
a fever? Let’s look at three
common types of thermom-
eters: liquid in glass (mer-
HELOISE
cury), digital and infrared.
Liquid in glass, or mercu-
ry, thermometers have been around for-
ever, they’re not particularly accurate,
and mercury is toxic if the thermometer
breaks.
Digital thermometers are more pre-
cise, fast and handy.
temperature in your ear or with a swipe
across your forehead, and your temp
pops up right away. During the pandem-
ic, check your temperature at least twice
a day. Normal adult body temperature
ranges from 97.7 to 99.5 F. A tempera-
ture over 99.5 F is considered a fever;
seek medical attention.
— Heloise
P.S. A hospital will often check your
temperature with a heat-sensitive liquid
temperature strip.
Heloise@heloise.com
King Features Syndicate

RENEW HOUSTON
A high BMI can get you vaccinated earlier
Some states
using obesity
calculation to
determine risk
By Sandra E. Garcia
N EW YO RK T IME S
Rebecca O’Neal didn’t
believe she qualified for a
COVID-19 vaccine. She had
not realized that her turn
had come. Last week,
when she scrolled through
the eligibility requirements
for the state of New York,
she noticed body mass
index on the list.
Body mass index, or
BMI, is technically a mea-
sure of obesity. The quanti-
fier was drawn up in the
1930s by the Metropolitan
Life Insurance Company to
assess risk. Since a BMI is a
formula that does not
consider several important
factors like where the body
fat is or if any vital organs
are surrounded by fat,
experts say to take the
indicator with a grain of
salt. But even so, a BMI
that indicates obesity has
been a source of agitation
for people who believe
their doctors have used it
to discriminate against
them because of their
weight.
O’Neal, a 34-year-old
comedian and writer in
Brooklyn, didn’t worry
about that in the moment.
She calculated her BMI (it’s
essentially your weight
compared to your height),
found that she met this
technical threshold for
obesity, and booked a
vaccine appointment for
the same day. She received
the first dose later that
afternoon.
“I didn’t know that my
BMI was 30,” O’Neal said in
a phone interview. “I
cracked a lot of jokes about
Junk science or not, having a BMI of 30 or more can qualify Texans to receive a vaccine in phase 1B.
it on Twitter, but it was a
relief that I was eligible at
all.”
O’Neal is one of millions
of Americans, in states like
New York, Utah and Texas,
who are qualified to be
vaccinated based on their
BMI. While obesity has
been linked to more severe
cases of COVID-19, of the
500,000 Americans who
have died from the corona-
virus, 17,770 were over-
weight and had obesity
listed as a contributing
factor in their death, ac-
cording to the Centers for
Disease Control and Pre-
CORONAVIRUS
vention.
Relying on a BMI to
judge one’s risk of serious
health conditions is com-
plicated. Many healthy
people still fall in the “over-
weight” category based on
their body proportions,
with no distinction made
between bone density,
muscle mass and body fat.
This is particularly the
case for women, Black
adults and people with low
incomes who make up the
majority of Americans who
have been diagnosed with
obesity by such standards.
That has a lot to do with
HH Houston Chronicle | HoustonChronicle.com | Thursday, March 11, 2021 |
the fact that the original
calculus was developed by
and for white men.
For many, using a mis-
leading high BMI to get
inoculated is a fraught
decision.
As Emma Specter put it
in Vogue, writing about her
decision to get a vaccine
based on the BMI qual-
ification: “A metric of
health that has long been
called into question by fat
activists and medical ex-
perts alike could stand to
actively benefit fat people
for the first time.”
Many other people are
Getty Images
making the same decision
— and posting about it
online.
Some wrestled with
whether it was ethical to
receive a vaccine based on
a metric that could have
little bearing on their risk
of serious illness.
“Taking care of the sick
and the elderly and the
health care workers, I
understand all that — but at
some point, they should
have opened it to whoever
can grab,” said Raffaele
Rispo, 38, a barber from
Saratoga Springs, N.Y., who
received a vaccine recently
D9
because of his BMI. “I
understood that the older,
more sick should get it first
— but when they changed
it, I was happy.”
Rispo has not seen his
parents, who live 2½ hours
away from him, or his
15-year-old son, who also
lives a few hours away, in a
year. He was ready to re-
turn to “some normalcy,”
even though he under-
stood BMIs are unreliable,
he said.
While unreliable, a BMI
can serve a purpose; it can
be used to screen for
weight categories that may
lead to health problems,
according to the CDC, but
it is not diagnostic of the
person’s body fat or health.
“BMI by itself is not a
great measure,” said Dr.
Fatima Cody Stanford, an
expert in obesity medicine
and nutrition at Harvard
Medical School. “It doesn’t
tell me if that’s fat mass
that’s causing inflamma-
tion. It doesn’t tell me if
that’s water weight, it
doesn’t give me those
types of specific details.”
For those who do meet
the BMI requirement for
the vaccine, that measure-
ment has presented a rare
opportunity. William Anto-
nelli said that once his
sister realized she qualified
for the vaccine because of
her BMI, she set up an
appointment for him, too.
A few days later, Antonelli,
24, an editor at Insider,
received his first vaccine
jab.
“When it comes to a
disease like this, there
really is not a wrong per-
son to vaccinate,” he said.
“The problem is not me
applying for something I
am eligible for, it’s the
rollout. The issue lies with
the government system
that has led us to this
point.”
D10 | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | HoustonChronicle.com | Houston Chronicle
RENEW HOUSTON
HOMEBOUND
From page D1
“They were grateful to
see people and surprised
and happy to have a hot
breakfast and water,”
Young said. “It was nice to
give that to people who
needed it. … We gave
vaccines by flashlights. It
was a really unique oppor-
tunity of Texans helping
Texans.”
Young and Michael
work with 260 patients in
their geriatric program
through UTMB, but 150 of
those patients are com-
pletely homebound,
which means it would
require a “taxing effort”
to leave their home to visit
a doctor. They could be
bedbound, in need of a
wheelchair, need continu-
ous oxygen or suffer from
severe dementia, Michael
said.
The nurses’ geriatric
clinic provides internal
medicine, or primary care
to people who cannot
leave their homes. The
nurses provide other
vaccines, like the flu shot,
lung care and immuniza-
tions. They call them-
selves a “clinic on
wheels.”
Olivia Webb has spent
much of the past year in
bed. The 84-year-old Gal-
veston resident has a
history of diabetes and
scoliosis that, even for her
age, make her particularly
vulnerable to COVID-19.
She’s mostly gone without
seeing four of the five
children she raised as a
single mom.
A glimmer of hope
came in late February,
when Webb received a
vaccine via home nurses.
“It was a blessing be-
cause if not, we’d have to
wait or stand in line some-
where, and she wouldn’t
be able to do that,” her
daughter, Shelia Smith,
said. “She’s protected
now, so it opens the doors
for opportunities.”
Smith talked about her
Kingston Sykes, 3, dances around as he hangs out with great-grandmother Olivia Webb and grandmother
Shelia Smith while waiting for health care workers to administer the COVID-19 vaccine to Webb.
UTMB home health care staff Dr. Cecil Kumfa,
nurse practitioners Zachary Carson and Tammie
Michael go over a list vaccine recipients.
mother with a sense of
pride. Webb worked for
30 years as a custodial
worker at Rice University;
she rented her own apart-
ment and kept her own
house.
“She’s the matriarch
now. She loves singing,
loves reading her Bible,”
Smith said. “She can’t get
up and dance, but she’ll
HH
wiggle her shoulders.”
Most homebound
adults are in their 80s and
have multiple medical
conditions, according to
the Kaiser Family Founda-
tion, which estimates
between 2 million and 4.4
million older adults fall
into this category.
A lack of adequate
staffing and transporta-
Photos by Elizabeth Conley / Staff photographer
UTMB nurse Jennifer Young prepares a Pfizer
vaccine in the driveway of a patient’s home in
Friendswood.
tion can make it more
difficult to vaccinate
homebound individuals,
according to KFF.
Once UTMB began
receiving vaccines in De-
cember, Young and Mi-
chael requested doses for
homebound patients. On
Jan. 24, the nurses were
notified that they had 90
doses that had to be ad-
ministered in three days,
which set off a frenzy of
150 phone calls to caregiv-
ers and patients.
Once appointments
were scheduled between
Jan. 25-27, the trickiest
part was ensuring the
vaccines were kept in
viable condition and did
not expire before they
could be used, Young
said. Once the vaccine
was removed from the
refrigerator at the clinic,
the nurses had six hours
to administer the shot.
In addition to staying
cold, the vaccines must be
kept in a light-sensitive
container. For the first
doses administered in
January, the vaccine box
was kept in front of an
air-conditioning vent. But
on the week of the winter
storm, the ride was cold
enough without any extra
help, Young said.
Young created a geo-
graphical map of all 90
patients by address. By
grouping patients who live
close together, the nurses
were able to give out as-
signments to other teams
and minimize time be-
tween residences in Santa
Fe, Texas City, Jamaica
Beach, League City and
Galveston.
No shots were wasted
or expired using this
method, Young added.
“We love what we do,
and I’ve been real excited
when vaccines were allo-
cated to us,” Michael said.
“Our patients are our
family, and it’s a good
feeling to advocate for
them. We want to protect
them and help them have
visitors again and interact
with their families.”
With 90 patients fully
vaccinated, the two nurs-
es plan to reach out to
their remaining 60 clients
before offering vaccine
delivery to eligible home-
bound individuals outside
of the UTMB system who
live in Galveston County.
If you qualify for the
COVID-19 vaccine under
the Texas Department of
State Health Services
Phase 1B criteria and can’t
leave your Galveston
County home, email
geri.housecalls@utmb.edu
for more information.
Staff writer Robert Dow-
nen contributed to this
story.
julie.garcia@chron.com
twitter.com/reporterjulie