Green Bay News

APPLETON – Hundreds of people were served a free Easter meal Sunday, after a lack of funds nearly derailed the annual event.

We Care Meals has been providing free Easter and Christmas meals to the Appleton-area community since the mid-80s.

Founded by Ed Rathsack, each holiday meal costs roughly $4,000 to put on. After donations waned this winter, Rathsack made the decision to cancel the Easter meal late last month.

However, donations from the community put the free meal back on at Camelot Bar and Grill, 1700 E. Wisconsin Ave.

FOX 11’s Bill Miston is working on this story and will have more on FOX 11 News at Nine.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Madison police say crowds celebrating Wisconsin’s win over Kentucky in the Final Four were jubilant but obeyed the law.

WISC-TV reports there were no arrests or significant incidents when thousands of Badgers fans flooded State Street Saturday night.

According to a news release, there were no reports of property damage and there was only one report of an accidental minor injury.

Police did not have an estimate of crowd numbers Sunday morning.

Police officials say they are anticipating a similar event Monday night after the Badgers play Duke in the National Championship game. Police say they have plans for crowd and traffic management that night.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Wisconsin’s win over previously undefeated Kentucky drew the highest preliminary television rating for an NCAA semifinal in 22 years.

The Badgers’ 71-64 victory Saturday night averaged a 13.3 overnight rating and 24 share across TBS, TNT and truTV, according to Turner Sports and CBS on Sunday. That’s up 48 percent from last season’s matchup of the same teams.

It was the best rating for a semi since a 13.8/24 in 1993 when Michigan’s Fab Five sophomores edged the Wildcats in overtime.

The two games Saturday averaged an 11.4/22, the best since 1995 and up 39 percent from a year ago. Duke’s 81-61 win over Michigan State received a 9.6/20, the highest for the early game since Illinois-Louisville in 2005 and a 30 percent increase from last season’s UConn-Florida matchup.

Viewership has been strong all tournament, with a string of upsets and close games the first Thursday building momentum and Kentucky’s pursuit of perfection piquing fans’ interest. A championship game between Kentucky and Duke on Monday on CBS would have attracted a massive audience, though the matchup of the Blue Devils and Badgers will likely still do well.

The main broadcasts Saturday aired on TBS, with “homer” coverage for the teams on TNT and truTV. When the Final Four aired on cable for the first time last year, viewership for the semis on TBS was down from the games on CBS the previous season. As has occurred with other sports whose biggest games migrated to cable, Saturday’s ratings showed that the most attractive matchups can still draw big audiences even with the networks available in fewer homes.

Ratings represent the percentage of U.S. households with televisions tuned to a program, while shares represent the percentage of TVs in use at the time. Overnights measure the country’s largest markets. Full viewership numbers were expected later Sunday.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Two people are dead after they shot each other outside a Milwaukee bar.

According to a police department news release Sunday, the two bumped into each other at closing of a north side bar and then argued. They then allegedly went to their cars, got guns and argued more outside.

Police say the two then drew their weapons and shot each other. They died on the scene.

A brother of one of the shooters was caught in the crossfire but his injury is not believed to be life threatening.

The police department didn’t specify what time the shooting happened.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that police were already investigating four separate shootings that occurred within an hour and a half of each other Saturday afternoon. Four men were left wounded.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Kentucky guard Andrew Harrison is apologizing for directing an obscenity and a racial slur at Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky during a postgame news conference at the Final Four.

Harrison muttered the comments when another player was asked a question about the 7-foot Kaminsky after Kentucky lost 71-64 to the Badgers last night. The sophomore had his hand in front of his mouth, but a live microphone in front of him picked it the remark, generating a stream of reactions on social media.

Harrison apologizes in a series of tweets for what he calls a “poor choice of words used in jest.” He says he called Kaminisky to apologize directly and wish him luck in Monday’s championship game against Duke.

Last night’s loss ruined the Wildcats’ undefeated season. They finished 38-1.

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (AP) – Authorities have released the name of an Eau Claire police officer who shot and wounded a man during a confrontation.

Police say Officer D. Hunter Braatz has been on the force for more than 10 years.

The state Department of Justice has been investigating why Braatz shot an Eau Claire man on Wednesday.

Police say they got a call Wednesday afternoon about a person who was wanted on a felony arrest warrant. Officers found a man hiding in a wooded area northwest of the VFW building on Starr Avenue.

A confrontation ended with Braatz shooting the man.

The Eau Claire Police Department said it anticipates releasing more details about the incident on Monday.

GREEN BAY – A Green Bay fifth grader wants to make sure some area kids and parents have a bike to enjoy this summer. Allen Maresh has been collecting used bikes, fixing them and then giving them to those in need.

Whether it’s more air, a new tire or a fresh seat, Maresh works to get the bikes into top shape.

“I want it to be just perfect, pass safety tests, and I want them to look nice,” said Maresh.

It’s easy to tell the 11-year-old has a passion for bikes and helping others. His family’s driveway and garage is covered in bikes and tools.

“I always enjoyed riding a bike since I learned how to ride,” he said. “And it’s been an important thing in my life ever since, and I want it to be an important thing in other kids’ lives just like I have.”

Allen says he noticed a friend’s bike could use some work last summer. He made some repairs, and ever since he’s been focusing on fixing bikes for more people. He says he’s given away 14 so far.

“They can’t afford a bike so I thought they could get a bike this way,” said Maresh.

His idea is gaining speed with some help from his parents and the Internet under the name ‘Special Gears.’ That’s how people can request a bike. Maresh and his parents work to find appropriate sized bikes to fill the requests.

• Click here to visit the Special Gears Facebook page

“I have a go GoFundMe account and I have a Facebook account and I’ve got almost 200 likes on it right now and I set it up in September,” he explained.

Melissa Burger’s five-year-old son just picked up his new, bigger bike after trading in his smaller one.

“It’s awesome,” said Burger, of Green Bay. “It was really nice. His one he was definitely growing out of. His knees were about hitting the thing.”

Maresh says some other families have also traded in other bikes when picking up new ones. He fixed up another bike for Brianne Noack of Green Bay who plans to ride with her daughter.

“I’m just super grateful for the program and the opportunity to find something free that we can do this summer,” said Noack.

Maresh plans to spend his summer hard at work because of the rewarding feeling he gets in return.

“It makes me feel very good that I’m doing something and making a change in the world, making a difference,” he said.

He’s looking for more bike donations and has no plans to put on the brakes.

“Hopefully in 30 years this will still be going, and I’ll pass it down to my son,” he said.

Ingredients:

½ cup honey
¼ cup pineapple or orange juice
¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
8 to 10 cups assorted fresh fruit

Directions:

Shake up first 4 ingredients in a jar. Shake well until it starts to thicken. Right before serving, toss dressing with fresh fruit. You may not need all the dressing. Extra dressing keeps in the fridge for up to a week.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Kentucky guard Andrew Harrison seemed to mumble an obscenity and a racial slur as a question about Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky was being asked during a postgame news conference at the Final Four.

Harrison and the Wildcats were upset 71-64 by the Badgers on Saturday night.

After the game, Harrison was sitting at the interview table with his brother, Aaron, directly to his left and forward Willie Cauley-Stein directly to his right.

A reporter directed a question about Kaminsky toward Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns: “Karl, could you talk about Kaminsky and what if anything is unique about defending him?” the reporter said.

Near the end of the question, a live microphone in front of Harrison picked up his muttering as his hand covered his mouth.

Social media immediately lit up with questions about what Harrison said accompanied by video clips of his response. The AP reviewed an audio recording of the press conference, and the phrase is audible, but muffled.

The team planned to speak with Harrison.

“We have no comment until we have had a chance to evaluate it,” Kentucky spokesman Eric Lindsey said.

OSHKOSH – Nearly one-hundred people are expected to take part in this year’s Easter Breakfast at First Congregational Church in Oshkosh.

Many volunteers will be getting ready in the morning preparing the eggs, pancakes and sausage among other dishes. There will also be vegan/vegetarian offerings from the church’s Animal Ministries group.

Leftover food from the breakfast will be donated to the local homeless shelter, Day by Day Warming Shelter.

The Easter Breakfast will also be bittersweet for pastors Ralph and Carol DiBiasio-Snyder as they will be retiring.

The Easter breakfast begins at 8:30 a.m.

The breakfast is $3 per person or $10 for a family of four or more.

FOX 11’s Pauleen Le spent the morning checking in on final preparations.

For more information on the breakfast and First Congregational Church, click here.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Two star freshmen, a solid senior and some of the trademark defense Duke has long been known for have the Blue Devils back in the national championship game.

And in Indianapolis, no less.

Justise Winslow scored 19 points, fellow freshman Jahlil Okafor added 18 and senior Quinn Cook had 17 to lead top-seeded Duke to an 81-61 victory over Michigan State on Saturday and into yet another title game in the city known for a 500-mile auto race.

The Blue Devils won it all in Indianapolis in 1991, their first under Mike Krzyzewski. The winningest men’s Division I coach, who has a 9-3 record in national semifinal games, led them to their fourth and most recent title in 2010.

“The city’s great, and even if we didn’t win tonight the city would still be great and the venue would be great,” Krzyzewski said. “This team, though, deserved to be in it. So it makes it even better. They’ve been so good in this tournament and the stage has not been too big for them.”

The start against Michigan State didn’t look too promising for a trip to Monday night’s title game. The Spartans were ahead 14-6 just 4 minutes into the game, making five of their first seven shots and the first four they took from beyond the 3-point line.

Things changed and in a hurry.

“After the first four minutes, we were a different team. We played great basketball tonight, especially on the defensive end,” Krzyzewski said.

Defensively, it was a team effort, just the way Krzyzewski has stressed for his 35 seasons at Duke. What had been wide open 3-pointers early for Michigan State became contested shots and when the Blue Devils started getting up and into the Spartans, the points were suddenly tough to come by.

“They did a good job of taking me away,” said Michigan State’s Denzel Valentine, who had nine of his 22 points in that opening run, including three 3-pointers. “I got hot, and they started denying a little bit and started forcing us to take bad shots and the next thing you know they had the lead.”

The two Duke freshmen put up some impressive stats in their first Final Four game. Winslow, who played through some early foul trouble, had nine rebounds and was 5 for 7 from the field, while Okafor grabbed six rebounds and was 7 for 11 from the field.

“I don’t think we started the game out with the intensity we needed,” Cook said. “When we got down early Coach got on us and the last 36 minutes we played one of our better games. It’s definitely hard out there, but we just strung some stops together and great defense led to great offense.”

Valentine had 11 rebounds for the Spartans (27-12) while Travis Trice added 16 points.

A win on Monday night against Wisconsin would mean a fifth national championship for Krzyzewski, breaking a tie with Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp and leaving him behind only John Wooden, who won 10 at UCLA.

“It’s an amazing thing, I mean, just to be in the Final Four, but to play on Monday night is the ultimate honor,” Krzyzewski said. “I hope our guys get their rest and we can get the same type of effort we got tonight.

“Now they’ve got a chance to play for a national championship, and damn, damn how great is that?”

Cook was already thinking of Monday night.

“Dreams come true, you know,” he said. “Dreams come true.”

The Blue Devils have won 17 of 18 with the only loss to Notre Dame in the semifinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.

Michigan State shot 40 percent from the field (22 of 55) for the game but the Spartans were just 8 of 27 (29.6 percent) in the first half.

The loss dropped Michigan State coach Tom Izzo to 3-4 in national semifinal games.

Seventh-seeded Michigan State was the only non-No. 1 team in the Final Four. In the four NCAA Tournament games, the Spartans were allowing 61.2 points per game on 33.9 percent shooting. Duke had 61 points – and a 20-point lead – with just under 10 minutes to play.

“I feel bad because I didn’t think people got to see the team that won 12 out of 15 games,” Izzo said. “So give Duke credit and give our team credit for getting someplace most people didn’t think we could go.”

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Kentucky’s undefeated season is over, courtesy of Frank Kaminsky and Wisconsin – 71-64 winners over the Wildcats on Saturday in the Final Four.

The Badgers scored eight straight points late to take a four-point lead with 1:06 left, and Kentucky couldn’t overcome the deficit this time.

Kaminsky finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Badgers (36-3). He and Bronson Koenig went 7 for 8 from the line over the last 24 seconds to seal the win.

The Badgers, in their first final since 1941, will play Duke for the title Monday.

Kentucky goes home, two wins short of closing out the first perfect season since 1975-76, when the Indiana Hoosiers did it.

The Wildcats (38-1) trailed by 3 with 24 seconds left but Karl-Anthony Towns got fouled and only made one free throw and from there, Wisconsin iced it from the line.

SUAMICO – There were plenty of egg-citing things to check out at this year’s Egg-Stravagan-Zoo event at the NEW Zoo.

The fun-fIlled day started with an Easter egg hunt on the zoo grounds where children collected eggs in exchange for treats and prizes.

Visitors also had the chance to meet the Easter Bunny and enjoy free games and carousel rides.

Organizers say it is a fun, family- friendly event.

“It’s just a great way to spend time with your family, and there is not a lot to do in Green Bay at this time of year when it’s still kind of cold. So this is a great way to get out of the house,” said Patricia Jelen with the NEW Zoo.

The event this year featured the first ever marshamallow Peeps show.

People decorated displays made of that favorite Easter treat.

In a rematch of last year’s NCAA Final Four showdown, Wisconsin and Kentucky are currently tied at 36 after 20 minutes of play in the men’s basketball national semifinal.

The Badgers lead by as many as nine points in the first half, only to see the Wildcats storm back.

Frank Kaminsky leads Wisconsin with nine points, Sam Dekker and Nigel Hayes each have seven.

A mirror image of last season, the final half will decide which teams faces off with Duke Monday in the National Championship game.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – 8:50 P.M.

The Blue Devils have punched their ticket to the national championship game.

Now, it’s up to Kentucky and Wisconsin to decide who is going to join them Monday night.

Led by one of the best freshman classes in the history of the game, the Wildcats are 38-0, two victories away from a historic perfect season. The Badgers and AP player of the year Frank Kaminsky, meanwhile, hope to spoil a high-profile showdown with Duke at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Blue Devils ran roughshod over Michigan State, 81-61, in the first national semifinal.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – A kitten that survived being tossed from a moving car in Milwaukee is now looking for a home.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the 4-week-old kitten was brought to the Wisconsin Humane Society by a woman who said she saw it thrown from a moving car.

Human Society spokeswoman Angela Speed says the woman, Julissa Rivera, named the kitten Buffy, but couldn’t keep it because a tenant in her building has allergies. The kitten was hungry, but uninjured.

Speed says the kitten weighs less than a pound and will be available for adoption in early May, once it is 8 weeks old and weighs at least 2 pounds.

WAUWATOSA, Wis. (AP) – A 10-year-old boy has died days after he was injured in an all-terrain vehicle accident.

The Racine Journal Times reports that Timothy Jorgenson of Dover died Thursday at Children’s Hospital.

The boy was injured three days earlier.

Sheriff’s deputies and Kansasville Fire and Rescue crews were called to a home Monday afternoon and arrived to find the boy was in the back of the property, and had signs of life. He was taken to the fire department, then flown to a hospital.

The Racine County Sheriff’s Office has said the boy was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.

WAUWATOSA, Wis. (AP) – A 10-year-old boy has died days after he was injured in an all-terrain vehicle accident.

The Racine Journal Times reports that Timothy Jorgenson of Dover died Thursday at Children’s Hospital.

The boy was injured three days earlier.

Sheriff’s deputies and Kansasville Fire and Rescue crews were called to a home Monday afternoon and arrived to find the boy was in the back of the property, and had signs of life. He was taken to the fire department, then flown to a hospital.

The Racine County Sheriff’s Office has said the boy was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – 5:20 P.M.

The NCAA brought out some big names for its Final Four music festival, including Rihanna and country music acts Lady Antebellum and Zac Brown Band headline Sunday.

As for the national anthem, the NCAA kept things focused on students-athletes.

With the help of Amy Thornburg, a local vocal coach, officials selected one from each of the participating schools. The impromptu quartet got together for practice Friday night, and will take the floor to sing the anthem before a packed house at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The singers: Michelle Dear, a soccer player from Michigan State; Vitto Brown, a basketball player from Wisconsin; Deion Williams, a football player from Duke; and Kennedy Collier, a member of the Kentucky women’s soccer team.

Brown is a sophomore forward who has rarely played of late. But he’ll nevertheless have to head back stage quickly to prepare for the Badgers’ semifinal against Kentucky.

___

4:45 P.M.

The festive atmosphere that built on the streets of Indianapolis made its way inside Lucas Oil Stadium, where Michigan State was preparing to face Duke and Wisconsin was meeting Kentucky in Saturday night’s national semifinals.

As the NCAA likes to say, “The road ends here.”

At the fan fest in in the massive convention center across the street from the stadium, the predominant color was red. Maybe Kentucky fans will catch up later, but Wisconsin supporters were winning the competition early.

This is the first time that Indianapolis has hosted the Final Four since 2010, when the Blue Devils knocked off upstart Butler to win coach Mike Krzyzewski’s fourth national title.

Krzyzewski, by the way, has been wearing that title ring lately.

“Usually I don’t wear a ring on my right fingers, but I did for the tournament,” he said. “Not for luck or anything, just a constant reminder of what it is. To come back here, again.”

Well, the Blue Devils are here. So is Big Blue Nation, chasing perfection. Thousands of Badgers fans. And the green and white of Michigan State, Wisconsin’s Big Ten rival.

Let the games begin.

The Kentucky Wildcats and the Wisconsin Badgers meet up in the Final Four.