FRIDAY, MARCH 21, 2025

Good Morning! On this day in 1901, Gov. Nathan Murphy authorized the establishment of the Arizona Rangers, to be made up of a captain, a sergeant, and not more than 12 privates. This photo shows ranger John Redmond in 1904.

A thriller went down when two Arizona teams squared off in the women’s WBIT tournament on Thursday evening. Check out our Sports section to see who advanced.

Did you know that the team that makes The Arizona Flyover also produces a national publication called The Flyover? Click here to subscribe and stay up to date with the latest national headlines—without the bias of legacy media outlets.

We’re sponsored today by Organixx, offering health products to combat collagen deficiency.

Nearly $8B in Sports Bets Flooded State Last Year

The Arizona Department of Gaming reported that sports betting in the state continues its record-breaking surge, up 23% in December from the prior year. For all of last year, nearly $8 billion was wagered.

The growth is largely attributed to the prevalence of smartphone betting apps. In December, Arizona’s largest sports betting app, FanDuel, drew in $275 million, the state reported.

The increase comes with greater demand for gambling addiction services, with 1,202 texts and 687 calls to the state’s gambling problem hotline. In 2021, the first year of legal sports betting in the state, there were 49 texts and 185 calls. See chart.

Arizona ranks No. 7 among states in legal sports betting.

St. Patrick’s Day DUIs Decline

State troopers reported a sharp decline in DUI arrests on St. Patrick’s Day.

Officers conducted 110 DUI arrests this year compared to 206 arrests in 2024 and 273 arrests in 2023, according to the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety.

There were fewer aggravated DUIs with 11 this year versus 24 the year before, and misdemeanor DUIs also declined. Distracted driving was up year over year, with 55 compared to 38 in 2024.

5 Senior Living Sites Among Nation’s Best

Five senior living facilities in Arizona rank among the 20 best in the U.S., led by No. 9 La Siena in Phoenix.

The study by Seniorly analyzed 500,000 online customer reviews across 60,000 senior living centers to determine the nation’s top 336 places.

In addition to La Siena, Maravilla Scottsdale, MorningStar of Fountain Hills, The Hacienda at The Canyon, and The Heritage Tradition in Sun City West ranked in the top 20.

Overall, Arizona ranked No. 4 among states with 24 top-rated senior living centers.

Flying together with our sponsor

Did you know that collagen deficiency strikes nearly everyone over the age of 30?

This is because after you turn 30, you start losing 1% of collagen per year.

Which is a bad thing.

You see, collagen is the “glue” that holds your body together. And without enough collagen your body literally starts falling apart (FAST!).

Some of the warning signs are a droopy neck, brittle nails, dry flaky hair, and deep lines around your mouth and eyes.

When people start noticing these signs, they often turn to expensive collagen powders for help.

Only problem? They’re INCOMPLETE, and therefore useless.

➤ Statewide: Warmer temperatures are forecast, with some cities projected to reach the 90s by Monday. (Watch Forecast)

➤ Tucson: Police searched for suspects in a Wednesday night shooting near Fort Lowell Park that resulted in one person hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. (See Details)

➤ Phoenix: A yoga instructor has been missing for a month after scheduling a blind date in downtown Phoenix on Feb. 21. (Watch)

➤ Tucson: The city council banned pedestrians from standing on medians for any purpose other than crossing a street. (See Details)

➤ Lake Pleasant: Authorities suspect a body found in the lake might be that of a man missing since February. (More)

➤ Capitol: A stolen valor bill aimed at penalizing false claims about military service stalled at the Senate Judiciary Committee. (Watch)

➤ Winslow: An airplane with mechanical problems made an emergency landing Wednesday morning in a field north of I-40. (See Video)

➤ Bullhead City: The bridge connecting Bullhead City with Laughlin will close for safety upgrades from March 20 until April 3. (More)

➤ Northern Arizona women’s basketball defeated state rival University of Arizona 71-69 on Thursday night in a thrilling start to the WBIT tournament, advancing to play Belmont on Sunday. (Box Score)

➤ Arizona men’s basketball and Grand Canyon men’s and women’s basketball play their first NCAA tournament games today. (Tournament Schedules)

➤ Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker scored 41 points to lead the team to a 127-121 win over Chicago. (More)

➤ Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery is drawing trade interest from multiple teams. (More)

➤ With March Madness in full swing, sign up for the NIL Wire for timely reporting on sports stories related to college athletes’ endorsement and sponsorship deals.

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➤ A study found that Arizona entrepreneurs start new businesses at a rate of 14 per hour, based on the 121,520 new business applications submitted in 2024. (More)

➤ The first permanent FUNBOX indoor bounce park opens in Mesa today. (See Video)

➤ Hot Ones, popular for its hot wings and celebrity interviews, will partner with the Devil’s Hideaway in Tempe to offer delivery and pickup of its wings beginning Monday. (More)

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➤ A lottery player won $225,000 in Tuesday’s drawing after purchasing a Fantasy 5 ticket from a Tucson Safeway. (More)

➤ A lounge for on-duty police officers opened on Tucson’s east side at the Hope City Church. (Watch)

➤ Ernest McFarland, founder of KTVK-TV and a former U.S. senator, will be inducted into the Arizona Farm and Ranch Hall of Fame this weekend. (More)

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