President Barack Obama is in Africa to promote democracy and trade but he can't keep his mind off the NBA draft about to begin back home.

During his toast at a state dinner Thursday in Dakar, Obama said he couldn't be in the country and not mention the draft.

At the moment, no woman seems capable of providing much of a challenge to Serena Williams on a tennis court.

She's won 33 matches in a row, and 76 of her past 79. If she wins five more this fortnight, as almost everyone expects, Williams will earn a second consecutive Wimbledon title and 17th Grand Slam championship overall.

Anthony Bennett became the first Canadian to be the No. 1 pick and Nerlens Noel tumbled out of the top five in a surprising start to Thursday's NBA draft.

The Cleveland Cavaliers passed on Noel and Alex Len, who went to Phoenix at No. 5, in favor of the Bennett, a University of Nevada Las Vegas forward who has starred for Canada's junior national teams and was the Mountain West Conference player of the year.

The Confederations Cup has got the final nearly everyone wanted.

The World Cup holder against the five-time world champion. The two-time European winners against the tournament host. Spain's passing wizards against Brazil's new star, Neymar.

Not only has America's high level of C-sections finally stopped rising, but more of the operations are taking place closer to the mother's due date, a new government report found.

Figures released Thursday show what appears to be a significant shift in when pregnant women have cesarean sections. Experts called the change great news — apparent evidence that doctors and women have absorbed warnings about the risks of C-sections and the importance of waiting to deliver until the baby is full-term.

Scientists say they've figured out when our human ancestors first started throwing with accuracy and fire power, as only people can: Nearly 2 million years ago.

That's what researchers conclude in a study released Wednesday by the journal Nature. There's plenty of skepticism about their conclusion. But the new paper contends that this throwing ability probably helped our ancient ancestor Homo erectus hunt, allowing him to toss weapons — probably rocks and sharpened wooden spears.

Justin Bieber has been sued by a paparazzo who claims the singer kicked and punched him last year at a Southern California shopping center.

A lawsuit filed Wednesday alleges the "Baby" crooner attacked Jose Osmin Hernandez Duran after Bieber and his then-girlfriend went to the movies at The Commons in Calabasas.

A U.S. couple are letting customers at a Starbucks coffee shop choose the name of their baby.

Twenty-five-year-old Jennifer James and 24-year-old Mark Dixon of West Haven tell the New Haven Register (http://bit.ly/1adT5d6 ) they have been struggling between two names for the boy they are expecting in September.

A two-headed turtle has hatched at the San Antonio Zoo and officials have named her Thelma and Louise.

The female Texas cooter arrived June 18 and will go on display Thursday at the zoo's Friedrich Aquarium.

U.S. military commanders have been told to explore ways to increase security assistance to Lebanon and Iraq, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs said Wednesday, as the violence in Syria spills across borders and Iraqis face growing threats from the local al-Qaida offshoot.

Gen. Martin Dempsey said the assistance is aimed at improving the two nations' military capabilities and could include sending in U.S. training teams and accelerating foreign military sales of weapons and equipment to Iraq and Lebanon.