>> reporter: four days before the illinois primary mitt romney was attacking president obama on his home turf. >> he's out there pushing for alternative energy and we're here pushing for an alternative to the president. >> reporter: president obama was in chicago to answer back. >> welcome to the land of lincoln. >> reporter: he declared he cares about value too. >> hard work is a value. looking out for one another is a value. the idea we're in this together, i am my brother's keeper and my sister's keeper, that is a value. >> reporter: romney needs a strong showing in illinois after losing to santorum in week in alabama and mississippi. santorum is clearly connecting with conservatives so romney is trying to change the conversation. >> who can turn around the economy and defeat barack obama? not rick santorum. >> romney and santorum are also fighting for puerto rico which holds its primary on sunday and language has become a hot button issue. >> spanish is the language of puerto rico's heritage.

english is the language of opportunity. >> reporter: santorum's trip ended in controversy. with the candidate denying he said puerto ricans need to adopt english if they want to become a state. santorum's campaign insists he was maliciously misquoted. on capitol hill, brian mohr, news 4. the latest polls in illinois suggest that mitt romney is in the lead by an average of six percentage points. actor and activist george clooney is in washington this week. he's asking government officials to do something about the humanitarian crisis in sudan and today got arrested for the cause. clooney, his father, members of congress and nearly two dozen others were taken into custody following a protest outside the sudanese embassy in northwest. the demonstrators accused the president of sudan of making it impossible to deliver food and aid to that region. they hope these protests will help shine a light on the crisis. clooney spoke after he was released. >> what we've been trying to achieve today is we're trying to

bring attention to an ongoing emergency, one that's got about a six-week timetable before the rainy season starts and a lot of people are going to die from it. so our job right now is to try to bring attention to it. one of those ways was apparently getting arrested. they were charged with crossing a police line and spent three hours in custody. clooney said it was his first arrest. we'll have more a bit later. david gregory will stop by to talk about it. one of the filmmakers behind the "coney 2012" documentary has been detained for masturbating in public. according to our sister station in san diego jason russell was taken into custody last night for being under the influence of some unknown substance and acting strangely. the san diego police department said they received several calls about a man dressed in his underwear running in and out of traffic. police decided to get him medical care. last week the coney 2012 documentary that exposed child abduction in uganda went viral. that put the cofounder of

"invisible children" in the national spotlight. "invisible children" released a statement today saying in part, quote, jason russell was unfortunately hospitalized yesterday suffering from exhaustion, dehydration, and malnutrition. the buzz of chain saws filled the streets of a michigan town today as the cleanup began after a powerful tornado hit. the ef-3 twister hit dexter yesterday. there were no injuries and no deaths reported. more than a hundred homes were damaged, though. the weather channel's mike seidel takes us there. >> reporter: there were three reported tornadoes that touched down here in southeastern lower michigan yesterday between 5:00 and 7:00 p.m. and one of those hit here in dexter. this is a town about an hour west of detroit. it damaged in some way, shape, or form about a hundred homes. 13 of those are unlivable like these two which have to be razed. this one, three occupants ran for cover with about 30 seconds left. although the sirens went off about an hour before, that combined with a lot of basements here saved lives and nobody, not a single person, came away with

a scratch in this reported tornado. meanwhile this house here is in pretty bad shape. there is a jeep behind the mangled garage door. the owners think they can save that. a young couple, their 2-year-old son were away with their in-laws. look at the house. the painters had just finished painting the first floor at 2:00 p.m. yesterday and three hours later the tornado hit. this is at least ef-2 damage on the enhanced fujita scale putting the winds as high as 135 miles an hour. around the corner we may have ef-3 damage. the house is completely gone off its foundation and one of the reasons we have these tornadoes is the extreme warmth for march. yesterday in detroit 77 tying a record high. the average high is 45. we're running more than 30 degrees above average and for the cleanup today, another incredibly warm day here in southeastern lower michigan. doreen and wendy, back to you. well, district police are stepping up the search for a man they say is dangerous. this gunman targeted a woman in a shooting in northeast last month and he has more than one

alias and could be hiding out in our city. pat collins is live at the homicide squad in southwest. pat? >> reporter: when you hear what they say this man did, you'll know why they want him so bad. the guy they're looking for is thought to be armed, dangerous, and at large somewhere in our city. he goes by four different names -- renard cook, reyyon stone, don fitzgerald hancock, and demarko brown. he has a scar on his left hand, a tatoo on his left arm. what is he wanted for? assault with intent to kill. they say he shot the mother of his children five times in front of the kids. she was hit twice in the head, three times in the body. she is said to be in grave

condition. this happened a month ago in the 3300 block of alden place northeast. the victim was there with her three children, two boys and a girl ages 2, 4, and 6. they say cook comes at her with a gun and there in the street he opens fire. her children watch as their mother falls to the ground. so serious is this case homicide has taken over the investigation. >> you don't want anyone to approach this man? >> no, we do not. >> reporter: if they see him they should call the police? >> that's absolutely correct. >> reporter: dangerous man? >> yes. >> reporter: now, if you know the whereabouts of this suspect, call police. 202-727-9099. 202-727-9099. live in southwest. pat collins.

news 4. >> thank you, pat. in virginia brand new stores, hotels, and town homes and more are on the way to merrifield. construction is well under way in a new urban district near the dunn loring metro, a project that's been in the works for a long time and julie carey has an update. for years fairfax county's merrifield area has been known for the sometimes gridlock intersections and hundreds of small businesses and industrial style warehouses. >> it's been an ugly duckling. put it like that. how is that? it was an older inlandial area here in the heart of county. >> reporter: take a look at the merrifield makeover. the county approved a redevelopment plan for a town center back in 2002 to make better use of a location just blocks from the dunn loring metro. this is what's emerged. its developer edens has created what they call the mosaic urban district. >> when we started this process ten years ago, we visited a hundred different places and we determined we wanted to create a place that was unlike any other

in the country. and to do that, we needed a merchandise mix that reflected that vision. >> reporter: under construction? a hotel and office space. a shopping area that will eventually have as many as a hundred stores and restaurants. already onboard there? target, a neiman studio concept store, and anthropology. the angelica theater will bring art house movie fare and new town homes on the site are selling fast. developers say it will not be a mini tysons. >> having uses here that are geared toward an experience that's really an exhale from the tysons experience in that they are more intimate, local, artisanal so elevating the culinary experience, entertainment experience, and shopping experience became part of the dna of what we were trying to create. >> reporter: it won't be much longer before some of these building are completed. the theater opened in september. the target up on the fourth floor? slated to open in october.

a few blocks away, more construction. at the dunn loring metro a partnership will bring in 628 high end apartments, harris teeter grocery, and new metro parking garage. more new residential units are popping up along gallows road. in merrifield, virginia julie carey news 4. >> the big project at the dunn loring metro is scheduled to be finished by the end of next year. still ahead a former rutgers student found guilty in a web spying case now cob facing more than just jail time. the u.s. is being accused of not fully cooperating after a staff sergeant went on a killing spree in afghanistan. and devoted apple fans found a new reason today to reunite. >> doug, what's ahead in weather? temperatures much cooler than the last couple days. how is that going to translate into the weekend? plus a few showers lingering out there right now. i'll have the radar right now

and what to expect for st. patrick's day in a minute. the big dance is in full swing. virginia tries to be, to avoid becoming gator bait. plus the hoyas go to work in the midwest. dan hellie joins us live from columbus, ohio

a former rutgers university student who used a web cam to spy on his gay room platte could spend ten years behind bars. a jury found him guilty today of a hate crime and invasion of privacy. his roommate tyler clemente committed suicide after the incident. jay gray has our report. we find the defendant guilty or not guilty as to tc? >> guilty. >> darren ravi looked down at times but did not seem to react until he slowly shook his head after the verdict was announced. the former rutgers student guilty on all 15 counts including invasion of privacy and bias intimidation after using a web cam in his dorm room to spy on his roommate's liaison with another man. >> the facts and the law and the evidence showed that tyler was targeted because of his sexuality. >> reporter: the case sparked national attention and outrage after the victim 18-year-old tyler clemente jumped from the george washington bridge just

days after learning ravi had captured video of him during an intimate encounter with a date then talked about it online and shared the information with other students. >> the trial was painful for us as it would be for any parent. >> reporter: after sitting in the courtroom for nearly every day of the four-week trial clemente's mom and dad said they hoped today's verdict and their son's death would send a strong and lasting message. >> when you see somebody doing something wrong tell them it's not right. stop it. you can make the world a better place. the clang you want to see in the world begins with you. >> reporter: ravi's defense team argued the incident was a stupid, childish prank but did not rise to the level of a hate crime you about jury sided with prosecutors in the case and now legal experts say the 20-year-old could spend at least ten years in prison at possible deportation since he is a citizen of india in the u.s. on a green card. sentencing is set for the end of may. jay gray, nbc news.

afghan president hamid karzai spoke sharply about the u.s. investigation into the shooting rampage that killed 16 afghan civilians on sunday. karzai says the u.s. not fully cooperating with the afghan investigation and questioned whether there was more than one shooter. american investigators showed the afghans a surveillance tape of the accused soldier returning to base alone and surrendering. that soldier is now on his way to for the leavenworth in kansas. it is not clear when or where his court-martial will take place. the turbulent week in afghanistan, the growing crisis in sudan, are among the topics on this sunday's "meet the press." moderator david gregory is here with a preview this latest shooting incident in afghanistan is raising lots of new questions about the u.s. involvement and the future direction there. you hearing any signs of change? >> i'm hearing a lot of policy makers asking the question when are we going to get out. we got to get out. i think that's where the

american people are. there is not a big political divide about this. my guest senator mccain is among those who say no we have goals there that can't be cut short by a precipitous withdrawal but the question is how and when to do it and what do we have to accomplish before we get out? i'll talk to senator mccain about that on sunday and also want to take a deeper look at what is going on with our troops. you have the longest war in u.s. history, multiple deployments, military officials talking about post traumatic stress disorder the likes of which we have not seen and will deal with for a long time as a result of these conflicts and so there are some real wounds and events like this bring it out not only because it was so horrible that civilians were killed but because of the strain our troops are under. there are a lot of questions for sure. >> actor/activist george clooney arrested. looked like there were more papparazzi than demonstrators in front of the sudanese embassy. >> not exactly in the orange jump suit either. >> he really wants to get this on our radar and he really wants

the u.s. to do something. is that -- is this going to work? do we care enough about sudan? can we do anything there? >> you know, the thing about clooney i think is very effective is he is very pragmatic about this. he is not saying let's send the troops in to sudan. he recognizes that. but if you look at the oil disruptions because of the supply issues in sudan, the impact on our overall national security, and what he is talking about is more pressure on china, a little more diplomatic activity. it gives him a more pragmatic take and he is george clooney and can shine a spotlight on this. i talked to him about it this week. we'll have that conversation on the program on sunday as well as we'll talk a little politics. >> we all want to know how you got george clooney into the building and why didn't you tell your friends about it. >> was he in the building? >> you know, i -- you know, it's his mind that i'm interested in, doreen, not just that -- >> us, too. let us -- >> you decide what's important. well, he wasn't -- i mean, i

would have let you know. >> i see. all right. thank you, david. david gregory. we'll look for that interview with george clooney. >> yes. thank you. >> coming up on "meet the press" press pass on sunday. more on his trip to the sudan and his appearance before congress this week. that starts at 11:30 sunday morning right after "meet the press" at 10:30 here on nbc 4. there was a warm welcome home for a prince george's county police officer returning from afghanistan today. officer kevin cruz arrived at reagan national airport this afternoon. officer cruz says he is glad to be home and thankful to his --.

it's feeling like dublin out there. >> who would imagine we'd be cranky about this? >> i know. one day. half of us saw great weather, half saw cloudy skies. that's how we'll see things over the next couple days though i think we'll turn the percentages around a little bit. first off, yeah. we did see some rain and clouds and temperatures today that were much cooler especially right around the metro area and into southern portions of maryland. we talked about this last night about that cool marine influence right on down from places like new jersey and over towards delaware coming off the atlantic ocean and affecting our weather. out there today high temperature so far 59 degrees low of 51. so not much movement there as we did see plenty of clouds today and, yes, 23 degrees cooler than it was yesterday with a high of 82 degrees. some of you did make it into the 70s across the area. mostly to the north and the west of washington and especially

down to the south and west. 59 right now under mostly cloudy skies. still some visibility problems. we're starting to see breaks in the clouds around the district so that is good news. current temperatures on the warm side to the north. hagerstown over 70 earlier. now 68 degrees. cumberland, maryland at 77 a little bit earlier and now 71 in charlottesville. 64 in fredericksburg and a cooler 55 over toward annapolis. as far as high temperatures go around the region, this is where they were the warmest. 72 in morgantown. 73 in roanoke. 75 in richmond. but up to the north only 59. philadelphia, too. we did see that cooler air come right on down from the northeast as is typical this time of the year. we do see the back door cold fronts. that's what they're called. normally our cold fronts move this way but this one coming this way. this was the reason. here's 58 degrees yesterday in philadelphia. on the cool side. here's our 82. we were very warm. a great day yesterday. but by late last night we started to see that cooler air start to move on in here and you probably noticed it if you were out around 6:00, 7:00, 8:00 last

night it definitely felt a little more humid. it felt a little cooler outside. that's why today we only hit a high of 58 degrees. tomorrow cooler air moves back to the north. warmer air comes back. i think we do get back to 70 at least 70 in washington but to the west, and to the southwest, you will easily be into the low 70s while to the north and east should stay in the upper 60s for you folks. still going to be quite nice for st. patrick's day but we could see a couple showers. why not? some green on the radar screen right? showers making their way through parts of virginia right now and in through southern maryland. most of this is now getting out of here. one lone shower back in the panhandle of west virginia right along the potomac there. it's going to make its way down to the southeast, too. but we're not expecting much more in the way of rain. i do expect this evening to be pretty nice. if you're out and about inside the metro area looking very nice. showers now to the south and east of upper marlboro, down around hunting town, you'll continue to see showers toward calvert county probably for about the next half hour or so.

then the rest of the evening should be good. i don't think you'll need your umbrella tonight but you may want to keep it in the purse. a little purse umbrella right on through tuesday afternoon. even tomorrow for some of the festivities for st. patrick's day. tomorrow afternoon notice maybe a shower or two early in the morning but then by tomorrow afternoon a few more breaking out. i don't expect much rain just kind of sprinkles like we saw today in parts of the region. tomorrow evening maybe a little bit more cumbersome but again we'll continue to watch that chance out there. showers ending this evening. cool and damp. you might want to take your ja about 60 degrees if you're going to be out and about this evening. i do not expect rain tonight so if you're thinking about heading out it should be okay. tomorrow morning watch out for areas of fog still mild. 47 to 52 degrees. remember it should be in the mid 30s this time of the year when you wake up in the morning. tomorrow, 40s to low 50s. tomorrow afternoon 65 to 73 degrees. a few sprinkles out there but, still, not bad at all.

high of 65 on your sunday. 70 on monday. tuesday coming in. >> the little leprechaun. >> he's dancing doing the irish jig right there. 72 on tuesday and wednesday and back to the mid 70s by next week. so great weather continues. a little unsettled but not bad. >> sounds good. have a good weekend. thanks. gas prices are high. we'll tell you where some drivers have found better deals at the pump. also ahead a casino at the national harbor or slots at rosecroft could bring a lot more than just table games to prince george's county. ♪ ♪ isn't that lovely? a special glee club shares its musical tradition in washington.

police arrested actor george clooney, clooney's father, and several congressmen today for protesting outside the embassy of sudan in northwest d.c. clooney says they're trying to bring attention to the growing humanitarian crisis in sudan. the actor paid a hundred dollar fine and was released after a few hours. the cofounder of the invisible children group was detained in san diego last night. according to our sister station knsd tv police detained jason russell for being drunk and masturbating in public. his coney 2012 video that

exposed child abduction in uganda went viral last week. invisible children released a statement saying russell was hospitalized yesterday and is suffering from exhaustion, dehydration, and malnutrition. after a decade of planning, construction on the new urban district is under way in merrifield, virginia. this development near the dunn loring metro station will include town homes and new hotels, office space, shopping, restaurants. the edens developer designed the project. the fight to bring slots and table games to prince george's county took an important new step today. rosecroft and the national harbor are the two locations that could become the new home of big time gaming facilities. derrick ward has more on the debate that has now reached annapolis. >> reporter: prince george's county executive rashard baker took his case to the house ways and means committee in annapolis and says it should be the right kind of casino at the right place and for him that's national harbor. >> a very nice facility that

will attract people not only in the washington region but worldwide. >> reporter: baker also said that other sites on tap like arundel mills and baltimore would not be hurt by a high end casino at national harbor. baltimore delegate melvin stoops house ways and means committee member agrees but has other concerns. >> there will be more questions asked. one of the main ones is about minority ownership. >> an official with caesar's entertainment which would build a slots parlor in baltimore does believe a prince george's county facility would draw from their potential customer base. closer to home some prince george's county clergy worry a casino would draw other resources within households. >> i know people who have a lot of bills if you can believe that. they get hooked up with the people that sell the lottery tickets and then they pay at payday they go pay their bill up but they haven't hit. so that means when they pay up their bill some child is getting less groceries, less clothes,

whatever. >> whether you want to gamble or not is a moral decision you make for yourself. you need to create the jobs, good paying jobs. >> it will ultimately be up to the state gaming commission to select a new site for a casino or slot parlor. in annapolis, derrick ward news 4. the maryland state senate could take up the gaming bill as early as next week. if the site in prince george's county is selected voters would have to approve the plan in a referendum. a landover boy abducted from school yesterday is safe and tonight his disappearance has prince george's county schools reviewing policies. an amber alert was issued for 9-year-old wilbur garcia yesterday after his mother sylvia garcia took him out of class at dodge park elementary. she doesn't have custody of the son. wilbur's father has full custody. it's not clear whether the school was aware of the situation. police found the child in reno, nevada with his mother overnight. the mother is now charged with being a fugitive from justice. mild temperatures out there today but we never saw much of

the sun. doug's in storm center 4 with another look at our weather. >> you notice we're seeing the sun right now out toward the airport and places north and west of washington have been in the sun throughout the last couple hours but south and east we stay in the clouds and in those cooler temperatures, too. even some showers. let's look at the radar. nothing around washington now. we saw the showers end about an hour ago. now they are all just down to the south and east in through southern prince george's county but really calvert county seeing the strongest rain. and that's even light rain. so don't worry about any of that rain. right on down route 2 as you head straight on down calvert county you'll continue to see that through hunting town eventually toward the calvert beach area and making its way offshore. the rest of us should see a fairly nice evening tonight. a nice evening to get out and about. we'll talk more about the next seven days and how it's unsettled pattern that we're starting to get into is going to make its way through the weekend coming up. >> thanks, doug. triple-a says gas prices have been an all-time high for

the season. the average cost of gas a gallon in the district is $4.04. maryland drivers are paying $3.85. it's a bit better in virginia at $3.74. erika gonzalez has more on what to expect as summer approaches. >> unfair. help, we need help! this is unreal. >> reporter: people like laurie freeman are pleading for help at the pump. >> $47. still going. 12 gallons. $48. $48.44. >> reporter: for half a tank of gas. >> half a tank of gas. >> reporter: gas prices are the highest ever for this time of year. the national average for regular grade gas is $3.80 a gallon, a 50-cent increase in two months according to triple-a. >> it's big. >> reporter: lon anderson with triple-a says contrary to what some may think the increase in gas prices has nothing to do with the president. >> he doesn't go out and change the signs on the gas stations no. >> reporter: it boils down to

three things he says. state taxes, local competition, and the price of crude, which is about 70% of the cost of gas. and right now the price per barrel is nearly $7 more than it was last year. experts say it's the threat of war in the middle east that's making investors nervous and therefore driving up the cost. >> normal rules of supply and demand aren't happening here because our supplies are up. our demand is down. our prices are going up. triple-a encourages people to shop with their steering wheel. in other words, go outside your area if you have to in order to get the best deals. where do you go to get cheaper gas? >> delaware. >> reporter: to delaware. >> yeah. that's where i work. i ran out there to get it. >> reporter: we found $3.99 at this gas station in virginia off jefferson highway. $3.83 in landover. $3.97 in northeast d.c. analysts believe prices will peak as high as $4.25 nationally before going down and when will

that be? late april to early may. in fairfax county, erika gonzalez, news 4. triple-a says 84% of american drivers have changed their lifestyle because of the increase in gas prices. drivers in d.c. have to navigate around widespread street closures this weekend. the sun trust rock 'n roll usa marathon starts bright and early tomorrow. most roads around the start and finish lines at rfk stadium will shut down tonight at midnight. there will be significant closures on constitution, minnesota, and connecticut avenues in northwest. it will also shut down anacostia drive in southeast and "c" street northeast. the closures should end around 3:00 tomorrow afternoon. and capital bike share is now on the national mall. two stations were installed this morning just in time for cherry blossom season. one is on ohio drive near the new mlk memorial. the other is on jefferson drive between 14th and 15th close to the washington monument. eventually there will be five

capitol bike share stations along the mall. there are already more than 150 of these stations across the city. still ahead, the new ipad has people lining up to be the first to have the new sensation. we'll show you how the national gallery of art is making it easy for art lovers to have their own masterpiece in the palm of their hands. coming up in sports georgetown makes an impressive first impression plus march madness is maryland madness as the terps and midshipmen get ready to square off in college park. park. [ male announcer ] for the dreamers... and those well grounded. for what's around this corner... and the next. there's cash flow options from pnc. solutions to help businesses like yours accelerate receivables, manage payments,

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it is a big day for apple and loyal fans of ipad, the company's new third generation tablet went on sale today drawing the kinds of crowds that have become expect wed the release of almost any new apple product. nbc's mark varger has more on what's driving the ipad frenzy. >> reporter: by now the scene like the one in dallas this morning is familiar. >> three, two, one. >> reporter: apple's devotees from cities around the country and world swarming to buy the company's latest gadget. >> we were first here in line and just got it. >> reporter: and "it" would be apple's third generation of ipad, the product that two years and 55 million sales ago ignited

the market for tablet computers. >> with quadruple pixels, 5 megapixel camera and ten times the data sweep i think it will be incredible. >> reporter: the ipad's upgrades were once again enough to entice consumers to sit bundled up for hours in denver and sleep in line in delaware all to be among the first to grab the newest variation of the top selling tablets. >> i like having the newest thing. i like the excitement of the first day and i'm excited to get it. >> reporter: but for some the day was also about camaraderie. >> it is exciting to have the new product here but there is also a certain level of excitement about being with other people who are excited about the same product. >> reporter: it's the fervor unique these days in american retail. >> this is still the only consumer product company out there you see lines for at all. >> reporter: tech analyst tafs mccourt says that brand loyalty bodes well for apple's current 60% share of the tablet market. >> if apple can get through 2013 maintaining this share then certainly it's game set match. >> reporter: with the ipad wait now over -- >> i'll probably take a nap.

>> reporter: one for the next iphone is likely just months away. nbc news. here is a look at what we're working on for sports. we'll be out in columbus listening to the press conference i take it. >> we are going to be catching up with dan hellie. i've had three -- >> who knew? caught you by surprise? >> we'll have the hichlt pad 4 and 5 and 6 and 7 by next year. >> you're holding out and waiting. >> i'll wait for the 7. coming up why president obama may want to rethink his selections in the women's ncaa tournament. in the men's tournament georgetown beats belmont. we'll go live to columbus for reaction. plus the gators chomp on the cavaliers. news 4 at 6:00 continues. [ male announcer ] at green giant we know nature gives us the most nutritious of gifts. but only when they are ready to be given.

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we have a developing story in afghanistan. u.s. officials have just identified the soldier accused of killing 16 afghan civilians last weekend. army staff sergeant robert bales 38 years old based out of washington state a native of ohio. army officials say bales joined the army after september 11 and had been deployed to iraq three times before going to afghanistan. bales did suffer multiple injuries in both places. officials say he had a clean record of conduct and is reportedly on his way back to the united states to

leavenworth, kansas. he has hired a prominent defense lawyer from washington state. we'll keep you posted on this. let's shift gears and get a check of our forecast. right now still watching some shower activity just down to the south and east from washington. also one little shower back here around portions of the panhandle of west virginia right around martinsburg just to the north and west of martinsburg, west virginia but down to the south this is where we're continuing to see the showers in through calvert county in through portions of charles county. very light rain right now for the most part. it will continue to move south and east. where you don't see it is right now around the district where it's looking very nice for the cherry blossoms this week. they are expected to peak now on tuesday in through wednesday and thursday of next week and a lot of people are saying they were out blooming today. by a lot of people i mean doreen gentzler. she counts for a lot of people. you can see the people are down there today taking in some photos. they are expected to be at peak bloom the middle of next week. right now the weather looks fantastic for that. one of the reasons why?

not only the warm temperatures in the afternoon but the warm temperatures at night. we have been above 50 degrees now right on through the last three or four or even five days so that's helped them to bloom a little early this year. 48 in gaithersburg. overnight tonight. 51 in manassas. 50 in fredericksburg and down toward tomorrow if you're thinking about taking a look at the cherry blossoms i think it's going to be a great by. maybe fog early in the day. we should break out into sunshine to the south and west. i think that will be the warmest area. 75 in fredericksburg. 71 in martinsburg. right around 70 in the district. the more sun we get the better off we're going to be and then up to the north and east temperatures remaining in the upper 60s. a pretty good day for your st. patrick's day and the rest of the forecast looks pretty good too. i'll show you that extended forecast in just a little bit. if i missed you, i don't know who's next but you also count for a number of people just to let you know. >> i feel like a lot of people. >> thanks. so a busy weekend looking at

cherry blossoms and a really busy weekend for sports fans. a lot is going on. >> certainly georgetown is moving on. they'll play sunday against nc state so this is good for sports fans. maybe just take your tv outside. >> to the cherry blossoms. get the tv on your mobile device now. >> on your new ipad. >> your ipad 7. >> okay. columbus, ohio, did not turn into upset city because the team representing the most powerful city dominated the team that represents the music city. the belmont bruins are singing a sad song all the way back to nashville tonight. meanwhile the hoyas are moving on winning their first tournament game since 2008. to tell us all about this game we go live to columbus, ohio to join dan hellie. >> i like to call this textbook because it played out exactly like a game should when a 3 seed is playing a 14th seed. georgetown dominated belmont in every facet of the game. they out shot them. they out rebounded them. they passed better.

georgetown shot 61% in this game. belmont the fourth highest scoring team in the land, they held them to 22 points below season average and the hoyas now advancing to the second round of the tournament for just the first time in the last four years. >> it feels really good. it's a relief. but like coach said we didn't come up here to win just one game. so it's like a monkey off your back but you got to keep going. you have a lot more games to play. >> a huge relief. it feels great. you know, we finally, me and jason finally got this monkey off our back. i'm glad we could bring the freshman in with something. let them experience the ncaa tournament for more than a weekend. we got it out of the way and now it's time to win more. >> reporter: what else did you say in the locker room? >> i think that sums it up. it's a good win against a very good team and we know that. we knew that going in. we know it even more now. so monkey off our back absolutely. you know, we've had some quick exits the last couple years so good to get that first win.

but they also know with all the talk about that leading up to this game, you know, these guys watch television, too, looking and seeing everyone picking us to lose and just making sure they yunld stood we didn't come just to win the one game. hopefully we'll play well on sunday. >> and the seniors shall lead them. henry sims another good game after his huge big east tournament. he had 15. and jason clark who did not play well in the big east tournament leads the hoyas with 21 points. very important for the seniors to get out of the first round of the tournament and now they have their sights set on the sweet 16 and have to get by 11th seeded north carolina state and will practice tomorrow before their game against nc state on sunday. hakem? >> all right. dan, thank you very much. georgetown beating belmont in the first game and if you remember back to 2007 georgetown beat belmont on their way to a final four appearance. so maybe we can recreate the

magic. >> don't be jinxing things. >> i have the saying from my high school history teacher don't put the cart before the horse. we're not doing that merely giving you facts. that's it. >> all righty. >> in omaha, nebraska today number 10 seed virginia looking for a mini upset against number 7 seed florida. coach tony bennett making his first tournament appearance with the cavaliers. pick it up in the first half. virginia looking strong. mike scott, tough shot off the glass. up 8. scott went for a game high 15 points but was the only cavalier in double figures. second half gators up nine. kenny boynton cuts through the cavs' defense. plus he's fouled. florida up 12 after the free throw. they would continue to cruise. up 24 here. turns it over. gators in transition. slam dunk for florida. the gators beat the cavaliers, 71-45. they'll play the winner of the missouri state game on sunday. the women's ncaa tournament tips off tomorrow and maryland will

be right at home facing navy in college park. coach brenda freese has the terps back in the big dance for the eighth time in ten years. freese led the program to a national championship in 2006. this year the terps earned the number two seed in the raleigh region and will face the 15th seed navy. president obama has maryland winning its first game but losing in the second round. wonder if he knows this. brenda freese owns an ncaa tournament record of 17-7. the terps and midshipmen are scheduled to tip off saturday morning at 11:15. >> i know our team understands, you know, at this time of the year and you can watch the men's bracket and what's taking place. you can't take anything for granted, any team, you know, we do have the most respect for navy and we know we've got to come out and be ready to play for 40 minutes. >> i'm just happy to get back in the tournament and have another opportunity to play in front of, you know, our home crowd, these first two rounds and we'll go as far as you know everybody is willing to go and as long as

everybody stays focused in it's going to be a lot of fun. >> you know who was having a lot of fun today? nats pitcher gio gonzalez taking on the yankees. alex rodrigues swinging here. gonzalez goes 3 1/3 innings. gives up one run and strikes out six. bryce harper not having so much fun facing c.c. sabathia. change-up for strike three. in back-to-back games against the yankees, harper finished 1 for 7 with four strikeouts. the yankees beat the nats, 4-3 in 10 innings today. the redskins signed quarterback cedric griffin today. according to mike jones at "the washington post" the contract is a one-year deal worth $2.5 million. griffin played the last six seasons in minnesota. also today fred davis signed his franchise tag contract and his salary will be based on the top five highest paid tight ends. the redskins not done yet. still a lot of work to do. >> a lot of wheeling and dealing going on. >> yes. tonight in winnipeg, the caps, a

big game. still ahead the glee club that broke the silence in a d.c. library. and for all your news be sure to follow news 4 online. just search nbc washington on facebook and twitter.

♪ ♪ >> wasn't that lovely? the sound of music filling the halls of the martin luther king library in northwest today. that is the moorehouse college glee club and quartet performing for free as part of their annual spring tour in today's performance included spiritual and gospel selections. the moorehouse glee club was

founded in 1911 and this group is celebrating its 100th anniversary. moorehouse college is the only all male historically black college in the united states. that was a nice treat. >> indeed. coming up tonight on news 4 at 11:00 he is out of jail but his fight is far from over. how actor george clooney plans to keep the spotlight on the humanitarian crisis in sudan hours after he was arrested today here in d.c. plus police step up patrols ahead of tomorrow's st. patrick's day celebrations here. and incredible video of a freefall 13 miles above the earth's surface. that's tonight on news 4 at 11:00. >> yikes. one more check on our weather doug? >> i thank you for saying you'd baby-sit my kids all day tomorrow for st. patrick's day. >> i don't remember that. >> you said it in an e-mail. i'll show it to you. let's look outside to see how we're ending up today. we're on a good note in some areas. the sun making its way down. i think some of us are in for a

pretty nice sunset especially north and west of washington. current temperature at the airport right now, 58 degrees. winds are calm at the moment. we'll see those calm winds continue and that could lead to some fog overnight. notice rockville 64 degrees right now. that's because they have seen some sunshine for the last hour or two. gaithersburg seeing some sun. 63 there. down in hunting town still seeing shower activity. current temperature there only 53. a cool day along the chesapeake today. you can see where the showers are in through calvert county, still the hunting town area, chesapeake beach, calvert beach all seeing showers. once again, extremely light but they'll continue to move off toward the eastern shore over toward cambridge in through maryland. your next couple days 70 degrees on your saturday. 65 on sunday. 70 on monday. if you notice those little arrows it means sprinkles right on through the next couple days. i don't expect them all day. but you may want to take that little umbrella that we talk about a lot because i think we may need it from time to time. it's not going to be a big deal for sure but you may see the sprinkles all the way through

wednesday. this is kind of an unsettled weather pattern coming up here but at least it's a warm unsettled weather pattern. you see there we still do not go below 50 degrees at all right on through the period. the average low right now 38. >> you ought to bring your purse umbrella on and show it to us. you frequently make a reference to taking your purse umbrella. we need to see what you're talking about. >> like to see what yours looks like. >> i have two. just saying. >> you don't have to show us your purse. just your umbrella. >> right. i stick it in my back pocket. >> thanks, doug. you can create your own personal gallery of masterpieces from the national gallery of art. the museum officials anounlsed yesterday that more than 20,000 works have been digitalized and assembled into an online resource called nga images and it is free. anybody can search, share, and down load any of the work. you can download the pictures to your phone and ipad and take them along. details on how to get started are on the national gallery of art website. >> very nice.

have a happy friday night. thanks for joining us. "nightly news" i