ap Page 266 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Blazers F Deni Avdija (back) sidelined vs. Raptors
Standout Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija is sitting out Portland's Friday night game against the visiting Toronto Raptors due to back tightness.,Avdija exited the Blazers' 127-110 victory over the Miami Heat on Thursday less than two minutes into the second half due to back stiffness. He didn't re...

Hawks down Suns after Devin Booker exits with ankle injury
Jalen Johnson scored 12 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter to help the Atlanta Hawks beat the visiting Suns 110-103 on Friday after Phoenix lost Devin Booker to an ankle injury.,Atlanta scored the final eight points of the game to win their second straight and end the Suns' three-game winning st...

Kevin Durant scores 32 as Rockets end Pistons' streak
Kevin Durant poured in 32 points and the visiting Houston Rockets cooled off the Detroit Pistons, 111-104, on Friday night.,Alperen Sengun had 19 points and five assists, while Reed Sheppard supplied 18 points off the bench. Amen Thompson had 15 points, nine rebounds and seven assists while Jabari S...

Lightning's point streak reaches 15 with shootout win over Blackhawks
Dominic James scored the deciding goal in the fifth round of a shootout and Nikita Kucherov scored in the shootout and regulation as the Tampa Bay Lightning remained hot with a 2-1 win against the host Chicago Blackhawks on Friday.,Tampa Bay has earned a point in 15 straight games, the third-longest...

Golden Knights get better of Leafs in Mitch Marner's return to Toronto
Mark Stone had two goals and an assist Friday night as the visiting Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-3.,Jack Eichel recorded a goal and an assist. Keegan Kolesar, Pavel Dorofeyev and Braeden Bowman also scored for the Golden Knights, who rebounded from a 4-3 road loss to the B...

Nick Dorn, Indiana pace easy win over Rutgers with 3-point display
Nick Dorn made the most of his first start for Indiana, posting season highs of 23 points and six 3-pointers in a skid-busting 82-59 win over Rutgers on Friday in Piscataway, N.J., ,Lamar Wilkerson led the Hoosiers (13-7, 4-5 Big Ten) with 27 points, and Tucker DeVries tallied 22 points, 10 rebounds...

No. 24 Saint Louis thumps St. Bonaventure to match best start in program history
Ishan Sharma scored 29 points and made 9 of 12 3-point attempts off the bench as No. 24 Saint Louis cruised to a 97-62 win over St. Bonaventure in an Atlantic 10 contest on Friday in Allegany, NY.,Trey Green racked up 15 points and Amari McCottry chipped in 12 points for Saint Louis (19-1, 7-0 A-10)...

Rapids sign steal of 2025 draft, Donovan Phillip, to 2-year deal
The Colorado Rapids signed third-round draft pick Donovan Phillip to a two-year contract, which includes three club options that could extend the deal through June 2030.,Financial terms of the deal were not announced.,Phillip, 21, was drafted in December 2024 and exceeded expectations at NC State th...

NFC Championship Game Capsule
NFC Championship Game Preview Capsule,Los Angeles Rams (14-5) at Seattle Seahawks (15-3),Sunday, 6:30 p.m. ET,Seattle, Lumen Field,NFC Championship Game appearances: Seahawks 4 (3-0), Rams 12 (5-6),Series History: The Rams are 2-0 against the Seahawks in playoff games. They won in Seattle, 27-20, in...

AFC Championship Game Capsule
AFC Championship Game Preview Capsule,New England Patriots (16-3) at Denver Broncos (15-3),Sunday, 2 p.m. ET,Denver, Colorado, Empower Field at Mile High,AFC Championship Game appearances: Patriots 16 (11-4), Broncos 11 (8-2) ,Series History: Broncos are 4-1 against the Patriots in the playoffs. Den...

Alexander Zverev, hunting first major title, advances at Australian Open
No. 3 seed Alexander Zverev took another step in his quest to win his first Grand Slam event, defeating Great Britain's Cameron Norrie 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 to reach the fourth round at the Australian Open on Friday.,Zverev was the runner-up in Melbourne last year, losing to Jannik Sinner, and is 0-3 i...

Patrick Reed rides bogey-free round into lead in Dubai
Patrick Reed carded a 6-under-par 66 on Friday to seize a one-stroke lead after the second round of the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in the United Arab Emirates.,Reed highlighted his bogey-free round with four birdies and a 40-foot putt for eagle on the par-5 13th. The former Masters champion and curre...

Coco Gauff rallies to advance to 4th round in Melbourne
No. 3 seed Coco Gauff rallied from a set down to defeat fellow American Hailey Baptiste 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 and advance to the fourth round of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Friday.,Gauff need one hour, 50 minutes to capture the win. It was her 77th in a Grand Slam event in 100 matches. Among active ...

Surging Blazers likely to have Deni Avdija active vs. Raptors
The Portland Trail Blazers expect their star attraction to suit up and play when they host the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.,All-Star candidate Deni Avdija left with back soreness during the third quarter of Thursday's 127-110 home win over the Miami Heat. However, interim coach Tiago Splitter ex...

Vegas' Mitch Marner prepares for 'emotional night' in Toronto
Longtime Toronto Maple Leafs stalwart Mitch Marner is bracing for an emotional Friday night when he visits his former team for the first time as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights.,Marner got an indication of how things could go for him on Jan. 15 when the Golden Knights came back to earn a 6-5 ho...

Kawhi Leonard stars in return as Clippers down Lakers
Kawhi Leonard scored 24 points, Ivica Zubac added 18 points with 19 rebounds and the Los Angeles Clippers continued their red-hot run with a 112-104 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday at Inglewood, Calif.,James Harden scored 18 points with 10 assists, Jordan Miller had 14 point...

Shaedon Sharpe's big 2nd half sends Blazers past Heat
Shaedon Sharpe scored 24 of his 27 points in the second half to help the Portland Trail Blazers post a 127-110 victory over the visiting Miami Heat on Thursday night.,Caleb Love scored 20 points off the bench as the Trail Blazers won their fourth consecutive game and moved above .500.,Portland stand...

De’Aaron Fox (31) delivers in clutch as Spurs slow Jazz
De'Aaron Fox hit four threes in the fourth quarter and had a game-high 31 points as the San Antonio Spurs overcame a triple-double by Jusuf Nurkic and defeated the Utah Jazz 126-109 on Thursday night in Salt Lake City.,Ace Bailey, a rookie out of Rutgers, had a career-high 25 points for Utah, while ...

Penguins grab early 3-goal lead, cruise past Oilers
Anthony Mantha scored two goals 21 seconds apart early in the first period and the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins cruised to a 6-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night.,Evgeni Malkin had a goal and an assist, Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell and Egor Chinakhov also scored, Justin Brazeau and...

Aryna Sabalenka, Victoria Mboko escape trouble, advance in Melbourne
Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus subdued a stubborn Anastasia Potapova of Austria 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7) in the third round of the Australian Open on Friday.,Sabalenka has now reached the round of 16 for six consecutive years has taken 23 of her last 24 matches in Melbourne.,After exchanging early br...