ew Page 87 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Italy 1 win away from World Cup after blanking Northern Ireland
Italy finally cleared its first hurdle in the World Cup playoffs -- and now it has one more game to win to avoid missing the competition for the third straight time.,The four-time World Cup champions beat Northern Ireland 2-0 on Thursday night in Bergamo, getting a breakthrough goal from Sandro Tona...
Sweet 16 mainstays Tennessee, Iowa State target next steps
CHICAGO -- Playing without second-team All-American forward Joshua Jefferson for most of the NCAA Tournament has forced Iowa State to regroup.,As the second-seeded Cyclones prepare for Friday's Midwest Region semifinal against No. 6 Tennessee, they know they'll have to rebound -- whether Jefferson i...
Rockets hope listless Grizzlies are cure for their recent skid
When the Houston Rockets visit the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, it will be difficult to know which team feels worse.,The Grizzlies (24-48) have lost 12 of their last 13 and taken lopsided losses in back-to-back games.,The Rockets (43-29) have lost four of their past six, including a heart-wrenching ...
UConn, Michigan State muscle up in East Region semis
WASHINGTON -- Tom Izzo will attempt to coach Michigan State one step closer to his ninth Final Four when they meet a familiar UConn squad in Friday night's NCAA Tournament East Regional semifinal.,Izzo's third-seeded Spartans (27-7) have had a relatively comfortable trip through the tournament, easi...
Thunder look to keep pace in race for No. 1 seed vs. Bulls
The Oklahoma City Thunder are in a tight battle for the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs heading into Friday's matchup with the Chicago Bulls at home.,"It's very important and not just in the West, in the whole playoffs," Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. "We needed Game 7 at home against...
WNBA draft to be held April 13 in New York
With the collective bargaining agreement signed and settled, the WNBA's league calendar is quickly coming into focus.,The 2026 WNBA Draft will take place April 13 at The Shed at Hudson Yards in New York, the league announced Thursday.,This comes one day after the league said its two-team expansion d...
Vinicius Junior: Brazil hasn't earned right to be World Cup favorites
Vinicius Junior said Brazil has not earned the right to be considered favorites to win the 2026 World Cup, and that the team does not want that tag.,Brazil has won a record five World Cups, but none since 2002. In the span since, Brazil has not finished better than fourth in 2014 and finished a disa...
Thriving Jayson Tatum leads Celtics into battle vs. Hawks
Jayson Tatum will attempt to take another step forward in his return from surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon when the Boston Celtics try to cool off the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Friday night., ,Tatum turned in what was arguably his best performance of the season during Wednesday's 1...
Puka Nacua sued, accused of biting women, making antisemitic remark
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua is being sued for allegedly biting two women and making an antisemitic statement during a New Year's Eve gathering.,Plaintiff Madison Atiabi and her attorney allege that Nacua said "f-- all the Jews" during a dinner on Dec. 31 in Los Angeles. This made Atiab...
Cavaliers see good process in bad result entering Heat rematch
The return of small forward Norman Powell to the starting lineup helped the Miami Heat end their five-game losing streak and move into sole possession of eighth place in the Eastern Conference.,A second consecutive road game against the fourth-place Cleveland Cavaliers is next for the Heat on Friday...
Michigan in familiar environs, wants different result vs. Alabama
CHICAGO -- Top-seeded Michigan occupies the same United Center locker room for the NCAA Tournament as it did during the Big Ten tournament two weeks ago.,Eager to eradicate bad memories of a loss to Purdue in the conference title game, the Wolverines players changed locker assignments ahead of Frida...
Healthier Duke takes on resurgent St. John's in Sweet 16 showdown
WASHINGTON -- Naismith Award favorite Cameron Boozer and Duke will continue their pursuit of the program's sixth national title and first since coach Mike Krzyzewski's retirement when they face Rick Pitino's resurgent St. John's in Friday night's East Regional semifinal.,Boozer posted his 20th and 2...
Brewers begin NL Central title defense with demolition of White Sox
Sal Frelick and Jake Bauers homered and hard-throwing Jacob Misiorowski shook off a leadoff home run to strike out 11 over five innings as the Milwaukee Brewers routed the visiting Chicago White Sox 14-2 on Thursday in the season opener for both teams., ,Misiorowski (1-0), named to the All-Star team...
Bennedict Mathurin returns as surging Clippers visit Pacers
Looking to take advantage of a golden opportunity to bolster their play-in tournament status, the Los Angeles Clippers begin a two-game Eastern Conference road trip on Friday against the fading Indiana Pacers at Indianapolis.,Los Angeles (37-36) was all but written off in late December after beginni...
Sabres cling to division lead, want to win more battles vs. Red Wings
The Buffalo Sabres have lost their last two games in overtime as they prepare to host the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night.,But the Sabres are still in first place in the Atlantic Division, three points clear of the second-place Tampa Bay Lightning, and appear to be a lock to break their 14-season ...
No softy, Michigan State's unapologetic Tom Izzo doesn't 'give a damn' about critics
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Tom Izzo rants and raves, delivers corrective messaging to players nostril-to-nostril, and the Michigan State Spartans are in the Sweet 16 for the 17th time despite a sideline demeanor critics might find less than endearing. ,Go ahead and write those feelings on his dry-erase boa...
Skater Ilia Malinin takes big lead after Worlds short program
Ilia Malinin, a heavy favorite who didn't medal in men's figure skating at the Milan Cortina Olympics, skated a personal best in the short program to take a big lead at the World Championships in Prague on Thursday.,In his first competition since the Olympics last month, Malinin registered 111.29 po...
Duke's Caleb Foster game-time decision vs. St. John's
Duke point guard Caleb Foster has a chance to play Friday in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament against St. John's.,Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer said Thursday that Foster will be a game-time decision before No. 1 overall seed Duke meets Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino and his No. 5 Red S...
Pirates RHP Paul Skenes departs after shortest start of career
Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes had the shortest start of his young career when he did not make it out of the first inning of Thursday's season-opening game at the New York Mets.,Skenes recorded just two outs before he was removed by Pirates manager Don Kelly. Poor defense led to Skenes ...
Yankees face Giants again, determined to show even more
The New York Yankees will not put too much stock into their lopsided season-opening victory, or a fruitless performance from three-time American League MVP Aaron Judge.,Following the Yankees' 7-0 romp on the road against the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday, followed by an abrupt day off Thursday, ...