v Page 21 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Clippers, Trail Blazers duke it out for No. 8 seed
Jockeying for positioning in the Western Conference play-in round hits the home stretch on Friday when the Portland Trail Blazers welcome the Los Angeles Clippers for a crucial showdown.,Los Angeles (41-39) heads into its final two games of the regular season with a one-game lead over Portland (40-4...

Penguins use flurry to down Devils, return to playoffs
Tommy Novak and Egor Chinakhov scored nine seconds apart for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who clinched a playoff spot Thursday with a 5-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils in Newark, N.J.,Bryan Rust, Evgeni Malkin and Erik Karlsson also scored for the Penguins (41-22-16, 98 points). Chinakhov and Sidne...

WNBA approves expansion into Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia
The WNBA announced formal approval for expansion teams in Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia on Thursday.,The move certifies those three cities, previously announced, gained authorization to join the league on their own timelines.,Cleveland is set to begin play in 2028, with Detroit following in 20...

Grizzlies offer chance for slumping Jazz to play different tune
The Utah Jazz have shown flashes of potential and competitiveness during its current 10-game losing streak. But the lows have outnumbered the highs heading into a showdown with the Memphis Grizzlies in Salt Lake City on Friday night.,Utah hit one of those lows in a 156-137 loss to New Orleans on Tue...

Nuggets take aim at No. 3 seed in the West against Thunder
Oklahoma City wrapped up the No. 1 overall seed with a win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night, making the final two games inconsequential for the reigning NBA champions.,The Denver Nuggets, on the other hand, have something to play for when they host the Thunder on Friday night.,Denver...

Forward-thinking Red Sox take momentum into series vs. Cardinals
Finally, the Boston Red Sox have a turn in the right direction.,Back-to-back victories over the Milwaukee Brewers have the Red Sox feeling good as they turn their attention to another National League Central opponent, with the opener of a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday n...

Spurs look to continue torrid stretch against feisty Mavericks
The San Antonio Spurs look to keep their momentum growing in preparation for the upcoming playoffs when they host the Dallas Mavericks on Friday in the penultimate game of the regular season for the Lone Star State rivals.,The Spurs (61-19) have won 13 of their past 14 games and have gone 29-3 since...

Brewers finally get shot against NL team, and it's the struggling Nationals
The Milwaukee Brewers will look to bounce back from a pair of road losses behind right-hander Chad Patrick when they return home to face the Washington Nationals on Friday in the opener of a three-game series.,Patrick (1-0, 0.96 ERA) will be opposed by right-hander Jake Irvin (1-1, 8.00) as the Brew...

Streaking Orioles plan to test Giants' scoreless inning streak
Right-hander Landen Roupp will try to build on a 20-inning scoreless streak for San Francisco's pitching staff as the Giants open a nine-game road trip at Baltimore on Friday night.,San Francisco, which won just three times in its first 11 games under first-year manager Tony Vitello, bounced back to...

Hawks face pivotal clash in rematch with Cavaliers
Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley made quite a statement in the first part of the Cleveland Cavaliers' home-and-home set with the Atlanta Hawks, combining for 53 points and 26 rebounds Wednesday in a 122-116 victory.,It's now the Hawks' turn to host. And there is significantly more pressure on them a...

After first rest day of season, Braves set to host hard-hitting Guardians
Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss was happy his team finally got a day off on Thursday.,The Braves opened their season with 13 straight games and kick off a three-game homestand against the visiting Cleveland Guardians on Friday.,"I've never seen anything like 13 games in a row to start the season,"...

After February brawl, Hornets and Pistons set for late-season rematch
The Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets face each other Friday for the first time in more than two months in a game that will likely draw the attention of both teams.,It will mark the first time the teams meet since a brawl that resulted in four player ejections and a later ejection of Charlotte c...

Jannik Sinner sees record set streak snapped, advances in Monte Carlo
No. 2 Jannik Sinner saw his record streak of consecutive sets won at ATP Masters 1000 events snapped at 37, but the Italian still managed to beat Czech competitor Tomas Machac 6-1, 6-7 (3), 6-3 to advance to the quarterfinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters on Thursday.,Sinner, whose streak was 13 sets l...

NBA clears Kings, says coach made mistake vs. Warriors
The NBA announced Thursday that Sacramento Kings head coach Doug Christie made an honest mistake in his team's loss to the Golden State Warriors.,The league was investigating Christie after he instructed forward Doug McDermott to intentionally foul Warriors guard Seth Curry with his team leading by ...

Rockets fight to keep win streak going, face inconsistent 76ers
In the blink of an eye, all the Houston Rockets gained during their six-game winning streak entering Tuesday seemed lost when the Phoenix Suns assertively seized momentum early with a 24-0 surge.,The Rockets had climbed to within range of the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference and carved out a dec...

Jalen Brunson, Knicks stand between Celtics, No. 2 seed
The Boston Celtics can clinch the No. 2 seed for the Eastern Conference playoffs when they visit the New York Knicks on Thursday night.,Boston (54-25) will secure the No. 2 seed with one more victory or any New York (51-28) loss. The Knicks can finish as high as second but are also battling with Cle...

Cubs looking to continue recent success vs. Pirates
It's not often the Cubs are looking up at the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Central standings, but that's the case ahead of Friday's series opener in Chicago.,It's a little early to pay attention to a division race as the Cubs look to win their fifth consecutive series over Pittsburgh. C...

Men's NCAA title game most-watched since 2019
Michigan's victory against Connecticut on Monday night drew an average audience of 18.3 million viewers, making it the most-watched NCAA Tournament final in seven years. ,The audience across TBS, TNT, truTV and HBO Max marked a 23% increase over the broadcast on those same outlets in 2024.,The Wolve...

Devils' Luke Hughes to undergo procedure, shut down for season
The New Jersey Devils shut down defenseman Luke Hughes on Thursday to undergo an undisclosed procedure and "get a head start on rehab for the offseason," the team announced.,The Devils (40-35-3, 83 points) have been eliminated from the playoff picture and have four games left, starting with their Th...

Ducks eager to stop slide in clash vs. Sharks
The Anaheim Ducks will look to play a more complete game as they aim to halt a six-game skid when they host the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night.,"It's not the optimal time to be losing games in the season," Ducks forward Alex Killorn said. "Put ourselves in a pretty good spot and kind of throwing ...