w Page 40 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Angels strive to follow up 'special moment' in rematch vs. Astros
Kurt Suzuki will manage his second major league game on Friday night when his Los Angeles Angels continue their season-opening series against the host Houston Astros. ,All things considered, it will be hard to top his first game.,Suzuki received a post-game beer shower from his team after the Angels...

As Pelicans visit, Raptors must stack wins to guarantee top-six playoff spot
The Toronto Raptors will play beyond the regular season for the first time since 2022.,That is all they know for certain. They could finish anywhere from fifth to 10th in the Eastern Conference, so every game -- beginning with the one against the visiting New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night -- is i...

Rangers focused on developing younger players in game vs. Blackhawks
The New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks are using the final weeks of lost seasons to gauge some of their youth.,Plenty of youth will be on display Friday night when the Rangers host the Blackhawks. New York is eliminated from postseason contention, while Chicago isn't far removed from that fate....

Lakers return home from successful trip to face spiraling Nets
The Los Angeles Lakers received a welcome day off on Thursday following a six-game trip that saw the team solidify its third-place standing in the Western Conference.,Winners of 13 of their last 15 games, the Lakers will begin a three-game homestand with a matchup against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday...

Blazers intent on improving playoff position in matchup vs. reeling Mavericks
The Portland Trail Blazers already have clinched a postseason berth for the first time in five seasons, even if it's just a spot in the play-in tournament.,Interim coach Tiago Splitter and his team want much more than that, however.,After winning five of its last six games to get back to .500 for th...

Nearly locked into play-in, Warriors try to improve seeding vs. Wizards
With a spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament almost a certainty, the Golden State Warriors will look to improve their positioning down the stretch, beginning with a Friday date against the Washington Wizards in San Francisco.,Golden State (35-38) pulled out of a recent tailspin in which ...

Brewers pitchers strike out 20 in 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...

Arizona's sizzling shooting overpowers Arkansas
SAN JOSE -- Brayden Burries scored 23 points and fellow freshman Koa Peat added 21 as top-seeded rolled to a 109-88 win over No. 4 Arkansas in the West Region semifinals on Thursday night.,The Wildcats (35-2) matched their school record for wins by shooting 63.8% from the field and advanced to their...

Second-half explosion sends Illinois past Houston into South final
HOUSTON -- David Mirkovic and Keaton Wagler produced double-doubles as third-seeded Illinois parlayed a 17-0 second-half run into a 65-55 victory over second-seeded Houston on Thursday in the South Regional semifinals of the NCAA Tournament.,The Fighting Illini (27-8) advanced to the Elite Eight for...

Penguins' Sidney Crosby exits with lower-body injury; severity unclear
Penguins coach Dan Muse had no substantive update about the condition of Sidney Crosby after the team captain exited Pittsburgh's Thursday road game against the Ottawa Senators due to a lower-body injury.,Crosby played the first 38 seconds of the second period, then exited for good in a game the Pen...

Flyers keep playoff hopes alive, thump Blackhawks
Christian Dvorak, Noah Cates and Alex Bump each registered a goal and an assist as the Philadelphia Flyers thumped the visiting Chicago Blackhawks 5-1 on Thursday evening.,Samuel Ersson made 25 saves for Philadelphia (35-24-12, 82 points), which has won six of its last eight games to make some late ...

Iowa rallies past Nebraska, in first Elite Eight since '87
HOUSTON -- Bennett Stirtz scored a team-high 20 points, Tate Sage added 19 and ninth-seeded Iowa rallied from a first-half, double-digit deficit to defeat fourth-seeded Nebraska 77-71 on Thursday in the South Regional semifinals of the NCAA Tournament.,Stirtz provided the Hawkeyes (24-12) with their...

Nuggets look to extend home surge with visit from Jazz
The Denver Nuggets struggled to win at Ball Arena for most of the 2025-26 season, but they are now taking advantage of playing at home during the stretch run.,Denver (46-28) has won five in a row on its court after a 17-13 home start and can make it six in a row when the struggling Utah Jazz visit F...

Pepperdine hires Virginia assistant Griff Aldrich as coach
Pepperdine hired Virginia associate head coach Griff Aldrich as its new men's basketball coach on Thursday.,"The opportunity to build a championship-caliber program within a University that promotes faith, academics, and excellence is tremendously exciting for our family," Aldrich said in a statemen...

TGL franchise values rise; Alexis Ohanian buys women’s team for $20M
At the conclusion of its second season, TGL is growing in more ways than one.,One of the indoor golf league's franchises has sold a minority stake for $100 million, and other teams have sold stakes eclipsing $90 million, Sportico reported Thursday.,The season just wrapped this week with Los Angeles ...

Panthers' Rasheed Walker says gun charge getting dismissed
New Carolina Panthers left tackle Rasheed Walker told reporters during his introductory press conference Thursday that a gun charge against him from early this year is being dismissed.,Walker, 26, was arrested and charged with two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a firearm by New York ...

Boston College hires UConn assistant Luke Murray as next head coach
Boston College turned to a proven title-winning assistant Thursday, hiring UConn's Luke Murray as its next men's basketball head coach and placing a key member of Dan Hurley's staff in charge of a rebuild in Chestnut Hill, Mass.,Murray, 40, has been with the Huskies since 2021 and is widely credited...

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...

Paul Waring goes bogey-free, jumps out to Round 1 lead at Houston Open
England's Paul Waring shot a 7-under-par 63 without a bogey to lead after the first round of the Texas Children's Houston Open on Thursday in Houston.,Waring is one stroke ahead of Gary Woodland, who was one of the final golfers to finish the round.,Sam Burns, Michael Brennan and Tom Hoge all shot 6...