Sports category, Page 614
Pirates top Marlins in 10 innings to earn 4-game sweep in season-opening series
The Pittsburgh Pirates’ season-opening four-game series in Miami against the Marlins already was full of firsts entering Easter Sunday’s finale. Jared Jones dazzled in his MLB debut Saturday, picking up his first win in his first MLB start. Before that, reliever Ryder Ryan earned his first big-league win Friday. And,...
Newspaper edits its column about LSU-UCLA game after Tigers coach Kim Mulkey blasted it as sexist
ALBANY, N.Y. — The Los Angeles Times has edited a column it published last week about the LSU women’s basketball team ahead of its game against UCLA following criticism from Tigers coach Kim Mulkey, who blasted it as sexist and hurtful. Mulkey defended her players after they were referred to...
Pirates activate righty Roansy Contreras, option lefty Jose Hernandez to Triple-A
Ahead of their series finale Sunday at the Miami Marlins, the Pittsburgh Pirates made a handful of roster moves, activating right-handed pitcher Roansy Contreras from the MLB paternity leave list and optioning lefty Jose Hernandez to Triple-A Indianapolis. Contreras, 24, went 0-2 with a 5.65 ERA over seven Spring Training...
Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are a major part of the rise of women’s college basketball
ALBANY, N.Y. — Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese have been catalysts for the rapid rise of women’s college basketball because of their play on the court that has drawn millions of new fans to the sport and their success off of it. The pair has brought comparisons to what Magic...
Pestering play of Penguins’ Michael Bunting easing transition from CarolinaVideo
It has not taken long for new Pittsburgh Penguins winger Michael Bunting to endear himself to his teammates. Several factors have aided in a successful transition from the Carolina Hurricanes. For starters, he’s producing at an acceptable rate. Bunting has three goals with four assists in 12 games since being...
‘We should be excited’: Sizzling debuts by Paul Skenes, Jared Jones look promising for Pirates
Before Jared Jones made his major-league debut Saturday, he drew inspiration by watching a minor-league game. Jones saw Paul Skenes top triple digits on a dozen fastballs and strike out five of the nine batters he faced in three perfect innings against Louisville in his debut for Triple-A Indianapolis. “I...
Alabama rides wave of 3-pointers to beat Clemson, reach 1st Final Four
LOS ANGELES — Mark Sears made seven 3-pointers and Alabama recovered from its early long-distance shooting woes with 16 treys to beat Clemson, 89-82, on Saturday night, sending the Crimson Tide to the Final Four for the first time. The Tide (25-11) will face defending national champion UConn in Glendale,...
Minor league report: Corey Andonovski leads Penguins to overtime winVideo
A goal at 1:17 of overtime by forward Corey Andonovski gave the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins a 4-3 home win against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. Forwards Austin Rueschhoff and Radim Zohorna each had a goal and an assist for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (33-22-8-1) while forward Avery...
Penguins fall late in shootout loss to Blue Jackets
With little more than a handful of covalent bonds keeping them connected to playoff contention, the Pittsburgh Penguins have turned to backup goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic to keep the remainder of their 2023-24 regular season consequential. On Saturday, he started his fourth consecutive game but wasn’t able to buoy the Penguins...
Donovan Clingan, UConn power back into Final Four in rout of Illinois
BOSTON — Defending national champion UConn powered its way back into the Final Four behind a 30-0 run led by Donovan Clingan, who finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds as the Huskies crushed Illinois, 77-52, on Saturday night. It was a March Madness record 10th straight double-digit victory for...
Scottie Scheffler overcomes late double bogey for 66 in Houston
HOUSTON — Scottie Scheffler made double bogey from what he thought was a good shot, responded with back-to-back birdies and finished with a 4-under-par 66 on Saturday to be part of a five-way tie for the lead in the Houston Open. Scheffler is trying to become the first player since...
Jared Jones strikes out 10 in MLB debut as Pirates beat Marlins, improve to 3-0
Jared Jones promised to shove in his major-league debut for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the 22-year-old right-hander exceeded expectations against the Miami Marlins. Jones recorded 10 strikeouts — one shy of the franchise record for a debut — while allowing three runs on three hits and two walks in 51⁄3...
Pirates farm report: Despite perfect start from Paul Skenes, Indianapolis falls to 0-2
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 0-2) lost 4-3 to Louisville (Reds). RHP Paul Skenes made his first Triple-A start and pitched three perfect innings with five strikeouts. He hit 100 mph on the radar gun on 12 of the 46 pitches he threw. Veteran LHP Eric Lauer came on in relief and allowed...
William Byron, Kyle Larson: Richmond Raceway challenges confidence
RICHMOND, Va. — William Byron already has a pair of victories just six races into the NASCAR Cup Series season, and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson has one, too. Neither comes to Richmond Raceway brimming with confidence. “It’s just one of those places we go to that we just don’t...
Pirates top prospect Paul Skenes perfect in 3 innings in Triple-A debut for Indianapolis
Paul Skenes’ Triple-A debut was short but perfect. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound right-hander, selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 MLB Draft, struck out five of the nine batters he faced and didn’t allow a baserunner in three innings Saturday afternoon for the Indianapolis...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: A lazy, but not boring, list of Steelers’ top offseason stories
Much about sports coverage these days revolves around rankings or lists. It’s lazy, predictable and boring. I haven’t done enough to prove I can be all those things. Or have I? Anyway, here are the top 10 Pittsburgh Steelers stories of the offseason. 1. The Steelers are not a lot...
In search of 1st Final Four trip, Tennessee takes care of Creighton
DETROIT — Dalton Knecht had 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals, and Tennessee moved within a victory of its first trip to the Final Four, beating Creighton, 82-75, in a Midwest Region semifinal Friday night. Zakai Zeigler added 18 points and six assists for the second-seeded Volunteers....
After key injury to Houston point guard, Duke earns spot in Elite Eight
DALLAS — Kyle Filipowski had 16 points and nine rebounds, and Duke advanced to the Elite Eight with a 54-51 win over top-seeded Houston, which played the final 26 minutes Friday night without All-America point guard Jamal Shead after he turned his right ankle. Even with Shead on the bench,...
‘Calm in a crucial spot’: Pirates reliever Ryder Ryan impressive in earning 1st MLB win
After making the Opening Day roster, Ryder Ryan was excited to make his Pittsburgh Pirates debut. Instead, he watched and waited through a 12-inning game in the season opener at Miami. When Ryan got the bullpen call in the fifth inning against the Marlins on Friday night, the 28-year-old right-hander...
Minor league report: Nailers sunk by Walleye
Goaltender Garret Sparks made 22 saves on 25 shots for the Wheeling Nailers in a 3-2 road loss to the Toledo Walleye at the Huntingon Center in Toledo, Ohio on Friday. The result dropped Sparks’ record to 0-3-0. Forward David Jankowski and defenseman Justin Lee each recorded two assists for...
Pirates farm report for March 29, 2024: Nick Gonzales homers in Indy’s opener
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 0-1) lost 9-8 in its season opener against Louisville (Reds). 2B Nick Gonzales went 2 for 5 with a home run. 1B Jake Lamb went 1 for 5 and homered in the top of the ninth to bring Indy within a run. RHP Colin Holderman, on a rehab...
Pirates practice patience early in drawing walks, use timely hits to beat Marlins
After striking out 17 times in the season opener, the Pittsburgh Pirates found it better not to swing against the Miami Marlins. The Pirates were content to wait and see if closer-turned-starter A.J. Puk could throw strikes, which the 6-foot-7 left-hander struggled to do with any consistency. After allowing only...
Sweet 16 nets another big win for Purdue and big man Zach Edey, 80-68 over GonzagaVideo
DETROIT — Purdue big man Zach Edey withstood all the abuse Gonzaga could lay on him Friday night, finishing with 27 points and 14 rebounds to lift the Boilermakers to an 80-68 victory and move them one win from the Final Four. Gonzaga leaned on, swatted and grabbed at the...
N.C. State keeps magical March Madness run alive with 67-58 win over MarquetteVideo
DALLAS — DJ Horne scored 19 points, and N.C. State kept its magical NCAA Tournament run alive, beating Marquette, 67-58, on Friday night to reach the Elite Eight for the first time since 1986. Casey Morsell added 15 points, and Mohamed Diarra had 11 points and 15 rebounds for the...
Tony Finau matches his career low and sets the target at the Houston OpenVideo
HOUSTON — Tony Finau matched his career low on the PGA Tour with an 8-under-par 62 on Friday, taking a two-shot lead into the weekend with hopes of winning back-to-back — 16 months apart — in the Houston Open. Scottie Scheffler saw his streak of 28 rounds under par end...
