U.S./World Sports category, Page 186
UK wants UEFA to move Champions League final out of RussiaVideo
LONDON — UEFA faced calls from the British government to strip Russia of hosting the Champions League final over concerns it would legitimize what it called an “illegal invasion” of Ukraine, prompting European football’s governing body to say Tuesday it would reconsider St. Petersburg staging the showpiece match. The biggest...
Youthful Cavaliers out of LeBron’s shadow, surprise of NBA seasonVideo
CLEVELAND — There were skeptics, and they included pretty much anyone who watched the Cavaliers struggle the past three years, who wondered about the team’s “Let ‘Em Know” theme heading into the 2021-22 season. It hardly made sense. After all, the Cavs had plummeted from elite status and back to...
Longtime college basketball coach Phil Martelli leads Michigan for Juwan HowardVideo
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — In a hallway in the guts of Crisler Center, an anxious Michigan athletics employee walked Phil Martelli to the news conference. More than once, she offered to help: Do you need me? Can I do anything? Martelli, his shoulders relaxed and his demeanor confident, assured her...
IndyCar opens with bright new stars, big expectationsVideo
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The stars of IndyCar crowded into Indianapolis Motor Speedway to celebrate an upcoming season of opportunity for America’s open-wheel racing series to further cement its legitimacy and expand its popularity. The party to mark the 100-day countdown to the Indianapolis 500 went off course amid word...
Phil Mickelson apologizes for Saudi comments, deal with KPMG endsVideo
Phil Mickelson apologized Tuesday for comments about the Saudis and a proposed super league, damaging words he claims were off the record and not meant to be shared publicly. “It was reckless, I offended people, and I am deeply sorry for my choice of words,” he said. The same time...
Column: Mickelson needing the greatest escape of his careerVideo
LOS ANGELES — The commercial slogan associated with Phil Mickelson for years is never more true than it is now, minus the anticipation of something extraordinary. What will Phil do next? Whether his true intentions were chasing Saudi Arabian money or gaining more control over how he thinks the PGA...
American women players settle suit vs. U.S. Soccer for $24M
U.S. women soccer players reached a landmark agreement with the sport’s American governing body to end a six-year legal battle over equal pay, a deal in which they are promised $24 million plus bonuses that match those of the men. The U.S. Soccer Federation and the women announced a deal...
Another win for NASCAR with drama-free Daytona 500Video
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jim France was ecstatic in the garage before the Daytona 500. The grandstands were full for the first time in two years, fans again roamed every inch of the grounds in search of a selfie or a signature, and there was no threat of rain ruining...
Michigan men’s basketball coach Juwan Howard suspended 5 games for Wisconsin meleeVideo
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan basketball coach Juwan Howard has been suspended the final five games of the regular season and fined $40,000 for hitting a Wisconsin assistant in the head, triggering a postgame melee. The Big Ten Conference also on Monday suspended three players one game for the altercation...
Michigan coach Juwan Howard suspended 5 games for striking Wisconsin assistantVideo
As the Wolverines enter a brutal home stretch, they’ll be without their head coach for the rest of the regular season. The Big Ten, in collaboration with Michigan and Wisconsin, announced Monday that it has suspended Juwan Howard for the next five games for his role Sunday’s postgame altercation when...
Junior hockey league player gets lifetime ban after punching refereeVideo
A junior hockey league game between the South Shore Kings and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights has been trending for all the wrong reasons. And that’s because Paul Halloran, of the USPHL’s South Shore squad, decided to punch a referee, dropping him to the ice, during the first period of their recent game,...
Medina Spirit stripped of Kentucky Derby victoryVideo
Medina Spirit was stripped of the victory in last year’s Kentucky Derby and Mandaloun was declared the winner after a ruling by state racing stewards on Monday. The since-deceased Medina Spirit tested positive after the race last May for a steroid, betamethasone, that is legal in Kentucky but banned on...
Analysis: China’s bubble Olympics kept reality at a distance
BEIJING — They did it — that much seems obvious. But what, exactly, was the “it” that they did? China pulled off a logistically adept Olympics with very few mechanical glitches — no small affair in the pandemic era. It made that happen primarily by creating what it called, in...
Stephen Curry sets 3s record, LeBron James the winner in NBA All-Star Game
CLEVELAND — Stephen Curry got another 3-point record. LeBron James got another All-Star win. Not a bad night in Ohio for the two All-Stars from Akron. Curry turned boos to oohs and aahs with the greatest long-distance shooting performance in All-Star Game history, then James made a turnaround jumper that...
NBA honors past, present with 75th tribute at All-Star Game
CLEVELAND — One by one the names of the NBA’s greatest players were called, bridging basketball’s past and present. And as each walked onto the floor, LeBron James found himself in further disbelief. The posters on his bedroom wall as a kid came to life. “Allen Iverson and Jason Kidd,...
Second-place finish at Daytona 500 irks Bubba WallaceVideo
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Bubba Wallace tried to explain how he lost the Daytona 500 by inches when the replay flashed on the 40-foot screen overlooking the track. Wallace winced when he watched himself fall just short of Austin Cindric. “I don’t want to see that,” Wallace said. “That sucks!...
Joaquinn Niemann goes wire-to-wire, wins PGA Tour’s Genesis InvitationalVideo
LOS ANGELES — Joaquinn Niemann survived a few nervous moments at Riviera and polished off a big week Sunday when he closed with an even-par 71 to become the first wire-to-wire winner of the Genesis Invitational in 53 years. Staked to a three-shot lead, Niemann’s margin was down to one...
Cup rookie Austin Cindric wins Daytona 500 to celebrate Roger Penske’s 85th birthdayVideo
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Austin Cindric drove his brand-new NASCAR ride to victory in the Daytona 500 to celebrate team owner Roger Penske’s 85th birthday. “Oh, my God. I’ve got so many people to thank,” a stunned Cindric said after climbing from his car and saluting the capacity crowd of...
North Carolina boosts NCAA Tournament hopes with key Quad 1 winVideo
North Carolina’s hopes for an NCAA Tournament berth became even more tenuous after a loss to Pitt. Before last week, the Tar Heels had no real marquee wins, but also no bad losses. They put one in the negative column with Wednesday’s 76-67 home loss to the Panthers, who are...
U.S. women take advantage of 3 own goals to beat New ZealandVideo
CARSON, Calif. — Ashley Hatch and Mallory Pugh scored second-half goals for the United States and three own goals in the first half by New Zealand’s Meikayla Moore propelled the Americans to a 5-0 victory Sundayin the SheBelieves Cup. The U.S. played to a scoreless draw against the Czech Republic...
Michigan’s Juwan Howard argues with Wisconsin coach Greg Gard after Badgers victoryVideo
MADISON, Wis. — Michigan coach Juwan Howard became upset after Wisconsin called a timeout in the closing seconds of a game the Badgers already had put out of reach. The way Howard responded could have major ramifications on the rest of Michigan’s season. Howard hit Wisconsin assistant Joe Krabbenhoft after...
Dustin Johnson says he’s sticking with the PGA Tour
LOS ANGELES — A proposed Saudi-financed rival golf league took a massive hit Sunday when Dustin Johnson said he was “fully committed” to the PGA Tour, and Bryson DeChambeau indicated he would stay where the stars were playing. Johnson added his name to a growing list of golf’s top players...
Penn Hills grad Salima Rockwell settles into 1st head coaching job with Notre Dame women’s volleyballVideo
Salima Rockwell has seen volleyball from many angles. As a three-time All-American setter at Penn State. As a member — and two-year captain — of the U.S. women’s national team. As an assistant coach under the legendary Russ Rose at Penn State, where she was on board for three national...
Beijing’s Olympics close, ending safe but odd global moment
BEIJING — A pile of figure-skating rubble created by Russian misbehavior. A new Chinese champion — from California. An ace American skier who faltered and went home empty-handed. The end of the Olympic line for the world’s most renowned snowboarder. All inside an anti-covid “closed loop” enforced by China’s authoritarian...
Finland beats Russians for its 1st Olympic hockey gold medal
BEIJING — Sheets of paper rained down like super-sized confetti on the bench, which players leapt off at full speed to pile on top of goaltender Harri Sateri with such force that they knocked the net off its moorings. After finally accomplishing what so many Finland teams before were unable...
