U.S./World Sports category, Page 330
NASCAR readies for season of much-needed changesVideo
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The sky isn’t falling — or at least it doesn’t feel that way — as NASCAR heads into the first of two seasons full of change. In the three months since Kyle Busch won his second championship, NASCAR took its awards ceremony to Nashville, Tenn., and...
Chiefs coach Andy Reid finally earns elusive Super Bowl titleVideo
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — When Andy Reid walked into an interview with the Philadelphia Eagles armed with a 6-inch binder containing notes on how to build a winning team, management was sold. But it took him 21 years and two teams to win it all. Big Red finally got his...
Baylor strengthens hold on No. 1 in AP Top 25 poll; Penn State to No. 22Video
Baylor has strengthened its hold on No. 1 in the AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll. The Bears received 49 of 65 first-place votes in Monday’s poll to stay comfortably ahead of Gonzaga and Kansas. That was up from 44 first-place votes from the previous week, with the Bears...
Colin Kaepernick’s Super Bowl close call has lasting impact on NFLVideo
MIAMI — One play. Five yards. A flag that wasn’t thrown. Seven years ago at the Super Bowl, history was made when a 49ers receiver, unable to break free from the prying hands of a harassing cornerback, could not grab a pass on fourth-and-goal that would have given San Francisco...
Djokovic rallies past Thiem to win 8th Australian Open title, 17th SlamVideo
MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic was looking weary and worn down. He felt dizzy and trailed Dominic Thiem in the Australian Open final — miscues mounting, deficit growing. Djokovic did what he does, though. He refused to lose, waited for a chance to pounce and found his best tennis when...
Tony Stewart seizes spotlight on night of celebrating SmokeVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — For one of the first times in his life, Tony Stewart showed up overdressed. Smoke wore a tuxedo to his induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame, and the blue honorary jacket is just a regular sport coat, not flashy enough to match the rest of Stewart’s...
Living ‘American Dream,’ Sofia Kenin wins her 1st Grand Slam titleVideo
MELBOURNE, Australia — Back in 1987, 11 years before new Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin was born, her parents left Moscow for New York City, eager to escape the Soviet Union and live in the United States because, as her father, Alex, put it: “You want to see the world....
Wiz Khalifa, Charlie Puth honor Kobe Bryant with emotional ‘See You Again’ halftime performanceVideo
The Los Angeles Lakers’ first game after the tragic death of NBA superstar Kobe Bryant was filled with heartfelt tributes. Friday’s game at the Staples Center, “The house that Kobe built,” featured the Lakers hosting the Portland Trailblazers. At halftime, Pittsburgh’s Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth performed their hit song...
Kyle Lowry headlines list of new-look NBA All-Star reservesVideo
The All-Star Game is going to have plenty of new faces. The NBA released the list of the players Thursday voted by the league’s head coaches as reserves for the Feb. 16 game in Chicago, including six who will be All-Stars for the first time. Kyle Lowry of the NBA...
NBA changing All-Star Game format, adding a Kobe tributeVideo
Kobe Bryant’s final jersey number will be something this year’s NBA All-Stars play to reach. The NBA announced major changes to the All-Star format on Thursday, turning every quarter into a mini-game for charity before an untimed final quarter with a target score that will decide which team wins. Scores...
Vanessa Bryant statement: ‘We are completely devastated’
Vanessa Bryant made her first public comment Wednesday since the helicopter crash that killed husband Kobe Bryant, one of their daughters and seven other people, taking to Instagram to thank people for the global outpouring of support since the tragedy. She also announced the formation of a fund to help...
Illinois a factor as Big Ten race reaches midway pointVideo
After a dramatic victory at Michigan last weekend, Illinois coach Brad Underwood was asked about the fact his team had taken sole possession of first place in the Big Ten. “I don’t even think like that,” he said. “I’m thinking about enjoying this one for a minute and figuring out...
Kobe’s boyhood hero Oscar Schmidt celebrates ‘annoying kid’Video
SAO PAULO — For little Kobe Bryant growing up in Italy, the player who amazed him as a child was a skinny and half-bald Brazilian guard who often beat his father’s teams with long-distance shots. Oscar Schmidt, one of basketball’s all-time leading scorers with almost 50,000 points, played with Italian...
Grieving Lakers return to practice, plan to make Kobe Bryant ‘proud’Video
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The Los Angeles Lakers ended practice with a few somber laughs. As they left the court, they passed under the oversized 8 and 24 outlined in white on the black wall above the door to their locker room. Anthony Davis and several other Lakers paused and...
Top-seeded Rafael Nadal bested in epic Australian Open quarterfinalVideo
MELBOURNE, Australia — Outplayed at his own brand of physical tennis for much of the match, Rafael Nadal finally claimed a set to try to start a comeback against Dominic Thiem. Nadal marked the moment by hopping in a crouch at the baseline and vigorously pumping his right arm four...
Kobe Bryant’s body, other crash victims identifiedVideo
LOS ANGELES — The helicopter carrying Kobe Bryant didn’t have a recommended warning system to alert the pilot he was too close to land but it’s not clear it would have averted the crash that killed nine because he may have lost control as the aircraft plunged into a fog-shrouded...
‘Citizen of the world’: Kobe Bryant promoted basketball globallyVideo
ROME — At a Lakers preseason game in Beijing in 2013, the arena rang out with chants of “Kobe! Kobe!” — despite the injured superstar not even having suited up. From Los Angeles to Italy, Asia and beyond, Kobe Bryant was bigger than just a basketball player. He was the...
Kobe Bryant leaves lasting impact on women’s basketballVideo
HARTFORD, Conn. — Kobe Bryant always had an interest in women’s basketball, one he shared with many in the sport even before his daughter Gianna started excelling at the game. Whether it was mentoring players such as Diana Taurasi, Jewell Loyd and Sabrina Ionescu or working out with Gabby Williams...
Roger Federer saves 7 match points in Australia; Novak Djokovic up nextVideo
MELBOURNE, Australia — Roger Federer was not going to go gently, of course, no matter how daunting the number of match points — his opponent accumulated seven — no matter how achy his 38-year-old legs, no matter how slow his serves, no matter how off-target his groundstrokes. Federer still plays...
Kobe Bryant’s helicopter had tried to climb to avoid cloud layerVideo
CALABASAS, Calif. — The pilot of the helicopter that crashed into a hillside outside Los Angeles, killing former NBA superstar Kobe Bryant and eight others, told air traffic controllers in his last radio message that he was climbing to avoid a cloud layer, an accident investigator said Monday. The pilot...
WPIAL, local college players dot XFL rosters with opener nearingVideo
Final roster cutdowns for XFL teams were Monday, and several former WPIAL and local college players are scattered around the league. Pitt has James Folston (linebacker, Dallas Renegades), Dewayne Hendrix (defensive lineman, St. Louis Battlehawks) and Belle Vernon’s Dorian Johnson (guard, Defenders) in the upstart league. Penn State is represented...
Los Angeles mourns death of adopted son Kobe BryantVideo
LOS ANGELES — The chants rose in the plaza across from Staples Center. “Kobe!” and “MVP! MVP!” They came from hundreds of fans gathered to mourn the death of Kobe Bryant. Candles burned alongside hand-lettered messages scrawled on signs and the pavement. Bunches of flowers piled up, some with purple-and-gold...
Nadal advances to Australian Open quarterfinals with win over rival KyrgiosVideo
MELBOURNE, Australia — Rafael Nadal left the muttering and the preening, the underarm serving and the ‘tweening to his younger, flashier opponent, Nick Kyrgios. Nadal was content to collect the win in the latest installment of their rivalry. The No. 1-ranked Nadal kept his thoughts to himself and limited his...
Canadian canoeist wins doping case, citing bodily fluids from boyfriend
LAUSANNE, Switzerland — A world champion canoeist won a doping case on Monday after persuading a tribunal that her positive test was caused by bodily fluid contamination from her boyfriend. The International Canoe Federation ended its investigation into 11-time world champion Laurence Vincent Lapointe, who tested positive for a steroid-like...
Baylor remains No. 1 in AP Top 25; Penn State lands at No. 24
Baylor is No. 1 for a second straight week in an AP Top 25 poll that had no major changes at the top, a rare bit of stability in a wildly unpredictable season. The Bears stayed well ahead of No. 2 Gonzaga in Monday’s poll, part of an unchanged top...
