U.S./World Sports category, Page 379
Column: Hendrick sends statement with sweep to open Daytona
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Rick Hendrick was telling the truth when he insisted this year was going to be much improved from last season, the worst in team history. He moved personnel and split up seven-time NASCAR Cup champions Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus. He had a Navy SEAL deliver...
Texans star J.J. Watt to serve as Daytona 500 grand marshal
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Houston Texans star J.J. Watt will serve as the grand marshal for the Daytona 500, making him the first NFL player to give the command for drivers to starts their engines before NASCAR’s most famous race. Daytona International Speedway made the announcement Monday, six days before...
Tennessee remains at No. 1 in AP poll, ahead of Duke
The NCAA Division I Basketball Committee slated Duke as the No. 1 overall seed in its initial tournament rankings over the weekend. Voters in the AP Top 25 stuck with Tennessee as their top team. The Vols received 40 of 64 first-place votes from a media panel in the poll...
Phil Mickelson finishes off record 5th win at Pebble Beach Pro-Am
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Phil Mickelson is closing in on three decades on the PGA Tour and a half-century on Earth, and he still feels his best golf is good enough. He was at his best at Pebble Beach, and no one had a chance. A Monday finish brought on...
NBA All-Stars break out specialty shoes for weekend
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NBA players once again will be sharing personal stories this weekend during All-Star festivities — and using basketball shoes as a platform to get their message out. When Kevin Durant takes the floor on Sunday he’ll be wearing pink Nike KD 11 Aunt Pearls shoes bearing the...
Thousands of dogs begin vying for Westminster Kennel Club title
NEW YORK — Dogs from affenpinschers to Yorkshire terriers are rounding the rings at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. Breed judging began Monday at the illustrious show in New York. More than 2,800 dogs in 203 breeds and varieties are signed up to compete over two days, leading up...
Bruce Morris recalls hitting longest shot in basketball history
NEW YORK — Thirty-four years after hitting the longest shot in college basketball history, Bruce Morris is still amazed at what he accomplished. Morris was Marshall’s point guard when he hit the historic basket from 89 feet, 10 inches just before halftime against Appalachian State on Feb. 7, 1985. He...
Phil Mickelson on verge of winning Pebble Beach pro-am
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Phil Mickelson put himself on the brink of a fifth victory in the AT&T Pebble Beach pro-am by turning a three-shot deficit into a three-shot lead when a wild day of weather kept him from finishing Sunday. Mickelson was bogey-free with six birdies, and he made...
Saint Vincent grads Turner, Mathers build life, pro basketball careers in Australia
The journey began in Bethany, W.Va., with a simple congratulatory text. The road led to the other side of the world. Former Saint Vincent standouts Isaac Turner (Class of 2014) and Taylor Mathers (’15) are living their own version of love and basketball. Both first-team all-Presidents’ Athletic Conference selections as...
Byron wins Daytona 500 pole, puts Hendricks up front again
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — William Byron put Hendrick Motorsports in a familiar position: on the pole for the Daytona 500. His bigger goal is to make the starting spot pay dividends for the NASCAR powerhouse. The 21-year-old Byron and 25-year-old teammate Alex Bowman locked in the front row for “The...
What to watch at the 143rd Westminster Kennel Club dog show
NEW YORK — The 143rd Westminster Kennel Club dog show begins judging Monday morning, with Pyrenean shepherds, Pembroke Welsh corgis and pugs among the early arrivals. More than 2,800 dogs are coming in 203 breeds and varieties. Judge Peter J. Green is expected to make his pick for best in...
Paul Casey takes 3-shot lead into final round at Pebble Beach
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Paul Casey was far away from all the antics and quietly put together another solid round Saturday for a 5-under-par 67 that gave him a three-shot lead over Phil Mickelson going into the final day of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Casey had four birdies over...
Changes abound as NASCAR season opens at Daytona
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Chase Elliott took blame for the first crash of NASCAR’s new season on a blustery day at Daytona International Speedway that was shortened by rain. Martin Truex Jr. topped the speed chart in his debut for Joe Gibbs Racing, and Bubba Wallace jumped to the top...
Wealth of ex-NFL minds give new AAF a fighting chance
SAN DIEGO — Nearly four decades removed from a stint in the short-lived USFL, Pro Football Hall of Famer Bill Polian will preside over the opening weekend of the newest spring league, the Alliance of American Football. “It’s one more challenge at the end of a long career,” said Polian,...
U.S. skiing great Lindsey Vonn vows to go ‘full throttle’ in final race of career
ARE, Sweden — Anyone expecting Lindsey Vonn to take it easy in her last race should think again. Doesn’t matter if she’s still banged up from a crash with a black eye, a sore rib — not to mention the pain in both of her knees that forced her to...
Lindsey Vonn and boyfriend P.K. Subban go together like snow and ice
ARE, Sweden — Of all the people flying in to attend Lindsey Vonn’s final race — her dad and two siblings, U.S. Ski Team top brass and even Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark — one very significant other will be missing. P.K. Subban, Vonn’s boyfriend and a defenseman for the NHL’s...
Architect of Jimmie Johnson’s success starting over in 2019
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Chad Knaus got his first big break at Hendrick Motorsports when he was picked to build a team from scratch around a rookie driver who had yet to prove he belonged at NASCAR’s top level. The driver was Jimmie Johnson. Once Johnson was paired with Knaus...
Mickelson, Spieth among leaders as rain halts Pebble Beach Pro-Am
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Phil Mickelson survived a wild finish without having to deal with the rain. Jordan Spieth endured a wet finish to his day with three tough pars, followed by some unwitting help by a spooked fan. Both were atop the leaderboard Friday in the AT&T Pebble Beach...
Rocco Mediate admits: At times, I played while drunk
Greensburg native Rocco Mediate made a personal revelation. The former PGA pro admitted that he had alcohol problems while on the tour and would even, at times, play while drunk. A story from The Golf Channel, quotes Mediate saying that drinking was a way to self-medicate for his back problems....
Rick Hendrick vows rebound from worst season in team history
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Rick Hendrick worked too hard building NASCAR’s top organization to tolerate mediocrity. If his teams had simply been average last season, he might not rate it as one of the worst in team history. The Hendrick cars were pretty bad — seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson...
Pebble Beach won’t offer U.S. Open preview this week
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Only four American courses have hosted a PGA Tour event and a major championship in the same year, a concept that USGA chief executive Mike Davis does not consider to be ideal. One big exception is Pebble Beach. “I think this is great,” Davis said Wednesday...
As she has done most of her career, Vonn must bounce back from yet another crash
ARE, Sweden — One of the hallmarks of Lindsey Vonn’s career has been the way she bounces back from major crashes. So perhaps it’s fitting the most successful female skier of all time will enter her last race before retiring after yet another tumble into the safety netting. Vonn straddled...
Fledgling Alliance of American Football kicks off under some new rules
SAN DIEGO — When the fledgling Alliance of American Football held four exhibition games recently in San Antonio, something was missing. Kickoffs. “We were all looking around saying, ‘Does anyone miss kickoffs?’ The answer was, no, we did not miss them,” said Mike Pereira, the NFL’s former vice president of...
Lakers pull out of Anthony Davis trade talks amid Pelicans’ ‘outrageous’ requests
INDIANAPOLIS — The Lakers have pulled out of conversations aimed at trying to acquire New Orleans All-Star Anthony Davis because of the Pelicans’ “outrageous” trade requests, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. Magic Johnson, the Lakers’ president of basketball operations, told New Orleans general manager Dell Demps...
Triple bogey can’t keep Rickie Fowler from winning Phoenix Open
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Standing above a greenside bunker at TPC Scottsdale’s difficult par-4 11th hole, Rickie Fowler turned just in time to see his ball, one he had just placed after penalty, trickle into the water. Fowler had already seen his share of bad luck at the Phoenix Open. Now...
