U.S./World Sports category, Page 49
Marcus Ericsson crashes in practice, no regrets headed into Indy 500Video
INDIANAPOLIS — Marcus Ericsson returned to the Indianapolis 500 with zero regrets but ended Thursday with a violent collision late in the first full day of practice. Ericsson hit a curb with about two hours remaining in the session, causing his car to spin and hit the wall three times....
Caitlin Clark’s WNBA debut helps ESPN set viewership record for league game on network
NEW YORK — ESPN’s broadcast of the Connecticut Sun’s game against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever had the highest viewership for a WNBA game on the network. The Sun’s 92-71 win over the Fever in Clark’s WNBA debut on the league’s opening night on Tuesday drew an average of...
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips holding out hope for ‘really good ending’ despite league turmoil
AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — With the future of the Atlantic Coast Conference in question, commissioner Jim Phillips expressed optimism Wednesday that the league can still be salvaged. The path forward is unclear but not without hope. “You have to stay optimistic, and you work through these things,” Phillips said at...
Mark Madden: WNBA needs to better showcase Caitlin Clark to break out of niche status
This space predicted three months ago that women’s basketball would blow it with phenom Caitlin Clark. That’s already started. Her first WNBA game wasn’t played on the big stage of, say, New York City. It was played Tuesday night at an arena in a Connecticut casino. Clark’s Indiana Fever lost...
Caitlin Clark finishes with 20 points, 10 turnovers as Indiana falls to Connecticut in WNBA opener
UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Caitlin Clark struggled early in her WNBA debut before finishing with 20 points and 10 turnovers as the Indiana Fever fell to the Connecticut Sun 92-71 on Tuesday night. Alyssa Thomas led the Sun with 13 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds, registering the 12th triple-double of...
FIFA moves toward ending soccer tradition and letting league games be staged in other countries
GENEVA — FIFA moved Wednesday toward ending decades of soccer tradition by ordering a review of its policy that currently blocks domestic league games being played in other countries. Fans are likely to object to their teams’ home matches potentially being moved thousands of miles away, though it has become...
Scheffler never happier with his life, wife and son. Now he’s ready to grab another major at PGAVideo
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Scottie Scheffler has never spent much time reflecting on anything he has done, especially with something grand — another major championship — on the immediate horizon. But for that moment in Dallas last week, when wife Meredith came home with their first baby, it was hard not...
Final Preakness at Pimlico before rebuilding stirs nostalgia mixed with relief for needed fixesVideo
BALTIMORE — Preakness days in recent years have featured water and plumbing miscues. A large section of the grandstand at Pimlico Race Course has been rendered unusable because it’s condemned, and much of the rest of the storied but decaying track is a relic to the sport of kings’ heyday...
Indy 500: When it starts, how to watch, betting odds for ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’
The countdown is on for the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500, when a field of 33 cars will cross the famed yard of bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Memorial Day weekend for what is regarded as “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Josef Newgarden is the defending champion after...
Derby winner Mystik Dan draws No. 5 post for Preakness
BALTIMORE — Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan drew the No. 5 post position in the Preakness on Monday looking to sweep the first two legs of horse racing’s Triple Crown, though he’s not favored to do so. Bob Baffert-trained Muth, just inside Mystik Dan in the No. 4 post, opened...
Bronny James receives medical clearance to play in NBA
NBA teams were told Monday that Bronny James, the son of the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James, has been medically cleared to play in the league, a person with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press. Teams were told of the clearance in a memo sent Monday morning, according...
Rory McIlroy rallies to win record 4th Wells Fargo Championship title
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy has a full head of steam heading into the PGA Championship. McIlroy won the Wells Fargo Championship for a record fourth time Sunday with another dominating performance at Quail Hollow, easily overcoming a two-stroke deficit to beat Xander Schauffele by five shots. No other player...
Brad Keselowski ends 3-year NASCAR drought, wins at Darlington
DARLINGTON, S.C. — Brad Keselowski moved to the front when leaders Chris Buescher and Tyler Reddick hit battling for first with nine laps left and held on to win the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday for his first NASCAR win in three years. It was Keselowski’s 36th career...
Hawks win NBA lottery in year with no clear No. 1 pick
CHICAGO — The Atlanta Hawks won the NBA Draft lottery Sunday, landing the No. 1 pick and a potential cornerstone player in a year where there’s no clear-cut choice. The Hawks hit the jackpot despite just 3% odds after finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference at 36-46. They dropped their...
Rory McIlroy pulls within shot of Xander Schauffele in Wells Fargo ChampionshipVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Xander Schauffele has gone 38 tournaments without a win on the PGA Tour. Rory McIlroy is doing his best to make sure Schauffele’s painful drought continues. McIlroy shot a bogey-free 4-under-par 67 on Saturday on fast greens to pull within a stroke of Schauffele with 18 holes...
Kyle Larson is not hardcore Taylor Swift fan despite trip to Paris for concert
DARLINGTON, S.C. — Kyle Larson made one thing clear: He’s no Swiftie, even if he did surprise his daughter with a birthday trip to Paris this week to see Taylor Swift in concert. Yes, Larson wore a Swift-themed T-shirt and a couple of friendship bracelets given to him by wife...
PGA CHAMPIONSHIP ’24: Justin Thomas gets rare experience playing a major in his hometownVideo
Justin Thomas was back home in Kentucky for an occasion different from any other time in Louisville. The city honored him with its “Hometown Hero” award, and a 60-foot banner was unfurled from the building he used to pass on the way to Saint Xavier High School. Thomas was so...
Franklin Regional grad Spencer Lee to wrestle for Team USA at Summer Olympic Games
Spencer Lee’s 83-year old grandmother lives in France and never has seen him wrestle in person. She will this summer. The Franklin Regional and Iowa graduate qualified for the Summer Olympic Games in Paris by reaching the finals Saturday at the Last Chance Olympic qualifier in Istanbul, Turkey. Lee went...
Judge strikes down N.Y. county’s ban on female transgender athletes after roller derby league sues
EAST MEADOW, N.Y. — A New York judge on Friday struck down a Long Island county’s order banning female transgender athletes after a local women’s roller derby league challenged it. Judge Francis Ricigliano ruled Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman didn’t have the authority to issue his February executive order, which...
Xander Schauffele shoots 67, leads by 4 over Rory McIlroy, Jason Day at Wells Fargo ChampionshipVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Xander Schauffele has been a mainstay near the top of the leaderboard most of the year. Now he’s hoping to close the door. Schauffele shot a 4-under-par 67 on Friday after opening with a 64, leaving him at 11-under 131 and four shots ahead of Rory McIlroy...
Missouri State moves up to Conference USA in 2025 from FCS, becoming 12th football member
Missouri State will move up to the highest tier of Division I college football and join Conference USA in 2025, the league announced Friday. Missouri State will become the 12th full member of CUSA and the third school to move up from the Championship Subdivision to the Bowl Subdivision and...
WNBA set to tip off with spotlight on rookie class led by Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Aces’ quest for 3-peat
While conversations about the WNBA’s growth may start with Caitlin Clark, any talk about the 2024 championship begins with the star-studded Las Vegas Aces led by A’ja Wilson and their quest to three-peat. The Aces have been dominant on the court the past two seasons, becoming the first team to...
Schauffele shoots 67 to take Wells Fargo lead. McIlroy in contention again at Quail HollowVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy hoped his victory with Shane Lowry two weeks ago in the Zurich Classic team event would serve as a springboard for the remainder of the season. He’s off to a good start. McIlroy positioned himself for a run at a record fourth Wells Fargo Championship...
Nuggets Nikola Jokic wins NBA’s MVP award, his 3rd in 4 seasons
Nikola Jokic did it all again. And the MVP trophy is his again. Jokic, the Denver Nuggets star from Serbia, was announced Wednesday night as the NBA’s MVP — his third time winning the award in the past four seasons, a feat that just six other players in league history...
Indianapolis sports columnist won’t cover Fever following awkward back-and-forth with Caitlin Clark
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Star sports columnist Gregg Doyel, whose interaction with WNBA No. 1 draft pick Caitlin Clark at her introductory news conference was criticized in the national media as being inappropriate, will not cover the Indiana Fever in person this season. Gannett spokesperson Lark-Marie Antón said in a statement...
