NBA PLAYOFFS:
The Grizzlies stormed back from a 26-point deficit to beat the Wolves, 104-95. Desmond Bane made seven 3-pointers and had 26 points, guiding Memphis to a 2-1 series lead. Brandon Clarke scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half for the Grizzlies, who also received a triple-double from Ja Morant. The All-Star finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
D’Angelo Russell had 22 points and eight assists for the Wolves, but Karl-Anthony Towns chipped in just eight points.
Game 4 is on Saturday night in Minneapolis.
The Mavericks are up 2-1 in their first-round series after Jalen Brunson scored 31 points in a 126-118 win over the Jazz. Spencer Dinwiddie scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter for Dallas, which has regained control of the series despite playing the three games without Luka Doncic.
The Mavs led just 103-102 until Dinwiddie and Brunson led a 10-2 run. Dinwiddie made two baskets and Brunson scored six points on three straight possessions to make it 113-104.
Donovan Mitchell scored 28 of his 32 points in the second half for Utah. Bojan Bogdanovic added 24 and Mike Conley had 21 for the Jazz, who will host Game 4 on Saturday.
The final game last night had the Warriors taking a three-games-to-none lead with a 118-113 victory at Denver. Klay Thompson made six 3-pointers on his way to 26 points for Golden State, which closed on a 9-2 run. Stephen Curry and Jordan Poole scored 27 points each to help the Warriors get in position to close out the series on Saturday.
The Nuggets lost despite Nikola Jokic, who had 37 points and 18 boards.
Denver was in control for much of the second half but Golden State tightened up on defense after Jokic’s finger roll layup put the Nuggets ahead, 111-109 with 3:20 left.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Khris Middleton will miss at least two weeks with a sprained MCL after getting hurt in the fourth quarter of their Game 2 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.
The defending NBA champs initially said after Wednesday’s game that they could be missing Middleton for a significant time.
The Bucks’ injury report for the game Friday doesn’t include forward Bobby Portis, an indication he should be available to play after missing most of Game 2 with a right eye abrasion.
MLB:
New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone went from Scrooge to Santa Claus in the eyes of Tigers fans on Thursday in Detroit.
Boone elected to intentionally walk Miguel Cabrera in the eighth inning, denying the Tigers designated hitter of a chance for his 3,000th career hit. The decision came with a runner on, two out and the Tigers clinching to a 1-0 lead.
One batter later, Austin Meadows blooped a two-run double to put Detroit ahead by three in a 3-0 shutout of New York.
Former Yankee Michael Pineda picked up his first win as a Tiger, yielding three hits over five innings.
Robbie Grossman doubled home Detroit’s first run off hard-luck loser David Mongomery, who allowed just two other hits while becoming the first Yankee to throw six innings this year.
Elsewhere in the majors:
The Blue Jays were 3-2 winners over the Red Sox behind Kevin Gausman, who scattered seven hits and took a six-hit shutout into the ninth. Gausman struck out eight, walked none and was pulled after allowing Trevor Story’s single to lead off the ninth. Matt Chapman had three hits and an RBI for Toronto.
The Guardians completed a three-game sweep as Josh Naylor had two hits and two RBIs in a 6-3 win versus the White Sox. Naylor was activated Friday after suffering multiple fractures in his right leg during an outfield collision last June. Franmil belted a two-run homer and Zach Plesac allowed one earned run and seven hits through 6 2/3 innings.
Sean Murphy hit a two-run homer and RBI double as the Athletics downed the Orioles, 6-4. Cristian Pache also went deep and winning pitcher Paul Blackburn allowed one run on three hits over five frames. Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde and designated hitter Trey Mancini were ejected for arguing a base-running call in the fourth inning.
Joe Ryan and Miguel Sano led Minnesota’s 1-0 verdict over the Royals, preventing Kansas City from completing a three-game sweep. Sano lifted a sacrifice fly to back Ryan, who limited Kansas City to two hits over six innings. Emilio Pagan worked around a leadoff walk in the ninth for the Twins’ first save this season.
The Rangers' five-game skid is over after they scored twice in the ninth inning to beat the Mariners, 8-6. Adolis Garcia scored the tiebreaking run on Cole Kalhoun's two-out double and made a diving catch in the bottom of the ninth. Ty France and J.P. Crawford homered while Seattle was taking a 5-0 lead in the first inning.
Carlos Carrasco pitched into the eighth inning for the first time in almost three years, leading the Mets over the Giants, 6-2. Carrasco allowed four hits with seven strikeouts over 7 2/3 innings, his longest outing since being diagnosed with leukemia. Francisco Lindor and Eduardo Escobar hit solo homers and Mark Canha had two RBIs as the Mets became the first team with 10 wins this season, taking three of four from San Francisco.
Pablo López pitched three-hit ball over seven dominant innings of the Marlins’ 5-0 shutout of the Cardinals. López struck out nine, including Cardinals star Albert Pujols three times. Jesús Sánchez and Jazz Chisholm Jr. homered in Miami’s first win in nine games against St. Louis.
Daniel Vogelbach hit a two-run homer and Yoshi Tsutsugo had a two-run double as the Pirates topped the Cubs, 4-3. Both hits came after the Cubs took a 3-0 lead off Bryce Wilson. Winning pitcher Wil Crowe fanned five Cubs in 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, allowing one hit.
Cooper Hummel’s tiebreaking two-run blast gave the Diamondbacks a 4-2 lead in the fifth inning of a 4-3 victory in Washington. Matt Davidson and Jake McCarthy also homered for Arizona, which split the four-game series and has won consecutive games for the first time this season. Arizona closer Mark Melancon retired Juan Soto with the bases loaded in the ninth.
MLB:
Red Sox manager Alex Cora tested positive for COVID-19 and did not manage Thursday’s series finale against Toronto. Bench coach Will Venable took Cora’s place in the dugout.
Cora won’t travel with the team to St. Petersburg, Florida, for the weekend series against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Red Sox say Cora is suffering from mild symptoms.
The skipper has been vaccinated and boosted.
In other MLB news:
The Rangers will be without starting pitcher Jon Gray for at least one start after he suffered a left knee sprain. Gray will go on the injured list Friday and right-hander Glenn Otto is expected to be brought up from Triple-A Round Rock to start Friday night against Oakland.
Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer’s administrative leave has been extended through April 29 by Major League Baseball and the players’ association. Bauer was first placed on seven days’ paid leave last July 2 under the joint domestic violence and sexual assault policy of MLB and the union.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL:
Gonzaga stars Chet Holmgren and Andrew Nembhard have announced that they will enter the NBA draft.
Holmgren is expected to be a top five pick, while Nembhard is projected as a likely second-rounder.
Holmgren was the West Coast Conference newcomer of the year, defensive player of the year and a first-team all-conference selection, averaging 14.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.6 blocks.
Also in men’s college basketball:
Kentucky guard Shaedon Sharpe will enter the NBA draft and be evaluated while maintaining his collegiate eligibility after not playing last season with the Wildcats.
NHL:
It’s still a dead heat atop the Metropolitan Division following wins by the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers.
The Hurricanes turned a 2-0 deficit into a 4-2 win over the Jets. Teuvo Teravainen sparked the rally with a power-play goal in the second period. He also set up Seth Jarvis’ tiebreaker 8:21 into the third.
Jaccob Slavin and Jordan Staal also tallied in the final period, with Staal firing into an empty net.
The Rangers were 6-3 winners over the Islanders as Andrew Copp netted a natural hat trick in the first period, doing it in a 14 ½-minute span. Artemi Panarin set up Copp’s three goals and finished with four assists.
Chris Kreider added his 51st goal of the season for the Rangers, who are tied with the Hurricanes with 108 points apiece. Both teams have four games remaining and will meet next week.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
Aleksander Barkov scored his 38th goal and the Panthers tied a franchise record with their 12th straight win, 5-2 versus the Red Wings. Florida leads the league with 118 points, two more than Colorado with four games remaining for both clubs.
Casey DeSmith made a career-high 52 saves and Jake Guentzel scored three goals as the Penguins beat the Bruins, 4-0. Guentzel’s third goal was an empty-netter and his 40th of the season helping Pittsburgh move two points ahead of Washington for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
Steven Stamkos scored his 34th goal of the season and became Tampa Bay’s all-time scoring leader as the Lightning crushed the Maple Leafs, 8-1. Ross Colton and Alex Killorn each had two goals and an assist in the rout.
Matthew Tkachuk reached 40 goals and 100 points as the Flames topped the Stars, 4-2 to clinch the Pacific Division title. Chris Tanev notched the game-winner against Dallas, which loss all three games on their Western Canada trip.
The Wild doubled up the Canucks, 6-3 to clinch second place in the Central Division. Kevin Fiala scored twice, including the go-ahead goal in the third period. Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello each had a goal and two assists for the Wild, who also got goals from Jared Spurgeon and Ryan Hartman.
Robert Thomas scored his 20th goal to extend his points streak to 15 games, guiding St. Louis to a 3-1 win at San Jose. Dakota Joshua also scored and Pavel Buchnevich added an empty-netter to secure the Blues's 12th win in 14 games.
Phillip Danault scored for the fifth straight game and the Kings moved closer to wrapping up a playoff spot with a 4-1 victory over the Blackhawks. Danault opened the scoring in the first period with his 26th goal of the season, stretching his point streak to seven games.
The Flyers’ six-game losing streak is over after James van Reimsdyk provided two goals and an assist in their 6-3 downing of the Canadiens.
Kyle Okposo and Alex Tuch scored short-handed goals less than a minute apart in the first period of the Sabres’ 5-2 victory against the Devils.
NFL:
Former AFL Player of the Year Daryle Lamonica has died at age 80. Authorities say he died Thursday of what are believed to be natural causes at his home in Fresno, California.
The deep-throwing quarterback nicknamed the “Mad Bomber” led the Oakland Raiders to Super Bowl II in 1968, where they lost to the Green Bay Packers, 33-14.
Lamonica topped the AFL with 3,302 yards passing and 34 touchdowns in 1969. The 34 TDs still stand as the franchise’s single-season record more than a half-century later.
PGA:
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele are the first-round leaders at the Zurich Classic near New Orleans.
Cantlay holed a 25-foot eagle putt early and chipped in from 40 feet for birdie late. Schauffele contributed six birdies of his own, and their three straight birdies to close gave them a 13-under 59 in fourballs.
It set a tournament record since the Zurich Classic switched to team play in 2017, and the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup partners were willing to claim a piece of golf’s magic number. They had a one-shot lead over the team of Matthew NeSmith and Taylor Moore.
BOXING:
Authorities have begun an investigation after former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson was recorded on video punching a fellow passenger on board a plane at San Francisco International Airport.
The video was first shared by TMZ and shows Tyson leaning over the back of his seat repeatedly striking the unidentified man in the head, drawing blood. Prior to the physical altercation, the man is seen on the video standing over Tyson’s seat, waving his arms and talking animatedly while the former boxer sits quietly.
GYMNASTICS:
Thirteen sexual assault victims are seeking $10 million each from the FBI. They claim a bungled investigation by federal agents led to more abuse by the sports doctor.
It’s an effort to make the government responsible for assaults that occurred after 2015. The Justice Department’s inspector general concluded last year that the FBI made fundamental errors when it became aware of allegations against Dr. Larry Nassar. He was a Michigan State University sports doctor as well as a doctor at USA Gymnastics.
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