NBA PLAYOFFS:
Luka Doncic had 30 points and 14 rebounds as the Dallas Mavericks avoided being swept with a 119-109 victory over Golden State in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals.
Dorian Finney-Smith had 23 points and Reggie Bullock had 18 points for Dallas on 6-of-10 shooting after missing all 10 of his shots in Game 3. Steph Curry had 20 for Golden State. The loss snapped the Warriors’ nine-game winning streak in Western Conference finals games. But they are still firmly in control of this series. Game 5 is Thursday night in California. No NBA team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a best-of-seven series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, fellow two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Devin Booker and Jayson Tatum were voted first-team All-NBA, the first time in 67 years all five players were age 27 or younger.
Milwaukee’s Antetokounmpo was the only player to receive all 100 possible first-team votes and finished with 500 points in his fourth consecutive first-team selection. Denver’s Jokic and Dallas’ Doncic each received 88 first-team votes and 476 points. Doncic joined Tim Duncan, Kevin Durant and Max Zaslofsky as the only players to make the first team three or more times before turning 24, while Phoenix’s Booker and Boston’s Tatum both were first-time selections to the first team.
NHL PLAYOFFS:
Andrew Copp had a goal and two assists, and Frank Vatrano and Adam Fox each had a goal and an assist as the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 in Game 4 to even their second-round series.
Mika Zibanejad also scored, Ryan Lindgren had two assists and Igor Shesterkin stopped 30 shots for the Rangers, who won their fifth straight at home in the postseason. Teuvo Teravainen scored and Antti Raanta finished with 24 saves for the Hurricanes, who fell to 0-5 on the road in the postseason to go along with their 6-0 mark at home. Game 5 is in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Thursday night, and Game 6 at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.
Also:
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored his second goal of the game with 3:27 left in regulation, and the Edmonton Oilers beat the Calgary Flames 5-3 to take a 3-1 lead in the second-round playoff series. Evander Kane scored his NHL-leading 11th and 12th goals of the postseason, and Zach Hyman added a goal for Edmonton. Leon Draisaitl added two assists and Mike Smith made 29 saves. Elias Lindholm and Mikael Backlund scored for Calgary, and Rasmus Andersson added a short-handed goal from his own end in the third period to tie the game at 3. Jacob Markstrom stopped 21 shots. Game 5 is Thursday night in Calgary.
TEXAS SHOOTING:
In Dallas, Steve Kerr and Jason Kidd did not want to talk about basketball. LeBron James made no effort to hide his anger. Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, a young father, called the news “devastating.”
The sports world reacted swiftly Tuesday to the news of an 18-year-old gunman opening fire at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas in the deadliest shooting at a U.S. grade school since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, almost a decade ago.
MLB:
Jose Trevino hit a game-ending single in the 11th inning and the ailing New York Yankees overcame injuries to two All-Stars to end their first three-game skid of the season, beating the Baltimore Orioles 7-6. Trevino hit his second homer of the season earlier in the game and also had a tying single in the seventh.
Elsewhere in the majors:
Corbin Burnes outlasted Blake Snell in a showdown of recent Cy Young Award winners and Tyrone Taylor hit a tiebreaking, three-run homer as the Milwaukee Brewers beat the San Diego Padres 4-1. Mike Brosseau also homered for the Brewers, who ended the Padres’ winning streak at five. Burnes is the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner. He held the Padres to one run and five hits in six innings, struck out five and walked two. The only run off the right-hander came on a double-play ball in the first and he allowed just one baserunner into scoring position the rest of the way.
Pavin Smith and pinch-hitter Jordan Luplow homered in a five-run sixth inning to help the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Kansas City Royals 8-6. Daulton Varsho and David Peralta also homered for the Diamondbacks, who have won five of their last six and have 15 homers in that stretch, including seven in a 10-6 victory against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field last Friday. Rookie MJ Melendez homered and drove in three runs for Kansas City, which has lost six in a row and eight of 10.
Elvis Andrus hit a tying homer in the sixth, singled and scored in the seventh and the Oakland Athletics snapped a 13-game losing streak against the Seattle Mariners with a 7-5 victory. Tony Kemp had three hits for the Athletics and Jed Lowrie also homered. With the score tied at 5 in the seventh, Andrus’ single off Anthony Misiewicz was deflected by left fielder Jesse Winker. The error allowed Sean Murphy to score the go-around run. Luis Barrera then drove in Andrus with a double to give Oakland a two-run lead.
Noah Syndergaard pitched eight innings of four-hit ball in his longest appearance since returning from elbow surgery, and Jared Walsh homered in the Los Angeles Angels’ 5-3 victory over the Texas Rangers. Luis Rengifo and Tyler Wade had RBI singles during a four-run fourth inning for the Angels. Syndergaard rebounded impressively from a poor outing at Texas last week by retiring the first 13 Rangers he faced at Angel Stadium. He shut out the Rangers until Jonah Heim’s leadoff homer in the eighth.
Danny Jansen hit a three-run homer and a solo shot, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. also went deep and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-1. Toronto split the two-game series and ended the Cardinals’ winning streak at four. Jordan Hicks took the loss, pitching three-plus innings in his first career start against the Blue Jays. He allowed four runs on four hits with five walks.
Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings and Kyle Tucker led the offense with a three-run homer to help the Houston Astros to a 7-3 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night. Valdez allowed seven hits and three runs in seven innings, collecting his third straight win and allowing the Astros to bounce back after dropping the series opener 6-1.
Kevin Kiermaier hit Pablo López’s first pitch for an inside-the-park home run and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Miami Marlins 4-0. Harold Ramirez and Ji-Man Choi also homered off López, who had given up only two home runs in eight preceding starts.
Frank Schwindel homered twice in a game for the first time in his career, Marcus Stroman recovered from a rough start to pitch five effective innings, and the Chicago Cubs rolled past the Cincinnati Reds 11-4.
Connor Joe singled home the tiebreaking run in the top of the 10th inning and the Colorado Rockies slipped past the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1. The Rockies won for just the second time in their last 12 road games.
MLB:
Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu was a late scratch from New York’s lineup with left wrist discomfort, and closer Aroldis Chapman was added to the injured list with left Achilles tendinitis.
LeMahieu was set to lead off and play third base against the Baltimore Orioles, but New York announced he wouldn’t play about 90 minutes before first pitch Tuesday night.
In other MLB news:
The Seattle Mariners have activated 2020 AL rookie of the year Kyle Lewis from the injured list nearly a year after he last played in a major league game. Lewis missed most of last season due to a right knee injury, but the slumping Mariners are hoping his return to the lineup can provide a spark.
The Milwaukee Brewers have placed outfielder Hunter Renfroe on the 10-day injured list with a strained right hamstring and selected infielder-outfielder Mark Mathias from Triple-A Nashville. Renfroe was injured during Monday night’s 3-2, 10-inning loss to the San Diego Padres.
NFL:
The NFL has expanded the Rooney Rule again, this time to include quarterbacks coaches in a further effort to diversify the coaching ranks. The change was announced Tuesday at the owners meeting in Atlanta by Jonathan Beane, the NFL’s senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer.
The oft-criticized Rooney Rule, adopted in 2003 to enhance opportunities for minorities to gain head coaching jobs and expanded several times to include front office positions, now will requires one minority or female candidate from another team to be interviewed for quarterbacks coach. Previously, the rule covered head coach, general manager and all coordinator jobs.
In other NFL news:
One of the women accusing Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual misconduct while she gave him a massage says she felt “scared” and threatened by a comment he made following a therapy session. Appearing on HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,” Ashley Solis provided graphic details of an encounter with the three-time Pro Bowler.
Reigning MVP Aaron Rodgers was one of several notable veterans missing as the Green Bay Packers began voluntary organized team activities this week. Packers coach Matt LaFleur confirmed Tuesday that Rodgers isn’t expected at all this week. Rodgers indicated last month he plans to join the Packers for their mandatory minicamp in June. Rodgers skipped all the OTAs as well as the minicamp last year during a standoff with team management.
The Baltimore Ravens have agreed to terms with cornerback Kyle Fuller. Fuller spent last season with the Denver Broncos. Prior to that, he played in 80 games for the Chicago Bears from 2014-20, intercepting 19 passes.
INDIANA:
Republican lawmakers in Indiana have voted to override the GOP governor’s veto of a bill banning transgender females from competing in girls school sports and join more than a dozen other states adopting similar laws.
The American Civil Liberties Union intends to file a lawsuit against what it called “hateful legislation” in hopes of blocking it from taking effect on July 1. Supporters maintain the ban is needed to protect the integrity of girls sports.
NCAA:
A survey of college athletes by the NCAA suggests that rates of mental exhaustion, anxiety and depression remain as much as twice as high as pre-pandemic levels, but feelings of hopelessness have improved.
The study is a follow-up to two conducted in the fall of 2020. It’s based on input from more than 9,800 respondents between Nov. 17 and Dec. 13 and shows that mental health concerns remain sharply elevated. The NCAA constitution mandates that each member school create an environment that reinforces the need for and encourages the availability of resources for the physical and mental health concerns within athletics.
SENIOR PGA:
Former Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker has pulled out of the Senior PGA Championship after testing positive for the coronavirus.
Stricker revealed his positive test Tuesday on Twitter. He says he was “super bummed” and that it was “just a small setback.” Stricker was out of competition for six months because of a virus that he says doctors never fully identified. He became ill last fall about a month after leading the Americans to a record blowout over Europe at Whistling Straits.
TENNIS:
Daniil Medvedev got his French Open off to a winning start — never a sure thing for the second-seeded Russian. The U.S. Open champion beat Facundo Bagnis of Argentina 6-2, 6-2, 6-2.
Medvedev was a quarterfinalist at Roland Garros last year after four straight losses in the first round. The Russian earned his first victory since undergoing hernia surgery nearly two months ago. He had lost his opening-round match at the Geneva Open last week on his return. Medvedev reached the final at the Australian Open this year, losing to Rafael Nadal in five sets.
In other Tuesday action:
Third-seeded Paula Badosa needed just 54 minutes to beat wild-card entry Fiona Ferro 6-2, 6-0 at Roland Garros. The 24-year-old Badosa lost only two points in the second set as she looks to build on her run to the quarterfinals at last year’s French Open. Eleventh-seeded American Jessica Pegula also reached the second round.
Frances Tiafoe finally earned his first victory at the French Open on his seventh attempt. The American beat Benjamin for his first win at Roland Garros after six first-round defeats. The 24th-ranked Tiafoe advances to a second-round match against David Goffin of Belgium.
Sebastian Korda advanced to the second round with a 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (6) victory over Australian veteran John Millman. The 27th-seeded American fended off two set points in the tiebreaker and converted his fourth match point when Millman hit a forehand volley long. Korda reached the fourth round at the French Open in 2020 as a qualifier.
Danish teenager Holger Rune upset 14th-seeded Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-1, 7-6 (4) in the first round. The 19-year-old Rune won the BMW Open this month and was a semifinalist in Lyon last week.
SOCCER:
Roman Abramovich’s 19 years as Chelsea owner is closer to ending after the British government approved the sale of the Premier League soccer club by the sanctioned Russian oligarch to a consortium fronted by Los Angeles Dodgers part-owner Todd Boehly.
The government had to be sure that Abramovich, who was sanctioned over his links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, did not profit from the enforced sale of the club that his investment turned into one of the most successful in European football.
The reigning FIFA Club World Cup winners and 2021 European champions will be sold for 2.5 billion pounds ($3.1 billion) — the highest price ever for a sports team — once Premier League approval is granted.
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