NBA PLAYOFFS
Jamal Murray scored 23 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter, propelling the Denver Nuggets to a 108-103 come-from-behind win over the Los Angeles Lakers for a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals. Nikola Jokic had another triple-double for the Nuggets, who have never been this close to reaching the NBA Finals before. Game 3 is Saturday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, where LeBron James and the Lakers are 8-0 in the playoffs. The Nuggets have lost to the Lakers all three times they've advanced to the Western Conference Finals in 1985, 2009 and 2020 in the NBA bubble.
As much as this latest Eastern Conference finals pairing between the Heat and Celtics is a matchup that will lean heavily on stars like Jimmy Butler and Jayson Tatum, Game 1 proved it also will be a clash of Boston's rookie coach Joe Mazzulla and Miami's Erik Spoelstra. Mazzulla is trying to find ways to motivate a team with championship expectations. Spoelstra knows that position all too well and is proving this postseason how good he is at getting the best out of his players.
In other NBA playoff action, the Heat play Boston in Game 2 of their Conference Finals series tonight at 8:30 in Boston. Miami has a 1-0 lead.
NHL PLAYOFFS
Matthew Tkachuk beat Frederik Andersen in the final seconds of the fourth overtime to lift the Florida Panthers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 last night to open their Eastern Conference final series. Tkachuck took a feed from Sam Bennett after Florida had won a battle for the puck as Carolina tried to clear the puck. He then whipped a shot from the right circle past Andersen with 12.7 seconds left for the winner. It marked the longest game in either franchise’s history, as well as the sixth-longest game in NHL history. Game 2 is Saturday night at 8 in Raleigh. Elsewhere, Dallas will play the Golden Knights in Game 1 of their Conference Finals series tonight at 8:30 in Las Vegas.
MLB
Pete Alonso homered again and the New York Mets beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 to post consecutive wins for the first time in a month. The game was tied at 2 before Tommy Pham legged out a bouncer to third with one out in the sixth inning, driving in Jeff McNeil with the infield hit against Zack Littell. Tylor Megill worked six innings of two-run ball for the win. David Robertson allowed Randy Arozarena’s one-out double in the ninth before finishing his eighth save. The Mets won consecutive games for the first time since April 20-21 in San Francisco.
Aaron Judge hit a two-run home run in the first inning and the New York Yankees won for the 11th time in 16 games by beating the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2. Nestor Cortes allowed two runs and five hits in six-plus innings to snap a four-start winless streak. Anthony Volpe also homered for the Yankees, who took three of four from Toronto. Bo Bichette homered in the bottom of the first, but Toronto lost its first home series of the season after winning five straight. José Berríos allowed three runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings, losing for the first time since April 19 at Houston.
Elsewhere, the Red Sox were off last night. They start a 3-game series against the San Diego Padres tonight in San Diego at 9:40.
Willson Contreras hit two three-run homers, Nolan Gorman also homered twice and the St. Louis Cardinals went deep seven times in a home game for the first time in 83 years to power past the Los Angeles Dodgers 16-8. Nolan Arenado added a two-run homer, and Juan Yepez and Paul DeJong each hit solo homers run for St. Louis. The Cardinals have homered in a season-high seven games in a row. They hit seven in a home game for the first time since May 7, 1940, when they did it against the Brooklyn Dodgers. Yepez, Gorman and DeJong hit consecutive homers in the sixth inning. Freddie Freeman hit a grand slam and Max Muncy added a solo homer for the Dodgers.
A major professional team playing in a minor league venue would’ve been unheard of just a few years ago. That is what the Oakland Athletics likely will do if they move to Las Vegas. There is recent precedent. The Chargers played in an MLS stadium after moving from San Diego to Los Angeles. The Arizona Coyotes call a college arena home while awaiting what they hope is a new building of their own. A’s president Dave Kaval has said he would like to break ground next year and move into the Las Vegas stadium in time for the 2027 season.
FRENCH OPEN
Rafael Nadal has pulled out of the French Open because of a lingering hip injury that has sidelined him since January and says that he expects 2024 to be his last year on the tennis tour. Nadal owns a record 14 championships at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament and will miss it for the first time since making his debut in 2005. Nadal announced his withdrawal at a news conference at his tennis academy in Manacor, Spain. The 36-year-old Nadal has a career record of 112-3 across 18 appearances at the French Open and he won the title there a year ago. He is tied with Novak Djokovic with a men's-record 22 Grand Slam titles.
PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Bryson DeChambeau is the leading the frost-delayed PGA Championship at Oak Hill in Rochester. It's been more than a year since DeChambeau was the incredible bulk who tried to overpower golf courses. Now he's slimmer and feels healthy. That much is evident with his 66 at Oak Hill. That gives DeChambeau a one-shot lead over Scottie Scheffler, Dustin Johnson and Corey Conners among those who finished. Thirty players have to finish the round today. Eric Cole is at 5 under and has four holes to complete. Johnson was tied for the lead until making his only bogey on the final hole.
WNBA
Expectations and intrigue surround the WNBA as the league tips off its 27th season this weekend. There are super teams in Las Vegas and New York loaded with star power and championship aspirations. Brittney Griner is set to make her long-awaited return to the league with the Phoenix Mercury tonight in a road game at Los Angeles. She missed last season while detained in a Russian jail on drug-related charges before the saga ended with a prisoner swap in December. On Sunday, Griner plays her first regular-season home game since her release when the Mercury face the Chicago Sky at 4 p.m. EDT on ESPN.
HORSE RACING
When Secretariat won the Preakness a half-century ago, his final time of 1 minute, 55 seconds wasn’t all that noteworthy. It was a second slower than the Preakness mark set two years earlier by Canonero II. But the dispute over that time was only beginning. It wasn't until 2012 when owner Penny Chenery finally succeeded in securing her horse’s record. After a hearing and a review of video footage, the Maryland Racing Commission changed the official time of the race to 1:53. Secretariat still holds all three Triple Crown time records from his magical year in 1973.
NASCAR
NASCAR is returning to North Wilkesboro Speedway for the first time in 27 years to host this weekend’s All-Star race. The Associated Press asked some industry experts what other former tracks they would like to see back on the schedule. Richard Petty, Jeff Gordon and Lyn St. James are among those who’d like to see NASCAR return to Rockingham Speedway. The North Carolina track hasn’t hosted a Cup Series event since 2004. It has recently been repaved and received $9 million in renovation money.
RUNNING
The Boilermaker’s Erie Canal Races will be held on Sunday, May 21, at 8 a.m. with the start and finish line on the track at Whitesboro High School in Marcy, N.Y. The races will include a 5K race, a 10-mile race, and a 2-person 10-mile relay. The main 15K Boilermaker road race will take place Sunday, July 9, with an additional 5K race taking place that day as well.
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