NFL
Cam Ward went from zero-star recruit to No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. Travis Hunter cost Jacksonville a premium. Jaxson Dart was selected before Shedeur Sanders. While Ward, Hunter and Abdul Carter went 1-2-3 as expected, Sanders wasn't picked at all in the first round. Sanders was passed over by every team that had a need for a potential franchise quarterback, even though some draft analysts had him rated higher than Ward. The New York Giants had two chances to take Sanders and went with Penn State edge rusher Carter with the No. 3 pick, bolstering an already strong pass rush. The Giants then moved back into the first round and selected Dart, a quarterback from Ole Miss, at No. 25.
The Buffalo Bills addressed their biggest offseason need by selecting Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston with the 30th pick in the NFL draft. Hairston is listed at 5-foot-11 and 182 pounds, and led the SEC as a sophomore in 2023 with five interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns. He had only one interception last year plus two forced fumbles in seven starts while missing five due to a shoulder injury. Hairston joins a team with a hole at cornerback after returning starter Rasul Douglas was unsigned, and Buffalo traded Kaiir Elam to Dallas.
The New England Patriots took LSU left tackle Will Campbell with the fourth pick, giving quarterback Drake Maye more protection.
The New York Jets selected Missouri offensive tackle Armand Membou with the seventh pick.
Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell was picked by the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, who moved up one spot to No. 31.
NBA PLAYOFFS
Karl-Anthony Towns scored 31 points, Jalen Brunson had 30 and the New York Knicks held on for a 118-116 win over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night to take a 2-1 lead in the first-round series. OG Anunoby added 22 points for New York. Game 4 is 1 p.m. Sunday in Detroit. The Pistons have lost eight straight home playoff games since 2008, pulling within one of an NBA record set by Philadelphia from 1968 to 1971. When Detroit won at New York in Game 2, the franchise ended a league-record, 15-playoff game losing streak to take home-court advantage, but the Knicks snatched it back.
Chet Holmgren scored all but one of his 24 points in the second half as the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied from a 29-point deficit after Ja Morant left the game with a hip injury and beat the Memphis Grizzlies 114-108 for a 3-0 lead in the first-round series. Morant was hurt with just over three minutes left in the first half and Memphis leading 67-40. They got the next basket after he exited and still led by 26 points at halftime. The 29-point comeback was the second-largest in an NBA postseason game since play-by-play data began being recorded in the 1996-97 season.
Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points and the Los Angeles Clippers rolled to a 117-83 victory over Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series. James Harden and Norman Powell added 20 points apiece in the first playoff game at the Clippers' new Intuit Dome. After the teams split the first two games in Denver, which were decided by a combined five points, this one was a blowout. The Clippers led by 20 points in the first half and Denver never got its deficit to single digits. Game 4 is Saturday in Inglewood. Jokic had his second triple-double of the series with 23 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists. Jamal Murray also had 23 points for the Nuggets.
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Nate Schmidt scored his third goal in two games, Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 19 shots and the Florida Panthers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 to take a 2-0 lead in the first-round playoff series. Sam Bennett added an empty-netter with 4 seconds left. Bobrovsky got his fourth career playoff shutout, and his first since Game 1 of last year’s Stanley Cup final against Edmonton. Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 21 saves for Tampa Bay. Game 3 of the best-of-seven series will be Saturday at Sunrise.
Simon Benoit scored on a slap shot from the point at 1:19 of overtime to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators and a 3-0 lead in the first-round series. Auston Matthews won a faceoff back to Benoit at the left point, and the defenseman fired a low shot through traffic that beat goalie Linus Ullmark to far post. Toronto also won 3-2 in overtime — on Max Domi’s early goal — at home Tuesday night. Game 4 is Saturday night in Ottawa. Matthews and Matthew Knies also scored for Toronto, and Anthony Stolarz made 18 saves. Brady Tkachuk and Claude Giroux scored for Ottawa. Ullmark stopped 17 shots. Tkachuk tied it at 2 with 8:38 left in regulation.
Kirill Kaprizov had two power-play goals and the Minnesota Wild beat the Vegas Golden Knights 5-2 on Thursday to take a 2-1 lead in the first-round series. Matt Boldy scored for the third straight game, Marco Rossi had his first career postseason goal and Marcus Foligno added an empty-netter. Filip Gustavsson’s glove stayed sharp in the net on a 30-save night as the Wild carried the momentum of their 5-2 road victory in Game 2 into the raucous Xcel Energy Center and kept it going throughout the night. Game 4 is in Minnesota on Saturday.
Pavel Buchnevich scored three goals for his first career playoff hat trick and added an assist as the St. Louis Blues beat the Winnipeg Jets 7-2 in Game 3 of their first-round series. Cam Fowler had a goal and four assists, and Jordan Kyrou, Alexey Toropchenko and Colton Parayko also scored, and Robert Thomas had three assists to help the Blues cut the Jets’ series lead to 2-1. Jordan Binnington made 17 saves. David Gustafsson and Neal Pionk scored for the Jets, who won the first two games in Winnipeg. Connor Hellebuyck gave up six goals on 25 shots before being pulled midway through the third period. Eric Comrie stopped two of the three shots he faced. Game 4 is in St. Louis on Sunday, with Game 5 in Winnipeg on Wednesday.
MLB
Bryan Woo scattered three hits over six innings and the Seattle Mariners tagged Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet for four runs in the first two innings to beat Boston 4-3 and win the three-game series. Leo Rivas and J.P. Crawford each had a pair of hits for the Mariners. Seattle has won 10 of its last 13 games. Woo struck out eight while allowing two runs and one walk. Randy Arozarena had three walks. Alex Bregman had two hits, including a solo homer, for Boston. Carlos Narváez hit a solo shot off the Pesky Pole.
Bobby Witt Jr. extended his hitting streak to a career-best 16 games with an RBI single in the fifth inning as the Royals beat the Rockies 6-2 on Thursday to finish off a doubleheader and series sweep. Salvador Perez added a pair of doubles and two RBIs, and Vinnie Pasquantino and Michael Massey also drove in runs for Kansas City. The Royals have won four straight. Michael Lorenzen got the win while the Rockies' Chase Dollander took the loss. The Rockies are 4-20, the worst start in franchise history, and they have matched a franchise record by losing 13 consecutive road games.
Cade Povich limited Washington to a run in 6 2/3 innings, Ryan O’Hearn and Cedric Mullins had RBI singles in the fifth and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Nationals 2-1 on Thursday night to end a three-game losing streak. Povich (1-2) allowed four hits. The left-hander struck out five and walked one. Mullins has hit safely in six straight games and has seven hits in that span. O’Hearn ended an 0-for-8 skid. After Nasim Nunez reached third base in the ninth for the Nationals, Felix Bautista got Amed Rosario to ground out to shortstop Gunnar Henderson for his third save.
Zach Neto hit a tiebreaking homer leading off the eighth inning and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 on Thursday night to avoid a three-game series sweep. Neto, who missed the first three weeks of the season recovering from right-shoulder surgery, lined an 81-mile-per-hour sweeper from Pirates reliever Chase Shugart over the wall in left to snap a 3-all tie and finished with three hits. Pittsburgh's Oneil Cruz homered for the second straight game.
Christopher Morel hit a two-run homer in the 10th inning and the Tampa Bay Rays rallied to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-4. Arizona led 4-3 before Yandy Diaz hit a tying run-scoring single off Ryne Nelson in the ninth inning. Edwin Uceta induced an inning-ending double play in the bottom half and Junior Caminero put the Rays ahead with a run-scoring double off J.P. Feyereisen in the 10th. Morel made it 7-4 with his third homer and Pete Fairbanks worked around a walk for his fourth save. Tim Tawa hit a solo homer for Arizona.
Lenyn Sosa and Miguel Vargas homered as the Chicago White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 3-0 in a game that was shortened to seven innings because of rain. The win snapped Chicago’s 14-game losing streak at Target Field, the longest road losing streak against any opponent in team history. Shane Smith (1-1) allowed one walk and four hits while striking out seven over five innings to pick up his first major league victory. Jordan Leasure and Brandon Eisert each pitched a scoreless inning in relief, with Eisert picking up his first career save. Chris Paddack (0-3) remains winless in five starts this season.
Luis Urias scored on Jacob Wilson’s two-out single in the ninth inning as the Athletics rallied to beat the Texas Rangers 4-3. Trailing 3-2 heading into ninth, the A’s got going when Max Schuemann drew a one-out walk. Urias followed with a single into the gap in right-center that bounced off the glove of Rangers center fielder Leody Tavares for an error, allowing Schuemann to score the tying run. After Lawrence Butler flew out, Wilson lined a 3-1 pitch off Rangers closer Luke Jackson (0-2) to drive in Urias for the game-winner. It was Jackson’s first blown save in eight chances this season. The rally enabled the A’s to win their first series at their temporary home at Sutter Health Park.
Mike Yastrzemski and Matt Chapman homered as the San Francisco Giants rallied to beat the Milwaukee Brewers 6-5 on Thursday to take three of four games in the series. Yastrzemski hit a solo homer, finished with two RBIs and scored twice. Chapman hit his fifth homer of the season, a two-run shot, in the fifth inning. Christian Yelich, Rhys Hoskins and Sal Frelick had RBI hits for the Brewers.
Meantime, the Yankees, Mets, and Phillies were off last night. The Yankees play the first of three against the Blue Jays at home at 7:05 tonight. The Mets are in D.C., where they’re set to play the first of four against the Nationals at 6:45 tonight, and Philadelphia travels to Chicago, where they play the first of three against the Cubs at 2:20 this afternoon.
Clifton Park native Ian Anderson has been designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Angels. It’s a setback for the former Braves pitching stud, who struggled in seven appearances this season. The 26-year-old righty was making his return to the mound after missing the past two seasons with injuries. Anderson starred for Atlanta during its 2021 World Series run.
HORSE RACING
Seven new members have been chosen for enshrinement in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs. First-time finalist Smarty Jones, who nearly won the Triple Crown in 2004, was the lone selection in the contemporary category — appearing on a majority of ballots. Smarty Jones lost the Belmont Stakes to longshot Birdstone by a length, just missing the Triple Crown after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness that spring. The Historic Review committee chose Decathlon and Hermis, plus and 1937 Triple Crown winner War Admiral’s trainer George Conway. Racing journalist and historian Edward Bowen, owner and breeder Arthur Hancock III, and 19th Century racetrack owner Richard Ten Broeck were elected by the Pillars of the Turf Committee. The induction ceremony is scheduled for August 1st in Saratoga Springs.
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