Ben Simmons scored 26 points, Joel Embiid had 19 rebounds and made some big plays down the stretch, and the Philadelphia 76ers held off the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-99 on Tuesday night.
Bojan Bogdanovic scored 24 points and Darren Collison made two free throws 19.5 seconds left to help the Indiana Pacers slip past the New York Knicks 103-98 on Tuesday night. Indiana snapped its two-game losing streak and remained tied with Philadelphia for the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference. Collison finished with 16 points.
In other Tuesday NBA action, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 24 points and the Milwaukee Bucks used a 45-point third quarter to pull away from the New Orleans Pelicans for a 130-113 victory. Khris Middleton had 23 points, Malcolm Brogdon added 18, and Eric Bledsoe and former Pelicans forward Nikola Mirotic each scored 14 for the Bucks. Brook Lopez finished with 13. The Bucks led by eight at halftime and took control in the third quarter. Brogdon scored nine points as Milwaukee began the period on a 28-14 run to take an 84-62 lead midway through the quarter. Anthony Davis scored 17 points in the quarter to help New Orleans cut it to 101-89 going to the fourth, but he did not play afterward. The Pelicans have been holding him from the fourth quarter as part of a minutes restriction imposed in the wake of the All-Star forward's trade demand in late January.
CJ McCollum scored 35 points, Jusuf Nurkic and Damian Lillard added 20 apiece and the Portland Trail Blazers snapped the Los Angeles Clippers' five-game winning streak with a 125-104 victory. McCollum, who was 12 of 21 from the field and made six 3-pointers, took control of the game during the fourth quarter as the Trail Blazers broke things open with a 21-5 run.
Jamal Murray scored 19 of his 30 points in the second half, Mason Plumlee dished out eight of Denver's season-high 40 assists and the Nuggets cruised to a 133-107 win over the banged-up Minnesota Timberwolves. Called out by coach Michael Malone after a lackadaisical performance in Golden State last week, the Nuggets starting unit responded by playing with more intensity.
DeMar DeRozan scored 33 points, LaMarcus Aldridge added 28 and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks 112-105. DeRozan and Aldridge had identical 11-for-19 shooting lines from the field and combined to go 17 of 17 from the foul line.
In NBA news, the NBA has fined Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook $25,000 for the language he directed toward a fan in Utah. Meanwhile, the Jazz have banned the fan from all events at their arena permanently and effective immediately. Westbrook says the fan made racial comments toward him during the Jazz-Thunder game on Monday night. The NBA and the Jazz both investigated the matter and released decisions Tuesday afternoon. Westbrook was fined for using both profanity and threatening language, which he did from the sideline. The Jazz say that the fan was banned for "excessive and derogatory verbal abuse" during the game.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
In men's basketball, for the America East Tournament, UMBC defeated Hartford, 90-85, and Vermont topped Binghamton, 84-51.
Saint Mary's ended the nation's longest winning streak and Gonzaga's six-year reign as West Coast Conference tournament champions, grinding out a 60-47 victory in the WCC title game on Tuesday night. Saint Mary's all but shut down the nation's highest-scoring team by slowing the game and forcing Gonzaga to grind out possessions instead of playing fast and free. The Gaels held Gonzaga's leading scorer Rui Hachimura in check and limited the Zags to 2-of-17 shooting from 3-point range to end the nation's longest winning streak at 21 games. Gonzaga's 18-game WCC tournament winning streak, dating to the 2012 title game, also came to an end, and so too could its bid for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Instead of waiting for Selection Sunday, Saint Mary's left no doubt by earning its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2017 with its first WCC title in nine years.
NHL
Boone Jenner got his first career hat trick, Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 27 shots and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Boston Bruins 7-4 on Tuesday night. The Blue Jackets scored five unanswered goals to go up 5-1 before the Bruins came roaring back with three straight in a wild second period to make it a one-goal game. Zach Werenski's first goal in 30 games provided Columbus some breathing room late, and Jenner's empty-netter completed his hat trick with 47 seconds left. Josh Anderson had a career-high four points, and Werenski's four were also a career high for the Blue Jackets, who had lost four of their last six games and are scrapping to stay above the Eastern Division wild-card line.
Johnny Gaudreau became the first player in more than five years to record six points in a game, and the Calgary Flames scored six times in the third period to scorch the New Jersey Devils 9-4. Gaudreau had a hat trick, including the go-ahead goal on a penalty shot in the third period, and added three assists for the Flames, who became the only team to score nine goals in a game twice this season.
Ben Bishop made 35 saves for his third straight shutout, and the Dallas Stars beat the Buffalo Sabres 2-0. Bishop extended his career-best shutout streak to 204 minutes, 20 seconds.
Sidney Crosby scored twice during a furious second-period rally and Evgeni Malkin picked up two assists to reach 1,000 career points as the Pittsburgh Penguins edged the Washington Capitals 5-3. Crosby picked up his 32nd and 33rd goal during a three-goal outburst over a span of 1:48 in the second period as Pittsburgh erased a two-goal deficit to take the lead on its way to snapping Washington's seven-game winning streak.
In other Tuesday ice action, Daniel Sprong scored for the third consecutive game, and the Anaheim Ducks beat the Nashville Predators 3-2. Ryan Getzlaf and Jakob Silfverberg also scored for the Ducks, who have won four of their past six games. John Gibson made 32 saves.
Joe Pavelski scored with 3.6 seconds left, lifting the San Jose Sharks to a 5-4 victory over the Winnipeg Jets in a matchup of division leaders. Gustav Nyquist had two goals for San Jose, giving him three in his six games since being traded to the Sharks in late February.
Richard Panik and Vinnie Hinostroza scored as the Arizona Coyotes beat the St. Louis Blues 3-1 on Tuesday night. Darcy Kuemper made 39 saves just one night after he was pulled after allowing four goals on 16 shots before getting pulled nearly midway through Arizona's 7-1 loss Monday night in Chicago.
Carey Price made 20 saves and became the winningest goaltender in the storied history of the Montreal Canadiens, who beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-1. It was win No. 315 for Price, snapping a tie with Hall of Famer Jacques Plante atop the team leaderboard. Plante played for Montreal from 1952 to 1963.
NFL
Two people familiar with the blockbuster trade say the Cleveland Browns have agreed to acquire star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. from the New York Giants. The Browns are sending a first and third-round pick in 2019 along with safety Jabrill Peppers to the Giants for Beckham, one of the NFL's top players, said the people who spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday night. They spoke on condition of anonymity because league rules prohibit teams from announcing trades until 4 p.m. Wednesday. The deal is conditional on both players passing physicals.
A person with direct knowledge of the negotiations says the New York Jets and former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell have agreed on a deal. ESPN first reported the signing and says the deal is for four years and $52.5 million. The deal gives new coach Adam Gase and second-year quarterback Sam Darnold a big-time playmaker, arguably the best player at his position before Bell opted to sit out all of last season rather than sign a franchise tender with Pittsburgh.
The agent for offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe says the Buffalo Bills have agreed to sign his client to a two-year contract with a potential value of $14.5 million. The 33-year-old Nsekhe spent the past four seasons with Washington.
In other NFL moves, the Green Bay Packers have agreed to $183 million worth of contracts with edge rusher Za'Darius Smith, linebacker Preston Smith, safety Adrian Amos and offensive lineman Billy Turner.
The Houston Texans have addressed their void at safety, signing free agent Tashaun Gipson. The Texans were in need of a safety after free agents Kareem Jackson and Tyrann Mathieu agreed to deals with other teams on Monday.
The Detroit Lions have agreed to a one-year contract extension with running back Zach Zenner. The four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker is said to have agreed to re-sign with the Vikings on a five-year, $67.5 million contract.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have re-signed quarterback Ryan Griffin to a two-year contract. The seventh-year pro, who's never taken a snap in a regular-season game, is a backup to Jameis Winston.
Wide receiver Breshad Perriman will re-sign with the Cleveland Browns after a bounce-back season. He was set to hit the free-agent market on Wednesday.
The Tennessee Titans are said to have agreed to terms with Los Angeles Rams offensive lineman Rodger Saffold on a four-year deal worth $44 million.
The Denver Broncos are expected to sign free agent defensive back Kareem Jackson to a three-year, $33 million deal when free agency officially begins Wednesday. The Broncos also are expected to make former Miami Dolphins right tackle Ju'Wuan James the highest paid right tackle in the league. James is expected to sign a four-year, $51 million contract that includes $32 million in guarantees.
The Browns beefed up their defensive line before NFL free agency opened. Vikings tackle Sheldon Richardson agreed to a three-year, $39 million contract with Cleveland
The Panthers have re-signed backup quarterback Taylor Heinicke to a one-year contract. Heinicke served as Cam Newton's backup last season and played in six games.
The Cincinnati Bengals are keeping right tackle Bobby Hart with a three-year deal. The Bengals signed Hart as a free agent from the Giants last year as a stopgap measure, trying to improve their horrid line.
Four-time Pro Bowl middle linebacker C.J. Mosley is headed out of Baltimore after the Ravens abandoned hope of matching an offer made by the New York Jets.
The Atlanta Falcons have gained some much-needed salary cap room by restructuring quarterback Matt Ryan's contract. The Falcons confirmed that $8.75 million of Ryan's 2019 base salary will be paid as a signing bonus.
The Oakland Raiders have agreed to a four-year contract with free agent safety Lamarcus Joyner.
In other NFL news, the Atlanta Falcons and Denver Broncos will play in the Hall of Fame game Aug. 1 to open the preseason. Each team will be making its fourth appearance in the preseason game, which this year will launch the NFL's 100th season. Two days after the game in Canton, Ohio, Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, former Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey and former Kansas City Chiefs and Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez will be among those enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The other members of the Hall of Fame class are Gil Brandt, Ty Law, Kevin Mawae, Ed Reed, and Johnny Robinson.
MLB
Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia threw 20 pitches Tuesday during his first batting practice session since a heart procedure in December. Sabathia, expected to miss his first two or three regular-season starts, is slated to throw a simulated game Saturday. The 38-year-old, who is retiring after the season, had a stent inserted Dec. 11 after a blockage was found in an artery from his heart. He has had chronic right knee problems that required several operations. Sabathia also is suspended for five games for hitting Tampa Bay's catcher Jesus Sucre with a pitch on Sept. 27.
Danny Farquhar has been reassigned by the New York Yankees to their minor league camp. The 32-year-old right-hander, who collapsed in the Chicago White Sox dugout on April 20 because of a ruptured aneurysm and brain hemorrhage, appeared in three spring training games.
Tim Tebow has been reassigned to minor league camp by the New York Mets after hitting .267 with one RBI in eight spring training games. The 31-year-old outfielder attended big league camp for the second straight year and is expected to start the season at Triple-A Syracuse.
COLLEGE ADMISSIONS BRIBERY
The founder of an admissions consulting company has pleaded guilty to running a nationwide college admissions bribery scheme involving wealthy parents and coaches at elite universities. William "Rick" Singer, of Newport Beach, California, pleaded guilty in Boston federal court Tuesday to charges including racketeering conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Singer is among 50 people charged in what federal officials say is the largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted by the Justice Department. In the sweeping bribery case, TV stars and wealthy parents are charged with paying college coaches and testing-center insiders to help get their children into elite universities as athletes. Among the schools are Yale, Stanford, Georgetown, UCLA and USC. Prosecutors say parents paid Singer about $25 million to bribe coaches and administrators into pretending that their children were athletic recruits to guarantee their admission.
And schools are taking action against coaches implicated in an admissions bribery scandal. Wake Forest University says it has suspended its head volleyball coach and UCLA says its soccer coach has been placed on leave pending a review and will have no involvement with the team. Stanford University says it has fired its sailing coach. The NCAA says it will look into claims made against college coaches and administrators in the sweeping admissions bribery scandal to see if any NCAA rules were violated. In a statement, the NCAA says the "charges brought forth today are troubling and should be a concern for all of higher education."
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