COLLEGE BASKETBALL
The Times Union reports that Siena College has hired Jamion Christian as its new men’s basketball coach.
Christian comes from Mount St. Mary’s University where he has been head coach since 2012. He has a 101-95 record at the university, including a 67-39 record in Northeast Conference play. He guided the Mountaineers to 2 NEC titles and the NCAA Tournament in 2014 and 2017.
Christian replaces Jimmy Patsos, who resigned on April 13 following a college investigation into alleged verbal and physical abuse of team members. There are also allegations that Patsos improperly handled player per diem money.
The Loudonville, N.Y. college is coming off of its worst seasons in program history with a record of 8-24, and many players have already been granted transfer releases.
NBA
Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors will carry a two-games-to-none lead into Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal series Friday at New Orleans.
Curry returned from a 38-day layoff and provided 28 points off the bench as the Warriors escaped with a 121-116 triumph over the Pelicans. The two-time NBA most valuable was in action for the first time since suffering a knee injury March 23. He shot 5-for-10 from 3-point range and 8-for-15 overall.
Draymond Green fell one rebound shy of a triple-double, delivering 20 points and team highs of 12 assists and nine boards. Kevin Durant led all scorers with 29 points.
Anthony Davis furnished 25 points and 15 rebounds for the Pelicans, while Jrue Holiday chipped in 24 points, eight boards and eight assists.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have stolen home-court advantage from the Toronto Raptors in the NBA's Eastern Conference semifinals.
LeBron James had a triple-double of 26 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds as the Cavs downed the Raptors, 113-112 in overtime. Kyle Korver added 19 points, including a 3-pointer that opened the scoring in OT and gave Cleveland its first lead of the night.
Tristan Thompson had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who have eliminated Toronto in each of the past two postseasons.
The Raptors owned a 14-point lead in the first half but faded in the fourth quarter, shooting just 5-for-24. DeMar DeRozan scored half of his 22 points while Toronto was building a 33-19 edge.
Jonas Valanciunas delivered 21 points, and 21 rebounds, while Kyle Lowery had 18 points and 10 assists for the Raptors.
Game 2 is Thursday in Toronto.
Elsewhere in the NBA:
J.B. Bickerstaff will remain head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies after serving in an interim capacity this season.
Bickerstaff took over for David Fizdale in late November and went 15-48 amid a patchwork lineup. Mike Conley played just 12 games before undergoing season-ending surgery on his left heel and Achilles tendon. Tyreke Evans missed 30 games and JaMychael Green played just 55 of 82 games.
The Grizzlies did not disclose terms of Bickerstaff's new deal. He will be introduced at a news conference Wednesday.
NHL
Last year's Stanley Cup finalists find themselves trailing two games to one in their respective second-round series after losing on Tuesday.
Alex Ovechkin scored with 1:07 left to give the Washington Capitals a 4-3 win over the Penguins at Pittsburgh. The Pens led 3-2 until Matt Niskanen beat Matt Murray just over five minutes into the third period.
Nicklas Backstrom set up second-period goals by John Carlson and Chandler Stevenson. Braden Holtby faced just three shots in the third period and finished with 19 saves.
Jake Guentzel and Sidney Crosby each scored their eighth goal of the postseason and had an assist for the Penguins, who host Game 4 on Thursday.
In Winnipeg, the Nashville Predators squandered a 3-0 lead in a 7-4 loss to the Jets. Blake Wheeler broke a 4-4 deadlock by netting a power-play goal with 4:59 remaining.
Wheeler and Dustin Byfuglien each scored twice for the Jets, who were blanked until Paul Stastny beat Pekka Rinne 2:38 into the second period. Wheeler and Brandon Tanev put the game out of reach with empty-net goals.
Connor Hellebuyck made 26 saves and settled down after yielding three goals on 12 shots in the opening period.
The series stays in Winnipeg for Game 4 on Thursday.
The Bruins had the night off after Tampa Bay tied the series 1-1, Boston returns to the ice Wednesday to take on the Lighting at 7 p.m.
Elsewhere in the NHL:
Guy Boucher will be back behind the Ottawa Senators bench next season.
Senators general manager Pierre Dorion confirmed that Boucher and his assistants will return despite the club's second-to-last place finish this season.
Dorion said Boucher would run the power play, while assistants Rob Cookson and Marc Crawford will join Boucher behind the bench.
Boucher's future was in doubt after the Senators struggled to a 28-43-11 record.
MLB
Atlanta Braves' latest phenom looked pretty good against the New York Mets on Tuesday.
Mike Soroka picked up a victory in his major league debut and the Braves pulled within a half-game of the NL East lead by downing the first-place Mets, 3-2. Soroka allowed just one run over six innings and threw shutout ball until Yoenis Cespedes hit a solo homer in the sixth. The Mets will go against the Braves again Wednesday at 7:10 p.m.
Freddie Freeman hit a two-run double while Atlanta scored three times in the first inning off Noah Syndergaard. Rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. scored a run and was among six players to collect two of the Braves' 15 hits.
Checking out Tuesday's other major league action:
Yadiel Rivera was just 2-for-20 this season before delivering a walk-off single in the 10th inning to send the Marlins to their fourth consecutive win, 2-1 over the Phillies. Cameron Maybin tripled and scored the winning run that sent Philadelphia to its fourth straight loss.
Bryce Harper was moved to the leadoff spot for the first time in five years and responded with a three-run homer to break a 5-for-36 slump in the Nationals' 12-4 pounding of the Pirates. Max Scherzer is 6-1 after winning his fifth straight start, allowing two runs and three hits while striking out eight in 6 1/3 innings.
The Cardinals stopped a three-game skid by scoring twice in the bottom of the ninth to beat the White Sox, 3-2. Matt Carpenter tied it with a homer before Marcell Ozuna doubled and scored the winning run on Yadier Molina's single.
Ryan Braun's two-run double put the Brewers ahead to stay in a 7-6 verdict over the Reds. Travis Shaw broke his 0-for-19 slump with a two-run homer, while Jesus Aguilar and Hernan Perez added solo shots.
Charlie Blackmon and David Dahl hit back-to-back homers off Kyle Hendricks to begin the Rockies' 3-1 win over the Cubs in Chicago. Nolan Arenado also went deep and Jon Gray tossed three-hit ball over seven innings to help Colorado end the Cubs' season-high five-game winning streak.
Daniel Descalso atoned for a big error by providing a go-ahead, two-run triple in the seventh inning to send the Diamondbacks to their fifth win in six games, 4-3 over the Dodgers. A.J. Pollock homered for the fourth time in two nights, and pinch-hitter Christian Walker smacked a 479-foot solo shot as Arizona pulled even with Boston for the majors' top record at 21-8.
The Padres downed the Giants, 3-2 on Eric Hosmer's tiebreaking homer in the ninth. Hosmer also tripled earlier and scored, and Christian Villanueva hit his ninth home run of the year to help San Diego win for the third time in 10 games.
Jorge Soler unloaded a three-run homer off Brian Johnson in the 13th inning before the Royals hung on for a 7-6 win at Boston. The Red Sox were two outs away from improving to 22-7 until Alex Gordon went deep off Craig Kimbrel in the ninth. The series continues Wednesday at 1:05 p.m.
Gary Sanchez broke a scoreless tie by slamming a three-run homer off Ken Giles in the ninth to send the Yankees to their 10th win in 11 games, 4-0 over the Astros. Houston wasted a strong pitching performance from Justin Verlander, who tied a career high with 14 strikeouts while limiting New York to three hits over eight shutout innings. Game 2 of the three game series continues Wednesday at 8 p.m.
Kendrys Morales homered twice and reached base five times to help the Blue Jays knock off the Twins, 7-4 in 10 innings. Toronto scored twice on wild pitches in the final inning to send Minnesota to its 11th loss in 12 games.
The Angels pulled out a 3-2 win over the Orioles on Justin Upton's RBI single in the bottom of the ninth. Nick Tropeano pitched scoreless one-hit ball into the seventh inning, but Los Angeles coughed up a 2-0 lead in the ninth before halting a four-game skid.
Dee Gordon went 5-for-5 and Nelson Cruz crushed a three-run homer in the fifth inning to put the Mariners ahead to stay in a 6-3 decision over the Athletics. Felix Hernandez gave up three runs and just three hits over six frames as Seattle improved to 17-11.
Joey Gallo and Isiah Kiner-Falefa homered on consecutive pitches off Nick Goody in the 12th inning to power the Rangers past the Indians, 8-6. Texas recovered after Michael Brantley belted a game-tying grand slam with two out in the ninth.
The Rays lost for only the second time in 11 games as Matthew Boyd held them to a run and seven hits in six innings of Detroit's 2-1 victory. Nicholas Castellanos and Leonys Martin sandwiched RBI doubles around Matt Duffy's run-scoring grounder.
In other major league news:
The Giants announced good news and bad concerning their pitching staff on Tuesday. Johnny Cueto has been placed on the 10-day disabled list with inflammation in his pitching elbow. Cueto leads the majors with a 0.84 ERA and is 3-0 with 26 strikeouts in 32 innings over five starts. The Giants also said ace Madison Bumgarner has been cleared to resume throwing. Bumgarner broke the pinkie on his left hand in the team's final spring training game and is at least a month away from returning.
The Twins have placed third baseman Miguel Sano on the 10-day disabled list with a strained left hamstring. Sano is batting just .213 with four doubles, five home runs, 14 RBIs and nine walks in 20 games.
Angels closer Keynan Middleton has landed on the DL with right elbow inflammation. He felt pain in his elbow last weekend, but Middleton said his elbow already felt better with two days of rest.
Right-handed starter Erasmo Ramirez and righty reliever Dan Altavilla have been put on the 10-day disabled list by the Mariners. Ramirez has a strained muscle in his right rotator cuff and is expected to miss a month. Altavilla has inflammation in the AC joint of his right shoulder.
The Athletics and Mariners will open next season with a two-game series in Tokyo on March 20 and 21. It will mark the fifth time Major League Baseball will start the season in Japan. The A's and Mariners also faced each other in the last opening series at the Tokyo Dome, splitting two games in 2012.
NFL
Russ Brandon has abruptly resigned his dual role as president of the NFL's Buffalo Bills and NHL's Buffalo Sabres. The decision comes after he was confronted by owners Terry and Kim Pegula regarding an inappropriate relationship with a female employee. That's according to two people with direct knowledge of the situation.
The Pegula's did not provide a reason for accepting the resignation.
Kim Pegula will take over Brandon's roles overseeing the Bills, Sabres and Pegula Sports Entertainment, the company which controls the owners' numerous holdings.
MLS
The New England Revolution have traded veteran midfielder Lee Nguyen to Los Angeles FC in exchange for $700,000 in allocation money. The 31-year-old Nguyen has spent the past six seasons with the Revolution, emerging as one of MLS' top attacking midfielders. Nguyen fills an urgent need for LAFC, which will be without playmaking forward Marco Urena for at least the next four weeks while he recovers from surgery to repair broken bones in his face.
KENTUCKY DERBY
Justify has been made the early 3-1 favorite for Saturday's Kentucky Derby and has drawn the No. 7 post.
Justify is 3-0 in his brief career, winning by a combined 19 lengths. He didn't race as a 2-year-old.
Europe-based Mendelssohn the second choice at 5-1 and will start from the 14th post among the 20-horse field in the 144th Run for the Roses. No European horse has ever won the first jewel of the Triple Crown.
TENNIS
The winners of the singles titles at Wimbledon will each receive just over $3 million as part of a 7.6 percent increase in the total prize money at this year's tournament.
The All England Club says the total prize fund will be $46.5 million.
First-round losers will receive $53,000, but they may have to forfeit their prize money if they retire from the match or perform "below professional standards."
Injured players will receive 50 percent of their first-round prize money if they withdraw on site by the Thursday before the start of play. An injured player's replacement would take the other 50 percent.
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