NBA:
In the NBA playoffs, LeBron James scored 35 points, Kyrie Irving added 24 and the Cleveland Cavaliers picked up where they left off following a long layoff and throttled the Toronto Raptors 116-105 on Monday night in the opener of their Eastern Conference semifinal.
Trevor Ariza scored 23 points, James Harden added 20 points and 14 rebounds, and the Houston Rockets stormed past San Antonio 126-99 on Monday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, the Spurs' worst loss in a series opener under Gregg Popovich. The Rockets were 22 for 50 on 3-pointers, the most 3s attempted and made against the Spurs in their long postseason history.
Larry Bird made it official Monday and announced his resignation as the Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations. It's the second time in five years he has walked away from Indiana's top front office position. General manager Kevin Pritchard will replace Bird as the Pacers' top decision-maker. Bird says simply that he wanted to step away from the full-time job. He says it has nothing to do with his health or the team. The move had been in the works since last week when word leaked that Bird was planning to leave the organization for the third time. He also resigned in 2000 after three seasons as Indiana's coach. The 60-year-old Hall-of-Famer is the only person in league history to collect the league's MVP, coach of the year and executive of the year awards.
Tonight Washington faces the Celtics in Boston at 8:00 p.m. and Utah goes up against Golden State at 10:30 p.m.
NHL:
In the Stanley Cup playoffs, Defensman Kevin Shattenkirk scored at 3:13 of overtime to propel the Washington Capitals to a 3-2 victory over the homestanding Pittsburgh Penguins. It was a badly needed victory for Washington, winners of the President's Trophy for the National Hockey League's best regular season record. Penguins' star Sidney Crosby is uncertain for Game 4 after leaving Monday's game following a cross-check.
Two people with direct knowledge of the Buffalo Sabres' general manager search tell The Associated Press the team has met with at least six candidates, and say the first round of interviews has not yet been completed. The people spoke to The AP yesterday on condition of anonymity because the team is not publicly discussing its search to replace general manager Tim Murray and coach Dan Bylsma, who were fired last month.
Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby, Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid and Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky are finalists for the NHL's Hart Trophy. The award is given annually to the league's most valuable player. Crosby is a two-time Hart Trophy winner, taking the award home in 2008 and 2014. He led the NHL with 44 goals this season while helping the defending Stanley Cup champions post the second-best record in the league. McDavid won the scoring title, posting a league-high 100 points behind 30 goals and 70 assists as the Oilers reached the postseason for the first time in 11 years. Bobrovsky led the NHL in both goals against (2.06) and save percentage (.931) as the Blue Jackets enjoyed the best season in franchise history.
Tonight Ottawa is in New York to take on the Rangers at 7 p.m. St. Louis will see the Predators in Nashville at 9:30
MLB:
Ryan Goins hit a two-run sacrifice fly, the first in Toronto's 40-year history, to go along with a two-run homer that led Marco Estrada and the Blue Jays over the New York Yankees 7-1 Monday night for their season-high third straight win.
Michael Conforto homered and drove in three runs, and the Mets scored five times in the fourth inning off Julio Teheran before holding on to beat the Atlanta Braves 7-5 last night. On the day the Mets placed ace Noah Syndergaard on the 10-day DL with a partial tear of his right lat muscle, Robert Gsellman almost blew an early 6-1 lead. Gsellman allowed five runs in five-plus innings.
New York Mets general manager Sandy Alderson may accelerate his search for pitching help after the team placed ace right-hander Noah Syndergaard on the 10-day disabled list with a partial tear of his right lat muscle. The Mets said there is no timetable for Syndergaard's return, leaving Alderson to look for pitching help outside the organization. Before a night game in Atlanta Monday, Alderson said team had looked at the possibility of acquiring pitching help "over the last few days."
Manny Machado slugged a long homer out of Fenway Park, drove in two runs and made three solid plays at third base in his first game against Boston since a dustup with the Red Sox just over a week ago, carrying the Baltimore Orioles to a 5-2 victory last night. Reigning AL Cy Young winner Rick Porcello dropped his fourth consecutive start to match his total losses last season.
WNBA:
The WNBA will stream 20 games a year over the next few seasons on Twitter in a deal announced Monday night. WNBA President Lisa Borders calls league officials "are thrilled to bring live WNBA games to Twitter, which will allow us to further showcase our league to a global audience." It's the first women's sport to be live-streamed on Twitter.
NFL:
The Buffalo Bills have added experienced depth to their young secondary by signing veteran free agent cornerback Shareece Wright. Wright has six years of NFL experience and had 15 starts in 23 games with Baltimore over the two previous seasons. The Southern California product was selected by San Diego in the third round of the 2011 draft. He had 27 starts in 44 games over four seasons with the Chargers.
Prosecutors have asked a judge to reject a request by attorneys for ex-NFL star Aaron Hernandez to dismiss his murder conviction because he died before having his appeal heard. In court documents filed Monday, prosecutors argue that dismissing his conviction would reward Hernandez for his "conscious, deliberate and voluntary act" of suicide. Case law has held that when a defendant dies before an appeal is decided, the conviction is vacated.
USMNT:
The U.S. national team will play Ghana on July 1st in East Hartford, Connecticut, to prepare for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The Gold Cup is the biennial championship for the North, Central American and Caribbean regions. Twelve teams take part in the tournament, which will be played in 14 U.S. cities this summer.
Boston Marathon:
Boston Marathon organizers say registration for the 2018 edition of the race will open on September 11th. The Boston Athletic Association says it will again use a "rolling" method of registration to give the fastest qualifiers first dibs on a bib. The 122nd Boston Marathon will be run on April 16th, 2018.
Freeskiing:
A New Hampshire teen has been named to the U.S. Freeskiing team. Grace Henderson, of Madbury, is a sophomore at Waterville Valley Academy. Henderson was second overall in Slopestyle in this year's Revolution Tour standings. She also placed first in the Big Air at the Aspen Open and second in Slopestyle at the USASA National Championships. She was named to the 2017 Freeskiing Junior Worlds Team.
NCAA:
The American Athletic Conference wants to be considered a power conference and released a strategic plan yesterday designed to help it improve its stature. The plan sets goals for athletics, academics, health and safety, marketing and for bringing in more revenue.
The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth is mourning the weekend death of a senior student-athlete. The university says Sean Peters, a crime and justice major and a four-year member of the men's lacrosse team, died Saturday of complications related to Type 1 diabetes. He was 22. Peters was from Medway.
Junior forward Rashed Anthony is transferring from Seton Hall. Coach Kevin Willard announced Anthony's decision Monday, saying the Orangeburg, South Carolina, resident will earn his bachelor's degree this month and has decided to transfer for his final season of athletic eligibility. Anthony appeared in 87 games for the Pirates. Despite his departure, the Pirates have seven returning letter winners for next season, bringing back roughly 90 percent of their scoring and rebounding from last season's NCAA Tournament squad.
The U.S. Defense Department has rescinded its 2016 policy allowing military service academy athletes to go straight to the pros upon graduation. Athletes such as Air Force wide receiver Jalen Robinette, the NCAA's leader in yards per catch in 2016, will have to serve two years of active duty before applying for reserve status to pursue a career in professional sports. Pentagon chief spokesman Dana W. White said in a statement Monday: "Our military academies exist to develop future officers who enhance the readiness and the lethality of our military services. ... Upon graduation, officers will serve as military officers for their minimum commitment of two years."
The son of former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield faces a one-game suspension from Georgia's football team after his arrest on misdemeanor marijuana charges. An online booking report from the Clarke County Jail shows sophomore running back Elijah Holyfield was charged early Monday with possession of marijuana of less than an ounce and possession and use of drug related objects, He was arrested by university police and released on bond less than an hour later. A team spokesman says coach Kirby Smart is aware of the arrest. Under Georgia's drug and alcohol policy, Holyfield would be suspended one game for a first violation. Georgia opens against Appalachian State on Sept. 2. Holyfield rushed for 29 yards on six carries as a freshman and will contest for playing time at one of the deepest positions on the team. Nick Chubb and Sony Michel are Georgia's top running backs.
USA Luge:
Miro Zayonc has stepped down as USA Luge's head coach, citing the continuing onset of Parkinson's disease. He has been in the top role since 2012, helping oversee a major turnaround for the Americans and preparations for next year's Olympics. USA Luge has won 29 World Cup medals in the last two seasons, along with three medals at this past season's world championships. Zayonc will be replaced for the coming season by Bill Tavares, who is being promoted to the interim role from his spot as an assistant. Zayonc will remain with USA Luge as senior adviser to CEO Jim Leahy. He also will work alongside sport program director Mark Grimmette.
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