U.S./World Sports category, Page 32
7 Mountain West schools agree to stay, steadying the conference amid realignmentVideo
Seven Mountain West schools agreed to remain in the league amid overtures by the Pac-12 to lure away at least one more of its teams, the conference announced Thursday. The move comes after the Pac-12, which was reduced to just two teams after last summer’s realignment, announced two weeks ago...
WNBA semifinals feature marquee players, a finals rematch and teams looking for 1st titlesVideo
NEW YORK — Star power, a quest for a three-peat and two franchises looking for their first championships highlight the WNBA semifinals that begin Sunday. The Las Vegas Aces will face the New York Liberty in a WNBA Finals rematch from last season, and the Connecticut Sun play the Minnesota...
‘Gold Over America’ gymnastics show designed by Western Pa. nativeVideo
Mark Swanhart doesn’t mince words when it comes to the U.S. gymnastics team, which came home from this summer’s Olympic Games with nine medals, including three golds. “They’re rock stars,” said Swanhart, a Cambria County native and Point Park University dance major with more than 25 years of experience creating...
Derrick Rose, a No. 1 overall pick in 2008 and the 2011 NBA MVP, announces retirement
Derrick Rose’s last act as an NBA player came in the form of a letter to the game of basketball, addressing the highs and lows that he experienced over a 16-year pro career. And with that, his career ended on his terms. Rose, the No. 1 overall pick in the...
Stray puppy that brought Hamlin bad luck gets to stay after driver advances in NASCAR playoffsVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The dog can stay, at least for another round of NASCAR’s playoffs. The future of little Lulu, the stray puppy Denny Hamlin’s daughters found under the Gateway Arch in St. Louis in June, has been in doubt ever since Hamlin decided the addition to his household had...
Kyle Larson wins at Bristol as 2 former NASCAR champions eliminated from playoffsVideo
NASCAR champions Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr. were among the first four drivers knocked out of the playoffs Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, where Kyle Larson cruised to an easy victory. The first of three elimination races in the 10-race playoffs began with Denny Hamlin, Truex, Keselowski and...
A trio of NASCAR stars in danger of playoff elimination at Bristol cutoff race
The first elimination race of NASCAR’s playoffs has a three-time Daytona 500 winner and a pair of former Cup Series champions in danger of being bumped from title contention Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway. The trio also happen to be among NASCAR’s biggest stars in a 16-driver playoff field...
Joel Embiid signs 3-year, $193M contract extension with 76ersVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Already an NBA MVP and an Olympic gold medalist, All-Star center Joel Embiid now has until the end of the decade to try to win his first NBA championship with the Philadelphia 76ers. With another maximum contract secured, Embiid wants to chase that title in Philly — and...
NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski leaving ESPN to become GM of St. Bonaventure basketball teamVideo
NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski is retiring from ESPN to return to his alma mater, St. Bonaventure, to take over the newly created position of general manager of the men’s basketball program, the Atlantic 10 school announced Wednesday. Wojnarowski will oversee a wide range of responsibilities while working alongside coach Mark...
Philadelphia mayor strikes deal with the 76ers to build a new arena downtown
PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers have a new teammate in their bid to build a new $1.3 billion arena downtown. Mayor Cherelle Parker announced Wednesday that she has forged a deal with team owners to keep the NBA franchise in town and will send it to city council. The decision...
College football guarantee games pay millions to small-budget schools but opportunities could shrink
Ohio State and Kent State, separated by 135 miles in the same state, occupy extreme ends of the spectrum of major college football. Buckeyes football pulled in $127 million in revenue in 2023. Golden Flashes football has a budget of about $9 million. Still, Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork...
Florida State is college football’s most disappointing team, and it’s not even close
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Few expected Florida State to run the table again in the Atlantic Coast Conference and coast into the expanded, 12-team College Football Playoff. Not after losing quarterback Jordan Travis, running back Trey Benson, receivers Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson, and a handful of standout defenders. However, no...
Buescher plays spoiler at Watkins Glen in chaotic NASCAR playoff race
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — William Byron’s Chevy skidded down the track and came to rest tilted against the wall with a tire jammed into Brad Keselowski’s driver-side window in a late fight for position between two NASCAR playoff drivers. Ryan Blaney never got so lucky to remain in the second...
England could be barred from UEFA competitions if new regulator’s powers are not ‘strictly limited’
MANCHESTER, England — England and English soccer teams could be removed from UEFA competitions if a new regulator is considered to be “Government interference” in the sport. In a letter sent by UEFA to the U.K.’s new culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, European soccer’s governing body raised concerns about a proposed...
Drivers on edge as NASCAR moves to 2nd round at Watkins Glen
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Martin Truex Jr. tried to stay optimistic about his slim chance at winning a NASCAR championship in his final season before he conceded, “no matter what we do, it is wrong.” Chase Briscoe is last among the 16 playoff drivers, but he says count him out...
Pac-12 to add Boise St., Fresno St., San Diego St., Colorado St. in 2026, poaching Mountain West
The Pac-12 is adding Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State, starting in 2026, to join Oregon State and Washington State in a rebuilt Conference of Champions, the league announced Thursday. The additions rob the Mountain West of four of its more prominent schools and successful football...
Aces star A’ja Wilson breaks WNBA single season-scoring record in win over Fever
INDIANAPOLIS — A’ja Wilson broke the WNBA single-season scoring record with her 941st point just before the first half of the Las Vegas Aces’ game against the Indiana Fever on Wednesday night. Wilson hit a jumper from the free-throw line with 26.4 seconds left in the second quarter to surpass...
Pochettino embarks on ‘journey’ with U.S. men’s soccer team
Mauricio Pochettino didn’t expect to be here. His appointment as United States men’s national team coach was not in the plans when he signed a two-year contract at Chelsea last season and made his triumphant return to the Premier League. But soccer management is a fickle industry, and the U.S....
Mauricio Pocchetino hired to succeed Gregg Berhalter as U.S. men’s national team coachVideo
Former Tottenham and Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino was hired Tuesday to succeed Gregg Berhalter as U.S. men’s national team coach, 21 months before the Americans host the 2026 World Cup. A 52-year-old Argentine, Pochettino became the 10th U.S. coach in 14 years and its first foreign-born leader since Jurgen Klinsmann...
Biden honors NCAA basketball champs South Carolina and celebrates surging interest in women’s sports
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden cheered NCAA basketball champs South Carolina and Coach Dawn Staley for helping spark a surge of interest in women’s sports during a White House celebration Tuesday to mark their historic title run. South Carolina went 38-0 on the way to its latest women’s title. It...
Joey Logano wins NASCAR playoff opener at Atlanta to advance to 2nd roundVideo
HAMPTON, Ga. — One of the first things Joey Logano said after winning NASCAR’s playoff opener was that the postseason is his time of the year. And, in 10 initial playoff appearances, he typically slid his way through the rounds, winning two Cup titles and never finishing lower than eighth...
Jannik Sinner beats Taylor Fritz in U.S. Open men’s final weeks after doping exonerationVideo
NEW YORK — Jannik Sinner started slowly at the U.S. Open, dropping the first set he played after being exonerated in a doping case no one knew about until shortly before play began at Flushing Meadows. If that episode initially hung over him during the tournament, Sinner was able to...
Jannik Sinner beats Taylor Fritz in the U.S. Open men’s final weeks after doping exonerationVideo
NEW YORK — Jannik Sinner beat Taylor Fritz 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 with a relentless baseline game to win the U.S. Open men’s championship on Sunday, less than three weeks after being exonerated in a doping case. The No. 1-ranked Sinner, a 23-year-old from Italy, won the second Grand Slam trophy...
Texas on top! Longhorns take over at No. 1 in AP Top 25 for first time in 16 years, jumping Georgia
Texas is No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 college football poll for the first time in 16 years, replacing Georgia on Sunday after the Bulldogs struggled to remain unbeaten. The Longhorns moved up a spot from No. 2 and received 35 first-place votes and 1,540 points. The Bulldogs,...
Aryna Sabalenka beats Jessica Pegula to win U.S. Open for her 3rd Grand Slam titleVideo
NEW YORK — Aryna Sabalenka left the U.S. Open in tears 12 months ago as the runner-up. She exited in the semifinals each of the two years before that. This time, Sabalenka was in a joking mood after winning her first championship at Flushing Meadows and the third Grand Slam...
