August 24, 2020 3:57 am
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) – The Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics will tangle in the second round of the NBA playoffs after completing four-game sweeps. The Raptors put an emphatic stamp on their sweep by blasting the Nets, 150-122. The Raptors had two players score at least 20 points off the bench, led by 29 from Norman Powell. Serge Ibaka added 27 points on 12 of 14 shooting and grabbed 15 rebounds. Toronto set an all-time NBA record with 100 bench points. Pascal Siakam finished with 20 points and 10 boards as the lone Toronto starter with more than 10 points.
The Raptors are 11-1 in the bubble, with the lone loss coming against Boston. The Celtics took advantage of an injury and defeating the 76ers, 110-106. The game changed when Tobias Harris crashed to the floor at the 2:40 mark of the third quarter. Without Harris, Boston went on a 12-0 run and eventually led 96-79 in the opening minutes of the fourth. Kemba Walker poured in 32 points in his first NBA series-clinching win.
August 23, 2020 7:51 am
Mike Milbury is stepping away from broadcasting the rest of the NHL playoffs after his on-air comment that there were no women in the league’s quarantined bubble to disrupt concentration drew widespread criticism. The former player, coach and general manager released a statement through NBC Sports on Saturday, saying: “I do not want my presence to interfere with the athletes as they try to win the greatest trophy in sports.” An NBC Sports spokesman confirmed it was Milbury’s decision to leave and that the analyst remains employed by the network. During a game Thursday night between the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals, broadcasters were discussing the environment inside the bubbles in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta. After Brian Boucher talked about it being “the perfect place” for players who enjoy playing hockey and being with their teammates for long periods of time, Milbury responded there are “not even any women here to disrupt your concentration.” The league said it condemned the “insensitive and insulting” comment that “did not reflect the NHL’s values and commitment to making our game inclusive and welcoming to all. NBC Sports said it was disappointed and addressed the situation with Milbury. He apologized by saying: “It was not my intention to disrespect anyone. I was trying to be irreverent and took it a step too far. It was a regrettable mistake that I take seriously.”
August 23, 2020 7:50 am
NORTON, Mass. (AP) — Dustin Johnson arrived at the TPC Boston this week, headed to the practice range and then looked at his swing coach. Johnson isn’t doing much wrong at the moment, a daunting prospect to the guys trying to chase him. His birdie-eagle finish gave Johnson a 7-under 64 and stretched his lead to five shots over Harris English and Scottie Scheffler. The finish would have come in handy the day before. Johnson was an astounding 11-under par through 11 holes Friday and had the golf world curious if he would go as low as 57 to set the PGA Tour record. Instead, he finished with seven straight pars for a 60, his best ever but not what it could have been. Johnson put that behind him and looked just as good. Instead of the fast start, it was a big finish. He rolled in a 20-foot birdie on the 17th, and then holed a 40-footer up a ridge and down toward the hole for eagle on the par-5 18th. That put him at 22-under 191, his lowest 54-hole by three shots. Johnson knows better than to think it’s over. Just an hour before he signed for his 64, he was tied for the lead until English made bogeys on the 16th and 17th and missed a 7-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 66.
August 22, 2020 3:57 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Chad Kuhl allowed one run in five innings to pick up his first win in more than two years as the Pittsburgh Pirates rolled by the Milwaukee Brewers 7-2. Kuhl (1-1) gave up a long solo home run to Ben Gamel in the second but otherwise kept the Brewers at bay to pick up his first victory since June 15, 2018. Kuhl, who missed the second half of 2018 and all of 2019 after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, walked three and struck out just one as the Pirates snapped a four-game losing streak.
August 23, 2020 7:45 am
PITTSBURGH — Derek Shelton has made it a point to keep reminding Gregory Polanco of all the little things the Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder is doing right in the batter’s box during a season-long slump. Keep at it, the first-year manager stressed to the longest-tenured player on his team. You’re on the right track. A track Polanco believes he can actually see after his first multihit game in 15 months propelled the Pirates to a 12-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday. Polanco hit his third homer of the year and also doubled as Pittsburgh won back-to-back games for the first time since last September. The 28-year-old turned on a Josh Lindblom offering in the fourth and sent it to the seats in right-center field to put the Pirates ahead to stay. Pittsburgh collected 14 hits for the second straight day, including a season-best nine for extra bases. Adam Frazier and Jacob Stallings both homered and drove in three runs. Colin Moran doubled three times, and Erik Gonzalez chipped in a two-run double in the seventh as the Pirates batted around against Milwaukee’s suddenly vulnerable bullpen. Derek Holland (1-1) surrendered one run in five innings in his 300th major league appearance. He allowed four hits in his first victory as a starter since April 9, 2019, for San Francisco. The charismatic left-hander also gave a postgame shoutout to his followers on the live-streaming service Twitch for their support.
August 22, 2020 3:58 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Philadelphia Flyers took their hopeful first step toward the franchise’s first Stanley Cup championship since 1975 with a 4-2 Eastern Conference playoff series win over the Montreal Canadiens. The Flyers have not won the Stanley Cup since 1975. Philadelphia lost in the Stanley Cup finals in 1976, 1980, 1985, 1987, 1997 and 2010. The Flyers won a playoff round for the first time since 2012. They’ll next play the New York Islanders. The Islanders went 3-0 against Philadelphia in the regular season.
August 22, 2020 3:59 am
UNDATED (AP) – More than 3,000 football games across three divisions of the NCAA have been canceled or postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak. Six conferences in the Football Bowl Subdivision still plan to play this fall. Three Football Championship Subdivision conferences are allowing teams to play nonconference games. Division II and III leagues are shuttered this fall. Associated Press research has also found nearly 200 sports teams have been eliminated because of budget cuts forced by the virus.
August 22, 2020 4:01 am
NORTON, Mass. (AP) – PGA Tour rookie Scottie Scheffler has become the 11th player to shoot a 59 or better in Tour history. The 24-year-old from Texas made a birdie putt from just outside 4 feet on the last hole for a 59 in the second round of The Northern Trust. He played bogey-free at the TPC Boston and finished with four birdies over his last five holes. Amazingly, he is two shots behind leader Dustin Johnson, who finished with a 60 and is at 15-under.
August 21, 2020 3:52 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Unbeaten Shane Bieber racked up 11 more strikeouts and combined with four relievers on a seven-hitter Thursday night as the Cleveland Indians blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-0 to win their sixth in a row and sweep the three-game series. The right-hander scattered six hits and did not walk a batter in six innings before being lifted after his pitch count reached 99. Bieber raised his season strikeout total to a major league-best 65 in 40 2/3 innings, an average of 14.4 per nine innings. Oliver Perez, Nick Wittgren, James Karinchak and Brad Hand finished the shutout.
August 21, 2020 2:27 am
Pittsburgh Pirates President Travis Williams has tested positive for COVID-19. Williams says he has followed all critical health and safety protocols and upon the onset of his symptoms, he immediately isolated himself and got tested. At this point, Williams says there are no other known positive tests within the Pirates organization.
