September 29, 2020 3:48 am
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) – The Tampa Bay Lightning are the champions of bubble hockey. Brayden Point scored his playoff-best 14th goal, and the Lightning beat the Dallas Stars 2-0 to win the Stanley Cup and finish off the NHL playoffs staged in quarantine during the pandemic. The clock hitting zeros in an empty arena set off a wild celebration for a group that endured years of playoff heartbreak and two months in isolation. Goals from Point and Blake Coleman and a 22-save shutout by Andrei Vasilevskiy were enough to power the Lightning to their second championship in franchise history after winning it in 2004. Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. The playoffs became a showcase of the big Swede’s skills on both ends of the ice. He also showed key leadership in the absence of injured captain Steven Stamkos.
September 29, 2020 3:45 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The arrival of rookie third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes gives the Pittsburgh Pirates something to build on heading into 2021. The Pirates finished with the worst record in the majors during the truncated 2020 season, but Hayes looked like a cornerstone going forward after hitting .376 in 24 games. Hayes was named the National League Rookie-of-the-Month for September. The starting rotation should get a boost next year with the return of Jameson Taillon from Tommy John surgery. There are bigger questions surrounding the bullpen and the future of right fielder Gregory Polanco. Polanco, who hit just .153 in 50 games, is scheduled to make $11.6 million next season.
September 28, 2020 4:00 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – James Conner ran for 109 yards and the go-ahead touchdown midway through the fourth quarter as the Pittsburgh Steelers stayed perfect by rallying past the Houston Texans 28-21. The Steelers improved to 3-0 for the first time in a decade by putting the clamps on the Texans in the second half. Houston managed just 51 yards and two first downs after halftime as an early 11-point lead vanished. The Texans dropped to 0-3. Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt collected a sack to win bragging rights over older brother J.J., a star defensive end for the Texans.
September 28, 2020 3:57 am
CLEVELAND (AP) – The Cleveland Indians are staying home for the first round of the postseason – with the New York Yankees coming to town. Carlos Santana had four RBIs and delivered a go-ahead, two-run double in the seventh inning as the Indians rallied past the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-6 to gain home-field advantage for their wild-card series. The Indians finished second in the AL Central and grabbed the No. 4 seed in the American League playoffs when the Chicago White Sox lost to the crosstown Cubs. Cleveland will face the fifth-seeded Yankees in a best-of-three series beginning Tuesday at Progressive Field. The opener features a prime pitching matchup, with Cy Young Award favorite Shane Bieber scheduled to face Yankees ace Gerrit Cole.
September 28, 2020 4:03 am
UNDATED (AP) – Ron Roenicke has been told he will not return as manager of the Red Sox, ending a one-year, shotgun stopgap on the final day of a pandemic-shortened season that resulted in a last-place finish in the AL East. Roenicke was hired on the eve of spring training after Alex Cora was implicated in Houston’s sign stealing scandal.
September 28, 2020 4:01 am
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) – The Miami Heat are going to the NBA Finals. Bam Adebayo scored a season-high 32 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the Heat closed out the Eastern Conference Finals in six games, rallying for a 125-113 win over the Celtics. Boston took its largest lead of the night at 96-90 before Adebayo and Tyler Herro sparked a 26-6 run that put the Heat in control.
Jimmy Butler scored 22 points in earning his first trip to the Finals. Herro finished with 19 points, more than half of it coming down the stretch. Jaylen Brown had a team-high 26 points for the Celtics, who have been eliminated in the East finals three times in the last four seasons. Jayson Tatum had 24 and a career-high 11 assists in the loss, while Marcus Smart and Kemba Walker each scored 20.
The Heat square off against the Lakers on Wednesday.
September 27, 2020 7:20 am
CLEVELAND — The Indians will have one eye on the field and one eye on the scoreboard on the final day of the regular season. Cleveland suffered a setback in its bid to host a first-round playoff series and had its six-game winning streak snapped with an 8-0 loss to Joe Musgrove and the major league-worst Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night. The Indians fell one game behind the Chicago White Sox for second place in the AL Central and were eliminated from the division title race when Minnesota beat Cincinnati. In order to earn home-field advantage for the best-of-three wild-card round, Cleveland must beat the Pirates and have the White Sox lose to the Cubs on Sunday. The Indians hold the tiebreaker over the White Sox. Any other outcome sends Cleveland on the road. Pittsburgh rocked right-hander Aaron Civale (4-6) for a career-high eight runs in four innings. Rookie Ke’Bryan Hayes had five hits and Colin Moran had a three-run homer and four RBI. Bryan Reynolds and Jose Osuna also homered as the Pirates won for the third time in 19 interleague games. Hayes scored three runs, doubled three times and had two singles, and is batting .370 (30 for 81) since making his major league debut on Sept. 1.
September 27, 2020 7:22 am
PITTSBURGH — Patrick Jones II wants No. 21 Pittsburgh’s defense to be the best in the country. Not just in points allowed. Not just in yards allowed. Not just in sacks or turnovers. All of it. The Panthers are certainly playing like it. Jones collected three of Pitt’s seven sacks, helping the Panthers beat No. 24 Louisville 23-20 on Saturday. The win pushed Pitt (3-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) to its best start since 2014 and adhered to a blueprint the Panthers believe can carry them to the conference title game in December: tough, physical defense and enough offense to get by.
September 27, 2020 7:23 am
STILLWATER, Okla. — For Chuba Hubbard and Oklahoma State, it wasn’t pretty, but in the end, when it really mattered, he and his team made the plays they needed to. Hubbard scored on a 23-yard run with 1:17 remaining to salvage a difficult afternoon and help No. 15 Oklahoma State beat West Virginia 27-13 on Saturday. Sidelined for a number of key plays after fumbling on consecutive second-half possessions, Hubbard ended up with 101 yards on 22 rushes for his 12th 100-yard performance in his last 13 games. With the additional action, Hubbard’s backup, L.D. Brown, gained 103 yards on 11 carries, including a 66-yard touchdown run, for Oklahoma State (2-0, 1-0 Big 12). It was the first time since a 2016 contest against TCU that Oklahoma State had two different running backs rush for over 100 yards in a Big 12 outing.
September 27, 2020 7:25 am
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — More than a decade since Corey Perry won the Stanley Cup as a young player and years after Joe Pavelski fell two wins short, the greybeards aren’t ready to leave the bubble and give up on another opportunity for a championship just yet. Pavelski tied it with 6:45 left in the regulation, laid out to block a shot in the first overtime and Perry’s second goal of the game came in double OT to give the Dallas Stars a 3-2 win over Tampa Bay and force a Game 6 in the Stanley Cup Final. Anton Khudobin made 39 saves and Perry’s winner 9:23 into the second OT was a manner of redemption for the Stars a night after they lost in OT on a questionable penalty call when Tampa Bay scored on the ensuing power play. Game 6 is Monday night
