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Luke DeCock: As Final Four returns to Houston, UNC remembers the greatest shot ever forgotten
HOUSTON — The Final Four has come back around, seven years later, but there’s no marker on the floor in Houston to mark the spot where Kris Jenkins launched the shot that broke a million Tar Heel hearts, not that the NCAA has a habit of indulging in that kind of sentimentality.
It’s impossible to be here, though, without thinking about ...Read more

Before UConn hits the court, assistant coaches hit the film room to prepare Huskies for anything and everything
STORRS, Conn. — With all of its uniqueness on both ends of the floor and all of the pieces that can come into the game and provide different looks, the UConn men’s basketball team has proven to make for an extremely difficult scout and especially benefited in nonconference play because of it.
But scouting their opponent?
Countless hours of...Read more

Kevin Durant: Nets 'did amazing by me the whole time I was there'
Kevin Durant still “wants the best for” the Nets.
In an interview with The Athletic, Durant — who forced a trade from Brooklyn to the Phoenix Suns at the trade deadline following Kyrie Irving’s unexpected trade from the Nets to the Dallas Mavericks — suggested there is no bad blood between himself and the Nets front office, even ...Read more

Marcos Bretón: The Sacramento Kings' playoff drought is over, and a region finally dares to believe
The Sacramento Kings are back in the playoffs after 17 long, bitter, dismally interminable years of futility. It should have never taken this long.
The Kings set a new NBA record for missing the playoffs between 2006 and now, but that sorry story is finally over. The Kings clinched Wednesday by winning on the road against the Portland ...Read more

Clueless about FAU basketball? (Who isn't?) Here's what you need to know to not sound dumb for the Final Four.
The Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team is enjoying a breakthrough year. The Owls were ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time, they had a nation’s best 20-game winning streak, and now, they’re remarkably playing in the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four, which puts the Owls at an elite level.
Not bad for a university not ...Read more

Dan Hurley seeks advice on playing in cavernous NRG Stadium, which hosted 2011 lowest-scoring title performance
STORRS, Conn. — The UConn men’s basketball program’s third national title, in 2011, came after what many remember as one of the worst national championship games in the history of the tournament. Three-seeded UConn beat No. 8 seed Butler, 53-41, after the Bulldogs put together a record-low scoring performance.
Butler shot just 18.8% from ...Read more

Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley appreciates the love from Kevin Garnett
NEW YORK — Immanuel Quickley was scrolling his social media, as the Generation Z’ers tend to do, and he randomly pulled up a clip of Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett.
“Damn, I love Quickley too dawg,” Garnett said on his SHOWTIME show, ‘Anything is Possible.’ “Quickley and Bones [Hyland] are two of my favorite young guys in the league....Read more

Warriors star Steph Curry signs new potential lifetime deal with Under Armour
Steph Curry has signed a deal that will keep him tied to Under Armour longer than he’ll be tied to the Warriors — as a player, at least.
The Golden State superstar has a new contract with the apparel company that extends into his retirement and could become a lifetime deal through performance clauses triggering extensions, Under Armour ...Read more

'I don't care': Joel Embiid responds to criticism about missing game against Nikola Jokić
PHILADELPHIA — If not playing in Monday’s anticipated matchup against Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets is what prevents Joel Embiid from winning the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award, the 76ers superstar said, “I don’t care.”
Embiid reiterated late Wednesday — after returning from a one-game absence with calf tightness in the ...Read more

Bryce Miller: Aztecs guard Darrion Trammell stopped thinking, started shooting
The sweet-spot combination of confidence and skill in Division I basketball is tricky to find and trickier to maintain. A player can be brimming with one, but betrayed by the other. One day can be draped in a sense of sky-high invincibility. The next feels like an unraveling golf swing depositing balls into creeks.
Navigating the in between, ...Read more

Wolves withstand Durant's return, but clunky offense hurts in loss to Suns
PHOENIX — Two nights after spoiling a party in Sacramento by delaying the Kings from clinching a playoff berth, the Timberwolves tried to crash the return of Kevin Durant to the Suns after an ankle injury.
But the Wolves' offense lacked some of its recent crispness and couldn't execute enough down the stretch of a 107-100 loss to Phoenix.
...Read more
Pistons lose by one point as Thunder hit winner with 0.5 seconds left
The Pistons were a completely different team when they last met the Oklahoma City Thunder in November.
Most of the roster was healthy and available, including Cade Cunningham, Bojan Bogdanovic, Isaiah Stewart and Hamidou Diallo. Saddiq Bey was also a member of the Pistons the last time Detroit and Oklahoma City played against each other.
Much ...Read more

Julius Randle suffers ankle injury in Knicks' 101-92 victory over Heat
NEW YORK — The good and the bad.
On a night the Knicks essentially clinched a playoff berth, All-Star Julius Randle left the court in pain with a sprained ankle.
He never re-emerged from the locker room after halftime, missing his teammates — most notably Immanuel Quickley — surge past the Heat in the fourth quarter of a 101-92 victory ...Read more
After slow start, Nets bounce back with much-needed win vs. Rockets
NEW YORK — If this is what an expedited jelling process looks like, the Nets need a new overnight delivery service.
Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn said ahead of tipoff against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday that the team has done everything — from spending more time together in the locker room to taking advantage of additional practice ...Read more
Lakers show postseason promise with dominant win over Bulls
CHICAGO — D’Angelo Russell put his hands up to the side of his head as he jogged down the court, his eyes widening like a pair of deep-dish pies.
LeBron James had just jumped into the air, caught a rebound and gracefully tipped it back in — the Lakers sprinting toward their full potential with Russell in faux shock.
But as the plays ...Read more

Takeaways from loss to Knicks, as Heat sinks deeper into play-in tournament territory
NEW YORK — Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 101-92 loss to the New York Knicks on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden to close a quick two-game trip winless at 0-2. The Heat now returns to Miami to face the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday:
The Heat knows the importance of these games as the regular season winds down, but it’s just ...Read more
Sixers outlast Dallas Mavericks, 116-108, in return of Joel Embiid and James Harden
PHILADELPHIA — Luka Doncic attempted to float a driving layup over Joel Embiid, but the Sixers’ big man rejected the ball at the rim.
That denial of the Dallas Mavericks superstar all but sealed the Sixers 116-108 victory Wednesday night at the Wells Fargo Center, on a night Embiid and fellow standout James Harden returned from injury.
The...Read more

A bandwagoner's guide to the San Diego State basketball team
SAN DIEGO — There are 363 Division I men’s college basketball teams, and San Diego State is one of the four still dancing through the NCAA Tournament.
For the first time in program history, the Aztecs have reached the Final Four.
The team will play Florida Atlantic University in the tournament’s first semifinal game in Houston on ...Read more

Mike Jensen: A crazy day at Temple ends with Adam Fisher as head men's basketball coach
PHILADELPHIA — In the annals of crazy Temple basketball days, this one was pretty good.
In the end, what will be remembered, Adam Fisher was offered the job, and Adam Fisher accepted the job.
Your new Owls head basketball coach, Adam Fisher.
Penn State’s associate head coach was the popular choice of Nittany Lions players themselves to ...Read more

Dave Hyde: Jim Larrañaga showing why he's one of South Florida's greatest sports hires
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Here’s how Jim Larrañaga prepares for the biggest game of his big life: He opens his office door as he’s in mid-discussion with his coaching staff and gives a come-on-in wave to the visitor standing outside.
Me?
“You’ll like this,” he says.
He points me to a place on the sofa beside him.
“We’re talking ...Read more
Popular Stories
- Michael Forrest, 'Mr. FAU,' misses most of Final Four practice, and you won't believe the reason
- Mike Jensen: A crazy day at Temple ends with Adam Fisher as head men's basketball coach
- A bandwagoner's guide to the San Diego State basketball team
- Dave Hyde: Jim Larrañaga showing why he's one of South Florida's greatest sports hires
- Sixers outlast Dallas Mavericks, 116-108, in return of Joel Embiid and James Harden