ORLANDO, Fla. — UCF students poured into the Addition Financial Arena about an hour before tipoff, bringing with them an undeniable energy that comes with the anticipation of what they were about to witness.

The student section filled up quickly, prompting the public address announcer to ask the students to pack in tighter to accommodate as ...Read more

The Michigan Wolverines’ maiden Big Ten voyage to the Pacific Northwest was a successful one.

A few days after beating Washington in Seattle, No. 4 Michigan completed the two-game swing with an 81-71 win over undermanned Oregon on Saturday at Matthew Knight Arena.

Elliot Cadeau scored 17, Nimari Burnett 15 and Aday Mara 12 for Michigan (16-1...Read more

BERKELEY, Calif. — Caleb Wilson isn’t one to hide his emotions. This California trip has been no different. Following Wednesday’s upset loss at Stanford, the freshman said he was “frustrated” and hates “losing when we don’t have to.”

The Tar Heels followed that up with their worst loss of the season Saturday at Cal, an 84-78 ...Read more

Florida team managers forgot to pack Xaivian Lee’s jersey for the Gators’ visit to Vanderbilt.

But UF’s struggling shooting guard found his game to help deliver a 98-94 win against the No. 10 Commodores and finish on the road, where Todd Golden’s Gators have come up short late in games.

Lee’s 3-pointer with 45 seconds gave No. 19 ...Read more

After a couple of near-misses at home, the Minnesota men’s basketball team had a tough test back on the road against one of the Big Ten’s better teams.

The Gophers stayed close for about three quarters of the game, but No. 13 Illinois pulled away in the final 11 minutes for a 77-67 victory on Saturday in Champaign, Ill.

The victory was the...Read more

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — In each of the past three basketball seasons, the Kentucky Wildcats walked into Thompson-Boling Arena as underdogs and left as upset winners.

The Cats did it again Saturday afternoon.

Denzel Aberdeen and Otega Oweh hit layups in the final minute to lead Kentucky back from a 17-point deficit, and the Cats stunned No. 24 ...Read more

WASHINGTON – The UConn men’s basketball team escaped with another tight victory on a rough shooting afternoon at Capital One Arena Saturday, holding on in the final minute to beat Georgetown, 64-62.

UConn built a lead of as many as 10 points in the first half but lost its momentum after point guard Silas Demary Jr. went out with foul ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — In a city where he has played for the longest stretch of his life, LeBron James should be considered one of the greatest Lakers ever.

Yet, by most accounts, he's barely in the top 10.

James set the career scoring record here, set the career longevity record here, and won a long-awaited NBA championship here.

Yet he is ...Read more

If you are the kind of fan who gets mad when NBA players miss free throws, Timberwolves-Rockets was not for you.

Neither team wanted to hit its free shots all game, and the loser was going to regret those missed points. It turned out to be the visiting Wolves, who lost, 110-105, on Friday.

The Wolves finished 20 for 35 at the line while ...Read more

The Nets finally closed one out.

Behind a big night from Michael Porter Jr. and a major lift from its bench, Brooklyn snapped a five-game skid with a 112–109 win over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night at Barclays Center, improving to 12-27.

Porter finished with 26 points and seven rebounds, scoring the go-ahead basket in the final seconds, ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Lakers star Luka Doncic will miss Saturday's game in Portland because of left groin soreness, the team announced Friday.

Doncic, the NBA's leading scorer averaging 33.6 points per game, appeared to struggle with a groin injury during a loss against the Sacramento Kings on Monday. But he didn't miss games on Tuesday and Thursday ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The gasps from the crowd at Crypto.com Arena — a mix of shock from Lakers fans and anticipation from fans rooting for the local hero — grew each time LaMelo Ball pulled up from seemingly more and more audacious spots on the court. The Charlotte Hornets star guard held three fingers to his bicep each time he splashed a shot ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Thursday’s startling allegations that 17 NCAA Division I men’s basketball programs — including Coppin State — were involved in a massive gambling scam to rig games isn’t likely to be the last such incident involving athletics and sports betting, academics said.

In fact, Keunsu Han, an associate professor of sport ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Jordan Addison is so misunderstood.

Here’s this diligent young athlete, rising before the sun in Florida just weeks after his season ended, getting arrested at 3:45 a.m. and charged with trespassing, when we can all be sure he was so eager to work out that he just searching for an open gym.

That’s dedication.

And this ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — In a back-and-forth high-scoring affair Thursday night, the Los Angeles Lakers led by 13 points in the second quarter before the Charlotte Hornets rallied to build a 15-point lead in the third quarter.

In the end, the Hornets kept the momentum they stole from the Lakers, rolling to a 135-117 win at Crypto.com Arena.

Even with ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO – The Golden State Warriors were playing mere hours after one of its players asked for a trade. The New York Knicks coming off a loss to hapless Sacramento the night before. Should there have been any surprise that both sides played with a hint of angst on Thursday night at Chase Center?

OK, maybe a little more than a little ...Read more

DETROIT — A four-day break caused the Detroit Pistons to start sluggishly against the Phoenix Suns. Consequently, the Pistons were down by as many as 16 points midway through the second quarter. After a slow start, however, the Pistons overcame their subpar first-half performance, leading to a 108-105 victory, Thursday night at Little Caesars ...Read more

Anfernee Simons delivered his finest performance in a Celtics uniform Thursday night, scoring 39 points in 34 minutes to carry Boston to a come-from-behind victory over the host Miami Heat.

The Celtics trailed by as many as 19 points in the first half and 13 in the third quarter before rallying for a 119-114 win at the Kaseya Center. The win ...Read more

CHICAGO — Two former DePaul men’s basketball players were among 20 people indicted Wednesday in an alleged gambling and game-fixing scandal that spans more than a dozen college teams.

Former Blue Demons guard Jalen Terry and forward Da’Sean Nelson are accused of fixing the first halves of games by underperforming in Big East games in ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — The Knicks ruled All-Star guard Jalen Brunson out for Thursday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors with a right ankle sprain sustained in Wednesday’s loss to the Sacramento Kings.

Brunson left Sacramento’s Golden 1 Center without crutches and under his own power after sustaining a right ankle injury five minutes ...Read more