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Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Luka Doncic gifts more than 100 e-bikes to Lakers players, staff

Sports / Basketball /

LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic was back at it again, this time surprising the Lakers and staff members with more than 100 e-bikes for Christmas gifts.

Doncic, who took his teammates to a Porsche Driving Experience in October as a way to bond, gave the gifts away Tuesday after practice.

"I just wanted to give everybody something," he said. "...Read more

Lakers want Luka Doncic, LeBron James to engage more on defense

Sports / Basketball /

LOS ANGELES — They saw how “contagious” it was when playing defense at a high level against the Suns and how Jarred Vanderbilt lit the fuse to ignite things for the Lakers in their last victory over Phoenix.

And for the Lakers to maintain that defensive mindset, stars Luka Doncic and LeBron James also have to be committed to that end of ...Read more

Ethan Miller/Getty Images North America/TNS

Spurs star Victor Wembanyama found out his grandmother died before facing Knicks in NBA Cup final

Sports / Basketball /

NEW YORK — Victor Wembanyama played in the NBA Cup final against the Knicks with a heavy heart.

The San Antonio Spurs star was moved to tears during his postgame press conference because of a loss in his personal life.

“Sorry, I just lost somebody today,” Wembanyama said from the podium at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Wembanyama learned...Read more

Mark Story: Mark Pope made Kentucky fans a vow Saturday night. It won't be an easy promise to keep.

Sports / Basketball /

LEXINGTON, Ky. — With 13:18 remaining Saturday night in Kentucky’s renewed border skirmish with Indiana, the most surprising moment of the UK men’s basketball season to date occurred at Rupp Arena.

UK wing Kam Williams fed the ball to big man Brandon Garrison on the left high post. Williams cut hard toward the basket, received a nifty ...Read more

Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group/TNS

Dieter Kurtenbach: If Steph Curry can't save the Warriors, we're truly in the final days

Sports / Basketball /

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr says he isn’t doing a good job.

I’m inclined to believe him.

Because right now, the Dubs aren’t a basketball team. They are a desperation experiment. It’s no longer “Strength in Numbers,” it’s “Throw Spaghetti at the Wall and Pray it Looks Like Art.”

Spoiler alert: It doesn’t. It ...Read more

Ethan Miller/Getty Images North America/TNS

Knicks pull away in 4th quarter to defeat Spurs in 3rd NBA Cup

Sports / Basketball /

This is what it could all feel like one day.

On one side, complete euphoria, adulation, celebration and relief. The feeling of a job, at long last, well done. On the other, disappointment, anguish, embarrassment and resentment. The feeling that a lot more was left on the table than was taken home at the end of the day.

The Knicks just got ...Read more

Jamie Squire/Getty Images North America/TNS

Takeaways from Kansas' 73-49 romp over Towson -- without Darryn Peterson

Sports / Basketball /

LAWRENCE, Kan. — No Darryn Peterson, no problem for the Kansas men’s basketball team.

At least in Tuesday’s game, a dominant wire-to-wire victory over Towson.

No. 17 KU defeated Towson, 73-49, in Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks improved to 9-3. They are 4-0 all time against the Tigers.

Fans learned about two hours before the game that ...Read more

Chris Gardner/Getty Images North America/TNS

Henri Veesaar's 26 points lead UNC past East Tennessee State, 77-58

Sports / Basketball /

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — It took the Tar Heels a little while to get there, but North Carolina looked like a team that took last week’s lessons to heart.

Behind a renewed defensive effort late in the first half and a hot start to the second, No. 12 UNC rolled past East Tennessee State on Tuesday night at the Dean E. Smith Center, 77-58. The Tar ...Read more

Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images North America/TNS

Solo Ball's career-high 26 points leads UConn men to 79-60 win over Butler in Big East opener

Sports / Basketball /

HARTFORD, Conn. — The UConn men’s basketball team beat Butler, 79-60, in a slugfest to open Big East play at PeoplesBank Arena Tuesday night.

Solo Ball led the way with a career-high 26 points on an efficient 8-for-14 shooting from the field and his junior classmate Jayden Ross brought the fireworks with 13 points and eight rebounds, half ...Read more

Mick Akers/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS

NBA to make expansion decision in 2026, Adam Silver says

Sports / Basketball /

LAS VEGAS — NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Tuesday that the league should have clarity on the potential to expand to new markets, including Las Vegas, sometime in 2026.

During a news conference at T-Mobile Arena ahead of the NBA Cup championship game between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs, Silver said the conversations with ...Read more

Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images North America/TNS

Duke overcomes slow start to beat Lipscomb, 97-73

Sports / Basketball /

DURHAM, N.C. — The most noteworthy thing about Duke’s win Tuesday over Lipscomb was that it gave Blue Devils coach Jon Scheyer his 100th career win.

But few could have expected No. 100 to be quite as hard to get.

The No. 3 Blue Devils, coming back from end-of-semester exam break, took a 97-73 victory over the Bisons in a game that was too ...Read more

Robin Buckson/The Detroit News/TNS

No. 9 Michigan State throttles Toledo, 92-69

Sports / Basketball /

EAST LANSING, Mich. — It took one half of the game to figure out that Michigan State would beat Toledo handily Tuesday night at Breslin Center. In some respects, the warning signs showed as early as warmups.

An undersized Toledo roster had no answers for Michigan State forward Jaxon Kohler, who had a double-double by halftime and led Michigan...Read more

RAY CHAVEZ/Bay Area News Group/TNS

Steve Kerr shrugs off leaked email from Warriors owner Joe Lacob

Sports / Basketball /

SAN FRANCISCO — Warriors coach Steve Kerr is juggling an ever-changing rotation, a lineup that shifts nightly and injuries to key players.

An email from team owner Joe Lacob to a fan that made its way to social media? Not high on the longtime coach’s list of priorities.

“It’s not a big deal. I’m not concerned about anything like that...Read more

Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times/TNS

USC cancels basketball game against Brown in aftermath of campus shooting

Sports / Basketball /

LOS ANGELES — USC and Brown have mutually agreed to cancel their upcoming men's basketball game at Galen Center on Sunday, in light of the recent mass shooting on Brown's campus.

USC announced the cancellation Tuesday morning while sending its support to Brown and those affected. The school said in a statement that it plans to announce a new ...Read more

Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/TNS

Heat skid hits 5 as Herro misses 106-96 loss to Raptors

Sports / Basketball /

MIAMI – The payoff for five days off? A fifth straight loss.

Whether playing games in bunches or otherwise, it is not going well for the Miami Heat, this time falling 106-96 Monday night to the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center.

Still without a victory since Dec. 1, the Heat this time could not overcome another injury absence from guard Tyler...Read more

Evan Bernstein/Getty Images North America/TNS

St. John's ready to begin Big East title defense with conference opener against DePaul

Sports / Basketball /

NEW YORK — Rick Pitino doesn’t expect St. John’s to go 18-2 in Big East play again.

But the head coach believes his Johnnies have what it takes to repeat as conference champions, even if this season’s team remains a work in progress.

“We’re not as good as UConn right now, but you wouldn’t expect that because UConn had three ...Read more

Nic Antaya/Getty Images North America/TNS

Cunningham, bench unit lead Pistons to road win vs. Celtics

Sports / Basketball /

The Detroit Pistons returned to the site where their 13-game winning streak was snapped less than a month ago. After taking extra time to review film and address some issues, the Pistons successfully avenged their early-season loss with a 112-105 victory over the Boston Celtics Monday night at TD Garden.

Cade Cunningham led the way with 32 ...Read more

Soobum Im/Getty Images North America/TNS

Steph Curry's record-breaking effort not enough to beat Blazers

Sports / Basketball /

Steph Curry’s first 3-pointer of the third quarter rippled the net from 32 feet away, eliciting a murmur from the Portland crowd at Moda Center on Sunday night. His second make was a 25-foot stepback from the right wing, turning the murmur into nervous groans on the very next possession.

Curry’s third make in a minute and a half was a 26-...Read more

Soobum Im/Getty Images North America/TNS

Steph Curry's record-breaking effort not enough to beat Trail Blazers

Sports / Basketball /

Steph Curry’s first 3-pointer of the third quarter rippled the net from 32 feet away, eliciting a murmur from the Portland crowd at Moda Center Sunday night. His second make was a 25-foot stepback from the right wing, turning the murmur into nervous groans on the very next possession.

Curry’s third make in a minute and a half was a 26-foot ...Read more

Mike Christy/Getty Images North America/TNS

Lakers blow 20-point lead but end up winning a physical game with Suns

Sports / Basketball /

PHOENIX — LeBron James missed the first free throw that would have tied it. Then, bailed out by a foul with 3.9 seconds remaining, he missed the second. A long-awaited swish finally quieted a restless crowd.

The Los Angeles Lakers squandered a 20-point fourth-quarter lead and survived only after Devin Booker fouled James on a 3-pointer with ...Read more