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Ellen Schmidt/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS

'What I've always wanted': Aces owner lauds WNBA progress with new CBA as sponsorships end

Sports / Basketball /

PHOENIX — WNBA players will earn a lot more money this upcoming season, and it’s possible that no team owner is more excited about that idea than Mark Davis.

Since purchasing the Las Vegas Aces from MGM in 2021, Davis has been at the forefront advocating for WNBA players to be treated like valued professionals. Davis has also been outspoken...Read more

Emilee Chinn/Getty Images North America/TNS

Final Four notes: Why Dan Hurley thinks he has the answer to UConn's shooting woes

Sports / Basketball /

INDIANAPOLIS — Dan Hurley thinks he and his staff have figured out a tactical adjustment that will help the UConn men turn around their shooting struggles at the Final Four.

The Huskies saw only five of their 25 attempts (20%) fall from beyond the arc in the first round of the tournament against Furman, then got up to 33% with eight makes on ...Read more

Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group/TNS

Warriors share more details about Steph Curry's return

Sports / Basketball /

SAN FRANCISCO — A decision on Steph Curry’s possible return could be made as soon as Friday.

During his pregame press conference before facing the Cavaliers on Thursday, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said that Curry participated in a scrimmage earlier in the day, his second scrimmage in three days.

“He’s pretty good,” Kerr said when ...Read more

Ishika Samant/Getty Images North America/TNS

Illinois was no match for UConn in November. Can a 'different' Illini team fare better in Final Four rematch?

Sports / Basketball /

When Illinois coach Brad Underwood looks back on his team’s game against Connecticut on Black Friday, he almost doesn’t recognize the Illini.

UConn’s 74-61 win over Illinois on Nov. 28 was a reality check for Underwood’s team. The Illini entered the season with big goals and split games with ranked Texas Tech and Alabama teams in the ...Read more

Scott Taetsch/Getty Images North America/TNS

Wizards apologize after April Fools' Day prank backfires

Sports / Basketball /

The Washington Wizards attempted to pull off an April Fools’ Day skit. It wasn’t received as they hoped, causing the team to apologize on Thursday.

The Wizards set up a mid-game promotion during Wednesday’s 153-131 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in which a “fan” would attempt a blindfolded shot from halfcourt, with a reward of $10,000...Read more

Daniel Mears/The Detroit News/TNS

Michigan's Elliot Cadeau ready to play after allergy scare: 'Everything is good'

Sports / Basketball /

INDIANAPOLIS — Michigan point guard Elliot Cadeau said he’s feeling fine after a nut allergy scare delayed his arrival to the Final Four.

As the men’s basketball team was getting ready to bus to the airport Wednesday during a celebratory sendoff outside of Crisler Center, Cadeau required medical attention for a slight allergic reaction.

...Read more

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Mark Story: Is Rick Pitino right that blue bloods 'no longer control' college basketball?

Sports / Basketball /

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Rick Pitino raised eyebrows last week with comments about the status of traditional blue blood programs in the current landscape of men’s college basketball.

Essentially, Pitino suggested the “blue bloods” are almost as passé as compact discs.

“The blue bloods no longer control basketball any longer,” the St. John...Read more

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images North America/TNS

Warriors instant analysis: Undermanned Golden State strengthens Wembanyama's MVP case

Sports / Basketball /

SAN FRANCISCO – Draymond Green has made a Hall of Fame career out of playing taller than his 6-foot-7 frame for the Warriors.

Reserve teammate Nate Williams may stand just 6-5, but he has carved out a spot in the NBA by playing with a similar level of verve and energy.

Their heart, that desire, collective fearlessness was never in doubt on ...Read more

Chris Gardner/Getty Images North America/TNS

Nuggets begin battle for seeding in Utah after clinching 8th straight playoff berth

Sports / Basketball /

The Nuggets had already clinched an eighth consecutive playoff berth by the time they tipped off Wednesday in Utah, thanks to Phoenix’s latest loss. That means the results from now on are all about seeding in the Western Conference bracket, where they’ll finish somewhere between third and sixth.

They remained in fourth with a 130-117 ...Read more

Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

Magic routed by Hawks in Franz Wagner's return

Sports / Basketball /

ORLANDO, Fla. — The long-awaited return of Franz Wagner provided the Magic with a boost both emotionally and on the court Wednesday night, but it wasn’t nearly enough in a 130-101 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

Playing on the second night of a back-to-back at Kia Center after taking down the Suns less than 24 hours earlier, the Magic were ...Read more

Megan Briggs/Getty Images North America/TNS

Jayson Tatum delivers triple-double, Jaylen Brown pours in 43 points as Celtics beat Heat

Sports / Basketball /

The Celtics’ superstar duo showed out Wednesday night in Miami.

Jayson Tatum recorded his first triple-double (25 points, 18 rebounds, 11 assists, two steals) since his return from Achilles surgery less than a month earlier, and Jaylen Brown poured in 43 points on 17-of-29 shooting as Boston blew out the Heat, 147-129, at the Kaseya Center.

...Read more

Justin Ford/Getty Images North America/TNS

Kristian Winfield: Karl-Anthony Towns posts triple-double as Jalen Brunson-less Knicks snap 3-game skid

Sports / Basketball /

With one second left in the third quarter of Wednesday’s road matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Knicks ran an after-timeout (ATO) inbounds play that in many ways encapsulated their entire season under coach Mike Brown: Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns cut to the same place outside the 3-point line, Tyler Kolek was a second late ...Read more

Daniel Mears/The Detroit News/TNS

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo 'talked seriously' about NBA job with Suns

Sports / Basketball /

Tom Izzo has been a Michigan State Spartan his entire head coaching career, but a year ago he nearly went pro.

On the Dan Patrick Show, Izzo said Wednesday that he “talked seriously” about taking a job as head coach for the Phoenix Suns last season, the same NBA team owned by former player and MSU donor Mat Ishbia. He turned it down and ...Read more

Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Luka Doncic matches Michael Jordan for the most magical March in NBA history

Sports / Basketball /

LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic, with the eyes of five defenders fixed on him in the paint, faked a lob pass. He threatened to wrap a pass around Cleveland center Thomas Bryant's back. Instead, the Lakers superstar pulled up straight over the top of Bryant's outstretched arm, dropping a fadeaway jumper softly through the net.

Doncic smiled toward ...Read more

Alex Slitz/Getty Images North America/TNS

Illinois freshmen Keaton Wagler, David Mirković garner national attention in unique ways on road to Final Four

Sports / Basketball /

HOUSTON — David Mirković could feel himself on the edge of tears as Illinois began to inch away from Iowa in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight on Saturday night.

He fought it until the final moments, when Keaton Wagler dribbled slowly down the court, raising his right arm up and down to the cheers of the orange-clad fans at the Toyota Center. ...Read more

Emilee Chinn/Getty Images North America/TNS

UConn's Tarris Reed is on one of the greatest March Madness runs ever. How he's unlocked dominance.

Sports / Basketball /

STORRS, Conn. — Tarris Reed Jr. needed the fire and intensity that comes with playing for a coach like Dan Hurley and a program like UConn.

And the Huskies, never more than during this NCAA Tournament run, needed Tarris Reed Jr. at his best.

The elephant in the room — addressed numerous times down the stretch of this season — was that ...Read more

Tammy Ljungblad/The Kansas City Star/TNS

KU's Bill Self announces he'll return as Kansas basketball coach

Sports / Basketball /

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Bill Self, head men’s basketball coach at Kansas the past 23 seasons and a Class of 2017 inductee in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, has decided to return to KU for a 24th season in 2026-27.

Self who led KU to a pair of NCAA titles (2008, 2022), four Final Fours (2008, 2012, 2018, 2022), 17 Big 12 regular-...Read more

Daniel Mears/The Detroit News/TNS

Michigan guard Elliot Cadeau suffers medical incident ahead of Final Four

Sports / Basketball /

The Michigan basketball team’s Final Four sendoff in Ann Arbor on Wednesday was briefly delayed due to a medical issue.

Shortly after the team boarded the bus to travel to Indianapolis, point guard Elliot Cadeau was removed and transported on a gurney to a nearby ambulance after he suffered an apparent allergic reaction.

“Before the team ...Read more

Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times/TNS

After a sizzling March, Lakers face a big playoff test against equally hot Oklahoma City

Sports / Basketball /

LOS ANGELES — The tests kept coming in the month of March for the Los Angeles Lakers and they responded with the same resounding answer: We're ready.

Yet, even though the Lakers posted a 15-2 record last month, even though they beat some of the best teams in the NBA, they still have another big test on the horizon that will further show ...Read more

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images North America/TNS

Terry Rozier's Heat tenure now entering its final week, with two-way player expected to be elevated

Sports / Basketball /

MIAMI — The final week of Terry Rozier’s tenure is now at hand, with the Miami Heat within the next week having to waive the veteran guard in order to be able to sign a roster replacement, a replacement likely to be one of the team’s three current two-way players being upgraded to a standard contract.

While players can be signed until the...Read more