AP Sports Summary for Thursday, March 7th, 2024.
Rafael Nadal withdraws from Indian Wells. It would have been his first tournament since January
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Rafael Nadal has pulled out of the BNP Paribas Open a day before he was supposed to play his first official match in two months. The 22-time Grand Slam champion posted the news on social media Wednesday night, writing that he was announcing the withdrawal "with great sadness." The 37-year-old from Spain missed nearly all of last season because of a hip injury that required surgery, then briefly returned to action for three matches in early January before tearing a muscle near the hip. That forced him to bypass the Australian Open — and he has not been on tour since. He was scheduled to face Milos Raonic on Thursday.
Bills releasing Jordan Poyer and Mitch Morse. Tre'Davious White also will be cut, AP source says
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills' salary cap-related purge of players cut deep into the team's core. Veteran safety Jordan Poyer and center Mitch Morse were among five players the team announced it had released. And cornerback Tre'Davious White is also being cut, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press. The person spoke to The AP on the condition of anonymity because the Bills did not announce White being cut because of the timing of his release is designated for June 1. Also cut were sixth-year backup cornerback Siran Neal, backup receiver Deonte Harty and running back Nyheim Hines.
Rangers, Panthers, Avalanche, Golden Knights and Oilers make pre-NHL trade deadline day moves
Stanley Cup contenders aren't waiting until the NHL trade deadline day to shore up depth for what they hope is a long playoff run. The league-leading Florida Panthers got deeper on the wing by acquiring Vladimir Tarasenko from Ottawa. Connor McDavid's Edmonton Oilers added a pair of centers in Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick from Anaheim. The New York Rangers added a player they coveted in Alexander Wennberg from Seattle. And Colorado loaded up by getting defenseman Sean Walker from Philadelphia and center Casey Mittelstadt from Buffalo.
Bay Hill still boasts a strong field. It's just a lot smaller
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Bay Hill had a $20 million purse and a strong field that produced a dynamic finish last year. Now it's a signature event, and really the only change is a smaller field. Only 69 players are in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The signature events have smaller fields for the elite players, along with 16 players who earned their way in. But it's been quiet so far. Still to be determined is what kind of finish Bay Hill produces. The year so far on the PGA Tour has produced four first-time winners and only one winner from the top 50.
De'Aaron Fox ties career high with 44 points as Kings roll to a 130-120 victory over Lakers
LOS ANGELES (AP) — De'Aaron Fox tied his career high with 44 points, Malik Monk added 26 and the Sacramento Kings bounced back with a 130-120 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. It was Fox's seventh game this season with at least 40 points, fourth-most in the NBA. Domantas Sabonis recorded his fourth triple-double in seven games with 16 points, 20 rebounds and 12 assists. He's the sixth player in NBA history with at least 22 triple-doubles in a season. LeBron James led the Lakers with 31 points and 13 assists while Rui Hachimura scored 29. Anthony Davis had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
From Herschel Walker to Russell Wilson, here's a look at some of the worst NFL trades ever
In a span of just a few days in the 2022 offseason, the Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns made aggressive trades to acquire what they hoped would be franchise-altering quarterbacks. The results so far have been very underwhelming, with the Broncos set to cut Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson providing little so far for the Browns. Those are part of a list of some of the worst deals in NFL history, including Minnesota's deal with Dallas for Herschel Walker and a trade that sent future Hall of Famer Brett Favre to Green Bay.
Magic rally from 21 down to win 119-109 as Wizards tie franchise record with 16th straight loss
WASHINGTON (AP) — Franz Wagner scored 28 points, Paolo Banchero added 25 and the Orlando Magic rallied from a 21-point second-quarter deficit to beat Washington 119-109 and hand the Wizards their 16th consecutive loss. Washington tied a team record for its longest losing streak. It matched a skid from the 2009-10 season. The Wizards looked on their way to ending this slide, but they were done in by a 44-point second half against one of the league's best defensive teams. Orlando has won eight of nine. Jordan Poole scored 26 points for Washington.
No. 1 Houston tops UCF 67-59 to clinch at least a share of Big 12 title in 1st season in conference
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — L.J. Cryer scored 19 of his 25 points in the second half to lift No. 1 Houston to a 67-59 comeback victory over UCF that clinched at least a share of the Big 12 regular-season title in the Cougars' first season in the conference. Houston led by nine points after a Cryer 3-pointer with 2:18 to play. UCF closed to within four with just over a minute to play, and then Cryer hit another clutch shot to pull away for the win. The Cougars trailed by as many as seven points and never led in the first half. C.J. Walker led UCF with 15 points.
Knecht leads No. 4 Tennessee to outright SEC crown with 66-59 win at No. 17 South Carolina
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Dalton Knecht had 26 points with five 3-pointers as No. 4 Tennessee won its first Southeastern Conference regular-season title since 2018 with a 66-59 victory over No. 17 South Carolina. The Volunteers withstood a late run by the Gamecocks, who cut a 14-point second-half deficit to 59-56 with 1:13 to play. But then Tennessee hit seven foul shots down the stretch to hold on and take a two-game lead in the SEC with one to play. Six years ago, Tennessee shared first place with Auburn. The last time the Vols had won an outright SEC regular-season title was 2008.
Alyssa Naeher has 3 saves in a penalty shootout over Canada and the US heads to Gold Cup final
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Alyssa Naeher had three saves in the penalty shootout after a rain-soaked 2-2 draw with Canada on Wednesday night, earning the United States a spot in the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup final. The United States advanced 3-1 on penalties and will play Brazil in the title game on Sunday evening. Brazil defeated Mexico 3-0 in the earlier semifinal match on Wednesday. The game was a sloppy mess with standing water on the field at San Diego's Snapdragon Stadium from heavy rain in San Diego. The players had difficulty with control. The U.S. got goals from Jadyn Shaw and Sophia Smith, while Jordyn Huitema and Adriana Leon scored for Canada.
AP-Scorecard
Here are the scores from yesterday's sports events:
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INTERLEAGUE
N-Y Mets at Houston 1:05 p.m. (Canceled)
Final Chicago Cubs 6 L.A. Angels 5
Final L.A. Dodgers 12 Chicago White Sox 9
Final Baltimore 6 Pittsburgh 4
Final Texas 6 Colorado 6
Final Cleveland 3 Milwaukee 3
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Tampa Bay 4 N.Y. Yankees 3
Final Minnesota 7 Boston 1
Final Seattle 8 Kansas City 7
Final Oakland 12 L.A. Angels 5
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Washington 9 Miami 3
Final Milwaukee 2 Cincinnati 0
Final Cincinnati 6 San Diego 2
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Orlando 119 Washington 109
Final Atlanta 112 Cleveland 101
Final L.A. Clippers 122 Houston 116
Final Memphis 115 Philadelphia 109
Final Chicago 119 Utah 117
Final Golden State 125 Milwaukee 90
Final Oklahoma City 128 Portland 120
Final Sacramento 130 L.A. Lakers 120
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final OT Toronto 2 Buffalo 1
Final Anaheim 2 Ottawa 1
Final Colorado 7 Detroit 2
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TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (1)Houston 67 UCF 59
Final (2)UConn 74 (8)Marquette 67
Final (4)Tennessee 66 (17)South Carolina 59
Final (6)Iowa St. 68 (20)BYU 63
Final (15)Kentucky 93 Vanderbilt 77
Final (22)Utah St. 90 San Jose St. 70
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TODAY'S SPORTS SCHEDULE
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INTERLEAGUE
Atlanta at Boston 1:05 p.m.
Houston at St. Louis 1:05 p.m.
Philadelphia at Tampa Bay 1:05 p.m.
Milwaukee at Chi White Sox 3:05 p.m.
Arizona at Texas 3:05 p.m.
Kansas City at Colorado 3:10 p.m.
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
Cleveland at Oakland 3:05 p.m.
L-A Angels at Seattle 3:10 p.m.
Toronto at Detroit 6:05 p.m.
Detroit at N-Y Yankees 6:35 p.m.
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
Washington at N-Y Mets 6:10 p.m.
Chi Cubs at Cincinnati 8:05 p.m.
L-A Dodgers at San Francisco 9:05 p.m.
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Brooklyn at Detroit 7 p.m.
Minnesota at Indiana 7 p.m.
Miami at Dallas 7:30 p.m.
Toronto at Phoenix 9 p.m.
Boston at Denver 10 p.m.
Chicago at Golden State 10 p.m.
San Antonio at Sacramento 10 p.m.
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Calgary at Tampa Bay 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Columbus 7 p.m.
Montreal at Carolina 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Florida 7 p.m.
St. Louis at New Jersey 7 p.m.
Toronto at Boston 7 p.m.
Washington at Pittsburgh 7 p.m.
Buffalo at Nashville 8 p.m.
Minnesota at Arizona 9 p.m.
Vancouver at Vegas 10 p.m.
N-Y Islanders at San Jose 10:30 p.m.
Ottawa at Los Angeles 10:30 p.m.
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TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
(5)Arizona at UCLA 9:30 p.m.
Washington at (18)Washington St. 9 p.m.
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