AP National Sports

By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press MONTMELÓ, Spain (AP) — Formula One leader Charles Leclerc and Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz have set the fastest times in the opening practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix. Defending world champion Max Verstappen had the third best time at 0.336 seconds off Leclerc’s pace in his Red Bull. Leclerc

By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press MONTMELÓ, Spain (AP) — Two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso has accused the FIA race stewards of incompetence and says one of the directors lacks the professionalism for the role. The Spaniard made the allegations at his home grand prix in Barcelona. He’s angry about a penalty he received two

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer GENEVA (AP) — International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach says Russian athletes and officials who have been banned from international sporting events because of the war in Ukraine are being protected rather than punished. Most Olympic sports bodies followed the IOC guidance given within days of Russia’s invasion by

DORTMUND, Germany (AP) — Borussia Dortmund is looking for a new coach after deciding not to continue with Marco Rose following what the Bundesliga club called an “unsatisfactory” season. The club says the decision was taken after an internal review with Rose. Dortmund finished second behind Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga last season and disappointed

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer The title, European qualification and relegation will all be decided on the final day of the season for the first time in Premier League history. Manchester City and Liverpool are vying for the title. City leads by one point and hosts Aston Villa while Liverpool hosts Wolverhampton. The fourth

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Australia has replaced Russia as host of swimming’s short-course world championships in December. Swimming’s governing body FINA says Melbourne will host the 25-meter pool events from Dec. 13-18. FINA stripped Kazan as host in March because of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Athletes and officials from Russia and its military ally Belarus

HOBART, Australia (AP) — Successful first-year Tasmania coach and former NBA player Scott Roth has signed a contract extension with the National Basketball League club until the end of the 2024-25 season. The JackJumpers announced the contract extension less than two weeks after Roth took the team to the NBL championship series before losing to

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Sports Writer TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Joaquin Niemann spent his youth growing up in Chile trying to follow in the footsteps of Mito Pereira, who didn’t exactly make it easy the way he kept winning prestigious amateur golf events in the U.S. and Scotland and points in between. Niemann sure did

By PAT GRAHAM AP Sports Writer DENVER (AP) — David Perron scored twice, Jordan Binnington made 30 saves and the St. Louis Blues beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-1 to tie their second-round series at a game apiece. Jordan Kyrou added a goal and Brandon Saad sealed it with an empty-netter for the Blues. It was

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Jackie Young scored a season-high 25 points, A’ja Wilson added 17 points and nine rebounds, and the Las Vegas Aces beat the Minnesota Lynx 93-87. Chelsea Gray made two free throws to make it 70-59 with 2:34 left in the third quarter. Minnesota responded with a 10-0 spurt to pull within

PHOENIX (AP) — Arike Ogunbowale scored a season-high 37 points, Marina Mabrey added 13 points and a career-best 10 assists and the Dallas Wings beat the Phoenix Mercury 94-84. Guard Allisha Gray had 16 points and a career-high five blocks for Dallas. Diana Taurasi led Phoenix with 31 points. She extended her own NBA record

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Football Writer The Southeastern Conference spring meetings will be held in person for the first time since 2019 in a little less than two weeks. It is unlikely two of the SEC’s superstar coaches will be chumming around Destin, Florida, together. Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher called Nick Saban

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer MIAMI (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 27 points, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown each scored 24 and the Boston Celtics dominated the first half to roll past the Miami Heat 127-102 and tie the Eastern Conference finals at a game apiece. Smart was a rebound shy of a triple-double,

By KRISTIE RIEKEN AP Sports Writer HOUSTON (AP) — Martín Maldonado hit a three-run double and Jose Altuve added a season-high four hits to back up a strong start by Framber Valdez as the Houston Astros continued their home dominance of the Texas Rangers with a 5-1 win. The victory extended Houston’s winning streak at

By DOUG ALDEN Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Trevor Story had three homers, four hits and seven RBIs to help the Boston Red Sox rally from a four-run deficit to beat the Seattle Mariners 12-6. Story slugged a pair of two-run homers and a three-run shot in the eighth, and he also singled in the

By JAY COHEN AP Baseball Writer CHICAGO (AP) — Zac Gallen pitched five effective innings, Daulton Varsho homered and the Arizona Diamondbacks stopped a six-game slide with a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Gallen allowed one run and two hits, continuing his strong start to the season. The right-hander issued three walks and hit

SCARBOROUGH, Ontario (AP) — Rapper J. Cole will play another season of pro basketball, this time in Canada. The Canadian Elite Basketball League tweeted Thursday night that the 37-year-old rapper will join the Scarborough Shooting Stars in the coming season as a guard. Cole, whose full name is Jermaine Cole, played with the Rwanda Patriots

By GEORGE RICHARDS Associated Press SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Ross Colton scored with just under four seconds remaining, giving the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning a 2-1 victory over the Florida Panthers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. The stunning finish puts the Lightning up 2-0 in the best-of-seven series