AP National Sports

By RONALD BLUM AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Moving the World Cup from its usual June/July slot to November/December likely caused some American fans to skip the trip to Qatar. Some didn’t want to miss Thanksgiving. Others used to making summer vacation a soccer trip were unable to make the trek because school

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) — Lionel Messi stood with his hands on his hips near the center circle, looking stone-faced as Saudi Arabia’s jubilant players ran in all directions around him after pulling off one of the biggest World Cup upsets ever against Argentina. The South American champions and one

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DOHA, Qatar (AP) — America’s top diplomat on Tuesday criticized a decision by FIFA to threaten players at the World Cup with yellow cards if they wear armbands supporting inclusion and diversity. Speaking alongside his Qatari counterpart at a news conference, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it was

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — The 90-minute soccer match is turning into 100-plus at the World Cup. And that is what FIFA wants to give fans more entertainment. The four longest periods of stoppage time for a single half of soccer at any World Cup were all played Monday. That’s

By ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Iran was reeling Tuesday from the humiliation of starting the World Cup with a lopsided 6-2 loss against England in a match overshadowed by protests on and off the field. Hard-line Iranian media sought to blame the defeat on the unrest that has gripped the Islamic

By SUMAN NAISHADHAM Associated Press DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Seventy years ago, Saad Ismail Al Jassim used to free dive 40 feet (13 meters) deep into the waters of the Persian Gulf, holding his breath to comb the seabed for oysters in the hope of finding a cluster of pearls. Today, an 1,100-foot (335-meter) yacht

By BOB FERRANTE Associated Press TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — No. 16 Florida State has won four consecutive games by 25 or more points and has a chance to put an exclamation point on coach Mike Norvell’s third season against reeling Florida on Friday night. Defensive tackle Robert Cooper, a 6-foot-2, 335-pound senior from Lilburn, Georgia,

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer Miami Heat President Pat Riley has a longstanding belief: After 20 games, a team knows its identity. He’s right. And after 20 games, title contenders are usually known as well. Think of this as the end of the season’s first quarter. That’s basically where the NBA is right now,

By JOHN MARSHALL AP Basketball Writer The Thanksgiving week of holiday tournaments is almost always a feast of high-level college hoops. While several top teams are playing home games against smaller-conference opponents, the programs in Maui, the Bahamas and Oregon are facing one stiff test after another. The Maui Invitational has five ranked teams, with

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Many Canadian soccer fans have been waiting for this moment their entire lives. Long an afterthought behind the hockey, Canada’s soccer team is back in the World Cup for the first time since 1986 and it opens with a daunting opponent: Belgium, a 2018 semifinalist and the second-ranked team in the

By MAX MILLER Associated Press SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Erik Karlsson had two assists, becoming the first NHL defenseman to reach 30 points this season, and the San Jose Sharks beat the Ottawa Senators 5-1. Tomas Hertl, Matt Nieto, Timo Meier, Logan Couture and Noah Gregor scored for the Sharks, who improved to 2-7-3

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Alex Pietrangelo scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period and had two assists as the Vegas Golden Knights rallied past the Vancouver Canucks 5-4. William Carrier scored twice and Mark Stone had a goal and an assist for the Golden Knights, who overcame a 4-2 deficit in the third.

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Azuolas Tubelis and Oumar Ballo finished with double-doubles and No. 14 Arizona shot nearly 80% in the second half to beat Cincinnati 101-93, closing out the first day of the Maui Jim Maui Invitational. Tubelis finished with 30 points on 12-of-18 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds for Arizona (4-0). Ballo matched

NEW YORK (AP) — Joseph Girard III scored a career high 31 points and Syracuse needed overtime to get past Richmond, 74-71 to advance to the championship game of the Empire Classic. The Orange will play Tuesday night against the winner of the St. John’s-Temple game.

By JOE REEDY AP Sports Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Norman Powell scored a season-high 30 points, Reggie Jackson added a season-best 27 and the Los Angeles Clippers rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat the Utah Jazz 121-114. Ivica Zubac had 14 points and 14 rebounds as the Clippers extended their winning streak to

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Calif. (AP) — Dawson Garcia’s jumper with five seconds left in overtime lifted Minnesota to a 62-61 win over California Baptist in the opening game of the SoCal Challenge, Surf Division. The Golden Gophers will face the winner of tournament nightcap between Southern Illinois and UNLV in the championship Wednesday night. Taran

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer MEXICO CITY (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers took the extra step of training at altitude in Colorado for a few days before coming to Mexico City, hoping that the move would allow them to thrive at Estadio Azteca, which sits at about 7,200 feet above sea level. The

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Led by Ajay Mitchell’s 17 points, the UCSB Gauchos defeated the Hampton Pirates 79-66 on Monday. The Gauchos are now 3-1 with the win and the Pirates fell to 1-3.

SAN DIEGO — Jase Townsend had 18 points, Yavuz Gultekin scored 17 and San Diego beat San Diego Christian 98-69. Townsend was 5 of 7 shooting, including 4 for 6 from distance, and went 4 for 4 from the line for the Toreros (4-1). Gultekin hit three 3-pointers and added seven rebounds and three steals.

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer MEXICO CITY (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo threw four touchdown passes, including two each to Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle, and the San Francisco 49ers won their third straight game by beating the Arizona Cardinals 38-10 in Mexico City. It was the fifth regular-season NFL game played in Mexico City