Sports

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) — Croatia advanced to the last 16 of the World Cup with a 0-0 draw against Belgium. Belgium’s group-stage exit will likely usher in the breakup of its talented but underachieving generation of players. The point left 2018 runner-up Croatia in second place behind Group

By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) — Roberto Martinez is leaving as coach of Belgium’s national team following the squad’s World Cup exit. The Belgians drew 0-0 with Croatia and were eliminated from the tournament in Qatar. Martinez says “that was my last game for the national team.” Martinez coached Belgium

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Football Writer Over the past 25 years, college football’s postseason format for crowning a national champion has grown from two teams to four and now, starting in 2024, to 12. For a sport that started in 1869 and spent most the 20th century using bowls and polls to determine

By ED WHITE Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Michigan defensive lineman Mazi Smith has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon. The felony was filed this week, nearly two months after the alleged incident. Defense lawyer John Shea says Smith was in the process of getting a concealed-weapon permit when he was stopped by police.

By The Associated Press All eyes will be on QB Deshaun Watson, who returns from his 11-game suspension for alleged sexual misconduct to make his Cleveland debut against the Houston Texans, his former team. Watson spent four seasons with the Texans before asking to be traded and eventually being dealt to the Browns for three

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Jill Ellis was voted into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame after coaching the American women to World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019. The 56-year-old British-born coach was picked on 20 of 24 ballots in the builder voting that included only coach candidates for the 2023 class. Ellis, FIFA’s women’s

PARIS (AP) — A tennis league founded by coach Patrick Mouratoglou that played exhibition matches when the pro tours were shut down during the coronavirus pandemic plans to return in 2023. The Ultimate Tennis Showdown, or UTS, announced Thursday that it will hold matches in July, September, November and December in the United States, Europe,

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Royals hired Guardians bullpen coach Brian Sweeney as their new pitching coach and Nationals minor league coordinator Jose Alguacil as their infield coach Thursday, filling two of the spots on new manager Matt Quatraro’s staff. The 48-year-old Sweeney spent five seasons on the Guardians staff, including the last three

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) — Croatia advanced to the last 16 of the World Cup with a 0-0 draw against Belgium. Belgium’s group-stage exit will likely usher in the breakup of its talented but underachieving generation of players. The point left 2018 runner-up Croatia in second place behind Group

By HANK KURZ Jr. AP Sports Writer The starting five is the same, but that’s where comparisons between the Virginia team that has climbed to No. 3 in the Top 25 and last year’s NIT quarterfinalists ends. One more year together and a trip to Italy has made the first five significantly better, but part

By JOHN ZENOR AP Sports Writer The Troy Trojans have not lost since Appalachian State beat them on a Hail Mary pass. The 10-2 Troy teams takes a nine-game winning streak into Saturday’s Sun Belt Conference championship game against 9-2 Coastal Carolina at Troy’s Veterans Memorial Stadium. Under first-year coach Jon Sumrall, Troy is seeking

By The Associated Press The Troy Trojans are seeking a record seventh Sun Belt Conference championship and 10th consecutive win when they host Coastal Carolina. The Trojans haven’t won a league title since 2017. The Chanticleers won in 2020, but that championship game was cancelled because of a Covid-19 breakout. Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall

By The Associated Press Redshirt freshman quarterback Drake Maye and the North Carolina Tar Heels stand in the way of the Clemson Tigers winning their seventh Atlantic Coast Conference championship in the last eight seasons. The two teams face off Saturday night at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium. There are some observers who believe Maybe

By GERALD IMRAY AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Morocco has advanced to the last 16 at the World Cup for just the second time after clinging on for a 2-1 win over Canada. The Moroccans’ only other trip past the group stage came in 1986. Hakim Ziyech scored for Morocco in the fourth

By TIM BOOTH AP Sports Writer The owner of the Portland Thorns has announced he is putting the club up for sale, the latest fallout from an investigation into misconduct in the National Women’s Soccer League. Merritt Paulson’s decision comes nearly two months after a pair of team executives were dismissed for their roles in

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — The New York Jets’ postseason hopes are rising and so are their ticket prices for next season. The Jets are 7-4 and in the middle of the AFC playoff hunt. They will be increasing prices of tickets an average of 12% next

GAFFNEY, S.C. (AP) — Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time Cy Young Award winner Gaylord Perry, a master of the spitball and telling stories about the pitch, died Thursday. He was 84. Perry died at his home in Gaffney at about 5 a.m. Thursday, Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler said. He did not provide additional