Sports

By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford said it’s critical for the team to start winning if it intends to keep star point guard LaMelo Ball, considered a cornerstone of the franchise. Ball hasn’t played in a postseason game since joining the Hornets as the No. 3

MIAMI (AP) — The CONCACAF Gold Cup will be played for the first time in Cincinnati, St. Louis and San Diego. Fifteen sites will be used for the 16-nation tournament played from June 24 to July 16. SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, another first-time site, was announced last October as site of the final. The

By LARRY LAGE AP Sports Writer DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Pistons are searching for a coach and hoping their new leader has Victor Wembanyama in the lineup. Detroit closed its fourth straight season and 12th in 14 years without a postseason appearance on Sunday with a lopsided loss at Chicago. After finishing an NBA-worst

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Hockey Writer David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins has scored 60 goals in a season for the first time in his 9-year NHL career. The Czech winger got to 60 with a hat trick at Philadelphia that gave Boston sole possession of the single-season wins record. Pastrnak believed he could do

WREXHAM, Wales (AP) — Ryan Reynolds punched the air before turning to embrace Rob McElhenney as the Hollywood stars moved a big step closer to their dream of leading Welsh soccer team Wrexham to promotion. The pair celebrated at the end of a game that had all the thrills of a big screen blockbuster and

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox have traded veteran reliever José Ruiz to Arizona on Sunday in exchange for $100,000. The White Sox designated the 28-year-old Ruiz for assignment following a difficult start to the season. Ruiz allowed nine runs on eight hits with four walks and three strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings across

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Hendrick Motorsports has said it will not appeal its latest penalties NASCAR handed down to the race teams of Alex Bowman and William Byron last week. NASCAR found illegal modifications to the greenhouse, or center, area of the car after an inspection at its R&D center following the race at Richmond.

MONACO (AP) — Three-time Grand Slam winners Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka have had contrasting fortunes in the first round of the clay-court Monte Carlo Masters. Former champion Wawrinka rallied to win 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 against Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor. The 38-year-old Swiss next plays American Taylor Fritz. The 35-year-old Murray lost 6-1, 6-3 to 14th-seeded

WREXHAM, Wales (AP) — Ryan Reynolds punched the air before turning to embrace Rob McElhenney as the Hollywood stars moved a big step closer to their dream of leading Welsh soccer team Wrexham to promotion. The pair celebrated at the end of a game that had all the thrills of a big screen blockbuster and

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The major league batting average rose 16 points to .249 over the first 1 1/2 weeks of this season with new shift limits in place, while game time dropped 31 minutes to 2:38 in the first year of the pitch clock. The time is on

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Hockey Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Bo Horvat has attempted to clarify what he meant by New York Islanders’ home games being “a lot better than Vancouver.” The comments by the former Canucks captain after a weekend game caught the attention of fans back in Vancouver more than two months after he

By PETE IACOBELLI AP Sports Writer COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Christopher Bell is off to a fast start in his young and rising career at Joe Gibbs Racing. Bell has won five times in his first 116 starts, the latest coming on the Bristol dirt on Sunday night. That’s more than any other active driver

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Sports Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Commanders have settled a lawsuit with the District of Columbia attorney general’s office over fans’ season-ticket deposit money. Attorney general Brian L. Schwalb on Monday announced the agreement that returns $200,000 to fans and pay $425,000 to the district to resolve allegations related to

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan State standout Tyson Walker is returning for his fifth season. Walker announced his decision Monday with an Instagram post, giving a boost to coach Tom Izzo’s chances of contending for a title. The 6-foot-1 guard averaged a team-high 14.8 points and ranked second with nearly three assists per game.

MONACO (AP) — Three-time Grand Slam winners Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka have had contrasting fortunes in the first round of the clay-court Monte Carlo Masters. Former champion Wawrinka rallied to win 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 against Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor. The 38-year-old Swiss next plays American Taylor Fritz. The 35-year-old Murray lost 6-1, 6-3 to 14th-seeded

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The WNBA is adding charter flights for the entire playoffs and back-to-back regular season games this year, the league announced Monday. The league will pay for all of the flights. “It’s significant dollars,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert told The Associated Press. “Now that we have

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Duke guard Jeremy Roach is entering his name into the NBA draft but maintaining his college eligibility. The 6-foot-2 junior announced his decision in a social-media post Monday, saying he was looking forward to getting feedback on his game during pre-draft workouts. Roach was the team’s No. 2 scorer at 13.6

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal was expected to be discharged from a hospital Monday following what he called successful surgery on a minor leg fracture he suffered during a victory parade for the national champion University of Connecticut men’s basketball team over the weekend. The 77-year-old Connecticut Democrat said on Twitter that

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The WNBA is adding charter flights for the entire playoffs this season as well as for teams that have back-to-back games. The league announced Monday it will pay for all of the flights. The cost is expected to be around $4.5 million, according to a

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer MIAMI (AP) — Getting to the play-in tournament probably wasn’t the goal of any team when training camps opened back in September. But it beats the alternative. There are 12 teams with playoff spots right now, 10 teams whose seasons are over and eight teams with a second chance.