Category: Sport

MINNEAPOLIS — Austin Reaves managed to one-up himself once more Wednesday, capping a 28-point, 16-assist evening by hitting a floater on the buzzer to offer the Los Angeles Lakers a 116-115 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Reaves continued his dream week, by which he lifted L.A. whereas Luka Doncic (left decrease leg contusion and left finger sprain) and LeBron James (sciatica) are sidelined by dropping a career-high 51 factors with 11 rebounds and 9 assists in a win over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday and following that up with 41 factors towards the Portland Path Blazers on Monday.

Reaves’ successful rating Wednesday got here off a sideline inbounds cross close to middle courtroom with 6.6 seconds left. He instantly cut up a double group by two gamers with All-Defensive Staff credentials in Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert on the high of the important thing, then drove into the lane and tossed in a floater from 12 toes whereas contorting his physique to keep away from colliding with Wolves guard Donte DiVincenzo, who was setting as much as attempt to attract a cost.

Reaves mentioned he “blacked out” after the ball fell by means of the online, and he sprinted down the courtroom towards the Lakers’ bench, the place he was mobbed by his euphoric teammates.

“That man goes to point out up within the huge moments,” Lakers coach JJ Redick mentioned. “I’m not stunned. He’s carried out that many instances in his profession.”

Reaves’ 16 assists tied a profession excessive for the five-year veteran, and his game-winning shot saved the Lakers after the Wolves used a 14-2 run within the final 4 minutes to take the lead with 10.2 seconds left on a Julius Randle driving rating, erasing what was as soon as a 20-point, second-half lead for L.A.

“All people is taking a look at me, and in these conditions, you need to be calm, be assured and lead your guys by means of [it],” Reaves mentioned. “We have been up [by] 10 [points] or so late, and so they went on a run. … It’s onerous to not sort of crumble in these conditions. However you bought to maintain power excessive, you bought to maintain the spirit excessive.”

He secured L.A.’s second win of the season towards Minnesota, the group that knocked the Lakers out of the primary spherical of the playoffs within the spring.

Reaves mentioned that postseason upset — L.A. was the No. 3 seed and Minnesota was No. 6 — was on his thoughts coming into the evening. The final time the Lakers performed at Goal Heart in April, Reaves missed a possible tying 3 from the fitting nook on the buzzer and L.A. fell down 3-1 within the collection.

“That one felt good,” Reaves mentioned of his late-game heroics Wednesday. “I imply, for apparent causes, we gained. However final time we have been on this constructing, I had the shot to tie it within the nook within the playoffs, in Sport 4, and missed.

“Let me inform you, that feeling sucks.”

As dejected because the Lakers felt when their hopes of an prolonged postseason run have been dashed, Reaves’ run has infused this group with inspiration, climbing above .500 at 3-2 with not simply Doncic and James out, however Marcus Sensible (proper quad contusion), Gabe Vincent (left ankle sprain), Maxi Kleber (belly muscle pressure) and Adou Thiero (left knee surgical procedure restoration) additionally unavailable.

“I’m so pleased with this group proper now, actually,” Redick mentioned. “From the place we have been three weeks in the past, the place we’re discombobulated and guys are lacking coaching camp and guys are modified contributors, we’re beginning to come collectively. And I’ve requested loads. I’ve requested plenty of these guys and I’m asking plenty of them whereas we’re undermanned and so they’re delivering.”

Reaves distributed his assists to quite a lot of teammates, as 4 different Lakers scored in double digits, led by Jake LaRavia (27 factors on 10-for-11 taking pictures), Deandre Ayton (17 factors on 8-for-11 taking pictures) and Rui Hachimura (17 factors on 7-for-14 taking pictures) within the beginning lineup and Dalton Knecht (15 factors on 7-for-12 taking pictures) off the bench.

“We wouldn’t have been in that place [to win] if it wasn’t for everyone that chipped in tonight,” Reaves mentioned. “Jake was monstrous. I feel that’s the most effective basketball sport I’ve seen him play since he’s been within the league.”

LaRavia, who selected to signal with the Lakers as a free agent within the offseason partly due to his shut relationship with Reaves, mentioned the group has no drawback taking its cues from Reaves whereas its All-Stars heal.

“He’s a canine, he’s a pacesetter, he’s a competitor,” LaRavia mentioned. “He helps rally us collectively in all of the robust instances throughout a sport. And he’s been main us these final couple video games that our gamers have been out and he’s going to maintain on doing that.”

And preserve including pages to his storybook basketball existence, having entered the league undrafted in 2021 and now, 4 years later, having scored the second-most factors out of any participant by means of the primary week of the season, trailing solely the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder’s reigning NBA MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

“I fell in love with the sport as a result of my brother beloved it, I bought to spend so much of time with him. Each my mother and father performed, too. It was sort of … it was meant to be,” Reaves mentioned, sharing how he declared on the ripe age of seven that he would play within the NBA sometime. “It’s been a enjoyable week. However there’s plenty of basketball to go.”

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Atlanta Hawks star Trae Younger has no points along with his ACL after leaving Wednesday evening’s 117-112 win over the Brooklyn Nets with a proper knee sprain, in keeping with coach Quin Snyder.

“An important factor is it’s not his ACL,” Snyder stated after the sport. “He’s going to get an MRI tonight or tomorrow, and make a dedication from there. Unsure how lengthy or what respect, however one thing he’s hopefully going to be again from each time doable.”

Younger, who entered the evening averaging 20.8 factors and 9.5 assists, was standing beneath the basket when teammate Mouhamed Gueye — after being pushed within the chest by Nets ahead Noah Clowney — fell backward and into Younger’s leg, sending him crashing to the bottom.

Younger was down for some time in ache earlier than he ultimately obtained to his toes and jogged to the bench through the ensuing timeout. He remained within the sport as soon as play resumed, however after seeing Younger on the court docket for a couple of moments, Snyder took him out 17 seconds later. Younger instantly went to the locker room.

“He didn’t need to come out of the sport,” Snyder stated. “He’s such a competitor. He takes numerous delight in being accessible … You noticed it tonight, too. He tried to remain in there. He instructed me, ‘Simply give me a pair minutes,’ and I instructed him, ‘If I don’t like what I see, I’m taking you out.'”

Though it seems Younger has escaped essentially the most severe harm end result, it additionally appears doubtless that the Hawks, who at the moment are 2-3 after avoiding a late collapse to beat the winless Nets (0-5), might be with out their flooring basic for the foreseeable future.

Atlanta got here into the season with excessive expectations following a summer season that noticed the crew commerce for Kristaps Porzingis and signal Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard in free company, however the one factor the Hawks do not need is somebody to interchange Younger’s orchestration on the level.

Atlanta began the second half with Alexander-Walker in Younger’s place, which may give the Hawks a dominant defensive group whereas he’s sidelined. However final season Younger led the NBA with a career-high 11.6 assists per sport, and nobody on the roster is able to single-handedly taking up that creation load in his absence.

In consequence, Snyder stated the group should work collectively if Atlanta goes to outlive with out him.

“Anytime a participant of Trae’s caliber, notably somebody that has the ball and is orchestrating conditions on the offensive finish, that’s an adjustment we needed to make on the fly,” Snyder stated. “Whether or not it was Luke [Kennard] or Nickeil or Dyson [Daniels] or [Jalen Johnson], the important thing factor after we are taking part in that method is all people has obtained to be prepared to play with the cross, and attempt to receive advantages that method.

“It’s one thing we’ll preserve engaged on, relying the place Trae is along with his well being.”

LOS ANGELES — Trey Yesavage set a World Sequence rookie file with 12 strikeouts, and the Blue Jays opened Recreation 5 with back-to-back homers in a 6-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday evening that moved Toronto inside one win of its first championship since 1993.

Davis Schneider and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered on Blake Snell’s first and third pitches, the primary consecutive homers ever to begin a Sequence recreation.

Yesavage, a precocious 22-year-old right-hander who began his season in April pitching earlier than 327 followers in Single-A, took over from there.

With a sinking splitter, a spinning slider and an overwhelming fastball that quieted L.A.’s bats and a crowd of 52,175, he broke the prior rookie file of 11 strikeouts set by Don Newcombe for the Dodgers in a 1-0 loss to the New York Yankees within the 1949 Sequence opener. Getting six Okay’s every together with his splitter and slider, Yesavage grew to become the primary Sequence pitcher with 12 strikeouts and no walks.

“Simply have to get within the strike zone,” he instructed Fox after the sport of what he targeted on forward of the beginning. “When three of my pitches are within the strike zone — even two, like a part of tonight — I’m in management. So, simply getting within the strike zone and getting forward.”

Yesavage allowed three hits over seven innings and his solely run when Enrique Hernandez homered on a excessive fastball to trim the Dodgers’ deficit to 2-1 within the third.

Yesavage debuted with the Blue Jays on Sept. 15, his fifth stage of baseball this yr. He made three regular-season begins, and he now’s 3-1 in 5 postseason outings.

He induced 23 swing-and-misses — probably the most in a Sequence recreation since pitch monitoring began in 2008, yet another than the San Francisco Giants’ Tim Lincecum in 2010’s Recreation 5.

“Simply my perception,” Yesavage instructed Fox when requested what made him so profitable in Recreation 5. “Believing in myself, in my protection, believing in [Alejandro Kirk] behind the plate and believing in God. And he appeared over me immediately.”

The Blue Jays may have an opportunity to dethrone the defending champions when the Sequence resumes Friday evening at Toronto’s Rogers Centre. No crew has received consecutive titles because the Yankees took three in a row from 1998 to 2000.

Snell, a two-time Cy Younger Award winner, dropped to 0-2 within the Sequence, permitting 5 runs, six hits and 4 walks over 6 2/3 innings.

Los Angeles supervisor Dave Roberts shook up his slumping lineup, dropping Mookie Betts as little as third for the primary time since 2021 and benching outfielder Andy Pages in favor of Alex Name. It didn’t spark an offense that’s hitting .202 within the Sequence and has solo pictures on seven of its eight residence runs. Los Angeles has scored simply 4 runs in its final 29 innings. And its 1-4 hitters on Wednesday evening (Shohei Ohtani, Will Smith, Betts and Freddie Freeman) mixed to go 1-for-15 with 8 Okay’s.

The Dodgers additionally threw a World Sequence-record 4 wild pitches in a span of two innings.

Schneider, batting first solely as a result of common leadoff hitter George Springer obtained harm in Recreation 3, despatched Snell’s first pitch into the left-field bleachers and Guerrero hit the third into the Dodgers’ bullpen for his eighth residence run of the postseason.

Schneider mimics totally different stances through the yr, together with Aaron Decide, Giancarlo Stanton, Bobby Witt Jr. and even the Dodgers’ Smith through the World Sequence. Schneider was in an previous stance of his from the minor leagues in opposition to Snell.

Snell began with three fastballs, then averted one other one for 22 consecutive pitches earlier than hanging out Andres Gimenez with a heater to finish the second.

Ernie Clement added a fourth-inning sacrifice fly for a 3-1 lead after proper fielder Teoscar Hernandez got here up quick on a sliding catch try as Daulton Varsho’s drive bounced into the right-field nook for a leadoff triple.

One other run scored on a wild pitch within the seventh by Edgardo Henriquez, who allowed Bo Bichette’s RBI single. Isiah Kiner-Falefa added a run-scoring single within the eighth off Anthony Banda.

Recreation 6 will see the Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto oppose the Blue Jays’ Kevin Gausman in a rematch of Recreation 2, which Los Angeles received 5-1.

Data from The Related Press was used on this report.

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning, who’s recovering from a concussion, returned to follow Wednesday and was listed as questionable to play in Saturday’s recreation towards No. 9 Vanderbilt on the SEC’s preliminary availability report.

Manning left final week’s come-from-behind win at Mississippi State after he suffered a blow to the again of his helmet on the finish of his 13-yard run on the primary play of time beyond regulation within the No. 20 Longhorns’ 45-38 victory.

Beginning security Michael Taaffe, who had surgical procedure on his damaged thumb on Oct. 20, additionally was listed as questionable to play towards the Commodores on Saturday (midday ET, ABC).

“They each practiced right here at present,” coach Steve Sarkisian stated throughout Wednesday’s SEC coaches teleconference. “Arch is clearly nonetheless in protocol. There are steps because it pertains to protocol, however Michael’s practiced the final two days.”

Manning dropped again to throw on the play however scrambled up the center when he couldn’t discover an open receiver. As Manning dove to the bottom as he was being tackled by security Isaac Smith, he was hit from behind by defensive lineman Kedrick Bingley-Jones.

Texas proper deal with Brandon Baker tried to assist Manning up, however the quarterback struggled to get on his ft and sat on the sector earlier than trainers got here out to get him. Manning was within the medical tent on the finish of the sport.

Backup quarterback Matthew Caldwell got here into the sport and threw a 10-yard landing to Emmett Mosley V to complete the Longhorns’ beautiful comeback, by which they rallied from a 17-point deficit within the fourth quarter.

Manning accomplished 29 of 46 passes for a career-high 346 yards with three touchdowns and one interception towards the Bulldogs.

Texas beginning heart Cole Hutson, who missed the previous two video games with a leg damage, can be questionable to play towards the Commodores.

LONDON — Ethan Nwaneri continues to be solely 18, and but he has needed to await a second like this. The 18-year-old was one in every of Arsenal’s breakthrough stars of final season, however fortunes have conspired to complicate his continued involvement within the Gunners’ first workforce.

In that context, scoring the essential opening objective in Wednesday’s 2-0 win over Brighton within the Carabao Cup was a well timed reminder of his abilities. The end was beautiful, as was the transfer that preceded it: Mikel Merino flicking the ball fantastically for defender Myles Lewis-Skelly to sq. a go for Nwaneri, who rolled a first-time end neatly previous Brighton goalkeeper Jason Steele and into the far nook.

That 57th-minute intervention turned an excellent contest within the residence aspect’s favor. By the point substitute Bukayo Saka added a second with 14 minutes remaining, Arsenal’s place within the quarterfinals and a house tie with Crystal Palace was safe.

It’s by no means straightforward for a teen who’s all of the sudden thrust into prominence to return to the periphery, particularly once they take their alternative in addition to Nwaneri did final season. With Saka out injured, Nwaneri all of the sudden discovered himself referred to as upon to deputize for the workforce’s most constant menace, beginning eight out of 11 video games from February to April as Saka recovered from a hamstring drawback.

He produced a degree that later earned him a profitable new five-year contract, however what adopted was a beefing up of Arsenal’s squad that left him going through unprecedented competitors for locations. Arsenal signed Noni Madueke to supply cowl for Saka, whereas Eberechi Eze arrived to strengthen the extra central attacking midfield place. Even on Wednesday, Nwaneri’s return to the beginning lineup — for under the second time this season — was usurped by the thrill round one other Hale Finish academy graduate: Max Dowman, who at 15 years, 302 days turned the youngest participant ever to begin a recreation for Arsenal.

Dowman was the brightest spark in a aggressive first half, taking Brighton’s Diego Gómez and Maxim De Cuyper for fools at one level, and the vitality he generates within the stadium each time he takes somebody on with the ball connected to his left foot is tough to emulate.

And but, Nwaneri evoked related emotions not too way back. This, then, was a helpful demonstration of the tip product he can ship, one other fantastic sweeping arc of a left foot that proved so impact reducing in from the precise in previous video games. It was Nwaneri’s first objective since April.

“He was actually good,” Arsenal supervisor Mikel Arteta stated of Nwaneri. “He got here on the opposite day as effectively [against Atletico Madrid]. He’s going to have these possibilities, and when he has, he must take advantage of out of it. I believe he took the objective very well.

“He had some actions that weren’t that efficient, however what I appreciated was he stored making an attempt, making dangers, and he didn’t change that dedication or habits to make issues occur, and ultimately he acquired rewarded with a superb objective.”

That is what Arteta desires from nights like this: fringe gamers seizing their second to take care of the optimistic momentum across the membership. That is their eighth consecutive victory in all competitions, and their eleventh clear sheet in 14 video games.

The Gunners boss made 10 adjustments, with solely Eze retaining his place within the lineup. Inevitably, there was a disjointed really feel because of this, with Andre Harriman-Annous additionally making his debut by main the road.

Brighton had their possibilities. Each Georginio Rutter and Stefanos Tzimas have been responsible of unhealthy misses, whereas Jan Paul van Hecke headed an excellent likelihood huge from shut vary as Arsenal struggled with their traditional authority from set items at each ends of the pitch.

Two objectives from open play adopted in an efficient riposte because the Gunners upped their degree within the second half. After Nwaneri’s opener, Harriman-Annous was despatched by way of on objective; his shot was saved by Steele and the rebound fell to Saka, who slotted residence the rebound.

Saka was launched a couple of minutes earlier for Dowman, who left to a standing ovation. “[He had] a tiny smile [when I told him he was playing],” stated Arteta. “That’s what you’ll get with him. “For him, all the things is pure; for him, all the things is OK. It’s the manner he performs. That’s the key, that he doesn’t make a giant fuss of it. He simply does what he does greatest, which is to play soccer with numerous braveness and dedication. Right now once more he has proven some unbelievable ability, the capability to run previous Premier League gamers [at age] 15, it’s one thing positively particular.

“For certain [he wants to play in the Premier League, if you ask him, for sure. That’s what we have to manage. And not only that, there are a lot of things that are new in his life. … We all need to be aware to encourage him, but let’s protect him as well.

“When we need the [academy players], they’re there, and they’re prepared.”

Nwaneri was amongst these on the Emirates Stadium to take a step towards proving simply that.

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Atlanta Falcons coach Raheem Morris stated he’s optimistic about quarterback Michael Penix Jr. returning after lacking final week’s sport due to a bone bruise in his left knee.

Morris stated Penix and receiver Drake London, who additionally sat out the loss to the Miami Dolphins due to a hip harm, are each labeled as day-to-day going into Sunday’s sport towards the New England Patriots.

Penix instructed reporters that he felt good at Wednesday’s follow and that he’s “trending in the fitting course” to play towards the Patriots.

“Michael is within the constructing, clearly in conferences. … We’ll get an opportunity to get a really feel for what he can do in follow, if he can do something,” Morris stated. “He feels higher than he did final week. … So, I really feel actually good about him.”

Morris additionally stated final week that he felt good about Penix taking part in towards the Dolphins — and Penix himself stated final Wednesday that he deliberate to play — however, by Friday, issues had modified and the Falcons held Penix and London out vs. Miami.

Backup quarterback Kirk Cousins crammed in for Penix and went 21-of-31 for 173 yards in a sport through which the offense struggled and completed with 213 whole yards.

Penix stated Wednesday that he wasn’t feeling his greatest late final week and didn’t assume taking part in would have been proper for the staff.

“I don’t really feel like me being on the market would have helped the staff,” Penix stated. … “I didn’t really feel like I may do what I wanted to do to assist my staff win.”

London leads the staff with 469 receiving yards.

“Drake is within the constructing, feels good, planning on practising,” Morris stated. “Get an opportunity to take a look at him shifting round just a little bit as we speak.”

ESPN’s Marc Raimondi and The Related Press contributed to this report.