AP Sports

Bayern stars Musiala, Sané fit enough to start against Real Madrid in Champions League

MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich forwards Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sané have recovered from injuries to start against Real Madrid in the teams’ Champions League semifinal first leg. Both players missed two games since Bayern defeated Arsenal in the quarterfinals, Musiala because of a knee problem and Sané because of a groin injury. Bayern defender Matthijs de Ligt did not recover from the injury he sustained at the weekend against Eintracht Frankfurt. Eric Dier took the Dutch player’s place beside Kim Min-jae. The winners of the two-leg tie will play either Borussia Dortmund or Paris Saint-Germain in the final in London on June 1.

James, Ham face uncertain futures with Lakers after being eliminated from playoffs by Nuggets again

DENVER (AP) — The futures of LeBron James and Darvin Ham with the Los Angeles Lakers remain murky. One might choose to leave and the other might not have a choice. For James, the decision is his on whether he wants to wear purple and gold again in his 22nd NBA season. For Ham, it’s about whether the team brings him back for a third season as coach after back-to-back series losses to Denver. Big decisions loom after the defending champion Nuggets eliminated Los Angeles from the playoffs with a 108-106 win in Game 5 on Monday.

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch to have surgery on knee after sideline collision, AP source says

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Timberwolves will enter their second round playoff series against defending champion Denver with an unsettled bench because coach Chris Finch will be recovering from knee surgery. Finch was hurt in a sideline collision with Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley. He will have his ruptured right patellar tendon repaired Wednesday, according to a person with knowledge of the plan. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team had not yet made the details public. Game 1 is Saturday in Denver. The Timberwolves swept Phoenix in the first round.

Analysis: McIlroy had a blast in New Orleans. It was just what he needed

Rory McIlroy says it was during a drunken lunch after the Ryder Cup that he asked Shane Lowry to be his teammate in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. That was some six months ago and it worked out better than he could have imagined. It’s not so much he and Lowry won the PGA Tour’s only official team event. They rediscovered the joy of golf. McIlroy has been winning plenty. But he’s also caught in the middle of the battle with LIV Golf that has torn apart the sport. McIlroy says reinjecting fun into golf can always help.

ACL injuries are more common in women soccer players than men. We may learn why

An English study into the causes of ACL injuries to women soccer players has been launched. ‘Project ACL’ will focus on players in the Women’s Super League in England as part of a three-year study. The injury is suffered by a disproportionate number of female players compared to their male counterparts. Organizers of the project say women are two to six times more likely than men to suffer ACL injuries. The project is a joint partnership between FIFPRO, the Professional Footballers Association, Nike and Leeds Beckett University.

Deaths at the Kentucky Derby bring changes ahead of the 150th edition at Churchill Downs

Many in the crowd that packed Churchill Downs for last year’s Kentucky Derby left in tears and questioning the safety of horse racing after two horses died that day. Ten more died in the days surrounding the race. As a result, the track made several changes to its safety program ahead of Saturday’s 150th Derby. There are more veterinarians on site and out-of-competition testing. The track’s dirt surface is now deeper and more cushiony, although multiple investigations found no single factor caused the spate of deaths. Every horse racing at Churchill also has a biometric sensor to help spot signs of a potential injury.

Unable to get on a WNBA roster, ex-LSU star Alexis Morris signs with Globetrotters, plays overseas

NEW YORK (AP) — Former LSU star Alexis Morris knows firsthand how hard it is to make a WNBA team. A few weeks after helping the Tigers win the national title in 2023, she was drafted in the second round by the Connecticut Sun. But she got cut before the season started. Morris hasn’t stopped playing basketball, though. She spent time overseas before signing with the Harlem Globetrotters in February. Known as “The Show” with the Globetrotters, Morris became the seventh female player for the organization in its 98-year history. She got the nickname from an AAU coach when she was 12 and it stuck.

Brad Stevens selected as NBA’s executive of the year after Celtics’ NBA-best regular season

Brad Stevens has been announced as the NBA’s executive of the year. It’s the first such award for Stevens, who is in his third season as president of basketball operations for the Boston Celtics after serving as their coach for eight seasons. The Celtics were an NBA-best 64-18 in the regular season. The voting panel for the award consisted of team basketball executives from around the NBA. Oklahoma City Thunder executive vice president and general manager Sam Presti and Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly finished in second and third place on Tuesday.

Thunder brushed off questions about youth, inexperience, in first-round playoff sweep of Pelicans

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder entered the playoffs facing questions about their relative youth and playoff inexperience. Four games later, they’re on to the second round after a convincing sweep of the New Orleans Pelicans. The average age on the Thunder roster was less than 24 years old when the playoffs began. But coach Mark Daigneault, named NBA coach of the year this week, has been quick to point out that youth and maturity are not mutually exclusive. That maturity was on full display in the way the Thunder have committed to defense, holding the Pelicans to 92 or fewer points in each game of the first round.

Pac-12 posts an impressive haul in the NFL draft before the conference breaks up

The final season of the Pac-12 turned out to be as big a hit in the NFL draft as it was on the field. The conference that is breaking up with 10 schools joining new leagues next season produced a record haul over the draft weekend led by No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams of Southern California. The Pac-12 produced six of the top 15 players, eight overall first-rounders and 43 total players drafted for the most for the conference in the seven-round era that started in 1994. Only the SEC had more players picked with 59.