Sports

Knicks take a 2-0 lead over the Celtics after coming from 20 down again to win 91-90

BOSTON (AP) — Mikal Bridges scored all of his 14 points in the fourth quarter before making his second straight game-clinching steal, and the New York Knicks overcame a 20-point deficit again to beat the Boston Celtics 91-90 on Wednesday night for a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Jalen Brunson scored 17 points for New York and made two free throws with 12.7 seconds left for a 91-90 lead. Jayson Tatum then couldn’t get to the rim and Bridges moved in to bat the ball away and recover it. Josh Hart had 23 points and Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks, who will host Game 3 on Saturday.

Gilgeous-Alexander scores 34 as Thunder roll past Nuggets 149-106, tie West semis at 1-1

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled past the Denver Nuggets 149-106 in Game 2 of their Western Conference semifinal series. Oklahoma City set an NBA playoff record for first-half points with 87 on its way to evening the series at a win apiece. The Thunder tied the record for points in any half of a playoff game. Milwaukee had 87 in the second half against Denver on April 23, 1978. Nikola Jokic, who had 42 points and 22 rebounds in Game 1, had 17 points and eight rebounds on Wednesday before fouling out.

The year of the NBA playoff comeback continues. A look at how these 20-point rallies keep happening

New York down by 20 on Monday. Indiana down by 20 on Tuesday. New York down by 20 again Wednesday. No problem. For the first time since play-by-play began being digitally tracked across the NBA about 30 years ago, there have been three consecutive days where the winning team in a playoff game came from at least 20 points down to win.

Warriors sideline Curry for at least a week with hamstring strain, putting rest of series in flux

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Golden State Warriors are planning to play without Stephen Curry for at least the next three games of their second-round series against Minnesota. An MRI on Wednesday confirmed a mild strain of the star guard’s left hamstring. The Warriors said Curry would be sidelined at least a week after the injury forced him out early in the second quarter of the Game 1 win. He had 13 points in 13 minutes to help Golden State take home-court advantage away from the Timberwolves. Game 2 is Thursday. The earliest return for Curry appears to be Game 5 on May 14.

Olympic great Sue Bird to be first managing director of USA Basketball women’s national team

NEW YORK (AP) — Sue Bird is giving another assist to USA Basketball, becoming the managing director of the women’s national team. The five-time Olympic champion was named to the newly created position Thursday and it marks a major change in the way the organization creates its roster and coaching staff. Before the change, a committee made those decisions, but now in a move similar to what the USA men’s national team does, Bird will be the one responsible for putting things together. Grant Hill has the same role on the men’s side.

NCAA settlement plan for roster limits gets do-over to save players who lost spots on teams

Attorneys handling the $2.8 billion NCAA settlement are proposing a massive do-over when it comes to roster limits. They want schools to offer athletes who lost their spots a chance to be on teams without counting against the new caps for as long as they have eligibility. Those players can be invited back to compete for roster spots or go to new schools. The proposal would also give this exemption to high school recruits who were promised spots that were later rescinded and would last for as long as those players are eligible in college.

PSG vs. Inter Milan in the Champions League final? Few expected that

It’s a Champions League final few could have predicted. No Real Madrid, no team from the mega-rich Premier League, no rejuvenated Barcelona and no Harry Kane-inspired Bayern Munich. Instead it will be Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan facing off to be a somewhat unlikely winner of the biggest prize in club soccer. Neither club was among the favorites when the new-look, 36-team league phase of the competition rolled out in September. Munich’s Allianz Arena will host the final on May 31. Winning the final will see PSG or Inter earn at least 150 million euros ($170 million) across the Champions League campaign.

Crosby and MacKinnon back together for Canada at the ice hockey worlds after 10 years

Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon are joining forces to play for Canada at the ice hockey world championship after 10 years. The two major stars are in Europe for the tournament opening on Friday across the Swedish capital of Stockholm and Denmark’s city of Herning. It is the final international test before the 2026 Winter Games in Italy where NHL players return to the Olympics after 12 years. The two friends and neighbours in Halifax, Nova Scotia, were on the team that Crosby captained to gold at the 2015 worlds. Canada, the 4 Nations Face-Off champion in February, is a favorite again.

The Steelers move on from George Pickens by trading mercurial receiver to Cowboys

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers have run out of patience with wide receiver George Pickens. The team has agreed on a trade that sends the talented but mercurial 24-year-old to the Dallas Cowboys. The Steelers will get a third-round pick in the 2026 draft and a fifth-rounder in 2027. The Cowboys get a sixth-round choice in two years. Pickens has spent his first three seasons in the NFL being equal parts productive and petulant, mixing highlight-reel catches with bouts of immaturity along the way. Pickens joins a Cowboys offense that could use another downfield threat to pair with star CeeDee Lamb.

Marner scores tiebreaking goal as Maple Leafs beat Panthers 4-3 for 2-0 series lead

TORONTO (AP) — Mitch Marner scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Florida Panthers 4-3 to take a 2-0 lead in their second-round playoff series. Max Pacioretty and Max Domi each had a goal and an assist, William Nylander also scored and Morgan Rielly added two assists for the Maple Leafs. Joseph Woll had 25 saves in place of the injured Anthony Stolarz. Anton Lundell had a goal and an assist, and Aleksander Barkov and Brad Marchand also scored for the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers. Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 16 saves. The best-of-seven matchup between Atlantic Division heavyweights now shifts to South Florida, with Game 3 set for Friday.