Sports

`The Masters ends the 9-month wait for golf’s most anticipated major

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — For a sport renowned for moving slowly, the Masters can’t get started fast enough. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are the main attractions for the most anticipated major of the golf season. The final day of rehearsal brought 9-hole practice rounds and the Par 3 Tournament. The Masters is so different from the other majors. It has the smallest field on the prettiest course. And players have been waiting nine months for the next major. Scheffler says it’s all about preparation. McIlroy says if players aren’t ready by now then they probably have no chance of winning a green jacket.

Emotional return for Luka Doncic and Mavericks fans in his 1st game at Dallas since trade to Lakers

DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic entered the court with the Los Angeles Lakers for his first game back in Dallas to cheers in an arena where draped over every seat was a T-shirt with the Slovenian phrase for thank you for everything. Then came the tribute. A more than two-minute highlight video of Doncic’s time with the Mavericks was shown after the rest of the Lakers starting lineup had been introduced. It was an emotional night for the 26-year-old Doncic and the Mavericks fans. He spent his first 5 1/2 NBA seasons of his career in Dallas before the seismic trade two months ago. He scored 45 points as the Lakers won to clinch a playoff spot.

Dolphins player Tyreek Hill and his wife were involved in a domestic dispute, police say

SUNNY ISLES BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Police say Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill and his wife were involved in a domestic dispute at their South Florida high-rise condominium, but no charges were filed. Sunny Isles Beach officers responded to the home Monday following a call from Hill’s mother-in-law. She had been living with the couple since November, shortly after her granddaughter was born. According to a police report, the mother-in-law told responding officers that Hill was aggressive and impulsive and that she was afraid for her daughter. She said Hill threw a laptop on the floor and grabbed his baby before walking toward the balcony. Hill’s agent didn’t immediately respond to a telephone message seeking comment.

Pedro Martinez says he has family members unaccounted for in Dominican nightclub roof collapse

Dominican-born Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez says he has family members unaccounted for who were inside the Santo Domingo nightclub when its roof collapsed. The 53-year-old Martinez was born in Manoguayabo, about 10 miles west of the Dominican Republic’s capital city. At least 124 people were killed and hundreds more injured when the roof collapsed early Tuesday. Authorities confirmed former major league pitcher Octavio Dotel and former major league utility player Tony Blanco were among the dead. Also killed was Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the Monte Cristi province in the country and sister of seven-time MLB All-Star Nelson Cruz.

Jokic has 32nd triple-double to lead Nuggets past Kings 124-116 in Denver’s 1st game without Malone

SACRAMENTO (AP) — Nikola Jokic had his 32nd triple-double of the season with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists and Denver beat the Sacramento Kings 124-116 on Wednesday night in the Nuggets’ first game since head coach Michael Malone was fired. Christian Braun scored 25 points, Aaron Gordon added and Michael Porter Jr. had 21 points each to help Denver end a four-game losing streak and complete a season-series sweep of Sacramento. Zach LaVine had 27 points and 11 assists for the Kings, whose three-game winning streak ended.

Eriksson Ek, Kaprizov return to lead the Wild past the Sharks, 8-7 in overtime

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Joel Eriksson Ek scored a career-high four goals in his return from a lower-body injury, Kirill Kaprizov had his second of the game in overtime in his first game back and the Minnesota Wild outlasted the San Jose Sharks 8-7 on Wednesday night. Minnesota moved into the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference when the St. Louis Blues lost at Edmonton in a late game. The Wild and Blues each have 93 points, with St. Louis having played one more game. Eriksson Ek missed the previous 21 games. Kaprizov also returned from a lower-body injury after missing the last 28 games. Kaprizov — who also had an assist — scored his 25th goal of the season at 1:01 of overtime.

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami pull off 3-goal rally to top LAFC and make CONCACAF Champions Cup semis

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Lionel Messi and Inter Miami are headed to the CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinals and it took a dramatic three-goal comeback to get there. Messi scored twice, including a penalty kick in the 84th minute, to lift Inter Miami past LAFC 3-1 on Wednesday night. It was good enough for a 3-2 aggregate win in the two-leg series. The Herons needed three unanswered goals to win the series and ensure they wouldn’t lose a tiebreaker.

Goals aplenty! A season-high 4 hat tricks in Wednesday’s NHL action

There were plenty of goals scored in the NHL on Wednesday night and four players accounted for a bulk of them. Minnesota’s Joel Eriksson Ek and San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini traded hat tricks in one contest, and Toronto’s Matthew Knies, Philadelphia’s Tyson Foerster also had three-goal games. The four three-goal efforts in the first three games of the five-game schedule were the most in the NHL since five hat tricks on April 1, 2023.

France’s Dominique Malonga among players to watch during WNBA draft after Paige Bueckers goes No. 1

NEW YORK (AP) — Paige Bueckers is clearly the best-known player in Monday’s WNBA draft, but Dominique Malonga of France is among the most interesting. Curiosity around the 6-foot-6 forward seems to be growing. There’s not much doubt Bueckers is going to have an immediate impact on Dallas on and off the court as the team’s first pick, giving the Wings one of the most efficient players coming out of college in quite some time. Whether other players in the draft can offer quick help to teams will be seen over the next few months. A lot of that depends on which teams draft which players and how that fit evolves.

Trans athletes are under more scrutiny than ever. Some have found a safe space in gymnastics

PITTSBURGH (AP) — As the rhetoric around transgender athletes grows more heated, one organization is trying to create a safe space. The National Association of Intercollegiate Gymnastics Clubs allows trans and non-binary athletes to self-select their gender at its annual national meet. A dozen gymnasts opted into the category at the recently completed 2025 nationals. Ray Hung, a student at Northeastern University, is non-binary trans masculine. Hung called the NAIGC a “shield” for trans gymnasts. NAIGC director of operations Ilana Shushansky says the organization’s mission is to create an environment for gymnasts to compete into adulthood in a place that feels comfortable and supportive.