TCU's Miles glad to delay going pro amid WNBA's CBA talks - ESPN
KANSAS CITY — TCU guard Olivia Miles said she knows many were surprised she bypassed being a likely lottery pick in the WNBA draft earlier this year to remain in college.
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Thunder open title defense by winning 2-OT thriller against the Rockets
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, including two from the free-throw line with 2.3 seconds remaining in double overtime, lifting the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 125-124 home win over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday in the season opener. Before the game, Oklahoma City’s championship banner was raised into the rafters and the players were presented with their championship rings for last year’s title run. Then the Thunder and Rockets locked into a wild back-and-forth game, largely featuring Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren coming up with big plays for Oklahoma City as Alperen Sengun and Kevin Durant did the same for Houston. In the end, it was Gilgeous-Alexander coming up with the final big moment. After Sengun put the Rockets ahead by one with a driving finger roll off a feed from Durant with 11 seconds left, Gilgeous-Alexander drove to the basket and drew a foul on Durant. The foul was Durant’s sixth, ending his Rockets debut. Gilgeous-Alexander, who had missed four of his 12 earlier free throws, hit both of his foul shots to put Oklahoma City ahead. Jabari Smith Jr.’s turnaround shot at the buzzer missed the mark to give the Thunder the win. Holmgren, who fouled out in the first overtime, finished with 28 points and seven rebounds. Sengun, who sank a career-high five 3-pointers, finished with 39 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
NBA's Silver expects WNBA players to get 'big increase' in next labor deal
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said on Tuesday he expects WNBA players will get big raises when they eventually strike a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement.
La Liga cancel plan to hold Villarreal v Barcelona match in Miami
BARCELONA: La Liga’s plan to hold a Barcelona match in Miami in December has been called off because of “uncertainty” about the game within Spain, the Spanish topflight said in a statement on Tuesday. Champions Barca were set to face Villarreal in the United States on December 20, which would have been the first European league fixture to be played outside of the home country.
Jannik Sinner’s decision to sit out Davis Cup criticized at home in Italy
ROME: Jannik Sinner’s decision not to play for host Italy in the Davis Cup Final 8 is being met with a sense of abandonment in his home country — where he was fiercely defended during his doping case earlier this year. The second-ranked Sinner, who led Italy to tennis’ biggest team trophy the past two years, said that he prefers to prepare for next season instead of helping the Azzurri aim for another title in Bologna next month. “It wasn’t an easy decision, but after Turin (where the ATP Finals are played the week before the Davis Cup), the goal is to start off on the right foot in Australia,” Sinner said, referring to the Australian Open, where he is the two-time defending champion. “It doesn’t seem like it, but a week of preparation in that period can make a difference,” Sinner told Sky Italia on Monday from Vienna, where he is playing this week. “We already won the Davis Cup in 2023 and 2024 and this time we decided like this with my team.” The front-page headline in Tuesday’s Gazzetta dello Sport translated to: “Sinner, think it over again.” An accompanying editorial in the Gazzetta took Sinner to task for saying he already won the Davis Cup twice, pointing out how he also defended his title over the weekend in a lucrative exhibition in Saudi Arabia. “So you’re not going to return to Riyadh for another $6 million? If you win another Wimbledon, you won’t go to London anymore? Pasta, coffee … Every five minutes you promote an Italian product.
Barca Miami match ‘adulterates’ La Liga: Real Madrid’s Courtois
MADRID: Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said Tuesday the plan to take Barcelona’s La Liga match against Villarreal to Miami is “adulterating” the competition. La Liga announced they were moving the game to the United States in December, which will be the first European League fixture to be held abroad. “It’s totally adulterating the competition,” Courtois told a news conference. “It’s easy to talk about the NFL and the NBA (which move locations), they have 82 games and it doesn’t change anything for them, and in the NFL it’s voted for by the owners of the teams... “Here it’s the opposite... they decided to do it and it adulterates the competition.” Courtois said Barcelona would gain an advantage by facing Villarreal at a neutral stadium, rather than in a normal away game. “Villarreal away is a difficult game...
Fantasy basketball picks and betting tips for opening night - ESPN
ESPN's fantasy basketball daily cheat sheet is your pregame destination before you set your lineups for that night's games. Here you'll read our best advice for the night, including a selection of players you can stream as well as game-by-game injury reports.
No. 13 hoops recruit Anthony Thompson commits to Ohio State - ESPN
Five-star senior Anthony Thompson has committed to Ohio State, becoming the Buckeyes' highest-ranked men's basketball recruit in more than a decade.