DALLAS — Cooper Flagg scored 21 points and Kyrie Irving added 14 after a sluggish first half for both stars as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Utah Jazz 112-100 in an NBA Cup game Friday night. PJ Washington scored 22 of his season-high 26 points in a first half that ended in a 57-all tie,

ATLANTA — After Trae Young was introduced last for the Washington Wizards on Friday night, he took the court before tipoff, went to the corner of the floor and settled himself. Then, he jogged over to Hawks coach Quin Snyder for a pregame embrace before taking on his former team. “I don’t even know how

CLEVELAND — Donovan Mitchell scored 23 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers held LeBron James to eight points in his return to Northeast Ohio and rolled to a 119-95 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers in an NBA Cup group stage game Friday night. James — who elected to sign with Philadelphia in the offseason instead of

ATLANTA — Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 28 points and the Atlanta Hawks held off the Washington Wizards 139-132 in an NBA Cup game Friday night. It was the third straight win for the Hawks and second straight against the Wizards, as Atlanta swept the home-and-home series. Trae Young had 23 points, 10 assists and a season-high

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina — Jayson Tatum had 34 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, Derrick White added 18 points and the Boston Celtics demolished the Charlotte Hornets 119-80 on Friday night for their seventh win in eight games. Boston shot 17 of 31 from 3-point range in the first half to build a 31-point lead

SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors center Kristaps Porzingis announced he is stepping away from basketball to prioritize his health due to an undisclosed matter in a social media post on Friday. Porzingis did not reveal the nature of the issue in a message posted on his X account, and the 31-year-old didn’t make it

LIVE: Alex Eala vs Maria Sakkari – Hong Kong Open semifinals MANILA, Philippines–Less than 24 hours after surviving a tough test, Alex Eala faces another stiff challenge against Greek former World No. 3 Maria Sakkari in the Hong Kong Open semifinals on Saturday. The second-seeded Eala still hasn’t dropped a set in the WTA 250

The Samsung Lions came from behind to defeat the KT Wiz 5-1 in Game 3 of the Korean Series at home Friday, taking a lead in the best-of-seven showdown by riding one big inning. Starter Ariel Jurado tossed seven innings of one-run ball and captain Koo Ja-wook delivered a two-run triple in the crucial second inning before a sellout crowd of 23,550 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in the southeastern city of Daegu. The Lions now lead the series 2-1, with Game 4 scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday in Daegu. Park Seung-kyu smoked a solo shot for some insurance in the eighth. This is the 18th Korean Series in which teams were tied at 1-1 through two games. In those instances, Game 3 winners went on to capture the title 16 times. The Lions prevailed despite being outhit 7-4. The Wiz scored the first run in the top of the first, with two doubles off Jurado. Kim Min-hyuck led off the game with a two-bagger down the right field line. Then with two outs, cleanup Sam Hilliard doubled off the top of the center field fence to cash in Kim for a 1-0 lead. It was Hilliard's third double and third RBI of this series. Th

DAEGU — Before he steps into the cage for his pregame batting practice, KT Wiz outfielder Sam Hilliard hits rubber balls tossed by a coach. Hitting them is not just for fun. Hilliard said he first did it a few years ago while in the U.S. minor leagues. He stopped hitting rubber balls but then returned to his old practice ways earlier this year at the suggestion of hitting coach Kim Kang, as he was trying to break out of a slump in his first Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season. Hilliard was batting .232 at the end of April, the lowest mark by any qualified foreign hitter at the time, though he also had five home runs in 28 games. In May, Hilliard burst out with eight homers and a .350 batting average in 25 games. He has not looked back since. He finished the year by leading the KBO with 139 RBIs and ranked second with 44 home runs. He has thrived in his first Korean Series against the Samsung Lions, too, batting .583 (7-for-12) with three doubles and three RBIs in three games. No one has more hits in this series, and Hilliard has hit one more double than the entire Lions roster. In

DAEGU — After starting eight consecutive postseason games for the Samsung Lions despite dealing with an oblique injury, catcher Kang Min-ho was benched for the start of Game 4 of the Korean Series on Saturday. Manager Park Jin-man replaced the 41-year-old Kang with the 26-year-old backstop Kim Do-hwan. The Lions defeated the KT Wiz 5-1 in a Friday evening game to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven championship battle, and the teams will have a quick turnaround for an afternoon game Saturday. "We have the back-to-back night game and day game, and he was just about to collapse," Park said of Kang, who is batting 0-for-6 in this series but had remained in the lineup for his defensive contributions. "I just felt this was the right time to get him off his feet." Kim will make his first career postseason start, and he will catch an even younger pitcher in the 19-year-old starter Jang Chan-hee. This is also the first postseason start for Jang, a third-round pick in the 2025 Korea Baseball Organization draft. "I hope these two will bring some energy out there today," Park said. "Chan-hee has

DAEGU — With his KT Wiz trailing the Samsung Lions 2-1 in the best-of-seven Korean Series, manager Lee Kang-chul on Saturday demanded more from his All-Star slugger Ahn Hyun-min. After three games, Ahn is just 2-for-13 with four strikeouts and two walks at the plate. He won the 2025 Rookie of the Year award in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) after hitting 22 homers and driving in 80 runs. This year, despite being slowed by injuries, Ahn still smacked 14 homers in 94 games. In both years, he had an on-base percentage of over .440, including his league-leading mark of .448 in 2025. His .267 on-base percentage in the Korean Series leaves a lot to be desired for the Wiz, especially because Ahn has batted in front of Sam Hilliard, the regular-season RBI leader with 139, who is also leading the Wiz with three RBIs in the Korean Series. "Hilliard is in great form, but we need Hyun-min to get on base more often in front of him to give him RBI opportunities," Lee said before Game 4 of the series at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in the southeastern city of Daegu. "Because Hyun-min is not reachi

DAEGU — Samsung Lions starting pitcher Chris Paddack is a proud Texan. The Austin native dons a full suit, completed with a cowboy hat and boots, on the day of his starts, and he once even asked his team interpreter to put on a suit himself earlier in the ongoing Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason. Paddack also takes pride in his work ethic and his ability to rise to the occasion in key spots. The 30-year-old right-hander has been just the type of postseason workhorse that teams need to win championships, and thanks in large part to Paddack, the Lions are sitting two wins away from capturing their first Korean Series title since 2014. They lead the best-of-seven championship battle 2-1. Paddack threw 295 pitches in a recent 10-day span. He made his KBO postseason debut Oct. 26 in Game 1 of the previous series against the Kia Tigers, making 94 pitches in 4 2/3 innings. Then he started Game 4 of that series on three days' rest on Oct. 30, throwing 99 pitches over 5 1/3 innings. On Wednesday, he got the ball in Game 2 of the Korean Series, and he threw 102 pitches in seven inni

DAEGU — The Samsung Lions will send their homegrown ace Won Tae-in to the mound in their first crack at clinching the 2026 Korean Series title Sunday. The Lions lead the KT Wiz 3-1 in the best-of-seven battle, following a 10-5 win in Game 4 on Saturday at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in the southeastern city of Daegu. The fifth game, set for 2 p.m. Sunday in Daegu, will be the first elimination game of the series. Won will make his first start for the Lions this postseason after making three relief appearances in the previous series against the Kia Tigers and another in Game 2 of the Korean Series on Wednesday. Won, a career starter, was thrust into the bullpen role after the Lions' All-Star closer Kim Jae-yoon suffered an upper body injury in October that knocked him out of the postseason. In that game, Won gave up two hits and one unearned run in 1 2/3 innings. With his pregame routine as a starting pitcher all thrown out of whack, Won admitted his body is not in optimal form. "But my goal is to pitch as well as I can regardless of the situation," Won said Saturday. "My focus will be on ta

DAEGU — At the tender age of 19, Samsung Lions starter Jang Chan-hee helped put his team on the verge of their first Korean Series title in a dozen years Saturday with a better-than-expected performance. Jang held the KT Wiz to a run on two hits in four rock solid innings, as the Lions prevailed 10-5 in Game 4 of the Korean Series at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in the southeastern city of Daegu. The Lions lead the best-of-seven series 3-1, and can clinch the championship in Game 5 scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday in Daegu. At 19 years, one month and two days old, became the second youngest pitcher to start a Korean Series game. Before the game, Lions manager Park Jin-man said he hoped Jang would pitch with the level of energy and fearlessness that he had shown during the regular season. Jang had a rocky first inning, though, as he surrendered a solo home run to Jang Jin-hyuk on just his ninth pitch of the game. He walked the next batter but escaped the inning with no further damage. Jang's teammates then staked him to a 6-1 lead, as they batted around and roughed up starter Logan Allen to the tu

DAEGU — The Samsung Lions are a win away from capturing the South Korean baseball championship. The Lions defeated the KT Wiz 10-5 in Game 4 of the Korean Series at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in the southeastern city of Daegu on Saturday, taking the 3-1 stranglehold on the best-of-seven battle. The Lions can clinch their first Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) title in 12 years with a victory in Game 5 scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday. On the 19 previous occasions when a team went down 3-1 in the Korean Series, only the 2013 Lions rallied to win the championship. After allowing a run in the top of the first inning, the Lions responded with a six-spot in the bottom first en route to their third straight victory in this series. No. 2 hitter Park Seung-kyu drove in three runs, and the 19-year-old starter Jang Chan-hee gave the Lions four innings of one-run ball. Reliever Lee Jae-hee worked 2 2/3 perfect innings. The teams combined for 19 walks and hit-by-pitches, the most ever in a Korean Series game. The Wiz took a 1-0 lead on just the ninth pitch of the game, as No. 2 hitter Jang Jin-hyuk smoked

The University of the East ended its 30-game losing streak after taking down Adamson University, 53-47, in the UAAP Season 89 men"s basketball tournament on Saturday.

MANILA, Philippines -- University of the East hung on to beat Adamson University, 53-47, to end its 30-game skid and claim its first win in the UAAP Season 89 men's basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Saturday, November 7. Determined to take their first win since October 16, 2024 in Season 87 second round where they beat the National University Bulldogs, the Red Warriors zoomed to a 17-5 start and did just enough to weather the Soaring Falcons fightback. Toper Lagat, JM Edoukou, and Mo Tanedo came through with timely baskets and free throws in the tightly-contested final canto, where UE scored seven points and Adamson three only. Tanedo finished with 14 points including the free throw that delivered the final count while also logging four boards for the cellar-dwelling UE. While already eliminated from Final Four contention, the Red Warriors improved to 1-10. Lagat likewise fired 14 points on top of our rebounds and two steals, as Edoukou logged 13 points and 10 boards. Manu Anabo pumped 14 points and five boards for Adamson, which fell to 4-7 for seventh place.

UAAP Season 89 Men’s Basketball Tournament UE def. Adamson, 53-47 Toper Lagat Player of the game #UAAPSeason89

Nxled dealt another huge blow to Capital1, eking out a dominant 25-13, 25-20, 25-18 win to remain spotless in the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference Siklab Series on Saturday at the PhilSports Arena.

The short-handed Toronto Raptors rallied from 15 points down to defeat the host Milwaukee Bucks 121-107 on Friday night in an NBA Cup game highlighted by several career highs.

PJ Washington's 26 points and Cooper Flagg's all-around performance powered Dallas to a 112-100 home win over Utah on Friday in NBA Cup group-stage competition.

Luka Doncic scored a season-high 53 points and Austin Reaves added 25 as the Los Angeles Lakers extended their winning streak to four games with a 124-118 victory over the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.

MANILA, Philippines — University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigresses head coach Haydee Ong has been slapped with a mandatory one-game suspension following the accumulation of three infractions in the UAAP Season 89 Collegiate Women’s Basketball Tournament. Coach Ong will sit out on Sunday, November 8, as the Growling Tigresses prepare to face the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws at the SMART Araneta Coliseum. The suspension stems from UST's recent clash against De La Salle University, where the Tigresses bench was handed a technical foul for unsportsmanlike behavior at the 3:30 mark of the third quarter. The penalty was whistled after members of the coaching staff and players vocally and demonstratively disagreed with an official's call. This incident unfolded despite the team having already received an official warning in the second quarter for continually challenging officiating decisions. Under the updated UAAP House Rules, a one-game suspension is automatically triggered upon the accumulation of three infractions—an adjustment from last year's limit of two. Ong's first two infractions were recorded earlier in the season on October 17 during their matchup against the Ateneo de Manila University. The Growling Tigresses will look to adjust on the sidelines as they navigate Sunday's crucial encounter against the Lady Tamaraws without their veteran head coach. TMT

Victor Wembanyama scored 20 of his 30 points in a runaway first half, Stephon Castle added 19 points and the visiting San Antonio Spurs won their seventh straight game Friday night, defeating the Sacramento Kings 124-109 in each team's opening game of the NBA Cup.

Ayo Dosunmu scored 26 points and Jaden McDaniels added 23 as the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves beat the New Orleans Pelicans 115-109 on Friday night in an NBA Cup West Group B matchup.

Alexandra Eala will look to punch her ticket to the finals in her last tournament of the year as she locks horns with Greece's Maria Sakkari in the Hong Kong Tennis Open semifinals.

MANILA, Philippines — The Nxled Chameleons made quick work of the Capital 1 Solar Spikers, 25-13, 25-20, 25-18, to move closer to the semifinal berth in the 2026-27 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference-Siklab Series on Saturday at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City. The Chameleons handed the Solar Spikers their third-straight loss in the conference in just 81 minutes of action to be the only unbeaten team in the league with a 5-0 card. All Nxled players scored in the match, with Brooke Van Sickle leading the scoring with 13 points, while MJ Phillips added nine points. Jonah Sabete-Escamillan and Jacq Acuña added seven points, while EJ Cariño, Myla Pablo, and Ranya Musa all made an identical output of four points each. Gel Cayuna and Lyann De Guzman made three points each, while playmaker Djanel Cheng added two points. With all the gunners of Nxled scoring a point, Cayuna was hailed as the player of the game with 16 excellent sets. Nxled limited Capital 1’s main gunner Bella Belen to just five points, her lowest scoring output so far. Erika Santos led the Solar Spikers with 12 points, while Vanie Gandler added seven. For head coach Ettore Guidetti, he shared that he spent most of his time studying the game, especially with the new all-play-to-rule, making him to approach the game even more tactically. “I started in the Philippines in 2024, and the format is kind of similar to university games. You know I am also a mentor of Adamson Univeristy, I wasn’t totally unprepared. But to be honest with you, there are four ways to play this game with this format,” he said. Nxled will next face sister team Akari Chargers on Thursday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, while Capital 1 aims to end its series of losses against the Farm Fresh Foxies on Saturday at the PhilSports Arena.

LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic scored 53 points and hit a key jumper in the lane with 28 seconds to play, carrying the Los Angeles Lakers to a 124-118 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night. Doncic produced his 11th career 50-point game and his fourth with Los Angeles while preserving a fourth straight win for the Lakers, whose late 12-point lead had dwindled to four before Doncic and Austin Reaves combined to score 10 points in the final seconds. Reaves scored 25 points and Walker Kessler had 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, who avenged a 136-129 home loss to Portland on Oct. 27 with this NBA Cup victory. Doncic scored 20 points in the third quarter alone to hit 40 for the sixth time in an incredible seven-game surge that includes six 40-point games — including four straight — and a 37-point performance. The Slovenian superstar added five assists and five rebounds, giving him seven consecutive games with at least 35 points, five assists, five rebounds and five 3-pointers. Deni Avdija had 22 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds and Damian Lillard scored 22 points for the Blazers, who lost for only the second time this season in the finale of their four-game road trip. The Lakers trailed by 16 in the second quarter before surging to a 16-point lead of their own early in the fourth with a 32-11 run. Portland roared back and repeatedly got within four points, but no closer. Doncic joined Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant and George Mikan as the only Lakers to score 40 points in four straight regular-season games. Doncic also passed Mikan for the fifth-most 40-point games in Lakers history — after just 101 regular-season games with Los Angeles. The Lakers opened this game on their garish yellow tournament court by missing their first 15 3-point attempts into the second quarter. Doncic missed his first five 3-point attempts — but he banked in a 61-footer from the opposite free throw circle at the halftime buzzer. Portland's big lead was erased in the third quarter when the Lakers scored 17 consecutive points. Doncic outscored the Blazers 20-15 in the third.

PVL 2026 All Filipino-Siklab Series Nxled def. Capital1, 3-0 Gel Cayuna Player of the Game #PVL2026

The end of LIV Golf is to be sorted out in a New Jersey bankruptcy court with the next hearing in just over two weeks. The future of LIV players could be even more complex, with so much to be determined 900 miles away at PGA Tour headquarters in Florida. PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp previously scheduled a virtual news conference Nov. 17, the day after a board meeting. The topic is to be more details of the new competitive model for 2028, not how, when or why to bring back players from LIV. So how long Jon Rahm's only option is the European tour or what becomes of Bryson DeChambeau are topics not likely to be discussed, much less decided. Rolapp is big on meritocracy, and Adam Scott offered thoughts along those lines in Abu Dhabi. “I think the fairest thing is that they all re-establish themselves in the system they want to go to,” he said in an interview with Today's Golfer. “They left and gave up those privileges. I think they should re-qualify themselves, ideally. That's how I would see it. That seems logical and sensible.” Rolapp has not been willing to discuss the return of LIV players until they are relieved of their contracts. LIV said Wednesday in a bankruptcy hearing it would not go forward with a new version and instead begin the process of shuttering operations. The same day, the judge approved Rahm's separation from LIV Golf. He's officially free and clear. “I have yet to have a discussion with the PGA Tour to see if there’s any path back for next year,” Rahm said this week in Abu Dhabi, where he shares the 36-hole lead. Free, indeed. The last public comments from DeChambeau came in a “Figuring Out” podcast released on Halloween in which the two-time U.S. Open champion remained bullish on LIV 2.0. “It’s going to be done right and this is going to be a league that exists hopefully forever,” he said. Rahm and DeChambeau are the two biggest names. Often overlooked is Dustin Johnson, a former world No. 1 and two-time major champion and the one guy PGA Tour players said they missed. His manager, David Winkle at Hambric Sports, said Friday the 42-year-old Johnson has been testing equipment and is “hungry to play against the best competition available to him.” Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, a four-time Ryder Cup player, have status on the European tour. DeChambeau and Cameron Smith, who won the British Open at St. Andrews in 2022, also have access to membership as major champions in the last five years. They must decide in the next 10 days. For so many others, it's a waiting game. The path to the PGA Tour The tour currently has a one-year ban from a player's last LIV appearance, so that would be lifted on Aug. 24, 2027, assuming there are no other disciplinary matters. That could include being part of the group that sued the tour. Where it gets complicated is the move to the new model in 2028. The categories for the Championship Series and the lower Challenger Series no longer include past champions — LIV had 28 players who have won on the PGA Tour. There is a one-time exemption for top 50 in career money. Charles Howell III is currently at No. 42 with some breathing room. But to use that exemption requires 15 starts in 2027, and Howell won’t be eligible next year. There also is no mention of life members for 20 career wins — Johnson achieved that before going to LIV. And while Rolapp has noted he wasn't around when players bolted from the PGA Tour to take the Saudi riches, he still reports to a wide membership, many of whom want to see defectors punished. “There are 225 guys with tour cards,” Xander Schauffele said. “And if you sat down and interviewed all of them, you’re going to get probably three or four boxes of how guys feel. Some guys don’t care, some guys are really ticked off, some guys want them to have a huge fine, some guys would let them back tomorrow.” The path to the European tour Hatton and Victor Perez have status in Europe from having won elite Rolex Series events. Adrian Meronk and Laurie Canter have status from winning tournaments with at least a $2 million prize fund, and lower down the priority list are David Puig and Elvis Smylie, who won tournaments with small purses. The top 40 in career money, another category, is where to find the likes of Louis Oosthuizen, Sergio Garcia, Martin Kaymer and Paul Casey. The European tour is making available sponsor exemptions to LIV players in run-of-the-mill events that wouldn’t squeeze out loyal members. The path through the European tour With two tournaments left in the season, three former LIV players are in position to be among the leading 10 players in the Race to Dubai who get PGA Tour cards — Eugenio Chacarra, Patrick Reed and Bernd Wiesberger. That seems like the prudent path — right now. Still to be determined is the outcome of a new PGA Tour alliance with the European tour that created that program. Early indications are there won't be that many cards offered for 2028.