Strollo to speak at Curbstone

Ron Strollo, Youngstown State University director of athletics, will be the guest speaker at Monday’s luncheon meeting of The Curbstone Coaches at the Avion Banquet Center on Western Reserve Road in Beaver Township. This will be the start of a new season of Monday luncheon speakers.

The event begins at noon and the public is welcome to attend.

For those arriving early the buffet lines will open at 11:45 a.m.

Alcaraz beats Djokovic at US Open

NEW YORK — Carlos Alcaraz used his youth, athleticism and creativity to assert himself against the much more accomplished, but also much older, Novak Djokovic and beat the 24-time major champion 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-2 at the U.S. Open on Friday for a berth in his third consecutive Grand Slam final.

By the end, Djokovic was “gassed out,” as he described it afterward, and seemed resigned to the result. The 38-year-old from Serbia reached the semifinals at all four Slams this season but exited in that round each time, three via losses to No. 2 Alcaraz, 22, or No. 1 Jannik Sinner, 24.

Alcaraz will face either defending champion Sinner or No. 25 Felix Auger-Aliassime for the championship on Sunday, when President Donald Trump plans to attend. Sinner could become the first repeat men’s champion in New York since Roger Federer won the hard-court tournament five years in a row from 2004 through 2008.

Alcaraz is seeking his sixth major title and second at Flushing Meadows. He defeated Sinner at the French Open in June and lost to his rival at Wimbledon in July.

Djokovic’s bid to become the first player in the sport’s history to get Slam No. 25 was blocked again, and he thinks part of the issue is trying to overcome much younger men in best-of-five set matches.

“I still want to play … (a) full Grand Slam season next year,” Djokovic said. “Let’s see whether that’s going to happen or not, but … Slams are Slams. They are just different from any other tournament. They are the pillars of our sport, the most important tournaments we have. But I do fancy my chances a bit more in best-of-three.”

Alcaraz and Sinner have combined to collect the past seven major championships and nine of the last 12. Djokovic won the other three in that span, most recently at the 2023 U.S. Open.

Thunder lose Sorber to ACL tear

OKLAHOMA CITY — Thomas Sorber will miss the entirety of what was to be his rookie season with the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, the team said Friday.

Sorber tore the ACL in his right knee on Thursday, the team said.

The 6-foot-10 center was the No. 15 pick in this year’s draft out of Georgetown. This is the second consecutive year that the Thunder have seen a first-round pick be sidelined for the entire season because of an ACL injury; it also happened last year with guard Nikola Topic, the No. 12 pick in the 2024 draft.

Sorber averaged 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds for the Hoyas in his lone college season before turning pro.

Sky’s Reese suspended for a half

CHICAGO — Angel Reese was suspended by the Chicago Sky for the first half of the team’s game against Las Vegas on Sunday for comments she made that were “detrimental to the team.”

The team announced the suspension Friday. Reese already is missing the team’s game Friday night against Indiana because of a mandatory one-game suspension by the WNBA for picking up her eighth technical foul of the season.

“The Chicago Sky values the safety, respect, and well-being of every player. We are committed to accountability so our players can stay focused on playing basketball,” the team said in a statement. “This matter has been handled and resolved internally, and we are moving forward as a team.”

The two-time All-Star voiced her frustrations with the franchise, telling the Chicago Tribune that she “might have to move in a different direction and do what’s best for me” if the team doesn’t improve its outlook earlier in the week. She walked back those comments after Wednesday’s win over Connecticut. She had already apologized to the team. The Sky are 10-30.

Reese, who was the No. 7 pick in the WNBA draft last season, is averaging 14.7 points and and a league-best 12.6 rebounds. She has at least one more season on her rookie contract.