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Chess match emerging in Western Conference finals

It’s like Victor Wembanyama has been here before. Dec. 28, 2024, was a cold and drizzly morning in New York. Wembanyama had some spare time before the San Antonio Spurs’ charter flight would leave for Minnesota that afternoon, so he posted a message on social media: Come meet me in Washington Square Park to play chess, he wrote. He played four games that morning: two wins, two losses. Fast forward to now, where the Spurs and Oklahoma City are playing a different form of chess — the Western Conference finals, with Game 5 set for Tuesday night on the Thunder’s home floor. The ...

Mead, Nationals pound Guardians, 10-2

CLEVELAND — Curtis Mead went deep twice for his first multi-homer game, Luis Garcia Jr. finished a triple shy of hitting for the cycle and the Washington Nationals hit six homers in a 10-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Monday night. James Wood, Jacob Young, and CJ Abrams joined ...

UCLA earns No. 1 seed ahead of Georgia Tech

The tournament opens Friday with 16 double-elimination regionals. Winners advance to eight best-of-three super regionals. Those winners move on to the College World Series in Omaha beginning June 12. “The committee believed this year’s championship field was deep and very balanced from top to bottom,” said NCAA selection committee chairman Michael Alford, the athletic director at Florida State. “Throughout the process we remained focused on applying the selection principles pretty consistently across all conferences and regions and I hope that is noticed. Every decision was ...

Franco criminally responsible for abuse, but spared punishment

PUERTO PLATA, Dominican Republic — Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco was declared criminally responsible for the sexual and psychological abuse of a minor, but he will not serve a sentence for it, a Dominican judge ruled Monday. Judge Jose Antonio Nunez, in his decision, considered that Franco had been the victim of extortion and blackmail by the minor’s mother, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexually trafficking her daughter. “It seems contradictory to declare criminal responsibility and at the same time exempt him from punishment. The court has granted ...

Reds extend Mets’ losing streak

NEW YORK — Nick Lodolo won for the first time in four starts since returning from a blister, JJ Bleday and Tyler Stephenson homered off an ineffective Nolan McLean, and the Cincinnati Reds extended the New York Mets’ losing streak to four with a 7-2 victory Monday. Mets star Juan Soto missed his second straight game because of illness and fellow outfielder Tyrone Taylor left with right hip pain after grounding out in the sixth inning. Taylor will undergo an MRI and is probably headed to the injured list, manager Carlos Mendoza said. The lineup already was without injured regulars ...