PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers says his 22nd season in the NFL will be his last. The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback said “this is it” when asked Wednesday if he will retire at the end of the 2026 season. The 42-year-old did not expand on why he came to that conclusion. Rodgers signed a one-year deal to return to the Steelers just before the start of organized team activities. The four-time NFL MVP says the hiring of Mike McCarthy as coach played a factor in his decision to return to the Steelers after helping lead the club to the AFC North title last season.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The MVP looked like the MVP again, and the Western Conference finals are knotted up. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander bounced back from a subpar series opener to score 30 points, Alex Caruso added 17 off the bench and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the San Antonio Spurs 122-113 on Wednesday night in Game 2. Chet Holmgren scored 13 points and reserves Jared McCain and Cason Wallace each had 12 for Oklahoma City. The Thunder finished with a 57-25 edge in bench scoring, plus a 27-10 edge in points off turnovers. Stephon Castle scored 25 points for the Spurs, who got 22 points from Devin Vassell and a 21-point, 17-rebound, six-assist, four-block night from Victor Wembanyama.
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — A supersized World Cup with more teams, more games and even more host nations than ever before leaves a big question hanging over the biggest sporting show on earth: How much is too much? The value of scarcity - the idea that less is worth more - is a concept often discussed in soccer, but rarely practised. And the latest edition of the World Cup - co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico - will further push the boundaries of how far the most popular sport on the planet can go before it reaches breaking point.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Victor Wembanyama fouled Jalen Williams on a shot attempt in the opening minutes of Game 2 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night. Except, no, he really didn’t. Yes, Wembanyama made contact with Williams. Yes, it looked like a foul. Yes, it was called that way — at first. Upon review, it was determined that Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein actually shoved Wembanyama into his teammate and caused the foul himself. That’s how physical the Thunder were with Wembanyama in Game 2. They grabbed, pushed, nudged, anything and everything they could muster against the 7-foot-4 French star who still finished with 21 points, 17 rebounds, six assists and four blocked shots.
DENVER (AP) — Dylan Coghlan scored his first Stanley Cup playoff goal to get Vegas rolling, Carter Hart made 36 saves and the Golden Knights opened the Western Conference final by holding off the Colorado Avalanche 4-2 on Wednesday night. Trailing 3-0 in the third period, Colorado made it a 3-2 game with 2:21 remaining on a power-play goal from Gabriel Landeskog. Nic Dowd sealed the win for Vegas on an empty-net goal with 44.5 seconds left. Pavel Dorofeyev and Brett Howden also added goals for the Golden Knights, who took advantage of several defensive miscommunications by the Avalanche as they juggled their blue-line pairings with Cale Makar sidelined by an upper-body injury.
DENVER (AP) — Carter Hart has made a strong comeback with the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup playoffs. After being acquitted in the Hockey Canada sexual assault scandal, Hart joined the Golden Knights last December. On Wednesday night, he helped them beat top-seeded Colorado 4-2 in the Western Conference Final opener. Hart stopped 36 of 38 shots, showing his skill and focus. Vegas coach John Tortorella praised Hart's mental strength and performance. Hart expressed his respect for Tortorella and his excitement to play under him again.
GREENBURGH, N.Y. (AP) — Jalen Brunson against Donovan Mitchell was the matchup splashed across the screens to hype the Eastern Conference finals. Unfortunately for the Cleveland Cavaliers, it turned into Brunson versus James Harden in the fourth quarter of Game 1. Brunson continuously attacked the matchup to spark one of the largest postseason comebacks on record, as the New York Knicks rallied from a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter for a 115-104 victory. As they prepare for Game 2 on Thursday, the Cavaliers are shrugging off concerns that one of the most accomplished offensive players in league history might be too poor of a defender to give them NBA Finals hopes.
RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. (AP) — The Big Ten is pushing to expand the College Football Playoff to 24 teams, but the question is who will televise it. Fox supports the idea, but concerns remain about how much networks will pay for games involving less popular teams. The current ESPN deal is worth $7.8 billion over six seasons. The Southeastern Conference prefers a 16-team playoff, while the Big Ten has support from the Atlantic Coast and Big 12 conferences for 24 teams. A larger playoff could eliminate conference title games, affecting revenue. The NFL's dominance in viewership is a factor in negotiations.
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Shohei Ohtani returned to his full two-way form for the Los Angeles Dodgers in San Diego, and the results were formidable. While pitching and hitting in the same game for the first time in four weeks, Ohtani homered on the first pitch of the night and then threw five innings of three-hit ball in Los Angeles’ 4-0 victory over the Padres. After launching his eighth homer of the season and then lowering his ERA to a minuscule 0.73, Ohtani took satisfaction in doing it all even on a night when he didn’t feel great on the mound.
Vancouver, British Columbia, is no stranger to big events. The city in western Canada hosted the Winter Olympics in 2010, then it hosted matches — including the final — during the Women’s World Cup in 2015. BC Place figured prominently in both events, including serving as the site of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Vancouver Games. For the men’s World Cup this summer, the city’s downtown stadium will host seven matches, five in the group stage and two knockout-round games. The Canadian national team will play two of its first-round matches there.
Finals
INTERLEAGUE
Final Texas 5 Colorado 4
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Tampa Bay 5 Baltimore 3
Final Minnesota 4 Houston 1
Final Seattle 5 Chicago White Sox 4
Final Cleveland 3 Detroit 2
Final Toronto 2 N.Y. Yankees 1
Final Boston 4 Kansas City 3
Final Athletics 6 L.A. Angels 5
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Cincinnati 9 Philadelphia 4
Final Arizona 6 San Francisco 3
Final Washington 8 N.Y. Mets 4
Final Atlanta 9 Miami 1
Final Milwaukee 5 Chicago Cubs 0
Final Pittsburgh 7 St. Louis 0
Final L.A. Dodgers 4 San Diego 0
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Final Oklahoma City 122 San Antonio 113
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Final Vegas 4 Colorado 2