OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points, and the Oklahoma City Thunder routed the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-94 to win the Western Conference finals series 4-1 and advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012. Chet Holmgren had 22 points, seven rebounds and three blocks and Jalen Williams added 19 points and eight rebounds for the Thunder. Oklahoma City will play the Indiana Pacers or New York Knicks in the finals. Indiana leads the Eastern Conference finals series 3-1 with Game 5 to be played in New York City on Thursday.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 34 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-94, win the Western Conference finals series 4-1 and advance to the NBA Finals. He averaged 31.4 points on 45.7% shooting, 8.2 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game during the series and earned the Magic Johnson Trophy for MVP of the conference finals. Gilgeous-Alexander says he has one more goal and knows that none of that will matter when the Thunder play either the Indiana Pacers or the New York Knicks in the Finals, starting June 5.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe broke a tie off a feed from Aleksander Barkov with 7:39 left and the defending champion Florida Panthers advanced to their third straight Stanley Cup Final, beating the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 on Wednesday night in Game 5. The Panthers beat the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference final for the second time in three seasons. The Panthers will face the winner of the Western final between Dallas and Edmonton, with the Oilers up 3-1 to put them within a win of a rematch with Florida for the Cup. Sam Bennett added an empty-net goal with 54 seconds left by skating down a loose puck straight out of the penalty box after Florida had held up against a critical late power play for the Hurricanes.
Florida coach Paul Maurice did not shake hands with the Carolina Hurricanes when the Eastern Conference final ended. And he asked Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour not to shake hands with the Panthers, either. It wasn’t out of disrespect. Quite the contrary. The handshake line at the end of a playoff series is one of hockey’s sacred traditions. And Maurice thinks the handshakes are part of what makes the game great to hockey fans, and he’s all for it happening. He has just said repeatedly throughout this postseason that he thinks the coaches shouldn’t be part of it and that he wants it all about the players.
On May 29, 1985, 39 people went to the biggest club game in soccer and never returned home. Heysel Stadium in Brussels was staging the European Cup final between Juventus and Liverpool exactly 40 years ago. Crowd disorder culminated in a surge by Liverpool fans into an adjacent stand containing mostly Juventus supporters. In the ensuing chaos, some were trampled or suffocated to death as they tried to flee and others died when a retaining wall collapsed. A total of 39 people died and around 600 were injured. This is a look at the background and consequences of one of soccer’s darkest days.
PARIS (AP) — Casper Ruud is hardly an up-and-comer simply trying to make his way — and a living — in professional tennis. He’s a three-time Grand Slam finalist, ranked No. 8, the owner of more clay-court victories than any other man since 2020 and someone who’s earned nearly $25 million in prize money. And yet Ruud felt the need to play through pain for the better part of two months. He voiced concerns, also expressed by other players, that there is an overwhelming sense of obligation to take the court as often as possible, no matter one’s health, thanks to a schedule and a system Ruud called a “rat race.”
MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Nothing less than the future of college sports is being hashed this week at the Southeastern Conference’s annual spring meetings in Florida. Among the topics are the future of the College Football Playoff, the SEC’s own schedule, the transfer portal and the NCAA itself. All are influenced by the fate of a multibillion-dollar lawsuit settlement that hovers over almost every corner of college athletics.
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams made an attempt to quiet a controversy about how he had wanted to go to the Minnesota Vikings rather than his current team. Williams says he did have interest in the Vikings after a visit there but it all ended when he made a trip to Chicago, which owned the first pick in the 2024 draft. Then he decided he wanted to be the one who ended a long drought since the Bears last had a winning quarterback. Williams also labeled as false a part of the report suggesting he didn't know how to watch film last year and the Bears failed to help him.
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Tommy Tuberville is a U.S. senator running for Alabama governor. His new campaign paraphernalia recognize his old job: coach. The former football coach at Auburn University leaned into that branding after announcing his bid for office Tuesday. It's a deliberate tactic that demonstrates how figures like Tuberville transition from athletics to politics. Others have done it successfully, from Gerald Ford to Bill Bradley. Though there are no sure bets, as Herschel Walker's bid for Senate showed. And as women's professional sports grow in popularity, one expert says more women could use the platform to seek public office.
INTERLEAGUE
Final Cleveland 7 L.A. Dodgers 4
Final Detroit 4 San Francisco 3
Final Milwaukee 6 Boston 5
Final Chicago White Sox 9 N.Y. Mets 4
Final St. Louis 6 Baltimore 4
Final Kansas City 3 Cincinnati 2
Final Washington 9 Seattle 0
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Tampa Bay 5 Minnesota 0
Final Houston 5 Athletics 3
Final Toronto 2 Texas 0
Final N.Y. Yankees 1 L.A. Angels 0
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Atlanta at Philadelphia 1:05 p.m. (Postponed)
Final Pittsburgh 10 Arizona 1
Final Miami 10 San Diego 8
Final Chicago Cubs 2 Colorado 1
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Final Oklahoma City 124 Minnesota 94
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Final Florida 5 Carolina 3