NEW YORK (AP) — Knicks fans enjoyed giving LeBron James a hard time in his 76ers debut. James gave it right back on the court with a nice debut for the Sixers. James had 14 points and nine rebounds, and the Sixers ruined the Knicks’ championship party with a 106-100 win on Tuesday night. Philadelphia rolled out a potent lineup, including James and newcomer Jaylen Brown alongside Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe. Fans are eager to see how the stars will coexist. Philly is buzzing with excitement ahead of James' home debut on Thursday against Cleveland.
NEW YORK (AP) — The Philadelphia Eagles are not being punished for how they handled quarterback Jalen Hurts’ blood clots, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Allen Sills offered a passionate defense of how the Eagles treated Hurts at the NFL owners' meetings on Tuesday. That followed a statement from the league that said officials had been in contact with Philadelphia’s medical personnel and the Cleveland Clinic in London throughout the process. Hurts is expected to miss the rest of the season after a blood clot traveled from his left calf to his lungs. The players' union has called for an investigation of the situation.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day says quarterback Julian Sayin is out indefinitely after injuring his throwing arm against Indiana. Day is preparing for the possibility that Sayin might miss the rest of the season. The Buckeyes are on a bye week after their 19-15 victory over Indiana. Day and his staff are evaluating whether Luke Fahey or Tavien St. Clair will start against Southern California on October 31. Fahey has been ahead recently, but both will get more practice reps. Day emphasizes the need for the team to adapt and step up, recalling past successes with backup quarterbacks.
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Knicks celebrated their NBA championship Tuesday with a banner night — two of them — before losing to LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers in their season opener. Wearing white uniforms with gold trim for the occasion, the Knicks received their NBA championship rings from Hall of Famer Walt Frazier and then watched as the blue banner reading “2025-26 World Champions” rose to the rafters. Before raising the title banner, the NBA champions hung one at Madison Square Garden to celebrate the NBA Cup title they won last season.
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 32 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder opened their season with a 116-104 victory over the San Antonio Spurs, the team that ended their dreams of a title defense last season. San Antonio star Victor Wembanyama had 12 points but was 1 for 13 from the field. It was his fewest field goals since going 2 for 5 against Minnesota on May 10. Wembanyama’s lone field goal came on an alley-oop pass from De’Aaron Fox as time expired in the third quarter. Wembanyama missed his first 12 shots, including having an alley-oop attempt blocked by 7-foot-3 rookie Aday Mara. Jared McCain added 20 points on 6-for-8 shooting on 3-pointers as Oklahoma City led for all but the opening five minutes of the game.
ROME (AP) — Villanova and Notre Dame's men's and women's teams are set to play a doubleheader in Rome on November 1, marking the start of the college basketball season. The event, called the Eternal City Tip-Off, celebrates the Catholic universities' shared mission. Villanova alumnus Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to hold a private audience with the teams and fans the day before, though his attendance at the games is unlikely due to health reasons. The games will take place at the 11,000-seat Palazzo dello Sport. Organizers expect about 7,000 fans, with significant economic impact anticipated for Italy.
NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL says security will be heightened for the game in Paris between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints on Sunday after protests engulfed the French capital last weekend. Executive VP of club business, international and league events Peter O'Reilly says the league's security team has been on the ground and that officials are working closely with Parisian police. O'Reilly says there was never a point that the game was in danger of not being played at Stade de France.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers ran a promotion over a decade ago offering fans a “Timeless Ticket” granting them admission to any game in the future if they paid $1,000. Now that the Brewers are in the World Series for the first time since 1982, fans who took that deal are eager to redeem those tickets they bought in 2015. That has led to some complications. Some fans say they weren’t offered the good seats they were promised for the World Series. Brewers president of business operations Rick Schlesinger says the team made mistakes in its “internal communications on the logistics of fulfilling the requests.”
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Angel Reese fully realized her team couldn’t afford to fall behind by two games to the Golden State Valkyries in the best-of-seven WNBA Finals as the series shifts to Atlanta, so she led the charge on both ends and grabbed back some momentum for the Dream as they evened the series at one game apiece. The Dream won Game 2 79-65 as Reese delivered 30 points and 16 rebounds and Rhyne Howard set a WNBA Finals single-game record with six steals. That smothering defense flustered the Valkyries into committing 19 turnovers that led to 24 points for Atlanta. Game 3 is on Wednesday night.
South Carolina is ranked No. 1 in The Associated Press preseason Top 25 women's basketball poll. The Gamecocks received 23 first-place votes from a 31-member national media panel. UConn, Southern California, Duke and Michigan round out the top five. This marks the fifth time in seven years that Staley's team has been ranked No. 1 in the preseason. South Carolina will face five ranked teams in the first month, including UConn, USC and Duke. UConn, which lost to South Carolina in the Final Four last season, garnered six first-place votes. USC picked up the other two.
Finals
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final N-Y Islanders 3 Anaheim 2
Final Los Angeles 5 Washington 2
Final New Jersey 4 Colorado 3
Final Toronto 6 Columbus 2
Final OT San Jose 4 Montreal 3
Final St. Louis 2 Winnipeg 1
Final OT Dallas 3 Boston 2
Final OT Edmonton 4 Minnesota 3
Final SO Seattle 4 Detroit 3
Final Carolina 6 Vancouver 3
Final Tampa Bay 6 Vegas 2