Category: Sports News

Worldwide Sports News

Posted on

The ACC had an improved nonconference showing. That could help its cause for more March Madness bids

It wasn't long after sixth-ranked Duke finally fought off a pesky Georgia Tech team that coach Jon Scheyer pointed to the lesson emerging from the Blue Devils' Atlantic Coast Conference opener. Notably, the ACC had a stronger showing in marquee nonconference matchups and has shown more depth of quality teams compared to last year with Duke operating as a one-team show on the way to the Final Four. “I just feel like the league as a whole, it's so much better,” said Terrence Oglesby, a college basketball and NBA TV analyst who played at Clemson.

Posted on

Crystal Palace seal club-record £35m Brennan Johnson transfer from Spurs

  • Manager Glasner pleased club got deal done swiftly

  • Johnson says he is ‘super excited’ to make move

Oliver Glasner credited Crystal Palace’s hierarchy for completing the signing of Brennan Johnson from Tottenham for a club record £35m on the second day of the transfer window.

The Wales forward has a four-and-a-half-year deal and is expected to be part of Palace’s squad that will face Newcastle on Sunday. Glasner has made no secret of his desire to bolster the FA Cup winners after a demanding debut campaign in Europe and has criticised Palace’s lack of preparedness in previous transfer windows. But the Austrian manager said he was delighted with the signing of the 24-year-old after Palace saw off competition from Bournemouth.

Continue reading...
Posted on

Callum Chick revels in Northampton’s chase of lost causes after culture shock

With Saints riding high, back-rower explains how being recognised in the street makes it different from Newcastle

To see what Callum Chick brings to any side he plays in, watch the 55th minute of Northampton’s electrifying win at the Rec last Saturday. Henry Arundell is speeding down the Bath right, nearly into Saints’ 22, after a defensive error by Henry Pollock. A try for the champions looks a certainty before the flanker desperately dives at Arundell and dislodges the ball from his grasp.

A dextrous pick-up by George Hendy allows him to sprint downfield before setting up Pollock to dive over – 13 seconds after Arundell was threatening at the other end.

Continue reading...
Posted on

How emergence of Knicks' younger players bodes well for this season and team's future

Depth has not been the Knicks’ calling card over the past few years. But over the past month, it’s become more common to expect head coach Mike Brown to go to a 10-man rotation. In New York’s last two games against the San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans Pelicans, 11 Knicks have played in close games.

Not much was expected from any of the Knicks’ first or second year players coming into this new season. The past couple of weeks, several of New York’s youngsters have stepped up and contributed to wins. In the process, the group has altered the ceiling of this roster both for this year and in the future.

Tyler Kolek has led the way among New York’s youth movement. The 24-year old point guard has assumed a spot in New York’s rotation over the last handful of games and has even seen crunch time minutes in significant moments like New York’s NBA Cup win against the Spurs. In the past couple of weeks, Kolek has a 16-point, nine-assist Christmas Day performance, and 20 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists while filling in as a starter against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Second-year player Kevin McCullar Jr. had 13 points, eight rebounds, and two steals in New York’s Saturday night win over the Atlanta Hawks. In Monday night’s victory against the Pelicans, rookie second-round pick Mohamed Diawara emerged, knocking down four threes and scoring 18 points in 16 minutes.

As young players, they’re not always going to have standout games. But it doesn’t feel like the Knicks are having to rely heavily on any of the youngsters to consistently produce. In Wednesday night’s loss to the Spurs, Kolek had three points in 15 minutes while McCullar and Diawara both saw under 10 minutes of action. 

The presence of the three aforementioned players adds depth to a Knicks bench that has looked thin at times. Landry Shamet and Miles McBride both have missed time with injuries and reserve forward Guerschon Yabusele has been ineffective. The performances from Kolek, McCullar and Diawara have come just at the right time.

Another added bonus is the size of both Diawara and McCullar on the wing. Diawara is listed as 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot-4 wingspan. McCullar is 6-foot-5 with a 6-foot-9 wingspan. One of the concerns has been New York’s lack of size on the perimeter outside of the trio of OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart. New York’s bench has trended towards small with McBride, Shamet, and Jordan Clarkson seeing significant time during the early stages of the season.

Future play

The growth of players like Kolek, Diawara, and McCullar will also be important to New York’s future. The club has the second-highest payroll in the NBA for the 2025-26 season behind the Cleveland Cavaliers. According to Spotrac, the Knicks are currently just $148,358 beneath the second apron.

After the most recent collective bargaining agreement, teams that exceed the second apron face the most stringent penalties, such as not being able to use the taxpayer midlevel exception to sign free agents or aggregating multiple salaries in a trade.

One way to combat an escalating payroll is drafting well and signing incoming draft picks to modest salaries at a fixed cost. Kolek and Diawara make just under a combined $3.5 million this year. McCullar is on a two-way deal. 

The Knicks have five players making $19 million a year or more. With Mitchell Robinson set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season and McBride potentially heading towards free agency in the Summer of 2027, the Knicks need to develop players to be a part of the rotation in the future.

That puts a spotlight on player development, a weakness of the Knicks for much of this century. Developing young, homegrown talent will be a decisive factor in New York being able to build around its core and field a championship contender this year and beyond.

Posted on

Canadiens Put An End To Near 10-Year Losing Streak In Raleigh

It had been nearly 10 years (April 2016) since the Montreal Canadiens were able to win a game on the road against the Carolina Hurricanes, and Martin St-Louis’ men decided it was time to break the curse. It certainly wasn’t easy, however, as the young Habs took their fans on yet another rollercoaster ride.

When he was asked about his team’s resolution for the New Year, the bench boss said they wanted to continue with good starts and score early, thereby avoiding playing catch-up hockey. The Sainte-Flanelle seemed determined to stick to its resolution with a fast and furious start that saw it score twice in less than a minute, barely four minutes into the game, but they couldn’t keep up the pace. Before the end of the first frame, the Canes had stormed back to a 3-2 lead, which they improved on early in the second.

Canadiens Soaring Prospect Is Thriving In KHL
Canadiens Prospects Shone In WJC Preliminary Round
Canadiens' Nick Suzuki Sets New Franchise Record

Taming A Demon

The Habs have struggled mightily in the second frame this season, but this time, they actually had a strong middle stanza. After conceding a fourth goal, the Canadiens shook it off and scored three unanswered goals to roar back to a 5-4 lead.

Interestingly, this three-goal effort in the middle frame came against the team that had allowed the fewest goals in the second frame this season. Before Thursday night’s tilt, the Canes had only allowed 29 goals in that period while generating 34 for a plus-five differential, much better than Montreal’s minus-13.

If the Habs have finally tamed their second-period demons, St-Louis could be in for some much easier third frames for the rest of the season.

Tough Night on Defense

While Mike Matheson was meant to play, it was announced shortly before the game that he wouldn’t suit up due to an upper-body injury. That was hardly surprising considering the elbow he took to the head from Brad Marchand in the 3-2 win over the Florida Panthers, but it was nonetheless a big blow.

As always, when Matheson is missing, the Canadiens’ defence struggled mightily. Through 60 minutes of hockey, Noah Dobson had six giveaways, Jayden Struble had two, and Lane Hutson had two as well. The Hurricanes are the kind of team against whom it’s dangerous to do that. Their transition game is insanely fast, and they always have plenty of players near the opponent’s net to screen the goalie and tip some shots.

In the defeat, Sebastian Aho put up five points and was an absolute poison to deal with for the Habs’ defence corps.

A Real Team Effort

While St-Louis won’t like the fact that his team committed 23 giveaways, he will surely appreciate the fact that each line produced at least a goal tonight. Captain Nick Suzuki got the Habs rolling before Olympics hopeful Oliver Kapanen scored the second goal. In the second frame, Samuel Blais and the fourth line produced the third lamplighter (the grinder had two points and seven hits on the night), before Cole Caufield tied up the game and Josh Anderson gave the Habs the lead. Juraj Slafkovsky doubled the lead in the third, and Hutson put the icing on the cake with an empty-netter.

While the scoring came from everywhere, it’s worth noting that it was Caufield’s first career goal against the Hurricanes, the only team he hasn’t scored on now is the Winnipeg Jets. After scoring the go-ahead goal late in the second frame, Anderson left the game and didn’t return. While the power forward isn’t the Canadiens’ most productive forward, his physical impact will surely be missed if he has to miss some time.

Kirby Dach was initially set to miss four to six weeks, and it’s been six weeks, but there’s still no set date for his return. Given his injury history, it’s understandable that Montreal is being cautious; still, with the injuries piling up, he can’t come back soon enough.

Even though the game was far from a masterpiece by the Tricolore, they’ll gladly take the two points, which help them consolidate their third place in the Atlantic Division. With the Buffalo Sabres being on a fantastic 10-game winning streak, they are fast approaching the Habs’ rearview mirror. With 46 points, they are now in the second wild-card spot, and they do have a game in hand on the Canadiens. Needless to say, the two duels between the two sides coming up this month will be pivotal in the playoff race.

Montreal will now need to get ready for a couple of back-to-back matinees this weekend against the St. Louis Blues and the Dallas Stars. While the former are 29th in the league right now, the latter are second in the standings and will present quite a challenge.

Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.  

Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.

Join the discussion by signing up to the Canadiens' roundtable on The Hockey News.

Image

Subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here.