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Cade Cunningham takes over in Jalen Brunson-led Knicks' Game 2 loss to Pistons

The Knicks dropped Game 2 to the Detroit Pistons as Cade Cunningham took over in Monday's 100-94 final at MSG.

Takeaways

-Cunningham was arguably the best player on the floor. After OG Anunobydominated Cunningham in Game 1, Cunningham came out firing and willed the Pistons to a 1-1 series. He scored 20 of his team-high 33 points in the first half, aggressively getting high-percentage shots, as Detroit built a 55-49 advantage into the third quarter and ultimately did not relinquish the lead over the final 24 minutes. To have a chance at upsetting the Knicks in the first round's 6-3 matchup, the Pistons need Cunningham -- who added 12 rebounds across 41 minutes -- to rise up, and he did just that with his Game 2 breakout.

-Conversely, Anunoby is not going to win every battle as the war against Cunningham continues. As such, the Knicks need their stars to collectively answer Cunningham's surges. Among them, Karl-Anthony Towns must show more. The big man and co-star to captain Jalen Brunson -- who paced New York with a heroic game-high 37 points in 44 minutes -- totaled 10 points and sixrebounds across 33 minutes. Towns was a shell of himself when the Knicks had a chance to put the Pistons down.

-Tobias Harris, who was among Detroit's efforts in limiting Towns, is proving to be a legitimate threat to the Knicks. After a team-high 25 points in Game 1, he complemented Cunningham among the Pistons' leading Game 2 scorers with 15. Cunningham makes Detroit go, but Harris has given New York a real fit in the first two games.

-Elsewhere, off the bench, Dennis Schroder was the Pistons' riser to know, with 20 points in 29 minutes. After Cam Paynecatalyzed the Knicks in Game 1, fueling a fourth-quarter surge, he came back down to earth with his scoreless four minutes. In fact, New York's bench was scoreless outside of Miles McBride's eight points in 13 minutes. While Mikal Bridges mostly stepped his game up, scoring 19 points in 38 minutes, the reality is that the Knicks had nowhere near the amount of support to match the Pistons.

Who's the MVP?

Cunningham. Brunson was sensational, but the Pistons do not beat the Knicks in Game 2 without the 23-year-old phenom.

Highlights

What's next

Game 3 of the first-round series takes place in Detroit on Thursday, with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. The Pistons will also host Game 4 on Sunday (1 p.m.) before the series returns to New York for a to-be-determined start time next Tuesday.

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Prep baseball roundup: Corona hits eight home runs in 23-3 victory

After being shut out last week and losing its No. 1 ranking, Corona baseball responded Monday by hitting eight home runs in a 23-3 Big VIII League win over Corona Centennial.

Anthony Murphy hit three home runs and finished with four hits and six RBIs. Gavin Flores hit two home runs and had seven RBIs. Seth Hernandez, Ethin Bingaman and Jesiah Andrade also hit home runs. Corona had 24 hits against eight Centennial pitchers.

Corona is 20-2 and 9-1 in league.

La Mirada 2, Bellflower 1: Kevin Jeon went three for three for La Mirada.

Sylmar 11, Verdugo Hills 0: Alex Martinez threw a five-inning no-hitter. Rickee Luevano hit a three-run home run.

Kennedy 6, San Fernando 5: The Golden Cougars won the Valley Mission League game despite three hits from Ramon Amezcua.

Bell 3, Roosevelt 0: Adolfo Esquivel threw a three-hitter with six strikeouts.

Laguna Beach 3, Laguna Hills 2: Thomas Gonzales struck out 11 in six innings for Laguna Beach.

San Clemente 3, Mission Viejo 0: The Tritons won their seventh consecutive game. Mike Erspamer struck out 12 and gave up three hits in 6 2/3 innings.

St. Francis 1, Cathedral 0: Noah Aguilar-Tanphanich struck out seven in five scoreless innings for St. Francis.

Summit 10, Grand Terrace 0: Kody Smathers threw five scoreless innings and Isaac Castanon had three RBIs during Summit's 16th consecutive victory.

Los Osos 2, Upland 1: Reagan Samples struck out five in five innings for Los Osos.

Damien 7, Chino Hills 3: Elius Kelly and Bobby Logue hit home runs for Damien.

Etiwanda 8, Rancho Cucamonga 2: Jack Holquin and Noah Frias pitched the Eagles to a Baseline League upset.

Vista Murrieta 10, Murrieta Valley 0: Vaughn Neckar struck out eight and threw a no-hitter.

Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Jets Pull Ahead 2-0 with Game 2 Victory Over Blues

Photo by Scott Stroh

The Presidents' Trophy-winning Winnipeg Jets have pulled out to a 2-0 series lead over the No. 8 seed St. Louis Blues.

Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor both scored for the second-straight game, while Connor Hellebuyck turned aside 21 shots as the Jets took Game 2 by a 2-1 final over the St. Louis Blues.

After pulling out to 1-0 series leads against Vegas and Colorado in the first round of each of the past two seasons, the Jets managed to earn a win in the all-important second game for the first time in three seasons.

The Jets and Blues came out of ready to fight in the first period. The two teams exchanged hits and goals before the frame came to a close. 

Logan Stanley delivered a monstrous, open-ice check on Jordan Kyrou midway through the frame, before Brayden Schenn popped Adam Lowry in the open ice.

Both Hellebuyck and Binnington made point-blank stops, but not before each netminder allowed a goal against. 

Winnipeg got one from Scheifele with 3:28 to play. He picked up the puck from Dylan DeMelo and drove wide to the net. The puck banked off the skate of Jimmy Snuggerud, who crashed into Binnington, helping direct the puck past the goaltender and into the net for the 1-0 lead. 

But before the period could close, the Blues' red-hot power play struck again. And it was Snuggerud who got it back for St. Louis. He picked up a centring pass from Pavel Buchnevich as time ticked down and ripped home his first career goal with just one second remaining. 

The Blues held a minor 10-8 shot lead after 20 minutes. 

The middle stanza saw both teams exchange Grade A chances, but once again the goaltenders stood tall. St. Louis was handed two power play opportunities, but the Jets' penalty kill came out on top both times. 

After taking a period off, the Jets came out firing in the third. It took all of 1:43 to score, as Connor hammered his second of the series past Binnington from the high slot.

Scheifele dished the puck to Cole Perfetti behind the Blues' net. He looked out front and found Connor - a 40-goal scorer - standing all alone at the top of the crease. The puck was on and off his stick in a matter of milliseconds, before it found its way to the back of the net for the early-period go-ahead marker.

With time ticking down, St. Louis called a late-game timeout and pulled Binnington for the extra attacker. The visitors couldn't even gain offensive zone control. The Jets were that good defensively, as the shut down St. Louis' attack for the final two minutes. 

Hellebuyck finished the night with 21 saves on 22 Blues shots, while Binnington turned aside 20 of the 22 pucks sent his way. 

The series will now shift to Missouri for two-straight games, with Game 3 going on Thursday and Game 4 set to be played on Sunday. The teams will have two days' rest between each of the next two games, which should help with travel and recovery following two very physical tests.

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Francisco Lindor stays hot with pair of homers as Mets beat Phillies, 5-4, for fifth straight win

The Mets held on to beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-4, on Monday night to notch their fifth consecutive win.

Here are the takeaways...

-Leadoff Lindor struck again for the second game in a row as Francisco Lindor took Phillies starter Aaron Nola deep in his first at-bat. The 376-foot blast to right field gave New York a 1-0 lead which it's been getting accustomed to lately as Lindor has hit three leadoff home runs already this season.

The shortstop continues to thrive leading off the game and is now 10-for-21 with six extra-base hits in that spot. More on him later.

-The Mets got to Nola once again in the second as Jesse Winker jumped all over a 2-0 fastball for his first home run of the season and New York's second leadoff homer in two innings.

-The two runs would be all Tylor Megill needed as the right-hander completely dominated Philadelphia's lineup over his 5.1 innings of work. Megill matched his career-high with 10 strikeouts on the night -- the first time he's reached double-digit strikeouts in four years -- and only allowed one hit (while walking four).

Megill lowered his season ERA to 1.09 through five starts and 24.2 innings as the 29-year-old has been a huge boost for the Mets who continue to lead MLB in ERA.

-With one out in the sixth and a runner on first base, manager Carlos Mendoza chose to pull Megill after 92 pitches in favor of Reed Garrett who had stranded eight out of eight inherited runners entering Monday's game. The reliever made it nine of nine after working around a hit and getting the final two outs of the inning and has yet to allow an earned run over 9.2 innings to start the year.

-Having already allowed two home runs in the first two innings, Nola almost gave up a third after Juan Soto cranked a 1-2 pitch down the right-field line that was initially ruled a three-run homer but was overturned and ruled a foul ball. After review, it appeared Soto just missed his first Citi Field home run as a Met.

-Able to pitch into the seventh inning after a bumpy start, Nola left with runners on first and second and one out. With those baserunners Nola's responsibility, reliever Jose Ruiz entered the game to try and help his starter and escape the jam. After getting one out, Ruiz had to get through Lindor, but the red-hot shortstop crushed his second home run of the game on the second pitch he saw to give New York a 5-0 lead.

Lindor finished 2-for-3 with a walk, four RBI and two runs scored.

-Bidding for a three-inning save after entering a 2-0 game in the seventh inning and getting the first six outs on 23 pitches, Max Kranick struggled to start the ninth and allowed a run on two hits. A third consecutive hit allowed by Kranick prompted Mendoza to opt for his closer Edwin Diaz, but that decision didn't come without some nerves as Diaz allowed a three-run homer to Bryson Stott that cut the Mets' lead to a skinny run.

Diaz rebounded quickly, though, and struck out Trea Turner and Bryce Harper to end the game.

Game MVP: Francisco Lindor

His two home runs proved to be the difference in the game as the Phillies made things interesting in the ninth inning.

Highlights

What's next

The Mets continue their three-game series against their division rivals on Tuesday with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

RHP Griffin Canning (2-1, 3.43 ERA) will pitch for New York while the Phillies counter with LHP Cristopher Sanchez (2-0, 2.96 ERA).

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Yankees' bats can't overcome Clarke Schmidt's struggles in 6-4 loss to Guardians

In their first meeting since last season's ALCS, the Yankees fell to the Cleveland Guardians, 6-4, on Monday night at Progressive Field.

Here are the takeaways...

-- In his second start of the season, Clarke Schmidt was inefficient. He overcame command issues in the first two innings and left the mound unscathed, but trouble arrived in the third when he served up back-to-back homers to Jose Ramirez and Kyle Manzardo, giving the Guardians a 4-0 lead. Schmidt managed to work out of a bases-loaded jam in the fourth, but gave up his fifth run on a broken-bat single.

-- A steady dose of cutters from Schmidt was expected against a lefty-heavy lineup, but the overall attack plan failed. He didn't come back out for the fifth, after allowing five runs on seven hits and three walks across 80 pitches. He did strike out seven, however. Lined up to make his next start at home against the Blue Jays this coming weekend, his ERA now sits at 7.45 through 9.2 total innings.

-- Guardians starter Gavin Williams also had to work around some early troubles with command, but the Yankees struggled to make solid contact against his high-90s fastball with movement and sharp breaking balls. Rallies with two runners on in the first and fifth innings were squandered by double-play grounders, and it wasn't until the seventh that New York's offense finally woke up.

-- Following a leadoff single by Anthony Volpe in the seventh, Jasson Dominguez took a curveball off Williams deep into the center-field seats for a two-run shot, cutting the Yankees' deficit to 6-2. They weren't able to inflict more damage against Williams, though -- the tall right-hander completed 6.1 innings with a season-high eight strikeouts.

-- In desperate need of a clutch hit -- or any kind of hit, actually -- Jazz Chisholm Jr. finally produced one in the eighth. With a runner on first and two out, he demolished a Paul Sewald fastball for a two-run homer to right, trimming the deficit to 6-4. The blast couldn't have arrived a better time for the Yankees' second baseman, who was in the midst of a 2-for-23 slump.

-- Cleveland didn't turn to struggling closer Emmanuel Clase in the ninth -- instead, set-up man Cade Smith took on the save opportunity. New York had a chance to tie the game, as a one-out single from Oswaldo Cabrera allowed Austin Wells and Aaron Judge to come up as the tying run. But the rally was short-lived -- Smith struck out the Nos. 1 and 2 hitters to end the game. The Yankees went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left seven runners on base.

-- Ben Rice grounded out to second as a pinch-hitter for Pablo Reyes in the ninth. The rookie first baseman missed Sunday's win over the Rays after suffering a left elbow contunsion on Saturday. Yankees manager Aaron Boone expects Rice to return to the starting lineup on Tuesday.

Game MVP: Jose Ramirez

Cleveland's most dangerous hitter lived up to his billing, delivering a three-run shot off Schmidt in the third and an RBI single off Yoendrys Gomez in the sixth. Ramirez entered Monday with a .333 lifetime average against the Yankees (61 games).

Highlights

What's next

The Yankees (14-9) will play the middle game of their three-game set in Cleveland on Tuesday night, with first pitch scheduled for 6:10 p.m.

Will Warren (1-0, 5.17 ERA) is slated to make his fifth start of the season, opposite Tanner Bibee (1-2, 5.85 ERA).

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Tennessee signs 5-star forward Nate Ament to polish up Rick Barnes’ latest class

Tennessee coach Rick Barnes announced the signing of Nate Ament to the 2025 class, making the small forward the third top five prep recruit to sign with the Volunteers. The forward from Manassas, Virginia, ranked fourth nationally by 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals joins Tobias Harris in 2010 and Allan Houston in 1989 in a rare group for Tennessee signees. On3 ranks Ament, the 2024-2025 Gatorade Virginia Player of the Year, as the nation's No. 3 player overall, and Ament already is considered a lottery pick for the 2026 NBA draft.

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Former Sharks Players To Cheer For In The 2025 Playoffs

© Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

With the 2024-25 NHL playoffs underway and the San Jose Sharks preparing for their summer, there are a few former Sharks you may want to cheer for.

Here is a list of players you may want to keep a close eye on.

  • Brent Burns: Carolina Hurricanes
  • Brenden Dillion: New Jersey Devils
  • Timo Meier: New Jersey Devils
  • Joe Pavelski: Dallas Stars
  • Cody Ceci: Dallas Stars
  • Mikael Grandlund: Dallas Stars
  • Fabian Zetterlund: Ottawa Senators
  • Mackenzie Blackwood: Colorado Avalanche
  • Nico Sturm: Florida Panthers
  • Vitek Vanecek: Florida Panthers
  • Jonah Godjovich: Florida Panthers
  • Jake Middleton: Minnesota Wild
  • Gustav Nyquist: Minnesota Wild
  • Dylan DeMelo: Winnipeg Jets
  • Adin Hill: Vegas Golden Knights
  • Tomas Hertl: Vegas Golden Knights
  • Steven Lorentz: Toronto Maple Leafs
  • Ty Emberson: Edmonton Oilers
  • Jake Walman: Edmonton Oilers
  • Evander Kane: Edmonton Oilers
  • Kyle Burroughs: Los Angeles Kings
Sharks' Ryan Warsofsky Named Team USA Head Coach At 2025 WorldsSharks' Ryan Warsofsky Named Team USA Head Coach At 2025 WorldsSan Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky has been named the head coach for Team USA at the 2025 IIHF World Championship.

With the 2024-25 NHL playoffs underway and the San Jose Sharks preparing for their summer, there are a few former Sharks you may want to cheer for.

There are 21 former players in the playoffs who have played at least one game for San Jose. On a technicality, Charlie Coyle was drafted by the Sharks in the 2010 NHL Draft. Also worth noting is Vladislav Namestnikov, who was briefly part of the organization before the 2023 Trade Deadline, but like Coyle, never played a game.

Which team will you be cheering for?

Sharks Sign College FA Noah Beck To ELCSharks Sign College FA Noah Beck To ELCThe San Jose Sharks are signing one of the top college free agents, Noah Beck, out of Arizona State University. Sharks Sign 2022 2nd-Round Pick To ELCSharks Sign 2022 2nd-Round Pick To ELCThe San Jose Sharks have announced the signing of 2022 second-round pick Cameron Lund.
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‘It's pretty brutal' — Nola addresses his velocity dip and 0-5 start

‘It's pretty brutal' — Nola addresses his velocity dip and 0-5 start originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

NEW YORK — The season is less than a month old but Monday night was emblematic of how it’s been for Aaron Nola in 2025.

Loud contact early. Lots of baserunners. High-wire acts. A settling-in period.

And then more frustration.

Nola would have had a six-inning, two-run quality start but manager Rob Thomson sent him out for the seventh at 89 pitches because the Phillies trailed by two runs and had a short bullpen.

Nola’s fastball velocity, already down, was even lower in that seventh inning to the 88-89 mph range.

“I think it’s probably an early-season thing,” he said. “Feel like I do start out with lower velocity when it’s cold and then it starts to tick up when it gets a little bit hotter. Hope that’s the case but just got to keep competing out there. Commanding the ball is the most important thing for me.”

Nola’s four-seam fastball and sinker are both down 2 mph this season, to 91 and 90, respectively. It’s not the first or second time this has happened. Just last April, Nola’s velocity was in this same range before averaging 92.8 mph after May 1.

He and the Phillies are hoping that’s the case again. But what if it isn’t? What if the 198 innings he’s averaged over the last six non-shortened seasons are beginning to catch up?

“Gotta keep competing, man,” Nola said. “I’ve gotta throw a lot of innings, try to limit the runs and compete. I know I haven’t done that so far this year but I’ve gotta command all my other pitches and go out and try to win the game. I can’t control the results but I can control the walks and getting ahead of guys.

“I’m not getting the results. When I do get a groundball, it’s going through holes. My fastball’s not where I need it to be right now and I hope the velocity starts to kick up here soon. Curveball, changeup felt pretty good tonight. But when the ball’s over the plate, they’re not missing it right now.”

Nola missed with a low-and-in curveball to leadoff man Francisco Lindor in the bottom of the first. It was tattooed 376 feet to give the Mets an early lead.

Nola missed right down the middle on a 2-0 count to Jesse Winker to begin the second. It was hit even harder for a solo homer.

He put five men on base over the next four innings but stranded them all before two early baserunners ended his night in the seventh. Both scored when Jose Ruiz gave up a three-run shot to Lindor. The Phillies scored four runs in the ninth inning but lost, 5-4.

“It’s frustrating for sure,” Nola said. “I’m 0-5 with a six-and-a-half (ERA), it’s pretty brutal. But I’m gonna keep working and trying to have good weeks leading up to my next start, preparing as best as I can and trying to stay healthy. Keep believing that things will turn around soon.”

Thomson says he isn’t worried about Nola because he’s seen him pitch through diminished velocity in the past. It’s not as if Nola’s arsenal is based around throwing 96. But he needs more life on the heater. Two of his many weapons are the four-seam fastball just above the zone and the two-seamer that freezes lefties. But both can be easier to time and lay off when they’re 89-91 as opposed to 92-94.

“It’s just a little bit more jump at the end, I think that’s the biggest thing for me, especially with my four-seam,” Nola said. “I need that late jump. I’m not gonna go out and sit 94-95, that’s just never been me, so I need the late jump before it gets to the plate. But command is always number one for me.”

It doesn’t help that the Phillies have scored five runs for Nola in his five starts. Aside from feeling like his location must be perfect, he’s had no room for error.

He’ll be back in the lab this week, working on command and trying to find that “little bit more jump” that can make a world of difference. He grunted more than ever before on Monday night trying to add a little oomph to the fastball.

Nola’s next start will be Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field. It would be fortuitous if the wind is blowing in.

“I’m not worried about him,” Trea Turner said. “He’s been such a good pitcher for such a long time. People are gonna go through their ups and downs. It’s been a tough start but not worried about him.”

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Kraken's Dismissal Of Coach Bylsma Is Another Reason Sabres Should Be Firing Bench Boss Lindy Ruff

Dan Bylsma (Matt Blewett, USA TODAY Images)

The NHL's coaching carousel continued spinning like crazy Monday, with the Seattle Kraken firing bench boss Dan Bylsma after only one year on the job. The Kraken/Bylsma news followed the news this past weekend that the New York Rangers dismissed Peter Laviolette, and that the Anaheim Ducks are moving on from Greg Cronin after only two years.

Bylsma probably should've been given more time to implement his vision for the Kraken, but the coaching business is not a fair one. That said, from a Buffalo Sabres perspective, the slew of coaching changes only make it clearer -- Lindy Ruff should've been fired the day the regular-season came to an end. And every day that Ruff remains employed as Sabres coach is more reason to be cynical about Buffalo management's chances to turn the ship around.

It doesn't matter that Ruff's latest tenure running the Sabres' bench only began on April 22, 2024. Clearly, if Bylsma can be terminated after leading the Kraken to a 35-41-6 record, Ruff can be let go in the wake of a 36-39-7 mark. And here's the bigger problem: unless Buffalo fires Ruff very soon, they're not going to have their pick of the coaching crop. Instead, if they choose to wait until the 2025-26 regular season begins to fire Ruff, they'll be probably going the interim coaching route and delaying someone from coming in and implementing their blueprint over the long haul.

It isn't that Ruff is now 65 years old that is cause for the Sabres to part ways with him. Older hockey lifers are still working for NHL teams around the league. The problem with Ruff is the bottom line for any coach -- wins and losses -- and there were not enough victories and too many defeats for Ruff this season. The NHL is a zero-sum business, and Ruff hasn't delivered a decent amount of wins this past season. It's that clear and straightforward of a predicament. It's been nearly a decade-and-a-half since there last were playoff games in Buffalo, and that's why nobody's job should be safe, Ruff's job included.

Now, Sabres ownership may be waiting until the future of GM Kevyn Adams becomes clearer before they choose to fire Ruff. But there is no salary cap on coaching and management in hockey's top league, and this is where Buffalo's owners have to go the extra mile to atone for missing the playoffs for the past 14 seasons. If it means paying Ruff to sit at home and wait out the remainder of his current contract, so be it. Because the alternative -- missing out on the next great bench boss, who can lead this Sabres team to finally get back into the playoffs -- is indefensible.

Ruff's legacy is not going to change if and when Buffalo fires him. He's got 1,856 regular-season games under his belt, and this past year, he won his 900th-career-game, making him only the fifth coach in NHL history to reach that plateau. However, all coaches eventually get to the end of the line -- and if Ruff isn't there right now, he can certainly see the end of the line from here.

Ruff Achieves Career Mark In Sabres Season Finale Ruff Achieves Career Mark In Sabres Season Finale The Buffalo Sabres struggles at the end of the season served to provide a bit of drama to what looked to be the inevitability of head coach Lindy Ruff reaching a notable career achievement, but after four attempts to reach career win #900, the Sabres 5-4 season finale victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday put Ruff in exclusive company.    

There's a reason NHL teams have an increasingly-quick trigger finger when it comes to letting their coaches go. You can't fire 23 players, and you can't fire ownership, so coaches bear the brunts of bad years. And by virtually every metric, the Sabres had another bad year. So keeping Ruff around isn't a choice that's likely to lead them out of this mess. They should be going with a new voice in the dressing room, and that means parting ways with Ruff A.S.A.P..

Because the longer they wait, the more they delay the inevitable. And the only people who will wind up suffering are Buffalo's players and fans.