Sep 13, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried (54) pitches against the Boston Red Sox during the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images
The Yankees are in Boston today, as they’ll take on their archrivals for the first time in 2026. It’s just the second time the Yankees have faced a divisional foe this season, their three-game set at the Trop against the Rays this month the only AL East matchup on a slate that’s otherwise been populated by teams like the Royals, Mariners, and Athletics.
It wasn’t so long ago that these divisional meetings were more frequent. In 2023, MLB smoothed out their schedule, reducing the number of games divisional rivals played against each other from 19 to 13. Gone were the long summers of seemingly playing only AL East foes, those drawn-out battles fomenting familiarity and resentment in equal amounts.
The schedule MLB has gone to has plenty of logic to it. It’s more balanced, and it allows every team to play every other team at least once, giving fans a regular chance to see all the other teams and stars the league has to offer. Yet the question still begs to be asked: do you miss the days of playing nearly half the schedule against division rivals?
Again, there’s a lot of logic to the new schedule, if only from the perspective of competitive balance. Teams in perennially strong divisions get the short end of the stick with unbalanced schedules, forced to beat up on each other all year while some team in the AL Central strolls to 87 wins and a division title. And there’s real benefit to the emergence of interleague play, setting up great annual matchups that we previously would have had to wait years to see. From a Yankees perspective, it’s been pretty cool to see them clash yearly with teams like the Dodgers, the Phillies, and the Brewers, top NL teams that they wouldn’t always have had the chance to face barring a World Series appearance.
But I’m sure some fans are nostalgic for the old days, where you really got to know your divisional rivals over the course of a season. At the cost of some spare interleague series against the Pirates and Marlins and the Diamondbacks, the Yankees would become deeply acquainted with the Red Sox, and the Blue Jays, Orioles, and Rays. There was something quaint to it, coming to revile these foes that we saw so often, but also finding some comfort in the familiarity, in the steady drumbeat that such consistent divisional matchups provided.
How do you feel? Do you miss the old days of playing the Sox and Jays over and over again? Or are you glad to see a schedule with more logic to it?
This morning, Kevin will recap what happened on the Yankees’ offday, while Jeremy will look ahead to the three-game set in Boston. Also, Michael delivers his review of the week that was down on the farm, and Nick writes up Joe McCarthy as part of our Yankees Birthday series. And in the afternoon, Josh discusses Aaron Judge, and being clutch in the first inning, while Peter’s At-bat of the Week gives some kudos to Ryan McMahon.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - OCTOBER 24: Head coach Ime Udoka of the Houston Rockets speaks with Alperen Sengun #28 following the game against the Detroit Pistons at Toyota Center on October 24, 2025 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The tale of the tape in the Houston Rockets’ opening round postseason matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers was one that hinged on health. Especially heading into the series.
The Los Angeles Lakers were seemingly at their weakest, as the team was forced to play without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves seemingly for the entirety of the matchup. Granted, the Rockets have also not been at full strength at any point of the regular season, having been without Fred VanVleet all season and Steven Adams for the last three months of the season.
Neither of those two are at the level of Doncic or Reaves on the star scale. Not even close.
The assumption was that the Rockets would easily take care of a ragtag bunch centered around 41-year-old LeBron James and role players. And right so.
They should’ve been able to. They should be able to. However, when Kevin Durant went down, the narrative shifted.
People began to give the Rockets sympathy since they were without Durant. Sure, Durant is a surefire All-NBA player this season who turned in one of the greatest individual scoring seasons in Rockets history, especially when factoring in efficiency (26 points on 52 percent from the field, 41.3 percent from deep, 87.4 percent from the foul line, 64.2 percent true shooting and 58.8 percent effective shooting).
But again, the Lakers were playing without their top two leading scorers, and the league’s leading scorer. The Rockets should be able to beat this iteration of the Lakers without Durant.
They tanked for three seasons and amassed four years of top-five draft picks. Alperen Sengun is a two-time All-Star.
And Amen Thompson is one of the best two-way players in the league. Jabari Smith Jr. was viewed as the best player in his draft class.
Two of the aforementioned three have landed pay days. And Houston boasts much more youth and athleticism than the Lakers.
The Rockets also have more of their key players than the Lakers. The Lakers are much more compromised than the Rockets, even without Durant.
So they shouldn’t get any sympathy for losing to this iteration of the Lakers. They got gashed by Luke Kennard, after all, who was the game’s leading scorer.
And nothing against Kennard, who is a very good shooter, but he shouldn’t be outplaying Sengun, Smith, Thompson or Reed Sheppard.
Which is why the Rockets can’t use the injury excuse, as it pertains to Durant. Well, they can, but they shouldn’t get sympathy.
Because the Lakers managed to win in spite of much more significant injury-related absences.
GAH! Where am I? Whose laptop is this? CelticsBlog? “Grant Burfeind, Staff Writer?” That can’t be right. The last thing I remember I was Googling whether my appendix would be compatible with Joel Embiid’s body and what his address is so I could mail it his way. Now…well, now I’m somewhere else entirely.
I catch a glimpse in the reflection of this laptop screen. Dear god, I’m gorgeous. But it’s not me. My stress lines are completely gone. That soreness in my lower back, no more. Whose body is this, and why does it feel completely devoid of the stress that I’ve been so used to carrying my entire life?
I think back to last night. After I gave up on removing my own appendix, I opened up Twitter for some therapeutic trolling of Celtics fans. The storm was angry last night…is it possible a bolt of lightning careened into my room, striking me at the same moment this “Grant Burfeind” person was reading my awesome burn? And somehow, we’ve Freaky Friday’d with one another?
I can’t believe it, but I also can’t deny it. I’m a Sixers fan, and I’ve ended up in a Celtics fan’s body.
I push back from the desk I’m sitting at and take stock of the room I’m in. Celtics paraphernalia adorn the walls. A 2024 NBA Champions replica banner. A poster of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown holding the Larry O’ Brien trophy and the Finals MVP trophy, respectively. I think I’m going to be sick. I need to get out of here.
I race out of the room, practically jump down the entire flight of stairs I find in front of me, and burst out the front door. It’s a beautiful day, and the charm of the apartment buildings to my left and right is undeniable. Across the street, a man in a #11 Celtics jersey and a devastating sunburn catches my gaze, looks up from his phone, and says, “Hell of a game last night! The Celtics are the balllllls! You think the Sixers even show up for Game 2?”
I ignore him, still not fully processing this new reality I’m in. A “ring, ring” snaps me out of my stupor. I step back as a young child on a green bicycle whizzes by, two shamrocks painted on either cheek. “Can’t wait for your next article, Grant! I’ve got an idea for you – should any future playoff matchup between the 76ers and Celtics count as an automatic win for Boston to spare the Sixers fans the grief? Could be good!”
She doesn’t wait for me to respond, and lets out another “ring, ring” as she pedals away.
I watch her disappear down the street, that stupid little bike rattling over the pavement. I’m still stuck where she left me, trying to square what I’m experiencing with anything I’ve felt before.
I take a deep breath. Close my eyes. Open them again, accepting that this is really happening. Then, I take stock of what I’m seeing. Everyone here looks…happy. Like they’re not waiting for something to go wrong.
And not fake happy or “we’ll see what happens” happy. Actual, out-in-the-open, no-guard-up happy. There’s a couple walking a dog across the street, both in Celtics gear, debating whether they should buy playoff tickets for this opening round or wait until the next. A guy on his porch is smoking a cigar, coughing after every puff, but smiling all the same. Nobody looks tense or like they’re bracing for the other shoe to drop.
Even the sun feels different. Warmer, almost alive. I swear I can hear it whispering, “Who hurt you?” How does it know?
Back home, after that awful game 1 versus Boston on Sunday, I know the energy is the complete opposite. I bet this Grant fella is experiencing it for himself. My neighbor, Vinny, is probably yelling about VJ Edgecombe’s ceiling and comparing him to AI. Joey, our landlord, is likely lamenting that the Process died in 2019. I know Bobby has our favorite call-in show blasting through his open window. Right this second, they’re probably debating whether Tyrese Maxey is allowed to smile after a loss.
If Grant is standing outside my apartment right now, there’s a very real chance he’s watching my two roommates arguing in a pile of trash bags, one of them holding a half-eaten Wawa hoagie like it’s evidence in a court case.
That’s just April in Philadelphia.
I take a few steps down the street, not really thinking about where I’m going. I just need to move.
This is ridiculous. I’m PROUD of where I’m from. Philly made me tough, not like these Boston softies. You don’t grow up a Sixers fan and come out soft. You take your hits, build up a tolerance for things going sideways. It’s part of our identity, and we wouldn’t have it any other way…right?
I’m not one of these people. I’m not. I keep walking. The street opens up a little and then I see it.
TD Garden.
I’ve seen it before, obviously. On TV, in clips, in all the places I don’t like to look for too long. But standing here, actually looking at it, is different. It’s bigger than I expected. Goosebumps tingle across my forearms. It has this weird calmness to it, like it wants to wrap you up in a big hug after a long day. Almost like an old friend that you know will always be there when you need them.
I stop for a second. This is where they walk in expecting to win.
Expecting.
That’s the part that sticks.
Back where I’m from, nothing is ever that simple. Even when things feel good, there’s always something attached to it. A condition. A “yeah, but.” You learn to live in that space. You almost get comfortable with it.
Here, it’s just…confidence.
And I hate how much sense that’s starting to make.
I tell myself this isn’t real. That I just need to figure out how to get back, how to get myself struck by lightning and ensure this Grant guy gets struck at the same time. I should be panicking, maybe someone at Massachusetts General Hospital can help me reverse this?
Instead, I turn around and start heading back toward the apartment I woke up in.
By the time I get back inside, the panic I felt earlier is gone, or at least quieter.
I sit back down at the laptop, and read through the game recap on the CelticsBlog page that’s still up on my screen. “Celtics, Jays look sharp in Game 1, blowout 76ers 123-91.” I read about how the Celtics kept the ball moving, generated clean looks, and stayed connected from start to finish. The words are so unfamiliar that a sense of vertigo starts to wash over me.
For the first time, I’m not rage-reading about the Celtics from the outside. I’m part of it. I’m really here, in this body, in this life, starting to get a sense of what this must feel like every night, every season, every decade.
I think to myself, Celtics fans have no clue how good they have it.
These people wake up expecting things to work. Even when something goes wrong, there’s this baseline belief that it’ll sort itself out eventually. Even when they switch ownership groups, coaches, whatever. This aura and legacy of “Celtics basketball” seems to persist. What even is “76ers basketball”? The word “process” enters my brain for a second and I physically flinch.
This isn’t how it works where I’m from.
Back in Philly, you don’t assume anything. You hope, negotiate, and convince yourself it might be different this time, even when the writing is on the wall.
And now that I’m here…I don’t know why I’d want to go back.
I sit there for a while, staring at the screen.
I know I should probably try to undo this whole thing. No way Grant will know jack shit about making a Philly cheesesteak. He’s going to ask if we have gluten-free bread and I’ll be finished. Well…not me. Him. That sorry, down-trodden, pessimistic man who’s never seen the inside of a Conference Finals in his lifetime.
I guess there’s no reason to rush. After all, this might be the only time I get to experience this euphoria of supporting a quality basketball franchise.
This is a better situation. I’d never admit it in my old body, but here? Now? I can scream it from the hilltops without the fear of Joey or Vinny or god forbid Mr. McLaughlin pummeling me into oblivion.
Grant, wherever you are — whether you’re in my apartment trying to explain to my roommates that you’ve been Freaky Friday’d, or trying to figure out how to relieve your lower back (you never will, believe me) — I wish you nothing but happiness and good fortune.
I really do. You’ll need it as a 76ers fan.
Take care of my fish. Water the plants, or don’t, screw ‘em.
Because I think I’m going to stay in this new life for as long as I can.
Oct 2, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger (35) slides into home plate to score as Boston Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez (75) awaits the throw in the fourth inning during game three of the Wildcard round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
MLB.com | Max Ralph: Your New York Yankees return to play on Tuesday at Fenway Park, visiting the Boston Red Sox in the first series between the two archrivals since the Bombers eliminated the Sox from the 2025 Postseason in the Wild Card round. Luis Gil and his 7.00 ERA in two starts will take the mound for New York, facing the talented Connelly Early starting at 6:45 pm ET. The 13-9 Yanks lead the AL, and Boston is fourth with a 9-13 record.
Newsday ($) | David Lennon The Yankees used the red-hot Ben Rice at the top of the lineup in Sunday’s 7-0 win over the Kansas City Royals, and the experiment was a resounding success. Lennon, however, believes Aaron Judge should be deployed as the leadoff hitter more often. “Judge has hit 90 first-inning homers in his career, including five this season, giving him the third-most in franchise history behind Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle. The Yankees’ captain is the definition of instant offense, and with Rice now red-hot, having homered in four straight games, manager Aaron Boone should dip his toe in those Judge leadoff waters again, as he did during the 2022 season,” he wrote.
NY Post | Mark W. Sánchez: Randal Grichuk is 2-for-20 to open the season. Those are the cold, hard numbers. Under the hood, however, he knows he deserves better. His .334 xwOBA is much, much more decent than his horrible .150 wOBA, and he also has a 61.5 percent hard-hit rate. He knows that with Anthony Volpe potentially returning soon, his place on the roster could be in jeopardy, but hopes that the work he has put in and the hard contact are enough to give him a chance, whether it happens on the Yankees or elsewhere.
“With Volpe coming back — it’s something you think about,” he said. “You’re not not thinking about it. You just got to hope that, if it doesn’t all work out here — and hopefully it does — somebody else is interested due to the fact that they see the underlying stuff, not the baseball-card numbers.”
MLB.com | Mike Lupica: Most baseball fans are familiar with the Yankees’ 1927 Murderers’ Row, an extraordinarily talented and deep offense that took baseball by storm back then. Lupica says that perhaps the modern edition of the Murderers’ Row can be the Yanks’ 2026 rotation. Cam Schlittler is sporting a 1.95 ERA, Will Warren is at 2.49, Max Fried at 2.97, and Ryan Weathers at 3.18. There is still a chance that Luis Gil, the owner of a 7.00 ERA, rebounds, and Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón should return within weeks from now. It’s certainly an impressive collection of talent.
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 19: Payton Pritchard #11 of the Boston Celtics drives to the basket during the gam against the Philadelphia 76ers during Round One Game One of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on April 19, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Celtics’ Game 1 blowout was surgical. Limiting their turnovers to eight and Philly to 4-of-23 from behind the arc certainly helped, but offensively, Boston stuck to their core offensive principles en route to a 123-91 win over the 76ers.
There are 2,350 square feet from midline to baseline and head coach Joe Mazzulla maximizes every inch of it. On most offensive sets, the Celtics want to turn their halfcourt sets into 3-on-3 battles with shooters spaced out in the corners.
Conceptionally, Boston wants to force defenses to pick their poison between 1) a scoring ball-handler, 2) a scorer coming off a screen, or 3) a big man who can either pick-and-pop or roll to the rim. It sounds simple, but done with focus and precision, it has resulted in this year’s Celtics ranking amongst the most efficient offenses in league history.
Denver and San Antonio are still playing so this list isn't complete, but the GYC will finish with the 5th best offense in NBA history.
Sometimes, it’s this easy. Derrick White, Jayson Tatum, and Nikola Vucevic are walking up the ball and preparing to run an action to either free up White or Tatum. Payton Pritchard and Jaylen Brown are flattened out to the corners. And without a single screen, the spacing does most of the work.
Sure, Vooch does get shoulder into Kelly Oubre and is ready to receive the ball from White for a possible dribble hand off or another screen. Paul George sees none of that — all his attention is on Brown.
But because of all the space leveraged by everybody’s ability to shoot the three, Brown has so much space to play in. A simple back cut and a perfectly placed bounce pass from White has JB rocking the rim to extend the lead to 25.
However, it’s not always that easy and that’s where Mazzulla & Co. have employed a series of DHOs, back screens, etc. to put teams in a predicament. One of the Celtics’ most used actions is the Spain pick-and-roll. Here’s CelticsBlog’s resident Xs and Os expert, Nik Land, on the action: “Spain or ‘Stack’ Pick and roll is an on-ball screen followed by a back screen on the on-ball screeners man.”
Again, we’ve got Tatum — Boston’s best player on the floor — and Baylor Scheierman, in the corners. Pritchard, Neemias Queta, and Sam Hauser creating an almost football-esque I formation, and in a way, it’s set up to run the ball.
Queta sets and flips a screen for Pritchard and as soon as he sees Dominick Barlow’s attention switch to Payton, he knows that he’s got him beat. Hauser sets a back screen with solid contact, Tyrese Maxey makes zero contact with Neemy, and Queta is free for the alley-oop.
Queta is met by Quentin Grimes on the rim run, but the damage is already done. Mazzulla stresses the importance of creating 3-on-2s and 2-on-1s, but this is a 3-on-1 with Tatum drawing so much attention above the break.
Pritchard has three options here: hit the cutting Queta again, kick out to the now wide open Hauser, or eventually, take the easy layup himself. This is laser eye surgery for the Celtics.
Later in fourth and with the game in hand, it’s another Spain PnR with different personnel, but same result.
Jabari Walker does a good job positioning himself to defend Pritchard’s drive and Luka Garza running to the restricted area. Unfortunately, that leaves Jordan Walsh, a 38% corner three-ball shooter, alone for an open jumper.
The 76ers can certainly make adjustments in Game 2. The playoffs are all about moves and counter moves and counter moves to the counter moves. They could switch on the screens more or blitz and hedge the ball handler to blow up the movement. The chess match continues tonight at 7 pm.
Dallas Stars (50-20-12, in the Central Division) vs. Minnesota Wild (46-24-12, in the Central Division)
Saint Paul, Minnesota; Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. EDT
LINE: Wild -128, Stars +108; over/under is 6
NHL PLAYOFFS FIRST ROUND: Series tied 1-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Dallas Stars visit the Minnesota Wild for game three of the first round of the NHL Playoffs with the series tied 1-1. The teams meet Monday for the seventh time this season. The Stars won the last meeting 4-2. Wyatt Johnston scored two goals in the win.
Minnesota has a 46-24-12 record overall and a 14-11-3 record in Central Division games. The Wild are 10th in NHL play with 268 total goals (averaging 3.3 per game).
Dallas is 18-7-3 against the Central Division and 50-20-12 overall. The Stars are first in league play with 71 power-play goals.
TOP PERFORMERS: Kirill Kaprizov has 45 goals and 44 assists for the Wild. Ryan Hartman has six goals and four assists over the last 10 games.
Jason Robertson has 45 goals and 51 assists for the Stars. Johnston has scored seven goals with four assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Wild: 6-4-0, averaging 3.8 goals, six assists, 4.3 penalties and 10.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.7 goals per game.
Stars: 7-3-0, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.2 assists, 4.7 penalties and 10.8 penalty minutes while giving up 2.7 goals per game.
INJURIES: Wild: Yakov Trenin: day to day (upper-body), Mats Zuccarello: day to day (upper-body).
Stars: Nathan Bastian: out (hand), Roope Hintz: out (lower body), Tyler Seguin: out for season (acl).
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 18: Deandre Ayton #5 of the Los Angeles Lakers battles for position aainst Alperen Sengun #28 of the Houston Rockets during the second half of Game One of the First Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena on April 18, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The injuries to Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves mean the asks of the Lakers’ role players have increased, both in terms of responsibilities and expected production.
For a player like Deandre Ayton, who has been under a microscope for most of the season, it puts even more pressure on him, which can lead to a wide variance of outcomes. But through one game, it could hardly have been better.
Ayton went toe-to-toe with the Rockets frontcourt, finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds. That also doesn’t capture his impact defensively, where he helped the purple and gold force Houston into just 37.6% shooting. All of that helped add up to a win for LA in Game 1 on Saturday.
In a year full of ups and downs, Ayton is riding high into the postseason, a result of positive reinforcement and belief from the coaching staff.
“I could feel the trust JJ had me all practice this week,” Ayton said. “It does a lot giving an NBA player confidence, especially in this league. I really tried my best to show him that I’m here, I’m ready throughout those practices, just being super and extremely consistent. I couldn’t wait to beat up on somebody else.”
The Lakers have spent much of the season trying to get the most out of Ayton by any means possible. At times, it’s been in the way of wearing silly shirts. Other times, it’s been giving him crunk juice. But if the end result is play like this in the postseason, the absurd things they’ve done will be worth it.
Any chance of the Lakers advancing in the playoffs requires Ayton being at his best. Because when he is at his best, the Lakers are at their best.
“He was great,” Redick said of Ayton’s Game 1 performance. “I think he was great on both ends. Again, we’re at our best when he’s playing at a high level.”
Relying on him comes with lots of risks. But the Lakers aren’t in a position where they have other options. So long as Luka and Austin are out, they need Ayton to step up.
Through one game, he held up his end of the bargain. If he keeps doing so, then the purple and gold could really be in business.
Victor Wembanyama scored a game-high 35 points in his play-off debut as San Antonio beat Portland on Sunday [Getty Images]
San Antonio Spurs centre Victor Wembanyama has been named the NBA's defensive player of the year.
The 7ft 4in France international is the first unanimous winner in the award's 43-year history having secured all 100 of the first-place votes.
At 22, he is the youngest player to win the award and the second to win it within their first three seasons, after Spurs legend David Robinson (1991-92).
Wembanyama was the first overall draft pick in 2023 and has led the league in blocks (3.1 per game) for the third straight season.
The two-time All-Star also averaged career highs in points (25.0) and rebounds (11.5), and claimed a steal per game.
"I'm super, super happy to win this award and actually super proud to be the first ever unanimous [winner]," he told NBC.
Oklahoma City Thunder's Chet Holmgren finished second with 239 points (76 second-place votes), while Ausar Thompson of the Detroit Pistons was third with 60 points (nine second-place votes).
Wembanyama, who is also a Most Valuable Player contender, helped San Antonio post the second-best record in the regular season (62-20) and their defence was ranked third overall.
German NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki told AFP: "I've never seen anything like it.
"His defence is so good that he changes the game just by being on the court and taking away some of the lay-ups and twos that other teams would usually take."
Wembanyama starred during his play-off debut on Sunday and the first round of the post-season continued on Monday, with the Cleveland Cavaliers taking charge against the Toronto Raptors.
Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points for Cleveland while James Harden added 28 as the Cavs claimed a 115-105 home win to go 2-0 up in the seven-game series.
"They're one of the greatest (back-courts)," said team-mate Evan Mobley. "It's hard to stop them because of their offensive prowess. They can make any shot."
Toronto's shooting guard RJ Barrett added: "They're a problem and we've got to figure out how to fix that."
Anthony Edwards claimed 30 points and 10 rebounds as the Minnesota Timberwolves fought back from 19 points down to win 119-114 at the Denver Nuggets and level their series at 1-1.
The Atlanta Hawks also claimed a comeback win on the road, beating the New York Knicks 107-106 to make it 1-1, with CJ McCollum scoring a game-high 32 points.
If it feels like we've seen this movie before, it's because we kind of have. Two years ago, Minnesota trailed Denver by 20 in Game 7 of their series, only to stage one of the greatest comebacks in playoff history and win to advance.
This time was only 19 points, and it's just Game 2, but you get the idea.
Anthony Edwards scored 30 with 10 rebounds (and two blocks), Julius Randle added 24 points, and the Timberwolves came from behind to win 119-114 to take Game 2 of their first-round series. That series is tied 1-1, headed to Minnesota. Of all the good things for the Timberwolves in this game, the most important was how Edwards looked. In Game 1, he'd appeared slowed and bothered by his ailing knee. Monday night, he was back to his explosive self again and able to get to the rim, scoring six of his 10 buckets inside the restricted area.
"He was awesome. It was unbelievable," Minnesota coach Chris Finch said, via the Associated Press. "Also in that (first) period when we were down, he was great on the bench. Great leadership, positive. He recognized he needed to get into attack mode and get downhill a little bit more. He did that."
Denver had their chances, but it's hard to overcome Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic shooting 2-of-12 in the fourth quarter.
Denver's best chance came when it was down just two with 30.6 seconds left in the game. An Edwards traveling turnover gave the Nuggets the ball and a chance. On the ensuing play, Minnesota blew the Murray/Jokic pick-and-roll coverage, and Jokic had the ball in the lane and a wide-open 8-foot floater to tie it, but instead, he tried a difficult pass to Christian Braun under the basket, who fumbled the ball, got up a shot, but was fouled. Braun made one of two free throws, and Denver never got closer (two Randle free throws and a Donte DiVincenzo breakaway dunk sealed the Timberwolves' win).
"I definitely should've took that floater," Jokic said.
"I trust C.B. to make free throws," Denver coach David Adelman said. "It rimmed out. That happens in the NBA. You're going to have moments that you don't want to remember. That's a tough moment for C.B. after playing such a good game."
Murray finished with 30 points, while Jokic had 24 with 15 rebounds and eight assists.
The first half of this game was a tale of two quarters. Denver outscored Minnesota 39-25 in the first quarter with the lead reaching 19 early in the second. Then, behind strong play from Julius Randle on both ends of the court, the Timberwolves stormed back and outscored the Nuggets 39-25 in the second. Minnesota would have gone to the half up three if Jamal Murray had not done this.
JAMAL MURRAY FROM BEYOND HALF COURT TO BEAT THE BUZZER!
SAN ANTONIO, TX - APRIL 19: Stephon Castle #5 of the San Antonio Spurs dunks against the Portland Trailblazers in the first half of Game One of the Western Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at Frost Bank Center on April 19, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images) | Getty Images
A playoff series can turn at any time. The San Antonio Spurs handled the Portland Trail Blazers at home in Game One on the back of a historic playoff debut from Victor Wembanyama. There were moments, however, where it looked like the Blazers could make it an interesting game, including big runs in the third and fourth quarters, that cut into the Spurs’ lead. Despite the convincing Game One victory, San Antonio has to come out with the same sense of urgency to take care of business on their home floor.
In order to take care of business, they’ll have to find a way to slow down Deni Advija. The Blazers’ star was one of the only Portland players who could get into a real rhythm in Game One, scoring 30 points on 12 of 21 shooting. San Antonio did a solid job defending the rim on Sunday, allowing just 42 points in the paint, but Advija was the one Blazer they couldn’t keep away from the rim. The Spurs will have to make some adjustments to decrease Advija’s impact.
The Spurs will look to leave some first-playoff-game jitters in the rearview, cut down on some turnovers, and make more easy shots in game two. If they can do that while continuing to play good defense, they will likely be heading to Portland with a 2-0 lead.
Trail Blazers Injuries: Damian Lillard – Out (achilles)
What to watch for:
Taking advantage of bigs guarding Castle
Portland used an interesting defensive approach to guarding Wembanyama and Stephon Castle on Sunday. They put Donovan Clingan on Castle, and Toumani Camara on Wemby. It makes sense from the Blazers’ perspective. Camara is their best defender, and teams have found some success using wings to guard Wembanyama. Given Castle’s inconsistent jump shot, they can have the big man guarding him sag way off to provide more interior defense. Unfortunately for the Blazers, that strategy didn’t work on Wembanyama, who had a monster 35-point game. It did, however, throw Castle out of rhythm. Castle had 17 points on 4-13 shooting.
These matchups are crucial in this series. If Castle can make the Blazers pay for not guarding him from outside, the strategy fails for Portland. But if he continues to score easy buckets, it slows down a key cog in the Spurs’ offense. It will be interesting to see how Mitch Johnson and the Spurs staff counter this defense in Game Two.
Three-point variance
The Blazers are not a good three-point shooting team. They’ve shot just 34.3% from deep this season, and hit only 26% of their 38 attempts in Game One. The Spurs seemed fine with players like Clingan, Robert Williams III, and Matisse Thybulle firing up shots from deep. The Blazers’ missing open shots were one of the reasons the Spurs’ defense looked so effective. However, as we saw in the play-in game against the Phoenix Suns, Portland can hit a three-point shooting hot streak. If Portland’s shaky shooters start to hit shots, Game Two could get interesting in a hurry.
Guard play
It didn’t feel like the Blazers sent a lot of double-teams at Wembanyama in Game One. For most of the game, he was able to operate independently in the pick-and-roll, on the block, or behind the three-point line. After his dominant game on Sunday, it’s likely he starts to see multiple defenders when he catches the ball. That means it will be on De’Aaron Fox, Castle, Dylan Harper, and Devin Vassell to take the pressure off. Fox and Vassell were excellent in Game One, coming up with big plays, especially in the second half. San Antonio will need its guards to come up big to maintain homecourt advantage in this series.
Jordan Martinook and Logan Stankoven discuss Carolina's 3-2 OTW
"I was on such a high there for two minutes."
After a tense, back-and-forth thriller, the Carolina Hurricanes scored the overtime game winner in Game 2 of their first-round series on a delayed penalty, as Mark Jankowski jumped over the boards as an extra skater and banged home a rebound past Linus Ullmark.
At least, that's what the team thought had happened.
As the team mobbed around Jankowski, the on-ice officials started to gather around the penalty box and the Ottawa Senators weren't leaving the bench either.
Soon enough, it became clear to the nearly 20,000 attendees at Lenovo Center's Monday night game that the goal was under review.
After five minutes of deliberation, official Furman South broke from the huddle and took to center ice.
He flipped on his microphone and, much to the dismay of the home crowd, announced that the play had originally been offside 30 seconds earlier and that the goal was being rescinded.
The NHL situation room had deemed that while Jordan Staal had possession of the puck as he crossed the blueline, he did not have full control of puck, thereby making the play offside.
"I pick up the puck, I look up where Marty is and apparently I lost control of it," Staal said. "And then I make a nice pass to Marty for a breakaway... I don’t really get it. To call back an overtime goal for that is..."
However, it wasn't all for naught, as Jordan Martinook was to be awarded a penalty shot for the call he had initially drawn, just the fifth time ever in NHL history that one had been awarded in overtime of a playoff game.
As "Rockstar" by Nickelback blared across the speakers, Martinook composed himself at the opposite blueline, waiting for the official's signal.
Once he got it, he collected the puck, cut to the left, cut back to the middle and snapped one glove-side on Ullmark.
But it wasn't to be, as the big Swede stymied the Hurricanes alternate captain, keeping the game alive.
"I felt pretty bad when I didn't score that one," Martinook said. "I was trying to tell them we needed the power play and not the penalty shot."
Fate has a funny way of showing itself though and after nearly another full overtime period, Martinook would once again be given the chance to end it and this time, he delivered.
"I'd be lying if I said I picked my head up and looked and picked the corner," Martinook said. "At that point, you're just trying top put as many pucks on net as you can. I felt we kind of had them on the run a little bit and Fly made a great play in the middle and I just got it and ripped it. Luckily it went in."
From the terrible low of thinking you may have just cost your team to the jubilant highs of your first ever playoff overtime goal.
"I didn't feel very good about myself after that penalty shot," Martinook said. "The intermission felt really long and it was going to be a long night if that penalty shot came back to bite me. That was cool though. I'm happy it worked out that way. Hockey's crazy. Sport's are crazy. Being able to score after that, I'll tell my grandkids about that one, that's for sure."
"You couldn’t have written it any better," Staal said. "What a shot. The place was electric, so it was super fun. Definitely in the memory bank."
"Just happy for Marty," Brind'Amour said. "It's nice to see him get that recognition for a game like that.
Game 2 of the Carolina Hurricanes' first-round series against the Ottawa Senators couldn't have been more different than Game 1.
After a tight, but straight forward 2-0 shutout, the Canes and Sens flipped the script en route to a double overtime thriller.
In Game 1, the two teams combined for two goals, 51 shots on goal and 114 shot attempts.
In Game 2, both teams found themselves all of a sudden with a lot more space and a lot more time as the final counts were five total goals, 85 shots on goal and 208 shot attempts.
The trio of Logan Stankoven, Jackson Blake and Taylor Hall were once again doing their thing — as the three combined for the Canes' first goal on the power play, with Stankoven notching his second of the postseason — and even Sebastian Aho got involved too as he scored off of a nice rush play set up by Staal.
But the tale of the tape for this game was the outstanding performances put on by both netminders.
Frederik Andersen had a little hiccup on the game-tying goal as a Dylan Cozens shot from well outside the circles and from a bad angle beat him five-hole, but outside of that he was tremendous.
"You're gonna make mistakes," Andersen said. "Everyone does. But it's about what's next. Obviously we had to play a lot going forward. Just refocused and get ready for the next one."
Andersen would stop all 15 of the shots he faced in overtime, including multiple in-tight and in-alone looks, and was credited with 2.67 goals saved above expected for the game according to Natural Stat Trick.
On the other side, Linus Ullmark was sensational too, stopping 43 total shots and saving 2.24 goals above expected.
In fact, it was Ullmark's save on Taylor Hall in the second period that was really the turning point of the game for Ottawa.
If Hall scores there, Carolina goes up 3-0 and probably easily wins in regulation.
Instead, the Senators were given life and they scored their first goal just 1:14 after the miraculous save as Drake Batherson got a fortunate bounce.
The Sens would keep pushing from there and eventually tie the game, but Andersen wasn't going to be beat again, setting the stage for Martinook's thrilling goal.
"Every moment matters, and any situation, it's right then and there," Andersen said. "You just prepare like you would any other shot and every time you make a save, you give the boys a new chance to score."
The Hurricanes will now take their 2-0 series lead onto the road as they head to Ottawa to try and steal a game.
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Apr 20, 2026; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes left wing Jordan Martinook (48) scores the game winner in the second overtime against the Ottawa Senators in game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images | James Guillory-Imagn Images
Jordan Martinook notched the game-winner in double overtime to lead the Carolina Hurricanes to a 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Monday night at the Lenovo Center. The win gives Carolina a 2-0 lead in this playoff series and allows them to keep their home ice advantage.
The Canes thought they had won the game in the first overtime when Mark Jankowski ripped in a goal, but after a long review, it was ruled that Jordan Staal was offsides on the play because the desk in Toronto determined that he did not have control of the puck when he crossed the blueline.
Staal was not happy with the controversial call and said post game that he looked to pass the puck to Martinook, he did not feel like he lost possession or control. Poor Mark Jankowski said that he was on cloud nine for about two minutes when he celebrated his supposed goal.
Martinook had been the victim of a penalty earlier and weirdly enough, was awarded a penalty shot after the offsides decision. He missed the shot so he was certainly looking for redemption afterward and eventually got it.
When asked after the game how difficult was it to recover after celebrating and thinking you had won the game, to settling back down to the business and seriousness of playing hockey, “Try shooting a penalty shot right after that!” Martinook quipped.
The game started off with fast skating and hitting for both teams. The Canes took the lead off another goal by Logan Stankoven, who has been red hot since the Olympic break. He got a perfect pass by Taylor Hall, who set him up on the powerplay.
In the second period, the Hurricanes jumped to a 2-0 lead when Jordan Staal led Sebastian Aho, who made no mistake. This was another shorthanded goal for Carolina, who leads the league with shorties.
The Sens would strike back though with two goals of their own later in that period.
Ottawa came close to scoring several times in this game but had the worse luck as the puck either hit the crossbar or post or stopped just short of the goal line. Fred Andersen let in a goal he wished he didn’t on goal number two, but he was scrambling and played very well afterward, especially in the overtime periods.
In all, he made 37 saves on 39 shots.
Linus Ullmark played lights out in his own right, making several high level saves throughout. He made 43 saves on 46 Carolina shots.
It is late so I’m going to wrap this up and choose a “Player of the Game” later. The Canes will take Tuesday off before a practice on Wednesday and a flight to Ottawa.
Postgame notes and interviews from Carolina's 3-2 2OT win over the Ottawa Senators on Monday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round. https://t.co/MgTISD3788
The Hurricanes will not practice on Tuesday. General Manager Eric Tulsky will be available to the media at…
Apr 20, 2026; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) and right winger Kasperi Kapanen (42) celebrate a goal on the Anaheim Ducks in game one of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs during the third period at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
EDMONTON, Alberta — Kasperi Kapanen scored his second goal of the game with 1:54 left in the third period to give the Edmonton Oilers a 4-3 victory over the Anaheim Ducks in the opener of their first-round playoff series Monday night.
Jason Dickinson also scored twice for the Oilers, who trailed 3-2 entering the third after squandering a 2-0 lead.
Oilers star Leon Draisaitl returned to the ice after missing the final 14 regular-season games with an injury. Draisaitl and Jake Walman each had two assists for Edmonton, while Connor McDavid was held without a point.
McDavid and the Oilers are seeking their third consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Final, having lost each of the last two seasons to the Florida Panthers, who missed the postseason this year.
Troy Terry had two goals and an assist and Leo Carlsson also scored for the Ducks, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 2018.
Connor Ingram made 25 saves, including a doozy in the waning seconds, to earn the win. Lukas Dostal stopped 30 shots for Anaheim.
Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is Wednesday in Edmonton.
The Oilers started the scoring with 2:39 remaining in the first period as Walman made a long stretch pass to Dickinson, who undressed Dostal with a great move. Edmonton was 30-5-5 when scoring first this season.
Edmonton scored again exactly a minute later as Kapanen took a feed from Draisaitl and then had two cracks at his own rebound to score his first of the playoffs.
The Oilers outshot the Ducks 14-4 in the first period.
Anaheim only needed 19 seconds into the middle frame to make it 2-1 as Terry scored on a huge rebound off Carlsson’s shot.
The Ducks tied it 4:38 into the second period as Carlsson returned the favor by banging in a rebound of Terry’s shot.
Anaheim had 26 comeback wins this season, tied for the NHL lead with Montreal. The Ducks won 17 games when trailing by a goal and nine when down by two.
The Ducks took the lead on the power play with 5:31 left in the second as Terry, playing his first career playoff game, sent a shot through traffic for his second goal of the game.
Edmonton tied it at 3 when Radko Gudas slipped and fell as a huge rebound on Mattias Ekholm’s shot came to Dickinson for his second goal of the game.
The Oilers went ahead for good when Vasily Podkolzin made a great backhand pass from behind the net to set up Kapanen’s second of the game.
DENVER , CO - APRIL 20: Donte DiVincenzo (0) of the Minnesota Timberwolves talks to Rudy Gobert (27) during the fourth quarter of the Timberwolves' 119-114 win over the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado on Monday, April 20, 2026. Minnesota tied the best-of-seven series 1-1. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post) | Denver Post via Getty Images
Game Story
21-2.
Twenty-One to Two.
That is the run that was set to this entire game. Unfortunately for the Minnesota Timberwolves, it did not come in their favor. While so much can change after the first 12 minutes of game-time, there is no worse way to start a game off.
Worst of all, it came without MVP finalist Nikola Jokić dominating, instead coming largely at the hands of Tim Hardaway. Jokić took only two shots in that quarter, but the Denver Nuggets led it with 14 point advantage.
Tim Hardaway Jr. just had the sequence of the season on defense.
Saves the ball and spills head first into the crowd, then takes a charge on Bones Hyland on a 3-on-1 fast break.
Still, that lead probably understates how truly porous the Wolves’ defense was in that first quarter. 39 points allowed in a quarter left their opposition on track for over 150 points is never a good sign. Worst of all, it looked just as bad.
Most devastating was the foul trouble, especially amongst the guards who should probably be safest from getting involved with the refs, immediately made the rotation weird. Within those first 12 minutes, Donte DiVincenzo had two fouls, Ayo Dosumnu had two of his own, and Bones Hyland led the pack with three, including a momentum defining charge against Hardaway. Denver enjoyed four four-point plays in the first half.
To that end, the Wolves committed 13 fouls within a quarter and a half. You will not win a game with that type of foul trouble.
There is no complaint that is hyperbole here. It was truly that bad. Many will be quick to blame the officials, and I won’t disagree with that. There were far too many light fouls that are atypical from playoff environments, most of which were going against Minnesota.
And yet, by the time Rudy Gobert got his third foul of the second quarter (Yes, it was that bad), the Wolves had pulled themselves back within 10. They had created an 11-0 run of their own, which became a 21-4 run of its own.
21-4.
Twenty-One to Four.
Everyone says that basketball is sport that is always on a pendulum swing, and that playoff basketball takes that concept to an extreme, but that does not put enough extreme to this. Within the first eight minutes, this game felt out of reach, only for a sudden momentum shift to see the Wolves completely take over, to leave us with a competitive battle filled with the rivalry between these two teams.
That’s what April is for.
It’s so weird to watch a team simultaneously find and lose their identity the way this Wolves team does. We saw hints of that in that first half. When Minnesota is attacking the rim, forcing Jokić to come out to the arc and then chase into the restricted area, they were scoring at will and opening up shots from distance off the drive and kick game.
When they were settling for shots, even when they were making them, the lack of rim pressure meant losing the pace game and fouling to catch up. It’s a pretty obvious difference.
That difference became even more obvious when a dominant second quarter ended with yet another run for Denver, capped off by a deep heave from Jamal Murray to tie the game at 64. Murray had 23 in the first half. Hardaway had 14. Edwards had 20 of his on to top the Wolves.
“It’s a game of runs,” said Hardaway, just before running into the locker room.
He was understating just how insane it had been.
If the first half was of opposite extremes, the third quarter was an even affair. The fourth quarter began with only three points separating the two teams. Clearly, this was a duel between Anthony Edwards and Jamal Murray, but in these moments, there is usually an unsuspected hero that rises to the occasion.
For the Nuggets, it seemed that it would be Bruce Brown, who hit two triples to start the fourth quarter. Maybe it was Cam Johnson, with his timely threes or rebounds. For the Wolves, well, that remained to be seen.
Naz Reid looked like the first to vie for that title. He had a few drives that resulted in short finishes or free throws. Instead, he seemed to fade until he was subbed out in favor of the Wolves go-to starting and closing lineup. Like so many iterations of Chris Finch’s Timberwolves era, this team would either win or go down by doing the same thing they had done all year.
Maybe it would be Jaden McDaniels. The crushing defense was complimented with a few dunks, some especially, notably more filled with hate. But, a bad foul call — blamed on marginal contact to the hip, and changed to “foot to knee contact” — left him at five, and that clearly affected the calculus of his play.
The Wolves were 0-8 all-time after going down in a series 0-2. The Nuggets were 8-0 all-time when up 2-0 in a series. This one felt like it would be an early decider of whether Minnesota had any chance in this series, or if they had simply made the playoffs to continue a streak that felt impossible only five years ago.
With just two minutes left, it was 112-111 Minnesota. That became 115-113 with 30.8 seconds left after an Anthony Edwards travel gave the Nuggets back the ball. When Christian Braun missed one of two free throws, it seems like the question was answered.
The Wolves hero tonight, at least for the fourth quarter, was not any of their own players. Instead, it was the mistakes of the Denver players that kept Minnesota ahead in a grimey cage fight of a game. Still, that does not matter much. What does matter is the Wolves have stolen home court advantage from the Nuggets.
minnesota always gives you just enough to keep you from turning the game off and going to sleep but never enough to make you feel like they’re gonna actually win
it’s a wildly frustrating space to occupy as a viewer
The series sits at 1-1 going back to Denver. Who cares how it happened?
Sleep well, Wolves fans. What a fun game it was. What a confusing one as well.
Up Next
This playoff series has officially “begun” as the road team won. Minnesota heads back home and gets 48 hours of rest before playing host to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, April 23rd at 8:30pm CT on Prime Video. Get to Target Center if you can. It’s gonna be rockin’.
Normally, players get up and head home after their postgame interviews, but Hart stared straight ahead with a look of frustration and bewilderment that reflected the magnitude of what just happened on the court.
The No. 3 seeded Knicks -- a team with a mandate to reach the NBA Finals -- coughed up a winnable game at MSG.
Questionable lineups, poor fourth-quarter offense and an inability to stop CJ McCollum left the Knicks searching for answers late Monday night.
They now head to Atlanta with their first-round series tied, 1-1.
The odds tell you they’ll probably make it through this series and advance to play the Celtics in the second round, but by coughing up a double-digit fourth quarter lead on Monday, the Knicks made life much harder than it had to be.
WHAT WENT WRONG?
Mike Brown sat both Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns at the same time for stretches in both halves on Monday. The Knicks were outscored by seven points when Brunson and Towns were off the floor.
As Knicks Film School’s Ben Ritholtz pointed out, the Knicks’ net rating in the regular season when Towns and Brunson were off the floor wasn’t pretty.
Brown didn’t think that the lineups without Brunson and Towns led to the Knicks’ downfall.
“I don’t think so. We’ve played that lineup quite a bit since the end of the season, that lineup’s been pretty good,” Brown said. “We weren’t good tonight and we turned the ball over a few too many times during that period. We had opportunities with our starters where we were up eight to 10 and Atlanta closed it so I wouldn’t just say that specific lineup caused it.”
To Brown’s point, the Knicks led by nine in the fourth quarter when Brunson and Towns returned to the court. There were eight minutes left in regulation. This is a game the Knicks should have won.
WHAT ABOUT THE TIMEOUTS?
Brown called a timeout with 2:43 remaining in the game and Brunson dribbling to the basket. Brunson didn’t have a clean look so you can’t say that Brown’s timeout directly prevented the Knicks from scoring, but it was strange to see Brunson stopped mid-dribble by the timeout.
“We had a couple of possessions weren’t fluid so I wanted to make sure that we had something that we wanted to get to or set something up offensively because we had whiffed on the last couple of possessions,” Brown said. “They just didn’t look right or didn’t feel right.”
At that point, the Knicks led by just one and had been outscored, 10-4, over the past five minutes.
Brown did not have a timeout to use on the Knicks’ final possession, which ended with a Mikal Bridges miss.
WHAT ABOUT BRUNSON?
Brunson finished the game 10-for-26 and went 3-for-8 in the last eight minutes of the fourth quarter.
In that same span, Towns took just two shots.
“The opportunity just didn’t come around to shoot it,” Towns said when asked about the fourth quarter. “But at the end of the day I trust everyone in this locker room to shoot it. The opportunity wasn’t there for me in the fourth. And that’s fine. These guys, they work on their games, I know they can shoot it.”
When Hart was asked about Towns in the fourth quarter, he made it clear that it would be one of several things the Knicks would look at ahead of Game 3.
“We have to make sure he’s more involved, find him on mismatches. Put him in action and make sure we use his skill and his gravity to our advantage,” he said. “That’s something we will look at film and be better with.”
