NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Detroit Red Wings 6, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
Red Wings 6, Penguins 3 – Andrew Copp, Alex DeBrincat each score twice, Red Wings beat Penguins 6-3
Andrew Copp and Alex DeBrincat each scored twice, Ville Husso made 30 saves and the Detroit Red Wings beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-3 on Wednesday night. Ben Chiarot and David Perron also scored for Detroit. DeBrincat has five goals and eight in his first four games with the franchise he grew up rooting for in suburban Detroit. Evgeni Malkin, Erik Karlsson and Bryan Rust scored for Pittsburgh. Malkin scored his 474th goal, breaking a third-place tie with Alexander Mogilny for the most NHL goals by Russian-born players. The 37-year-old center trails Washington superstar Alex Ovechkin (822) and former Red Wings great Sergei Fedorov (483) on the list. Detroit has won three in a row since losing the opener by a goal at New Jersey, showing some promising signs after general manager Steve Yzerman made a series of signings and trades to bolster the team’s chances.
Tonight
Chicago Blackhawks at Colorado Avalanche, 10:30 p.m.
MLB – Major League Baseball – League Championship Series – Best of seven
Last Night
American League Championship Series
Houston Astros 8, Texas Rangers 5 (TEX leads 2-1)
Astros 8, Rangers 5 – Altuve and Javier lead Astros to 8-5 win at Rangers as Houston closes to 2-1 in ALCS
Jose Altuve homered, Cristian Javier worked into the sixth inning of another solid postseason start and the Houston Astros beat the Texas Rangers 8-5, closing to 2-1 in the AL Championship Series. Texas lost for the first time this postseason after a 7-0 start as three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer was gone after four innings in his first outing in more than a month after recovering from a strained shoulder muscle. Javier set a franchise record for the defending champion Astros by extending his postseason scoreless streak to 20 1/3 innings.
Tonight
National League Championship Series
Philadelphia (Suárez 4-6) at Arizona (Pfaadt 3-9), 5:07 p.m. (PHI leads 2-0)
American League Championship Series
Houston (Urquidy 3-3) at Texas (Heaney 10-6), 8:03 p.m. (TEX leads 2-1)
MLB – Armed robbers target Tigers’ Dominican complex
Authorities say the Detroit Tigers complex in the Dominican Republic has been targeted in the latest robbery of a Major League Baseball facility in the country. Dominican Police spokesman Diego Pesqueira told The Associated Press on Wednesday that one man was apprehended and police are searching for four others who entered the complex with guns, restrained the security guard and went to the players’ rooms to steal valuables and cash. The robbery happened days after the St. Louis Cardinals complex in the country was hit. The facilities of the Miami Marlins and Cleveland Guardians were also robbed recently, a person familiar with the robberies told the AP.
NBA – National Basketball Association Preseason
Tonight
Detroit Pistons at Oklahoma City Thunder, 8:00 p.m.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Chicago Bulls, 8:00 p.m.
NBA – Harden skips 76ers practice, leaving coach Nick Nurse unsure of what comes next
Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse said he had no explanation for why James Harden skipped practice Wednesday but planned to proceed as if the disgruntled guard will play in the preseason finale. Harden said last week he could try to play in the Sixers’ preseason finale on Friday against Atlanta. But once he skipped practice, the 76ers were left unsure of what comes next. Harden has yet to play in the preseason. He did attend training camp and continued to practice with the Sixers in the wake of his offseason trade demand. Harden said last week his fractured relationship with team president Daryl Morey couldn’t be repaired.
WNBA – Women’s National Basketball Association – Finals – Best of five
Last Night
Las Vegas Aces 70, New York Liberty 69 (LV wins 3-1)
Aces 70, Liberty 69 – Las Vegas Aces become first repeat WNBA champs in 21 years, beating New York Liberty 70-69
The Las Vegas Aces became the first team in 21 years to win back-to-back WNBA championships, getting 24 points and 16 rebounds from A’ja Wilson and a defensive stop in the closing seconds to beat the New York Liberty 70-69 in Game 4 of the Finals. The Aces joined the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001-02 and the Houston Comets from 1997-2000 as the only teams in league history to win consecutive titles. Las Vegas did it without starters Chelsea Gray and Kiah Stokes, who were both sidelined with foot injuries suffered in Game 3.
NFL – National Football League – Week 7
Tonight
Jacksonville Jaguars at New Orleans Saints, 8:15 p.m.
NFL – NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell gets a contract extension through March 2027
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has received his long-expected contract extension. The league announced in a statement Wednesday that Goodell’s contract was extended for three years through March 2027. A person familiar with the details said that Goodell’s deal includes clauses for extension or succession. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because details weren’t released. Goodell’s current contract was set to expire in spring 2024.
NFL – Commissioner Roger Goodell; NFL still needs to hire more minority head coaches
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league still needs to hire more minority head coaches. The latest rule change was aimed at increasing opportunities. Owners voted Tuesday to push in-person head coaching interviews back one more week until after all divisional playoff games have been completed to slow down the hiring process. NFL executive Dasha Smith said the league office and the 32 teams are 50% diverse. There are six minority head coaches, including three who are Black. The goal of pushing the in-person interviews back one week is to create more opportunities for candidates.
NFL – QB Tyson Bagent has come a long way, from D-II to likely starter for Bears
Tyson Bagent has come a long way in the past year. He went from a setting records at Division II powerhouse Shepherd University in West Virginia to joining the Chicago Bears as an undrafted rookie quarterback. Now he’s the likely starter for Chicago on Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Bears are operating under the assumption Bagent will start with Justin Fields nursing a dislocated right thumb. Bagent says he just needs to “play hard and operate in sync” with his teammates. Fields exited in the third quarter of last week’s loss to Minnesota.
NFL – Colts QB Anthony Richardson opts for season-ending surgery on injured shoulder
Indianapolis Colts rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson will have season-ending shoulder surgery. Colts coach Shane Steichen says the long-term health of the former Florida Gators star was the key factor in making the decision. The fourth overall pick in April’s NFL draft, Richardson suffered a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder at the end of a short run against Tennessee on Oct. 8. With Richardson out, veteran Gardner Minshew will continue to start.
NCAAFB – No. 7 Penn St and No. 3 Ohio St begin Beasts of Big Ten East round-robin
The Big Ten feels more like the Big Three this season. In that case, the season finally starts Saturday with No. 7 Penn State going to No. 3 Ohio State. The round-robin of top-10 teams with the Nittany Lions, Buckeyes and No. 2 Michigan over the back half of the season will likely decide the Big Ten East, the conference title and a spot in the College Football Playoff. The first of three potential monster matchups in the Big Ten is easily among the most intriguing games of Week 8.
NCAA – SMU, Stanford and Cal joining ACC
SMU, Stanford and Cal are joining the Atlantic Coast Conference next year. The league’s expansion means a new scheduling format is needed for the 2024 football season. Schedules will be discussed at the league’s annual fall meetings in Charlotte this week. North Carolina coach Mack Brown and others are concerned about possibly losing rivalry games. Even if ACC officials attempt to protect such state rivalries as Miami-Florida State and Virginia-Virginia Tech, some painful decisions may be necessary in order to make room for league’s new members. Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi is concerned new travel demands are the same for all schools.
Golf – LIV – Phil Mickelson claims more players want to jump to Saudi-backed LIV Golf
Phil Mickelson is sounding confident as ever that more players are willing to jump over to the Saudi-funded LIV Golf League. LIV is wrapping up its second season at Trump Doral outside Miami for its team championship. Mickelson says he knows players want to be part of it without mentioning who. None of the top players have indicated they are willing to leave the PGA Tour or European tour. The business agreement among Saudi Arabia’s wealth fund and the tours included a clause to stop poaching players. That was removed in July at the request of the Justice Department.
MCCAA – Michigan Community College Athletic Association
Yesterday
Women’s Soccer
Kellogg Community College 6, Lake Michigan College 2
Tonight
Women’s Volleyball
Southwestern Michigan College at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, 6:30 p.m.
MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Boys Soccer (districts)
Division 2 at Otsego – District Final
Plainwell 2, Gull Lake 1
Division 3 at Three Rivers – District Final
Hartford 9, Three Rivers 1
Division 4 at Bangor – District Semifinals
Howardsville Christian 3, Covert 0
Bangor 2, Saugatuck 1
Volleyball
St. Joseph 3, Battle Creek Central 0
Buchanan 3, Our Lady of the Lake 1
Portage Northern 3, Gull Lake 1
Portage Central 3, Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 0
Mattawan 3, Battle Creek Lakeview 2
Tonight
Boys Soccer (district finals)
Division 1 at Portage Central
Kalamazoo Central vs Portage Central, 6:00 p.m.
Division 2 at Lakeshore
Edwardsburg vs. Sturgis, 6:00 p.m.
Division 3 at Parchment
Fennville vs. Grand Rapids South Christian, 6:00 p.m.
Division 4 at Bridgman
New Buffalo vs. Bridgman, 5:00 p.m.
Division 4 at Kalamazoo Christian
Kalamazoo Hackett vs. Kalamazoo Christian, 5:00 p.m.
Volleyball
Michigan Lutheran at Howardsville Christian, 6:30 p.m.
Covert at Lawrence, 6;00 p.m.
Cassopolis at New Buffalo, 6:00 p.m.
Berrien Springs at South Haven, 1:00 p.m. (note time)
Paw Paw at Niles, 6:00 p.m.
Three Rivers at Otsego, 6:00 p.m.
Edwardsburg at Sturgis, 6:00 p.m.
Plainwell at Vicksburg, 6:00 p.m.
Climax-Scotts at Galesburg-Augusta, 6:30 p.m.
Kalamazoo Hackett at Lawton, 6:30 p.m.
