Golf – The Masters – Rose torches tough Augusta for 65 and 4-shot Masters lead
Justin Rose picked one of the toughest days at Augusta National for his lowest score in the Masters. Rose made seven birdies and an eagle during a 10-hole stretch. That took him from 2-over par to a 7-under 65 and a four-shot lead after the first round. This was nothing like November. Everyone knew that before the tournament started. No one could have seen a 65 in dry, firm and fast conditions. This was the fourth time Rose has had at least a share of the first-round lead at the Masters, a record he now shares with Jack Nicklaus.
MLB – Major League Baseball
Last Night
Chicago Cubs 4, Pittsburgh Pirates 2
Chicago White Sox 6, Kansas City Royals 0
Tigers were off
Cubs 4, Pirates 2 – Cubs break out of slump, slip by reeling Pirates 4-2
Jayy Baez hit a go-ahead two-run home run in the sixth inning and the Chicago Cubs’ struggling offense came to life in a 4-2 over Pittsburgh. Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo also homered for Chicago as the Cubs pounded out a season-high 11 hits against Tyler Anderson (0-2) and four Pittsburgh relievers. Baez, Rizzo, Bryant and Jake Marisnick had two hits each as Chicago raised its major-league worst team batting average from .143 to .157. Adam Frazier and Gregory Polanco had two hits each for the Pirates but couldn’t stop Pittsburgh from dropping its sixth straight.
White Sox 6, Royals 0 – Lynn pitches 1st shutout of season, White Sox top Royals 6-0
Lance Lynn pitched a five-hitter for the first complete game and shutout in the major leagues this season, and the Chicago White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals 6-0 on a rainy Thursday. Yermín Mercedes kept up his scorching start with a 485-foot homer. Yoán Moncada went deep, and the White Sox gave manager Tony La Russa the win in his first home game on the South Side in 35 years. Lynn (1-0) struck out 11 and walked none in his second shutout in 238 career starts, his first since a five-hitter against the New York Yankees on May 27, 2014.
Tonight
Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Indians, 7:10 p.m. 94.9 WSJM/103.7 Cosy-FM 6:50
Chicago White Sox (off)
Chicago Cubs (off)
NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Chicago Bulls 122, Toronto Raptors 113
Detroit Pistons 113, Sacramento Kings 101
Bulls 122, Raptors 113 – LaVine, Vucevic lead Bulls past Raptors, 122-113
Nikola Vucevic and Zach Levine each scored 22 points and the Chicago Bulls beat the Toronto Raptors 122-113 on Thursday night for their third straight victory. LaVine also had 15 assists, and Lauri Markkanen came off the bench to score 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Chris Boucher scored a career-high 38 points and had 19 rebounds for the Raptors. They have lost 15 of 18. Pascal Siakam added 27 points and eight rebounds for Toronto.
Pistons 113, Kings 101 – Joseph scores 24, Pistons beat Kings 113-101
Cory Joseph had a season-high 24 points and seven assists in his first game against his former team, Jhalil Okafor made a timely return after missing nearly two months following knee surgery, and the short-handed Detroit Pistons beat the Sacramento Kings 113-101. Isaiah Stewart added 16 points and 13 rebounds in place of injured Mason Plumlee for the Pistons. Okafor, who had missed 27 games following left knee surgery, scored 11 points. Killian Hayes also had 11. Detroit entered an East-worst 15-16 but led comfortably against slumping Sacramento after going up by 22 early in the third quarter.
Tonight
Indiana Pacers at Orlando Magic, 7:00 p.m.
Chicago Bulls at Atlanta Hawks, 8:00 p.m.
NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Nashville Predators 7, Detroit Red Wings 1
Dallas Stars 5, Chicago Blackhawks 1
Predators 7, Red Wings 1 – Surging Predators rout Red Wings 7-1 for 9th win in 10 games
Viktor Arvidsson scored three times to lead the surging Nashville Predators in a 7-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings. Juuse Saros stopped 25 saves for the Predators who have won nine of their last 10 games. Arvidsson and Nick Cousins scored early and late in the second period to put Nashville ahead 3-1. Mikael Granlund scored, Arvidsson had two straight goals and Yakov Trenin had goals in the third period. Detroit’s Darren Helm broke a scoreless tie early in second period. Jonathan Bernier had 25 saves for the Red Wings.
Stars 5, Blackhawks 1 – Comeau, Hintz lead Stars past Blackhawks, 5-1
Blake Comeau scored twice, Roope Hintz had a goal and three assists and the Dallas Stars beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-1 on Thursday to end a two-game slide. Jason Robertson and Miro Heiskanen also scored to help Dallas pull closer in the battle for fourth place and the final playoff spot in the Central Division. The Stars have 38 points, but have played just 38 games because a COVID-19 outbreak delayed their start this season. Dominik Kubalik connected for the Blackhawks. They fell four points behind fourth-place Nashville as the Predators pounded Detroit. Chicago made a trade with Florida earlier on Thursday to bolster its roster for a playoff push, but had to settle for a split in a two-game set with Dallas.
NHL – Blackhawks look to present, future in deal with Panthers
The Chicago Blackhawks sought to give their surprising playoff push a boost by acquiring forward Brett Connolly and defenseman Riley Stillman from the Florida Panthers on Thursday in exchange for forward Lucas Wallmark and defenseman Lucas Carlsson. The Blackhawks also got the rights to prospect Henrik Borgstrom and Florida’s seventh-round pick in the 2021 NHL draft. President of Hockey Operations and GM Stan Bowman hopes the 28-year-old Connolly and 23-year-old Stillman will join the team this weekend in Columbus and make immediate contributions. Entering Thursday, the Blackhawks were in fifth place in the Central Division with 41 points, two behind Nashville for the fourth and final playoff spot.
AHL – American Hockey League
Tonight
Grand Rapids Griffins at Cleveland Monsters, 7:00 p.m.
NCAAHKY – NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament – Frozen Four – Pittsburgh
Last Night
Semifinals
St. Cloud State 5, Minnesota State 4
UMass 3, Minnesota-Duluth 2 – OT
National Championship – Saturday, 7:00 p.m. (News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM 6:30)
MHSAA – High School Sports
Today
Girls Basketball – State Championships – Breslin Center, Michigan State University
Division 4: Fowler (15-4) vs. Bellaire (18-3), 10:00 a.m.
Division 1: Detroit Renaissance (13-4) vs. Hudsonville (22-1), 12:30 p.m.
Division 3: Grass Lake (19-1) vs. Kent City (21-0), 3:00 p.m.
Division 2: Newaygo (21-1) vs. Portland (19-2), 5:30 p.m. News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM
Saturday
Boys Basketball – State Championships – Breslin Center, Michigan State University
All four games on News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM
Division 4: Wyoming Tri-unity Christian (14-2) vs. Detroit Douglass (16-5), 10:00 a.m.
Division 1: Ann Arbor Huron (20-0) vs. Grand Blanc (14-2), 12:30 p.m.
Division 3: Flint Beecher (15-1) vs. Iron Mountain (19-0), 3:00 p.m.
Division 2: Grand Rapids Catholic Central (19-0) vs. Battle Creek Pennfield (21-2), 5:30 p.m.
