The Boston Celtics were left to wonder what might have been after a poor third quarter saw them lose Game 2 of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, levelling the series at 1-1.
An underwhelming first half performance saw the Celtics trail by only two points, and after their incredible fourth quarter showing in Game 1, the hope for Boston was they could finish strongly again and take a commanding 2-0 lead.
However, after finding themselves trailing by 23 points by the time the final quarter arrived, they had left themselves far too much to do.
Celtics coach Ime Udoka blamed the amount of turnovers, saying after the 107-88 defeat at Chase Center: "That's been an ongoing theme in the playoffs so far. We've turned over the ball. Take teams out of scoring against us in the half court, give them some baskets.
"But it was more of the same in that third quarter. We had 11 for 18 points in that first half and gave up five or six more in that quarter. Kind of blew it open, and that hampered our offense, as well."
Jayson Tatum - who top-scored for the Celtics with 28 points, though ended the game with a minus-36, which is the worst plus-minus of the 24-year-old's career - agreed with Udoka on turnovers, but also pointed to the general sloppiness at the start of the third-quarter that saw the Warriors pull away.
"I think tonight, turnovers, and I think sometimes letting our offense affect how we defend, kind of was a little stagnant in the third quarter," Tatum said.
"I feel like it translated on the defensive end, and they got going and hitting shots and things like that."
Boston have now been outscored by at least 14 points on four occasions in the third quarter during this year's playoffs, and guard Derrick White also expressed his frustration at the increasing trend of losing the game just after half-time.
"Yeah, it's definitely frustrating," he said. "I mean, we've talked about it pretty much the whole postseason. It's easy to talk about, but we've got to go out there and change something.
"That was a big quarter for them and really a quarter that put us away."
Lionel Messi was likened to Rafael Nadal by Lionel Scaloni after scoring all five of Argentina's goals in a 5-0 friendly rout of Estonia on Sunday.
Barcelona legend Messi moved to 86 international goals, two more than Hungary legend Ferenc Puskas, now leaving him fourth on the all-time men's list.
Messi's exploits occurred on the same day as tennis legend Rafael Nadal defeated Casper Ruud in straight sets to win a 14th French Open title and extend his record for most men's grand slam titles to 22.
For Argentina boss Scaloni, there are simply no more superlatives left for him to describe either man's seismic impact on the world of sports.
"I don't know what else to say. It's very difficult; it's like Rafa Nadal, what are you going to say?" Scaloni told TVP.
"It is preferable that the journalists speak, that they speak. You have no words left to describe it, and above all, for everything it generates."
The result saw Argentina extend their unbeaten run to 33 matches, fine form just five months out from the start of the World Cup in Qatar.
Messi had completed his hat-trick early in the second half before scoring twice more in the final 20 minutes.
Scaloni added of his talisman: "He is something unique, and it is a pleasure to have him in this group. It is a pleasure to train him, the entire coaching staff. And it's a pleasure his behaviour and how he toasts to his shirt.
"We only have words of thanks. I don't think he's just the heritage of Argentina; he's the heritage of the world, of world football. The day he doesn't play anymore, we are going to miss him."
Draymond Green lauded the performance of Stephen Curry on both sides of the ball after the Golden State Warriors blew the Boston Celtics out 107-88 on Sunday.
The Warriors were up by 29 points at one stage in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, on their way to evening the series up in San Francisco.
Curry was transformative on and off the ball in both offensive and defensive senses, finishing with 29 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals and something even more reflective of his overall impact, an astounding net rating of +39.6.
Green was full of praise after the win, putting Curry's status even before Kevin Durant left for the Brooklyn Nets into perspective.
"I thought he was incredible," Green said post-game. "Most importantly, his decision-making was great. He got off the ball, he didn't drive into traffic, he took what the defence gave him.
"I think for the first six minutes of that game he had zero points. He wasn't forcing anything and let the game come to him, and we all followed that.
"Our offence is always a lot of Steph. It all starts with Steph. When KD [Durant] was here it still started with Steph, and that's the way it's going to be."
The barrage of three-pointers by the Warriors obscured Curry's three steals and ability to stay in front of the ball, especially given the latter has been an important factor in each of the Warriors' previous three series in the Western Conference this post-season.
Despite offensive focus from opposition teams onto Curry, Green insisted the former unanimous MVP has worked to improve defensively and should be respected on that side of the court.
"I have been talking about it for the last couple of years, how much he's improved on that side of the ball" Green said. "Teams used to try to call him into every action and just try to pick on him.
"That's doesn't work anymore. He guards, and we're all there behind him if he does need help but hasn't been needing that often and it's great.
"I've spoken about how much stronger he is. He's able to hold his ground, so you're not able to bump him off his spot, and that's been huge for us. I'm not shocked he's playing that type of defence."
JD Davis stepped up for the New York Mets with an RBI double in the 10th inning on Sunday, propelling them to a 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Starling Marte homered early off Julio Urias in the third, but the Mets had to recover after letting a two-run lead slip in the ninth inning.
Pete Alonso's double secured the tying run in that eighth inning, and then scored off Eduardo Escobar's sacrifice fly, before bringing the Mets' eighth win in 11 off Davis' double.
Adonis Medina retired Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman to set up the win in extra innings, despite runners on the corners, striking out Will Smith for his first save in Mets colours.
The Mets managed to split the four-game series between the National League's two best records with the win, extending their lead atop the NL East.
Harper and Stott lead Philadelphia fightback
Bryson Stott hit a game-winning three-run home run as the Philadelphia Phillies rallied to beat the Los Angeles Angels 9-7.
The rookie hit the winning homer after the Angels let a 6-2 lead record slip in the eighth inning, following a Bryce Harper grand slam off Raisel Iglesias.
It was the fourth consecutive win for the Phillies, who have won all three games under interim Rob Thomson since Joe Girardi's dismissal on Friday, while the Angels were consigned to their 10th straight loss.
Twins top up in Toronto
The Minnesota Twins extended their lead in the American League Central, defeating the Toronto Blue Jays 8-6 on the road.
Twins designated hitter Luis Arraez continued his impressive form, going four-for-four with a walk and moving his batting average for the season to .358, the leading rate in baseball.
The Twins had 16 hits as they took two of three games in Toronto, with Jovani Moran earning his first career save.
The Golden State Warriors evened up the NBA Finals on Sunday, comfortably defeating the Boston Celtics 107-88 on Sunday.
Stephen Curry was at his transformative best, finishing up with 29 points on nine-of-21 shooting, six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Pertinently, facing an 0-2 series deficit, putting Curry in high pick-and-roll actions with Draymond Green forced the Celtics into tricky defensive situations.
The Warriors were able to get the shots they wanted as a result of Curry's presence, as well as the lingering injury troubles of Robert Williams III affecting Boston's rim protection.
Gary Payton returned after his gruesome injury sustained against the Memphis Grizzlies and did not miss a beat in the Finals atmosphere, pitching in with seven points, three assists and three rebounds while providing critical defensive presence.
They scored 40 points in the paint over the game in comparison to the Celtics' 24, while shooting 40.5 per cent from the perimeter.
This came despite Curry and Klay Thompson shooting a combined six-of-20 from beyond the arc.
After their offensive explosion in the fourth quarter to take the opening game, the Celtics shot 37.5 per cent from the floor, while 18 turnovers were critical.
The Dubs scored 33 points off those Celtics turnovers, blowing the game wout with a 35-14 third quarter, capped off with an extraordinary buzzer-beating three-pointer from half-court.
Marcus Smart was ineffective on both ends of the floor, failing to restrict Curry in pick-and-roll situations while going one-of-six from the floor and committing five turnovers.
The Golden State Warriors evened up the NBA Finals on Sunday, comfortably defeating the Boston Celtics 107-88 on Sunday.
Stephen Curry was at his transformative best, finishing up with 29 points on nine-of-21 shooting, six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Pertinently, facing an 0-2 series deficit, putting Curry in high pick-and-roll actions with Draymond Green forced the Celtics into tricky defensive situations.
The Warriors were able to get the shots they wanted as a result of Curry's presence, as well as the lingering injury troubles of Robert Williams III affecting Boston's rim protection.
Gary Payton returned after his gruesome injury sustained against the Memphis Grizzlies and did not miss a beat in the Finals atmosphere, pitching in with seven points, three assists and three rebounds while providing critical defensive presence.
They scored 40 points in the paint over the game in comparison to the Celtics' 24, while shooting 40.5 per cent from the perimeter.
This came despite Curry and Klay Thompson shooting a combined six-of-20 from beyond the arc.
After their offensive explosion in the fourth quarter to take the opening game, the Celtics shot 37.5 per cent from the floor, while 18 turnovers were critical.
The Dubs scored 33 points off those Celtics turnovers, blowing the game wout with a 35-14 third quarter, capped off with an extraordinary buzzer-beating three-pointer from half-court.
Marcus Smart was ineffective on both ends of the floor, failing to restrict Curry in pick-and-roll situations while going one-of-six from the floor and committing five turnovers.
Mexico only managed a scoreless draw, their fourth in 10 matches over 2022, playing out a 0-0 stalemate Ecuador on Sunday.
The draw marked El Tri's 100th Mextour match in the United States, having held home fixtures there since 2002.
In an otherwise uneventful match on the pitch, Tata Martino's side had a late shout for a penalty waved away when Uriel Antuna appeared to have been brought down in the penalty area in 78th minute.
The game faced late controversy when it was momentarily suspended, however, following discriminatory chanting towards Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez with each goal-kick.
Ecuador will now host Cape Verde on Saturday, while Mexico commence their CONCACAF Nations League campaign hosting Suriname.
The 3-2 favourite Blue Vinyl used a devastating last-furlong acceleration to stage a massive win in Sunday’s Jamaica 2000 Guineas at Caymanas Park, giving young rider Raddesh Roman his first ever Classic success.
Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper praised his side's ability to stay calm, after they snatched a 3-2 win from the New York Rangers in Game 3 on Sunday.
The Lightning were down 2-0 in the second period after power-play goals from Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, but they rallied and Ondrej Palat scored the winning goal with 42 seconds remaining in the game.
After losing the first two games in the Eastern Conference finals, Cooper's side cut the series deficit to 2-1 with the win, keeping their hopes to retain the Stanley Cup alive.
The Lightning coach asserted his side could draw on extensive playoff experience in fighting back from losing position.
"We've been in spots like this," Cooper said post-game. "The big thing for us was, I felt like we had a recipe, we just had to stay with it. I think there are times in this series, we've tried to manufacture things that weren't there, that put us on our heels and gave up opportunities.
"Whether it was a break, whatever you want to call, we weren't in sync. Today we were down 2-0 and I don't want to sit here and say we didn't deserve to be down 2-0 because their power plays have been great, but our five-on-five game I liked.
"We just needed to stick with that and stay out of the box. I think in years past, maybe, panic would have set in at some point – definitely not with this group. No question, being there before, it's really helped us."
Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos were able to restore parity for the reigning champions, before Kucherov provided the crafty assist for Palat in the final minute.
Game 4 is on Tuesday, with the Rangers looking to make their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals since 2014.
Minjee Lee claimed the second major tournament of her career on Sunday, winning the U.S. Women's Open by four strokes from Mina Harigae.
The 26-year-old shot an even-par 71 on Sunday at Pine Needles, extending her one-stroke lead from Harigae coming into the final round.
The world number four coming into this weekend, Lee started strongly with birdies on the opening two holes of the round, giving her a healthy buffer from the chasing pack.
Lee broke the record for the lowest total score over 72 holes with 271, beating the scores of 272 set by Chun In-gee, Juli Inkster and Annika Sorenstam.
She also became the third Australian to win the US Women's Open after Jan Stephenson and Karrie Webb, who also won at Pine Needles in 2001.
Uruguay's run of five straight wins came to an end after they were held to a 0-0 draw by the United States in an international friendly in Kansas City on Sunday.
Diego Godin saw an effort cleared off the line by DeAndre Yedlin as Diego Alonso's side started brightly, while at the other end Jesus Ferreira had an effort pawed away by Fernando Muslera.
FC Dallas striker Ferreira continued to look sharp during the first half, yet he was unable to find an opener before the break.
Christian Pulisic fired wide and Darwin Nunez lashed a strike just past Sean Johnson's left-hand post during a lively start to the second period.
The USA goalkeeper then made himself big to keep out Nunez's close-range effort as Uruguay looked the more likely side to seal a win.
They should have done exactly that in stoppage time, but substitute Edinson Cavani inexplicably clipped wide of an open goal after being teed up by Nunez.
Quin Snyder has resigned as coach of the Utah Jazz after eight seasons in charge.
Snyder was appointed as head coach of Utah in 2014, signing a three-year contract before extending his deal twice to prolong his stay in Salt Lake City.
The 55-year-old transformed the Jazz into a competitive playoff force, reaching the postseason for the last six straight seasons, although they have not progressed past the conference semi-finals in that run.
Snyder was the joint-third longest-serving coach in NBA, alongside Golden State Warriors' Steve Kerr, who trails Miami Heat's Erik Spoelstra and San Antonio Spurs' Gregg Popovich.
Having overseen a period of change in Utah, Snyder departs with the second-best winning record of any Jazz coach after boasting a 372-264 regular-season record.
"Quin Snyder has embodied what Jazz basketball is for the last eight years," said Jazz owner Ryan Smith.
"The tireless work ethic and attention to detail Quin displayed each day is a testament to the professional he is. I have nothing but admiration for Quin and respect his decision.
"We thank Quin and Amy from the bottom of our hearts for all of their contributions to the state of Utah and the Jazz and wish them nothing but the best."
Reports suggested Utah were intent on agreeing a new contract with Snyder, who is said to want to take a season's break to recuperate before he considers a new coaching role.
"At the core, and what drives me every day is our players and their passion for the game, their desire to constantly work to improve and their dedication to the team and the Jazz," Snyder said.
"I strongly feel they need a new voice to continue to evolve. That's it. No philosophical differences, no other reason. After eight years, I just feel it is time to move onward.
"I needed to take time to detach after the season and make sure this was the right decision. I greatly respect and appreciate Ryan, Danny [Ainge] and Justin's [Zanik] discussions regarding moving forward together, I just know it is time.
"I am forever appreciative of all the players, coaches, partners, and people I have worked with at the Jazz. Your sacrifice, your kinship have made this an incredible and special experience.
"Amy and I are so grateful for our time here as it has been just a tremendous place to raise our family. Thank you to our always supportive and passionate fans. We only want the best for you and to see you raise a championship banner."
Billy Horschel secured victory at the Memorial Tournament on Sunday, shooting an even-par 72 to finish four strokes ahead of Aaron Wise.
Horschel had a healthy buffer at the start of play on Sunday with a five-shot lead and kept it relatively steady, but had to come up with some big shots on the back nine to take the win.
After a bogey on the sixth, the 35-year-old got back to even with a birdie on the par-three 10th.
A bogey on the 12th took him back to one-over, yet a massive put on the par-five 15th for eagle gave Horschel a commanding lead.
It effectively shut the door on Wise, who had also birdied on 15, before he closed out the round with a bogey for a one-under 71.
It was Horschel's seventh tournament win on the PGA Tour, but his first with his family present. Greeted by them and tournament founder Jack Nicklaus after the win, Horschel spoke of the added significance of this triumph.
"It's special, it truly is," Horschel said after his round. "Jack's a legend of the game and to win his event, you've seen the guys who have won this event, just legends in their own right, it's pretty special.
"We joke about it in the family but my wife and my kids have never been to any of my victories. My parents have, and so, having a five-shot lead knowing that this was mine to sort of go out and win or lose, and having them here, I really wanted to win."
Horschel moved into the FedEx Cup's top 10 with the win, just 19 points behind Jon Rahm in ninth.
Excluding the 2021 WGC Match Play, defeating Scottie Scheffler in the final, this win is his first on the PGA Tour in a regular four-round format since the 2018 Zurich Classic.
Coming into Sunday with that five-stroke lead, Horschel was determined to maintain rather than extend that margin.
"I've watched Tiger play enough, and I wasn't around when Jack was playing in his heyday, but you knew he was unbelievable at course management," he said.
"He knew how to plot his way around a golf course and learn from those two, and understand, when you have a lead, you don't have to do anything special. You've just got to make sure you don't give any shots back.
"I did give some back and I was a little upset about it, but we just put the ball on the green, two-putting, trying not to do anything special and if I had to do something special, then I was ready for it. That eagle on 15 was huge."
Luis Enrique acknowledged Spain have "many things to improve" on after La Roja were fortunate to draw against the Czech Republic.
Gavi, aged 17 years and 304 days, became the youngest ever player to score for Spain as he curled in to cancel out Jakub Pesek's fourth-minute opener in Prague.
The Barcelona midfielder's strike also meant Spain have scored in 16 straight games in all competitions, only twice achieving such longer streaks in history.
Jan Kutcha then again edged Czech Republic ahead in the Nations League encounter as he chipped over the onrushing Unai Simon in the second half.
But there was to be late drama as Inigo Martinez's 90th-minute header snatched a point for Spain, who sit two points behind Group A2 joint-leaders Czech Republic and Portugal after two games.
With just one team progressing to the Nations League finals, Luis Enrique was glad to pick up a point but urged his side to improve.
Asked whether the stalemate would keep the critics quiet, the Spain coach told reporters: "Noise is the most beautiful thing in the world of football. I know what I play, I know where I'm going.
"There are many things to improve. But the best thing about drawing is that the rival does not add three points.
"The important thing is that the rival does not escape us."
Luis Enrique was also quick to heap praise on teenage star Gavi after yet another fine performance in midfield.
"I know Gavi very well, I've been watching videos for five years of him. If there was any player who we wanted in that position in the first half, it was him," he added.
"Either he shoots or he gets into the area, and that conviction is unstoppable."
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