Sports

2:23 PM ET Associated Press Top-ranked Novak Djokovic beat unseeded American Taylor Fritz 6-4, 6-3 on Friday to reach the Paris Masters semifinals and remain on course for a record-extending sixth title at the tournament. Djokovic is also vying for a record 37th Masters title. He is tied on 36 with fellow 20-time Grand Slam

3:29 AM ET LOS ANGELES — If the Lakers had managed to protect two massive leads against the Oklahoma City Thunder — up 26 on the road last week and up 19 at Staples Center on Thursday night — they would be sitting pretty with a 7-2 record and OKC would be winless at 0-8.

6:36 AM ET The 38th edition of the Breeders’ Cup will kick off two days of action Friday afternoon at Keeneland. A lot of eyes will be on the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and with so many high-profile races in the mix, there are numerous opportunities to wager on horses that offer significant value. Chris “The

8:50 PM ET Mike WellsESPN Staff Writer Close Previously worked at Indianapolis Star, covering the Indiana Pacers for nine seasons Also covered Vikings for St. Paul Pioneer Press Follow on Twitter Facebook Twitter Facebook Messenger Pinterest Email print INDIANAPOLIS — Running back Nyheim Hines didn’t let quarterback Carson Wentz and the Indianapolis Colts‘ passing game

1:13 PM ET Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck has agreed to a new seven-year contract that will keep him with the Golden Gophers through the 2028 season, it was announced Wednesday. The agreement between the university and Fleck, who is eight games into his fifth season as the Gophers’ head coach, is pending approval from the

7:00 AM ET After another week of the 2021-22 NHL season, we’ve had more changes in the top 5 of the power rankings. Here are our updated rankings of all 32 teams, plus the newcomer — either a free-agent signing, trade addition or rookie — that has made the biggest impact thus far for each

11:34 PM ET ATLANTA — The narrative shape of the 2021 Atlanta Braves, the newly crowned champions of baseball, was not an arc, as fantastical tales tend to be. It was more like a wave chart, with ebbs and flows leading to one final tidal wave that began gathering momentum in early August and crashed

9:24 PM ET Associated Press Knicks Go is the early 5-2 favorite for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic this weekend at Del Mar. The two-day world championships drew 169 horses from eight countries, including 46 foreign horses to the seaside track north of San Diego. Del Mar is hosting for the second time in

10:50 AM ET The time for talking is over — let the battle commence! It’s time for our managers to pit their teams representing the Premier League, LaLiga, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1, Eredivisie, Major League Soccer and Liga MX against each other for global supremacy in ESPN’s Battle of the Leagues, presented by EA

7:15 PM ET Associated Press MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Alex Bowman was the only driver celebrating after NASCAR set its championship four — and he’s not even racing for the title. Bowman picked up the victory Sunday at Martinsville Speedway in the final elimination race ahead of the winner-take-all season finale. Bowman wasn’t eligible to make

7:31 PM BST Beauden Barrett marked his 100th test with two intercepted tries to lead New Zealand to a convincing 54-16 win over Wales in Cardiff on Saturday. The All Blacks outscored their hosts by seven tries to one at a capacity Principality Stadium in another ominous reminder of their power as they went back

3:35 PM ET Glover Teixeira finally did it. At 42, the perennial light heavyweight contender defeated Jan Blachowicz by second round submission via rear naked choke in the main event of UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on Saturday. Teixeira became the 14th undisputed UFC champion in the division and the oldest first-time

6:53 PM ET Associated Press SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda — Taylor Pendrith of Canada got married two weeks ago and wasn’t sure what to expect out of his game. Once the weather cooperated, it proved to be better than ever Friday in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. Pendrith ran off five straight birdies at the turn and flirted

2:15 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN BOSTON — Celtics star Jaylen Brown said he’s still feeling the after-effects of COVID-19, saying that at times he feels like he’s played three games in one. “I think so,” Brown said after Boston’s practice Friday, when asked if he’s still recovering from his positive diagnosis earlier this month. “I’ve

11:58 PM ET GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Arizona Cardinals learned what life is like with an injured DeAndre Hopkins. And it wasn’t pretty. The wide receiver left Thursday night’s game midway through the first quarter because of a hamstring injury and didn’t return until midway through the third quarter. When he returned, Hopkins was little

7:49 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN When COVID took hold of the world in March 2020, it also greatly hampered sports, but perhaps none more so than boxing. After all, the fight game hinges on major live gates to deliver its truly marquee events. While the other major sports leagues experienced plenty of pauses and cancellations,

7:00 AM ET GROWING UP, Jordan Davis was obsessed with mythology. He devoured books about ancient Greece and studied the Egyptians. He still downloads TED Talks on everything from ancient civilizations to modern religion. His favorite stories were the Percy Jackson novels, about a boy who discovers he’s part god then goes on mystical quests,

7:00 AM ET We’re two weeks into the 2021-22 NHL season, and there have been many surprises in the early going — both positive and negative. Here is our updated ranking of all 32 clubs, plus the key takeaways that stand out most for each. How we rank: A panel of ESPN hockey commentators, analysts,

2:35 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” HOUSTON — Inside the training room of the visiting clubhouse at Minute Maid Park during Game 1 of the World Series, friends kept dropping by to apologize to Atlanta Braves pitcher Charlie

11:51 AM ET Kyle Bonagura Close ESPN Staff Writer Covers the Pac-12. Joined ESPN in 2014. Attended Washington State University. Jeff Carlisle Close U.S. soccer correspondent Jeff Carlisle covers MLS and the U.S. national team for ESPN FC. With just a couple of weeks to go until Decision Day, Major League Soccer‘s stars and top

James Slipper described it as clunky; Dave Rennie said the performance was rusty and frustrating. Yet the Wallabies still made it five straight wins as they defeated Japan 32-23 to get their spring tour off on the right foot on Saturday afternoon. But no one should be reaching for the celebratory sake, particularly when far

7:14 PM ET Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Kyle Larson drove to yet another victory, his ninth of the year and most meaningful to date in his new job with Hendrick Motorsports. Larson drove the No. 5 Chevrolet to victory lane at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, the 17th anniversary of a Hendrick plane crash

1:41 AM ET Shakur Stevenson talked up his intentions for weeks ahead of his title opportunity against Jamel Herring. He spoke about his goals to showcase his ability to be aggressive and do more than offer a second consecutive lackluster performance. On Saturday night, Stevenson backed up all of his talk and won the WBO

1:34 PM ET LAS VEGAS — One of the most interesting fight weeks of 2021 will come to its conclusion tonight, as Paulo Costa takes on Marvin Vettori in a light heavyweight bout at UFC Fight Night inside the Apex. This fight, of course, was supposed to take place at 185 pounds and have a

8:59 PM ET Associated Press LOS ANGELES — UCLA coach Mick Cronin is a winner even before the college basketball season starts next month. A 3-year-old filly co-owned by Cronin won the $63,000 feature at Santa Anita by three-quarters of a length on Friday. Sent off at 6-1 odds, So Very Smart paid $14.40, $6.40

8:00 AM ET NBA Insiders As part of the celebration of the NBA’s 75th season, the league unveiled its list of the greatest players in its history over a three-day span in opening week — a list that ended up having one extra name due to a tie in voting. Every player who made the

11:28 PM ET CLEVELAND — On fourth down inside the Denver 10-yard line, Cleveland Browns quarterback Case Keenum dropped back with the Denver Broncos‘ pass rush barreling down on him and no place to throw the ball. So Keenum took off up the middle. And with a Denver linebacker standing in the way, Keenum faked

6:29 PM ET The family of Jake Ehlinger, a Texas linebacker who died in May, said Thursday that his death was caused by an accidental overdose of what was believed to be Xanax laced with Fentanyl. Ehlinger, the younger brother of former Texas and current Indianapolis Colts quarterback Sam Ehlinger, was found unresponsive on May

6:11 PM ET LOS ANGELES — The Atlanta Braves‘ pitching puzzle for Game 4 of the NL Championship Series was complicated further by news that righty Huascar Ynoa would be unavailable because of tightness in his right shoulder. Atlanta made the announcement as manager Brian Snitker sat down for his pregame press conference. Ynoa had

6:24 PM ET LONDON — Befitting of Patrick Vieira’s return to Arsenal, this really should have been settled in midfield. Vieira was a colossus in the Gunners’ engine room for nine years, and for long spells on Monday night, his Crystal Palace side were the better team in central areas of the pitch to an

6:51 PM ET Associated Press FORT WORTH, Texas — Kyle Larson claimed the first of four championship-contending spots in NASCAR’s season finale with a dominating victory at Texas on Sunday to start the round of eight in the playoffs. Larson led 256 of 334 laps at the 1 1/2-mile track and got his eighth win

3:00 PM BST Eddie Jones has named four uncapped players in England’s the 34-player England squad for the November Tests but there is no place in the group for Billy and Mako Vunipola, Jamie George or George Ford. Jones has confirmed Owen Farrell will continue as England skipper as he’s named in the squad for

11:42 AM ET Associated Press LEXINGTON, Ky. — Bob Baffert can enter horses in the Breeders’ Cup next month at Del Mar, but the event’s all-time money-leading trainer has to meet certain conditions, including stricter out-of-competition testing of his horses and greater security at his barn. The conditions are the result of a review by