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Tuesday, 30 September 2025
AP source: WNBA hits Lynx coach Reeve with record fine
NEW YORK — Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve has been fined $15,000 by the WNBA for her comments and conduct after her team’s Game 3 semifinal loss to the Phoenix Mercury, a person familiar with the penalty told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement has been made.
The fine is believed to be the biggest for an individual coach or player in league history. The WNBA doesn’t publicize the amount of fines.
Additionally, Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White and Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon were fined $1,000 each for their public comments on WNBA officiating in which they defended Reeve. Hammon and White’s teams face off on Tuesday night in a decisive Game 5 with a trip to the WNBA Finals on the line.
The Athletic first reported the fines.
Both coaches backed up Reeve’s criticism and have been outspoken throughout the season on leaguewide officiating problems. White told reporters on Monday at Indiana’s practice that she “got fined for supporting Cheryl, which I think is crazy.”
“I think that she made a lot of valid points,” White said Sunday. “A lot of the same kind of conversations are happening. It’s happening from every team, from every franchise, from every coach, from every player. And I think at some point there has to be some accountability.”
Hammon also defended Reeve.
“From what I heard, she did not tell a lie,” Hammon said before the Aces’ Game 4 loss to Indiana. “She said the truth. A lot of people thought it wasn’t a foul, so let me give you an analogy. In the NFL, if you are a wide receiver, and you’re going for a ball, and the ball is going this direction, you’re going this direction, and then the defender is coming, you don’t get to run through that wide receiver to get to the ball, even though the ball is loose.”
Besides the fine, the league suspended Reeve for Game 4, which the Lynx lost and were eliminated from the playoffs. This was the first time in the history of the WNBA that a coach had been suspended for a playoff game.
“Her conduct and comments included aggressively pursuing and verbally abusing a game official on the court, failure to leave the court in a timely manner upon her ejection with 21.8 seconds to play in the fourth quarter, inappropriate comments made to fans when exiting the court, and remarks made in a post-game press conference,” the league said in a statement Saturday.
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NCAA moves 2028 Women’s Final Four to increase capacity
INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA has decided to hold the 2028 Women’s Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis instead of the arena where the Pacers and Fever play their games.
The change announced Tuesday by the Division I Women’s Basketball Committee means the event will gain approximately 13,000 seats. The plan is to play at around half of the capacity of the cavernous Colts stadium that holds 70,000 people for football games.
“Moving the 2028 Women’s Final Four to Lucas Oil Stadium will allow for more access for our fans, and it represents the continued growth of the sport,” Milwaukee athletic director and committee chair Amanda Braun said. “With the interest we have seen, holding the Women’s Final Four in a larger venue in Indianapolis is a natural next step.”
The committee also voted to keep the preliminary round format of schools hosting first- and second-round games before two regional sites for the Sweet 16 and Elite 8. The NCAA said 85 per cent of athletic directors, coaches and conference officials surveyed on the topic preferred to keep that setup of 16 non-predetermined campus sites for the opening rounds.
“We reviewed alternatives to the First Four, first- and second-round format and the regional format, and the data supports keeping our current model,” Braun said. “This will continue to be a point of discussion for the committee as we look to serve tournament participants and fans in the best possible way.”
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First-ever bye represents real progress for Blue Jays
TORONTO — Midway through the Toronto Blue Jays’ celebration Sunday evening, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grabbed the giant hose the Rogers Centre grounds crew uses to treat the infield dirt and turned it on the fans.
Thousands had stayed in their seats to watch the Blue Jays celebrate their first division title since 2015 and they were delighted by the attention from Guerrero Jr., who wore slides, goggles, athletic shorts and a navy blue Division Champs t-shirt as he soaked the fans.
“You have to enjoy yourself,” Guerrero Jr. said, dripping with champagne and beer shortly after the team clinched the division over the Yankees. “This means a lot. We finished in last place last year and this year we finished in first.”
Soon afterwards, catcher Tyler Heineman grabbed a bottle of champagne and poured it into the mouths of eager fans. Nearby, Ernie Clement and a shirtless Davis Schneider conducted a joint interview on live TV as the Blue Jays celebrated their best regular-season record since 1993 and their seventh-ever division title. Somewhere in the background, Alejandro Kirk quietly sipped a beer.
Moments like this underscore what this achievement means to the players, who have been working daily toward this goal since February. And yes, bigger goals are ahead for Guerrero Jr. and the Blue Jays. If they don’t win a playoff game for the first time since 2016, it’ll all feel pretty hollow.
Yet at the end of a 162-game season, teams end up where they deserve to be. Day by day, the Blue Jays earned this. Then on Sunday, Kirk broke open game 162 with a grand slam, the first of two home runs he’d hit in the series finale — an accomplishment both impressive and unsurprising to those who know him.
As George Springer said, “What a swing from Alejandro. That turned the whole game around.”
In the coming days there will be plenty of time to focus on the Division Series and what comes next. For now, it’s worth stopping to appreciate what’s actually happened here and recognizing the significance not only of the AL East title but of Toronto’s first-ever playoff bye.
Zooming out beyond this current season, the Blue Jays have been consistent contenders for the past six seasons. Over the last half-decade, the Blue Jays have averaged 88 wins per season, ninth-best in MLB during that period trailing only the Dodgers, Astros, Brewers, Yankees, Braves, Phillies, Mariners and Rays.
But until now, the Blue Jays have not quite been an elite team, either, never winning more than 92 games under president Mark Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins. So while they’ve made the playoffs, they hadn’t earned this kind of security before.
“It’s one less series you’ve gotta win,” said outfielder Myles Straw. “What, we’ve got to win three now? So, three series. We’ve done that a lot this year. I like our team against anyone. We’re ready to roll, get a few days off, get some practice in and get right back to it.”
Each of the last three times the Blue Jays have reached the post-season, it’s been as a Wild-Card team, and they have yet to win a game in that round. In 2020, under Charlie Montoyo, they were swept by the Rays. In 2022, John Schneider’s first season as manager, they blew an 8-1 lead to the Mariners on the way to another sweep. And in 2023, the bats went cold, Yusei Kikuchi replaced Jose Berrios in Minneapolis and a third sweep ensued.
As Schneider said recently: “The season will chew you up and spit you out.”
“This game can lead you down some weird paths,” he continued. “It can hurt you. It can taunt you a little bit.”
Every year around this time, executives around baseball point to the frustrating nature of short series, when one or two plays can have an outsized impact on the trajectory of a franchise. As they say, a Wild-Card series is by no means representative of a team’s true talent level.
But while that point is technically true, others in the game counter with a point that’s perhaps stronger. We all know how unpredictable baseball is, but there’s a way to avoid the perils of a three-game series — win your division and earn a first-round bye.
Since 2022, when MLB introduced the current playoff format, the Blue Jays have never been able to accomplish that. They’ve been playing and losing wild-card games while better teams rested up and avoided the experience altogether.
Now, they’re that team. Let the Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers and Guardians stress for 72 hours in early October. The Blue Jays can rest and strategize without a doubt that an ALDS berth awaits them.
It’s a huge achievement — one that wouldn’t have been possible without contributions from every level of the organization. At long last, they’ve led the Blue Jays to a position of power they haven’t earned previously. So for one day in the course of a long season, it’s well worth celebrating what they’ve achieved. It’s significant. Really, it’s the best-case scenario for a regular season.
And starting soon, it’ll be time to take full advantage of the coveted position they’ve gained and push for much more.
“I feel good,” Guerrero Jr. said. “And tomorrow I’ll feel great. But the job’s not finished.”
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Monday, 29 September 2025
Norman Powell aims to prove doubters wrong with Heat
MIAMI — Norman Powell remembers what the perceptions were when he entered the NBA a decade ago. Can’t shoot, not a scorer, only a defender.
He’s proven them all wrong — and the Miami Heat hope he continues doing so.
Powell donned his new Heat uniform in an official capacity for the first time Monday, appearing at the team’s media day in advance of Tuesday’s opening training camp practice. He’s coming off the best year of his career, averaging nearly 22 points per game, and the Heat are desperately hoping that scoring punch helps them this season.
“We’re excited to have Norm with us for a lot of different reasons,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, entering his 18th season in that job for Miami — making him the longest-tenured coach currently in the NBA. “That’s a big part of it, his ability to put the ball in the basket, and he can do it in a variety of ways that make sense for our team and our roster. He can do it on the ball. He can do it off the ball. He’s played a lot of different roles with the teams that he’s played on, and he’s been able to be efficient in all the different roles.”
Powell — acquired by Miami in a three-team trade that saw the Heat send Kevin Love to Utah back in July — averaged 21.8 points last season for the Los Angeles Clippers and is a career 40% shooter from 3-point range.
The Heat were 24th out of 30 teams in points per game last season, plus lost Duncan Robinson — the team’s career 3-point leader — to Detroit this summer. And earlier this month, news came that All-Star guard Tyler Herro will miss at least the first few weeks of the season following surgery to address an issue that was bothering his foot and ankle.
In short, the Heat need Powell right now — especially with Herro out.
“I’ve always been a huge fan of Norman’s game,” Herro said. “He’s another guy that can create for himself but also take the attention away from me a little bit. … I know he’ll hold it down until I get back, and then we’ll hit the ground running together.”
The numbers that Powell had last season, more often than not, lead to an All-Star Game selection. It didn’t happen for him a year ago, and that — like many things have over his career — only spurs him on.
“I’ve always been kind of politically pushed aside or not really at the forefront of things,” Powell said. “It just continues to add motivation and fuel to the fire. For me, it was more personal of a showing, that I’m capable of this.”
Powell fits what the Heat want in a lot of ways. He has championship pedigree, having been part of the Toronto team that won an NBA title in 2019. He understands Spoelstra’s defensive plans already and — even after spending just one offseason around the team — is fast becoming a voice in the locker room.
“The biggest thing as a vet is passing on the knowledge of what I’ve been able to accumulate over the years from the other veteran guys that I looked up to when I was a young player coming into this league,” Powell said. “I’m an open book. Whatever they’re going through, whatever role situation they’re in, whatever struggles, I’ve probably seen it and been through it and experienced it.”
Spoelstra said Powell was someone the Heat had watched with interest for some time, and that nobody in the organization hesitated when the chance came this summer to make the trade.
“He’s won a championship before. He’s been part of a lot of winning teams,” Spoelstra said. “He takes it very seriously. He’s a competitive dude. We like that. He’s got an edge to him and his work ethic is tremendous. So, there’s a lot of things that we think fit how we approach the game.”
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Mets’ Pete Alonso to opt out of contract, become free agent
MIAMI — Pete Alonso will opt out of his contract with the New York Mets and enter free agency again, the All-Star first baseman said Sunday after the team missed the playoffs.
Alonso tested the open market last offseason before ultimately staying with the franchise that drafted him in 2016 out of Florida. He signed a $54 million, two-year contract in February that paid him $30 million this season with a $24 million player option for next year.
Alonso indicated he’d like to return to the Mets again, but added he wants to win a championship.
“There’s some great guys in this clubhouse, there’s some great people on the staff,” he said. “And every single day, it’s just been a pleasure coming to work and putting on the orange and blue. I’ve really appreciated and been nothing but full of gratitude every single day. Nothing’s guaranteed, but we’ll see what happens.
“I’ve loved being a Met, so hopefully they’ve appreciated me in the same (way).”
The 30-year-old Alonso earned his fifth All-Star selection this season. He batted a career-best .272 with 38 home runs, 126 RBIs and a career-high 41 doubles.
Along the way, he broke the Mets record for home runs, surpassing Darryl Strawberry’s previous mark of 252.
“I think the biggest thing is, I want to win,” Alonso said. “I know we didn’t this year, but we had the right pieces I think, we just didn’t do it. At the beginning of the year, you just want to have the best possible chance to hold up the trophy at the end and see yourself being a champion. So for me, it’s why I do this. I want to be on top of the mountain. I want to win a World Series. That’s the ultimate goal.”
The Mets entered Sunday’s regular-season finale needing a win and a Cincinnati loss at Milwaukee to make the playoffs.
New York could not overcome a four-run fourth inning by the Marlins, and the Mets were eliminated from the postseason with a 4-0 loss.
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Sunday, 28 September 2025
Ryder Cup: Scores and standings
The 45th Ryder Cup is underway at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y.
With 28 points up for grabs across five sessions, the first of Team USA or Team Europe to reach 14.5 will lift the cup. In the event of a tie, Team Europe will retain the cup as the reigning champion.
Europe leads 12-5 after Viktor Hovland withdrew from Sunday singles with an injury, leading to a half-point for each team in his match against Harris English.
The final day will now feature just 11 singles matches.
Follow here for live updates after each session.
Sunday singles
|
Team USA |
Team Europe |
Final Score |
|
Cameron Young |
Justin Rose |
TBD |
|
Justin Thomas |
Tommy Fleetwood |
TBD |
|
Bryson DeChambeau |
Matt Fitzpatrick |
TBD |
|
Scottie Scheffler |
Rory McIlroy |
TBD |
|
Patrick Cantlay |
Ludvig Aberg |
TBD |
|
Xander Schauffele |
Jon Rahm |
TBD |
|
JJ Spaun |
Sepp Straka |
TBD |
|
Russell Henley |
Shane Lowry |
TBD |
|
Ben Griffin |
Rasmus Hojgaard |
TBD |
|
Collin Morikawa |
Tyrrell Hatton |
TBD |
|
Sam Burns |
Robert MacIntyre |
TBD |
|
Harris English |
Viktor Hovland |
All square (Hovland WD) |
|
|
|
|
Saturday fourball
|
Team USA |
Team Europe |
Final score |
|
Justin Thomas and Cameron Young |
Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry |
Europe wins 2 up |
|
Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau |
Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose |
Europe wins 3&2 |
|
JJ Spaun and Xander Schauffele |
Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka |
USA wins 1 up |
|
Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay |
Tyrrell Hatton and Matt Fitzpatrick |
Europe wins 1 up |
Saturday foursomes
|
Team USA |
Team Europe |
Final score |
|
Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Young |
Matt Fitzpatrick and Ludvig Aberg |
USA wins 4&2 |
|
Harris English and Collin Morikawa |
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood |
Europe wins 3&2 |
|
Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay |
John Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton |
Europe wins 3&2 |
|
Russell Henley and Scottie Scheffler |
Robert MacIntrye and Viktor Hovland |
Europe wins 1 up |
Friday fourball
|
Team USA |
Team Europe |
Final score |
|
Scottie Scheffler and JJ Spaun |
Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka |
Europe wins 3&2 |
|
Ben Griffin and Bryson DeChambeau |
Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose |
Europe wins 1 up |
|
Cameron Young and Justin Thomas |
Ludvig Aberg and Rasmus Hojgaard |
USA wins 6&5 |
|
Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay |
Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry |
Tied |
Friday foursomes
|
Team USA |
Team Europe |
Final score |
|
Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Thomas |
Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton |
Europe wins 4&3 |
|
Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley |
Ludvig Aberg and Matt Fitzpatrick |
Europe wins 5&3 |
|
Collin Morikawa and Harris English |
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood |
Europe wins 5&4 |
|
Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay |
Robert MacIntyre and Viktor Hovland |
USA wins 2 up |
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Bo Bichette ‘unlikely’ to return for possible wild-card series, manager says
The stakes for the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 162 just got a little higher.
Star shortstop Bo Bichette is “pretty unlikely” to be able to return for a possible wild-card series, manager John Schneider told reporters on Sunday.
However, if the Blue Jays beat the Tampa Bay Rays in Sunday’s regular-season finale, they’d get a bye past the first round altogether.
Bichette has been sidelined since Sept. 6 with a knee sprain.
The 27-year-old was in the midst of a resurgent season at the plate, slashing .311/.357/.483 through 139 games while leading MLB in hits and doubles.
Toronto’s contest against Tampa Bay starts at 3 p.m. ET / noon PT Sunday, with live coverage available on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+.
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NFL Live Tracker: Eagles vs. Buccaneers
The Philadelphia Eagles and Tampa Bay Buccaneers square off in a showdown of two undefeated teams. Follow the action with Sportsnet’s live tracker, starting at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT.
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Saturday, 27 September 2025
Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov has knee surgery, could miss season
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Florida captain Aleksander Barkov needed surgery Friday to repair the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in his right knee, injuries that will likely sideline him for the entire regular season and potentially the playoffs as the Panthers try to win a third consecutive Stanley Cup.
Barkov got hurt Thursday in his first official practice of training camp. He had surgery Friday and the Panthers said the typical timetable for recovery from such a procedure is 7-9 months.
At minimum, that would suggest he won’t be playing before the start of the playoffs. And it ends any chance of him representing his native Finland — as he hoped and planned — in the Milan-Cortina Olympics this coming February.
“He’s such an important person in that locker room,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said Friday. “I think what we’re going to get to experience now is you’ll get to know some of the other leaders that we have in our room.”
Barkov was hurt 20 minutes into practice, doing a simple drill on a play where he took minimal contact.
“I know the idea is next man up,” Maurice said. “There’s not a next man for Barky’s skates.”
Barkov led the Panthers in assists last season with 51 and was second in points with 71 — then added six goals and 16 more assists in the playoffs when Florida won its second consecutive Stanley Cup.
Barkov has appeared in more than 86% of all Florida games, including playoffs, in his 12 NHL seasons. This is the first time he’s dealt with something that will likely keep him out for an entire season.
And now, the Panthers — who have been to the last three Stanley Cup finals and played more games in the last three seasons than any team in a three-year span in NHL history — have to navigate another missing star as the season approaches.
In addition to Barkov, the Panthers also will be without forward Matthew Tkachuk while he recovers from offseason surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle. There is no formal target for Tkachuk’s return; given the typical return-to-play timelines for such procedures, it wouldn’t seem likely that he plays in any games before December.
Since Tkachuk came to the Panthers in 2022, Florida has played only five games without either he or Barkov in the lineup — all last October, with the Panthers winning three of those five contests. And Tomas Nosek, who had a big role in last season’s run to the Cup title, is expected to miss considerable time with a knee injury.
“It’s going to be tough,” Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe said when asked about the Barkov news Friday. “He’s our leader — there’s no replacing Barky. Everyone has to step up. There’s no replacing him, but it’s another challenge for our group. And we’re usually pretty good at overcoming challenges.”
Barkov is Florida’s franchise leader in many categories, with games played (804), goals (286), assists (496), points (782), power-play goals (84) and game-winning goals (52) among them.
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Friday, 26 September 2025
Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov has knee surgery, could miss season
The Florida Panthers could be without their captain for the entire season.
Head coach Paul Maurice told reporters Friday that Barkov was having surgery on his right knee after injuring it during practice on Thursday.
The Panthers are now bracing for the possibility Barkov could be lost for the season, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported.
Maurice added that the team hoped to provide another update later Friday.
Barkov needed to be helped off the ice after appearing to sustain an injury to his right leg during the first full training camp practice of the season for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions on Thursday.
It was not clear what exactly happened to Barkov. He wasn’t able to skate off under his own power when he left the ice and headed to the team’s locker room.
Barkov led the Panthers in assists last season with 51 and was second in points with 71 — then added six goals and 16 more assists in the playoffs when Florida won its second consecutive Stanley Cup.
He is Florida’s franchise leader in countless categories, with games played (804), goals (286), assists (496), points (782), power-play goals (84) and game-winning goals (52) among them.
The Panthers already expect to be without forward Matthew Tkachuk for the first several weeks of the season while he recovers from off-season surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia. Now, they’re waiting to see if Barkov will be out for any significant time as well.
–with files from The Associated Press
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