The Los Angeles Lakers crawled themselves back into their series with the Oklahoma City Thunder with a 99-96 home win on Friday night. The victory in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals put the series at 2-1 with the Thunder still holding the advantage.But the big story Friday came at the free throw line, where the Lakers hit an astonishi…

Hayden Panettiere is trending right now. Why? I don’t know I think it’s because of her cleavage. Or some other non-story pretending to be a media story. Who cares? Hayden’s played a cheerleader in movies, and she’s taken some nice pics with the Stanley Cup. And this is NHL postseason time, although no one here actually cares now that the B…

If you’ve ever seen an NBA playoff game, chances are you’ve seen Jimmy Goldstein positioned in expensive seats somewhere near the court. And if you don’t know who Jimmy Goldstein is, he is the older fellow decorated in outlandish designer clothes — highlighted by a cowboy hat that always looks like it’s made out of one of Johnny Weir’s…

Catch of the Night

I was just watching Friday’s episode of ESPN’s “Outside The Lines,” and the show opened up covering Miami Heat’s 94-75 loss to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semi-finals Game 3. In this game which put the Pacers up 2-1, the Heat looked defeated and dejected. The lone spark of the team came from [...]

    Before last season Shaka Smart and his VCU Rams made a visit to former Navy SEAL John McGuire for three days of physical training exercises. Smart’s players may be more than a decade younger than him but he’s in just as good a shape, if not better. We saw some evidence of that [...]

Jamaica is well on its way to fielding its own national ice hockey team after the International Ice Hockey Federation voted the country as an associate member on Friday.Associate member status means that the country still can’t compete in any IIHF sanctioned events, but the wheels certainly are in motion with the goal of fielding a team for the…

    Watching Calvin Johnson on the football field it’s evident that not only is he a tremendous wide receiver, but a gifted athlete. Today we found out the two-time Pro Bowler is no stranger to the baseball diamond. Prior to tonight’s Detroit Tigers-Pittsburgh Pirates game #81 stepped into the batting cage for a few [...]

Kerry Wood announced prior to Friday’s Cubs-White Sox series opener that he would be retiring after the game, but he still wanted to make one last pitching appearance. His wish came true when he relieved Jeff Samardzija in the 8th inning to face pinch-hitter Dayan Viciedo. Wood struck out Viciedo on three pitches, walked off the field to a stan…

Terrell Owens has taken his public lobbying for an NFL roster spot to the Bay area, telling a San Francisco radio station that he wants to play for the 49ers or the Raiders.

Junior Seau's death got former New England Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson thinking again about his own career in the NFL and his struggles with post-concussion syndrome after heretired in 2005.

Getty ImagesJust last week, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger claimed that he felt like the San Francisco 49ers were targeting his injured ankle, when both teams faced off against one another.49ers linebacker Aldon Smith has denied Roethlisberger’s accusation.“Our goal was to win the game,” Smith said. “We don’t go out…

Getty ImagesAccording to a poll that the Palm Beach Post has on their website, it looks like Miami Dolphin fans are starting to show some support for general manager Jeff Ireland, who’s taken a lot of heat in the past from the fans and media.We posted a copy of the poll below:His vision has the team headed in the right direction  68.17% (1,34…

Last month, something happened at the home where Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders and his estranged wife had been living, in separate areas of the oversized home.  Pilar Sanders was arrested and charged with misdemeanor assault.  Deion Sanders eventually was cited for misdemeanor assault.  A witness claimed that Deion was the aggressor but…

NEW YORK (AP) -- Lawyers representing Tim Tebow have sent a cease and desist letter to a T-shirt manufacturer they say is illegally using the name of the New York Jets quarterback to sell products.

Getty ImagesAccording to Juan Kincaid of WWLTV in New Orleans, Saints owner Tom Benson has guaranteed that they will sign quarterback Drew Brees to a new contract, despite the fact that both sides have gotten no where this offseason.It’s time for Benson to step in and demand that Saints general manager Mickey Loomis give Brees whatever he wants…

NEW YORK (AP) Lawyers representing Tim Tebow have sent a cease and desist letter to a T-shirt manufacturer they say is illegally using the name of the New York Jets quarterback to sell products.

Quick Review of 2011 Offense—No. 4 rushing, No. 28 passing, No. 18 total. Defense—No. 11 rushing, No. 26 passing, No. 21 total. After the Brett Favre experiment, the Vikings expected 2011 to be a transition year. They drafted quarterback Christian Ponder and brought in Donovan McNabb to mentor him. McNabb had a terrible year and gave way to Pon…

Lawyers representing Tim Tebow have issued a cease and desist letter to a T-shirt manufacturer which they say is illegally using the name of the New York Jets quarterback to sell products.

Barry Zito outdid his old Oakland team, Brandon Belt drove in three runs, and the San Francisco Giants beat the Oakland Athletics in the Bay Bridge Series opener 8-6 on Friday night

Jered Weaver and two relievers combined on a three-hitter, Mike Trout had an RBI triple among his three hits and the Los Angeles Angels beat the San Diego Padres 4-2 in their first regular-season visit to Petco Park.

Texas Rangers star slugger Josh Hamilton insists he isn't worried about his impending free agency. Team president Nolan Ryan certainly is.

A.J. Ellis drew a bases-loaded walk in the ninth inning, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 6-5 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A.J. Ellis drew a bases-loaded walk in the ninth inning, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 6-5 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night in the opener of a series between the NL West and Central Division leaders.

If Josh Harrison keeps this up, he's going to blow his cover as one of the lower-profile guys on the Pirates. Friday night, there was Harrison derailing Justin Verlander's motorcade into no-hit wonderland, with a no-doubter single with one out in the ninth.

Despite losing manager Don Mattingly to a third-inning ejection, second baseman Mark Ellis to a seventh-inning leg injury and two leads, the Dodgers pulled out a 6-5 win over the Cardinals on Friday night on A.J. Ellis' bases-loaded walk-off walk in the ninth.

The Giants grabbed a commanding seven-run lead through four innings, then withstood Josh Donaldson's five-RBI effort to prevail, 8-6, over the A's in Friday night's opener of a three-game Interleague series.

Each day, MLB.com selects one player from each game whose performance stands out. Here are the May 18 Mane Men of the Day.

Nothing could go right for Jered Weaver the last time he took the ball. On Friday, basically everything did, as the Angels' ace gave up two runs over a solid seven innings on the mound while adding a single and a walk at the plate in an eventual 7-2 victory over the Padres at Petco Park.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Andre Iguodala squared up for a 3-pointer from the wing like he had hundreds of times in his career.

The Lakers are on the board in the Western Conference semifinals. Kobe Bryant and Metta World Peace came up clutch late to beat the Thunder 99-96 and cut their series lead to 2-1.

The Lakers clipped the Thunder 99-96 and cut their series deficit to 2-1 with nearly impeccable free-throw shooting. Now that L.A.'s responded, recovery is crucial, writes Sam Amick.

Kobe Bryant didn't miss on 18 free throws, and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied late for a 99-96 victory over Oklahoma City in Game 3.

LOS ANGELES (AP) After two straight exhausting playoff games that went down to the last gasp, Kobe Bryant knows the Los Angeles Lakers can't hope to keep up with the younger, faster Oklahoma City Thunder.

Kobe Bryant and the Lakers made 41 of 42 free-throw attempts to stay alive in their series against the Thunder. Earlier, the 76ers erased a 15-point ...

Andre Iguodala snapped a tie game with five straight points in the final 90 seconds to help the Philadelphia 76ers storm back from 15 points down and stun the Boston Celtics 92-83 on Friday night in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Celtics won't soon forget this loss. The 76ers rallied from 18 down to win 92-83 and even the series at 2-2. Boston blew a big chance as one of its stars vanished, says Ian Thomsen.

The Philadelphia 76ers storm back from 15 points down to defeat the Boston Celtics 92-83 on Friday night in Game 4.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Andre Iguodala squared up for a 3-pointer from the wing like he had hundreds of times in his career.

The Lakers are on the board in the Western Conference semifinals. Kobe Bryant and Metta World Peace came up clutch late to beat the Thunder 99-96 and cut their series lead to 2-1.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Andre Iguodala squared up for a 3-pointer from the wing like he had hundreds of times in his career.

The 76ers and Celtics are even after a topsy-turvy Game 4. Philadelphia shot 23 percent in the first half and trailed by 15 points but rallied past Boston 92-83 to make it a 2-2 series.

Metta World Peace wrestled with Russell Westbrook and the two were issued technical fouls in the second quarter of Game 4.