Sports
Timberwolves escape wild finish to defeat Spurs
Dec 29, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; San Antonio Spurs center Charles Bassey (28) and Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) fight for a loose ball in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images Donte DiVincenzo scored a season-high 26 points as the Minnesota Timberwolves outlasted Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs 112-110 in a wild Western Conference clash in Minneapolis on Sunday.
The game was tied heading to the fourth quarter after the Spurs rallied from a 16-point deficit early in the third period.
Minnesota went ahead 110-105 after a pair of free throws by Rudy Gobert with 2:13 remaining. The Spurs responded with a jumper from Devin Vassell with 1:50 left, and Gobert split two free throws with 58 seconds to play.
Wembanyama brought San Antonio to within two points on a jarring, left-handed dunk with 45.2 seconds left. Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards then missed a short floater with 27 seconds remaining and, after a foul called on Gobert, Wembanyama made just one of two free throws.
DiVincenzo returned the favor, missing the first of two free throws with 12.8 seconds to play, keeping the game within two points. After a time out, San Antonio’s Jeremy Sochan missed a desperation 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left, allowing Minnesota to escape with the victory.
Gobert added 17 points and 15 rebounds as the Timberwolves won their third straight game. Julius Randle had 16 points, Edwards scored 14 on 6 of 20 shooting from the floor, Jaden McDaniels hit for 12 and Naz Reid scored 11 for Minnesota.
Wembanyama rang up 34 points to lead all scorers. Harrison Barnes added 24 for San Antonio, Vassell hit for 22 points, Keldon Johnson tallied 13 and Chris Paul had 14 assists and four steals.
The start of the game was delayed for an hour because of issues with the court surface. Once things got started, the Spurs owned the first quarter, sprinting to a 12-point lead before settling for a 33-25 advantage after one period.
The Timberwolves forged a 13-0 run to open the second period and took a 38-33 lead when Josh Minott poured in a 3-pointer with 8:34 left before halftime. Minnesota expanded its advantage to 10 points on Edwards’ driving layup with 3:37 left, and carried a 57-45 advantage to the break behind DiVincenzo’s 15 points.
Barnes led the Spurs with 15 points while Wembanyama had 10 in half.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Two ex-Fordham players banned after betting probe
Mar 11, 2023; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Fordham Rams guard Will Richardson (1) looks to drive past Dayton Flyers guard Koby Brea (4) in the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images Two former Fordham men’s basketball players received permanent bans from the NCAA on Tuesday after a lengthy gambling investigation.
The NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions found that Elijah Gray and Will Richardson participated in potential game manipulation for sports betting reasons.
According to the investigation, a $10,000 bet was placed on a February 2024 game involving Fordham in which the bettor wagered that the other team would win. NCAA enforcement staff identified three members of the roster with connections to the bettor, including Gray and Richardson.
Another member of the team told investigators he overheard Gray, Richardson and another student-athlete discussing the idea of throwing a game for money.
Gray admitted to agreeing to participate in the scheme in exchange for a payment of $10,000 to $15,000, but said he reconsidered and played with his normal effort and Fordham won the game. Richardson has denied involvement and he declined to cooperate with the investigation, which itself is an NCAA violation.
Gray, a 6-foot-8 forward, played two seasons at Fordham (2022-24) before transferring to Temple for the 2024-25 season. He transferred again to Wisconsin but was dismissed from the program last October amid the investigation. Gray averaged 5.7 points in 61 games (nine starts) for the Rams.
Richardson, a 6-foot-3 guard, played three seasons at Fordham (2022-25) before transferring to Albany, where he was dismissed from the program in December without appearing in a game. He averaged 7.9 points in 73 games (41 starts) for the Rams.
The bettors involved in the plot were indicted in January by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on wire fraud and bribery charges related to sports contests.
–Field Level Media
Sports
PWHL officially passes 1M attendance mark for first time
Nov 30, 2024; Toronto, ON, CANADA; Toronto Sceptres forward Jesse Compher (18) joins team mates and fans as they celebrate a goal scored by forward Hannah Miller (34) against the Boston Fleet in the third period at Coca-Cola Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images The Professional Women’s Hockey League surpassed one million fans in the regular season for the first time in its three-season history, the league announced Tuesday.
In all, 120 games were played, with slightly more than 1.1 million people filling the seats for an average of 9,304 per game.
That total is an increase of 28 percent over last season, including the playoffs, and 71% over the first season of 2023-24. The average total of fans in the stands was 5,448 per game in the first season, 7,230 in the second.
On April 17, the PWHL surpassed one million fans in a single season for the first time in league history, reaching the milestone in 109 regular season games, 30% fewer than the PWHL needed to reach its first million fans.
The attendance mark was helped by the addition of the expansion Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes, which The Athletic reported had the largest average attendance of all franchises at home this season. Seattle averaged 12,875 fans, with Vancouver bringing in 11,234 per game.
The league is expected to announce further expansion soon.
Before that, the league will hold the Walker Cup Playoffs beginning Thursday. The top-seeded Montreal Victoire and reigning champion Minnesota Frost will meet in one semifinal, with the Boston Fleet and Ottawa Charge in the other pairing. The winners of the two best-of-five series will play for the Walker Cup.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Celtics' Brad Stevens named NBA Executive of Year
Feb 28, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens before their game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens was named the NBA Basketball Executive of the Year for the second time in three seasons on Tuesday.
Stevens’ Celtics finished with the second-best record (56-26) in the Eastern Conference in 2025-26 and secured a top-two playoff seed for the fifth time in his five seasons in his current role.
Boston accomplished that despite parting ways with Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday before the season and only having All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum for 16 games after he recovered from an Achilles injury.
Stevens, who also won the award in 2023-24, is the 12th executive to receive the honor multiple times since it was first presented in 1972-73.
Stevens, 49, received 11 first-place votes and 69 total points in voting by his fellow executives. Atlanta Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh was second with 41 points, one more than Detroit Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon.
Before joining Boston’s front office, Stevens served as the team’s head coach for eight seasons and tallied a 354-282 record. During his 13-year tenure with the franchise, the Celtics have made 12 playoff appearances.
The Celtics currently have a 3-1 lead in their first-round series with the Philadelphia 76ers. Game 5 is on Tuesday night in Boston.
–Field Level Media
Two ex-Fordham players banned after betting probe
PWHL officially passes 1M attendance mark for first time
