Sports
Thunder keep streak alive with comeback win over Clippers
Jan 2, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) shoots a three point basket over Los Angeles Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images The Oklahoma City Thunder earned their 13th consecutive victory — and longest winning streak since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City — in a 116-98 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points and Jalen Williams added 18 to help the Thunder move within one win of the franchise’s all-time longest winning streak.
Before becoming the Thunder in 2008, the 64-18 Seattle Supersonics notched 14 straight wins during the 1995-96 season from Feb. 3 to March 6.
The Thunder, leading the NBA in points off turnovers, cranked up the heat defensively in the third quarter to take control. Oklahoma City forced seven turnovers in the third and turned those into 17 points on the other end to help them outscore the Clippers 42-20 in the frame. The Thunder scored 31 total points off turnovers in the win.
Los Angeles — missing James Harden (right groin soreness) for this contest — has lost back-to-back games. It was just Harden’s second missed game of the season.
Over the last two games, Oklahoma City has outscored its opponent 85-43 in the third.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 in the third, including six free throws. He finished 9 of 17 from the floor and made all nine of his free throws.
But unlike Tuesday’s win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, there was no fourth-quarter push that put the game in jeopardy. That allowed Thunder coach Mark Daigneault to sit Gilgeous-Alexander for the entire fourth quarter on the first night of a back-to-back.
The Clippers’ leading scorer this season, Norman Powell, missed his first 10 shots and didn’t connect until four minutes into the fourth. The shooting guard finished with a season-low six points on 1-of-11 shooting.
Amir Coffey led Los Angeles with a season-high 26 points.
While the Clippers got off to a hot start offensively, making seven of their first 10 shots, Oklahoma City was cold, especially from deep.
The Thunder sank just one of nine shots from beyond the arc in the first quarter as Los Angeles finished the frame with a 10-2 run to take an eight-point lead into the second.
The Clippers continued to find success in the second, stretching the run to 20-4 to lead by 16 points early in the second.
But just as they did Tuesday, when Oklahoma City cut a 12-point second-quarter deficit in half by halftime, the Thunder entered the third quarter with some momentum.
Oklahoma City trimmed the deficit to four on Jalen Williams’ running pull-up jumper at the buzzer. Williams scored 18 for the Thunder, and they will look to win their 14th straight game on Friday against the New York Knicks.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Brazil's Estevao (hamstring) in doubt for World Cup
Chelsea’s Estevao down injured in a match against Manchester United on April 18, 2026. Brazil forward Estevao’s participation in this summer’s FIFA World Cup reportedly is in jeopardy due to a hamstring injury sustained during Chelsea’s weekend loss to Manchester United.
The 18-year-old prodigy suffered a Grade 4 hamstring injury and is “highly unlikely” to be ready for the start of the North American tournament on June 11, The Athletic reported on Wednesday.
Estevao limped off with the injury in the 16th minute of Chelsea’s 1-0 loss on Saturday and was in tears in the locker room after the match, according to coach Liam Rosenior. He reportedly underwent an MRI on Monday afternoon.
Estevao has registered eight goals and four assists in 36 appearances during his first season with the Premier League side, including three goals in seven Champions League matches.
Internationally, Estevao has tallied four goals in his last four appearances with the Brazilian national team and has 11 career caps.
Brazil, currently ranked No. 6 in the world, is in Group C for the World Cup with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland. The five-time World Cup champions open play against Morocco on June 13 in East Rutherford, N.J.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Caps D Rasmus Sandin recovering from ACL surgery
Apr 5, 2026; New York, New York, USA; Washington Capitals defenseman Rasmus Sandin (38) warms up before the first period against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images Washington Capitals defenseman Rasmus Sandin is recovering from surgery to repair his torn right ACL.
The 26-year-old Swede sustained the knee injury in a 6-3 win at Pittsburgh on April 11.
The typical timeline for a recovery from ACL surgery is an estimated six to nine months.
Sandin finished the season with 29 points (five goals, 24 assists) and a plus-4 rating in 73 games. He was third on the team with 127 blocks.
A first-round pick by Toronto in 2018, Sandin has 145 points (25 goals, 120 assists) through 382 career games with the Maple Leafs and Capitals.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Ryder Cup organizers defend nearly doubled ticket prices for '27
Oct 1, 2023; Rome, ITA; Team Europe captain Luke Donald poses with the Ryder Cup after Team Europe beat Team USA during the final day of the 44th Ryder Cup golf competition at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Ryder Cup organizers are defending nearly doubling ticket prices for the 2027 event in Limerick, Ireland, from the last time Europe hosted the event in 2023.
Daily tickets to Adare Manor Golf Club, which will go on sale to Irish residents Friday before opening for the rest of the world in a ballot June 3, will be the most expensive in European Ryder Cup history at 499 euros ($584.45 USD). That’s a steep increase from the 260 euros ($304.54) that a daily ticket cost for the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome.
“We acknowledge it’s an increase from Rome,” Richard Atkinson, the European Tour Group’s chief Ryder Cup officer, told BBC.
“That was four years ago and a lot has happened in the world since then. We are lower than Bethpage. We’ve tried to make this as accessible as possible to a wide demographic of people. Our practice day tickets will be from 89 euros and juniors from 20 euros.
“Our prices are proportionate to a global sporting event. This event has grown in stature and profile, it’s one of the biggest sporting events in the world. We’re confident in our pricing but we’ve made it accessible to everyone.”
Daily tickets for the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black Golf Course in Farmingdale, N.Y., cost $750 USD (640.34 euros).
This will be the first Ryder Cup in Ireland since the K Club in Kildare hosted the 2006 event. It also has a chance to be a historic one as Luke Donald seeks to become the first captain to lead his team to three straight Ryder Cup titles after Europe became the first visiting side to win since 2012 with its 15-13 victory in the U.S. last year.
Regarding the price hike, Atkinson discussed a number of ways in which officials are attempting to make the 2027 event the most fan-friendly Ryder Cup Europe has ever hosted.
“We have significant focus on the fan experience on site and from the moment the people arrive at 6:30 in the morning, they’ll be entertained not only by 24 of the best golfers in the world but also outside of the ropes, we’ll have an extensive entertainment program to keep the fans engaged,” he said. “We’ll have over 20,000 grandstand seats at Adare, that’s a record for any European Ryder Cup, we’ll have big screens on every hole.”
Higher prices don’t seem to be affecting the interest level. Atkinson told BBC that even before tickets go on sale, demand has been quite high as they expect about 250,000 fans in attendance over the course of the week.
“We’ve already had over a half a million people register their interest for tickets, so that tells you how significant the demand is,” Atkinson said.
“This is likely to be one of the largest we’ve ever delivered and one of the largest events to come to the island of Ireland so we couldn’t be more excited.”
–Field Level Media
Report: Brazil's Estevao (hamstring) in doubt for World Cup
Caps D Rasmus Sandin recovering from ACL surgery
