Sports
Women's Top 25 roundup: No. 24 Florida State overtakes No. 3 Irish
Oct 4, 2024; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Reigan Richardson (24) celebrates a three-pointer during Countdown to Craziness at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images Ta’Niya Latson’s 23 points and Makayla Timpson’s 22 points and 17 rebounds helped No. 24 Florida State rally from a big early hole to stun No. 3 Notre Dame 86-81 on Thursday in South Bend, Ind.
O’Mariah Gordon added 15 points for Florida State (23-6, 13-4 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Notre Dame (24-4, 15-2) led by 15 points in the second quarter but wound up taking a second straight ACC loss for the first time in four years. The Irish fell in double overtime at North Carolina State on Sunday.
NC State and Notre Dame are tied atop the ACC standings with one game remaining for each team. NC State holds the tiebreaker for ACC tournament seeding.
Sonia Citron had 21 points for the Irish. Liatu King finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
No. 1 Texas 68, Mississippi State 64
Shay Holle scored 16 points and Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda compiled 15 points and 11 rebounds to guide the Longhorns past the Bulldogs in Starkville, Miss., for their 12th win in a row.
Madison Booker had 12 points and Rori Harmon added 10 points and seven assists for Texas (28-2, 14-1 Southeastern Conference), which held on after holding a 10-point lead with 2:10 remaining. The Longhorns trailed 27-26 at halftime.
Jerkaila Jordan had 14 points and Madina Okot put up 11 points for Mississippi State (19-10, 6-9).
No. 5 Connecticut 72, No. 22 Creighton 53
Sarah Strong’s 22 propelled the Huskies as they clinched the Big East regular season crown in Harford, Conn.
Paige Bueckers totaled 15 points, seven assists and seven rebounds for UConn (27-3, 17-0 Big East).
Morgan Maly had 11 points and Molly Mogensen added nine points for Creighton (23-5, 15-2), which had 19 turnovers.
Creighton scored the game’s first eight points, but the Huskies led 11-10 by the end of the first quarter, then outscored the Blue Jays 27-12 in the second to take control.
No. 6 South Carolina 75, Ole Miss 59
Chloe Kitts recorded the Gamecocks’ first triple-double in four years, leading South Carolina past the Rebels in Oxford, Miss.
Kitts finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists, the ninth triple-double in program history. Sania Feagin shot 10-for-13 from the field on the way to 22 points for the Gamecocks (26-3, 14-1 SEC), who took control in the second half.
Sira Thienou notched 15 points off the bench to pace Ole Miss (18-9, 9-6), but the Rebels managed to score only 12 fourth-quarter points. Christeen Iwuala ended up with 10 points.
No. 20 Alabama 88, No. 7 LSU 85 (OT)
Sarah Ashlee Barker made a tiebreaking jumper with 1:27 left in overtime and Aaliyah Nye racked up 28 points at Tuscaloosa, Ala.
After Barker’s basket, LSU’s Mikaylah Williams went 1-for-2 on free throws at the 31-second mark, but Alabama still needed a blocked shot by Essence Cody, two free throws from Zaay Green and a final defensive stop to hold on. Williams’ 3-point attempt was off the mark on the game’s last shot.
Alabama (23-6, 10-5 SEC) received 21 points from Barker, 17 from Cody and 15 from Green.
Williams had 22 points, Aneesah Morrow notched 16 points and Sa’Myah Smith added 15 points for LSU (27-3, 12-3).
No. 16 Duke 68, No. 8 North Carolina 53
Reigan Richardson sank five 3-pointers and scored 23 points as the Blue Devils avenged an earlier ACC overtime loss by defeating the Tar Heels in Durham, N.C.
Toby Fournier posted 19 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for Duke (22-7, 13-4 ACC), which outscored the Tar Heels 21-9 in the third quarter.
North Carolina (25-5, 13-4) had been the only Division I women’s team this season without a road loss. Lanie Grant had 17 points to pace the Heels while Indya Nivar and Lexi Donarski both had 10.
North Carolina, which bounced back from a rough start and led 32-31 at halftime, couldn’t overcome 20 turnovers.
The Tar Heels played without starters Reniya Kelly and Alyssa Ustby, who were out with injuries. Kelly’s absence came as a surprise, while Ustby has missed recent games.
No. 9 North Carolina State 78, Wake Forest 57
Aziaha James scored 18 of her 21 points in the first half to help the Wolfpack grab a 24-point halftime lead as NC State cruised in its regular-season home finale in Raleigh, N.C.
Zoe Brooks poured in 17 points and Madison Hayes had 14 for the Wolfpack (23-5, 15-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who are unbeaten in 16 home games. The Wolfpack made eight first-half 3-pointers, leading 48-24 at the break and showing no letdown after upending then-No. 1 Notre Dame in double overtime on Sunday.
Reserve Malaya Cowles had 14 points and Elise Williams provided 13 for Wake Forest (9-19, 2-15), which has lost 12 in a row in the series. The Demon Deacons went 4-for-20 on 3-point attempts.
No. 18 Kentucky 82, No. 11 Tennessee 58
Clara Strack’s 23 points and 15 rebounds carried the Wildcats in the Southeastern Conference win in Lexington, Ky.
Teonni Key and Georgia Amoore both scored 18 points for Kentucky (22-5, 11-4 SEC), which led 45-26 at the half. Dazia Lawrence added 13 points for the Wildcats, who outrebounded Tennessee 52-31.
Talaysia Cooper was the only double-figure scorer with 25 points for Tennessee (21-7, 8-7), which shot 31.1 percent from the floor.
No. 13 Oklahoma 89, Florida 65
Payton Verhulst’s 17 points and Raegan Beers’ 16 paced the Sooners to a Southeastern Conference road win in Gainesville, Fla.
Skylar Vann had 13 points for Oklahoma (22-6, 10-5 SEC), while Liz Scott and Sahara Williams both had 11. The Sooners were up 44-32 at halftime and scored at least 20 points in every quarter.
Liv McGill had 14 points to lead Florida (14-15, 5-10), while Ra Shaya Kyle and Alexia Dizeko each had 11.
No. 19 Maryland 74, Indiana 60
Shyanne Sellers had 25 points for the Terrapins, who outscored Indiana 28-21 in the fourth to pull away for the Big Ten Conference win in Bloomington, Ind.
Kaylene Smikle added 16 points for Maryland (22-6, 12-5 Big Ten) and Christina Dalce had 11.
Yarden Garzon’s 18 points led Indiana (17-11, 9-8), and Shay Ciezki finished with 15. The Hoosiers rallied from a 30-20 halftime deficit to close within two in the third quarter before fading.
No. 25 Louisville 78, Clemson 52
Tajianna Roberts racked up 19 points and the Cardinals, who couldn’t hold a lead in their last game, bounced back with an Atlantic Coast Conference home win.
Jayda Curry added 15 points and 10 rebounds while reserve Izela Arenas notched 14 points for Louisville (20-8, 13-4 ACC), which endured fourth-quarter snags in Sunday’s loss to then-No. 9 North Carolina. Louisville led Clemson 31-30 at halftime before pouring it on in the second half, including a 23-6 fourth quarter.
Loyal McQueen had 16 points to pace Clemson (13-15, 6-11), which was 3-for-15 on 3-pointers.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Odell Beckham Jr.'s Giants Return Comes With Plenty of Questions
Odell Beckham Jr. watched Sunday’s World Cup final at his once and future NFL home digs amid scores of luminaries from sports, stage and screen.
The New York Giants wide receiver hopes to inspire pandemonium, not absorb it, during his forthcoming visits to what again can be called MetLife Stadium. Until then, Beckham Jr. is drawing attention for behavior beyond football as his Giants reunion begins.
Welcome back to real life, if not reality.
In June, OBJ signed a one-year, veteran minimum contract with New York that’s worth up to $1.3 million, per reports. A few weeks later, he discussed the hypotheticals of earning much more, delivering an opinion that made him look disjointed and entitled.
Again, welcome back to – well, you know.
During an appearance on the Pivot podcast, Beckham said that a five-year, $100 million NFL contract – a sum now well beyond the 33-year-old’s grasp – isn’t enough money.
Said Beckham: “It’s five years for $60 million; you’re getting taxed.”
He then asserted that his own spending habits, roughly $4 million per year, would spare him a measly $40 million. Then there’s the matter of taking care of friends and family.
“Can you make that last forever?” Beckham said.
Apparently, you can stretch a fraction of that sum to catch the conclusion of Spain’s dominant run to a world soccer title, anyway.
Beckham posted about his Sunday-afternoon whereabouts on Instagram, including a photo of him alongside Giants quarterback Jaxon Dart. The duo certainly looked cool, with OBJ showing the swagger of the youngster who earned AP Offensive Rookie of the Year with New York in 2014 while collecting 5,476 receiving yards and 44 touchdown receptions over his first five seasons with Big Blue.
To what extent Beckham can channel that production in his second stint remains to be seen. For all the flash he brings and the many feel-good voyages down Memory Lane his signing provided, Beckham shouldn’t project as a lynchpin as the John Harbaugh Era dawns.
OBJ played in only nine games with the Miami Dolphins in 2024, finishing with nine catches for 55 yards before he received a six-game suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy. He sat out the 2025 season and hasn’t caught a touchdown pass since Week 14 in 2023, when he played for the Baltimore Ravens.
New York brought Beckham back while adding a slew of fellow veteran wideouts – including Darnell Mooney, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Braxton Berrios and Calvin Austin – to a receiver room that lost Wan’Dale Robinson to free agency (Tennessee) and is navigating numerous offseason injuries.
In May, Gunner Olszewski suffered a torn Achilles during OTAs. Darius Slayton had core-muscle surgery in the spring but continues to recover and was among the 80,000-plus at MetLife for Spain-Argentina.
Malik Nabers, meanwhile, appears on track to return after tearing his ACL in Week 4 of last season following a standout rookie year.
The Giants hope at least one of their veterans can slide into a starting role to augment their budding youngsters.
While OBJ’s output isn’t the proverbial money in the bank of a decade ago, you can bet his pursuit of a second chance in New York will net plenty of chatter.
He’s due back at MetLife in a little under one month; the Giants host the Minnesota Vikings in their preseason opener on Aug. 15.
Sports
Tigers ride all-around effort of Dillon Dingler into clash against Cubs
Jul 20, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) points after he hits a solo home run during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images Dillon Dingler showed again how he can be the Detroit Tigers’ difference-maker.
The Tigers catcher had two home runs, a successful pickoff and the go-ahead RBI single as Detroit defeated the Chicago Cubs 8-6 in 10 innings in the first contest of a three-game set on Monday, all while managing six pitchers in a big-game environment.
Game 2 of the series in Chicago will be Tuesday night.
“A lot of Tigers fans in the stands and obviously a lot of Cubs fans in the stands made it feel like a playoff atmosphere, and the whole team rallied to get a big win,” Dingler said after his 4-for-5, three-RBI performance on Monday.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch concurred, calling it “a character win.”
Hinch said his favorite part of Dingler’s performance wasn’t the big hits. Instead, he enjoyed watching the All-Star’s way of “navigating the game, in this ballpark, against that offense.”
“I love homers for us, when he hits them, but his contribution behind the plate is always going to be where I go to first,” said Hinch, a former catcher who appeared in 27 games with the Tigers in 2003.
The extra-innings loss on Monday was made even worse for Chicago when reliever Trent Thornton left the game after taking a Riley Greene line drive directly off his foot in the 10th.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell said X-rays were negative on Thornton’s heel after the game, but he added that the team will monitor his status.
Thornton has a 3-3 record with a 2.70 ERA and three saves in 27 appearances this season.
“We’ve done a really good job of — especially in the bullpen — just trying to do the next-man-up mentality,” Cubs pitcher Jameson Taillon told reporters after Thornton’s exit. “But seeing a guy like that go down is tough.”
Injuries have been an unfortunate theme for the Cubs’ pitching staff this season. Phil Maton (knee) was added to the 15-day injured list on Monday, joining fellow pitchers Ben Brown, Daniel Palencia, Ethan Roberts, Hoby Milner and Edward Cabrera on the IL. Other pitchers, including Cade Horton, are on the 60-day IL.
Taillon was making his first start since June 7 in Monday’s loss, recently returning from a hamstring strain. He did not figure into the decision after allowing four runs in 4 1/3 innings.
It will be a clash of left-handers on the mound Tuesday as Detroit’s Framber Valdez (5-6, 4.10 ERA) opposes David Peterson (4-7, 6.45).
Valdez will make his first start since returning from the bereavement list on Saturday after the death of his grandmother. He had a stellar outing in his most recent start on July 9, striking out nine and giving up one run in seven innings as the Tigers beat the Athletics 4-1.
Both of Valdez’s previous starts against Chicago came as a member of the Houston Astros. He’s 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA vs. the Cubs, most recently tossing six shutout innings in a 2-0 Astros win on June 29, 2025.
Peterson is 1-1 with an 8.16 ERA in his three starts for Chicago since being acquired from the Mets on June 25. He took a no-decision last time out against Baltimore on July 9, allowing only one run in five innings of a 3-2 loss.
This will be Peterson’s first career appearance against Detroit.
–Field Level Media
Sports
After two walk-off losses, Cardinals eager to rebound in matchup vs. Angels
Jul 5, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Matthew Liberatore (32) pitches against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images After suffering their second consecutive walk-off loss, the St. Louis Cardinals will turn to Opening Day starter Matthew Liberatore when they face the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday night in Anaheim, Calif.
St. Louis, on the heels of blowing a 7-0 lead in a 10-inning, 8-7 defeat at Arizona on Sunday, saw the Angels rally to win the series opener 3-2 on Monday.
The Cardinals appeared to be in good shape heading into the bottom of the ninth with a 2-1 lead, especially after All-Star closer Riley O’Brien struck out Mike Trout to open the frame. The Angels were 0-48 this season when trailing after eight innings.
But Nolan Schanuel followed with a single and Jorge Soler was hit by a pitch. Vaughn Grissom then lined a double off the top of the right-field fence, missing a home run by inches, to drive in pinch runner Oswald Peraza with the tying run.
After Josh Lowe was intentionally walked to load the bases, O’Brien plunked Jo Adell with a 3-0 sinker to drive in the winning run.
It marked the Angels’ first walk-off win via a hit-by-pitch since Hank Conger was hit on April 11, 2014.
“That’s one of those where you don’t feel it getting hit right there,” said Adell, who snapped an 0-for-24 slump with a solo homer earlier. “Good stuff.”
O’Brien said: “Just didn’t have a good feel for the ball today.”
Despite the loss, St. Louis remained in a tie with Miami and Pittsburgh for the final wild-card spot in the National League.
Liberatore (5-6, 5.00 ERA), who has won two of his last three starts during a roller-coaster season, comes in off his finest outing of 2026. The left-hander allowed four hits over six shutout innings in a 4-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves on July 11, walking one and striking out six.
Liberatore has allowed just four earned runs over 16 innings in his last three starts. A big focus has been curtailing big innings.
“That was something that was a theme over a couple starts,” Liberatore said. “I think over the last few starts, I’ve done a much better job of that. Not to say it’s never going to happen again, but I think some of the discussions that we had and adjustments that were made helped me navigate through those moments.”
Liberatore is 0-0 with a 6.75 ERA in two career starts against the Angels.
Rookie right-hander Walbert Urena (5-7, 2.88 ERA) will try to pitch Los Angeles to a series win.
Urena, who has never faced the Cardinals, last started in a 13-1 win on July 8 at Texas and had a lukewarm performance. He allowed one hit over four shutout innings but walked a career-high five batters. He didn’t get a chance to go back out for the fifth inning to earn the win even though the Angels had a 7-0 lead because he already had thrown 90 pitches, just 52 for strikes.
“It wasn’t the best, man,” Urena said afterward. “My command wasn’t the best today. Walks. Behind in counts always. But I got lucky.”
–Field Level Media
Odell Beckham Jr.'s Giants Return Comes With Plenty of Questions
Tigers ride all-around effort of Dillon Dingler into clash against Cubs
