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Battered clubs battle as Warriors hobble into Memphis

NBA: Sacramento Kings at Memphis GrizzliesFeb 23, 2026; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Memphis Grizzlies forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (18) shoots as Sacramento Kings guard Daeqwon Plowden (29) defends during the third quarter at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

The Memphis Grizzlies are going through a difficult stretch because of the abundance of injuries, particularly at one key position.

The shortcoming — emphasis on short — is beginning to take its toll on a team that is operating without true centers.

Zach Edey and Brandon Clarke are out with injuries — as they have been most of the season — and 6-foot-10 forward Jaren Jackson Jr. was traded to the Utah Jazz shortly before the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline, creating even more disadvantages in the paint.

As a result, the Grizzlies have lost six of their past seven games and have been overwhelmed on the boards as they prepare to play the visiting Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.

In a 123-114 loss on Monday to the visiting Sacramento Kings, who had dropped a franchise-worst 16 straight games, the Grizzlies were outrebounded 45-37. The Kings had 22 second-chance points thanks to 13 offensive rebounds.

Two days earlier, Memphis was outrebounded 57-35 in a 136-120 road loss to the Miami Heat.

“Offensively, this was one of the games that we really struggled against the switches,” Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo said of defeat against the Kings. “We don’t have the inside advantage that we had before and can’t really rebound. There’s no mismatches created by that, so we got to work on that.”

Besides Edey and Clarke, the Grizzlies have been missing a number of key players. Star guard Ja Morant will miss his 15th straight game on Wednesday because of an elbow injury. Rookie Cedric Coward, a regular starter since November, will be sidelined for a fifth consecutive contest due to a knee injury. Santi Aldama (knee) is set to miss his eighth game in a row.

Because of the abundance of injuries, Memphis started a different lineup for the 11th straight game Monday. Olivier-Maxence Prosper, who stands 6-7, started at center.

“Next year, we’re going to have a big,” Grizzlies guard Scotty Pippen Jr. said. “We will have guys back. I probably won’t see this much (defensive) switching on the court, like, ever. It’s rare to see anyone out there with a 6-foot-7 center.”

In the Monday loss, Javon Small led the Grizzlies with 21 points. He added nine assists and six rebounds. Prosper scored 17 points, and GG Jackson had 16.

The Warriors come to Memphis with their share of significant injuries. Stephen Curry hasn’t played since Jan. 30 due to a right knee injury and is expected to miss his ninth straight game. Kristaps Porzingis is battling an illness, and Jimmy Butler is out the remainder of the season with a torn ACL.

Porzingis, a key acquisition before the trade deadline, has appeared in one game for his new club — Feb. 19 against the Boston Celtics. In that contest, the veteran big man finished with 12 points in 17 minutes. He was sidelined for the past two games with what coach Steve Kerr called “just a bug.”

“He’s just been really, really sick, but he’s making improvements,” Kerr said.

Despite the absences, the Warriors posted an impressive 128-117 win over the visiting Denver Nuggets on Sunday, a game in which Golden State dished out a remarkable 42 assists on 48 made field goals. On Tuesday in New Orleans, the Warriors — minus Curry, Porzingis, Butler and Al Horford — fell 113-109 despite getting a season-high 28 points from Melton and 24 from Moses Moody.

Moody had 23 points against Denver.

“Moses has been brilliant for six weeks,” Kerr said. “He is shooting lights out.”

–Field Level Media

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Landen Roupp, Giants claim first matchup of season with Dodgers

MLB: Los Angeles Dodgers at San Francisco GiantsApr 21, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Landen Roupp (65) throws against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

Landen Roupp outpitched Yoshinobu Yamamoto, San Francisco got RBI singles from Rafael Devers and Jung Hoo Lee in a three-run first inning, and the Giants held off the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers 3-1 in the opener of a three-game series Tuesday night.

Roupp (4-1) allowed just one run on one hit in five innings, then watched five relievers combine for four innings of shutout ball, helping the Giants open a six-game homestand with a win after a 4-5 trip.

Roupp struck out seven and walked five in his first career win over the Dodgers.

Seeking his first-ever victory over the Giants, Yamamoto (2-2) went seven innings, allowing six hits and three runs, all of which scored in the first. He walked two and fanned seven.

Willy Adames got the cold night rolling for San Francisco with an infield single, after which Luis Arraez singled and Matt Chapman walked to load the bases.

Each of the next three batters delivered single runs, with Devers’ single chasing home Adames, Casey Schmitt’s sacrifice fly scoring Arraez, and Lee’s single plating Chapman.

Roupp allowed a two-out single by Hyeseong Kim in the second but no other hits until a wild spate in the fourth. He walked four of the first five batters he faced that inning, including Kim with the bases loaded to force home Teoscar Hernandez.

The right-hander got out of the one-out jam by inducing a double play grounder off the bat of Alex Call.

The Dodgers got the potential tying run on the bases with two outs in the seventh before Erik Miller struck out Kyle Tucker to retain the 3-1 lead.

Ryan Walker worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his second save.

Ryan Borucki, Matt Gage and Keaton Winn also contributed to the three-hitter in the first meeting of the season between the longtime California rivals.

Lee was the only player in the game with multiple hits, a pair of singles. The Giants out-hit the visitors 6-3, with the Dodgers’ Hernandez stroking the game’s only extra-base hit, a double.

–Field Level Media

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Logan Cooley lifts Mammoth past Knights for Utah's 1st playoff win

NHL: Stanley Cup Playoffs-Utah Mammoth at Vegas Golden KnightsApr 21, 2026; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Utah Mammoth defenseman Sean Durzi (50) attempts to deflect a shot attempt by Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden (21) during the first period of game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Logan Cooley scored the go-ahead goal on a rebound with six minutes remaining to give the Utah Mammoth the first playoff win in franchise history, 3-2 over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2 of their best-of-seven Western Conference first-round series on Tuesday in Las Vegas.

Cooley buried a rebound of a Dylan Guenther shot just inside the left post, even the best-of-seven series at one victory apiece. The scene now shifts to Salt Lake City for the next two contests, with Game 3 on Friday.

Guenther had a goal and an assist, Kailer Yamamoto had two assists and MacKenzie Weegar also scored for Utah. Karel Vejmelka made 19 saves, including a close-in shot by Mark Stone from the left side of the net with five seconds left to seal the win.

Stone and Ivan Barbashev each a scored goal and Jack Eichel had two assists for Vegas, which lost for the first time in regulation in 10 games (8-1-1) under coach John Tortorella. Carter Hart finished with 26 saves.

The teams exchanged own goals during the first period, which ended with the score 1-1.

Vegas, which rallied for a 4-2 victory in Game 1, took a 1-0 lead at the 11:40 mark on a power-play goal. Stone’s cross-crease pass for Tomas Hertl near the right post caromed straight into the net off the skate of Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev. It was Stone’s 43rd career playoff goal and his sixth in the past six games dating back to the regular season.

Utah tied it near the end of the period when Weegar’s shot from the right point deflected off the stick of Vegas defenseman Noah Hanifin and then off the pads of Hart into the low slot toward Golden Knights defenseman Rasmus Andersson, who kicked the rebound into the net.

The Mammoth took a 2-1 lead in the second period on a one-timer from the top of the left circle by Guenther off a pass from Yamamoto.

The Golden Knights tied it 62 seconds later. Barbashev intercepted a clearing pass by Sergachev in the neutral zone and then skated in and split a pair of Utah defensemen before roofing a backhand shot into the top far corner for his second goal of the playoffs.

–Field Level Media

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Munetaka Murakami extends HR streak as White Sox pound D-backs

MLB: Chicago White Sox at Arizona DiamondbacksApr 21, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Chicago White Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami hits a home run in the second inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Rookie Munetaka Murakami homered for the fourth straight game, Colson Montgomery went deep for the third straight and the Chicago White Sox slugged four homers in an 11-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix on Tuesday.

Murakami, Michael Vargas and Montgomery hit consecutive solo shots with two outs in the second inning to help stake Sean Burke (1-2) to a 7-0 lead.

Murakami, who has nine homers in 23 games, reached base four times, adding two infield singles and a walk. He singled and scored in a four-run first off Merrill Kelly (1-1).

Vargas homered for the second straight game, Montgomery and Sam Antonacci notched two hits and three RBIs apiece and Tristan Peters had three hits. The White Sox have won three of four and scored 33 runs over that span.

Arizona’s Ildemaro Vargas had a three-run homer in the ninth to extend his season-opening hitting streak to 16 games, the longest in the majors. Dating back to the end of the 2025 season, Vargas has hit in 18 straight. Alek Thomas had two hits, including his first homer of the season for the Diamondbacks, who had won 10 of 14.

The White Sox have 11 homers in their last three games and 14 in their last five.

Antonacci had a two-run inside-the-park homer in the ninth when his ground ball inside the bag at third appeared to be touched by the ball boy along the left field line. Left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. did not immediately attempt to field it as Antonacci circled the bases for his first career homer.

Burke gave up two runs on five hits in six innings in his first road victory since a 4-0 decision at Detroit on Sept. 28, 2024. He struck out three and walked one.

Kelly gave up eight runs and 10 hits before leaving with one out in the fifth. He struck out five and walked three in his second start of the season after opening on the injured list.

The first four White Sox batters reached in the first. Andrew Benintendi singled, Murakami reached on an infield single, Vargas walked and Montgomery doubled in two. Everson Pereira hit a sacrifice fly and Antonacci tripled for a 4-0 lead.

Murakami, Vargas and Montgomery homered in the second for a 7-0 lead after 13 batters.

–Field Level Media

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