Sports
Magic can't sulk over Game 6 as Game 7 approaches with Pistons
May 1, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) dribbles the ball against the Detroit Pistons in th fourth quarter during game six of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Reper-Imagn Images One game remains, and suddenly all the pressure has shifted.
After staring down elimination just days ago, the top-seeded Detroit Pistons forced a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday against the visiting Orlando Magic, putting themselves on the brink of history.
Only 13 teams in NBA history have rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win a playoff series, a reminder of both the rarity of Detroit’s push and the opportunity still in front of Orlando. The winner will face either Cleveland or Toronto in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Detroit’s 93-79 victory in Game 6 of their Eastern Conference first-round series on Friday flipped the series on its head, erasing what once looked like a commanding Orlando march after the eighth-seeded Magic built and then squandered a 24-point lead.
“It’s going to be a war,” said Detroit’s Duncan Robinson. “It’s pretty much what every game has been so far this series — super physical.
“They got a lot of pride in their locker room too. We expect them to come out swinging on Sunday. We’re super excited to get back and have a game seven on our home floor in front of our fans. So, it’s going to be a great challenge.”
The Pistons were able to force the decisive game by mounting a furious, defensive-ignited comeback in the second half. The Magic missed 23 consecutive shots, including 27 of their final 28 shots, and were outscored 55-19 during that span.
“Hopefully we start the game like we finished the game,” said Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff. “That’s going to be extremely important for us.
“I expect us to do what we do, and that’s keep swinging.”
The Magic are looking to avoid their second 3-1 collapse in franchise history. In 2003, they blew a 3-1 advantage over the top-seeded Pistons in their NBA first-round series. The Pistons haven’t won a playoff series since 2008, while the Magic haven’t since 2010.
Magic coach Jamahl Mosley was asked what his team has to do in Game 7 to bounce back from the stunning defeat.
“You got to wash it, you got to learn from it, you got to go get Game 7,” Mosley said. “You got to get it the hard way.
“We’ve been in Game 7 before, and we understand what it looks like on the road, the magnitude of it, what we know we’re capable of doing in this situation.”
Orlando will need to move past its 1-of-20 fourth-quarter shooting performance, including a combined 1-of-15 effort from Paolo Banchero, Desmond Bane and Jalen Suggs, while also preparing for the likelihood of being without forward Franz Wagner, who has missed the last two games with a calf injury.
“It’s the playoffs and this series has been a slugfest,” Banchero said. “Series ain’t over. They’ve clawed their way to tie it at 3-3. You don’t have time to hang your head about this. Obviously, it was a bad loss. Got to chalk it up. There’s nothing we can do about it at this point.”
The Magic will also need to figure out how to cool off Detroit’s Cade Cunningham who has scored 77 points over the last two games, including 32 in Game 6.
“He’s their engine,” Banchero said of Cunningham. “He does a lot of their scoring and facilitating and so, yeah, we got to make it hard on him, try to make others beat us, just do whatever we can to win the game.
“It’s one game. It’s all that matters is just one game. So, I think we got to just do whatever it takes.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Williams sisters to play doubles Saturday at Wimbledon
Jul 6, 2015; London, United Kingdom; Serena Williams (USA) and Venus Williams (USA) hug at the net after their match on day seven of The Championships Wimbledon at the AELTC. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images Serena and Venus Williams will play their Wimbledon first-round doubles match on Saturday after organizers gave Serena time to recover from a knee injury.
The sisters, who won the grass-court Grand Slam doubles title six times (most recently in 2016), take on Argentina’s Solana Sierra and Colombia’s Camila Osorio at the All England Club.
Playing her first singles match in nearly four years on Tuesday, the 44-year-old Serena tweaked her knee in the first set of a 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3 loss to Australia’s Maya Joint.
Tournament director Jamie Baker told the Associated Press the first-round doubles match was pushed back to give Serena “as much time” as possible to recover. All other first-round matches in the Ladies’ Doubles draw were contested Thursday and Friday.
“We want her to play if she … possibly can,” Baker said Friday.
Venus, 46, and Serena last played doubles at the 2022 U.S. Open, losing in the first round to Linda Noskova and Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic.
The winner of Saturday’s match will face ninth-seeded Ellen Perez of Australia and Demi Schuurs of the Netherlands in the second round.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tigers' Jack Flaherty, Rangers' Kumar Rocker have momentum after rough starts to season
Jun 28, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Tigers pitcher Jack Flaherty (9) pitches in the first inning against the Houston Astros at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images Following a short stint on the injured list, Detroit Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty didn’t allow a run in his return. He’ll look to build off that outing when his team plays the middle contest of a three-game series against Texas on Saturday afternoon in Arlington, Texas.
Flaherty recorded nine strikeouts in his five-inning start against the visiting Houston Astros on Sunday. The only negative was that Flaherty required 94 pitches to get that far. The Tigers wound up losing 7-5 in 10 innings.
“Still needed a better job to find a way to get some quick outs. Some quick outs, quicker ABs,” said Flaherty, who was on the injured list due to a left peroneal strain, a tendon injury along his lower leg. “They did a good job of getting the two strikes, and fouling some pitches off and making at-bats go a little bit longer.”
It was just the second time this season Flaherty (1-8, 4.97 ERA) had gone at least five innings without giving up a run. He started against the Rangers on May 1 and was pulled after 3 2/3 innings, allowing four runs on five hits while issuing three walks.
In five career starts against Texas, Flaherty is 1-1 with a 4.18 ERA.
After starting their road trip with a three-game sweep of the New York Yankees, the Tigers lost the opener of this series, 10-4, on Thursday. The teams didn’t meet on Friday due to the Australia-Egypt World Cup match played at nearby AT&T Stadium.
Detroit trailed 5-0 before fifth-inning homers by Colt Keith and Hao-Yu Lee cut the deficit to two runs. The Tigers’ bullpen failed to keep them within striking range.
“We’re chasing it from behind. That’s a tough recipe, but we did give ourselves a chance,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “They were able to get out of it and then tack on runs.”
The Rangers’ victory was their seventh in the last eight games and gave them at least a share of the AL West lead for the fifth straight day. Their run total on Thursday matched their season high.
“At the end of the day, everybody in here wants to win,” said Texas outfielder Evan Carter, who went 2-for-2 with a homer off the bench. “I think everybody’s showing up in the field every single day, everybody’s got their own unique skill sets, and we go out there trying to compete and grind and do whatever we can to help the team win every single day. I think that’s a collective thing that everybody here feels. Nobody here is playing for themselves, and I think that shows on the field.”
The Rangers pounded out 17 hits despite not having Corey Seager, Wyatt Langford or Brandon Nimmo due to injuries. The Rangers are hopeful Nimmo can play this weekend. He sprained his AC joint when he slammed into a wall while making a catch on Sunday.
Kumar Rocker (2-6, 3.83) is slated to start on Saturday as fellow right-hander Cal Quantrill (3-0, 3.31), who has spent most of this season in a relief role, was pushed back to Sunday’s game.
Rocker has walked 31 batters and entered Friday tied for the major league high with six wild pitches in 80 innings over 16 games (14 starts) this season. He hasn’t won since May 19.
In his most recent outing on Sunday, Rocker threw six scoreless innings while allowing four hits and one walk and striking out five in a no-decision against the host Toronto Blue Jays.
“He’s on the attack really with the fastball today,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said after the game. “I thought his fastball command was one of the best he’s had in a while. Really kept (the Blue Jays) off guard throwing in and outside to righties and lefties. The slider is real; he can throw at any time to strike guys out.”
Rocker is 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA and seven strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings over two starts against the Tigers. He faced host Detroit on May 2 and yielded five runs on seven hits in two innings in taking the loss.
Texas selected Rocker third overall in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Vanderbilt.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: England-Mexico start time Sunday moving due to storm risk
June 30, 2026; Mexico City, Mexico; Mexico’s Julian Quinones is thrown in the air in celebration by teammates after the match as Mexico qualify for the round of 16 stage of the World Cup. Mandatory Credit: Eloisa Sanchez-Reuters via Imagn Images The start time for the World Cup round of 16 match between England and host Mexico on Sunday is likely to move up to avoid inclement weather, according to multiple reports on Friday.
The kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. local time in Mexico City, 1 a.m. in the United Kingdom. FIFA has discussed moving up the kickoff six hours to 12 p.m. at Azteca Stadium, which would be 7 p.m. in the UK and 2 p.m. Eastern time, per the reports.
Mexico’s 2-0 victory over Ecuador in the round of 32 on Tuesday in Mexico City was delayed due to rain.
France’s group-stage match with Iraq on June 22 was paused under tournament safety rules when lightning strikes are detected within eight miles of the stadium, resulting in an automatic 30-minute delay to play.
England defeated the Democratic Republic of the Congo 2-1 on Wednesday in Atlanta to advance to the round of 16.
Fans of the Three Lions in Great Britain probably would prefer the earlier start time. Licensing laws were relaxed to allow pubs in the United Kingdom to stay open until 5 a.m. local time.
FIFA might also move the kickoff time for Brazil’s round of 16 match with Norway at 4 p.m. Eastern on Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J., to avoid a potential overlap with the match in Mexico City.
–Field Level Media
Williams sisters to play doubles Saturday at Wimbledon
Tigers' Jack Flaherty, Rangers' Kumar Rocker have momentum after rough starts to season
