Sports
NBA roundup: Luka Doncic puts up triple-double as Lakers top Mavs
Feb 25, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) dribbles the ball past Dallas Mavericks forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (8) during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Luka Doncic paired 19 points with 15 rebounds and 12 assists against his former team, three weeks after a blockbuster trade, and the Los Angeles Lakers pulled out a 107-99 victory over the visiting Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night.
LeBron James scored 27 points and secured 12 rebounds, Austin Reaves added 20 points and Rui Hachimura had 15 as the Lakers improved to 3-2 with Doncic on the court. Los Angeles won its third consecutive game and improved to 13-3 since Jan. 21.
Doncic delivered his first triple-double with the Lakers, his fourth of the season and the 81st of his career to only heighten the sentiment of an unpopular trade in Dallas.
Kyrie Irving scored 35 points and Klay Thompson added 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter for the Mavericks, who dropped to 5-6 since Jan. 31. Max Christie, who was part of the package from the Lakers for Doncic, added 10 points in his ninth game with Dallas.
Grizzlies 151, Suns 148
Jaylen Wells scored seven points in overtime as Memphis held off visiting Phoenix.
Ja Morant shook off a rough shooting night to finish with 29 points and eight assists to lead the Grizzlies. Jaren Jackson Jr. added 28 before fouling out in the fourth quarter and Desmond Bane scored 25 with nine assists.
Five Suns, led by Devin Booker, had 20 or more points. Booker finished with 28 and 10 assists and Kevin Durant contributed 26 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Bradley Beal had his first double-double of the season with 24 points and 11 assists. Bol Bol scored 23 and grabbed eight boards and Grayson Allen scored 15 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter.
Celtics 111, Raptors 101
Jaylen Brown scored eight of his 24 points in the fourth quarter and visiting Boston defeated Toronto.
Jayson Tatum added 19 points and 11 assists for the Celtics, who have won six in a row. Derrick White contributed 22 points, five assists and three steals, reserve Payton Pritchard scored 20 points and Sam Hauser scored 10.
RJ Barrett scored 22 points to lead the Raptors, who have lost seven of nine. Scottie Barnes added 21 points, Gradey Dick scored 12 and Immanuel Quickley had 10.
Cavaliers 122, Magic 82
With Ty Jerome scoring 20 points off the bench, Cleveland cruised to its eighth straight win and its 12th victory in 13 games.
Evan Mobley added 17 points and eight rebounds for the Cavaliers, who never trailed in Orlando.
Paolo Banchero had 26 points to pace the Magic, who saw Cole Anthony leave in the third quarter with a hyperextended left knee.
The Cavs built a 34-16 lead by the end of the first quarter, then outscored Orlando 65-39 in the second half to pick up the win.
Rockets 100, Bucks 97
Jalen Green logged 25 points, including two free throws with 8.1 seconds left, and Houston escaped with the home win over Milwaukee.
Damian Lillard missed two free throws with 3.7 seconds to go and then an ensuing 3-point attempt as Milwaukee’s four-game winning streak game to a close.
Alperen Sengun had 23 points and 11 rebounds for Houston, which won for the fourth time in six games, and Dillon Brooks had 16 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 27 points, 10 boards and six assists for the Bucks, and Lillard added 22 points.
Pelicans 109, Spurs 103
Trey Murphy III scored 24 points and host New Orleans overcame a double-digit deficit to beat San Antonio for the second consecutive game.
Zion Williamson had 18 points, CJ McCollum added 13, and Jordan Hawkins finished with 12 off the bench. Yves Missi had 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Pelicans, who overcame a 19-point deficit two nights after they rallied back from a 17-point hole to beat the Spurs 114-96.
Devin Vassell paced San Antonio with 20 points, Harrison Barnes and De’Aaron Fox each had 15, and Chris Paul recorded 12 points and 10 assists.
Warriors 128, Hornets 92
Buddy Hield scored 16 points to lead seven Golden State players in double figures as the Warriors ran their winning streak to four games with a romp over Charlotte in San Francisco.
Stephen Curry and Draymond Green had 15 points apiece for Golden State, while Gary Payton II added 14. With Moses Moody (13 points), Kevin Knox II (12) and Brandin Podziemski (10) also scoring in double figures, Golden State, in recording the franchise’s 3,000th win, ran up its largest margin of victory since beating Utah by 41 points in October.
KJ Simpson matched Hield’s game-high point total with 16 to pace the Hornets, who rested LaMelo Ball on the second night of a back-to-back. Seth Curry finished with 14 points for Charlotte, which suffered its fourth straight defeat. The last three losses have come by an average of over 43 points.
–Field Level Media
Sports
MLB Best Bets for Sunday's Rockies vs. Brewers, Yankees vs. Phillies
Mar 28, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland (21) pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports Watching baseball is a great way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon. So, why not make it even better by getting in on the action? To help you do just that, I’ve combed through the data, odds, and trends for today’s games to find the MLB Best Bets of the day.
Here are my picks:
Colorado Rockies vs. Milwaukee Brewers
The pitching disparity in this game makes it relatively easy to make a pick. Colorado is going with Kyle Freeland, who is 0-6 in nine road starts with an 8.28 ERA and a .330 OBA. The Rockies lineup, which has hit .243 over the last week, will face one of the best pitchers in the game, Jacob Misiorowski.
Misiorowski is 10-4 with a 1.57 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP. Milwaukee’s lineup has only been hitting .236 over the last week. However, that will change with Freeland taking the mound for the Rockies.
My Pick: Milwaukee -1.5 (-125, FanDuel)
I’d feel better if the Brewers were hitting better right now, but Freeland may be one of the most hittable pitchers in the game. The Milwaukee lineup will wake up against him and lead the Brewers to a runaway victory.
Our Current Best Offers
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New York Yankees vs. Philadelphia Phillies
We saw seven hits and one run scored in Friday’s game. Saturday’s saw a little more hitting with each team recording seven, but still only four runs scored. So, it is safe to say neither team is hitting the ball really well at the moment (over the last seven days, Yankees– .197 and Phillies– .216).
Don’t expect them to do so today; Will Warren (7-4, 4.00 ERA, 1.37 WHIP) will get a few good innings under his belt before getting pulled for the best bullpen in the league (3.01 ERA). Between the two, the Phillies will not generate much offense.
Philadelphia is set to start Cristopher Sanchez (12-4, 2.71 ERA, 1.19 WHIP), who has been phenomenal at home (8-1, 1.15 ERA).
My Pick: Under 8 at -107 (DraftKings)
Both teams have been terrible at the plate over the last week, and it is unlikely either lineup wakes up against these pitchers.
Our Current Best Offers
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Yankees place Cody Bellinger (hamstring) on IR, recall Spencer Jones
Jul 22, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees left fielder Cody Bellinger (35) hits a double against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images The New York Yankees’ injury luck continues to get worse as the team placed All-Star outfielder Cody Bellinger on the 10-day injured list Sunday with a hamstring strain.
Bellinger left Saturday’s 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies after injuring himself while rounding first base in the top of the eighth inning. He initially stayed in the game but was seen limping back to the dugout between innings.
Bellinger’s RBI single in the sixth inning proved to be the winning run for New York. He has been a much needed boost for the Yankees, who already are down Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton due to injuries.
Bellinger has appeared in 102 games for the Yankees this season, batting .259 with 11 home runs, 53 RBIs and a .770 OPS. Just 12 days ago Bellinger was named the All-Star Game MVP.
In a corresponding move, the Yankees called up outfielder Spencer Jones from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Jones has appeared in 31 games for the Yankees this season, batting .224 with two home runs and seven RBIs.
–Field Level Media
Sports
What's Next for Magomed Ankalaev After UFC Abu Dhabi?
After UFC Abu Dhabi, questions have revolved around what is next for the championship picture and where Magomed Ankalaev fits into things.
On one hand, Ankalaev has proven he can be violent and get the job done in the Octagon. Some of his victories in the UFC against Ion Cutelaba, Anthony Smith, and Johnny Walker prove this. On the other hand, Ankalaev can have some stinkers. And even though he ultimately got a decent finish of Bogdan Guskov in the fifth round, that UFC Abu Dhabi fight stunk like a post-game locker room.
The thing is, plenty of voices talk about how rough a shape the UFC’s heavyweight division is in. But the UFC’s light heavyweight division isn’t that much better. And with Carlos Ulberg still on the shelf after tearing his ACL in his vacant title fight win over Jiri Prochazka a few months ago, the UFC more than likely needs to pick two guys to fight for an interim title sooner or later.
So, who are the options? Let’s look at the UFC Meta Rankings’ top 10 at 205 entering UFC Abu Dhabi.
Alex Pereira – This one’s interesting. Pereira vacated the title to move up to heavyweight, losing to Ciryl Gane at the White House last month in an interim heavyweight title fight. Considering the options of new opponents for him at heavyweight, including Josh Hokit’s callout, it looked like he’d stay there. But he very recently teased Ankalaev that he could come back down and take the 205-pound title back? Maybe the UFC’s looking at this list and wondering if they need Pereira at 205.
Jiri Prochazka – Jiri is lovable, and he really could’ve beaten Ulberg if he didn’t hold back. But three unsuccessful title fights, even if two were against Pereira, is three unsuccessful title fights.
Paulo Costa – This is the most intriguing option. Costa fought once at light heavyweight during 2021, and then he formally jumped up to the weight class this year. And what did he do? He knocked out an unbeaten, dangerous up-and-comer in Azamat Murzakanov. Considering that and Costa’s status as a former middleweight title challenger, he probably makes for a noteworthy interim title fight candidate.
Jamahal Hill – He’s a former champion, but he’s lost three straight and hasn’t fought in over a year now.
Khalil Rountree Jr. – A former title challenger who put up a spirited battle with Pereira. He was on a winning streak but has lost two of three, most recently getting finished by Prochazka at UFC 320. He was supposed to fight Anakalev but withdrew two weeks ago due to injury.
Dominick Reyes – He’s had a career resurgence since 2024 but hasn’t put himself in a true title position compared to some of the others on here.
Azamat Murzakanov – Costa knocked him out and ruined his chances of being a worthy name on this list.
Bogdan Guskov – He lost at UFC Abu Dhabi.
Dustin Jacoby – He lost at UFC Abu Dhabi.
Here’s a wild card everyone is forgetting as well – around the time Khamzat Chimaev lost the middleweight title to Sean Strickland a couple of months ago, there were talks about Chimaev possibly moving up to light heavyweight, too. And when this writer looked at UFC CEO and President Dana White’s face when those plans were brought up, something seemed to twinkle in his expression that said: “I’m interested in this possibility.”
Now, is Chimaev going to go through with this? Or is he going to pursue a rematch with Strickland? That’s what we’ll have to wait on – and it’s a decision that can affect middleweight, light heavyweight, AND heavyweight.
Unless Chimaev or Pereira make things interesting by debuting or returning, respectively, to the division, the best fight the UFC could make for an interim light heavyweight title at this point is Ankalaev vs. Costa. Would it be the most popular? Maybe not. But the former champ vs. a former title challenger from another division who made a lot of noise in his true 205 debut? That smells like a decent co-main event for a numbered card under a true title headliner.
MLB Best Bets for Sunday's Rockies vs. Brewers, Yankees vs. Phillies
Yankees place Cody Bellinger (hamstring) on IR, recall Spencer Jones
