Sports
Pelicans turning to Zion to end 4-game skid vs. Rockets
Mar 27, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) scores against the Toronto Raptors in the first half at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images Interim New Orleans coach James Borrego wants to see an aggressive, attack-minded Zion Williamson from the opening tip, when the Pelicans seek to end a four-game skid with a victory against the visiting Houston Rockets on Sunday.
Williamson took the game by the scruff of the neck in the third quarter of New Orleans’ 119-106 road loss to the Toronto Raptors on Friday. He scored 12 points in nine minutes during the period.
He was less impactful, but still solid, in the first half as Toronto built a match-winning lead.
Borrego’s desire to involve Williamson more early came with the Pelicans (25-50) missing key contributors Trey Murphy III (ankle) and Dejounte Murray (Achilles) against the Raptors.
Murphy is averaging a team-best 21.7 points per game this season; Williamson is just behind him with 21.4 points per game.
Murray is averaging 17.2 points and 6.5 assists in 12 games after missing more than a year with a ruptured Achilles tendon.
“We do need to get him (Williamson) off to quicker starts,” Borrego said. “We do need that aggression, especially when Trey’s out, and Dejounte. Having those two guys out — they generate a lot of offense for us, obviously. But I thought Z brought it (Friday). … We got him going more in that second quarter, third quarter. We’ve just got to get him going a little bit earlier. I’ll look for him to get off to a good start on Sunday.”
Whenever Williamson is in the thick of the action, New Orleans looks like a far more dangerous outfit.
“It turns our team,” Borrego said. “It creates so many advantages for us. When he’s downhill, and they’re bringing two or three people to the ball, it generates a lot of open threes for us, and open paint opportunities.”
Borrego knows that finishing the season strongly will come down to more than just firing Williamson up, noting areas to improve on what he saw in Toronto and the day before against the Detroit Pistons.
“We couldn’t get enough stops to get out in transition,” he said. “The last two games, the ball’s sticking too much. … We’ve got to get back home, back to a playing style we’ve been moving towards. The ball’s got to move — bottom line. We’ve got to get stops; we’ve got to become more physical.”
Houston (44-29) ended a two-game skid with a 119-109 win over the host Memphis Grizzlies.
The Rockets saw their 11-point lead scaled right back to three in the fourth period before closing strongly.
“I thought the effort was there from the start,” Houston coach Ime Udoka said. “It felt more energized out there.”
Kevin Durant may have recently overtaken Michael Jordan in fifth position on the all-time scoring list, but it was his crisp passing that stood out in Memphis.
Durant finished with 25 points and 10 assists. Two nights earlier, against the Minnesota Timberwolves, he had 30 points and eight assists.
“The more I sacrifice my shots for my teammates, the better I am, and the better we are as a team,” he said. “I try to pick and choose my spots. I know I can shoot every time I touch the ball, but I try to play in the flow of the game and try to involve my teammates as much as I can, and they do the same for me.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Emma Clarke homer powers Tennessee past Texas Tech in WCWS
May 30, 2026; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Tennessee Lady Volunteers infielder Emma Clarke (13) hits a walk-off home run in the ninth inning beating the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the NCAA Women’s College World Series at Devon Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Rojo-Imagn Images Emma Clarke’s home run in the bottom of the ninth inning ended a deadlock and gave Tennessee a walk-off 2-1 win over Texas Tech Saturday in a winner’s bracket game at the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
Clarke, who had been 0-for-3 when she stepped up to bat lead-off in the ninth, lifted pitcher Kaitlyn Terry’s hanger to deep left, making short work of any late inning dramatics.
Tennessee (49-10) also got a solo home run from Taelyn Holley against Nijaree Canady in the fifth inning.
The two dingers proved enough for starting pitcher Karlyn Pickens and reliever Sage Mardjetko, who combined to surrender one run on five hits with eight strikeouts and five walks over nine innings.
Texas Tech (58-8) got on the board to tie things up in the seventh when Taylor Pannell led the inning off with a single, advanced to second on a walk, stole third base and then finally reached home when Desirae Spearman hit a sacrifice fly to center. Tennessee center fielder Sophia Knight made a strong throw home and Pannell was initially ruled out before the play was challenged and overturned when replays showed catcher Elsa Morrison missed the tag.
But that was it for scoring for the Red Raiders, who could only manage just one extra-base hit, a double by Mia Williams.
Tennessee advances to the semifinals of the tournament. The Red Raiders will now face UCLA (53-9) in an elimination game Sunday.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rain washes out qualifying, Denny Hamlin to start on Nashville pole
May 30, 2026; Lebanon, Tennessee, USA; Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin (11) will start from the pole tomorrow at Nashville Superspeedway. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images LEBANON, Tenn. — Intermittent light rain showers forced the cancellation of Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series Busch Light Pole Qualifying at Nashville Superspeedway, resulting in Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin starting from pole position in Sunday night’s Cracker Barrel 400 (7 p.m. ET, Amazon Prime, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Championship points leader Tyler Reddick will start his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota alongside Hamlin’s No. 11 JGR Toyota on the front row as Toyota hopes to earn its first ever series win at the 1.33-mile concrete oval.
Last week’s Charlotte race winner Daniel Suarez will start third in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet with JGR’s Christopher Bell (No. 20 Toyota) and two-time and reigning series champion Kyle Larson (Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 Chevrolet) rounding out the top five on the 38-car grid.
Defending race winner, Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney, will start his No. 12 Ford seventh.
Bell, who was fastest in the practice session, said he didn’t expect the cancelled time trials to make a big difference in either the run of the 400-miler or ultimately the outcome of the race. Especially with the field getting some time on track with practice.
“Well, it’s good for me today, because I have a good metric, so I’m okay with that,’ Bell said smiling of the formulation NASCAR used to set the field in lieu of qualifying.
His competitors were not overly concerned with the cancellation of qualifying, either — instead just glad to turn some laps and dial in their cars.
“They put a lot of resin down in both corners, more than they’ve done in the past and we’re really curious how the cars are going to drive,” said Roush Fenway Keselowski owner-driver Brad Keselowski. “So it’s semi-important (to qualify) although we’ve been racing here for the last three or four years, so we all have a pretty good feel for it.”
–Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service
Sports
Aneesah Morrow, Sun earn first home win at Sparks' expense
May 30, 2026; Hartford, Connecticut, USA; Connecticut Sun center Brittney Griner (42) defends against Los Angeles Sparks forward Dearica Hamby (5) in the first half at PeoplesBank Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images Aneesah Morrow collected game highs of 17 points and 14 rebounds as the Connecticut Sun hung on down the stretch for an 84-81 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday night in Hartford, Conn.
Playing the first of two games in Hartford this season before the team moves to Houston for next season, the Sun (2-8) snapped a three-game losing streak and earned their first home win of the season.
Morrow posted her third straight double-double while shooting 6 of 13 from the floor. Reserve Kennedy Burke added 14 points while Diamond Miller and Leila Lacan contributed 12 apiece as the Sun shot 41.8% (28 of 67) and outrebounded the Sparks 37-29 in a game that featured 11 lead changes and seven ties.
Rae Burrell and Ace Atkins scored 16 apiece to lead the Sparks, who nearly erased a nine-point deficit in the second night of a back-to-back. Erica Wheeler added 13 while Nneka Ogwumike contributed 12 as Los Angeles (4-4) lost for only the second time in six games and fell to 1-1 without WNBA leading scorer Kelsey Plum (ankle).
The Sun held a 69-64 lead a little over two minutes into the fourth following a 16-footer by Lacan. Miller converted a layup for a 75-66 lead with 3:56 remaining.
The Sparks chipped away and trailed 81-79 when Burrell sank a 3 with 52 seconds left, but the Sun sank three free throws in the final 12 seconds to finish it off.
Los Angeles held a 33-27 lead on a 3 by Atkins with 3:25 left in the second quarter, and the Sun ended the half with an 11-3 spurt for a 39-36 edge after rookie Gianna Kneepkens sank a 3 with 1.5 seconds left.
Miller’s 3 gave the Sun a 48-41 lead with 7:19 left in the third and Morrow’s triple put Connecticut up 51-45 a little over two minutes later. After losing the lead, the Sun took a 62-60 edge into the fourth when Burke split a pair at the line with 5.2 seconds remaining.
–Field Level Media
Meta faces employee backlash over tracking tool
Wix cuts 1,000 employees in latest AI-fueled layoff
