Sports
Wake Forest desperate to build off 1st win in weeks vs. Stanford
Feb 7, 2026; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; Wake Forest Demon Deacons forward Tre’von Spillers (25) reacts to his go ahead score with forward Juke Harris (2) during the second half against the Louisville Cardinals at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Wake Forest has finally regained a bit of confidence and now the Demon Deacons will see how far that carries them.
Stanford will arrive as the opponent for Saturday’s game at Winston-Salem, N.C., after Wake Forest snapped a five-game losing streak last time out versus Georgia Tech on Wednesday.
“We were down a little bit throughout the season and we picked it back up,” Wake Forest guard Juke Harris said. “You see how great we can be.”
Wake Forest (12-12, 3-8 Atlantic Coast Conference) has work to do, especially in home games. The Demon Deacons lost their last four at home.
Stanford (16-9, 5-7) began its two-game trip by winning 70-64 at Boston College on Wednesday, giving the Cardinal a multi-game winning streak for the first time in more than a month. They beat Georgia Tech to end a five-game skid last Saturday.
Travel to the East Coast has become less stressful for the Cardinal.
“Last year, it felt like we were astronauts doing something no one’s done before,” Stanford coach Kyle Smith said of the team’s first go-around in the ACC. “Now it’s like, you know what, we’ve got our little routine.”
Another boost from guard Mekhi Mason could do wonders for Wake Forest. He racked up 17 points in the Georgia Tech game for his first double-figure output since prior to Thanksgiving. Mason made four 3-pointers to match his season high.
“He was a starter earlier in the year and he’s struggled a little bit, but he’s had great resilience and he’s been a great teammate,” coach Steve Forbes said. “Good things happen to good people.”
Harris has consistently been Wake Forest’s leading scorer, including in seven of the team’s last nine games. He eclipsed the 20-point mark in the past three games, pushing his scoring average to 21.2 points, which is the third-highest mark in the ACC.
Second on the scoring list is Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie at 22.4 points.
Harris averages 2.7 makes from 3-point range, barely ahead of Stanford’s Benny Gealer (2.5). Okorie accounts for 1.9 made threes per game.
The key for the Cardinal might be excelling in open-court situations.
“It was hard enough in the halfcourt,” Smith said after the Boston College game. “Anyone is a lot better in a broken field. … The transition probably gave us the best chance.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rangers place OF Wyatt Langford (forearm) on 10-day injured list
Apr 19, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Texas Rangers left fielder Wyatt Langford (36) hits a single during the seventh inning against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford has a Grade 1 flexor strain and was placed on the 10-day injured list Wednesday.
Langford, 24, exited Tuesday’s 5-1 home victory over Pittsburgh after the fourth inning due to a right forearm strain. He went 0-for-1 with a walk, extending his on-base streak to a season-high 11 games since April 6.
In a corresponding move, the Rangers recalled outfielder Alejandro Osuna from Triple-A Round Rock.
Langford is batting .238 with one home run, four RBIs and two triples in 20 games this season.
He said after Tuesday’s game that he felt discomfort after the first swing of his second plate appearance. Langford also exited the April 10 contest at the Los Angeles Dodgers in the sixth inning because of a right quad strain — causing him to miss three games.
“It’s pretty aggravating just having to deal with stuff like this,” Langford said after Tuesday’s game.
Texas selected Langford in the first round (fourth overall) of the 2023 MLB Draft out of the University of Florida.
He is batting a career .246 with 39 home runs, 140 RBIs, 53 doubles, seven triples, 44 stolen bases, a .330 OBP and .419 SLG in 288 games since 2024.
Osuna, 23, batted .212 (32-for-151) with two homers and 15 RBIs in 63 games as a rookie in 2025.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Kings head home in need of turnaround against Avalanche
Apr 21, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson (44) controls the puck ahead of goaltender Anton Forsberg (31) in overtime against the Colorado Avalanche in game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images The Los Angeles Kings are hanging tough with the Presidents’ Trophy-wielding Colorado Avalanche, yet they trail 2-0 in their Western Conference first-round playoff series as it shifts to the West Coast.
As the Kings prepare to host the Avalanche for Game 3 Thursday, they need to find a way to get over the hump against the regular-season champions to draw back into the best-of-seven series.
Both games were 2-1 finals, with the latest requiring Colorado to work overtime to win Tuesday.
“It’s tough, the way it ended, both games,” Kings goaltender Anton Forsberg said. “We’re right in there, playing well. We’re fighting, we’re fighting hard. Just got to stick with it and turn this around.”
The second loss stung on another level. Artemi Panarin’s power-play goal — his second in as many outings — opened the scoring with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation, but Colorado captain Gabe Landeskog tied the game with 3:35 left to set up Nicolas Roy’s winner 7:44 into extra time.
Los Angeles boasts a stout defensive game, but needs more offense from players not named Panarin. The Kings certainly had their chances in Game 2. Not only was Quinton Byfield denied on a second-period penalty shot, the Kings had opportunities in sudden-death.
“We had the momentum in overtime,” interim coach D.J. Smith said. “We were out-chancing them at that point and then maybe a bad bounce or a turnover, whatever, it ends up in your net. To a man, this team’s playing hard and we have to find a way to win, though.”
As for the Avalanche, they know having the upper hand at this point only means so much, especially if the Kings regroup and find a way to win their first two home games.
The Kings have been knocked out in the first round of the playoffs in four consecutive years, so they’re giving everything they have to end that trend.
“Playoffs are going to be hard. It’s a really good team over there,” Colorado forward Nathan MacKinnon said. “They’re playing hard. We’re playing hard. It’s low scoring, but it’s fun hockey. … Need to find a way to steal Game 3.”
Saying his team must “steal” a game sounds over the top considering how the Avalanche have been all season. They led the NHL during the regular season with 3.68 goals per game, so clearly they have yet to show their top offensive form — though the Kings (and Forsberg) deserve credit. Then again, Colorado was the league’s stingiest defensive team in the regular season, too, and coach Jared Bednar’s team has been showing why.
“We’ve been talking all year (about) the importance of the defending, and I’m happy with the commitment that we’re getting from our guys,” Bednar said. “I still think we got another step in our game that we can ramp up to. So we just got to go out and try to better our performances at home now on the road.”
Colorado goaltender Scott Wedgewood has shown his top-tier game. His save of Byfield’s penalty shot was highlight-reel worthy and he has stopped 48 of the 50 shots he has faced in this series.
Not bad for a 33-year-old who had zero Stanley Cup playoff victories — and zero postseason starts — on his resume until this series began.
“I think mentally, over my career, I’ve kind of been building my own scar tissue just trying to stay alive and stay in this league,” Wedgewood said. “So mentally, I feel like the playoffs are almost kind of what I’ve been putting the pressure on myself for to get here. It’s honestly felt like really fun hockey. Obviously, you know what’s at stake.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Spurs swingman Keldon Johnson wins NBA's Sixth Man award
Apr 10, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) drives to the basket against Dallas Mavericks center Moussa Cisse (30) during the first half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images The NBA announced Wednesday that San Antonio Spurs swingman Keldon Johnson has been voted the league’s Sixth Man of the Year by a 100-member global media panel.
The seventh-year veteran earned the John Havlicek Trophy for delivering 13.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game while shooting 51.9% from the field and 36.3% from 3-point range. He was the only player in the league to come off the bench in all 82 games.
“It’s a little emotional,” Johnson said on ESPN after he was revealed as the winner. “It’s a big accomplishment. A lot of hard work goes into an award like this.”
Johnson ranked as the No. 5 scorer and No. 4 rebounder on a squad that posted the league’s second-best record (62-20) during the regular season.
The 26-year-old Kentucky product has spent his entire NBA career with the Spurs after being drafted with the 29th overall pick in 2019. He joins Manu Ginobili (2007-08) as the only Spurs to be named Sixth Man of the Year.
During Johnson’s first four years in the league he was an everyday starter for the Spurs, starting in 205 of the 224 games he appeared in. But during his fifth season he started to embrace the role as a spark plug off the bench, which has paid dividends.
“I started for a long time,” Johnson said. “Now, it’s my time to come off the bench. I just continue to analyze the game, come off the bench, go in there and just do my thing.”
“I wanted to be part of something special here in San Antonio. I knew that in order for me to really be the best for our team that coming off the bench was probably my best possibility. At first, it was tough. I had to (control) my ego and put the team first. After that, the sky was the limit.”
Johnson received 63 of the 100 first-place votes and collected 404 points. The Miami Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr., claimed 34 first-place votes and finished second in the balloting with 331 points. Jaquez averaged 15.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists while serving as a reserve in 74 of his 75 appearances this year.
Denver’s Tim Hardaway Jr. took third in the voting while Minnesota’s Naz Reid, Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart and New York’s Mitchell Robinson each received one first-place vote.
–Field Level Media
Rangers place OF Wyatt Langford (forearm) on 10-day injured list
Kings head home in need of turnaround against Avalanche
