The jersey worn by New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin while outdueling NBA scoring leader Kobe Bryant was auctioned for charity at US$42,388.
The winning bid in the Charitybuzz.com auction that ended on Tuesday came from a person in the New York area who requested anonymity, Glenda Luft, a spokeswoman for the Web site, said in an e-mail.
There were 34 bids cast in the auction that began on Feb. 13. The listing, which included four tickets to the Knicks’ home game last night against the Atlanta Hawks and a chance to meet Lin at the game, drew an opening bid of US$1,100.
Lin, the first Taiwanese-American to play in the NBA and the first Harvard University graduate to join the league since Ed Smith in 1953-1954, has led the Knicks (16-17) to an 8-2 record since coming off the bench to score 25 points and hand out seven assists in a Feb. 4 win against New Jersey.
His ascension set off an international craze, sending the Knicks’ ticket prices, television ratings and social media interest in the second-year NBA player skyrocketing.
The 23-year-old Lin moved into the Knicks’ starting lineup on Feb. 6 and helped New York beat the Lakers 92-85 on Feb. 10, scoring a career-high 38 points to Bryant’s 34. New York reeled off a seven-game winning streak before dropping two of its last three contests.
The proceeds from the auction benefit the Garden of Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works closely with Madison Square Garden Co, the Knicks’ owner, in what its Web site described as making “dreams come true for kids facing obstacles.”
Shohei Ohtani and his wife arrived in South Korea with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates yesterday ahead of their season-opening games with the San Diego Padres next week. Ohtani, wearing a black training suit and a cap backwards, was the first Dodgers player who showed up at the arrival gate of Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. His wife, Mamiko Tanaka, walked several steps behind him. As a crowd of fans, many wearing Dodgers jerseys, shouted his name and cheered slogans, Ohtani briefly waved his hand, but did not say anything before he entered a limousine bus with his wife. Fans held placards
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals at the All England Open, beating Kim Ga-eun of South Korea 21-17, 21-15. With the win, Tai earned a semi-final against China’s He Bingjiao, who beat Michelle Li of Canada 21-9, 21-9. Defending champion An Se-young defeated India’s P.V. Sindhu 21-19, 21-11. An on Wednesday cruised into the second round, unlike last year’s men’s winner, Li Shifeng, who suffered a shock defeat. South Korea’s An, the world No. 1, overcame Taiwan’s Hsu Wen-chi 21-17, 21-16 to set up the match against Sindhu. In other women’s singles matches, Taiwan’s Sung Shuo-yun lost 21-18, 24-22 against Carolina Marin of
EYEING TOP SPOT: A victory in today’s final against Storm Hunter and Katerina Siniakova would return 38-year-old Hsieh Su-wei to the world No. 1 ranking Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens on Thursday secured a spot in the women’s doubles finals at the BNP Paribas Open after dispatching Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) at Indian Wells. Hsieh and her Belgian partner Mertens, who won the Australian Open in late January, coasted through the first set after breaking their opponents’ serve twice, but found the going tougher in the second. Both pairs could only muster one break point over 12 games, neither of which were converted, leaving the set to be decided by a tiebreaker. Hsieh and Mertens took a 6-3 lead,
DOUBLES PAYBACK: Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Martens avenged their defeat in the quarters at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open against Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. Hsieh and partner Elise Mertens of Belgium dispatched Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani 6-1, 6-4 to set up a clash against Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez for a spot in the final of the WTA 1000 tournament. Hsieh and Martens made a blistering start to their rematch after they lost to Schuurs and Stefani in the quarter-finals at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open last month, winning three games without reply at the start of the first set