LeBron James had 39 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists as the Miami Heat trampled the Oklahoma City Thunder 110-100 in a Thursday night showcase before the All-Star break.
Chris Bosh chipped in 20 points and 12 rebounds as the Heat won their sixth straight against the Thunder dating to last year’s NBA Finals.
Miami swept the season series after winning on their home court on Christmas Day, following up after taking the last four games of the Finals.
James was in position to continue his NBA record run of games with at least 30 points and 60 percent shooting to seven, but missed from a couple steps beyond the three-point line as the shot clock ran down with just over a minute left.
That dropped him to 14 for 24 in the game (58 percent). James had said before the game that he did not care if the streak continued, as long as Miami kept winning.
Kevin Durant had 40 points and eight rebounds, but missed his first seven shots as Oklahoma City fell hopelessly behind.
Russell Westbrook had 26 points and 10 assists, with six turnovers.
CLIPPERS 125, LAKERS 101
In Los Angeles, Chris Paul had 24 points and 13 assists and Blake Griffin scored 18 of his 22 points in a spectacular first quarter as the Clippers cemented their supremacy in Los Angeles with an easy victory over the Lakers.
Chauncey Billups hit five three-pointers while scoring 21 points for the Clippers, who roared into the All-Star break by clinching the season series in their city rivalry for the first time in 20 years.
The Clippers have won the Staples Center co-tenants’ first three games of the season, with Los Angeles’ longtime underdogs burying the 16-time champions in their latest meeting under a wave of 16 three-pointers.
Kobe Bryant had 20 points and 11 assists for the Lakers, who head to the break in 10th place in the Western Conference.
Caron Butler had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Clippers, who lead Golden State by seven games atop the Pacific Division standings after their fourth straight victory.
The Lakers had won eight of 11 overall heading into the meeting, but the Clippers scored the first 15 points and never trailed.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB