Sixers Keep Rolling, Rockets Get Stopped on the Road
Two of the hottest teams in the NBA took the floor with win streaks on the line Sunday, with only one keeping their streak alive. The Philadelphia 76ers got 20 points and 15 assists from Ben Simmons in a 119-102 victory over the Charlotte Hornets for their 10th straight win. The Sixers shot 51 percent to stay hot even without Joel Embiid, as they are currently on their longest win streak since 2003. It was also their ninth straight game with 30 or more assists, as they had 36 of them on 48 made field goals. J. J. Redick added 20 points, while Robert Covington had a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. The Hornets were led by Malik Monk and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who had 16 points apiece in the home loss. The Sixers will put their win streak on the line when they host the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night. Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets saw their 11-game win streak come to an end on the road with a 100-83 loss to the San Antonio Spurs. LaMarcus Aldridge had 23 points and 14 rebounds, while the Spurs held the Rockets to their lowest scoring game of the season. They also got 21 points from veteran Rudy Gay, as they remained in the four-seed in the Western Conference by winning eight of their past 10 games overall. James Harden finished with 25 points and eight assists for the Rockets, who have already clinched the NBA's best record. Although, they shot just 34 percent in Sunday's loss, including 7-for-31 from three-point range. They will hope to bounce back when they play host to the Washington Wizards on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Spurs head out west to battle the Los Angeles Clippers that same night.
Ohtani Earns Win in First Start With Angels
After recording his first career hit with a single on Opening Day, Shohei Ohtani toed the slab for the first time in Major League Baseball on Sunday afternoon. Ohtani gave up three runs and struck out six over six innings for his first big league win, as the Los Angeles Angels topped the Oakland Athletics, 7-4. Ohtani ended the day well by retiring 14 of the final 15 batters he faced, as all three runs came on one three-run shot from Matt Chapman in the second inning. After the game, Ohtani claimed that he was "happy with the results" following a tough Spring Training. He finished the day with 92 pitches, 63 of which were strikes. The Angels opened up the season by taking three of four from their division rivals, as they pulled away in the fifth and seventh innings with two and three runs respectively. Justin Upton had the official go-ahead RBI with a sacrifice fly after Mike Trout tied things with an RBI double in the fifth. They will move on to their home opener on national television Monday night when they host the Cleveland Indians. There is no word how soon they will have Ohtani back in the starting lineup before his next start on the mound. The Athletics stay home to host the Texas Rangers on Monday.
Capitals, Predators, Flyers Earn Big Wins on Sunday
Three teams earned crucial victories in the NHL on Sunday, beginning with the Washington Capitals, who clinched the Metropolitan Division with a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Philipp Gubauer had 36 saves in relief of Braden Holtby, as the Capitals earn their 10th win in the past 12 games. T.J. Oshie, Dmitry Orlov, and Tom Wilson all scored to support Gubauer, as well as Alex Ovechkin, who was playing in his 1,000th career game. Matt Murray made 31 saves, while Patric Hornqvist recorded his 27th goal in the loss for the Penguins, who have already clinched a playoff berth. Meanwhile, in a battle of two of the top teams in the league, the Nashville Predators took advantage of a recently-struggling Tampa Bay Lightning team with a 4-1 road victory. Filip Forsberg scored twice, while Craig Smith and Ryan Johansen each scored once to help the Predators inch closer to a Central Division title. That would be the first division title in franchise history, as they currently sit seven points ahead of the second-place Winnipeg Jets, The Lightning continued their recent struggles, which has them out of first place in the Atlantic Division, as they went 0-for-5 on the power play Sunday night. They did lose Steven Stamkos to an undisclosed lower-body injury and did not have an update on him after the game. Ondrej Palat scored the lone goal for Tampa Bay, who got 21 saves from Andrei Vasilevskiy. And the Philadelphia Flyers continued to keep pace in the Eastern Conference playoff race, as Claude Giroux scored in overtime for a 4-3 win over the Boston Bruins. Giroux's tally came with 1:21 to play in the extra period and was his career-high 29th of the season. This took place after Patrice Bergeron forced overtime with 3.8 seconds to play in regulation. The Flyers hung on to inch closer to a return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a year away. Petr Mrazek made 36 saves in the win, while Travis Konecny had a goal and an assist and Nolan Patrick found the back of the net. The Bruins did welcome Zdeno Chara back from injury just a day after losing Rick Nash and Brandon Carlo to injuries. Noel Acciari and David Pastrnak both scored in the loss for the Bruins, who remain atop the Atlantic Division.
Two of the hottest teams in the NBA took the floor with win streaks on the line Sunday, with only one keeping their streak alive. The Philadelphia 76ers got 20 points and 15 assists from Ben Simmons in a 119-102 victory over the Charlotte Hornets for their 10th straight win. The Sixers shot 51 percent to stay hot even without Joel Embiid, as they are currently on their longest win streak since 2003. It was also their ninth straight game with 30 or more assists, as they had 36 of them on 48 made field goals. J. J. Redick added 20 points, while Robert Covington had a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. The Hornets were led by Malik Monk and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who had 16 points apiece in the home loss. The Sixers will put their win streak on the line when they host the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night. Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets saw their 11-game win streak come to an end on the road with a 100-83 loss to the San Antonio Spurs. LaMarcus Aldridge had 23 points and 14 rebounds, while the Spurs held the Rockets to their lowest scoring game of the season. They also got 21 points from veteran Rudy Gay, as they remained in the four-seed in the Western Conference by winning eight of their past 10 games overall. James Harden finished with 25 points and eight assists for the Rockets, who have already clinched the NBA's best record. Although, they shot just 34 percent in Sunday's loss, including 7-for-31 from three-point range. They will hope to bounce back when they play host to the Washington Wizards on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Spurs head out west to battle the Los Angeles Clippers that same night.
Ohtani Earns Win in First Start With Angels
After recording his first career hit with a single on Opening Day, Shohei Ohtani toed the slab for the first time in Major League Baseball on Sunday afternoon. Ohtani gave up three runs and struck out six over six innings for his first big league win, as the Los Angeles Angels topped the Oakland Athletics, 7-4. Ohtani ended the day well by retiring 14 of the final 15 batters he faced, as all three runs came on one three-run shot from Matt Chapman in the second inning. After the game, Ohtani claimed that he was "happy with the results" following a tough Spring Training. He finished the day with 92 pitches, 63 of which were strikes. The Angels opened up the season by taking three of four from their division rivals, as they pulled away in the fifth and seventh innings with two and three runs respectively. Justin Upton had the official go-ahead RBI with a sacrifice fly after Mike Trout tied things with an RBI double in the fifth. They will move on to their home opener on national television Monday night when they host the Cleveland Indians. There is no word how soon they will have Ohtani back in the starting lineup before his next start on the mound. The Athletics stay home to host the Texas Rangers on Monday.
Capitals, Predators, Flyers Earn Big Wins on Sunday
Three teams earned crucial victories in the NHL on Sunday, beginning with the Washington Capitals, who clinched the Metropolitan Division with a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Philipp Gubauer had 36 saves in relief of Braden Holtby, as the Capitals earn their 10th win in the past 12 games. T.J. Oshie, Dmitry Orlov, and Tom Wilson all scored to support Gubauer, as well as Alex Ovechkin, who was playing in his 1,000th career game. Matt Murray made 31 saves, while Patric Hornqvist recorded his 27th goal in the loss for the Penguins, who have already clinched a playoff berth. Meanwhile, in a battle of two of the top teams in the league, the Nashville Predators took advantage of a recently-struggling Tampa Bay Lightning team with a 4-1 road victory. Filip Forsberg scored twice, while Craig Smith and Ryan Johansen each scored once to help the Predators inch closer to a Central Division title. That would be the first division title in franchise history, as they currently sit seven points ahead of the second-place Winnipeg Jets, The Lightning continued their recent struggles, which has them out of first place in the Atlantic Division, as they went 0-for-5 on the power play Sunday night. They did lose Steven Stamkos to an undisclosed lower-body injury and did not have an update on him after the game. Ondrej Palat scored the lone goal for Tampa Bay, who got 21 saves from Andrei Vasilevskiy. And the Philadelphia Flyers continued to keep pace in the Eastern Conference playoff race, as Claude Giroux scored in overtime for a 4-3 win over the Boston Bruins. Giroux's tally came with 1:21 to play in the extra period and was his career-high 29th of the season. This took place after Patrice Bergeron forced overtime with 3.8 seconds to play in regulation. The Flyers hung on to inch closer to a return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a year away. Petr Mrazek made 36 saves in the win, while Travis Konecny had a goal and an assist and Nolan Patrick found the back of the net. The Bruins did welcome Zdeno Chara back from injury just a day after losing Rick Nash and Brandon Carlo to injuries. Noel Acciari and David Pastrnak both scored in the loss for the Bruins, who remain atop the Atlantic Division.
