Sports

By HANK KURZ Jr. AP Sports Writer RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Denny Hamlin ran down William Byron with five laps to go and ended the slowest start to a season of his career with a victory in the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway. In a race that featured four sets of green-flag pit stops

By TOM CANAVAN AP Sports Writer NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Jean-Gabriel Pageau had three goals and an assist and the New York Islanders held off the New Jersey Devils 4-3 and extended their winning streak to a season-high four straight games. Former Devil Cory Schneider made 27 saves in his first NHL start since March

By ANNE M. PETERSON AP Sports Writer PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez scored twice and the LA Galaxy defeated the Portland Timbers 3-1 in a testy match that had a pair of players sent off because of red cards. Chicharito’s early strike and an own goal put the Galaxy up 2-0 in the

By CHUCK KING Associated Press WEST PALM BEACH , Fla. (AP) — To the Washington Nationals, too many games ended last season with star Juan Soto watching from the on-deck circle instead of swinging in the batter’s box. Nationals manager Davey Martinez hopes to limit the number of times that occurs this season by moving

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Auburn center Walker Kessler, who was named the nation’s top defensive player, plans to enter the NBA draft. The 7-foot-1 North Carolina transfer announced his decision on social media. Kessler averaged 11.4 points and 8.1 rebounds and ranked second nationally averaging 4.6 blocked shots per game. He helped lead Auburn to

By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 38 points and 18 rebounds, and the Denver Nuggets moved into fifth place in the Western Conference with a 129-118 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. Aaron Gordon scored 24 points and Will Barton had 25 as the Nuggets capitalized on LeBron

By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jon Scheyer is ready for the challenge of leading the Duke men’s basketball program after the retirement of Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski. Scheyer’s tenure began with the Blue Devils’ loss to rival North Carolina in Saturday night’s Final Four. The school tabbed Scheyer

By CHUCK KING Associated Press WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander pitched five solid innings in his final spring training tune-up Sunday and pronounced himself healthy and ready to start the season. His next start is set to come in the third game of the year, next Saturday night on

By BRETT MARTEL AP Sports Writer NEW ORLEANS (AP) — North Carolina’s Armando Bacot says his right ankle injury won’t stop him from playing hard against Kansas in the national championship game. The 6-foot-10 Bacot says he’s “going to go all out” Monday night.  Bacot twisted his ankle in a crowd of players near the

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Tiger Woods has arrived Augusta National but it’s still not clear whether he’ll play in the Masters. Woods warmed up on a range for about 20 minutes and then got in a cart and headed to the course. He says it’s a game-time decision whether

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Barcelona’s revamped team under coach Xavi Hernández has kept its momentum and moved into second place in the Spanish league for the first time this season after defeating Sevilla 1-0 at home. Pedri González broke the deadlock by scoring a beautiful goal in the 72nd minute

By DANIELLA MATAR AP Sports Writer MILAN (AP) — Inter Milan has halted its poor run of form in the best possible way after the defending champion beat fierce rival Juventus 1-0 to boost its Serie A title chances and hinder its opponent’s own hopes. Hakan Çalhanoğlu converted a penalty at the second time of

PARIS (AP) — Kylian Mbappe has notched two goals and three assists and Paris Saint-Germain has beaten Lorient 5-1 to maintain its 12-point lead over Marseille. PSG moves ever closer to a record 10th French league title. There are eight rounds left. Marseille has consolidated second place by rallying past relegation-threatened Saint-Etienne 4-2 in a

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Basketball Writer NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Kansas coach Bill Self finds himself in the same situation that longtime North Carolina coach Dean Smith once did. Both had won national championships at their respective schools, two of the proudest in the history of basketball, and both had piled more Final Four appearances

By GARY SCHATZ Associated Press GOODYEAR, Ariz. (AP) — The Cincinnati Reds have informed Shogo Akiyama on Sunday that he would not make the opening day roster, leaving him to decide whether he’ll go down to Triple-A or become a free agent. A productive player for nearly a decade in Japan, Akiyama wasn’t able to