Sports

Jaguars’ Gardner Minshew II turns heads with latest look

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew II may not be the starter come September, but he still managed to turn heads with a new look he debuted over the weekend.

Minshew’s haircut and outfit were a sight to see. He gave fans a glimpse into his newest look in several sultry Instagram photos.

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“Yesterday we said goodbye to the Dirty Diesel Drapery which for raw power was second to none obviously, but we say hello to the more refined Platinum Power Pelt. Meticulously crafted for a sleek and aerodynamic design, the Pelt is built not only for speed but also for pleasure,” he wrote.

Minshew has posted several photos of his mullet-style haircut since February. But this weekend was the first time he showcased the so-called “Platinum Power Pelt.”

NFL MOCK DRAFT 2021: JAGUARS LAUNCH HISTORIC RUN ON QUARTERBACKS OFF THE BAT

The third-year NFL player has excited fans with his style and play since he joined the Jaguars in 2019. He was set to be the starting quarterback to start the 2020 season, but an injury in week one set his progress back a little bit.

He managed to win one game as a starter – Jacksonville’s only win in 2020. In nine total games, he recorded 2,259 yards, 16 touchdown passes and only five interceptions.

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He is likely to be a backup under first-year coach Urban Meyer. Jacksonville is likely to select Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick of the 2021 draft later this month.

Mets still not capitalizing on deGrom’s excellence

The new-look Mets have a familiar problem so far: Even when Jacob deGrom is on the mound, they’re surprisingly beatable.

DeGrom struck out 14 on Saturday, but New York lost 3-0 to the Miami Marlins. In his other start this season, deGrom held Philadelphia scoreless for six innings, but the Mets gave up five runs in the eighth and lost 5-3.

Whether it’s blamed on poor run support or shaky relief pitching, New York hasn’t taken advantage of deGrom’s brilliance the last few years. The right-hander won the Cy Young Award in both 2018 and 2019, but since the start of the 2018 season, he’s just 25-20 despite posting a stellar 2.06 ERA. He has 33 no-decisions in that span, and the Mets have lost 22 of those games.

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Among the pitchers who have more wins than deGrom since the start of 2018: Marco Gonzales (36-25 with a 4.00 ERA), Jon Lester (34-19, 4.06), Rick Porcello (32-26, 4.98) and J.A. Happ (31-16, 4.13).

What’s remarkable is that over the past three-plus seasons, the Mets have been mediocre, but they haven’t been terrible. They’re seven games under .500 in that time frame, so it’s not as though deGrom has been pitching for a constant cellar dweller.

But when he’s on the mound, New York’s offense has been abysmal at times. DeGrom has received 4.10 runs of support per nine innings since the start of 2018, according to fangraphs.com. Only three pitchers with over 300 innings in that span — Cole Hamels, Madison Bumgarner and Derek Holland — have received less run support than deGrom.

Perhaps the addition of Francisco Lindor will help this year, but so far it’s been the same old story for the Mets and their ace.

CONTROVERSIAL FINISHES

For what it’s worth, the Mets are 2-1 in 2021 in games deGrom didn’t pitch. One of those victories was Thursday against Miami, when New York’s Michael Conforto was hit by a pitch, forcing home the winning run in the bottom of the ninth. The plate umpire said after the game that the pitch was in the strike zone, and he should have called Conforto out.

Elsewhere in the NL East, Philadelphia edged Atlanta 7-6 on Sunday night. Alec Bohm scored the decisive run in the top of the ninth on a sacrifice fly, even though it appeared he didn’t touch the plate. That play at home was close enough that the safe call was upheld after a review

TRIVIA TIME

DeGrom went 10-9 with a 1.70 ERA in 2018 — but in 1987 and 1988, the National League ERA champs had even fewer victories than that. Who were they?

HIGHLIGHT

Trey Mancini of the Orioles received a nice ovation from the home fans — and from the visiting Red Sox — when he came up for his first home at-bat of the season. Mancini is back after treatment for colon cancer. He missed the 2020 season.

That game Thursday was also a return for Eduardo Rodríguez, the Boston pitcher who missed 2020 because of heart inflammation.

LINE OF THE WEEK

The Padres finally have a no-hitter, and it came courtesy of right-hander Joe Musgrove, who grew up in the San Diego area.

Musgrove struck out 10 and allowed only one baserunner in a 3-0 victory at Texas on Friday night. The Padres were the only active major league franchise without a no-hitter.

TRIVIA ANSWERS

In 1987, Nolan Ryan of the Astros went 8-16 with an NL-leading 2.76 ERA. Ryan also led the majors with 270 strikeouts.

In 1988, the NL ERA leader was Joe Magrane of the Cardinals at 2.18. He went 5-9.

Morris scores season-high 33 as Clippers win 5th straight

Marcus Morris Sr. scored a season-high 33 points, Paul George added 32 and the Los Angeles Clippers capped a nine-game homestand with a 131-124 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.

George has three straight 30-point games despite dealing with a nagging toe injury. He had six points during the fourth quarter as the Clippers rallied for their fifth straight win, which is currently the longest win streak in the NBA.

Morris, who was five points shy of tying his career high, made six 3-pointers and went over 1,000 for his career.

“It was never about offense for us, it was about defense. We got it done at the end, in the fourth quarter,” said Clippers center Ivica Zubac, who had a career-high seven assists to go along with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

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Los Angeles was missing Kawhi Leonard, who sat out to rest as the Clippers were playing their third game in four nights. Everyone else picked up the slack though as they had seven players in double figures and concluded a homestand where they went 7-2 despite still being short-handed.

“The team is coming together. You feel it and the last thing we want to do is not leave a stone unturned. I definitely think there will be some carryover on the road,” George said.

Josh Jackson scored 26 points and Saddiq Bey added 25 for the Pistons, who have dropped three of their last four.

The Clippers shot 62.5% from the field but trailed for most of the night against the Eastern Conference’s worst team. Mason Plumlee’s layup with 4:03 remaining in the third quarter gave the Pistons a 93-81 advantage before LA started rallying.

“Despite their record, teams are going to get hot and play hard. For our team to stay together and continue to keep playing was important. We were able to chip away when we got a couple stops and converted,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said.

The game was tied at 110 with 6:23 remaining before the Clippers seized momentum with a 10-2 run. A 3-pointer by Nicolas Batum gave them the lead for good while George had four points during the run, including a driving dunk on Isaiah Stewart to extend the advantage to five.

“We knew they were going to make a run, eventually. When it was coming, we didn’t know,” Jackson said.

Los Angeles extended its lead to 11 points in the final minute.

The Clippers were 25 of 36 from the field for the first half but didn’t lead for the first time until Zubac’s dunk gave them a 61-60 advantage with 2:06 remaining in the second quarter.

“It is just tough to sustain getting tough field goals when they have the firepower on 3-pointers along with getting a stop here and there. They’re a great shooting team. That is what they do,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. “That is why you’re nervous because we didn’t get consistent stops, especially in the fourth quarter.”

TIP INS

Pistons: Detroit is 3-9 during the second game of back-to-backs. … They were 15 of 32 on 3-pointers as Wayne Ellington (15 points) and Bey made five apiece. … Corey Joseph, who was acquired from Sacramento on March 25, had 18 points and is averaging 11.7 points since joining the Pistons. … Jerami Grant, who leads the team in scoring with 22.5 points per game, was out for the third straight game due to right knee soreness.

Clippers: LA had a season-high 35 assists … Zubac got his 11th double-double, which is the most he has had in a season in his four-year career. … Nicolas Batum scored nine of his 14 points in the second half. … Luke Kennard scored 11 points and went over 2,000 for his career on a driving layup during the third quarter. … Serge Ibaka, who missed his 15th straight game due to back issues, will not be on the upcoming road trip. That means the earliest the center could return is April 18 against Minnesota.

UP NEXT

Pistons: Host the Clippers on Wednesday.

Clippers: Begin a three-game road trip on Tuesday at Indiana.

Knicks recover after blown lead to beat Raptors 102-96

Julius Randle scored 26 points and the New York Knicks recovered after blowing an 18-point lead to beat the Toronto Raptors 102-96 on Sunday night.

RJ Barrett added 19 as the Knicks (27-27) won their second straight to get back to .500. Nerlens Noel finished with nine points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots.

“We’ve been in tough stretches, had tough games, tough breaks, close calls all season long,” Randle said. “It’s good to eventually get over that hump. Even when we were down (four) … I just felt that we were going to win the game.”

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New York led 66-48 early in the third quarter but lost momentum when the game was delayed because the court was wet. The Raptors used a 37-15 run to surge to a four-point lead with 7 minutes remaining, but Barrett hit a 3-pointer with the Knicks leading by one with 35 seconds to play.

The Knicks snapped a nine-game losing streak to Toronto. New York had not beaten the Raptors since Nov. 22, 2017, at home.

“Just got to keep working at it. You never know when it’s going to change, so put everything you have into it, try to make it go your way and we did,” New York coach Tom Thibodeau said.

“There were a lot of good things to build the lead, then we struggled for a while, then we found a way at the end and I like that we had the mental toughness to sort of work our way through it and then pull it out at the end.”

Gary Trent Jr. had 23 points and Chris Boucher added 17 points and 14 rebounds for Toronto, which scored 87 points in the first half of a rout at Cleveland on Friday but found things much tougher against the Knicks.

Kyle Lowry finished with 19 points in his return to the Raptors’ lineup after missing five consecutive games with a right foot infection.

Toronto’s Malachi Flynn hit back-to-back 3s to give Toronto an 87-83 lead with 8:19 left. The Knicks then put together a 9-0 run to go up 92-87 on Alec Burks’ 3 with 3:34 remaining.

Toronto got as close as 95-94 on Lowry’s layup with 53 seconds before Randle found Barrett for his 3-pointer.

Pascal Siakam scored to cut it to 98-96 and Toronto had a chance to tie when Lowry came up with a steal to start a fast break. But Siakam was called for a double dribble with about 10 seconds left.

“Just an unfortunate one there,” Toronto coach Nick Nurse said. “Just unlucky there.”

TIP-INS

Raptors: Toronto is 2-10 in the second game of a back-to-back this season. … The Raptors had their four-game winning streak at Madison Square Garden end.

Knicks: Elfrid Payton and Derrick Rose each had 11 points.

BETTER BARRETT

Nurse is impressed with the 20-year-old Barrett’s improvements in his second NBA season.

The Toronto product is averaging 17.6 points and shooting 45.2% from the field and 38.2% behind the 3-point line in 53 games.

“I think he just looks a lot more comfortable, to me, out there. I think he’s certainly making less mistake-type plays,” Nurse said.

Barrett was the MVP at the FIBA Under-19 World Basketball Cup in 2017 and was called up to the senior national team for the FIBA World Cup qualifying games in 2019. Nurse thinks Barrett could be a “multi-positional type player” for the Canadian team he coaches.

“I think he can bring the ball up some, I think he’s got some athleticism and length and strength to play and guard up a little bit, too. It’s good,” Nurse said. “He’s getting a lot of minutes and some good opportunities here, and experience.”

COMING HOME

Forward Khem Birch made his Toronto debut Sunday, a day after he cleared waivers. The Montreal native is familiar with Nurse, who coached him on Canada’s 2019 FIBA World Cup team in China.

Birch had four points and five rebounds in 18 minutes off the bench.

UP NEXT

Raptors: Begin a five-game homestand against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.

Knicks: Close their three-game homestand against the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday.

Towns, Russell push Wolves to 121-117 win against Bulls

Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points and 12 rebounds, D’Angelo Russell scored 27 and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Chicago Bulls 121-117 on Sunday night.

Ricky Rubio connected on five of his six 3-point attempts and scored 17 points. Rookie Anthony Edwards added 15 points for Minnesota, which held on a game after allowing Boston to come back from 17 down in the second half in an overtime loss on Friday.

“I think, for us, it was just more about staying solid, continuing to play our game plan no matter how things went,” Towns said. “I think we showed a lot of discipline tonight.”

Two days after his first 50-point game, Zach LaVine scored 21 of his 30 points in the second half as Chicago tried to mount a comeback. LaVine was 13 of 28 from the field and 4 of 12 from 3-point territory.

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Nikola Vucevic had 18 points and Daniel Theis scored 13, but the Bulls lost for the sixth time in nine games since acquiring the two players at the trade deadline.

“We got a lot of work ahead of us, I’ll tell you that,” Chicago coach Billy Donovan said of the team’s defense. “We need to be a whole lot better than we are.”

The Timberwolves have started games slowly this season and have led at halftime just 10 times in their 54 games. But they’ve held 11-point halftime leads in each of their past two games. This time, they made the lead stand.

Minnesota used a 21-8 run in the first quarter to take control. The Wolves took their first lead with 7:28 left in the first and never trailed the rest of the way.

“No game is going to be perfect, but we’ve just got a win, just frustrating losing,” LaVine said. “I feel like we didn’t come out the right way, tried to turn it on in the second half, and, obviously, they’ve got some big-time players on their team. So do we, but we’ve got to figure out a way to win.”

Chicago cut the lead to one several times in the fourth, but Minnesota answered each challenge. After LaVine connected on a 3 to make it 103-102, Russell re-entered the game and helped the closing push with seven points in the final 3:36.

Towns added a punctuating 3 in the final minute and closed out the game with a pair of free throws.

TIP-INS

Bulls: Garrett Temple missed his seventh straight game with a right hamstring strain. … Troy Brown Jr., another trade acquisition, has taken Temple’s place as a defensive wing off the bench. Brown had 15 points and seven rebounds in the game.

Timberwolves: Towns just missed a triple-double with eight assists. It’s his 57th career game with at least 10 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. … Edwards extended his streak of games with a steal to 22, the longest active streak in the NBA and the longest streak by a rookie in franchise history.

OWNERSHIP TALKS

A day after former baseball star Alex Rodriguez and e-commerce mogul Marc Lore signed a letter of intent to buy the Timberwolves, coach Chris Finch was asked his thoughts on the impact new ownership could bring to Minnesota. The first-year coach said he loves baseball but hasn’t had a chance to speak with the potential new ownership.

“I’m sure he understands sports at a very high level,” Finch said of Rodriguez. “He’s certainly going to bring some sex appeal to the organization, to the city, to the team. We’ve got again, just the more skill sets and personality types that you can bring to an ownership group, the more it’s going to be reflective of the overall mission.”

Rodriguez and Lore have a 30-day window for negotiations, which includes the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx, to be finalized. The Athletic first reported the sale to be worth $1.5 billion.

Finch said he spoke with current owner Glen Taylor in the morning.

“He was very assuring that the transition would be smooth and that it’s his intention to give everybody the best chance at success here and he’s excited about the opportunities that are ahead,” Finch said.

HONORING TOWNS

The Timberwolves honored Towns’ mother, Jacqueline, before the game and had an open seat reserved for her with flowers. Jacqueline died April 13 last year due to complications from COVID-19. Towns’ father, Karl Sr., sat courtside for Sunday’s game.

“It means everything to me,” Towns said of winning the game and sharing a postgame hug with his father and LaVine. “Obviously, you know what the next two days are for me. Life just sometimes ain’t fair.”

UP NEXT

Bulls: At Memphis to play the Grizzlies on Monday night.

Timberwolves: Host the New Jersey Nets on Monday night. New Jersey, already without James Harden, announced that Kyrie Irving would be out of the game for personal reasons.

Ryan Pulock scores in OT, Islanders beat Rangers 3-2

Ryan Pulock scored 1:13 into overtime and the New York Islanders beat the Rangers 3-2 on Sunday night.

Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored in the first period for the Islanders, who have won eight of 11 and are 18-2-2 at home. Mathew Barzal had two assists.

Ilya Sorokin stopped 24 shots to improve to 11-3-1 this season. He moved to 8-0 at home, becoming the second rookie in last 39 years to win eight straight at home — joining teammate Semyon Varlamov, who did it 2009-10 for Washington.

The Islanders recovered after giving up their early lead and kept pace with Washington atop the East Division, two points ahead of third-place Pittsburgh. All three teams have 14 games remaining.

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“I thought we stuck with it, we did what we had to do,” Pulock said. “At the end of the day, we got two points. That’s what we’re here for.”

Libor Hajek and Brendan Smith scored in the second period for the Rangers, who are 4-1-2 in their last seven games. Igor Shesterkin finished with 29 saves — including 15 in the first period.

The Rangers pulled four points behind Boston for the fourth and final playoff spot in the East. The Bruins also have two games in hand.

“Every point counts,” Smith said. “Yeah, we want two, obviously. … If we can keep playing this way, keep getting those points and slide in I think we can be a team that can do damage.”

It was a big bounce-back win for the Islanders, who lost 4-1 here to the Rangers on Friday night and finished 5-1 on a six-game homestand.

“It felt good, obviously beating the Rangers is a big thing and winning games at home is huge especially this time of year,” Palmieri said. “The team found a way to get it done tonight and that’s all you could ask for.”

In the extra period, Pulock got a pass from Barzal and beat Shesterkin from the right side on the blocker side for his first goal since March 7, 2020.

“That one feels good,” Pulock said. “It’s been a stretch, but obviously found one in a key moment and found a way to win a game.”

Seconds earlier, Shesterkin had made a sliding save going to his right on an attempt by Travis Zajac, resulting in a faceoff in the left circle.

Both teams had chances late in regulation. Kevin Rooney fired a shot off Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield’s skate and the crossbar with about 3 minutes left. The Islanders had a chance on the other end, but Shesterkin denied Andy Greene’s attempt 45 seconds later.

Trailing 2-0 after 20 minutes, the Rangers came out aggressive in the second and had several scoring chances while outshooting the Islanders 9-2 over the first 13 minutes of the period.

Hajek pulled the Rangers to 2-1 as his shot from the point got through traffic and beat Sorokin for his second with 9:37 left in the middle period.

Smith tied it less than two minutes later as he pounced on a loose puck in the middle and fired a shot that beat Sorokin high for his third with 7:44 left. Rookie right wing Vitali Kravtsov got his first NHL point on the play in his fifth game.

“We knew they were going to have a push,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. “Coming out of our end we didn’t execute. We lost few more battles and we got beat to the net a few times. … It killed all our speed, it killed all our ability to do what we do.”

The Islanders outshot the Rangers 17-8 in the first period, scoring early and late to take a 2-0 lead.

Palmieri got the Islanders on the scoreboard with his first goal since being acquired from New Jersey last Wednesday. On a power play, Josh Bailey’s shot from the right point was deflected by Brock Nelson to Palmieri, who put it in from the left side for his ninth of the season at 1:47.

Pageau doubled the Islanders’ lead in the closing seconds of period. Mathew Barzal brought the puck up the ice, passed to Jordan Eberle on the right side. Eberle passed it across to Pageau, who fired one-timer past Shesterkin on the glove side with 8 seconds remaining for his 12th.

“Not the start we wanted,” Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba said. “We came out and played better in the second and third (periods). Good sign to battle back, yet couldn’t find the last goal.”

PENALTIES

Two nights after the Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad was whistled for the game’s only penalty, each team was called for three. The Islanders went 1 for 3 on the power play, and the Rangers were 0 for 3.

ISLANDERS TRADE

The Islanders acquired 2020 Stanley Cup-winning D Braydon Coburn from Ottawa for a 2022 seventh-round pick. The 36-year-old has two points in 16 games with the Senators this season.

In other roster moves Sunday, the Islanders placed F Ross Johnston on IR and moved F Oliver Wahlstrom from the taxi squad to the roster. Wahlstrom replaced Leo Komarov in the active lineup.

SPECIAL DATE

On this date in 1975, the Islanders beat the Rangers on J.P. Parise’s goal 11 seconds into overtime at Madison Square Garden to win a three-game opening-round playoff series. It gave the Islanders, in their third season, their first postseason series win in franchise history.

UP NEXT

Rangers: At New Jersey on Tuesday to open a stretch of four games in six days against the Devils.

Islanders: At Boston for a two-game series on Thursday and Friday.

Caps roll 8-1 in Chara’s 1st game in front of Bruins fans

T.J. Oshie scored one of his two goals in Washington’s three-goal first-period and former Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara played his first game in front of Boston’s fans in the Capitals’ 8-1 victory Sunday night.

Conor Sheary and Lars Eller each also scored twice, and Tom Wilson and Nic Dowd each had one of the season-high goals scored by the Capitals in their first victory in regulation against Boston this season. The Bruins had gotten at least a point in the clubs’ five previous meetings (3-0-2).

Rookie Vitek Vanecek stopped 34 shots, but lost a chance for his second shutout when Craig Smith scored a power-play goal 3 minutes into the third.

“I definitely think it’s important to get that playoff feel moving forward,” Sheary said. “We want to play these important games this time of year. You don’t want to be, maybe it sounds bad, but you don’t want to be too far ahead where you’re kind of coasting into playoffs.”

Washington is tied with the New York Islanders for first in the NHL’s East division.

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The Bruins played a video tribute for Chara on the Jumbotron midway into the opening period with Washington already leading 2-0. He got a standing ovation from the TD Garden crowd, which was limited by the state to 12% capacity because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Skating near his bench, Chara appeared touched, raising his stick and clapping back to the crowd before patting his chest with his left glove and waving.

The 44-year-old Chara was the Bruins’ captain for his 14 seasons with the club. He helped them win the 2011 Stanley Cup, and was a key part of its runner-up teams in 2013 and 2019.

After all the players left the ice when the game was over, he skated out, waved and went to a corner, pointing up to the seats.

Chara, who signed a one-year deal with Washington in the offseason, said on a Zoom interview after the morning skate that his wife and three children, who still live in Boston, were expected to be at the game.

“It was great for him to have that for the fans,” Boston captain Patrice Bergeron said. “I know its only 12% capacity, but he deserves that. I know he’s done so much for the organization.”

Washington jumped ahead 3-0 in the opening half of the period, starting when Oshie one-timed Nicklas Backstrom’s pass into the net from the slot for a power-play goal at 7:33.

Just 16 seconds later, Eller took a pass from Carl Hagelin, cut around Boston defenseman Jarred Tinordi and flipped a shot over Dan Vladar’s glove.

“We wanted to make sure we had a good 60 minutes,” Wilson said. “I know its a cliché, but it was pretty good tonight and we got the job done.”

Sheary scored on a 3-on-2 break to make it 3-0 at 9:42. He also scored off a rebound for a power-play goal early in the second.

“I don’t think these games are helpful for anyone unless your team was arrogant and winning all the time and needed to be taken down a notch,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. “It was a tough one for Dan, but a lot of guys in front of him could have done a better job battling through it.”

SHORT-HANDED

The Bruins were missing four of their top defensemen. Charlie McAvoy (third straight game), Matt Grzelcyk (injured Saturday) and Brandon Carlo (fifth straight) are all out with an undisclosed upper-body injury. Kevan Miller, working back from offseason knee surgery, didn’t play because it was consecutive days.

“We talked about it. We knew they were going through some injuries,” Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. “The message was simple: ‘Get it behind them and see if we can get it in the offensive zone.’”

The Bruins announced after the game they replenished some depth on their banged-up blue line by trading a 2022 third-round pick to Ottawa for Mike Reilly.

The 27-year-old left-shooting defenseman has 19 assists in 40 games this season with the Senators.

OPENING SPACE

The Capitals traded Jonas Siegenthaler to New Jersey on Sunday for a 2021 third-round pick. Washington cleared $800,000 in salary-cap space before the trade deadline Monday by dealing one of the eight defensemen on its active roster.

The 23-year-old Siegenthaler is a restricted free agent after this season. A 2015 second-round pick from Switzerland, he has 13 points in 97 regular-season NHL games, all with the Capitals.

“I know that Jonas wants to play, he wanted to play so I hope it is a good fit for him,” Laviolette said.

EXTRAS

Washington defenseman Brenden Dillon and Boston forward Chris Wagner dropped the gloves for a fight 4 seconds into the game. … Backstrom needs two games for 1,000 in his career. … It was Boston’s first of a five-game homestand. … It was a season high for goals allowed by Boston, and the first time the Capitals scored eight since an 8-1 win at Atlanta on Jan. 9, 2010.

UP NEXT

Capitals: Host the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.

Bruins: Host the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday.

Williamson scores 38, Pelicans rally past Cavaliers 116-109

Zion Williamson scored 38 points and Brandon Ingram had 27 points and eight assists in rallying the New Orleans Pelicans to a 116-109 victory over the injury-plagued Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.

Williamson, who scored 25 points in the first half, fell one shy of his career best of 39 set March 26 against Denver. He made 16 of 22 shots, grabbed nine rebounds and had four assists as New Orleans pulled within one game of the final play-in tournament spot in the West.

“You get so spoiled with Zion because he sets such a high standard that I didn’t think this was one of his better games,” Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy said. “Then you look at the stat sheet and, whew, he had 38-9-4 even though I know he was tired out there.”

The Pelicans, who trailed by 13 points in the second quarter, went ahead for good at 108-107 on Ingram’s jumper with 2:33 remaining. Williamson followed with consecutive layups to extend the lead to five before Ingram iced the game from the line.

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“Our intensity just went through the roof and pulled us through to the win,” Williamson said. “I’m glad that Coach expects me and (Ingram) to be better because we want him to continue to teach us. We know what’s expected from us on this team.”

Dean Wade scored a career-high 21 points and Kevin Love and Isaac Okoro each had 19 for Cleveland, which was without starters Collin Sexton (left groin strain), Darius Garland (right ankle sprain), Jarrett Allen (concussion) and Larry Nance Jr. (illness).

One night earlier, the Cavaliers allowed a franchise-record 87 points in the first half and were routed 135-115 by Toronto at home. The Raptors didn’t play their top three scorers in Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet and Kyle Lowry.

“A lot of guys really stepped up — Dean Wade was awesome — and we responded in a tough spot tonight,” Love said. “We just gave up a little too much in the fourth and couldn’t make shots that we needed, myself included.”

Naji Marshall had 15 points for New Orleans, which won its second in a row. There were five lead changes in the final eight minutes with Cleveland taking its final advantage at 107-106 on Cedi Osman’s hoop.

Osman scored 15 points off the bench, while Matthew Dellavedova had seven points and 10 assists in his initial start of the season. Cleveland fell four games behind the last play-in position in the East.

“The last 7-8 minutes, we played pretty well,” Van Gundy said. “Outside of that, they played harder, more focused and better than we did, but we had better talent and we were able to finish it off.”

Cleveland carried a 68-62 edge into intermission. Wade scored 16 points before Jaxson Hayes banked in a 60-footer at the buzzer.

TIP-INS

Pelicans: G Lonzo Ball (left hip flexor), G Nickeil Alexander-Walker (left ankle sprain) and G Josh Hart (right thumb surgery) were inactive. Ball missed his second game in a row, Alexander-Walker sat out his fourth and Hart missed his fifth. … Executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin was seated courtside and received a nice ovation. Griffin was Cleveland’s general manager when it won the 2016 NBA championship.

Cavaliers: G Dylan Windler (left knee soreness) missed his seventh straight game and G Damyean Dotson (left knee soreness) was a late scratch. Due to a series of injuries, Windler has only appeared in 31 games out of a possible 118 in his two-year career. … F Mfiondu Kabengele was the first big man off the bench against New Orleans. The nephew of Hall of Fame C Dikembe Mutombo signed a 10-day contract on Saturday.

STAN’S MAN

Dellavedova has long been a fan favorite in Cleveland and his native Australia. Van Gundy also admires the eighth-year pro, who dished out 22 assists before committing his first turnover of the season. “He’s just a solid, team-oriented guy who is all about winning,” Van Gundy said. “You can never have too many of those guys.” Dellavedova made his season debut on April 1 after suffering a concussion in the preseason and undergoing an appendectomy.

UP NEXT

Pelicans: Host Sacramento on Monday. The Kings have only played in New Orleans once in the last two seasons as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cavaliers: Visit Charlotte on Wednesday. Cleveland beat the Hornets 121-114 in its season opener on Dec. 23.

Weaver takes no-hitter into 7th, Diamondbacks top Reds 7-0

Luke Weaver was one of the worst pitchers in the National League one season ago. The Diamondbacks right-hander wasn’t that promising this spring training, either.

But the 27-year-old never lost his confidence. Even after bad outings, he insisted he felt good on the mound and the results would come.

He backed up those words on Sunday.

“It finally came together,” Weaver said.

Weaver retired the first 17 batters, Eduardo Escobar homered for the fourth straight game and Arizona beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-0.

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Weaver (1-0) took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before giving up a broken-bat single to Eugenio Suárez, whose ground ball found a hole up the middle. The right-hander hit Alex Blandino with a pitch with two outs in the sixth, the first of three baserunners he allowed.

Weaver — who flashed pinpoint command with a mid-90s fastball — needed just 94 pitches over seven innings to carve through Cincinnati’s red-hot lineup, throwing 63 strikes. He struck out eight. The Reds came into the game hitting .312 as a team, which was tops in the majors.

“There was just a lot of confidence right from the get-go,” Weaver said. “Mechanically, seeing the results. Finishing pitches.”

Rookie Matt Peacock pitched the final two innings to complete the two-hitter.

David Peralta hit a three-run homer in the third, his first of the season, to put the Diamondbacks ahead 4-0. Arizona threatened again in the fourth, but Christian Walker struck out with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Escobar added a 2-run shot down the right-field line in the fifth to push the D-backs ahead 6-0. His four-game homer streak is a career best.

José De León (0-1) allowed six runs over 4 1/3 innings. He struck out nine, walked three and gave up eight hits, including the two homers.

Arizona won the three-game series after losing Friday’s opener, cooling off the Reds after a 6-1 start, which was the best opening week for the franchise since 1994.

“It was pretty obvious that Weaver had good stuff,” Reds manager David Bell said. “We had three or four, maybe five, well-hit balls, but that’s going to happen. The other at-bats, he was in command and dominated with his fastball and changeup.

“All game we thought we were going to get runners on and get back in it but it didn’t happen today.”

Suárez and Kyle Farmer had Cincinnati’s only hits.

RESURGENT WEAVER

Weaver led the NL in losses last season with nine and had a 6.58 ERA.

In 2019, he was one of the D-backs’ best pitchers with a 2.94 ERA through 12 starts before injuries cut his season short. He is in his sixth big league season but won’t become a free agent until 2024.

“Last year was a crazy year for everyone,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said. “I felt like the stuff was there, it was just about execution. And he executed a great game plan today by locating his fastball.”

ON-BASE MACHINE

Arizona’s Josh VanMeter reached base in all five of his plate appearances. He had a single, a double and three walks. VanMeter played 1 1/2 seasons for the Reds, who traded him to the D-backs last year.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Reds: OF Jesse Winker was out of the starting lineup for a second day in a row after dealing with calf cramps in Friday’s win. He came into the game as a pinch-hitter in the ninth.

Diamondbacks: OF Kole Calhoun got the day off. Lovullo said the team is trying to make sure Calhoun doesn’t overwork his surgically repaired right knee. Calhoun started the first two games of the series.

UP NEXT

The Reds head to San Francisco for a three-game series, with Wade Miley (1-0, 0.00 ERA) starting the opener against the Giants’ Aaron Sanchez (0-0, 1.80).

The Diamondbacks send LHP Madison Bumgarner to the mound against Oakland. The four-time All-Star has had a tough start to the season with an 0-1 record and an 11.00 ERA. RHP Chris Bassitt (0-2, 5.56) starts for the Athletics.

Hideki Matsuyama claims Masters title, first Japanese golfer to win major championship

Hideki Matsuyama is officially in a class of his own.

On Sunday, Matsuyama, who shot a 1-over 73 to win the Masters by one stroke, became the first male golfer from Japan to claim one of golf’s major championships. Matsuyama held off Will Zalatoris, who finished with a 9-under 279.

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He became the second man from an Asian country to win a major. Y.E. Yang of South Korea won the 2009 PGA Championship at Hazeltine over Tiger Woods.

Matsuyama, a five-time winner on the PGA Tour, took control of the tournament on Saturday when he shot a 65. He was in command in the final round on Sunday, but his supporters had to hold their breath at No. 15 when he skipped the ball into the water, which led to a bogey and it lessened his lead to two shots over Xander Schauffele.

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With that said, Schauffele also put one in the water at the 16th hole and he took the first triple-bogey of his major championship career.

However, Matsuyama was able to stay the course and get the victory at Augusta National. He finished at 278 for the tournament.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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