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NBA play-in tournament: Chicago Bulls head to Toronto to play the Raptors on Wednesday

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

The Chicago Bulls will face the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday in the NBA play-in tournament.The Raptors lost to the Boston Celtics on Friday to settle for the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference.The Bulls clinched their play-in position earlier this week, with losses to the Hawks and the Milwaukee Bucks preventing them from climbing above the 10 seed.If the Bulls win Wednesday, they would have a road game Friday against the loser of the play-in game between the No. 7 seed Miami Heat and No. 8 Atlanta Hawks. Winning both would give the Bulls the No. 8 seed in the East, and they would face the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA playoffs.The Bulls went 1-2 against Raptors this season, winning the Nov. 7 meeting. The Raptors won the last matchup 104-98 on Feb. 28 after the Bulls collapsed in the fourth quarter, allowing an eight-point swing down the stretch.The play-in game will be a homecoming for Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan, who spent the first nine seasons of hi...

Shorthanded Celtics handle Raptors again, will face Heat or Hawks in first round of playoffs

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

As they finish out the regular season this weekend, the Celtics have nothing to play for in the standings. They’re locked in to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.But they still don’t want to lose.“Regardless of who’s playing, I want to win,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said before Friday’s game against the Raptors.A few inexcusable losses to inferior teams cost the Celtics the No. 1 seed, but Mazzulla has otherwise praised the Celtics’ professionalism throughout the season. No matter who’s on the floor – even Friday’s shorthanded edition – he feels like the Celtics always have a great chance to win, a testament to their depth. Even as they do their best to give their regulars proper rest before the most important games, the Celtics are deep enough to win every night.Friday was the latest example. Without Marcus Smart, Malcolm Brogdon, and at the last moment, Jaylen Brown, the Celtics weren’t the least bit worried. They still had Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Al Horford, R...

Winderman’s view: Zeller is Heat’s X factor in Y-Z race against Yurtseven

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

Observations and other notes of interest from Friday night’s 114-108 loss to the Washington Wizards:– No, not a game with much in the way of meaning or context.– Not with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Kyle Lowry and Kevin Love given the night off.– But it did clarify one element that likely did not need much in the way of clarifying:– If the Heat need to go three deep in their power rotation in the playoffs beyond Adebayo and Love, it will be Cody Zeller.– It was Zeller who kept the Heat afloat early.– While it was Omer Yurtseven who again was hampered by early foul trouble.– Zeller’s experiences matters.– He is quality insurance.– Yurtseven figures to see mop-up postseason duty, at best.– As was the case at the end Friday.– And then it will get interesting.– With both to be free agents in the offseason.– So the potential of 24-year-old Yurtseven or the known quantity of 30-year-old Z...

Heat rest regulars, fall 114-108 to Wizards to lock in Tuesday home play-in game

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

There wasn’t much to be learned from this game for the Miami Heat, with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Kyle Lowry and Kevin Love given the night off.Except for what comes next.With Friday night’s 114-108 loss to the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena, the Heat were locked into a seventh-place finish in the Eastern Conference, regardless of the result of Sunday’s home finale against the Orlando Magic. That means a Tuesday night home play-in game at the Kaseya Center, the new name for their arena.Win that, and it’s on to the playoffs. Lose, and there is a second-chance all-or-nothing home game next Friday night.Virtually eliminated from any chance of moving up in the standings in light of the Brooklyn Nets’ tiebreaker for the No. 6 seed in the East, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra opted for prudence with his leading men, who assuredly also will sit out Sunday’s regular-season finale against the visiting Orlando Magic.Against that backdrop, t...

Chicago White Sox pitching gets pummeled again in a 13-9 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates: ‘It’s just one of those stretches’

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. thought he had drawn a walk.But Pittsburgh Pirates starter Rich Hill got a called strike, running the count full in a fifth-inning matchup. Robert drove the next pitch just over the right-field wall for his second two-run homer of the game Friday.The Sox had plenty of offense, but a rough week continued for the pitching staff in a wild 13-9 loss in front of a sellout crowd of 39,167 at PNC Park.Bryan Reynolds came within a double of the cycle while driving in six to lead the Pirates in their home opener. It’s the third time in four games the Sox have allowed at least 12 runs.“I don’t have concern with the pitching, I really don’t,” Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “These guys have done it before, they’ve done it for a while now. It’s just one of those stretches.“Obviously there are adjustments to be made. They’re working on it. But concerns? I don’t.”The Sox (3-5) l...

Home showcase: Updated Colonial in Newton

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

Sited along the cutest circular cul-de–sac in Newton, 8 Bunny Circle is a completely transformed 10-room Colonial. After receiving a major facelift and expansion in 2022, the home’s inviting footprint features a whopping 3,099 square feet across three floors, as well as gently sloping outdoor living space.A cheerful, covered front door lands you in the semi-open dining, kitchen, and living room space on the first floor. It’s an ideal compromise between an open floor plan and closed-off rooms with the just-right flow for gathering and conversation. The dining area enjoys a mantled gas fireplace and opens to the newer kitchen. Here, an eat-in island with a granite countertop and cherry cabinets frame the space which opens to a deck overlooking the backyard. Trendy barn doors and walls of windows surround the living room where you’ll find another fireplace.Setting 8 Bunny Circle apart is a first-floor guest suite with private access and its own kitchenette and bath. Three bedrooms and ...

Lawsuit filed against fraternity in alleged near-death of SDSU student

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- “He went right into San Diego State with high SAT scores. Smart guy, great boy and his family is devastated," said attorney James Frantz, who announced Friday a lawsuit on behalf of Benjamin Brennan, a former SDSU student.The lawsuit claims Brennan, then a 19-year-old freshman from Pennsylvania, was nearly killed during a hazing incident at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house in April of 2021.Attorneys say during an “initiation ritual,” Brennan was detained by frat members who forced him to consume potentially deadly amounts of alcohol and drugs.“750 milliliters of straight rum -- you're gonna drink that. You have 30 minutes to consume it and by the way, we're going to give you some other things to make it easier for you -- marijuana and strong tobacco," said Frantz. CHP pursuit ends in K-9 takedown Attorneys say the teenager then passed out and became unresponsive.“So they grab his lifeless body, put it in their car ... couple of the members take it over to the local em...

Person of interest sought in sex assault attempt

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Police were asking for the public's help in identifying a person of interest from a sexual assault attempt in the Barrio Logan neighborhood last month.The incident occurred March 25 around 3 a.m. inside the victim's home located in the 2800 block of Boston Avenue, Lt. Adam Sharki with the San Diego Police Department said in a news release Friday.Authorities say the victim was asleep when the unknown man entered the residence and attempted to sexually assault her, according to police. The victim was able to get away and call police, while the alleged attacker escaped the scene, Sharki said. CHP pursuit ends in K-9 takedown SDPD describe the person of interest as a dark-skinned Black man with a mustache and goatee, between 25 to 30 years old. He is around 180 pounds, according to police, and is between 5 feet, 8 inches to 5 feet, 10 inches tall.He was last seen wearing a white and black-checkered hooded zip-up jacket over a black-hooded sweatshirt with "Reebok" in red l...

Utah man who killed family vented his anger in suicide note

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah man who f atally shot his wife, her mother and the couple’s five kids after he was investigated for child abuse left a suicide note saying he “would rather rot in hell” than continue enduring what he called controlling behavior by his wife, investigators wrote in a report released on Friday.The claims in the suicide note left by Michael Haight, 42, stand in stark contract to conclusions by investigators in the 57-page report that overwhelmingly portray Haight, and not his wife, as controlling and abusive. The report cites the family’s communications before the killings and interviews from community members conducted after the January tragedy.“This is nonsense and I can’t handle it for one more day. We will not be a burden on society. I kept asking for help and you wouldn’t listen,” Michael Haight, 42, wrote in the note included in the report released by the city of Enoch.“I would rather rot in hell than to put up with another day of this manipulati...

North Korea claims another test of underwater nuclear drone

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:12:34 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea on Saturday claimed it tested this week a second known type of nuclear-capable underwater attack drone designed to destroy naval vessels and ports, adding to a flurry of weapons demonstrations this year that have heightened tensions with rivals.The report of the four-day test came a day after the nuclear envoys of the United States, South Korea and Japan met in Seoul to discuss the growing North Korean nuclear threat and called for stronger international efforts to crack down on illicit North Korean activities funding its weapons program.The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said the drone, named “Haeil-2” after a Korean word meaning tsunamis or tidal waves, traveled underwater for more than 71 hours before successfully detonating a mock warhead in waters near the eastern port city of Tanchon on Friday. KCNA said the test proved that the weapon could strike targets 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) away with “fatal attack abilit...