LOCAL SPORTS
AUS: At the AUS Basketball Championships at the Scotiabank Centre, for the first time since 2022, there will be a new women’s basketball champion. The fourth-seeded X-Women received some clutch shooting late as they knocked off the three-time defending champion Saint Mary’s Huskies 57-48 in quarterfinal action. Mali Straker finished with game-high 15 points, while Abby Mercer added 13 of her own. Shannon Neita was named STFX’s Player of the Game after recording four points, eight rebounds and three steals in the win. The X-Women face the top-ranked UNB REDS in the semifinals – game time is 1 pm. The top-ranked X-Men got a bye into today’s semi-finals, where they will take on the UPEI Panthers at 3.
In hockey, the Acadia Axemen evened their best-of-three playoff series, defeating the X-Men 4-1 at the Keating Centre. Ryan McGuire scored the lone X-Men goal. Game 3 will be played tomorrow at 7 in Wolfville.
The X-Men & X-Women’s track teams are competing in the AUS track & field championships in Moncton.
Junior B: The Strait Pirates won the opener of their playoff series against the Jr. Miners 7-4. Game 2 of the best-of-five goes tonight at 7:30 in Membertou.
High School Boys: Northern NS League: The Dr. J.H. Gillis Royals shut out the North Nova Gryphons 3-0. This afternoon, Northumberland v Tigers @ East Hants 2 pm. Regional playoffs begin next week. Cape Breton League Division 2: CB Highlands-NDA-Cabot blanked Richmond-Beau Port 2-0, while SAERC outscored Dalbrae Academy 5-1. (End of regular season)
Seniors League: The Bulldogs defeated the Pictou County Pipers 8-5 at the Antigonish Arena.
Maritime League: Pictou County Weeks Crushers @ Valley Wildcats 4:30 pm.
U15: Novas v Bombers @ Wellness Centre 2 pm.
U16 AAA: Highlanders v Jets @ Membertou 2 pm.
U18 Major Playoffs: Islanders v Macs @ Halifax Forum 7 pm, Weeks Majors v Steele Subaru @ Zatzman Sportsplex Dartmouth 7:45.
Rural League: Outlaws play St. Croix at 7 and Heatherton Plays Pleasantdale at 8:30 in playoffs at the Arena.
Maritime Major Girls U18 League Playoffs: Capitals v Selects @ Hector Arena 4 pm, Lynx v Surge @ RBC Centre Dartmouth 5:15 pm.
NATIONAL SPORTS
Brad Jacobs and his Calgary-based team hope to put the hammer down today at the Milan Cortina Olympics when it plays defending world champion Bruce Mouat and his Great Britain crew in the men’s curling gold-medal final. In women’s action, Rachel Homan’s (HOH’-mihn) Ottawa-based foursome will play for bronze today against Tabitha Peterson of the United States.
After a last-minute 3-2 loss to Canada in yesterday’s men’s hockey semifinals at the Milan Cortina Games, Finland will try to regroup and win a bronze medal today when the squad plays Slovakia, which was overpowered 6-2 by the U-S in their semifinal. Canada and the United States will square off tomorrow for gold. It’s the first Winter Olympics featuring N-H-L players since Sochi 2014.
Speedskater Valerie Maltais of La Baie, Quebec, will be aiming to win her fourth medal of the Milan Cortina Olympics today when she competes in the women’s mass start final. Maltais has collected bronze medals in the women’s 1,500 metres and 3,000 metres, and struck gold with Ottawa’s Ivanie Blondin and Isabelle Weidemann in the team pursuit.
Reece Howden of Chilliwack, B-C, is among four Canadians hoping to reach the podium in men’s ski cross today. Howden is taking part in his second Games after finishing ninth at Beijing 2022. Toronto’s Kevin Drury, Jared Schmidt of Ottawa, and Gavin Rowell of Prince George, B-C, are also competing.
Jared McCain had 21 points and four rebounds, Chet Holmgren had 15 points and seven rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder, playing without injured Canadian star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, defeated the visiting Brooklyn Nets 105-86. Michael Porter Junior led the Nets with 22 points and nine rebounds.
Tyler Herro scored 24 points, Bam Adebayo had 17 points and eight rebounds, and the Miami Heat won their second straight game with a 128-97 decision over the host Atlanta Hawks. Onyeka Okongwu led the Hawks with 22 points. C-J McCollum and Canadian Nickeil Alexander-Walker each scored 20 points for Atlanta.
Anthony Edwards returned to Minnesota with his All-Star game M-V-P award and 40 points to help the Timberwolves hold off Dallas 122-111 on Friday, the 10th straight N-B-A loss for the visiting Mavericks. Rudy Gobert had 22 points and 17 rebounds for the T-Wolves. Khris Middleton had 18 points and Marvin Bagley added 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Mavericks, who are on their longest losing streak in 28 years.
Just over half of the ball-strike challenges were successful on the first day of spring training games as Major League Baseball prepared for the first regular-season use of the automated ball-strike system — the so-called robot umpires. Thirteen of 23 calls were overturned during the five games, M-L-B said. There were an average of 4.6 challenges per game and 2.6 overturned calls per game.
Friday’s Scoreboard
NBA
Cleveland 118 Charlotte 113
Oklahoma City 105 Brooklyn 86
Miami 128 Atlanta 97
Memphis 123 Utah 114
Washington 131 Indiana 118
Minnesota 122 Dallas 111
Milwaukee 139 New Orleans 118
Denver 157 Portland 103
L.A. Lakers 125 L.A. Clippers 122
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League
Newfoundland 4 Cape Breton 1
Quebec 6 Baie-Comeau 0
Blainville-Boisbriand 6 Gatineau 3
Chicoutimi 3 Rouyn-Noranda 0
Drummondville 7 Halifax 4
Sherbrooke 8 Saint John 5
Victoriaville 8 Rimouski 1
Charlottetown 6 Moncton 5 (SO)
MLB Spring Training
Baltimore 2 N.Y. Yankees 0
Chicago White Sox 8 Chicago Cubs 1
Kansas City 7 Texas 3
Arizona 3 Colorado 2
Seattle 7 San Diego 4
Saturday’s Games (All times Eastern)
NBA
Orlando at Phoenix, 5 p.m.
Philadelphia at New Orleans, 7 p.m.
Sacramento at San Antonio, 8 p.m.
Memphis at Miami, 8 p.m.
Detroit at Chicago, 8 p.m.
Houston at New York, 8:30 p.m.
MLS
Charlotte FC at St Louis City, 2:30 p.m.
Atlanta at Cincinnati, 4:45 p.m.
Philadelphia at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m.
New York at Orlando City, 7:30 p.m.
Real Salt Lake at Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.
Minnesota at Austin FC, 8:30 p.m.
Toronto FC at FC Dallas, 8:30 p.m.
Chicago at Houston, 8:30 p.m.
New England at Nashville, 8:30 p.m.
Miami at Los Angeles FC, 9:30 p.m.
Columbus at Portland, 10:30 p.m.
CF Montréal at San Diego FC, 10:30 p.m.
Sporting Kansas City at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League
Charlottetown at Moncton, 3 p.m.
Val-d’Or at Drummondville, 4 p.m.
Cape Breton at Newfoundland, 5:30 p.m.