>>Pistons Destroy Bulls In Season Finale
(Chicago, IL) — Luke Kennard posted 23 points, five assists and five rebounds as the Pistons handled the Bulls 119-87 at the United Center. Lauri Markkanen had 20 points and eight boards to finish off a solid rookie season for Chicago. The Bulls went 27-and-55, tied for the sixth-worst record with the Kings.
>>NBA Playoffs Set
(Undated) — The NBA regular season is officially over. The first round of the playoffs are set and will open on Saturday. In the East, Washington faces Toronto, Boston meets Milwaukee, Philadelphia takes on Miami, and Cleveland plays Indiana. In the West, the Warriors clash with San Antonio, Utah meets Oklahoma City, the Rockets take on Minnesota, and the Blazers match-up with New Orleans.
>>Penguins Clobber Flyers As NHL Playoffs Begin
(Pittsburgh, PA) — Sidney Crosby netted a natural hat trick as the Penguins cruised past the Flyers 7-0 in Game One of their first-round playoff series in Pittsburgh. Crosby scored the final three goals in the rout. Vegas won its first-ever playoff game 1-0 over the Kings on its home ice. The Jets scored two late goals to edge the Wild 3-2 in Winnipeg. The playoffs resume tonight with five Game Ones.
>>Knicks Fire HC Hornacek
(New York, NY) — The New York Knicks are moving on from head coach Jeff Hornacek [[ HOR-na-seck ]]. He was fired hours after a season-ending win over Cleveland. Over two seasons, he guided New York to a record of 59-and-104. Hornacek was hired by previous president of basketball operations Phil Jackson. The move will give president Steve Mills and general manager Scott Perry the chance to hire their own man.
>>White Sox Edge Rays To Avoid Sweep
(Chicago, IL) — Matt Davidson drilled a go-ahead, two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning as the White Sox edged the Rays 2-1 to avoid a winless season-opening homestand at Guaranteed Rate Field. Bruce Rondon picked up the win and Nate Jones notched his first save. The Southsiders improved to 4-and-7, including 1-and-5 at home.
>>Cubs Club Pirates With 16-Hit Attack
(Chicago, IL) — Javier Baez hit two home runs for the second straight game to help power the Cubs to a 13-5 win over the Pirates at Wrigley Field. Ian Happ also went deep for Chicago, which banged out 16 hits in all. Brian Duensing [[ DUNN-sing ]] got the win in relief of Jon Lester. The Cubs finish their series with the Pirates this afternoon.
>>Cardinals Come Up Short Against Brewers
(St. Louis, MO) — The Cardinals fell behind 3-0 in the fifth inning and never recovered in a 3-2 loss to the Brewers at Busch Stadium. Adam Wainwright allowed eight hits and three runs in seven innings to drop to 0-and-2. Matt Carpenter had an RBI groundout in the sixth and Tommy Pham homered in the ninth to make it close.
>>Two Brawls In Baseball
(Denver, CO) — A couple of fights highlighted baseball action on Wednesday. Five players ended up ejected in the Rockies-Padres game. The incident started after Luis Perdomo threw behind Nolan Arenado, who charged the mound and threw several punches. Yankees’ designated hitter Tyler Austin charged the mound at Boston’s Joe Kelly, who pegged him in the ribs with a fastball. That started another brawl between the rivals at Fenway. Suspensions and fines are likely looming.