AP-National-Sports

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Deshaun Watson didn’t address the accusations or reasons behind his time away from the Browns. No discussion. No reflection. On the verge of his first regular-season game in nearly two years, Watson stayed clear of more controversy. Cleveland’s new starting quarterback refused to address non-football

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown is wanted on a battery charge stemming from a domestic incident, Tampa police said Thursday. Investigators said Brown, 34, and a woman were involved in a verbal altercation Monday afternoon at a home in Tampa. Brown threw a shoe at the woman, attempted to evict

By JAMES POLLARD Associated Press/Report for America COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The latest lawsuit alleging widespread misconduct across competitive cheerleading says officials permitted two choregraphers to continue working with young athletes after they were investigated for sexual abuse. Twenty plaintiffs have now brought allegations against various coaches since the founder of an elite South Carolina

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Jill Ellis was voted into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame after coaching the American women to World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019. The 56-year-old British-born coach was picked on 20 of 24 ballots in the builder voting that included only coach candidates for the 2023 class. Clive Charles, a

PARIS (AP) — A tennis league founded by coach Patrick Mouratoglou that played exhibition matches when the pro tours were shut down during the coronavirus pandemic plans to return in 2023. The Ultimate Tennis Showdown, or UTS, announced Thursday that it will hold matches in July, September, November and December in the United States, Europe,

By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) — Roberto Martinez is leaving as coach of Belgium’s national team following the squad’s World Cup exit. The Belgians drew 0-0 with Croatia and were eliminated from the tournament in Qatar. Martinez says “that was my last game for the national team.” Martinez coached Belgium

By ED WHITE Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Michigan defensive lineman Mazi Smith has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon. The felony was filed this week, nearly two months after the alleged incident. Defense lawyer John Shea says Smith was in the process of getting a concealed-weapon permit when he was stopped by police.

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Dani Alves was given a job to do and he had to complete it to have a chance of making it to the World Cup. The veteran Brazil right back accomplished his mission and will start against Cameroon on Friday to become the oldest Brazilian

By JOHN ZENOR AP Sports Writer The Troy Trojans have not lost since Appalachian State beat them on a Hail Mary pass. The 10-2 Troy teams takes a nine-game winning streak into Saturday’s Sun Belt Conference championship game against 9-2 Coastal Carolina at Troy’s Veterans Memorial Stadium. Under first-year coach Jon Sumrall, Troy is seeking

By The Associated Press TROY, Ala. (AP) — The Troy Trojans are seeking a record seventh Sun Belt Conference championship and 10th consecutive win when they host Coastal Carolina. The Trojans haven’t won a league title since 2017. The Chanticleers won in 2020, but that championship game was cancelled because of a Covid-19 breakout. Coastal

By The Associated Press Redshirt freshman quarterback Drake Maye and the North Carolina Tar Heels stand in the way of the Clemson Tigers winning their seventh Atlantic Coast Conference championship in the last eight seasons. The two teams face off Saturday night at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium. There are some observers who believe Maybe

By GERALD IMRAY AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Morocco has advanced to the last 16 at the World Cup for only the second time after clinging on for a 2-1 win over Canada. The Moroccans’ only other trip past the group stage came in 1986. Hakim Ziyech scored for Morocco in the fourth

By TIM BOOTH AP Sports Writer The owner of the Portland Thorns has announced he is putting the club up for sale, the latest fallout from an investigation into misconduct in the National Women’s Soccer League. Merritt Paulson’s decision comes nearly two months after a pair of team executives were dismissed for their roles in

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) — Croatia advanced to the last 16 of the World Cup with a 0-0 draw against Belgium. Belgium’s group-stage exit will likely usher in the breakup of its talented but underachieving generation of players. The point left 2018 runner-up Croatia in second place behind Group

By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Australia’s unexpected advancement to the World Cup’s round of 16 from a difficult group featuring defending champion France and European Championship semifinalist Denmark plus a Tunisia team buoyed by big pan-Arab fan support is not a product of individual talent. It’s a testament to teamwork,

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Football Writer Over the past 25 years, college football’s postseason format for crowning a national champion has grown from two teams to four and now, starting in 2024, to 12. For a sport that started in 1869 and spent most of the 20th century using bowls and polls to

By CARLOS RODRÍGUEZ Associated Press AL KHOR, Qatar (AP) — Mexico says Argentine coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino will not return for the next tournament. The Mexicans missed out on reaching the round of 16 at the World Cup for the first time in 44 years. Martino was hired in January 2019 and finished his contract

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — The New York Jets’ postseason hopes are rising and so are their ticket prices for next season. The Jets are 7-4 and in the middle of the AFC playoff hunt. They will be increasing prices of tickets an average of 12% next

GAFFNEY, S.C. (AP) — Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time Cy Young Award winner Gaylord Perry, a master of the spitball and telling stories about the pitch, died Thursday. He was 84. Perry died at his home in Gaffney at about 5 a.m. Thursday, Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler said. He did not provide additional

By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer Three-time W Series champion Jamie Chadwick has parlayed her success in the all-women series into a bigger ride. The British racer has been selected the driver for Andretti Autosport in the Indy NXT Series next season. Indy NXT is the new name of the rebranded Indy Lights Series,

LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James has questions about the disparity of media scrutiny he believes is being applied to a 1957 photo of Jerry Jones and the recent controversy surrounding Kyrie Irving. The photo of Jones, captured by an Associated Press photographer, shows him standing among a group of white students at North Little

NASHVILLE (AP) — Goodyear will remain the exclusive tire for NASCAR’s top three national series under a new multi-year deal announced on Thursday. Specifics of the extension weren’t included. But the deal includes the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company continuing as the title sponsor of the annual Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway as part of

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Brazil coach Tite has sent a message of support to Pelé from the World Cup. Pelé was hospitalized Tuesday in Sao Paulo to regulate the medication in his fight against a colon tumor. Pelé daughter said there was “no emergency” concerning her 82-year-old father’s health. Tite says “we all want to

By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer Alex Palou has been named a Formula One reserve driver for McLaren Racing. The Spaniard won the 2021 IndyCar championship for Chip Ganassi Racing and last July said he was declining to return to Ganassi next year and instead would drive for McLaren. Ganassi held an option on

By CIARÁN FAHEY AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — On their way to Argentina’s decisive game against Poland, Mohit Daga and Aayush Verma approached the stadium carrying a massive painting of their heroes Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona with the World Cup trophy. Daga had spent 17 days painting it. It weighed 5 kilos.

By ANNE M. PETERSON AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Danish forward Nadia Nadim was in the midst of a World Cup match as a television commentator when she was suddenly rocked by tragic news. Her mother had been killed in a traffic accident in Denmark. She had helped the family flee the Taliban