Sports

NEW YORK — LeBron James delivered another epic performance on Sunday, scoring 40 points and matching a career-high with nine 3-pointers on 10 attempts as the Los Angeles Lakers rolled to a 116-104 NBA victory at Brooklyn.

James, a four-time NBA Most Valuable Player and the NBA’s oldest active player at 39, made 13-of-17 shots from the floor overall and added seven rebounds and five assists in an effort that had Brooklyn fans giving him a standing ovation.

“I was feeling pretty good today, obviously, shooting the ball from the perimeter,” James said. “I just try to continually put my game where I have no weaknesses out on the floor, especially offensively. Tonight I had it going from the 3-point line.”

James achieved his 77th NBA career 40-point game to match Oscar Robertson for seventh on an all-time list topped by Wilt Chamberlain’s 271.

“I love this game. I try to put everything into the game and with it, it gives back to me,” James said.

“Anytime I’m linked with the greats — and obviously Big O was a big inspiration for me growing up, reading about his history — it’s pretty cool.”

Anthony Davis added 24 points and 14 rebounds while Japan’s Rui Hachimura had 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Lakers seized a 17-0 lead and never looked back.

D’Angelo Russell scored 18 points and cracked the 10,000 career point barrier in the triumph as the Lakers improved to 42-33, just ahead of Golden State in the last two Western Conference play-in spots.

“Just extremely thankful that he packed the cape on this road trip,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said of the super-heroic display by James.

“We needed all nine of those threes. [We] kind of dropped the rope in terms of what we were doing... turned the ball over way too much, but that said, you have to just overcome these things... And we were able to do that by some huge shot-making by him.”

James wasn’t the only superstar with nine 3-pointers on Sunday.

Luka Doncic scored 47 points on 18-of-30 shooting, 9-of-16 from 3-point range, to lead Dallas over host Houston 125-107, snapping the Rockets’ 11-game win streak and stretching the Mavericks’ win streak to seven games.

Golden State kept pace with the Lakers by winning 117-113 at San Antonio. Stephen Curry scored 33 points to lead the Warriors while rookie Victor Wembanyama led the hosts with 32 points.

Jokic has triple double

Nikola Jokic posted his 23rd triple double of the season, sparking defending champion Denver’s 130-101 home victory over Cleveland.

The 29-year-old Serbian centre, a two-time NBA MVP, scored 26 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and added 16 assists for his 128th NBA triple double.

“It speaks to why he’s going to be a three-time MVP,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “[It was] him showing up and saying, ‘I’m going to do what MVPs do. I’m going to lead us to a win.’”

The Nuggets sank a season-high 21 3-point shots and clinched a play-off berth.

“We came out and really showed who we are, just getting after it defensively, rebounding, making shots. I thought we played amazing basketball,” said Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who scored 22 points.

Denver hit 50-of-87 from the floor overall (57.5 per cent) and 21-of-33 (63.6 per cent) from 3-point range while outrebounding the Cavaliers 51-28.

The Nuggets improved to 52-23, a half-game behind leader Oklahoma City in a three-team fight for the West lead.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sank the last of his 19 points on a game-winning basket with 2.1 seconds remaining to give Oklahoma City a 113-112 victory at New York.

Jalen Williams led the Thunder with 33 points while Jalen Brunson, who missed a shot at the final buzzer, led New York with 30.

Minnesota fell a game out of first with a 109-101 home loss to Chicago. DeMar DeRozan scored 27 points for the Bulls, who snapped the Timberwolves’ four-game win streak.

Paul George scored 41 points to lead the Los Angeles Clippers over host Charlotte 130-118.

Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 32 points to lead Philadelphia over host Toronto 135-120, extending the Raptors’ losing skid to 13 games.

Terry Rozier netted 27 points to lead Miami’s 119-107 victory at Washington.

WASHINGTON — Jayson Tatum scored 23 points to lead a balanced Boston attack in a 104-92 victory at New Orleans on Saturday, snapping a two-game losing skid for the NBA-best Celtics.

Latvian forward Kristaps Porzingis contributed 19 points, 10 rebounds, four blocked shots, three assists and two steals while Jaylen Brown added 17 points for the Celtics.

Jrue Holiday had 13 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Boston, which avoided a first three-game losing streak this season after back-to-back losses in Atlanta.

“We want to be a hungry team no matter what,” Porzingis said. “We haven’t done anything and back-to-back losses to Atlanta is not in our DNA. It just didn’t sit right with us, so we came out here tonight and got us a W.”

The Celtics, who have clinched the Eastern Conference crown, improved to 58-16, moving closer to securing a home-court edge throughout the NBA play-offs.

New Orleans, fifth in the Western Conference, fell to 45-29, a half-game ahead of Dallas and two atop Phoenix in a fight for the last two guaranteed West play-off spots.

“We just knew we couldn’t be in cruise control,” Porzingis said. “These teams are hungry. They need these wins. Maybe we at this point of the season don’t need them as much, but still we want to come out here and compete at a high level every night.”

Porzingis was unhappy at shooting only 6-of-14 from the floor, and just 1-of-6 from 3-point range but pleased with his all-around effort.

“There are so many ways we can impact a game if things are not going perfect for us,” Porzingis said. “That’s what I did tonight. I turned up another notch and that’s what we’re going to need the rest of this regular season and then even more in the post-season.”

Boston began the third quarter on a 15-7 run to open a 74-64 advantage on the way to an 83-68 lead entering the fourth quarter and the Celtics kept the Pelicans at bay over the final minutes.

“Once we hit another gear, the game just flipped,” Porzingis said.

Derrick White, who scored 15 points, sank a 3-pointer at the second quarter buzzer to cap an 8-1 Celtics run for a 59-57 half-time Boston lead.

Tatum had 13 first-half points for Boston while Brown and Porzingis each scored 11.

Zion Williamson led New Orleans with a game-high 25 points, 12 in the first quarter, and nine rebounds while CJ McCollum added 24 points for the Pelicans.

Later games find Milwaukee at Atlanta and Memphis at Orlando.

LEVERKUSEN, Germany — Last-gasp goals from Robert Andrich and Patrik Schick snatched Bayer Leverkusen victory from the jaws of defeat with a 2-1 home win over Hoffenheim on Saturday, continuing their push for a maiden league title.

A first-half Maximilian Baier strike had Hoffenheim on track to break Leverkusen’s unbeaten streak, which now stands at 39 matches, just one day after in-demand manager Xabi Alonso pledged his future to the club.

But as they have done regularly this season, Leverkusen fought back late as Andrich levelled the scores in the 88th minute before an injury-time Schick volley sealed another remarkable comeback win.

The victory sends title-bound Leverkusen 13 points clear of Bayern Munich, who face Borussia Dortmund later on Saturday, with seven matches remaining this season.

“We kept fighting and kept believing until the end,” Andrich said to Sky.

“I had no doubt we’d score at least one today, I knew eventually one of our shots had to go in.”

The midfielder, who stood alongside his coach as the team celebrated in front of the home fans after the match, said Alonso informed the players on Friday he would stay beyond the season.

“He said he wasn’t going anywhere — he said he’d stay here.

“The timing he chose was very good. Now we can keep pushing and hopefully achieve something great this season.”

The late win continued Leverkusen’s record of victories in the dying moments this season, with Alonso’s side scoring late to beat Augsburg, Leipzig, Stuttgart in the German Cup and twice against Qarabag in the Europa League.

RB Leipzig’s bid for a Champions League spot took a hit with a scoreless draw at home to lowly Mainz.

The home side were twice denied in the opening half, with an eighth-minute handball penalty overturned by VAR and a Lois Openda goal chalked off for offside.

The point provisionally takes Leipzig into fourth past Dortmund, ahead of their visit to Bayern.

New Wolfsburg manager Ralph Hasenhuettl defeated a 10-man Werder Bremen 2-0 away, the former Southampton coach claiming victory in his first match in charge.

Bremen were reduced to 10 men just before halftime following a last-man foul from Anthony Jung, with Maxence Lacroix putting the Wolves in front shortly afterwards.

Lacroix was sent off in the second half, but Wolfsburg’s Lovro Majer scored to seal the win.

Freiburg took a step towards European qualification in long-serving coach Christian Streich’s final season at the club with a 3-0 win at Borussia Moenchengladbach.

The Black Forest side were in full control against struggling Gladbach, Michael Gregoritsch, Merlin Roehl and Ritsu Doan all scoring goals.

Union Berlin held Eintracht Frankfurt to a 0-0 draw away, picking up a valuable point to go nine clear of the relegation spots.

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James returned from a one-game absence to post a 23-point triple-double on Wednesday and lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 136-124 NBA victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.

James sat out the Lakers’ come-from-behind double-overtime victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday with a sore left ankle.

Anthony Davis, who played nearly 52 minutes on Tuesday, was sidelined with a hyperextended left knee, but Rui Hachimura provided a big lift, drilling seven of eight three-point attempts on the way to 32 points with 10 rebounds to help the Lakers win their fifth straight, as they vie to work their way out of the play-in tournament and straight into the play offs.

Against a Grizzlies team playing out a season blighted by injuries, the Lakers led by eight at halftime and never trailed after the break.

James added 14 rebounds and 12 assists for his fourth triple-double of the season.

The 39-year-old superstar, who said he’d have to be “strategic” in dealing with the ankle injury that has nagged him much of the season, said he didn’t change his game because of Davis’s absence.

“Read and react to the game, see how the defense is playing and seeing the rhythm of my guys,” he said of his approach.

“It’s good to be back out there with them and be able to do a lot of things tonight to help us win.”

The Golden State Warriors, fueled by 23 points from Andrew Wiggins and two late baskets by Stephen Curry, beat the Magic 101-93 in Orlando, despite the ejection of Draymond Green just 3min 36sec into the contest.

Curry was left shaking his head when Green was tossed, receiving two quick technical fouls for heatedly arguing a foul call.

It was the fourth ejection of the season for Green, who missed 16 games after he was suspended in December for swinging an arm into the head of Suns centres Jusuf Nurkic.

Curry was clearly frustrated at the incident, shaking his head and pulling his jersey over his face.

But the Warriors, who maintained their tenuous hold on the final play-in berth in the Western Conference, regrouped to finish the first quarter with a 27-11 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

“Too bad,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of Green’s ejection. “It was unfortunate. He deserved it and he’ll bounce back.

“I’m just proud of the guys for stepping up.”

The Warriors led by 15 midway through the third quarter, but that had dwindled to six heading into the fourth and the Magic cut the lead to one with 2:41 to play.

Gary Payton II’s layup gave the Warriors a bit of breathing room before Curry drove for a hook shot with 1:09 remaining to make it 98-93.

Curry followed with a step-back three-pointer that sealed the victory with 33.8 seconds remaining, following up his familiar “night-night” celebration with an emotional kick of a court-side chair.

Wiggins, who scored 13 points in the fourth quarter, also came up with a big block of a Franz Wagner shot in the waning seconds.

Rockets keep rolling 

Cole Anthony scored 26 points off the bench to lead the Magic, but the Warriors improved to 7-0 when holding opponents to less than 100 points.

The Warriors maintained a one-game lead over the Houston Rockets for 10th place in the West.

But the Rockets kept the pressure on for the last play-in spot with a 132-126 overtime victory over the short-handed Oklahoma City Thunder that stretched Houston’s winning streak to 10 games.

The Thunder, chasing the reigning champion Denver Nuggets for top spot in the West, were without star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was sidelined with a right quadriceps contusion.

Josh Giddey carried the load in his absence, scoring 31 points. But Houston’s Jalen Green led all scorers with 37 points and the Rockets out-scored the Thunder 20-14 in overtime to seal the win.

The New York Knicks continued their push for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs with a 145-101 thrashing of the Raptors in Toronto.

The victory, coupled with the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 118-111 loss to the Hornets in Charlotte, gave the Knicks sole possession of third place in the East. 

AMMAN —  It’s been a successful week for Jordanian football, with fans on a high note as Jordan emerged victorious heading into remaining Group G qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup as well as the 6th AFC U23 Asian Cup.

All eyes were on the senior team as Jordan beat Pakistan 7-0 on Tuesday evening, to climb to second in the group ahead of the return leg matches in June against Tajikistan and Saudi Arabia.After qualifiers kicked off in November 2023, Jordan held holding Tajikistan 1-1 and lost 2-0 to Saudi Arabia. However, after they finished runner up at the 2023 Asian Cup, and shot up 17 spots 70th in FIFA rankings, they returned full force to World Cup qualifiers, and scored an expected 3-0 away win against 195th ranked Pakistan while Saudi Arabia beat Tajikistan 1-0 and tied 1-1 in the return.

Expectations have clearly shifted after Jordan’s 5th time at the 2023 Asian Cup last month when the squad reached the final.

Now, fans hope Moroccan coach Hussein Amouta can take Jordan to the World Cup for the first time after FIFA expanded the format to include 16 more teams to qualify in the upcoming 2026 edition of the World Cup.  

U-23 team finishes 5th   Meanwhile, the U-23 national team beat Iraq 3-1 to take fifth spot at the 5th West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) Championship currently under way in Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia. Jordan beat Thailand 3-1 to qualify to the 5th spot match after losing to Saudi Arabia in a dramatic, disappointing penalty shootout in their opening match.

The Kingdom is eyeing a spot at the Olympic Games which will be decided at the 6th AFC U-23 Asian Cup in April where they will play in Group A alongside hosts Qatar, Australia and Indonesia. Three teams will qualify to the Olympics while the fourth will play a play-off to advance. Similarly, the U-20 national team hopes to make it to the U-20 World Cup, and is currently preparing for the Asian Cup qualifiers in September. The team beat Japan 2-0 after losing 3-1 this week. They also beat Syria 4-1 earlier. 

The U17 team has their U17 Asian Cup qualifiers set for October while the women’s team won their 6th West Asian title after beating Nepal.

AMMAN — Jordan football squad beat Pakistan 7-0 in Amman in the return leg of Group G qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and took the second spot in the group behind the leader Saudi Arabia.

On June 6th the Nashama will host Tajikistan on the home turf, while on June 11th Jordan will travel to Saudi Arabia to play the last match of the group G.

LOS ANGELES — The Atlanta Hawks produced a comeback for the ages to overturn a 30-point deficit and defeat the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics 120-118 on Monday.

Boston, who were confirmed as having clinched the Eastern Conference’s top seed earlier on Monday, appeared to be cruising towards a resounding win after outscoring Atlanta 44-22 in the first quarter.

The Celtics raced into a 30-point advantage midway through the second quarter before Atlanta woke up and began chipping into the Boston lead.

The Hawks kept the rally going into the second half, narrowing the gap further with a 34-22 third quarter before harnessing that momentum into the fourth quarter to complete a dramatic win.

De’Andre Hunter led the Hawks scoring with 24 points, including a decisive three-pointer with 10 seconds remaining that gave Atlanta a four-point cushion and effectively made the game safe.

Hunter was backed with 22 points from Bogdan Bogdanovic while Dejounte Murray finished with 19 points, 15 assists and five rebounds.

Hawks coach Quin Snyder praised the unrelenting support of the Atlanta home crowd in helping drive his team to a remarkable victory.

“Tonight the way we started the game, and the way Boston started, their energy really gave us a lift,” Snyder said of the Atlanta fans.

“Anytime you’re down that much you have to have something out of the ordinary a little bit to get back in the game.

“And when you have a group of people you know who are behind you thick or thin, rain or shine — and there was a lot of rain early — they were a big part of helping the sun come out tonight.”

Atlanta improved to 32-39 and remain in 10th place in the East, on course for a spot in the play-in tournament.

‘A good lesson’ 

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said his team paid the price for not killing the game off, adding that Atlanta’s physicality had caused his team problems in the second half.

“It’s a good lesson,” Mazzulla said. “Credit to them for battling back.

“I thought their physicality — they were extremely physical as soon as the ball got past half-court. I thought that messed up our offense, and they made us work for everything.”

Celtics star Jayson Tatum had no excuses after the defeat.

“It’s tough, you won’t win every game you play,” Tatum said. “We were up a lot but we didn’t do the things we needed to do to win.

“The key is to not over-react. Take it on the chin and get ready for [the next game].”

AMMAN — Amman International Stadium will host the Jordan - Pakistan match at 10:00pm on Tuesday in the return leg of Group G qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

The Kingdom scored an expected 3-0 win against 195th ranked Pakistan in the away match ahead of the weekend while Saudi Arabia beat Tajikistan 1-0 in the other match to maintain the group leader. “We aim to score more, and keep the upward competitive form of the squad,” Jordan’s head coach Moroccan Hussein Amouta told the press on Monday.

“We respect all opponents and aim to progress each qualifier at a time,” he added

Jordan had a slow start to the qualifiers which kicked off in November 2023, holding Tajikistan 1-1 and losing 2-0 to Saudi Arabia. 

Meanwhile, the U23 national team will also be on duty on Tuesday when it faces Iraq in the match deciding 5-6 spots at the 5th West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) Championship currently under way in Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.

Iraq ousted the UAE, while Jordan came from 1-0 down to beat Thailand 3-1 to qualify to their last match in the event. Jordan had lost its opening match to  Saudi.

In other matches, Australia ousted Egypt while Korea beat Saudi Arabia in the battle for the title and top four positions.  

LONDON — Brazil’s new boss Dorival Junior started his bid to revive the five-time world champions with a 1-0 win against England as teenage sensation Endrick bagged his first international goal in Saturday’s friendly at Wembley.

Coming off its worst period for over 60 years, Brazil hopes Dorival Junior can trigger a revival in time to challenge for the 2026 World Cup.

This was a first significant step in the right direction for the Selecao, who marked their manager’s debut with victory against an England side expected to make a strong challenge to win Euro 2024.

On a cathartic evening for Brazil after their wretched 2023, it was fitting the highly-rated Endrick bagged Brazil’s late winner.

The Palmeiras forward, due to join Real Madrid in July, has been tipped to succeed Neymar as Brazil’s latest superstar and his match-winning cameo appearance off the bench was a suitable coming of age moment in his third appearance.

Aged 17 years and 246 days, Endrick is the youngest senior international goal-scorer at Wembley.

Endrick’s emergence is a breath of fresh air for Brazil after an unusually stale period for the Selecao.

Snubbed by Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti and frustrated by the failings of two caretaker managers, Dorival Junior has been tasked with ensuring Brazil qualify for the World Cup.

The 61-year-old left Sao Paolo to take charge of Brazil in January, moving into world football’s most scrutinised job at a time when his country had just finished a calender year with more defeats (five) than wins (three) for the first time since 1963.

Beaten in three consecutive World Cup qualifiers for the first time ever, the team’s confidence is at its lowest ebb since the 7-1 humiliation against Germany in the 2014 World Cup semifinals.

Brazil lost a World Cup qualifier at home for the first time when Argentina beat them in November, leaving them facing a nervous fight to qualify for the 2026 tournament.

But in the dynamic display of Vinicius Junior, the emergence of Endrick and the combative performances of his teammates, Brazil have cause for optimism at last.

They will aim to build on the momentum from their first win over England since 2009 in another friendly against Spain on Tuesday.

Endrick steals spotlight 

England’s spluttering performance featured few highlights, although boss Gareth Southgate will have been encouraged by a lively debut from Newcastle forward Anthony Gordon.

England was wearing their controversial new home shirt for the first time after criticism of manufacturer Nike’s decision to change the colour of the St George’s Cross on the kit.

The debate about the shirt will soon be forgotten, but Southgate won’t have fond memories of its debut as England lost at home for the first time in 21 games.

Belgium’s friendly visit to Wembley on Tuesday represents the last chance for England’s fringe players to impress before Southgate names his Euro squad.

Southgate opted for Ollie Watkins instead of Ivan Toney as England’s central striker, with Harry Kane not risked due to an ankle injury.

But Watkins did little to suggest he could shoulder the burden if Kane were to be injured at the Euros.

In their first meeting for seven years, England were out of sync from the moment Watkins fluffed his lone chance, taking Conor Gallagher’s pass and lashing over from close-range.

England’s stand-in captain Kyle Walker was forced off with a hamstring injury in the 20th minute.

Causing England problems with their pace and movement, Brazil were inches away from taking the lead when Lucas Paqueta’s shot from 12 yards cannoned back off the post.

They went close again when the error-prone Harry Maguire’s woeful backpass was intercepted by Raphinha for a low strike that flashed just wide.

Endrick stole the spotlight in the 80th minute when the teenager tapped in, defying England’s appeals for offside after Vinicius’s shot was saved by Jordan Pickford.