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Angel Reese Establishes a WNBA Record for the Most Double-Doubles in a Row

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In her team’s 84-71 loss against the Seattle Storm on Sunday, freshman phenom Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky created WNBA history by recording her 13th consecutive double-double, a new league record.

Reese broke the W’s previous milestone of 12 straight double-doubles, set by all-time great Candace Parker in the 2009 and 2010 seasons, with 17 points and 14 rebounds in the game.

“I’m just trying to be consistent for my teammates, doing whatever I can to help my team,” Reese replied. “I think I didn’t do enough tonight, but just being able to be there for my teammates and knowing that I have a job to do every day no matter if I’m a rookie or a vet.”

First-year head coach Teresa Weatherspoon described Reese’s accomplishment as “absolutely amazing to see.” “She might be surprising herself, but she’s not surprising me. It’s something that she can do because it’s something that she puts the work in to be able to do. And it’s a will and want-to… it’s awesome to see the work that you have to put in to be able to do this.”

In just 20 games, Reese also hit the 275-point, 225-rebound, and 30-steal milestones. Yolanda Griffith (1999) was the only player to record such figures in less games.

At this point in the season, Reese has 14 double-doubles, which ties him for seventh most in rookie history. Tina Charles has the first-year double-double record with twenty-two.

“It’s great for me to be able to know where I’m at right now, and obviously I’m not satisfied with where I’m at,” Reese stated. “I have coaches and teammates around me that believe in me and trust me and I just continue to trust the process of everything. I’m grateful. I’m blessed and lucky to be named with these amazing players. They’ve always been super nice to me. They’ve always been helpful and inspiring to me. I’ve watched them all my life and finally to be here in this moment and break their records and being able to be up there with them is really cool.”

The rookie has long looked up to Parker, a star who played two seasons with Reese’s Sky and led them to the franchise’s lone championship in 2021. Reese mentioned that she had also grown close to Parker’s mother.

“To continue to be named with her, I want to win, and being able to come out and come to Chicago and represent her city and bring a championship home is going to be what’s important for me and what I look forward to,” Reese said regarding Parker.

Reese, who has battled with efficiency at times this season, went 8 of 15 from the field on Sunday. In six of Chicago’s last 11 games, Reese has shot at least 50% from the field.

Regarding Reese’s in-season progress, Weatherspoon remarked, “It’s a level of confidence to do way more than what people think she can.” “She’s able to trust herself, trust her training, and shoot the ball when she’s open, believing and trusting that she can make those shots because when you put the work in, there’s no reason not to trust your training. And she’s doing that.

“She has gotten really, really good at finishing around the rim, getting our offensive rebounds and putbacks, or just simply getting positioned in our offensive sets and just finishing and finishing with power around the rim. So it’s really, really good to see. She’s only going to get better as we move forward.”

Reese, the No. 7 overall pick who had an outstanding career at Maryland and LSU (where she won the national title in 2023), was one of just two rookies to be chosen a 2024 All-Star, along with Caitlin Clark last week. Leading candidates for Rookie of the Year, the two will play together on Team WNBA when they face the American Olympic team in the WNBA All-Star Game later this month.

Reese’s teammate Marina Mabrey described him as “a joy to watch.” “She’s so consistent. She comes in every day and battles and fights and she’s super physical for a rookie, which is really hard to do. That’s usually one of the biggest transitions and she kind of just jumped in there and did all the dirty work, and now it’s all paying off for her. And this is just the beginning, so I’m excited to see where it goes.”

The Sky lost on Sunday, dropping to ninth in the rankings but still having a chance to make the playoffs.

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Some ‘telekinesis’ helps the Utah Jazz defeat the Mavericks 115-113 for their first home victory

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To be honest, after the 3-pointer he had just made, that was the only suitable reaction. Clarkson almost double-dribbled, almost ran out of time, and then almost committed a backcourt violation. His shaky running 3-pointer from the wing instead went in.

At the end, he could have done the same.

To be honest, after the 3-pointer he had just made, that was the only suitable reaction. Clarkson almost double-dribbled, almost ran out of time, and then almost committed a backcourt violation. His shaky running 3-pointer from the wing instead went in.

After catching Dallas in a preswitch, Clarkson zipped a pass under the rim to a wide-open John Collins. With 6.4 seconds left, he made an uncontested two-handed slam that proved to be the game-winning basket as Utah defeated the Mavericks 115-113.

During that last possession, Luka Doncic was on Collins down low. Doncic had his sights set on the corner, and Quentin Grimes started to cheat up the wing to meet Collins, who seemed to be expecting him to run up to set a pick for Clarkson.

The issue? He was left alone in the most hazardous area of the court when Collins chose not to go up.

“I’m just happy me and John had some, like, telekinesis action going on,” Clarkson stated. “I mean, he just read my eyes and knew what I was looking for.”

“Me and JC were just like looking at each other: ‘You gonna be open?'” Collins grinned as he spoke. “You can see JC saying (with his eyes), ‘No stay, Here you go.’ And it was just like a great play that shows our chemistry. We always had a JC-to-JC connection. JC made a great read, finished the play, and we finally got a home win.”

Collins completed a 28-point evening with the final dunk, maintaining his impressive recent play.

After it appeared that the home team was losing the game, he scored Utah’s final two baskets. Utah led by 16 points early in the fourth quarter after a solid third quarter, which has been unusual for the Jazz this season. Doncic then guided Dallas to victory.

The Dallas star finished the game with nine assists and 37 points. With 1:33 left, he helped Derrick Lively, giving the Mavericks a two-point advantage.

At that moment, Utah appeared to have no answer for a Mavericks team on the rise and was without Lauri Markkanen, who was hurt in the eye and missed the end of the game.

Collins and Clarkson supplied one.

“JC and John were unbelievable down the stretch,” Hardy stated. “Their poise really stood out. JC, made big plays. John made big plays all night. His energy is infectious for us.”

Clarkson finished a 3-point play on the other end after he was knocked down by a bucket. Then, with 36.7 seconds left, Collins dunk after rebounding a rejected Clarkson jumper to put Utah ahead 3 points.

Klay Thompson’s wing three to tie the game only served to set up the last play by Clarkson and Collins.

“They got confused on whether they were switching or not—sort of two guys went back out towards the corner and JC threw him a dart,” Hardy recalled. “But that’s JC and John understanding the moment together.”

Collin Sexton ended with 16 points and five rebounds, while Clarkson finished with 20 points and four assists. Kyle Filipowski scored 11 of his 14 points in a dominant second quarter, and Lauri Markkanen added 14 points before he left.

Six of the Jazz’s players were in double figures.

“Tonight’s not about like the X’s and O’s piece, the tactical piece. It was about the mental and the physical toughness the team showed throughout and really stuck with it against a good team tonight. That’s what we’re looking for,” Hardy stated.

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Dodgers Unveil Plans for Friday Parade and Stadium Celebration

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The Dodgers announced Wednesday night that they would celebrate their World Series victory on Friday with a parade in Downtown Los Angeles and a special ticketed event at Dodger Stadium. The full broadcast of both tournaments will be available on AM 570, local television stations, and Spectrum SportsNet LA. Fans will not be able to attend both events due to scheduling conflicts, transportation, and logistical issues.

The parade will start at Gloria Molina Grand Park on Spring Street in front of City Hall at 11 a.m. PT. The procession will begin with an official kickoff by Mayor Karen Bass and go for 45 minutes from 1st Street to Grand Avenue to 5th Street, ending at the corner of 5th and Flower Street. Dodgers players will ride double-decker buses during the parade. Due to extensive street closures and a shortage of public parking, those who desire to join the parade are strongly recommended to use public transportation.

At around 12:15 p.m., a special ticketed event at Dodger Stadium will start after the procession. The stadium’s entrance gates will open at 9 a.m., and parking gates for attendees will open at 8:30 a.m. There will be food and merchandise for sale. Before the team arrives, there will be entertainment inside the stadium, including DodgerVision scoreboards that will show the parade. This event will be subject to all Dodger Stadium policies and procedures, including the reminder that signs, bags, and other objects that are prohibited by our policies are not allowed.

At 9:30 a.m., SportsNet LA and local networks CBS 2, NBC 4, KTLA 5, ABC 7, KCAL 9, and Fox 11 will start airing coverage of every event on Friday. On AM 570, there will be radio coverage.

The Los Angeles Dodger Foundation, which is working to address the most important issues confronting Los Angeles with a mission to enhance social justice, health care, education, and homelessness for all Angelenos, will get a part of the stadium event’s earnings.

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Tuten Leads the Hokies with 4 Touchdowns and 266 Running Yards in a Blowout Victory

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Thursday night, Virginia Tech defeated Boston College 42–21 thanks to a school record 266 yards and four touchdowns from Bhayshul Tuten.

For the Hokies (4-3, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who scored touchdowns on their first three possessions and never trailed en way to a second straight victory, Kyron Drones added two rushing scores and a touchdown pass.

Tuten completed 18 carries while also scoring on 83 and 61-yard touchdown runs, the latter of which came with 8:28 remaining to win the game. And he caught a touchdown pass from Drones that was 20 yards in length.

Tuten declared, “Every game is a special game.” “That’s how I look at it. I just felt a little better today. We had a bye week. I felt great throughout practice. I took the knee brace off (for a sore knee). I felt fast, I felt good, I felt fluid. I just came out and balled today, and that’s what we needed.”

After trailing 28-0 at the half, Boston College (4-3, 1-2 ACC) got within 28-21 on a 5-yard run by Kye Robichaux with 2:55 remaining in the third quarter, and they were on the drive early in the fourth. However, Robichaux was stopped on a fourth-and-1 at midfield, and Virginia Tech took advantage of the next play. With 11:02 remaining, Tuten scored on a 6-yard run to give Virginia Tech a 35-21 lead.

“That’s a good team that we beat tonight,” stated Brent Pry, the coach of Virginia Tech. “And we beat them soundly.”

With his 266 rushing yards, Tuten eclipsed the previous school record of 253 established by Darren Evans in 2008 versus Maryland. After removing Tuten from the game because of his proximity to the record, the Virginia Tech coaching staff decided to put him back in to break it. During the Hokies’ last drive, Tuten set the record with a 17-yard run.

“I normally don’t like that, but a school record at a place like Tech with so many great running backs, and he was deserving with his performance,” Pry stated.

Drones completed 14 of 18 passes for 164 yards and ran for 40 yards. Drones scored on runs of 11 yards and 1 yard on the Hokies’ opening two possessions. The Hokies finished with a season-high 533 yards, trailing just Tuten and Drones.

The Eagles finished with 372 yards, led by Thomas Castellanos, who passed for 205 yards and two touchdowns.

“I felt really good about the preparation for the game,” Boston College head coach Bill O’Brien remarked. “Obviously, I was wrong. We’ve got to prepare differently, better, whatever it might be. We’ve got to figure it out. … We’ve got to coach better. We’ve got a good coaching staff. We do. We have a lot of experience. But we didn’t play well tonight, so that’s on the coaching. We’ve got to coach better and hopefully we’ll get it turned around.”

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