🏀 Wild West Duel

Rise and Shine! The NBA’s Play-In Tournament tipped off yesterday and did not disappoint! Zion Williamson put the Pelicans on his back to mount an epic rally against the Lakers, but the weight was too heavy for his legs to withstand in crunch time. Meanwhile, the Beam outshined Steph Curry and the Warriors in a do-or-die duel, potentially putting an end to Golden State’s golden era. Plus, the Greek Freak’s injury could have the Deer in headlights — someone call a doctor! (No, not you, Coach Rivers.) On the frozen H2O (cool way of saying ice, shoutout to Bill Nye), the ever-so-fluid NHL playoff picture was finally solidified (see what I did there? Lol) following a bizarre goal that decided the Eastern Conference wild-card race. Also, baseball. Let’s go!

PS: Sorry for all the parentheses (I’m really feeling it this morning ;)

WTF Stat: The Braves have been shut out two times in the last 430 days. The White Sox have been shut out six times in the last 430 hours.

🏀 Bucks F Giannis Antetokounmpo is expected to miss the start of the team’s first-round series against the Pacers with a calf strain that he suffered on April 9 - Milwaukee is hopeful that Antetokounmpo will return sometime later in the series

🏀 Former Clippers F Blake Griffin, who is a six-time NBA All-Star, announced his retirement after 14 seasons in the league - Griffin, 35, last played for the Celtics in the 2022-23 season

🏈 Michigan will serve three years of NCAA probation as a result of recruiting violations during the COVID-19 dead period - the violations are unrelated to the program’s recent sign-stealing scandal, which is currently being investigated by the NCAA

⚾️ Braves 2B Ozzie Albies was placed on the 10-day injured list with a fractured big toe on his right foot - Albies, a three-time All-Star, suffered the injury by getting hit by a pitch during Monday’s game against the Astros

🏀 Play-In for the Playoffs

NBA Play-In Tournament - Last Night’s Games

• West | #8 Los Angeles Lakers 110, #7 New Orleans Pelicans 106: In an exhilarating affair, LeBron James (23 PTS, 9 REB, 9 AST) and the Lakers appeared to be on their way to an easy win with an 18-point lead midway through the 3rd quarter, but then Zion Williamson (40 PTS, 17-27 FG, 11 REB, 5 AST) erupted to will the Pelicans back and suddenly tied the game at 95 on a driving layup with 3:19 remaining. However, Williamson left the game after suffering an apparent leg injury on the play, and Los Angeles prevailed in the final minutes thanks to a clutch three from D’Angelo Russell (21 PTS, 5-11 3PT, 6 AST) and some late Anthony Davis (20 PTS, 15 REB) free throws - the Lakers earned a bid to the first round of the playoffs with the win, where they will face No. 2 Denver; Pelicans HC Willie Green said Williamson had “left leg soreness” and will be reevaluated today

• West | #9 Sacramento Kings 118, #10 Golden State Warriors 94: Light the Beam! The Warriors only trailed 54-50 at recess, but Stephen Curry (22 PTS, 3-7 3PT, 2 AST, 6 TO) couldn’t find a rhythm, Klay Thompson (0 PTS, 0-10 FG, 0-6 3PT) was abysmal, and the Kings broke the game open with a 37-point 3rd quarter thanks to the hot hands of Keegan Murray (32 PTS, 8-13 3PT, 9 REB) and De’Aaron Fox (24 PTS, 11-25 FG, 6 AST), who got help from Domantas Sabonis (16 PTS, 12 REB, 7 AST) to blow out Golden State in a win-or-go-home showdown, potentially marking the end of an era for the Warriors’ core group - Sacramento will play New Orleans on Friday in another elimination game for the final playoff spot in the West

See the full box scores here and the entire NBA playoff bracket here.

Tonight’s Matchups - Game Previews

• East | #8 Miami Heat @ #7 Philadelphia 76ers 7:00pm ET, ESPN: Well, well, well, look what we have here! The Heat are back in the play-in, and history would tell us they’re dangerous. Miami actually lost this game last year to Atlanta but then Jimmy Butler led them on an improbable run to the NBA Finals. On the other side, Philadelphia looked like one the best teams in the league this season with a 29-14 start, but then lost Joel Embiid on Jan. 30 to a knee injury that sidelined him for over two months. However, Embiid and the Sixers are now back to full strength, making them contenders despite their high seed. Both teams have the firepower to make a deep postseason push, and it begins tonight!

• East | #10 Atlanta Hawks @ #9 Chicago Bulls 9:30pm ET, ESPN: The Hawks are 3-0 in play-in games but limp into tonight’s do-or-die duel on a six-game losing streak. The good news is they can score, and Trae Young is back from a hand injury. Even with Young missing 28 games, Atlanta finished fifth in scoring this season (118.3 PPG); however, they’re 21st in field-goal percentage (46.4) and 28th in points allowed (120.5 PPG). The Hawks also went 1-3 against the Bulls this year, who play a much more conservative style and rely on DeMar DeRozan’s scoring to keep pace against more offensive-minded teams. In their four meetings this season, DeRozan averaged 28.5 points per game, and unless something drastically changes for Atlanta defensively, he could be in for another big night.

Friday’s Slate

• East | 9/10 Winner @ 7/8 Loser Time TBD, ESPN

• West | #9 Sacramento Kings @ #7 New Orleans Pelicans Time TBD, TNT

See Tuesday’s letter for a full explanation of the Play-In Tournament format.

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NHL - Top Games

• Washington Capitals 2, Philadelphia Flyers 1: The Stanley Cup Playoffs are officially set! Needing a win in regulation to keep their playoff hopes alive, Flyers HC John Tortorella pulled goaltender Samuel Ersson (17 SV) with three minutes left in a 1-1 game, but the move quickly backfired as Washington’s TJ Oshie (1 G) buried an empty-netter to give the Caps the final wild-card spot in the East - in addition to Philadelphia, Washington’s win also eliminated the Red Wings and Penguins from playoff contention

• Detroit Red Wings 5, Montreal Canadiens 4 (SO): Moments before Oshie’s game-winner in Philly, Detroit’s David Perron (1 G) forced overtime in Montreal with a miraculous game-tying goal with five seconds remaining, and although Patrick Kane eventually gave the Red Wings the win in a shootout, the Caps’ victory during Detroit’s overtime period ended their playoff hopes

• Florida Panthers 5, Toronto Maple Leafs 2: Sorry, B’s, but the Atlantic Division title belongs to the Cats! Sam Reinhart (2 G), Sam Bennett (1 G, 1 A), and the Panthers rattled off five unanswered goals to erase a 2-0 deficit for their fourth straight win, which coupled with the Bruins’ 3-1 loss to Ottawa, allowed Florida to leapfrog Boston for the divisional crown - Toronto, who has clinched the No. 3 seed in the Atlantic, will play their final regular-season game tonight in Tampa Bay with Auston Matthews sitting on 69 goals

See the full NHL scoreboard here and the current standings here.

MLB - Top Games

• Cleveland Guardians 10, Boston Red Sox 7 (F/11): Don’t look now but the Guardians have the best record in the American League! Boston’s Connor Wong (2-4, 1 HR, 3 RBIs) delivered a sac fly in the bottom of the 10th to extend the game, but Cleveland tallied three runs in the 11th off the bats of Jose Ramirez (1-4, 2 RBIs) and Estevan Florial (1-3, 2 RBIs) to seal the deal for their third straight dub

• New York Mets 3, Pittsburgh Pirates 1: After an 0-5 start, the Mets improved to 9-8 on the season thanks to their third straight win, as Jose Quintana (5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 Ks) and the bullpen allowed just one hit while Joey Wendle (1-1, 1 RBI) and Jeff McNeil (1-3, 1 RBI) led the offense to top Bryan Reynolds (1-3, 1 RBI) and the Buccos in Queens

• Toronto Blue Jays 5, New York Yankees 4: For the second time in two days, the Jays took down the Yanks above the border, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (2-3, 2 RBIs) and Bo Bichette (1-4, 1 RBI) helped Toronto build a 5-1 lead which was just enough to close out Jose Trevino (1-4, 3 RBIs) and the Pinstripes - New York (12-6) has lost three straight games and Toronto (10-8) has won four in a row

See the full MLB scoreboard here and the current standings here.

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On April 17, 1997, The Devils' Martin Brodeur became the second NHL goalie to ever score in a playoff game. In Game 1 of the first round, the Devs held a 4-2 lead over the Canadiens with just under a minute to play in the 3rd period. Needing a goal, Montreal dumped the puck into New Jersey's zone to bring on an extra skater, but Brodeur quickly collected the puck from behind the net and rifled a shot from one knee, which perfectly glided into the Habs' open goal. The empty-netter secured a 5-2 victory for the Devils and was the first of three-career goals for Brodeur. The best part about it? Doc Emrik was on the call - Brodeur was also pretty good at stopping goals!

NBA - Play-In Tournament

• #8 Miami Heat @ #7 Philadelphia 76ers 7:00pm ET, ESPN

• #10 Atlanta Hawks @ #9 Chicago Bulls 9:30pm ET, ESPN

NHL

• Toronto Maple Leafs @ Tampa Bay Lightning 7:00pm ET, TNT

• Pittsburgh Penguins @ New York Islanders 7:00pm ET, NHLPP / ESPN+

• St. Louis Blues @ Dallas Stars 8:30pm ET, TNT

• Edmonton Oilers @ Arizona Coyotes 10:00pm ET, NHLPP / ESPN+

MLB

• Atlanta Braves @ Houston Astros 2:10pm ET, ESPN+

• Los Angeles Dodgers @ Tampa Bay Rays 6:50pm ET, Local

• Cleveland Guardians @ Boston Red Sox 7:10pm ET, NESN

• Full Schedule

Trivia Time Answer

D. 1993. It’s been over three decades since an NHL player scored 70 goals in a single season! Buffalo’s Alex Mogilny and Winnipeg’s Teemu Selanne were the last to do so, each notching 76 bingos in the 1992-93 campaign. Only eight players have reached the 70-goal mark in NHL history, and Matthews will look to make it nine tonight against the Lightning.

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