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Messi plays through a scare, Inter Miami rallies past Montreal 3-2 for fifth straight win

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Messi plays through a scare, Inter Miami rallies past Montreal 3-2 for fifth straight win


MONTREAL, QUE – Lionel Messi played the entire game despite a first-half injury scare, Benjamin Cremaschi broke a tie in the 59th minute and Inter Miami overcame an early two-goal deficit to beat Montreal 3-2 on Saturday night for its fifth consecutive Major League Soccer victory.

Luis Suarez got his 11th goal of the season for Inter Miami, and Matías Rojas scored off a free kick. Jules-Anthony Vilsaint and Bryce Duke scored for Montreal (3-5-3).

Inter Miami (8-2-3) extended its unbeaten streak to seven matches (5-0-2) despite Messi being held without a goal or an assist for the first time in his nine MLS appearances this season. Inter Miami is 7-0-2 in those nine games; one of its losses came against Montreal in March, a game where Messi didn’t play.

Playing in Canada for the first time, Messi briefly left late in the first half after some sort of issue with his left knee after being fouled by defender George Campbell. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner as the world’s best player went down immediately, holding his knee and writhing in pain.

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Inter Miami’s medical staff went onto the field to treat Messi, who got up after about two minutes and walked to the Miami sideline. He was not subbed out, which allowed him a chance to return moments later.

And for whatever reason, the match changed in that moment.

Inter Miami was down 2-0 when Messi got hurt; it was 2-1 when he returned and tied moments after he got back onto the field. Rojas scored off a free kick — one that Messi would have ordinarily taken — to get Inter Miami on the board, and Suarez tapped in a goal off a corner kick late in first-half stoppage time.

Suarez became the third player in MLS history to score 11 goals in his first 800 minutes of a season, joining Mamadou Diallo (11 in 2000) and Ola Kamara (11 in 2021).

The go-ahead goal came when Rojas sent a ball into open space and Cremaschi ran it down — then made a second effort to nudge the ball just clear of two defenders and into the net for a 3-2 lead. Messi had two chances in the final minutes to extend the lead, both narrowly missing.

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Hundreds of fans greeted Inter Miami when the team arrived at its hotel Friday night and Montreal, in part because of Messi joining Major League Soccer last summer, sold out its 15,000 season tickets for the first time since the club joined MLS in 2012. Messi has scored in 31 countries.

An announced sellout crowd of 19,619 spectators — including one dressed in a Messi tracksuit and wearing a goat mask in a nod to Messi ass the Greatest of All Time — attended the match.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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Miami, FL

Miami Heat’s Marriage To Jimmy Butler Is Messy, But That’s Fine (For Now)

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Miami Heat’s Marriage To Jimmy Butler Is Messy, But That’s Fine (For Now)


The honeymoon period is over for the Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Sure, if Butler and the Heat had their choice, things would feel more comfortable than they do. His future is unsettled beyond the 2024-25 NBA season—the final locked-in year on his contract—and it sounds like things could stay that way for a while.

In theory, the two sides could negotiate a contract extension at any time, but neither appears fully sold on the concept yet. Or not on the other’s preferred terms, at least.

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Butler reportedly has no plans to ink out a contract extension (with Miami or any team he might be traded to) ahead of next summer’s opt-out clause, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania. The Heat, meanwhile, seem unconvinced he’s worth a blank-check commitment due to availability issues that caught the public ire of team president Pat Riley.

Butler, to Riley’s point, has had trouble staying on the hardwood of late. Butler has yet to miss fewer than double-digit games with the Heat and just sat out their first-round loss to the Boston Celtics due to a knee sprain. With his 35th birthday arriving in September and some heavy tread on his tires (he was once a prized pupil of Tom Thibodeau, after all), it is reasonable to wonder whether these issues are here to stay.

None of this helps with the current climate around the club and its star swingman. Things feel tense from afar and might induce even more anxiety up close. This is decidedly not fun.

It also isn’t a nightmare, or anything close to it. In fact, it could prove to be a good thing depending on how each responds.

If Butler’s plan is to get paid after his age-35 season, then he needs to hoop in a way that makes clear not only is he still within his prime, but he has several prime years still ahead. He needs to show the superstar form he’s been able to summon during Miami’s long postseason runs with him. He has to be at his absolute best, which would provide obvious perks for his employer.

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The Heat, meanwhile, need to do the same. They must operate in a manner that convinces him his best shot at capturing the crown is found right where’s at. Maybe that’s as simple as the team performing well and Erik Spoelstra coaching his rear off. Perhaps it means making that all-in trade push that keeps being speculated about but still hasn’t happened.

Butler and this franchise have long felt like a happy couple. A hard-working, incredibly conditioned, ferociously competitive couple, but ultimately a content one.

Now, that contentment seems harder to spot. Perhaps that splits them apart, but it also might motivate them to push harder than ever to make this marriage work.

Zach Buckley works as a contributing writer to Inside the Heat. He can be reached at zbuck07@gmail.com or follow him on X @ZachBuckleyNBA.

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Miami, FL

Good Samaritan donates 3 AC units to Miami church targeted by thieves – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports | Fort Lauderdale

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Good Samaritan donates 3 AC units to Miami church targeted by thieves – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports | Fort Lauderdale


MIAMI (WSVN) – Days after thieves targeted a church in Miami, an anonymous good Samaritan lent a helping hand and gave a much-needed donation that will keep the congregation cool during services once again.

A 7News viewer chipped in to help the Gospel Arena International Ministry, located on Northwest Seventh Avenue and 75th Street, Thursday afternoon.

“Because of the news, someone called me today and said, ‘I wanna just sponsor both units,’” said Pastor Junior Thompson.

The good Samaritan donated three new air conditioning units. Thompson thanked a higher power for the donated units arriving when they did.

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“I thank God for all the donations that came from people that I don’t even know,” said Thompson. “I mean, these people, I never came in contact with, but thanks be to God that our blessings come back to us, because we love our community, and we’re here for our community.”

Before the units were installed, Minister Alex Alexander said a recent service was practically unbearable.

“It was so hot Sunday,” said Alexander.

He looked over towards his pastor, who was also drenched.

“He preached for like 45 minutes with a suit on, and it was really pipping in the church,” said Alexander.

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But the congregation pushed through.

“God brought us still,” said Alexander.

“Everyone was sweating and fanning,” said Pastor Emmanuel Bryant.

Bryant said they initially thought the AC was broken.

“We just assumed that it was malfunctioning, so we just continued to have service like normal,” he said.

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But that wasn’t the case. A technician noticed two AC units were gone.

“We believe they used this cage was actually on top of this. We believe they put the cage there to climb up on the roof,” said Bryant.

Another unit had cuts and broken wires.

The church community said they’re praying for the culprit.

“We pray for the person who did it. We pray for their family,” said Alexander.

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“We don’t wish these people any harm, because obviously, there is something seriously wrong that needs addressing,” said Joseph Wade.

Originally, estimates for the repairs exceeding $20,000, which is a lot of money for a church that serves its community only using donations.

“We’re just heartbroken to know that the AC was missing, and then to find out how much it would cost to get the replacement,” said Bryant.

But with the donated units being installed, the church is beyond thankful.

“Thank you all. Thanks, Channel 7 News, for what you’ve done,” said Thompson. “Look around. You can see it right now: two brand-new units, better than what we had,”

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The good Samaritan wanted to remain anonymous for their grateful donation. The pastor says a third AC unit will also be delivered and installed soon.

Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Miami, FL

Boy dies after police respond to report of drowning at Miami-Dade house pool

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Boy dies after police respond to report of drowning at Miami-Dade house pool


MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A 5-year-old boy died on Friday night after fire rescue personnel and police officers responded to Miami-Dade County’s Richmond West neighborhood.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel used a helicopter to airlift the boy after responding to a house with a pool along Southwest 168 Terrace, near 149 Avenue.

According to Detective Angel Rodriguez, a spokesman for the Miami-Dade Police Department, the boy was pronounced dead at HCA Florida Kendall Hospital.

“Despite medical efforts, he was pronounced deceased,” Rodriguez wrote in a statement.

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According to Rodriguez, homicide detectives were investigating the boy’s death.

Local 10 News Assignment Desk Editor Wilson Louis contributed to this report.

Copyright 2024 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.



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