Sports
New York Liberty found a key factor in Betnijah Laney-Hamilton for WNBA Finals win
NEW YORK — Betnijah Laney-Hamilton couldn’t immediately pick her favorite moment from the New York Liberty’s WNBA Finals Game 2 win over the Minnesota Lynx on Sunday. So here are some possibilities.
Perhaps she will reflect on her first made 3-pointer just over five minutes into New York’s eventual 80-66 win. That’s when Courtney Vandersloot knew it would be Laney-Hamilton’s night. “She looked different tonight,” Vandersloot said. “When she’s playing like that we’re a different team.”
Or maybe Laney-Hamilton will look back on her final 3-pointer with 3:21 remaining in the contest — a triple that stretched the Liberty’s lead from two points to five and halted another furious fourth-quarter Lynx rally — with the most fondness. “A corner 3 for (Laney-Hamilton) is a layup,” guard Sabrina Ionescu said.
Or will it be Laney-Hamilton’s postgame hugs with Ionescu and Kayla Thornton as a Barclays Center record 18,040 fans basked in the joy of a New York victory? Or her receiving the game ball in New York’s locker room that will be the most meaningful?
The options are numerous because Laney-Hamilton’s impact was immense. She tied her season high with 20 points and played stifling defense on Minnesota’s Courtney Williams and Kayla McBride.
“She plays at both ends of the floor, and plays hard,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said. “She’s a winner, so happy that she got this success tonight and (can) keep building on it.”
Bucket 🐝 was ACTIVATED 👑@BetnijahLaney is our @Withings Player of the Game 🔥 pic.twitter.com/C82OIprXaI
— New York Liberty (@nyliberty) October 13, 2024
If Game 1 of the 2024 WNBA Finals will be remembered because of New York’s historic collapse, the second game will be remembered because of contributions made up and down the Liberty roster. An X-factor was the key factor.
“You need players beyond your starters, and for two games they’ve done that,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said. “And we’re having trouble getting that consistently. We’ve got to have that.”
Laney-Hamilton’s starring role was especially welcomed for New York after her relatively minimal impact in Game 1. Her 26 minutes in that loss were the fewest among New York’s starters. On the eve of Game 2, Brondello was tempered while assessing Laney-Hamilton’s performance. “I think everyone sees that she’s trying. It’s not the same ‘B’ that we’ve seen all season long, but it is what it is,” Brondello said on Saturday.
Yet, Brondello noticed Laney-Hamilton knocking down 3-pointers consistently at the Liberty’s off-day practice and during Sunday’s pregame warmups.
Then the ball tipped, and Laney-Hamilton made an instant impact. Minnesota had been consistently going under screens she was involved in. Aggressive and open, she sunk her first 2-point jumper and her first 3-pointer two possessions later.
That was all part of the plan. New York has preached for her not to be passive.
“We know she can do this,” Liberty star Breanna Stewart said.
But Laney-Hamilton didn’t always show it because of injury. She played in only 28 games during the regular season, missing 12 games between July 6 to Aug. 26 because of a knee procedure. Brondello said New York missed Laney-Hamilton’s playmaking and grittiness. “How she’s the ultimate competitor,” Brondello said.
Players other than Stewart, Ionescu and Jones emerged in her absence, which was paramount to the Liberty’s league-best 32 regular-season wins. It has also been key throughout the postseason as they stormed past the Atlanta Dream in the first round and overpowered the Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals. Laney-Hamilton had scored double-digits only one other time this postseason, and she hadn’t scored 20 points since early July.
It’s a credit to New York’s roster that different players can play a key role on any given night. In Game 1, for instance, Leonie Fiebich shined, making five 3-pointers and tallying 17 points. Fiebich had only one basket Sunday, and it didn’t matter.
Laney-Hamilton scored 20 points in the Liberty’s win. (Luther Schlaifer / NBAE via Getty Images)
“(General manager Jonathan Kolb) built this team to be able to withstand anything that any of the opponents in the W are going to be able to throw at us, and so it’s really good to see everybody stepping up,” Jonquel Jones said. “That’s what it’s going to take.”
The Lynx have X-factors who have emerged as well throughout their postseason run. Their two All-Stars, Napheesa Collier and McBride have been effective throughout the playoffs. But offensive bursts from Williams or Bridget Carleton, or rim-protection and timely 3-point shooting from Alanna Smith have often been the difference in Minnesota’s journey.
But through two games, the Lynx haven’t shown who will consistently step up. Williams was held in check with 15 points on Sunday. “(It’s) a huge difference,” Reeve said. “Both games (New York has) gotten help.”
Perhaps a return to Target Center will lift Carleton in particular. She has made only six of her last 30 3-point attempts. Perhaps a Minnesota reserve will provide a spark off the bench (it received just five bench points in Game 2).
After Sunday’s win, Laney-Hamilton wouldn’t go into specifics on her health. She chose to instead dwell on her accomplishments.
“To see a glimpse of what I’m capable of, it felt really good,” she said. And it was meaningful too. Her final 3-pointer especially changed the game’s momentum as the Lynx had slashed a 17-point New York lead to two.
History will show if that shot, and Laney-Hamilton’s overall play, changed the series when the finals resume on Wednesday night.
“She played a huge role in the game ending up in the way that it did and she’s gonna continue to do it for these next two games,” Ionescu said. “We believe in her. She knows that.”
(Photo: Dustin Satloff / Getty Images)
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A handful of Olympic participants will be competing where giants once roamed.
A wildlife photographer in Italy happened to come upon one of the oldest and largest known collection of dinosaur footprints at a national park near the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics venue of Bormio, officials said Tuesday. The entrance to the park, where the prints were discovered, is located about a mile from where the Men’s Alpine skiing will be held.
In this photograph taken in September 2025 and released Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, by Stelvio National Park, Late Triassic prosauropod footprints are seen on the slopes of the Fraeel Valley in northern Italy. (Elio Della Ferrera/Stelvio National Park via AP)
The estimated 20,000 footprints are believed to date back about 210 million years to the Triassic Period and made by long-necked bipedal herbivores that were 33 feet long, weighing up to four tons, similar to a Plateosaurus, Milan Natural History Museum paleontologist Cristiano Dal Sasso said.
“This time reality really surpasses fantasy,” Dal Sasso added.
Wildlife photographer Elio Della Ferrera made the discovery at Stelvio National Park near the Swiss border in September. The spot is considered to be a prehistoric coastal area that has never previously yielded dinosaur tracks, according to experts.
AMERICAN FIGURE SKATING STAR ALYSA LIU WINS GOLD AT GRAND PRIX FINAL
This photograph, taken in September 2025 and released Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, by Stelvio National Park, shows a Late Triassic prosauropod footprint discovered in the Fraele Valley in northern Italy. (Elio Della Ferrara/Stelvio National Park via AP)
The location is about 7,900-9,200 feet above sea level on a north-facing wall that is mostly in the shade. Dal Sasso said, adding that the footprints were a bit hard to spot without a very strong lens.
“The huge surprise was not so much in discovering the footprints, but in discovering such a huge quantity,’’ Della Ferrera said. “There are really tens of thousands of prints up there, more or less well-preserved.’’
Though there are no plans as of now to make the footprints accessible to the public, Lombardy regional governor Attilio Fontana hailed the discovery as a “gift for the Olympics.”
Lombardy region governor Attilio Fontana attends a press conference in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, on a discovery of thousands of dinosaur tracks in Lombardy region. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
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The Winter Olympics are set to take place Feb. 6-22.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
TUESDAY’S RESULTS
BOYS
CITY SECTION
Downtown Magnets 103, Aspire Ollin 12
Sotomayor 67, Maywood CES 28
Stern 35, Rise Kohyang 33
Triumph Charter 68, LA Wilson 51
University Prep Value 66, Animo Venice 52
WISH Academy 79, Alliance Ted Tajima 16
SOUTHERN SECTION
AGBU 63, Newbury Park 51
Arcadia 82, Glendale 34
Baldwin Park 57, Pomona 23
Banning 90, Bethel Christian 26
Big Bear 89, University Prep 45
Calvary Baptist 58, Diamond Bar 57
Chino Hills 78, CSDR 31
Citrus Hill 76, San Gorgonio 30
Corona 58, Granite Hills 17
Crescenta Valley 73, Burbank Burroughs 43
Desert Chapel 69, Weaver 34
Desert Christian Academy 56, Nuview Bridge 19
Eastvale Roosevelt 53, Hesperia 52
Eisenhower 67, Bloomington 52
El Rancho 55, Sierra Vista 52
Elsinore 72, Tahquitz 36
Estancia 68, Lynwood 30
Entrepreneur 72, Crossroads Christian 41
Harvard-Westlake 86, Punahou 42
Hesperia Christian 59, AAE 39
La Palma Kennedy 41, Norwalk 34
Loara 67, Katella 41
Long Beach Cabrillo 74, Lakewood 55
Long Beach Wilson 75, Compton 64
NSLA 52, Cornerstone Christian 33
Oxford Academy 66, CAMS 42
Public Safety 54, Grove School 41
Rancho Alamitos 58, Century 28
Redlands 52, Sultana 51
Rio Hondo Prep 68, United Christian Academy 24
Riverside Notre Dame 55, Kaiser 50
San Bernardino 94, Norco 80
Shadow Hills 60, Yucaipa 52
Summit Leadership Academy 71, PAL Academy 9
Temecula Prep 77, San Jacinto Leadership Academy 43
Temescal Canyon 68, West Valley 52
Tesoro 57, Aliso Niguel 53
Valley Christian Academy 57, San Luis Obispo Classical 27
Viewpoint 74, Firebaugh 39
Villa Park 60, Brea Olinda 49
Webb 64, Santa Ana Valley 36
Western 61, El Modena 34
Westminster La Quinta 53, Santa Ana 39
YULA 61, San Diego Jewish Academy 26
INTERSECTIONAL
Brawley 66, Indio 46
Cathedral 60, Bravo 49
Los Alamitos 73, Torrey Pines 53
Santa Ana Calvary Chapel 53, Huntington Park 30
St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 65, LA Marshall 59
USC Hybrid 63, Legacy College Prep 13
GIRLS
CITY SECTION
Aspire Ollin 57, Downtown Magnets 12
Lakeview Charter 70, Valor Academy 10
Stern 34, Rise Kohyang 6
Washington 34, Crenshaw 33
SOUTHERN SECTION
Bolsa Grande 21, Capistrano Valley 26
Buena 62, Santa Barbara 20
California Military Institute 29, Santa Rosa Academy 12
Carter 65, Sultana 39
Cate 43, Laguna Blanca 29
Coastal Christian 45, Santa Maria 32
Colton 41, Arroyo Valley 26
Crescenta Valley 55, Burbank Burroughs 47
CSDR 45, Norte Vista 21
Desert Christian Academy 89, Nuview Bridge 23
El Dorado 63, Placentia Valencia 20
El Rancho 40, Diamond Ranch 33
Elsinore 34, Tahquitz 20
Foothill Tech 37, Thacher 22
Garden Grove 46, Orange 32
Grove School 30, Public Safety 14
Harvard-Westlake 48, Campbell Hall 37
Hesperia Christian 51, AAE 21
Hillcrest 53, La Sierra 8
Kaiser 52, Pomona 0
Laguna Beach 52, Dana Hills 33
Long Beach Wilson 70, Compton 32
Lucerne Valley 44, Lakeview Leadership Academy 7
Marlborough 65, Alemany 43
Mayfair 34, Chadwick 32
Monrovia 36, Mayfield 20
North Torrance 59, Palos Verdes 57
Oak Hills 58, Beaumont 32
OCCA 31, Liberty Christian 16
Oxford Academy 50, Western 34
Oxnard 46, San Marcos 30
Redlands 61, Jurupa Hills 39
Rialto 86, Apple Valley 27
Ridgecrest Burroughs 68, Barstow 38
Santa Ana Valley 64, Glenn 6
Shadow Hills 55, Palm Springs 14
Silver Valley 45, Riverside Prep 22
Temecula Prep 45, San Jacinto Leadership Academy 43
Temescal Canyon 85, West Valley 17
University Prep 47, Big Bear 31
Viewpoint 60, Agoura 45
Vistamar 33, Wildwood 14
YULA 51, Milken 50
INTERSECTIONAL
Birmingham 55, Heritage Christian 44
Desert Mirage 46, Borrego Springs 19
SEED: LA 44, Animo Leadership 7
Sun Valley Poly 65, Westridge 9
USC Hybrid 45, Legacy College Prep 4
Whittier 52, Garfield 46
Sports
Trump support drove wedge between former Mets star teammates, says sports radio star Mike Francesa
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New York sports radio icon Mike Francesa claims differing views on President Donald Trump created a divide within the Mets clubhouse.
Francesa said on his podcast Tuesday that a feud between shortstop Francisco Lindor and outfielder Brandon Nimmo, who was recently traded to the Texas Rangers, was ignited by politics. Francesa did not disclose which player supported Trump and which didn’t.
“The Nimmo-Lindor thing, my understanding, was political, had to do with Trump,” Francesa said. “One side liked Trump, one side didn’t like Trump.”
New York Mets’ Francisco Lindor (12) gestures to teammates after hitting an RBI single during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in New York City. (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)
Francesa added, “So, Trump splitting up between Nimmo and Lindor. That’s my understanding. It started over Trump… As crazy as that sounds, crazier things have happened.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Mets for a response.
DODGERS LAND ALL-STAR CLOSER IN RECORD-BREAKING DEAL AFTER BACK-TO-BACK WORLD SERIES WINS: REPORTS
New York Mets’ Francisco Lindor (12) and Brandon Nimmo (9) celebrate after a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers on June 27, 2023, in New York City. The Mets won 7-2. (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)
Nimmo was traded to the Rangers on Nov. 23 after waiving the no-trade clause in his 8-year, $162 million contract earlier that month.
The trade of Nimmo has been just one domino in a turbulent offseason for the Mets, which has also seen the departure of two other fan-favorites, first baseman Pete Alonso and closer Edwin Diaz.
All three players had been staples in the Mets’ last two playoff teams in 2022 and 2024, playing together as the team’s core dating back to 2020.
Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets celebrates an RBI single against the Philadelphia Phillies during the eighth inning in Game One of the Division Series at Citizens Bank Park on Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Heather Barry/Getty Images)
In return for Nimmo, the Rangers sent second baseman Marcus Semien to the Mets. Nimmo is 32 years old and is coming off a year that saw him hit a career-high in home runs with 25, while Semien is 35 and hit just 15 homers in 2025.
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Many of the MLB’s high-profile free agents have already signed this offseason. The remaining players available include Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger, Bo Bichette and Framber Valdez.
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