Sports
Sparks snap eight-game losing streak with thrilling overtime win against Aces
When the Sparks’ 10-point lead started to drift away in the fourth quarter Friday night, it seemed like deja vu of Tuesday’s loss. What were once deafening cheers from the stands became a quiet lull as the 13,840 fans at Crypto.com Arena watched the Las Vegas Aces come barreling back.
But the Sparks would not, could not, let Tuesday’s fiasco happen again.
It took 45 minutes, but the Sparks forced overtime and ultimately prevail over the Aces on Friday night to snap an eight-game losing streak with a 98-93 overtime victory. It is their second win over Las Vegas this season after beating them in another close game in early June.
The game featured 15 ties and 17 lead changes, but the Sparks held on to win just their fifth game of the season.
“They had their runs and we expected that but the difference from tonight and Tuesday is we stayed together,” Aari McDonald said. “We minimized their stops while also executing and scoring.”
Dearica Hamby led the Sparks with 28 points, 14 rebounds and four assists, posting her 13th double-double of the season. Aari McDonald had a career high 23 points while adding five rebounds and three assists. The Sparks shot 32 for 86 from the field but struggled from the free-throw line, hitting 23 of 32.
A’ja Wilson led the Aces with 35 points, 12 rebounds and three assists and Kelsey Plum contributed 21 points and four rebounds. Las Vegas shot 32 of 67 from the field to keep the game close.
Hamby is fired up every time she faces the Aces. She won a championship with Las Vegas before filing a discrimination lawsuit against the franchise, claiming she was bullied by Aces coach Becky Hammon after disclosing her pregnancy. Hamby was traded to the Sparks and following a league investigation, Hammond served a two-game suspension and the Aces lost their 2025 first-round draft pick.
“My teammates show up for me every time we play the Aces and it means a lot to me,” Hamby said during a postgame interview on Ion. “They know how much this game means to me.”
Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum celebrates during the first half Friday against the Sparks.
(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)
The Aces started out hot with a 7-0 run before the Sparks got on the board on a Hamby layup three minutes into the first quarter. The Sparks fell into foul trouble early on, with four team fouls in the first quarter, but quickly came alive after a Rae Burrell three-pointer. Despite Wilson’s 11 points, the Sparks were able to keep up with the Aces and trailed Las Vegas 24-21 after the first quarter.
Layshia Clarendon tied the score in the opening seconds of the second quarter, but it was back and forth from there, with five more lead changes in the second quarter. The Sparks limited Wilson to two points in the second quarter and ended the half with a monster 9-0 run to lead 46-36 at halftime.
The Aces got into foul trouble in the second quarter, with seven team fouls helping the Sparks.
After Wilson opened the third quarter with points off of a Hamby shooting foul, Stephanie Talbot responded by adding six points in the first two minutes to maintain the Sparks lead. McDonald continued the momentum by scoring five during a 7-0 run to extend the Sparks’ game-high 12-point lead. McDonald scored 10 of her 23 points in the third quarter.
The Aces weren’t fazed, closing the gap in the fourth with a 7-0 run to pull ahead 75-74 with 5:44 left in the contest. The Sparks stayed in the game, however, despite a technical foul on Sparks coach Curt Miller. After Wilson put the Aces up 84-82, Talbot hit a crucial field goal with three seconds left to tie the game 84-84 and force overtime.
Sparks guard Layshia Clarendon, center, drives against Las Vegas Aces guard Tiffany Hayes, left, and center Megan Gustafson during the first half Friday.
(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)
“She is so underrated,” Rickea Jackson said of Talbot. “She’s been playing her butt off since entering the starting lineup. She’s been the glue that we needed keeping us together and staying composed, doing the little things that don’t show up on a stat sheet.”
A Burrell shooting foul gave the Aces the first points of overtime, but it remained a tight game. With the score tied at 90, Clarendon put the Sparks ahead for the first time in overtime and after a missed shot by Gray, Hamby added three points with 24 seconds left to give the Sparks a 95-90 lead.
Las Vegas’ Jackie Young hit a three-pointer with 20 seconds to close the gap at 95-93. After a Kiah Stokes shooting foul, Hamby had the chance to seal the game but missed both free throws. It didn’t matter, however, as McDonald made both of hers off an Alysha Clark foul with eight seconds left.
After a personal foul by Chelsea Gray, Clarendon put the game away by hitting one of two free throws in the final seconds.
“I’m super proud of this group tonight,” Miller said. “They just played with a toughness and grittiness from start to finish. Another fourth quarter lead disappeared but this is what you talk about with a young team, you just have to keep putting them back in that situation. The games don’t stop so it’s back to work tomorrow.”
The Sparks continue their homestand against the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena.
Sports
Chiefs and Browns make first trade of 2026 draft and both eventually fill needs
The Cleveland Browns, rumored to be willing to trade down from their No. 6 overall selection in the 2026 NFL draft, did just that Thursday evening when the traded the pick to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Cleveland traded the sixth overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft to the Chiefs, in exchange for the ninth overall pick, as well as pick No. 74 in the third round and No. 148 in the fifth round.
The Browns now hold the No. 9 and No. 24 picks in the first round of the draft. They have a total of 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns watch from the sidelines during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 7, 2025. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
So the Chiefs gave up three picks in making the first trade of the first round.
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And we know what the fan bases of both clubs were thinking prior to the selection:
Chiefs fans were thinking we know something they don’t. And then the Chiefs selected cornerback Mansoor Delane from LSU — a move no doubt forced by the club’s trade of Pro Bowl cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams earlier in the offseason.
So, the Chiefs fill a major need, assuming Delane is indeed the quality corner they believe.
LSU Tigers CB Mansoor Delane celebrates a defensive stop against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium in South Carolina. (Ken Ruinard/USA TODAY Network)
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ESPN’s Mel Kiper didn’t like the pick, by the way. He had Delane as the 14th best player in the draft.
“It was a necessity,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL defensive back, responded.
Browns fans weren’t thinking that way.
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They were probably thinking something akin to “We screwed up.”
This is understandable because they’re Browns fans and this could have been the Browns Browning.
Well, the Browns, moving down three slots, gave up a shot to draft linebacker Sonny Styles of Ohio State to the Washington Commanders, receiver Jordyn Tyson to the New Orleans Saints and then the Browns got their chance with the newly acquired No. 9 pick:
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Offensive tackle Spencer Fano of Utah.
Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Ind., on Feb. 24, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
Fano is good. And he makes the Browns offensive line instantly better because he’s going to likely start at left tackle for them.
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So what will Browns fans think of this pick?
They’ll probably wonder why the Browns didn’t pick Miami’s Francis Mauigoa, who went with the No. 10 pick to the New York Giants and promised “to die for” Jaxson Dart if necessary. They’ll wonder this because Browns fans expect the worst.
Sports
Defending champion UCLA women’s basketball lands top transfer, continues roster overhaul
UCLA women’s basketball team has added some star power as its revamped roster begins to take shape.
Former Iowa State forward Addy Brown announced Thursday she is committing to UCLA, giving the Bruins one of the top players in the portal.
Brown averaged 11.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 43.1% from the floor and 33.8% from three-point distance with the Cyclones last season. She played just 21 games due to injury, but she is one of the better two-way players in the nation on the transfer market.
The 6-foot-2 forward co-starred with Audi Crooks for Iowa State the past few seasons and was a part of the mass exodus from the Cyclones’ program.
The Bruins reeled in former North Carolina junior guard Elina Aarnisalo and former Texas Christian senior guard Donovyn Hunter a few weeks ago, adding two more experienced players to the depleted starting lineup after a record six UCLA players were selected in the WNBA draft.
UCLA also signed Arkansas sophomore guard Bonnie Deas earlier this month. She is likely to start at point guard for the Bruins and is one of the best rebounding guards in the nation.
Along with returner Timea Gardiner, the Bruins are starting to form somewhat of a core to defend their national championship. Gardiner was a starter during UCLA’s 2024-25 Final Four run, but missed all of this past season with injury and has one season of eligibility left.
A lineup with Deas and Aarnisalo in the backcourt, Hunter at the three and Gardiner or Brown at the four and adding another big or Sienna Betts at the five would be a competitive lineup in the Big Ten.
Before going to TCU, Hunter played two seasons at Oregon State where she earned All-Pac-12 Defensive Team honorable mention and All-Pac-12 Freshman team honors. This past season with a Horned Frogs team that went to the Sweet 16, she was third in scoring with 10.2 points per game and averaged 3.2 rebounds per contest. She also shot 45.7% from the field and was 33.7% from beyond the arc.
Aarnisalo played her freshman year in Westwood after she originally committed to UCLA in 2025. Due to injuries from point guard Kiki Rice at the start of the 2024-25 season, she was forced into action early her freshman season and finished the year averaging 5.1 points per game.
The Helsinki, Finland, native averaged 10.2 points per game for the Tar Heels as a sophomore last season while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.3% from the arc. The Bruins will desperately need to replace the three-point production lost with the departure of Rice, Gianna Kneepkens and Charlisse Leger-Walker.
UCLA coach Cori Close said she wanted to sign five players from the portal. She probably needs one more guard and a little more forward depth coming off the bench following the departures of Gabriela Jaquez and Angela Dugalic.
Lena Bilic and Amanda Muse are returners coming off the bench who got a little bit of playing time in the tournament and should have much larger roles, but they are still relatively unproven in late-game situations. They will get a chance to develop as backups with some more Power Four experienced starters now in the fold.
Sports
WWE to hold premium live event in Saudi Arabia amid Iran ceasefire
Trump says there’s ‘no time frame’ to secure Iran deal
Republican Minnesota Senate candidate Tom Weiler joins ‘Fox & Friends’ to discuss President Donald Trump’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S.-Iranian conflict continues and react to Gov. Tim Walz’s, D-Minn., criticism of the president.
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Saudi Arabia was among the countries seeing missiles fly into their airspace as a conflict broke out in the Middle East between the U.S. and Iran.
The prospect of Iran targeting its Middle Eastern neighbors like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates put some sporting events on hold and questioned others. Formula 1 races in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain were canceled and rumors swirled around whether future WWE events could be held in the kingdom.
Roman Reigns celebrates his win during WWE’s Royal Rumble at Riyadh Season Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 31, 2026. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
As the Trump administration brokered a ceasefire with Iran, WWE announced on Thursday that its Night of Champions premium live event will be held in Riyadh on June 27.
“We are proud to welcome Night of Champions back to Riyadh and look forward to delivering another unforgettable night of WWE action for fans in the Kingdom and around the world,” General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Al-Sheikh said in a news release.
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Sami Zayn makes his entrance during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
The release touted that WrestleMania 43 will still be held in Riyadh in 2027. It will be the first time that WrestleMania is held outside the U.S.
WWE president Nick Khan was adamant before WrestleMania 42 that the event will still take place in Saudi Arabia despite the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
“We’re doing WrestleMania next year in Saudi,” he said at a Sports Business Journal event, via The Sporting Tribune. “First time ever, WrestleMania will be outside the United States or Canada. And we’ve had a big, fruitful partnership with them.”
John Cena wrestles CM Punk during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
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He added that those complaining about WrestleMania being held in Saudi Arabia were a “vocal minority.”
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