Sox drop series finale on a SAC bunt – WSJM Morning News

MLB – Major League Baseball
Last Night
Kansas City Royals 4, Chicago White Sox 3
Tigers and Cubs were off

Royals 4, White Sox 3 – Fermin’s bunt in ninth gives Royals 4-3 win over White Sox
Freddy Fermin followed a leadoff walk by Nick Pratto and a single by Matt Duffy with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt in the ninth inning, giving the Kansas City Royals a 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. Reynaldo López took the loss for the White Sox. Scott Barlow pitched a perfect ninth to earn the win. The Royals nursed a 3-1 lead into the eighth, but the White Sox tied it up with a two-out rally against Aroldis Chapman. Andrew Vaughn and pinch-hitter Carlos Pérez singled, and Luis Robert Jr. bounced a tying double off the chalk of the left-field line.

Tonight
Seattle (Gonzales 2-0) at Detroit (Boyd 2-2), 6:40 p.m.             News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM 6:15
Chicago Cubs (Smyly 3-1) at Minnesota (Gray 4-0), 8:10 p.m.
Houston (France 0-0) at Chicago White Sox (Kopech 1-3), 8:10 p.m.

NBA – National Basketball Association Playoffs – Round 2 (Best of 7)
Last Night
Boston Celtics 95, Philadelphia 76ers 86                                (Series tied 3-3)
Denver Nuggets 125, Phoenix Suns 100                                   (DEN wins 4-2)

Celtics 95, Sixers 86 – Tatum’s 4th-quarter 3s push Celtics past 76ers 95-86; force Game 7
Jayson Tatum missed his first six 3-pointers before he drilled two straight clutch ones late in the game that pushed the Celtics past the Philadelphia 76ers 95-86 to send the Eastern Conference semifinals back to Boston for Game 7. The defending conference champs are in familiar territory. Boston trailed 3-2 last season in the second round against Milwaukee before it won Game 6 on the road and the clincher at home. Game 7 is Sunday in Boston. Tatum scored 19 points. Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey each scored 26 points for the 76ers.

Nuggets 125, Suns 100 – Nuggets blow past Suns 125-100, advance to Western Conference finals
Nikola Jokic scored 32 points, Jamal Murray added 26 and the Denver Nuggets advanced to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2020 by beating the shorthanded Phoenix Suns 125-100 in Game 6 on Thursday night. Denver’s series victory comes two seasons after the Nuggets were embarrassed in a second-round postseason sweep by the Suns. This time, it was the Suns who were embarrassed. On their home floor, too. Denver jumped to an 81-51 lead by halftime. The Nuggets will play in the conference finals for the first time since they lost to the Lakers in five games in the Florida bubble during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tonight
New York Knicks at Miami Heat, 7:30 p.m.                                (MIA leads 3-2)
Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Lakers, 10:00 p.m.          (LAL leads 3-2)

NBA – Lakers coach Ham expects Anthony Davis to play in Game 6 vs Warriors
Lakers coach Darvin Ham said he excepts Anthony Davis to play Friday night in Los Angeles, adding that the eight-time All-Star big man is “not showing any signs of anything” and is not in the NBA’s concussion protocol after being hit in the head late in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals. Davis is “doing great,” Ham said, and is probable for Game 6 against the Golden State Warriors. Davis was hurt by what appeared to be an inadvertent shot to the head from Golden State’s Kevon Looney midway through the fourth quarter of the Warriors’ 121-106 victory in San Francisco.

NBA – Heat, Lakers get another chance to move on; Knicks, Warriors on brink
Whatever it takes. That’s the credo at this time of year in the NBA playoffs. It’s why New York teammates Jalen Brunson and Quentin Grimes are playing 48 minutes. It’s why Miami’s Jimmy Butler is playing through ankle soreness. It’s why Golden State’s Stephen Curry is taking more shots per game than he ever has in a playoff run. It’s why the Los Angeles Lakers’ Anthony Davis will likely play through whatever is ailing him after he had to leave early Wednesday night. The Heat play host to New York and the Lakers play host to Golden State on Friday. Both home clubs have 3-2 series leads.

NHL – National Hockey League – 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs – Round 2 (Best of 7)
Last Night
Carolina Hurricanes 3, New Jersey Devils 2 – OT                       (CAR wins 4-1)
Dallas Stars 5, Seattle Kraken 2                                           (DAL leads 3-2)

Hurricanes 3, Devils 2 – OT – Jesper Fast scores on OT power play, Hurricanes eliminate Devils in Game 5
Jesper Fast deflected in a shot by Jesperi Kotkaniemi on a power play at 7:09 of overtime to give the Carolina Hurricanes a series-ending 3-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night. Fast’s deflection while shielding Akira Schmid set off a celebration for the Hurricanes, who never led until the final play and twice trailed by a goal before winning the best-of-seven series 4-1 to reach the Eastern Conference final. In the first tight game of the second-round matchup, Fast made amends for when he popped a puck over the goal in front of an open net in the first period. Jaccob Slavin and Brent Burns also scored for Carolina, and Frederik Andersen made 27 saves.

Stars 5, Kraken 2 – Hintz has 2 goals, Pavelski scores again as Stars take 3-2 series lead over Kraken
Roope Hintz scored two goals and had an assist, Joe Pavelski scored his seventh goal of the second-round series and the Dallas Stars beat the Seattle Kraken 5-2 in Game 5. The Stars have a 3-2 series lead. Pavelski also had an assist on Hintz’s second goal, which ricocheted hard out of the net with 8:37 left for a two-goal lead, though play continued for nearly a half-minute before a replay review that confirmed the score. Radek Faksa added an empty-netter. Game 6 is Saturday in Seattle. Adam Larsson and Jared McCann scored for Seattle.

Tonight
Florida Panthers at Toronto Maple Leafs, 7:00 p.m.                   (FLA leads 3-1)
Edmonton Oilers at Vegas Golden Knights, 10:00 p.m.               (Series tied 2-2)

NFL – NFL season kicks off with Super Bowl champion Chiefs hosting LionsS
Patrick Mahomes and the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will kick off the season against the upstart Detroit Lions in a matchup of high-powered offenses and they’ll host Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles in a Super Bowl rematch on “Monday Night Football” in Week 11. Aaron Rodgers will make his New York Jets debut in the first Monday night game of the season against the Buffalo Bills and later faces the Miami Dolphins in the NFL’s first Black Friday game on Nov. 24. Thanks to Rodgers’ arrival in the Big Apple, the Jets will have six nationally televised games, including their first Sunday night game since 2011 vs. the Chiefs on Oct. 1.

Indy500 – Defending Indy 500 champ Ericsson back at Brickyard, seeking new contract
Marcus Ericsson spent most of his career trying to show he could win races. Now the defending Indianapolis 500 champion and current IndyCar points leader has another goal: proving his newfound success is no fluke. The 32-year-old Swede is making a strong case for a contract extension with Chip Ganassi Racing. He won the season-opening race in St. Petersburg, Florida, and has four straight top-10 finishes. He now returns to Indy with his image plastered all around the city.

MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night
Lansing 4, West Michigan 2
Lake County 6, Great Lakes 5
Wisconsin 3, South Bend 1

Today
Lansing Lugnuts at West Michigan Whitecaps, 11:05 a.m.
Great Lakes Loons at Lake County Captains, 6:35 p.m.
South Bend Cubs at Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, 7:40 p.m.

MHSAA – High School Sports
Yesterday
Baseball
Portage Central 11, St. Joseph 1 – Game 1
St. Joseph 3, Portage Central 2 – Game 2
Bridgman 8, Buchanan 5
Cassopolis 17, Bloomingdale 2 – Game 1
Cassopolis 17, Bloomingdale 0 – Game 2
Decatur 15, White Pigeon 0 – Game 1
Decatur 15, White Pigeon 4 – Game 2
Hartford 12, Marcellus 6 – Game 1
Hartford 6, Marcellus 2 – Game 2
Three Rivers 11, Constantine 8 – Game 1
Three Rivers 10, Constantine 6 – Game 2

Girls Soccer
Fennville 4, Michigan Lutheran 2
Berrien Springs 4, Coloma 1
New Buffalo 8, Covert 0
Comstock 8, Hartford 0
Saugatuck 4, Wyoming Potter’s House 0

Softball
Lakeshore 7, New Prairie 5
Portage Central 6, St. Joseph 3 – Game 1
Portage Central 12, St. Joseph 1 – Game 2
Paw Paw 6, Coloma 5 – Game 1
Coloma 12, Paw Paw 1 – Game 1
Watervliet 13, Bridgman 3
Decatur 11, White Pigeon 0 – Game 1
Decatur 6, White Pigeon 0 – Game 2
Hartford 10, Marcellus 2 – Game 1
Marcellus 16, Hartford 15 – Game 2
Centreville 18, Lawrence 0 – Game 1
Centreville 18, Lawrence 1 – Game 2
Gobles 12, Fennville 0 – Game 1
Gobles 17, Fennville 0 – Game 2
Lawton 6, Howardsville Christian 5 – Game 1
Lawton 15, Howardsville Christian 6 – Game 2

Today
Baseball
Eau Claire at Our Lady of the Lake, 4:15 p.m.
Michigan Lutheran at River Valley, 4:15 p.m,
Mattawan at Edwardsburg, 4:00 p.m.
Coloma at Paw Paw, 4:00 p.m.
Brandywine at Dowagiac, 4:00 p.m.
Holland Black River at Martin, 4:30 p.m.
Vicksburg at Plainwell, 4:00 p.m.
Loy Norrix at Kalamazoo Central, 4:00 p.m.
Tekonsha at Mendon, 4:30 p.m.

Softball
Eau Claire at Our Lady of the Lake, 4:15 p.m.
Michigan Lutheran at River Valley, 4:15 p.m,
Otsego at Edwardsburg, 4:00 p.m.
South Haven at Coloma, 4:30 p.m.
Brandywine at Dowagiac, 4:00 p.m.
Vicksburg at Plainwell, 4:00 p.m.
Kalamazoo Central at Schoolcraft, 4:30 p.m.
Marcellus at Colon, 4:30 p.m.
Tekonsha at Mendon, 4:30 p.m.

Girls Soccer
Lakeshore at Portage Central, 6:30 p.m.
Our Lady of the Lake at Kal. Hackett, 5:00 p.m.
Hamilton at South Haven, 6:30 p.m.
Coloma at Buchanan, 5:00 p.m.
Bridgman at Watervliet, 6:30 p.m.
Battle Creek Lakeview at Mattawan, 6:30 p.m.
Plainwell at Kalamazoo Loy Norrix, 6:30 p.m.
Edwardsburg at Kalamazoo Central, 6:30 p.m.
Niles at New Buffalo, 6:00 p.m.
Three Rivers at Quincy, 5:30 p.m.
Delton-Kellogg at Parchment, 6:30 p.m.
Allegan at Wayland, 6:45 p.m.
Schoolcraft at Comstock, 5:30 p.m.
Gull Lake at GR Forest Hills Northern, 4:30 p.m.

Saturday
Track and Field
SMAC Conference Meet at Battle Creek Lakeview, 9:30 a.m.

Girls Tennis
SMAC Conference Meet at Portage Central/Portage Northern, 8:30 a.m.