Mayhem mars euphoria as New York City celebrates the Knicks’ first championship in 53 years
NEW YORK (AP) — It was bedlam on Broadway as the New York Knicks won their first NBA championship in 53 years, with exuberant celebrations marred by mayhem and violence, including gunshots in Times Square. Outside the team’s Manhattan arena, Madison Square Garden, fans roared as the Knicks rallied from a 16-point deficit to beat the Spurs in San Antonio in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Saturday night. Soon after, rowdy fans were clashing with police, smashing windows on a police car, climbing scaffolding, light poles and a statue, standing atop school buses in Times Square and trying to hitch a ride on a moving fire truck. The NYPD said there were multiple arrests but wouldn’t have a total until later on Sunday.
The Comeback Knicks are the Champion Knicks. Brunson scores 45, and New York tops Spurs for title
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Jalen Brunson and the Comeback Knicks did it again. And now they’re the Champion Knicks. For the first time in 53 years, New York rules the NBA. Brunson scored 45 points, including 13 straight for New York in the fourth quarter, and the Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Saturday night. The Knicks won the series 4-1, rallying from double-digit deficits in all four of those victories. The deficit was 16 on Saturday night. Brunson and the Knicks were never fazed.
Brazil rallies for 1-1 draw against Morocco in its World Cup opener behind Vinícius Júnior’s goal
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Vinícius Júnior scored an equalizing goal in the 32nd minute to give five-time champion Brazil a 1-1 draw against Morocco in a pulsating, high-profile group match at the World Cup. A semifinalist four years ago, Morocco dominated early, and Ismael Saibari put the African champions ahead in the 21st minute. Brazil, seeking its first World Cup title since 2002, entered the tournament with high expectations and yellow-clad Seleção fans who dominated the crowd of 80,663 at MetLife Stadium became a bit subdued before Vinícius evened the score with a spectacular angled effort.
Jalen Brunson bet on himself and bet on the Knicks. A championship and a Finals MVP was his reward
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Jalen Brunson was fully aware of how much money some people spent to see the New York Knicks finally become champions again. Some tickets during the NBA Finals sold for $5,000, some for $50,000, some for probably more. Of course, Brunson parted with more money than any of those fans did. Brunson is now an NBA champion and NBA Finals MVP in large part because of what he did against the San Antonio Spurs in the finals — though, really, his biggest contribution to this title run likely came in 2024, when he left as much as $113 million on the bargaining table to allow the Knicks the financial flexibility they needed to finish building a championship roster.
Dodgers’ Yamamoto loses no-hit bid on Peters’ leadoff homer for the White Sox in the 9th inning
CHICAGO (AP) — Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto lost a bid for a no-hitter when Tristan Peters hit a leadoff homer for the Chicago White Sox in the ninth inning. Yamamoto retired his first 23 batters before Chase Meidroth reached on a two-out error on shortstop Mookie Betts in the eighth. Jacob Gonzalez then bounced to second, ending the inning. But Peters connected for his third homer of the season on a 96.6 mph fastball, sending a drive deep to right. After Edgar Quero flied out to center, Yamamoto was replaced by Alex Vesia. The Dodgers then closed out a 7-1 victory over the White Sox.
Australia spoils Turkey’s return to the World Cup with a 2-0 victory
VANCOUVER, B.C. (AP) — Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe scored and Australia spoiled Turkey’s return to the World Cup for the first time in 24 years with a 2-0 victory on Saturday night. Goalkeeper Patrick Beach made eight saves for the Socceroos as FIFA President Gianni Infantino looked on. Australia was playing in its sixth straight World Cup and seventh overall. Turkey reached the semifinals of the 2002 World Cup but then missed five straight tournaments before qualifying this year by beating Kosovo in a playoff.
Scotland marks 28-year World Cup absence with 1-0 victory over Haiti in Group C
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — John McGinn deflected a shot off an opposing defender and past goalkeeper Johny Placide in the 28th minute, and Scotland defeated Haiti 1-0 in Group C of the World Cup. The Scots were making their first appearance in the tournament since 1998 and earned their first World Cup victory since beating Sweden 2-1 in 1990. Group favorites Brazil and Morocco played to a 1-1 draw earlier in the day, putting Scotland at the top the group standings. Haiti, whose only other World Cup appearance was in West Germany in 1974, is still in search of its first World Cup point.
Trump turns 80 with a showstopping spectacle of cage fights at the White House. But big issues loom
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump celebrates turning 80 with a UFC cage-fighting event on the White House’s South Lawn. It’s an unprecedented extravaganza marking his birthday in showstopping fashion, featuring seven fights and aligning with America’s 250th anniversary. Trump’s celebration on Sunday contrasts sharply with former President Joe Biden’s low-key 80th birthday at the White House in 2022. The bash comes while the U.S. and Iran are discussing a deal to the end the war, and after Trump’s name was removed from Washington’s Kennedy Center. At 80, polls show the public has concerns about the president’s age — mirroring doubts his predecessor faced. But his physicians have said Trump is in excellent health.
49ers mourn the sudden death of former All-Pro linebacker Aldon Smith at 36
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Aldon Smith, a former All-Pro linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers whose playing career was sidetracked by legal issues, has died. He was 36. The team announced the death on Saturday but did not disclose a cause of death. The 49ers drafted Smith out of Missouri with the seventh overall pick in the 2011 draft. He had 33.5 sacks through his first two seasons, the most by any player in their first two seasons. Smith was first suspended with the 49ers in 2014 and was later released by the team. He also played for the Raiders and the Dallas Cowboys.
Boualem Khoukhi’s goal on header in stoppage time earns Qatar a 1-1 World Cup draw with Switzerland
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Boualem Khoukhi scored an equalizing goal on a header in the fourth minute of stoppage time, and Qatar spoiled a dominant day by Switzerland in a 1-1 draw in Group B of the World Cup. Breel Embolo scored for Switzerland from the penalty spot in the first half just over a week after being cleared to enter the U.S. following a visa delay, but the Swiss failed to capitalize on multiple other scoring chances. Switzerland dominated the possession game on an unseasonably warm June afternoon — with sprinklers running during a first-half break. There were thousands of empty seats scattered throughout Levi’s Stadium.