Weekend In Review: Kentucky Derby, NBA, NHL And More

A Sports Filled Weekend The Run for the Roses had barely ended when the race for the Triple Crown began. The favored Nyquist’s victory by a 1 ½ lengths...


A Sports Filled Weekend

The Run for the Roses had barely ended when the race for the Triple Crown began.

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The favored Nyquist’s victory by a 1 ½ lengths Saturday at Churchill Downs in the 142nd Kentucky Derby promptly sparked the usual speculation about a Triple Crown. Against the backdrop of American Pharoah’s sweep last year, this is one time such talk isn’t ridiculous hype.

NBA
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The Cleveland Cavaliers nipped the Atlanta Hawks 100-99 to win their playoff series in four straight games. The Cavs are 8-0 in the playoffs. The Oklahoma City Thunder got 41 points from Kevin Durant, tying his career playoff high, as they beat the San Antonio Spurs 111-97 to even their series at two games apiece. … The Memphis Grizzlies fired coach Dave Joergers, but he’s apparently already far along in negotiations to take the same position with the Sacramento Kings.

NHL
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The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Islanders 4-0 on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. They eliminated the Islanders in five games. … The St. Louis Blues defeated the Dallas Stars 4-1 on Saturday to take a 3-2 lead in their Western Conference series.

BOXING
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Saul “Canelo” Alvarez knocked out Amir Khan in the sixth round on Saturday night to retain his WBC middleweight title. Alvarez hit Khan with a right hand that landed square on the chin to knock Khan out.

MLB
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New York Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon, 42 and in his 19th season, hit his first home run in the major leagues on Saturday as his team cruised to a 6-3 victory over the San Diego Padres. Topps has already issued a commemorative card. … The Chicago Cubs won their seventh straight game as Javier Baez homered in the bottom of the 13th inning for a 4-3 win over the Washington Nationals.

ELSEWHERE
Kyle Busch won a wreck-filled race at Kansas Speedway on Saturday night, capturing the GoBowling 400. It was his first career victory at that track. … Maryland won the men’s Big Ten lacrosse title on Saturday in Baltimore, defeating Rutgers 14-8. The Maryland women’s team knocked off Northwestern 12-9 on Sunday and both are seeded No. 1 in their respective NCAA tournaments. … Yale’s men defeated Harvard on Sunday 14-9 to win their fourth Ivy League lacrosse title in five years.

Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman