Lakers, Golden Knights advance to Western Conference Finals
After missing the playoffs last season, the Los Angeles Lakers and Vegas Golden Knights are heading back to the Western Conference Finals.
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1. Golden Knights advance to the Western Conference Finals
The Golden Knights eliminate the Edmonton Oilers and advance to the Western Conference Finals for the fourth time in six years. They’re back where they belong, writes The Sporting Tribune’s W.G. Ramirez.
The Vegas Golden Knights are back in the Western Conference Final, where they've seemingly belonged since entering the league in 2017.
It marks the fourth time they've been in the NHL's Final Four in six years.
Jonathan Marchessault scored a natural hat trick, and his original misfit linemates of William Karlsson and Reilly Smith added a goal apiece to lead the Golden Knights to a 5-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday in Game 6.
Vegas will face Monday's winner from Game 7 between Dallas and Seattle.
Since the 2018 postseason, the Golden Knights rank second in the NHL with 46 playoff wins, sandwiched between the last three Stanley Cup champions, Tampa Bay (61) and Colorado (43).
"We know against a team like that we needed 20 guys," Marchessault said postgame on TV. "I'm just trying to give my team a chance to win and the beauty of our team is depth."
2. Lakers dethrone Warriors, head to Western Conference Finals
The Lakers' improbable season continues as they advance to the Western Conference Finals against the Nuggets after 2-10 start. How did they get there? The Sporting Tribune’s Mark Medina explains.
The Lakers’ stars began their evening marking their territory with their dominant play, strong work ethic and empowering leadership. LeBron James and Anthony then ended their evening with marking their territory by establishing their expectations for a successful season.
The Lakers finished with a 122-101 win over the Golden State Warriors in Game 6 of their second-round playoff series on Friday at Crypto.com Arena, an outcome that eliminated the defending NBA champions and thrust a once-floundering franchise back into the Western Conference Finals for the second time in four years. Yet, James sat at the podium dismissively shaking his head on whether the Lakers believe they are now playing with “house money.”
After all, the Lakers labored to a 2-10 start. They ranked in 13th place in the Western Conference before the trade deadline. The Lakers then became a dramatically better team after trading Russell Westbrook both because of his poor fit and his value brought in various positional needs. Nonetheless, the Lakers needed to overcome a 15-point deficit to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in overtime just to ensure a playoff spot as a seventh seed.
3. Oakland shows its disgust with A’s
The Sporting Tribune's Norm Clarke writes how Oakland is showing its disgust for the A's while the team's executives try to finalize a move to Las Vegas.
Feeling betrayed and abandoned, Oaklands A’s supporters held a tomato-throwing protest over the weekend to take aim at a trio being blamed for what increasingly appears to be a done deal – the A’s moving to Las Vegas.
Targets of what was billed Friday as the “Rotten Tomato Tailgate” were images of A’s owner John Fisher, team president Dave Kaval and Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred.
“It’s pretty much those three guys’ fault,” Kellen Osbourn told the San Francisco Chronicle at the event outside the Last Dive Bar.
“It’s just like the old Greek times,” said Dave Johansen, a founder of the Oakland bar. “It’s innocent, it’s not hurting anybody. And it’s fricken’ hilarious.”
The A’s executives and Manfred have been taking hits since announcing they are finalizing a stadium site in April.
4. Brady and Las Vegas? Jackpot!
Tom Brady is in deep discussions to become a limited partner of the Raiders after already becoming a minority owner of the Aces. It would be a perfect marriage, writes The Sporting Tribune’s W.G. Ramirez.
Forget the synergy owner Mark Davis is trying to build between his Las Vegas Raiders and Las Vegas Aces, let's talk about the synergy between Tom Brady and Las Vegas.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion's interest in staking claim to a professional sports team in Southern Nevada is a jackpot and solidifies the message we've all known for quite some time.
"Las Vegas is undoubtedly the number one hotbed for professional sports right now," UFC president Dana White told The Sporting Tribune via phone call Friday afternoon. "Brady's inclusion with the Aces and the Raiders - if what we're hearing is true - only solidifies the power of our town."
5. Galaxy edge rival Earthquakes, 2-1, in California Clasico
Second-half goals lift the LA Galaxy past rival San Jose Earthquakes, 2-1, in the 96th edition of the California Clasico, write The Sporting Tribune’s Anthony Bautista.
Entering Sunday's matchup in the California Clasico, the oldest rivalry in the MLS, the Galaxy had a tall task ahead of them, just 24 hours prior, LA slid to last place in the MLS standings after Sporting Kansas City's 3-0 win over Minnesota United gave them nine points on the season.
Their opponents, the San Jose Earthquakes, entered the matchup having lost just once in the previous seven matches, including knocking off previously undefeated LAFC last weekend.
On Sunday, the Galaxy had what head coach Greg Vanney described as “by far,” the best defensive performance of the season following a 2-1 victory over San Jose.
The victory puts LA at nine points through 11 games this season and 13th in the Western Conference.
6. Angel City lose to Washington after late hand ball call
Angel City was in line to pick up points. Then, controversy ensued. What happened? The Sporting Tribune’s Kamran Nia has more from the scene at BMO Stadium.
As the final minutes ticked away at BMO Stadium, it seemed like Angel City would earn their first shutout of the NWSL season. Then, disaster struck.
Angel City defender Mary Alice Vignola blocked Washington Spirit midfielder Marissa Shiva’s shot, but the ball kicked off her side to her arm, awarding the Spirit a penalty kick for a hand ball.
Then, forward Ashley Hatch buried the penalty in the top right corner, giving the Spirit their only goal in a 1-0 victory over Angel City.
7. Odds and Ends presented by Circa Sports
Here are some odds at Circa Sports if you’re thinking about placing a wager today:
8. Ticket Time presented by TickPick
Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game today.
7:00 p.m. – Minnesota Twins at Los Angeles Dodgers – $42
9. On the Air presented by The D Las Vegas
Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today.
3:30 p.m. – Los Angeles Angels at Baltimore Orioles – Bally Sports West
7:00 p.m. – Minnesota Twins at Los Angeles Dodgers – SportsNet LA
10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune
The Sporting Tribune’s Arash Markazi is joined by Brandon Deutsch, Jake Dicker and Armani Buckets to discuss the Lakers losing Game 5 against the Golden State Warriors and now being forced to win at home in Game 6 to advance to the Western Conference Finals. They also talk about the status of Anthony Davis, who was knocked out of Game 5 with an apparent concussion.
Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Bet in Las Vegas and the Hawaii Sports Radio Network 95.1 FM and 760 AM in Hawaii. You can also listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher.
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