Head coach Ian Foster said he was looking forward to a "monster" quarter-final after New Zealand secured their place in the knock-out phases with...

The New York Knicks made a surprising run to the Eastern Conference semifinals. How will they look to build on their success in the offseason?Expectations were low for the New York Knicks entering the 2022-23 campaign. After a disastrous flop a year prior, many viewed the Knicks' run to the...

The Republic of Ireland’s Euro 2024 qualification campaign has reached crunch-point after just four games with Sunday’s Group B clash with the Netherlands pivotal to their dwindling hopes. Defeat would leave Ireland trailing in the wake of France, the Dutch and Greece and all but mathematically unable to make it to Germany next year. Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the talking points surrounding a crucial fixture. Clock running for Kenny? For his critics, Kenny’s reign is fast reaching the point of no return. Under the 51-year-old, who was appointed as Mick McCarthy’s successor in April 2020, Ireland have won only five of the 25 competitive matches they have played – against Azerbaijan, Luxembourg, Scotland, Armenia and Gibraltar – and are perilously close to missing out on a third tournament. Kenny has blooded a new generation of players with the 18-year-old Evan Ferguson, injured for the fixtures against France and the Netherlands, in particular prompting genuine excitement, and has vowed to play an exciting brand of football, a blend which has been welcomed by supporters. However, it is yet to pay off the hard currency of meaningful wins and a failure to buck that trend against the Dutch could signal the beginning of the end. Rank outsiders Ireland will have to significantly out-perform their FIFA ranking if they are to get the better of Ronald Koeman’s men at the Aviva Stadium. They are currently ranked 53rd while the Dutch are seventh, and their recent record does not make for encouraging reading. Azerbaijan appear in 121st place in the world list, Luxembourg 89th, Scotland 30th – a marked improvement on where they stood ahead of their defeat at the Aviva in June last year – Armenia 90th and Gibraltar 198th. Striker light Timing is everything in football and the loss of blossoming talent Ferguson to a knee injury just days after the Brighton teenager rattled in a Premier League hat-trick against Newcastle could hardy have come at a worse time. Kenny asked Norwich frontman Adam Idah to lead the line with support from Chiedozie Ogbene and Jason Knight in Thursday night’s 2-0 defeat by France, and his options remain limited with the absent quintet of Ferguson, Callum Robinson, Mikey Johnston, Michael Obafemi and Troy Parrott having been joined by Will Keane after the game in Paris. Aaron Connolly will hope for a chance, but Idah remains the most likely spearhead for an attack largely blunted in Paris. Dutch courage If Ireland need inspiration ahead of a daunting task, they can cast their minds back 22 years to the day the Dutch last lost in Dublin. Few neutrals gave McCarthy’s men much chance of beating a star-studded Dutch side which included Edwin van der Sar, Jaap Stam, Marc Overmars, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Patrick Kluivert and substitutes Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Pierre van Hooijdonk in a World Cup qualifier at Lansdowne Road in September 2001, particularly after Gary Kelly’s 58th-minute dismissal. But Jason McAteer’s strike secured a famous win which helped to propel his side to the finals in the Far East on a day which lives long in the nation’s sporting memory. Koeman on strong Ronald Koeman endured an ignominious start to his second spell as Netherlands boss when his side were trounced 4-0 in France at the start of the campaign. However, the former Everton and Barcelona manager has steadied the ship since and a regulation 3-0 victory over Gibraltar coupled with Thursday night’s win against Greece by the same score either side of Nations League finals defeats by Croatia and Italy have got their qualification bid back on track. A third would leave them six points better off than the Republic with a game in hand. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Fit, healthy and firing – Andy Farrell hails Johnny Sexton’s Ireland comeback England held by Ukraine in Poland after Kyle Walker equaliser Daniil Medvedev knows he will need to produce perfect performance to win US Open

Chelsea Gray had 20 points and seven assists, Jackie Young added 18 points and the top-seeded Las Vegas Aces beat the Chicago Sky 87-59 to begin a WNBA playoff series

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The Pittsburgh Steelers are going to look in-house to help out their banged-up defense

El Ellis scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half, and No. 14 Arkansas held off Old Dominion 86-77

Oso Ighodaro had 21 points and nine rebounds as No. 4 Marquette routed No. 1 Kansas 73-59 in the Maui Invitational semifinals

Lionel Messi has confirmed he will complete a free transfer move to American side Inter Miami, ending rumours he would join former rival Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia. The Argentinian World Cup-winner leaves Paris Saint-Germain after two years in Ligue 1 and now heads to MLS, his first senior club outside of Europe having spent his entire career at Barcelona prior to joining PSG. Speaking in an exclusive interview to Sport and Mundo Deportivo, Messi confirmed: “I’m going to join Inter Miami. The decision is 100% confirmed. “If it had been a matter of money, I’d have gone to Saudi Arabia or elsewhere. It seemed like a lot of money to me. The truth is that my final decision goes elsewhere and not because of money”. With the deal yet to officially go through, exact details of length of contract and how much he will earn are still to be confirmed Inter Miami is owned by David Beckham and Jorge Mas, an American businessman, and are currently competing in just their fourth-ever season as an MLS club. They currently sit bottom of the Eastern Conference and fired former England defender and Lionesses manager Phil Neville as head coach at the start of June. Messi has won 174 caps with the Argentina national team, scoring 102 goals along the way – both national team records by an enormous distance. After going close to success with the Albiceleste on more than one occasion, he finally tasted glory with his nation when they won the 2021 Copa America, before following that up last year and triumphing at the 2022 World Cup. More to follow... Read More First golf, now football? Saudi Arabia’s plan after 72 hours that changed everything Messi agrees ‘in principle’ on next move after PSG exit Why has Saudi Arabia become big player in world sport and what does future hold?

Texas football picked up a huge commitment from five-star edge Colin Simmons and he's already pledged to flip more recruits to the Longhorns.After a tight recruiting battle with LSU, the Texas Longhorns came out on top in their pursuit of Colin Simmons.The five-star edge rusher announce...

Real Madrid are looking at a move for Harry Kane this summer, with Carlo Ancelotti and the club's football hierarchy having discussed the English striker as one of the few players who does not represent a downgrade on Karim Benzema. The club announced the departure of the French striker on Sunday morning, with Saudi Arabia his expected destination, but the lateness of his actual decision has caused a shift in their transfer plans for this summer. Madrid plan to sign Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund for £130m, but were hoping to keep Benzema for one year before going big on either Erling Haaland or – much more likely – Kylian Mbappe. They are now insistent on a striker for this window, and have had several discussions over the last few days as Benzema's decision became clear. They do have money for a first lavish summer since 2019, having had very little net spend in the time since, and their financial isssues to be eased. Madrid have Benzema, Eden Hazard and Paris Saint Germain-bound Marco Asensio off the wage bill, with the expensive Bernabeu redevelopment also close to completion. That leaves a potential budget of over £200m, although it remains to be seen whether it will be enough to convince Tottenham Hotspur to sell or the player to join. While The Independent has been told that it has been made known to Madrid what wages Kane would want, there is still the belief that he wants to stay in England in order to break the Premier League goalscoring record. Spurs' position is weakened by the fact the 29-year-old now only has a year left on his contract but that has not changed Daniel Levy's hardline stance. The Spurs chairman absolutely will not countenance the sale of Kane to another Premier League club, and his preference is still to keep him for next season in the hope that a deal can still be agreed. Much will depend on the manager. At the same time, a sale to Madrid would at least represent a more palatable option. The Bernabeu hierarchy are hoping to play on this, even though they are acutely aware of how difficult it will be to negotiate with Levy. It is still expected the Spurs chairman would want as much as £200m, which would almost certainly exceed Madrid's budget. The club's policy is no longer to go after players above 29 due to a shift in order to compete with state-owned clubs but this is seen as an exceptional situation, due to the profile of forward required. It is also hoped it may not impinge on any new pursuit of Mbappe, as they hope to bring him in on a free and Kane could play with both the French striker and Vinicius Jr. Read More Karim Benzema confirms Real Madrid departure as he eyes big-money move Harry Kane sends message to Mauricio Pochettino after former boss joins Chelsea Premier League transfers: Mount and Kane linked with moves this summer

Madison Keys got the better of Coco Gauff 6-3, 6-3 in an all-American clash to reach the final of the...