📰🏟️ Knick of time
Plus: English soccer’s “Spygate”...
Good afternoon. Today’s edition brings you the top news from around the sports world. Let’s get you up to speed.
—Kyle
1) Knicks stun Cavs with epic Game 1 comeback
After trailing by 22 points with just over 8 minutes left in the 4th quarter, the NY Knicks executed one of the greatest comebacks in NBA history to force OT and eventually beat the Cavaliers.
- New York outscored Cleveland by a 44-11 margin during their comeback run and OT, with the Knicks mercilessly targeting Cavs G James Harden on the defensive end.
- According to ESPN Analytics, the Cavaliers had a 99.9% chance of winning with 7:49 remaining in the game.
- NBA teams have a 3-748 record in the playoffs when trailing by at least 20 points in the fourth quarter, per play-by-play data going back 30 years.
Blow-by-blow recap of NY’s comeback
2) Big Ten, SEC at odds over CFP expansion
In a rare meeting with reporters yesterday, Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti gave his first extensive public comments in support of doubling the College Football Playoff field to 24 teams.
- Petitti also said the Big Ten won’t support a 16-team CFP model, as proposed and backed by the SEC, saying the B1G would prefer to stay at 12 teams as Plan B.
- For the current 12-team model to change (starting in 2027 and beyond), both the Big Ten and the SEC have to agree on the format.
3) Arsenal wins Premier League title
Arsenal clinched the top spot in the Premier League with a Man City draw yesterday, earning their first title in England’s top soccer league since the 2003-04 season.
- Outside of a few days in April, Arsenal have held the top spot in the Premier League standings since October, winning 25 matches, drawing 7, and losing just 5.
- In other major English soccer news: Southampton has been kicked out of Saturday's EFL Championship final—with a Premier League spot on the line—after being found guilty of spying on multiple teams.
Arsenal is the Premier English club
4) Phillies’ Schwarber on historic HR pace
Philadelphia DH Kyle Schwarber has hit 20 HRs through his first 49 games, putting him on pace for 66 on the season (tied for the 3rd-most of all time).
- His 20th dinger came on May 15th, the earliest date any player has reached that mark in MLB history (though the games-played mark is a bit different).
- Schwarber, who hit 56 HRs last season, is seeking to become the 8th player ever to hit 60 HRs in a season, one year after Mariners C Cal Raleigh joined those ranks.
Can Kyle reach 60 Schwar-bombs?
5) Trail Blazers’ new ownership keeps cutting costs
Portland reportedly laid off 20%+ of the team’s workforce on the business side (~70 people) yesterday, in the latest cost-cutting measure from new Trail Blazers owner Tom Dundon.
- After taking control of the team in March, Dundon installed changes like two-way players not traveling for the playoffs and having team staffers check out of the hotel early.
- He’s also reportedly seeking to hire a new head coach at an NBA-low $1.5M annual salary.
Dundon is Trail Blazing a new path
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