BUENOS AIRES: Brazil’s Atletico Mineiro drew 0-0 at Argentina’s River Plate on Tuesday and reached the final of the Copa Libertadores for the second time.
The team of veteran striker Hulk had beaten its rivals 3-0 in the first leg of the semifinal.
The festive atmosphere at the full Monumental de Nunez Stadium with more than 80,000 fans did not affect the Brazilian side, which had some of the clearest chances to score.
Atletico’s rival in the decider will be decided on Wednesday, and it is very likely to be fellow Brazilian side Botafogo. The Rio de Janeiro-based team will play at Uruguay’s Penarol after winning the first leg 5-0.
Brazilian teams have won the tournament for the past five years.
The final will be played on Nov. 30 at the same Monumental de Nunez Stadium in Buenos Aires.
Brazil’s Atletico Mineiro draws at Argentina’s River Plate and reaches Copa Libertadores final
https://arab.news/72bsy
Brazil’s Atletico Mineiro draws at Argentina’s River Plate and reaches Copa Libertadores final
- Atletico’s rival in the decider will be decided on Wednesday, and it is very likely to be fellow Brazilian side Botafogo
Bangladesh spinner Taijul takes 5 wickets but South Africa stays in control of 2nd test
- Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam claimed his second straight five-wicket total but South Africa reached 413-5 at lunch on Day 2 of the final cricket test. Taijul
CHATTOGRAM: Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam claimed his second straight five-wicket total but South Africa reached 413-5 at lunch on Day 2 and was in control of the final cricket test on Wednesday.
Taijul, who ended the session with 5-152, triggered a collapse as South Africa lost three wickets for five runs to be reduced to 391-5 from 386-2.
Taijul took eight wickets in the first test that Bangladesh lost by seven wickets.
Wiaan Mulder (12) and Ryan Rickelton (11) resisted Taijul to keep the side in strong position before going to lunch.
Resuming at 307-2, Tony de Zorzi and David Bedingham extended Bangladesh’s misery by batting without any trouble as the pitch still appeared to be good to bat on.
De Zorzi converted his maiden century to 150 from 235 balls, smashing a tossed-up delivery of Taijul through mid-wicket for a four.
Bedingham, who raised his third 50 off 70 balls with a single of Mehidy Hasan, was dismissed on 59.
An over later, de Zorzi who was playing sweep shots to precision, missed the line to be trapped leg-before wicket. That ended his marathon 269-ball 177, which included 12 fours and four sixes.
Kyle Verreynne, the centurion of the first test, also missed a sweep shot to be trapped leg-before without scoring, handing Taijul his 14th five-wicket haul in test matches.
Irving outduels Edwards as Mavs down Wolves in rematch
- Denver Nuggets were taken to overtime for a second consecutive night before battling to a 144-139 road win over the Brooklyn Nets
- Golden State Warriors shrugged off the absence of the injured Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins to outgun the New Orleans Pelicans 124-106
LOS ANGELES: Kyrie Irving scored 35 points as the Dallas Mavericks recovered from an early Anthony Edwards onslaught to score a 120-114 road win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
Edwards had looked poised to help Minnesota avenge last season’s Western Conference finals defeat to Dallas after erupting for 24 points in a devastating first-quarter performance.
He rained in six three-pointers and shot six-of-10 from the field to help Minnesota take a 34-26 lead into the second quarter.
But Dallas hit back, outscoring Minnesota 35-25 in the second quarter to take a 61-59 lead at halftime.
Irving took over in the third quarter with 16 points as Dallas built a decisive 93-82 advantage heading into the fourth.
Although Minnesota rallied to get within two points with just over three minutes remaining, Dallas regrouped and a monster three-pointer from Luka Doncic and nine fourth-quarter points from Irving closed out the win.
“We’re just very resilient and understood what the game plan was,” a relieved Irving said after winning. “They were making a lot of threes.
“We know this team very well. They know us very well — so we knew it was going to be a personal one. Emotions were high so just grateful that we came in here and got the dub (win).”
Irving led the Dallas scoring with Doncic adding 24 points. P.J. Washington chipped in with 17 points while Daniel Gafford added 14.
Minnesota star Edwards, meanwhile, topped the home team’s scorers with a game-high 37 points, with new recruit Julius Randle finishing with 20.
Irving was satisfied with a performance that saw Dallas improve to 3-1 for the season as they look to establish themselves as genuine contenders in the West.
“We’re just getting acclimated, we’re getting into a great rhythm, getting in great shape,” Irving said of Dallas’ promising early season form.
“We just want to value possessions right now, we’re just developing that chemistry.”
Elsewhere, the Denver Nuggets were taken to overtime for a second consecutive night before battling to a 144-139 road win over the Brooklyn Nets thanks to the 150th triple double of Nikola Jokic’s career.
Denver had been forced to dig deep to clinch an overtime win over Toronto on Monday and were once again forced to go to the well by the Nets, who surged into a 17-point lead in the second quarter before slowly being reeled in.
Jokic forced overtime with just nine seconds remaining, nailing a hook shot to make it 125-125.
Denver then dominated in overtime, outscoring Brooklyn 19-14 to clinch a win which helps the Nuggets improve to 2-2.
Jokic finished with 29 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists, while Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon both added 24 points apiece. Russell Westbrook contributed 22 points off the bench.
German international Dennis Schroder led the Brooklyn scorers with 28 points.
In San Francisco, the Golden State Warriors shrugged off the absence of the injured Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins to outgun the New Orleans Pelicans 124-106.
The Pelicans had threatened a drubbing in the first half after outscoring the Warriors 31-14 in the first quarter before opening up a 20-point lead early in the second.
But the Warriors flipped the switch after the interval, outscoring New Pelicans 77-55 to pull away for an ultimately comfortable win.
The Warriors drained 21 three-pointers, with Buddy Hield accounting for seven of them before finishing with 28 points.
Zion Williamson led the New Orleans scorers with 31 points while Brandon Ingram had 30.
In Tuesday’s other NBA game, the Sacramento Kings downed the Utah Jazz 113-96.
PGA Tour to consider big changes to eligibility and small field sizes
The PGA Tour is considering sweeping changes that would eliminate 25 cards through the FedEx Cup and shrink the size of fields, part of a plan to make golf’s biggest circuit even more competitive while reducing the time it takes to play and making it easier to watch.
Proposed changes include reducing by 10 the tour cards awarded to Korn Ferry Tour players and limiting the four Monday qualifying spots for fields smaller than 144 players. There would be two open spots for 132-man fields, none for regular tournaments of 120 players.
The proposal sent to players Tuesday, and obtained by The Associated Press, was developed by the 16-member Player Advisory Council that has been crafting the changes since May. The driving force was to make a full PGA Tour card have real value.
With so many eligible players — 125 from the FedEx Cup (or money list) had been the standard since 1983 — newcomers from the Korn Ferry Tour or Q-school often had to wait to see if there was room for them in tournaments.
If approved by the PGA Tour board at its Nov. 18 meeting, changes would start in 2026.
It would be the latest significant adjustment to the tour since the disruption of Saudi-backed LIV Golf, which began in June 2022. In the last two years, the tour has created $20 million signature events with limited fields and a postseason for only the top 70 players.
“The reality is that we’re all playing under different circumstances than we were four years ago,” PAC Chairman Camilo Villegas said in a telephone interview. “We had no competition. We were the best. All of a sudden we have competition and there are little shifts. The changes we’re proposing make a better product. What does having a PGA Tour card mean?”
The tour currently gives priority to tournament winners and the top 125 in the FedEx Cup, with greater perks depending on a player’s ranking. The proposal would give full status to the top 100 in the FedEx Cup, the 10 players eligible players from the European tour, the top 20 from the Korn Ferry Tour and five from Q-school.
There would be an additional spot lower down the priority list — behind such categories as PGA Tour University, life members and career money — for those who finished from Nos. 101 to 125. They are estimated to get in about 15 or so tournaments.
Villegas said the PAC was divided into four subcommittees, which he said allowed for more ideas and easier communication. Key to two main meetings was leaving behind self-interests.
PAC members range from Scottie Scheffler and Justin Thomas to Nick Hardy and Adam Schenk.
“Obviously there’s going to be casualties along the way,” Villegas said. “It is going to be harder. There’s not going to be 125 cards, but 100. There’s not going to be 30 Korn Ferry cards, but 20. I’m 190-something in the FedEx Cup. All these proposed changes can affect me, but it’s not about me. It’s about the game.
“We want to make the product as strong as possible for the sponsors, for the fans, for the players,” he said. “If we perform, there’s an opportunity to make an unbelievable living. You just keep working on your dream like you did when you were a kid.”
There also was the ongoing problem of slow play, which rules officials for years have argued was due primarily to too many players on the course. The field sizes would be 120 players before Daylight Savings Time, then up to 132 players and a maximum of 144 in the summer.
That’s for regular tournaments. The eight signature events with the $20 million purses would remain capped at 72 players, filling the field, if necessary, based on current form.
The proposal also suggested changes to the FedEx Cup points distribution, which Villegas said was inspired by a detailed analysis of board member Maverick McNealy. That mainly would reduce points awarded from the middle of the pack.
If approved, that still might not be the end of changes. The PGA Tour is in negotiation with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia — the financial backing of LIV — to become a minority investor in the commercial PGA Tour Enterprises.
Villegas has not been involved in those meetings. He joins the PGA Tour board next year, replacing Jordan Spieth.
“If we do a deal with PIF, there are more changes to come,” he said. “I don’t know how those would affect the schedule, how that will affect the pathways.”
Yankee Stadium fans ejected after one pries ball out of Mookie Betts’ glove at World Series
NEW YORK: Two fans at Yankee Stadium were ejected from Game 4 of the World Series after one pried a foul ball out of the glove of Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts on Tuesday night.
Betts leaped at the wall in foul territory and initially caught Gleyber Torres’ pop up in the first inning, but a fan in the first row with a gray Yankees’ road jersey grabbed Betts’ glove with both hands and pulled the ball out. Another fan grabbed Betts’ non-glove hand.
Betts reacted angrily, and Torres was immediately called out on fan interference.
It was the second time Torres had an at-bat impacted by fan interference this World Series. With two outs in the ninth inning of Game 1 at Dodger Stadium, Torres hit a fly ball to left field, and a fan reached over and caught the ball. Torres was awarded a double.
Volpe slam sparks comeback after Freeman homer, Yankees beat Dodgers 11-4 to force World Series Game 5
- Volpe, a New York native whose family idolizes the pinstripes going back generations, turned on a knee-high slider and perhaps reshaped the Series, too
- Game 5 is Wednesday night, with the Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and the Dodgers’ Jack Flaherty meeting in a rematch of Game 1
NEW YORK: Fifteen years after little Anthony Volpe watched the Yankees parade with the World Series trophy, he saved their season and kept alive hopes for an improbable title.
New York had moved closer to getting swept in the World Series when Freddie Freeman hit another first-inning home run.
Volpe, a New York native whose family idolizes the pinstripes going back generations, turned on a knee-high slider and perhaps reshaped the Series, too. His third-inning grand slam sparked the Yankees to an 11-4 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night that forced a Game 5.
“The place was shaking. I felt the ground literally shaking,” Yankees catcher Austin Wells said.
Wells and Gleyber Torres added homers for the Yankees, who broke open the game with a five-run eighth.
New York, who had scored just seven runs in the first three games, had some of their swagger back. Wells spoke after the game wearing a “Fully Operational Death Star” Yankees T-shirt, referring to general manager Brian Cashman’s 2018 quip.
Fans in the sellout crowd of 49,354 chanted Volpe’s name during the ninth inning.
“It’s like you finally got to see the top blow off Yankee Stadium in a World Series game,” Aaron Boone said after his first World Series win as New York’s manager. “When Anthony hits that ball, it was like fun to see Yankee Stadium erupt.”
Wells said the dire situation after Monday’s loss had relieved the pressure.
“Why not go out tomorrow and have fun?” he described as the mood.
Freeman homered for his sixth straight Series game when he deposited a slider from rookie Luis Gil into the right-field short porch following Mookie Betts’ one-out double. He became the first player to homer in the first four games of a World Series and his streak of long balls in six straight games is one more than Houston’s George Springer 2017 and ‘19.
“I’ll look back on it after hopefully we win and get this thing done tomorrow,” Freeman said. “Pretty cool. Obviously, hopefully I can keep it going tomorrow.”
Game 5 is Wednesday night, with the Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and the Dodgers’ Jack Flaherty meeting in a rematch of Game 1.
Seeking to become the first team to overcome a 3-0 Series deficit, New York surged ahead 5-2 on Alex Verdugo’s RBI grounder in the second and Volpe’s drive against Daniel Hudson.
“All it takes is just one swing,” Yankees captain Aaron Judge said.
Volpe sent Hudson’s first pitch into the left-field seats.
“I pretty much blacked out as soon as I saw it go over the fence,” Volpe said.
A Gold Glove shortstop in his second big league season, the 23-year-old Volpe also doubled and became the first player in Series history with a grand slam and a pair of stolen bases in one game. He was 8 when the Yankees last won the Series.
Volpe scored New York’s first run when he walked after falling behind 0-2 in the second inning. He made a baserunning blunder when he headed back to second to tag up and failed to score on Wells’ double off the center-field wall — pounding his own leg in anger. Verdugo followed with an RBI grounder.
“They’re going to fight,” Betts said. “If you made it this far, you have a resilient team that’s going to fight the whole time.”
Los Angeles closed within 6-4 in a two-run fifth that included Will Smith’s homer off Gil and an RBI grounder by Freeman. Despite a sprained right ankle, Freeman beat a relay to avoid an inning-ending double play on what originally was ruled an out but was reversed in a video review.
Wells hit a second-deck homer in the sixth against Landon Knack, and Verdugo added another run-scoring grounder in the eighth — capping an 11-pitch at-bat — ahead of Torres’ three-run homer off Brent Honeywell.
Tim Hill, winning pitcher Clay Holmes, Mark Leiter Jr., Luke Weaver and Tim Mayza strung together five innings of one-hit scoreless relief with seven strikeouts, and the Yankees avoided what would have been their first losing Series sweep since 1976.
“As far as outcomes, to have six guys in your ‘pen that are feeling good, rested, I feel good about that,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
Twenty-one of the previous 24 teams to take 3-0 Series leads went on to sweeps, all but the 1910 Philadelphia Athletics against the Chicago Cubs, the 1937 Yankees against the New York Giants and the 1970 Baltimore Orioles against the Cincinnati Reds. All three of those Series ended in five games.
The 2004 Boston Red Sox, sparked by a stolen base by Roberts, are the only team to overcome a 3-0 deficit in any round, beating the Yankees in the AL Championship Series.
Judge drove in his first run of the Series with an RBI single in the eighth and is 2 for 15 in the four games. Dodgers sensation Shohei Ohtani also is 2 for 15 after going 1 for 4 with a single, his first hit since partially separating his left shoulder in Game 2.
New York stopped a seven-game Series losing streak against the Dodgers dating to 1981. The Yankees got their first seven RBIs from the bottom three hitters in their batting order, Volpe, Wells and Verdugo, who had entered 4 for 32 with three RBIs in the Series.
Volpe was interviewed after the game by former Yankees captain Derek Jeter, now a Fox broadcaster.
“It’s my dream, but it was all my friends’ dreams, all my cousins’ dreams, probably my sister’s dream, too. But winning the World Series was first and foremost, by far. Nothing else compares. So still got a lot of work to do,” Volpe said.
Former Boston star David Ortiz, also a Fox commentator, gave Volpe a shirt.
“I’ve got it in my locker,” Volpe said. “I can’t wear it. It’s got him and Red Sox stuff on it.”
UP NEXT
Cole allowed one run over six-plus innings in the opener — Kike Hernandez tripled in the fifth as right fielder Juan Soto took a poor route, then scored on Smith’s sacrifice fly. Flaherty gave up two runs in 5 1/3 innings, a two-run homer by Giancarlo Stanton.
