DeRozan named starter for NBA all-star game
Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan was named a starter for the NBA all-star game on Thursday for a second straight year.
It will be DeRozan’s fourth appearance at an all-star game. He started for the East team in 2017 and was named a reserve for the 2014 and 2016 games.
The 28-year-old DeRozan is averaging a teamhigh 25.2 points per game for the Raptors this season. He scored a single-game franchise record 52 points earlier this season in an overtime win against the Milwaukee Bucks.
OLYMPICS ‘Neutral’ look for Russia
Olympic Athletes from Russia will be wearing grey and red in Pyeongchang.
Under an International Olympic Committee ruling last month that formally banned the Russia team, as many as 200 Russians could end up competing under the Olympic flag next month.
Russian sportswear company Zasport published on Thursday sketches of what it says are IOC-approved designs for the competitors, who will be officially known as Olympic Athletes from Russia.
The designs don’t bear any Russian flags.
GOLF Mcllroy shakes off the rust
Rory McIlroy’s patience was tested Thursday on his comeback.
He he needed three late birdies to register a 3-under 69 that left him three strokes behind first-round leaders Tommy Fleetwood and Hideto Tanihara at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
Fleetwood, the defending Abu Dhabi champion and last year’s European Tour money-list winner, continued his excellent form by hitting all 18 greens in regulation.
FIGURE SKATING Zagitova sparkles in debut
Alina Zagitova led the European Figure Skating Championships in her debut after a dramatic performance of strong and precise jumps in Thursday’s short program in Moscow.
Zagitova, the Grand Prix Final champion, nailed all of her jumps, including a fast triple Lutz-triple loop combination.
She followed with a spectacular triple flip.
BASEBALL Gonzalez signs with Mets
Free agent first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and the New York Mets have finalized a one-year contract for the US$545,000 major league minimum salary.
The 35-year-old batted .242 for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season, when he was limited to playing just 71 games because of a herniated disk in his back.