Sixers hold off Simmons and Nets as Lillard sinks 60 Ryder, Rai and Grant share top spot at PGA Tour’s Farmers Insurance Open India hammer Japan 8−0 in 9−16th place classification tie
los angeles: The Philadelphia 76ers won their grudge match against Ben Simmons and the Brooklyn Nets 137-133 on Wednesday as Damian Lillard erupted for 60 points in Portland’s victory over Utah.
Ater an acrimonious split from Philadelphia last year, Simmons returned to his former home to face a hostile reception from the Sixers crowd.
The game marked the first time that Simmons has faced former team-mate Joel Embiid since his trade to Brooklyn last February that sent James Harden to Philadelphia.
Simmons let Philadelphia last year ater locker-room tensions with Embiid, and the lingering bad blood was evident from the outset.
The high-scoring first quarter was dogged by trash-talking as the sides scored 41 points apiece and gave up a combined 13 fouls.
Despite his team coming away with the win, Sixers coach Doc Rivers was unhappy with Philadelphia’s “emotional” approach to the game.
“There’s a difference between intensity, playing with emotion and being too emotional,” Rivers said aterwards.
“I thought our side honestly were on the wrong side of that a lot tonight. We have to be beter at handling our emotions.”
Tyrese Maxey led the Sixers’ scoring with 27 points, while Embiid finished with 26 and Harden 23.
Seth Curry led Brooklyn’s scorers with 32 points while Kyrie Irving added 30. Simmons was restricted to 12 points.
LILLARD HITS 60: In Portland, Lillard bagged the fourth 60-point performance of his career as the Trail Blazers won a thrilling shoot-out with the Utah Jazz 134-124.
Lillard nailed nine three-pointers while shooting 21 of 29 from the field as Portland improved to 23-25 in the Western Conference standings.
“That was incredible,” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said of Lillard’s performance. “You don’t get to see that very oten.”
Lillard is one of only six players in NBA history with multiple 60-point games. Wilt Chamberlain holds the record with 32 60-pointers, while Kobe Bryant achieved the feat six times.
The other players on the list are Michael Jordan (5), Elgin Baylor (4) and Harden (4).
“Even when things weren’t going our way, I always felt I could get us back in the game,” Lillard said aterwards.
SAN diego: England’s Aaron Rai posted a birdiebirdie finish to join a three-way tie at the top of the leaderboard ater Wednesday’s opening round of the PGA Tour’s Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in California.
The 27-year-old from Wolverhampton took advantage of benign Golf conditions on the North Course to fire an eight-under-par 64 and finish the day alongside Americans Sam Ryder and Brent Grant.
Teeing off on the back nine, Rai made three birdies before the turn and then reeled off five birdies down the stretch to complete a bogeyfree round.
Grant meanwhile made nine birdies and one bogey for his eight under.
Ryder’s bogey-free round comprised six birdies and a brilliant opening eagle three on the par-five 10th hole.
“Definitely played great all around,” Rai said aterwards. “Really drove it great off the tee, which is probably the most important thing.
“As soon as you miss the fairway here with anything more than a short iron it is very, very difficult. “So that was key today, drove it very well. Hit a lot of real good iron shots and made a few puts around the turn there, so all in all a very good round.”
Ryder said his opening eagle had laid the foundation for his low score.
“It was prety stress-free, it was fun,” Ryder said. “Always nice to get off to a good start in the round where you don’t feel like you’re kind of pressing or anything.”
The trio are one shot clear of Brendan Steele, who fired a seven-under-par 65, and two in front of a cluster of seven players on six under.
Seven players are a further shot back on five under.
But there was disappointment for in-form Spaniard Jon Rahm, who struggled on Torrey Pines South Course with a one-over-par 73.
Rahm came into the tournament looking for a third win in his third straight start.
But though he made a steady opening-round start on the South Course, with a pair of birdies in the first five holes, he struggled to regain momentum ater a double-bogey six on the par-four seventh.
Two more bogeys on the back nine let him two over before a birdie on 16 stopped the bleeding.
Rahm was let baffled by his costly doublebogey on the seventh, which came ater he shot through the green into a hazard with his second. rourkela: The Indian hockey team thrashed Japan 8-0 in their 9-16th place classification match of the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023 at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela on Thursday.
Mandeep Singh (32’), Abhishek (35’, 43’), Vivek Sagar Prasad (39’) and Harmanpreet Singh (45’, 58’), Manpreet Singh (58’) and Sukhjeet Singh (59’) were the goal scorers for India.
Japan and India played an even contest in the first quarter with both teams showing offensive intent but neither team could manage to create a clear scoring opportunity. India had the best chances through two penalty corners, but they were well chased down by the Japanese rushers.
The second quarter was much of the same as both India and Japan found ways to get into the opposition circle, but were instantly hounded by opposing defences. Both teams earned penalty corners early in the second quarter as well, but the rush defences from both sides reigned supreme as the teams headed into the break on 0-0.
India won an early penalty corner in the second half and they went for a variation on the far post with Amit Rohidas passing to Mandeep who lited the ball over the keeper and into the net to open the scoring for the hosts.
India scored a quick second goal, as a poor turnover in their own half by Japan gave Manpreet the ball and he found Abhishek in the circle who had all the time and space needed to calmly score on the reverse.
Abhishek scored his second and India’s fourth goal in the 44th minute, bringing up the 200th goal of this World Cup. India scored 4 more goals in the final quarter as Harmanpreet (twice) and Sukhjeet found the target from penalty corners, while Manpreet Singh scored a field goal that deflected in off a Japanese stick.
“Very happy with the win, scoring 8 goals in the second half will give us a big boost for the next game as well,” said Abhishek, who got player of the match award.
India will play South Africa next in the 9th-12th place classification match on Saturday.
Elsewhere, Netherlands thrashed South Korea 5-1 in the last quarter-finals match to reach the semi-finals of the tournament.
The Dutch team will now face Belgium in the semi-finals on Jan.27.
Netherlands and Korea played a fascinating first quarter in the quarter-finals.