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Neymar was benched: Corinthians vs. Santos semi-final—why?

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On Sunday (9) at Neo Química Arena, Santos lost 2-1 to Corinthians in the Campeonato Paulista semi-final, with Neymar sitting on the bench.

Neymar missed recent practices

The star forward was sidelined owing to persistent soreness in his left thigh, which he sustained during the victory over Red Bull Bragantino. He missed recent practice sessions and was replaced by Thaciano in the starting lineup. While it was expected that Pedro Caixinha would bring him on in the second half, this did not happen. After the game, Santos’s coach explained his decision not to wear the number 10 in the derby.

“Neymar was uncomfortable, and we all agreed he didn’t need to participate. It’s a little issue. I asked him to continue with the team even though he wouldn’t be available since he’s a unique player with great enthusiasm. During a press conference, he was quite upset about missing the match,” the coach stated.

Santos’s starting lineup was Gabriel Brazão, JP Chermont, Gil, Zé Ivaldo, and Escobar; João Schmidt, Gabriel Bontempo, Thaciano, Soteldo, and Guilherme; and Tiquinho Soares.

Corinthians fielded their strongest squad for a crucial CONMEBOL Libertadores match against Barcelona-EQU on Wednesday (12), starting with Hugo Souza, Matheuzinho, Félix Torres, Gustavo Henrique, and Fabrizio Angileri; José Martínez, Raniele, André Carrillo, and Rodrigo Garro; and Memphis Depay and Yuri Alberto.

Corinthians’ upcoming matches:

  • Barcelona-EQU (H) – March 12, 9:30 PM (Brasília time) | CONMEBOL Libertadores | Broadcast: Disney+
  • Bahia (A) – March 29, 6:30 PM (Brasília time) | Brazilian Championship
  • Vasco (H) – April 5, Time TBD | Brazilian Championship

Santos’ upcoming matches:

  • Vasco (A) – March 30, 6:30 PM (Brasília time) | Brazilian Championship
  • Bahia (H) – April 5, Time TBD | Brazilian Championship
  • Fluminense (A) – April 12, Time TBD | Brazilian Championship

Neymar was unable to play in the Corinthians vs. Santos semi-final owing to soreness in his left thigh caused by a prior encounter. Despite anticipation that he would return in the second half, coach Pedro Caixinha elected to keep him on the bench to prioritize his recuperation. Neymar’s enthusiasm and presence were felt off the field while he remained with the club, but the decision to hold him back was eventually taken for his long-term health.

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Suns-Nuggets live: Durant’s clutch three forces overtime

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On Friday, the Phoenix Suns (29-33) will begin a four-game road trip against the Denver Nuggets (40-22), looking for their second straight win. ESPN will carry the game at 8 p.m.

This will be the final encounter between the two teams this season, with Denver winning two of the previous three. The Suns were defeated 122-105 at home in their most recent game on February 8.

Phoenix is now ranked 11th in the Western Conference and is coming off its largest comeback victory of the season, a 119-117 win over the Clippers on Tuesday. The Suns, led by Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal, have gone 3–5 since the All-Star break.

They are now 2.5 games behind the Dallas Mavericks for the last playoffoff place.
Denver’s offense ranks second in the NBA, led by three-time MVP Nikola Jokić, Jamal Murray, and Russell Westbrook. The Nuggets, who now sit third in the Western Conference, have won seven of their previous ten games.

Durant’s buzzer-beater sends the game to overtime

Kevin Durant sank a clutch corner three with 1.1 seconds left to tie the game at 125-125 and force overtime. Durant led a 7-0 run to end the third quarter, paving the way for Devin Booker’s hot streak in the fourth. Booker scored 11 of the Suns’ first 21 points, including three triples and a four-point play, to reduce the deficit to three with 4:44 left.

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Phoenix ended the third quarter with a 7-0 run, paced by Kevin Durant, to trim the lead to 102-91. Durant, who has 24 points, scored 11 of his team-high 19 in the quarter, while Devin Booker, who has 34 points, added 12 of his 18 during the same period. On the opposite side, Denver’s Aaron Gordon set a career record with seven three-pointers, leading the Nuggets with 25 points. Nikola Jokić has a triple-double, scoring 17 points, 12 rebounds, and 15 assists.

The Suns cut the deficit to nine shortly after the 11-minute mark, their first time within single digits since the 7:30 mark in the second quarter. However, four minutes later, the Nuggets rallied with a 16-4 run, aided by Michael Porter Jr.’s nine points, to extend their lead to 21. Phoenix responded with an 8-0 run, highlighted by a and-one and a long three from Devin Booker, reducing Denver’s advantage to 13 with 5:26 left.

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Phoenix’s greatest deficit of the game was 17 points in the second quarter, and it trailed 68-56 at halftime. The Suns trailed throughout the first half. Devin Booker scored all of his 12 points in the second quarter, going 3-for-6 from the field. Kevin Durant scored seven of his 11 points (4-of-5 shooting) during the period, but he also caused three of the Suns’ seven turnovers. Durant had a quiet first half, shooting only two shots before making his first three-pointer at 3:05. On the next possession, he went for a beautiful reverse slam in transition.

Nikola Jokić is on track for a triple-double, with 13 points, 9 assists, and 8 rebounds.
After the Suns fell behind by 12 at 11:40, Devin Booker went on a 7-0 run by 9:14. Phoenix’s defensive troubles continued, allowing Denver to reply with a 17-8 run over the next four minutes. After Aaron Gordon (game-high 17 points) made his career-best fifth three-pointer, the Nuggets’ lead increased to 17. Denver has been extremely effective from beyond the arc, going 13-of-20 overall, including 6-of-9 in the second quarter.

Nuggets pour down in the first quarter

The Nuggets dominated from beyond the arc in the opening quarter, leaving Phoenix behind 37-28. Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 12 points, all from three-point range, while Nikola Jokić scored 10 points. Nick Richards and Bradley Beal scored six points each for the Suns.

The Nuggets started hot from beyond the arc, highlighted by Gordon’s four 3-pointers, going 7-for-11 from deep. They also outscored the Suns 12-3 in fast-break points, scored eight points off five Phoenix mistakes, and shot an impressive 62.8%.

Denver went on an 8-0 run from 8:52 to 8:08, increasing their lead to seven, followed by an 8-3 run from 4:37 to 3:29. Russell Westbrook scored six consecutive points off the bench, capping his run at 1:26, and the Suns were behind by 12.

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Team USA: Grades Players in top performance Win Over Canada 3-1

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The intense 4 Nations Face-Off game at Montreal’s Bell Centre resulted in a 3-1 victory for Team USA over Canada, disappointing the majority of fans. Team USA now has six points and a spot in Thursday’s championship game, while the remaining teams have two points each. Monday’s matchups will determine who will challenge the Americans. Here is the 4 Nations Face-Off standing.

Evaluation of teams: Team USA A

The United States Team USA’s resounding victory over Finland on Thursday provided much-needed confidence before facing their archrivals. However, it was also necessary to provide proof of concept for this roster. It formed two scoring lines, led by Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel. It demonstrated that star players on their NHL teams could transition to role players on the national team, such as Dylan Larkin, who scored an important goal against Canada. It was a victory that demonstrated the Americans’ poise and control of their emotions.

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Everything Team USA demonstrated against Finland carried over into their game against Canada on Saturday, highlighted by Connor Hellebuyck‘s outstanding performance in goal. In one of the most challenging conditions imaginable, the Americans gave an all-out team effort, thriving in the midst of chaos.

Canada may cite Cale Makar’s absence and the game’s lower stakes following Sweden’s overtime loss to Finland. Meanwhile, the Americans, who have been missing Quinn Hughes for the whole tournament owing to injury, will gladly take that into account as they return home after a momentous triumph. The victory not only ensured their berth in Thursday’s final game in Boston, but it also ended Canada’s 17-game “best-on-best” tournament winning streak, according to ESPN Research.

Canada: B

Judging Canada’s total performance based on a single play may be harsh, but in a matchup between the tournament’s two most talented teams, even the tiniest margin might mean the difference. In the second period, Matt Boldy intercepted a Sidney Crosby cross-ice pass, which was worsened by a line change that exposed Canada. What is the end result? An odd-man surge the other way resulted in Dylan Larkin’s crucial goal.

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Costly mistakes are often exacerbated when facing elite competition, particularly reigning Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck, who is on track for another outstanding season. Despite creating multiple high-danger opportunities late in the game, Canada was unable to recover from the critical error that resulted in Team USA’s game-winning goal.

Connor Hellebuyck is regarded as the best goaltender in the world, having won the Vezina Trophy last season and emerging as the frontrunner to claim it again with the Winnipeg Jets this year. However, skeptics point to his struggles in high-stakes moments, citing his 33-49 career playoff record and consecutive first-round exits with a sub-.890 save percentage. While some questioned the goal he allowed against Finland, he was otherwise rock-solid.

Perhaps the antagonism was boiling over in the only manner it could. Perhaps Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers felt forced to drop the gloves after seeing his NHL opponent Brandon Hagel of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the starting lineup, as speculated by his brother Brady Tkachuk. Perhaps the Tkachuk brothers were honoring their father, Keith, who once set the record for the shortest fight in an NHL international game at 20 seconds during the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.

The Tkachuks and J.T. Miller swiftly eclipsed that record as they faced Hagel, Sam Bennett, and Colton Parayko. Whatever caused the three clashes in the first nine seconds of the USA-Canada encounter, it escalated into a round-robin rivalry game became a cultural moment. Even people who don’t often watch hockey were talking about it, which is exactly what the NHL hoped for from this tournament—even if the trigger for that rise in interest was completely unexpected. The best hockey rivalry, USA vs. Canada, has reached new heights, with a possible rematch looming next week.

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Kyrie Irving ignites Mavs: “We must protect our house!”

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The Dallas Mavericks required a leader to step up after general manager Nico Harrison’s shocking decision to trade franchise cornerstone Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers. Fans were outraged, with several ejected from Monday’s overtime loss to the Kings for protesting the move. All-Star Anthony Davis, the centerpiece of the return from LA, and the Mavs’ other top big men were sidelined for an extended Kyrie Irving seemed unmoved.

Wednesday night, he gave the Mavericks and their fans a much-needed moment of success, scoring 42 points and drawing a vital charge in the final minute to secure a 111-107 victory over the Golden State Warriors. “That was special,” said Mavs guard Klay Thompson, who had 17 points against his old team. “Incredible—42 points and the largest defensive stop of the night. We needed that, especially because I wasn’t shooting well. That’s our point guard, dude. That was surreal.”

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The American Airlines Center was crowded with thousands of Warriors fans, including some wearing Luka Dončić jerseys, as is typical during the Stephen Curry era. Unlike Monday’s game, the night was not marred by security incidents in the stands, and there were no loud “Fire Nico!” cries reverberating around the arena. Irving credited the audience with reviving the Mavericks, a much-needed boost considering the team’s injury woes—so much so that 6-foot-7 Kessler Edwards, on a two-way contract, started at center.

Irving ensure supporters a confidence

“In games like tonight, when you’re searching for energy, you look to the crowd, to our fans,” Irving told reporters. “You may feed off of it; become amplified and electrified by it. It makes a significant impact on our home. We have to preserve our arena, and I believe our fans realize this. We are confronting a unique struggle, but we must persevere.”

Irving, who will make his seventh All-Star appearance this weekend as Anthony Davis’ injured substitute, put on a show, giving the crowd enough to cheer about with a spectacular shooting effort. He went 15-of-25 from the field and 7-of-10 from beyond the arc, including a quick burst of three triples in 41 seconds in the third quarter. According to ESPN Research, he scored 32 points on contested shots (12 out of 21).

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    “That’s what great players do,” said Stephen Curry, who had 25 points. “They react to any type of adversity or unexpected change, no matter how extreme. We had a few defensive blunders, particularly in the first half, which he took advantage of. This just fueled him more. Once he gets started, he’s difficult to stop.”

    With 25.2 seconds left, the Warriors had a chance to tie or take the lead after Naji Marshall’s floater gave the Mavs a two-point advantage. Irving, who played just under 40 minutes, saved the game by drawing a charge on a driving Jimmy Butler. “Plain and simple, if I’m putting my body on the line, we all have to,” said Irving, who has been dealing with a bulging disc in his lower back. “For me, it’s that same mindset—whatever it takes to win.”

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