Doncic, James lead Lakers fightback as Knicks downed in thriller

Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James and Luka Doncic combined for 63 points in their 113-109 overtime victory over the New York Knicks on Thursday. (AP)
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Updated 07 March 2025
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Doncic, James lead Lakers fightback as Knicks downed in thriller

  • Red-hot Lakers extend their unbeaten streak to eight games in a pulsating battle at the Crypto.com Arena
  • Knicks left ruing a potential victory that slipped through their fingers despite a majestic performance from Jalen Brunson

LOS ANGELES, United States: Luka Doncic and LeBron James combined for 63 points as the Los Angeles Lakers produced a thrilling late fightback to seal a 113-109 overtime victory over the New York Knicks on Thursday.
The red-hot Lakers extended their unbeaten streak to eight games in a pulsating battle at the Crypto.com Arena that saw Doncic finish with 32 points while James poured in 31.
Doncic and James had both been instrumental in dragging the Lakers back into the contest after the Knicks led by 10 points midway through the fourth quarter.
The Knicks meanwhile were left ruing a potential victory that slipped through their fingers despite a majestic performance from Jalen Brunson, who scored a game-high 39 points.
The agony of the Knicks’ defeat was compounded by an injury to Brunson in overtime, with the mercurial point guard limping off the court after rolling his right ankle in a collision with the Lakers’ Austin Reaves.
“Our physicality in the fourth quarter was next level,” an exhausted Doncic said afterwards. “Once we got started, we played basketball.
“They’re a great team with great players and it’s a tough win. We’ve got eight in a row now and every game is a battle for us.”
The Lakers looked to be struggling after trailing for most of the game against a fired-up Knicks, who led by as much as 13 at one stage.
But after struggling for shooting accuracy for most of the contest, the Lakers began making shots in the fourth quarter. James bagged a crucial pair of three-pointers while Gabe Vincent also drained three from outside the arc to spark the comeback.
Vincent finished with 12 points while Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht also chipped in with 11 points off the bench, including three three-pointers.
The Lakers moved to 40-21 with the victory to remain in second place in the Western Conference, 10.5 games adrift of runaway leaders Oklahoma City.
Elsewhere Thursday, Stephen Curry scored 40 points as the Golden State Warriors rallied back from a double-digit deficit for a second straight game to defeat the Brooklyn Nets 121-119 in New York.
Curry – who scored 28 points in the Warriors’ comeback victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday – was in superb form as Golden State climbed out of a 22-point first quarter hole to grab a third consecutive road win.
Curry’s 40-point haul included seven three-pointers from 13 attempts, with the pick being a jaw-dropping heave from near halfway to end the first half.
That highlight reel-worthy moment made it a five-point game at the break as the Warriors roared back to life after being outscored by a whopping 35-15 in the first quarter.
The Warriors found their rhythm in the second period, pouring in 40 points to the Nets’ 25 before going on to complete the comeback after the interval.
Curry was backed by 25 points from Jimmy Butler while Gary Payton II added 16 from the bench.
Cameron Johnson led Brooklyn’s scoring with 26 points.
The Warriors improved to 35-28 and are now sixth in the Western Conference as they chase a return to the postseason after missing out last year.
Elsewhere, the Boston Celtics maintained their pursuit of the Cleveland Cavaliers at the top of the Eastern Conference after cruising past an injury-depleted Philadelphia 76ers 123-105.
The Sixers, missing Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey, were never in the hunt as the Celtics completed a wire-to-wire victory to improve to 45-18 in the East, 7.5 games back from leaders Cleveland.
Jayson Tatum led the rout for Boston with 35 points, while the in-form Payton Pritchard came up big from the bench with 19 points.
The only down note for the Celtics came in the second quarter when Derrick White was forced to leave the game after losing a tooth in a physical tussle with the Sixers’ Kelly Oubre Jr.
White left the game but returned in the second half wearing a mouthguard.


UAE appoint Romanian Olaroiu to replace Bento as head coach

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UAE appoint Romanian Olaroiu to replace Bento as head coach

The 55-year-old Romanian takes over from Portuguese Paulo Bento
Olaroiu has spent the last three-and-a-half seasons with UAE club Sharjah

DUBAI: Cosmin Olaroiu has been appointed United Arab Emirates head coach, the country’s FA announced on Saturday.
The 55-year-old Romanian takes over from Portuguese Paulo Bento, who was fired last month despite a last-gasp win over North Korea in Asia’s World Cup qualifiers.
The UAE are third in Group A of the preliminaries for the 2026 finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The first two finishers in each of Asia’s three groups progress automatically to the World Cup while the third- and fourth-placed teams advance to another round.
Iran have already claimed one of the two berths available from Group A while second-placed Uzbekistan are four points clear of the UAE with two matches remaining.
Olaroiu has spent the last three-and-a-half seasons with UAE club Sharjah, and last week guided the team into the final of the AFC Champions League Two.
He has worked extensively in the Gulf region, coaching Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia, Qatar’s Al-Sadd and Emirati side Al-Ain before moving to China, where he won the Chinese Super League title with Jiangsu Suning in 2020.
Olaroiu’s first game in charge of the UAE will be their World Cup qualifier at home to Uzbekistan on June 5. They then visit Kyrgyzstan in Group A five days later.

Former Croatia midfielder Nikola Pokrivač dies in car accident at age 39

Updated 19 April 2025
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Former Croatia midfielder Nikola Pokrivač dies in car accident at age 39

  • The federation announced that Pokrivač died Friday night in a car accident
  • Pokrivač made 15 appearances for Croatia’s national team

ZAGREB: Nikola Pokrivač, a former Croatia national team midfielder who played at the 2008 European Championship, has died in a car accident, his country’s soccer federation said. He was 39.
The federation announced that Pokrivač died Friday night in a car accident in the city of Karlovac.
Pokrivač played for Dinamo Zagreb, Monaco and Salzburg before being diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in 2015.

Pokrivač made 15 appearances for Croatia’s national team.
Marijan Kustić, president of the Croatian Football Federation, called Pokrivač a “great football player” who “showed great courage in life by overcoming a terrible disease.” He offered condolences to Pokrivač’s family.
Dinamo said in a statement that Pokrivač was a talented midfielder who played 69 times for the team and participated in four championship titles.


F1 fans enjoy start of Saudi Arabian GP weekend at fan zone

Updated 19 April 2025
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F1 fans enjoy start of Saudi Arabian GP weekend at fan zone

JEDDAH: Fans from around the world enjoyed the first day of the F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix race weekend on Friday at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit fan zone.

The site, next to the racetrack, offered a range of experiences including F1 interactive simulators, sim racing, a pit stop challenge, an F1 show car, driver selfies in augmented reality and a virtual pit tour, all designed to bring fans closer to the sport.

There were also food trucks, live music, cutting-edge driving simulators, virtual racing games and several F1 cars for photo opportunities.

Many fans who spoke with Arab News said they had traveled from places such as Riyadh, Dammam, Hail, Taif, Madina and Jizan to experience the race in Jeddah.

“It is an amazing event and as a family we are really enjoying every bit of it. I was really looking forward to seeing a racing car close up, and this is what Formula 1 is all about,” said local Saudi businessman Fahad Al-Malki, there with his family from Jeddah.

He added: “It is an amazing experience from the moment you start arriving around the road. It is so organized. I love the way everyone is so cooperative while you walk in, people are smiling and everyone is welcoming you, I enjoy that. My family is here and you get different ages of groups and families are sitting together and they are enjoying it. It is an amazing experience.”

Meanwhile, Jimmy from Glasgow, Scotland, described the Formula 1 weekend as “amazing.”

“This is my first time to attend the F1 race and I am glad to see it here in Jeddah,” he said. “Besides watching the (racing) I also had the chance to explore the fan zone. It is incredible and the food court is fantastic. Simply, my friend and I are just having fun and enjoying everything here.”

Laisly, from the Philippines, said: “I am very surprised. I was really looking forward to seeing a racing car from close up, it is really an interesting event. I’m really excited to see the race and at the same time enjoy the atmosphere of the fan zone.”

She added: “For us as Filipinos who are working here in Saudi Arabia, it is really one of a kind and hopefully these kinds of events will continue and recently there are many opportunities to see a race like this.”


Dortmund to treat every game as a final in bid for top four, says Gross

Updated 19 April 2025
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Dortmund to treat every game as a final in bid for top four, says Gross

  • “In this stadium, with the fans, you can beat any team in the world. (Missing out) on that would hurt a lot,” Gross told reporters on Saturday

Borussia Dortmund will approach every match like a final as they push for a top four finish in the Bundesliga, midfielder Pascal Gross said ahead of Sunday’s home game against seventh-placed Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Dortmund are eighth in the table with 42 points from 29 games, their worst position since 2014-15 when they finished seventh. They trail fourth-placed RB Leipzig by six points with five games remaining in the season.
Dortmund’s confidence in securing a European spot has grown, with Gross seeing his side’s 3-1 midweek home win over Barcelona in the Champions League as a boost, despite the side losing 5-3 on aggregate, which eliminated them from the competition.
“In this stadium, with the fans, you can beat any team in the world. (Missing out) on that would hurt a lot,” Gross told reporters on Saturday.
“That’s why we need to do everything in our power in the final five games to get as many points as we possibly can. This season is crazy. We’ve almost lost too many games already to be able to reach that goal.
“But when you look at the table, you can see that anything is possible. The next five games are all finals for us.”
The 33-year-old added that the team was more cohesive now, “I feel like we’re more solid now. If one person makes a mistake, someone else smoothes it out for him. That helps you to trust in what you’re doing.”
Dortmund manager Nico Kovac called for more passion and aggression in the next five games and said captain Emre Can and midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka, who missed the Barcelona game with injury, are in contention to feature against Gladbach.


Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti says he will discuss his future at end of season

Updated 19 April 2025
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Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti says he will discuss his future at end of season

  • Carlo Ancelotti has eluded speaking about his future after recent reports that again linked the Real Madrid coach with a move to Brazil’s national team
  • The veteran Italian manager was asked several times by reporters on Saturday at a pre-game press conference if he would leave the Spanish giant this summer

MADRID: Carlo Ancelotti has eluded speaking about his future after recent reports that again linked the Real Madrid coach with a move to Brazil’s national team.
The veteran Italian manager was asked several times by reporters on Saturday at a pre-game press conference if he would leave the Spanish giant this summer, and each time he responded that he didn’t want to speak about it.
“At the end of the season we will speak about this with the club,” he said more than once.
The 65-year-old Ancelotti is under contract with Madrid through June 2026.
Speculation regarding his career plans has once again spiked after Madrid’s exit from the Champions League this week. Britain’s Sky Sports has reported that he will step down following the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona on April 26.
Besides the Copa del Rey, Madrid is still in the fight to defend its La Liga title and is also to play in the Club World Cup this summer.
Madrid is in second place behind Barcelona in the league. It hosts fourth-place Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
Brazil has reportedly been after Ancelotti since last year as it seeks an elite coach for the 2026 World Cup. Brazil fired Dorival Júnior as coach last month.
Ancelotti is the only coach to have won the Champions League five times — three times with Madrid (2014, 2022, 2024) and twice with AC Milan (2003, 2007). He is also the only coach to have steered teams to domestic league titles in Spain, England, Italy, Germany and France.