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Projected to be the eighth-place team in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll, the Purple Aces traveled to Lexington on Tuesday and knocked off No. 1 Kentucky, 67-64, delivering the Wildcats their first loss of the season and underscoring the parity expected at the top of the college basketball landscape in 2019-20. Kentucky entered the year ranked No. 2 and had taken over the top spot by beating preseason No....

This is not all that curious, except Wherle and his friends were not seeking tickets to a U2 concert. They were hoping to get in to see a baseball game. MORE: Opening Day MLB Power Rankings: Reds could surprise Crazy, right? Except this never was a mere baseball game. This was Opening Day in Cincinnati, which is a combination of religious observance, community celebration, heritage festival and unofficial — though many have pushed for it to be granted governmental sanction — civic holiday....

The 28-year-old midfielder suffered a knee injury in their 2-2 draw with Bournemouth in August and as a result, missed their games against Rotherham United [League Cup] and Huddersfield Town. The injury also prevented him from featuring for Senegal in their African Cup of Nations qualifiers match against Madagascar. However, ahead of their tie with the Hammers, the midfielder has taken to the social media to herald his return from the setback....

Belarus lost their first four matches but have since then have won one and drawn the other. One might not put down that run as brilliant but their encounter against the Netherlands could be an interesting prospect, especially considering that the Dutch have struggled for consistency themselves. Ronald Koeman’s team have looked less than convincing throughout qualifying, except for the first game of their campaign when they beat Belarus 4-0....

The final relegation place was the only issue still to be sorted going into the last round of fixtures, with Le Mans and Laval battling to avoid the drop and in Le Mans’ case, possible extinction. Both sides grabbed victories, but with Laval sitting two points ahead, it is Le Mans who drop to the third tier and face an uncertain future. Le Mans beat Lens 2-1 but Laval’s 3-2 win over a Chateauroux side who went the whole season without recording an away win meant they were safe....

Trump has made baseless claims that voter fraud perpetrated by the Democrats was a factor in President-elect Joe Biden being declared the winner of the November election. Trump’s legal team has filed multiple lawsuits in battleground states seeking to withdraw electors who pledged to vote for Biden with slates of electors who would vote for Trump. Those lawsuits have largely failed. In a last-ditch attempt to keep Trump in office, some GOP lawmakers have announced that they would challenge the electoral results of some states during Wednesday’s official Congressional certification of the Electoral College....

He comes by it naturally. Harmon’s father, a club pro at courses in New York and Florida, did the near impossible in 1948: he beat a field of elite touring pros to win the Masters and wear the green jacket. Today all four of Claude Harmon Sr.’s sons are ranked among the game’s top 100 instructors. Butch got there by an indirect route. Frustrated by his golf game, he dropped out of the University of Houston to join the army in 1963–but not before angrily heaving a borrowed set of his father’s irons into a water hazard....

The company faces over $300 billion worth of debt after taking out loans for years in a quest to grow alongside China’s expanding economy. While a Thursday deadline for an $83 million loan payment was meant to serve as a beacon toward what investors could expect for the firm’s long-term future, news of what’s next remained unknown. The company released no information on the status of its $83 million payment, nor did the Chinese government....

Everton Football Club have announced that former Wigan manager, Roberto Martinez, is set to take over the reins at Goodison Park effective from July 1st onward. The Spaniard will take over from David Moyes, who was recently appointed manager of newly-crowned champions, Manchester United. The club held a press conference at 4.00 pm BST and the announcement was made then. The Spaniard signs a 4-year deal and stays back in the Premier League after failing to secure safety for FA Cup winner, Wigan Athletic....

Pep Guardiola’s side need just six more points to confirm their position as champions, with a trip to Merseyside intended to leave them on the brink heading into a derby date with Manchester United. Everton, though, have proved to be a thorn in City’s side over the last 18 months or so and will be hoping to preserve a record which sees them standing alone as the only top-flight side Guardiola is yet to taste victory against since his arrival in English football back in 2016....

Liverpool have quite a few players on the injury list as Dejan Lovern, Joe Gomez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are still out with injuries. Roberto Firmino also remains doubtful. Jurgen Klopp tweaked his formation a bit in the last game and it would be interesting to see what he does on Sunday. Here’s how Liverpool could lineup against Everton on Sunday: Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker Alisson kept a clean sheet against Watford in Liverpool’s previous Premier League fixture....

Jesper Møller Sorensen, the state secretary for foreign policy at the Danish Foreign Ministry, told the Helsinki Security Forum on Saturday that falling gas pressure may soon allow a tri-nation joint investigative team to begin analyzing the damage, which NATO and European Union nations suspect—but have not yet confirmed—was caused by Russia. “We are establishing a joint investigative team, it’s within the [European Union] framework, it will consist of Germany, Sweden, and Denmark as the most affected countries,” Sorenson said....

Instead, it’s shrouded in a cloud of negativity. A large portion of that negativity is due to the team’s record, which sits at 10-13-7, losing twice for every win, and their 27 points are the third-fewest in the NHL. That’s not something that will result in fanbases beaming with pride, but the biggest complaints are always tied to ownership. The Senators’ internal budget being below the NHL’s salary cap is always a sticking point, but that unwillingness to spend has become a real problem for public relations in recent years....

The match, which ended 2-2, was halted in the 86th minute when flares from the Croatia end rained down on the Saint-Etienne pitch. European football’s governing body (UEFA) has confirmed it will investigate the incident. “They are not really Croatia supporters. These people are scary and I call them hooligans,” Cacic was quoted as saying by the BBC on Friday. Croatia have already been charged by UEFA after crowd trouble in their opening Group D game against Turkey....

Conte set his side up in a 3-5-2 formation, operating with the Juventus trio of Bonucci, Barzagli and Chiellini at the back in front of a 38-year-old Gianluigi Buffon. Belgium had all the qualities needed in the frontline, with Romelu Lukaku an ideal candidate to gobble up chances created by the dynamic pair of Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne. As the match wore on, though, and following Emmanuel Giaccherini’s opener, it grew apparent that the Red Devils were no more than a team of individuals that struggled to unify on the night....

The football game was anything but drab, with Roy Hodgson’s side attacking relentlessly but were unable to break down an organised Slovakian defence. England registered 29 shots on goal, but only 5 of those were on target as profligacy in front of goal cost the Three Lions the three points. Here is how the players fared during the game: Slovakia Matús Kozácik – 8/10 Kozacik was phenomenal between the sticks for Repre and pulled off a host of impressive saves to deny England....

Croatia have also impressed in their first two matches, having won their opening match against Turkey and playing out a 2-2 draw against the Czech Republic. In the likely absence of Modric, the one player capable of causing problems for Spain is Barcelona star Ivan Rakitic. However, Ivan Rakitic’s partner in central midfield for Barcelona, Andres Iniesta has had a magnificent tournament himself. The Spaniard has been absolutely magical in the first two matches for Spain and he is already being touted by many as the favourite to win the Golden Ball this tournament....

Some groups are more close than the others, with the Umbro supported Republic of Ireland part of one such group, as they look to qualify as one of the four best third-placed teams, just as they did during the qualification campaign. Here are all the permutations and combinations that could be possible - Group A This group is almost settled as France and Switzerland sit pretty at the number one and two spots....

In this piece, we’ll be taking an in-depth look at one of the most exciting battles coming up for us to savour in Euro 2016, the direct sight of two absolute legends coming up against each other. The way Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Buffon are performing, at 34 and 38-years-old respectively it’s easy to think they still have several years in them but one still can’t ignore that they’re approaching the end of their careers....