Reuters Sports News Summary
Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.
With ninth straight loss, Knicks continue grim path forward
With the Rockefeller Plaza Christmas tree lit and the Radio City Rockettes kicking into high gear, a grimmer December tradition is coming into focus in the Big Apple: The New York Knicks are in big trouble. Handed their ninth straight loss in heartbreaking fashion against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday, the Knicks fell to 4-19 on the year, equaling the record set in 2014 for the worst start in franchise history.
Golf: Roots in Pacific but Finau bleeds Red, White and Blue
Tony Finau's ancestral roots lie not too far from Melbourne in the South Pacific but he bleeds Red, White and Blue and could not be more motivated to play for Tiger Woods at this week's Presidents Cup. After falling just short of making the United States team automatically, Finau was selected as a wild card by Woods to round out the powerful line-up to take on the Internationals at Royal Melbourne.
NBA roundup: Knicks lose to Pacers in interim coach's debut
Julius Randle missed a game-tying free-throw attempt with one-tenth of a second remaining, and Indiana handed host New York its ninth straight loss in the debut of Knicks' interim coach Mike Miller. A day after David Fizdale was fired, the Knicks had numerous chances to get their first win, but they went cold down the stretch, missing 13 of their final 14 shots. The Pacers went scoreless for the final 5:17 and missed their final seven shots.
NHL roundup: Avs snap Bruins' streaks, win 6th straight
Ian Cole scored the tiebreaking goal midway through the second period as the Colorado Avalanche handed the Boston Bruins their first regulation home loss of the season, 4-1, on Saturday. Valeri Nichushkin, Andre Burakovsky and Gabriel Landeskog also scored, and Joonas Donskoi had two assists as the Avalanche extended their winning streak to six. Colorado overcame injuries to starting goaltender Philipp Grubauer and rookie phenom defenseman Cale Makar.
Golf: Teenager wins tense play-off to take tour title
Danish teenager Rasmus Hojgaard gave a nerveless display in a tense sudden-death playoff on Sunday to win the Mauritius Open in a three-man shootout. He made eagle on the third playoff hole, after Italy's Renato Paratore had been eliminated at the first, to edge France's Antoine Rozner and in so doing became the third-youngest winner on the European Tour.
Teqball: Hosts Hungary dominate world championships
Hungary showed it remains the dominant force in teqball, a hybrid sport mixing football with table tennis, winning the singles and doubles world titles on Sunday. Adam Blazsovics easily won the singles title and teamed up with Csaba Banyik to take home the doubles gold in Budapest.
Beaten Ruiz wants Joshua rematch but others ahead in line
A beaten Andy Ruiz Jr called for a rematch after Anthony Joshua won back an array of world heavyweight titles in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, but the Mexican-American cannot expect to be at the front of the queue. "Who wants to see the third trilogy fight right here? In Saudi Arabia baby," Ruiz called out to the crowd at the Diriyah arena.
Woods to ignite Presidents Cup as U.S. look to extend reign
A biennial tournament that has struggled for relevance under a heavy weight of American supremacy will roar back into life when Tiger Woods returns to the Presidents Cup as a playing captain at Royal Melbourne this week. The 15-times major champion missed the 2015 tournament and was a non-playing assistant two years ago when Steve Stricker's United States steamrolled the Internationals 19-11 at Liberty National.
Joshua takes revenge on Ruiz in Saudi Arabia rematch
Britain's Anthony Joshua beat Andy Ruiz Jr on a unanimous points decision in Saudi Arabia on Sunday to seize back the heavyweight world championship belts he lost to his Mexican-American opponent in a shock upset last June. The 'Clash on the Dunes' in Diriyah was for the IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO titles and Joshua set the pace from the start with a measured masterclass that showed he had learned from the nightmare of New York.
NFL: Duty calls as Massachusetts police escort Chiefs' gear to game
Police in the American state of Massachusetts must have felt split loyalties as they provided an escort for football gear ahead of Sunday's National Football League game between the New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. While most on the force no doubt support the Patriots, who are revered in the sports-mad region, duty called when much of the Chiefs' gear was late arriving in Boston after a shipping mix-up.
