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The serve remains the biggest offensive weapon in the game of tennis. If a player can’t find a way to solve a dangerous server, they’ll struggle to find any traction in a match. So that returner has to find a counter of some kind.

UCF was so, so close to upsetting Duke in Sunday’s second-round game, but the Knights fell, 77-76, and were instantly, visibly crushed by how they lost. (As Aubrey Dawkins’s putback attempt rimmed out and time expired, you can see Terrell Allen, No. 2, put his hands on his head as he falls to the floor in shock.) The…Read more...

After Saturday night’s knockout of Bogdan Dinu, Bulgarian heavyweight boxer Kubrat Pulev spoke to Vegas Sports Daily reporter Jennifer Ravalo for a short interview. He ended the session by holding Ravalo’s face, kissing her on the lips, and walking away.

I have very few, if any, roommate horror stories scattered throughout my personal history, which means that I, like the oblivious sucker at a poker table, am likely the nightmare roommate in stories of OTHER people. Take my friend Fred, for example (not his real name). In 1999, Fred crashed at my studio apartment in…Read more...

This morning, lawyer Michael Avenatti had an announcement.Read more...

The main event of Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night card lasted two rounds, and Anthony Pettis spent the bulk of that time getting picked apart by Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. It was a suitably thorough performance from one of the UFC’s most accomplished kickboxers, right up until the moment Pettis bounced off the…Read more...

Georgia Tech senior defensive lineman Brandon Adams passed away suddenly on Saturday. Police said the 21-year-old collapsed near campus, and was taken by friends to a local hospital, where he died. Tributes to the young man poured in, and you can read many of them here, from his teammates and coaches and school…Read more...

Angelique Kerber, a 31-year-old three-time major champion, couldn’t stomach losing to Bianca Andreescu, a prodigious 18-year-old, twice in one week. The first encounter was a gutting three-set loss to the wild card in the Indian Wells final; on Saturday, it was another three-set loss in the third round of the Miami…Read more...

Jeremy Lamb’s half-court buzzer-beater against the Raptors in Sunday’s 115-114 win was a thing of beauty. After losing the ball in the closing seconds, the Hornets guard had to toss up an off-balance shot from behind half-court, and it somehow went in, keeping Charlotte in the playoff race and creating an instant…Read more...

The Le’Veon Bell contract saga was always going to be about much more than Le’Veon Bell. Bell refused to play the 2018 season on a second franchise tag—after passing on a long-term contract offer from the Steelers that would have made him the league’s highest-paid running back, but was short on full guarantees. It was…Read more...

The last time WrestleMania was in East Rutherford, in 2013, there wasn’t even a women’s match on the card. Six years later, WrestleMania is back in New Jersey, and this time three women will make history as part of the first-ever women’s main event of wrestling’s biggest show, as WWE announced on Monday.Read more...

A Pokemon Sword and Shield pre-order bonus, Samsung Chromebooks, Levi’s Gold Box, and a Razer Orbweaver kickoff Monday’s best deals.Read more...

When you have more triple-doubles than any player in NCAA history, who can blame you for hunting for a garbage-time rebound? By her own admission, University of Oregon star Sabrina Ionescu deliberately missed a late three-pointer yesterday to collect her 10th rebound, completing the 18th triple-double of her career…Read more...

io9 Last Night’s Walking Dead Was Shocking, Savage, and Utterly Spectacular | Kotaku Report: Nintendo Is Releasing Two New Switch Models | Jalopnik The 2020 Ford Bronco Will Have a Removable Top and Doors: Report | Lifehacker How to See if Someone Is Tracking Emails They Send You | The Takeout Yellow cauliflower curry…Read more...

Few relationships in professional wrestling’s history have been more bizarre than the long-running and extremely fraught one between The Ultimate Warrior and Vince McMahon and McMahon’s wrestling promotion. Over the course of decades, the relationship featured multiple splits and just as many lawsuits, WWE producing a…Read more...

Turns out the racist Australian senator who was spectacularly owned by a boy and his egg after his racist anti-Muslim statement following the New Zealand mosque attacks did more to wound his own ego than injure the teen when he socked him in the head.Read more...

Rob Gronkowski, the lout to end all louts, announced his retirement from the NFL on Sunday. The Summer of Gronk will now be year-round.Read more...

The NFL acknowledges that pass interference is kind of a mess. Not only is it perhaps the most subjective of judgment calls officials are asked to make, but the very nature of it—often with more than five or 10 or even 15 yards in the balance—means it has the potential to swing games more than any other sort of flag.…Read more...

All foods are better fried, but because the world is a cruel place, fried foods are bad for you. If you are looking to fry without fear, look no further than this DASH Compact Air Fryer, now down to $70 which uses hot air instead of oil to make everything extra crispy.Read more...

March Madness has been lacking in sweet buzzer-beaters, but Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lamb was willing to fill that void. He heaved this sloppy, desperate rainbow shot from behind half-court and banked it in for tonight’s 115-114 win over the Raptors.

The UCF Knights gave the Duke Blue Devils way more of a fight than anyone dared hope they could, but ultimately they came just short of what would have been a bonkers second-round upset. Riding a 32-point performance from Zion Williamson, Duke escaped to the Sweet 16 with a 77-76 win.Read more...

There may be no better match of team style and player than 2019's North Carolina squad and freshman point guard Coby White. The normally pretty fast Tar Heels made the jump into warp speed this season, averaging more possessions per game than any other tournament team, and both superficially and practically, White is…Read more...

Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard got honest with the media today, slamming the decision-makers at his club over their apparent reluctance to sign Jacob deGrom to a contract extension, and also their travel itinerary. They’re forcing the players to go to Syracuse, for god’s sake!Read more...

Attorney General William Barr submitted a letter to Congress on Sunday afternoon laying out what he says are the principal findings from Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Below, read the letter in full.

Top-seeded Louisville beat Michigan without a whole lot of stress, winning 71-50 in their second-round matchup with the Wolverines to go to their third Sweet 16 in a row. The Cardinals got to relax in large part thanks to the stellar play of high-scoring senior guard Asia Durr, who as usual had an all-around…Read more...

Calgary Flames goalie Mike Smith is no stranger to the fine art of flopping, but when you really want a call to go your way, you can’t just flail your arms and hope an official notices. Sometimes, you have to up your game and add some practical effects, like Smith did towards the end of Saturday’s game against the…Read more...

The undefeated French fighter Sabri Sediri had picked up a pair of knockdowns early on in his super lightweight match on Saturday against Sam Maxwell in Leicester, so in the late 10th round, it wasn’t too ridiculous for him to feel confident in the result. With 20 seconds remaining, Sediri looked loose and cocky in…Read more...

When we last checked in with the Carolina Hurricanes, just a few days ago, they had pulled off maybe their best ever home victory celebration yet—an homage to Duck Hunt, with sticks for guns and gloves for ducks. But on Saturday night, the ’Canes turned to another sport for inspiration.Read more...

There’s never been a better time to upgrade that old pair of Chucks. Converse is taking 30% off sale items with promo code SALE30, so get brand new pair of classic sneakers and then proceed to wear them out until they’re literally falling apart at the seams, as one does. This sale will only last through Monday, so be…Read more...

Ja Morant had an absurd season. He averaged around 24 points, 6 boards and 10 assists a game.Read more...

Thank you for your continued support of Deadspin. Stay safe.Read more...

At 3:12 p.m. on Saturday, Mike Francesa was watching Wofford lose to Kentucky. We know this because he was analyzing the game as only the surly monarch of sports talk radio can—by burping some lordly and not especially insightful analysis onto his Twitter timeline.Read more...

In a battle of cats versus dogs, the felines came out on top.

In a vague and carefully worded statement that sounds like a mea culpa but is decidedly not, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft today made his first public comments since he was charged last month with two counts of solicitation in connection with a prostitution sting in Florida.

With just seconds left, Tremont Waters drove the lane and threw the ball up underhand. It banked in, and LSU is going to the Sweet 16. The Tigers beat Maryland, 69-67. Nice.

After cruising to his first world championship gold last year, American wonderteen Nathan Chen (who is also a pre-med student at Yale, no big deal), managed to top an incredible free skate by Japan’s two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu to win back-to-back world titles.Read more...

In case you missed it, your bracket probably got a little worse last night thanks to Liberty University’s upset 80-76 win over Mississippi State. Jerry Falwell Jr.’s infamously strict and alarmingly retrograde university won its first game ever in the NCAA tournament ever and I, for one, am praying to the Lord God in…Read more...

If you need any type of activewear or sneakers in the next coming weeks now that it’s finally nice out, Reebok is giving you extra 50% off everything from their outlet shop, with the code EXTRA50. From sneakers, to running shorts, to gym bags, this sale has it all.Read more...

Whether you missed out on the January sales or need refills for past orders, you’ve got another chance to save on Purely Inspired and MuscleTech products, today only. Prices start at under $10 for coconut oils, matcha diet supplements, and protein powders, so head over to Amazon and start flexing with the full…Read more...

At this point in James Harden’s absurd season, a 27-point first quarter is not all that shocking on its own. The dude has already logged 57 or more points five times in 2019, and the Rockets’ offense is weirdly at its most effective when Harden gets to step back across the three-point line to his heart’s content. He…Read more...

According to a report from ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Paula Lavigne, Big Baller Brand majority owner Lonzo Ball has severed all business ties with Alan Foster—one of the company’s co-founders and longtime family friend to the Balls—after he was unable to account for $1.5 million that went missing on his watch.Read more...

The Virginia Cavaliers proved today that truly, anything is possible during March Madness, as head coach Tony Bennett’s crew upset powerhouse Gardner-Webb for a 71-56 victory in the first round.Read more...

After a pretty chalk first day of the NCAA Tournament, the 13-seeded UC Irvine Anteaters picked up the biggest upset of the competition so far, knocking off co-Big 12 champs Kansas State in a 70-64 win.Read more...

We see a lot of deals around the web over on Kinja Deals, but these were our ten favorites today.Read more...

It’s just simple arithmetic: There are going to be more Guys than there are actual Dudes in the NCAA Tournament. The Dudes will go on to make some money playing basketball, in the NBA or in Europe or in Asia or possibly in picaresque White Men Can’t Jump hoops-hustler scenarios. The Guys, who are good enough to…Read more...

The Seattle Mariners had a weird 2018 season, winning 89 games but producing a negative run differential and finishing third in the AL West, eight games back of the last Wild Card. The glass-half-full view on their season highlights the wins and the respectable jump they made up the league standings from 2017; the…Read more...

The portion of the nation that doesn’t pay attention to Big Ten basketball outside of March was introduced to the voluminous eyebrows of Iowa forward Luka Garza in today’s game against Cincinnati, and boy, are they glorious. You can’t coach brows like that.Read more...

The only thing more predictable than Tom Izzo going apeshit on one of his own players, to the point where MSU freshman forward Aaron Henry’s teammates had to actively restrain the head coach, was the parade of dipshits and assholes rushing to Izzo’s defense and framing any criticism of his sideline behavior as…Read more...

Several of the coaches and administrators who were swept up in the college admissions bribery scam had long left the posts where they did their dirty work. Others, like UCLA men’s soccer coach Jorge Salcedo, were still employed by the same schools right up until the very day the FBI blew up their spots.Read more...

For sports team owners seeking new stadiums or arenas—which is to say, for sports team owners—there are certain tools of the trade at their disposal for convincing fans and politicians to support (and pay for) a new building. They have economic impact studies, ideally compiled by friendly consultants who may or may…Read more...