THURSDAY SPORTS, APRIL 16, 2026
MITCHELL KERNELS
— Mitchell baseball, 5-1 on the season, returns home Thursday for a doubleheader against Huron at 5 pm at Drake Field. The KORN pregame show starts at 4:45 pm
— Mitchell Kernels softball hosts Sioux Falls Roosevelt on Thursday for its home opener at 5:30 pm.
— Mitchell Kernels track and field returns to action Thursday at the Corn Palace Relays at Joe Quintal Field at Noon.
— Mitchell Kernels girls golf competes at Spring Creek County Club in Harrisburg on Thursday at 9 am.
— Mitchell Kernels boys tennis will face Brandon Valley on Friday in Brandon.
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan softball hosts Mount Marty for a doubleheader on Thursday at 6:30 pm at McWhirter Field. The Tigers are 30-11 overall, 13-1 in league play and have won a school record 12 straight games. DWU has a one game lead over Midland for first place in the GPAC with eight games remaining in the regular season.
— Dakota Wesleyan baseball will host Concordia on Thursday for a doubleheader at 11 am at Drake Field. Concordia will return to Mitchell on Sunday for another doubleheader starting at 1 pm.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State baseball hosts Oral Roberts in a three-game series starting Friday at 3 pm.
— South Dakota State softball is scheduled to play at Omaha on Friday at 6 pm to begin a three-game series. The Jackrabbits are 23-24 on the season and 5-4 in the Summit League, one game behind St. Thomas for second place in the conference.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD softball will be at North Dakota on Friday for the start of a three-game series.
MINNESOTA TWINS
— Trevor Story homered and drove in five runs to lead the Boston Red Sox over the Minnesota Twins 9-5. Simeon Woods Richardson gave up seven runs and 10 hits in five innings. Austin Martin had two hits, including a home run. Ryan Kreidler hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning for the Twins, who lost for just the second time in 10 games. The Twins start a three game home series vs. Cincinnati on Friday at 7:10 pm.
NBA
— Steph Curry scored 27 of his 35 points in the second half, while Al Horford hit four 3-pointers during Golden State’s fourth-quarter comeback as the Warriors advanced in the NBA’s play-in tournament with a 126-121 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. Curry’s seventh 3-pointer broke a tie with 50 seconds to play for the 10th-seeded Warriors, who erased a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Golden State finished on a 16-6 run and held Kawhi Leonard scoreless in the fourth until the final 16 seconds. The Warriors will travel to face Phoenix on Friday, with the winner moving on to face No. 1 seed Oklahoma City in the first round.
— Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points, while rookie V.J. Edgecombe added 19 points and 11 rebounds as the Philadelphia 76ers weathered the absence of Joel Embiid to beat the Orlando Magic 109-97 and secure the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Sixers move on to a first-round series that begins Sunday at Boston. Orlando will host Charlotte on Friday night, with the winner earning the No. 8 seed in the East and a first-round matchup with Detroit.
— The NBA says LaMelo Ball should have been ejected for a flagrant foul after pulling the ankle of Bam Adebayo during a play-in game. The league ruled the contact was “unnecessary and reckless,” and said it warranted a flagrant-2 foul — which would have meant an automatic ejection. Instead, no foul was called during the game. Adebayo suffered a back injury on the play and did not return, as the Miami Heat went on to lose in overtime, ending their season. Ball was fined $60,000 total — $35,000 for the foul and $25,000 for profanity — but remains eligible for Charlotte’s next elimination game.
NBA PLAYOFFS
No. 1 Detroit Pistons vs. TBA – Sunday at 5:30 pm on NBC
No. 2 Boston Celtics vs. No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers – Sunday at Noon on ABC
No. 3 New York Knicks vs. No. 6 Atlanta Hawks – Saturday at 5 pm on Amazon Prime Video
No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 5 Toronto Raptors – Saturday at Noon on Amazon Prime Video
No. 8 Orlando Magic vs. No. 9 Charlotte Hornets – Friday at 6:30 pm on Amazon Prime Video
No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. TBA – Sunday at 2:30 pm on ABC
No. 2 San Antonio Spurs vs. No. 7 Portland Trail Blazers – Sunday at 8 pm on NBC
No. 3 Denver Nuggets vs. No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves – Saturday at 2:30 pm on Amazon Prime Video
No. 4 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 5 Houston Rockets – Saturday at 7:30 pm on ABC
No. 8 Phoenix Suns vs. No. 10 Golden State Warriors – Friday at 9 pm on Amazon Prime Video
NFL
— The NFL is moving closer to using replacement referees as labor talks with officials remain unresolved. According to a league memo, potential replacement refs have completed background checks and are set to undergo physicals, with training possibly starting next month. The move comes as the current agreement with the NFL Referees Association is set to expire May 31, and negotiations on a new deal continue. League executives say the NFL hopes to reach an agreement but is preparing for a possible work stoppage. A similar dispute in 2012 led to a 110-day lockout and replacement officials being used early in the season.
WORLD CUP
— FIFA President Gianni Infantino says Iran will “for sure” play in the upcoming FIFA World Cup despite the ongoing war involving the United States. Infantino says Iran has earned its spot and players want to compete, stressing that sports should rise above politics. He also expressed hope the conflict will ease before the tournament. The U.S., co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, is set to host Iran for group-stage matches, though security and political tensions have raised concerns.
GOLF
— LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil says the 2026 season will move forward “at full throttle” despite reports that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund could scale back funding. O’Neil pushed back on speculation, telling staff the schedule will continue uninterrupted as the league heads into the heart of its season. Questions remain about LIV’s long-term finances after billions already invested, with reports suggesting the fund may shift priorities amid global pressures, including the war involving Iran. Top players like Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Phil Mickelson remain part of the league, which continues its global schedule and plans its first U.S. event in May.
WNBA
— The Las Vegas Aces have locked in their dynasty centerpiece, re-signing four-time MVP A’ja Wilson to a record-setting three-year supermax deal worth $5 million. Wilson, coming off another MVP season, remains the face of a dominant Aces run that includes three titles in four years. She led the WNBA last season in scoring with 23.4 points per game.
MLB
— Shohei Ohtani pitched one-run ball over six innings and struck out 10 as the Los Angeles Dodgers routed the Mets 8-2, sending New York to its seventh straight loss. Dalton Rushing, who replaced Ohtani as designated hitter, hit his first career grand slam off Mets closer Devin Williams in the eighth. Ohtani had tossed 33 consecutive innings without an earned run before MJ Melendez’s RBI double in the fifth.
— Jackson Merrill hit a walk-off, two-run double to cap San Diego’s five-run ninth inning as the Padres beat the Seattle Mariners 7-6 for their seventh win in a row. The Padres won a game after entering the ninth inning trailing by four-plus runs for the first time since 2019.
— Shea Langeliers hit the longest homer in the majors this season and Jacob Wilson also had a two-run shot to help the Athletics beat the Texas Rangers 6-5. The Athletics (10-8) are alone atop the AL West, a game ahead of Texas. Langeliers hit a towering 467-foot home run, the majors’ longest, that gave the A’s a 4-2 lead.
— José Caballero laced a two-run double in the bottom of the ninth inning that gave the New York Yankees a 5-4 victory over the Angels. Aaron Judge hit his third homer of the series and Trent Grisham had a two-run single for the Yankees, who won for only the second time in eight games following an 8-2 start.
— Nico Hoerner drove in a career-high five runs, while Shota Imanaga struck out 11 in six innings as the Chicago Cubs routed the Philadelphia Phillies 11-2. Dansby Swanson homered and Matt Shaw had three doubles and a pair of RBIs for the Cubs, who had 15 hits.
— Bryce Elder pitched scoreless ball into the sixth inning, while Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley and Matt Olson went deep for the first-place Braves in a 6-3 victory over the Miami Marlins.
— William Contreras hit the only ball out of the infield during a two-run rally in the eighth inning as the Milwaukee Brewers snapped a six-game losing streak with a 2-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
— Wenceel Pérez hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning as the Detroit Tigers won their fifth straight game, beating the Kansas City Royals 2-1.
— Rookie Sal Stewart hit a pair of three-run home runs for a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds beat the San Francisco Giants 8-3.
— Yordan Alvarez hit his seventh home run of the season and Spencer Arrighetti struck out 10 in six innings to lead the Houston Astros to a 3-1 win over the Colorado Rockies.
— Junior Caminero, Jake Fraley and Jonny DeLuca homered as the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Chicago White Sox 8-3 for their fifth straight win.
— Nathan Church had three hits, Alec Burleson had two RBIs and Jordan Walker extended his hitting streak to 11 games as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cleveland Guardians 5-3.
— Adrian Del Castillo hit a two-run home run in the 10th inning and drove in five to lead the Arizona Diamondbacks to an 8-5 win over the Baltimore Orioles.
— Carmen Mlodzinski allowed two hits over a career-high six innings as the Pittsburgh Pirates edged the Washington Nationals 2-0.