TUESDAY SPORTS, APRIL 28, 2026
MITCHELL KERNELS
— Mitchell baseball hosts Sioux Falls Lincoln on Tuesday for a 5 pm doubleheader at Drake Field. The KORN pregame show starts at 4:45 pm. Mitchell is 5-5 on the season vs. in-state competition, currently sixth in Class A seed points. SF Lincoln is 9-4 on the season and the No. 9 seed.
— Mitchell girls golf returns to the course on Tuesday at the Pierre Invitational at 11 am.
— Mitchell softball returns to action on Tuesday on the road at Yankton at 5:30 pm.
— Mitchell track and field hosts a triangular vs. Huron and Aberdeen Central on Thursday at 4 pm at Joe Quintal Field.
— Mitchell boys tennis will host Aberdeen Central and Sioux Falls Washington for a triangular at Hitchcock Park on Friday at 11 am.
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan is 10th after day one of the GPAC Women’s Golf Championships at Dakota Dunes Country Club, with 27 of 54 holes completed. The Tigers finished the opening round at 129-over-par. Morningside leads the team race at 40-over, followed by Doane at 61-over in the 12-team field. Dakota Wesleyan is led by Allison Meyerink, who opened with a 7-over 79 and is tied for first individually after one round alongside two Morningside golfers. The final 27 holes will be played Tuesday at Dakota Dunes.
— Dakota Wesleyan softball will be the No. 4 seed in the GPAC Tournament that starts on Wednesday. The Tigers take on No. 5 seed Northwestern at 2 pm in Fremont, Nebraska. DWU ended up losing a tiebreaker with Morningside for the No. 3 seed. The Tiger split a doubleheader at Northwestern on March 24.
— Dakota Wesleyan baseball will face No. 3 seed Morningside on Wednesday at 3 pm in the GPAC Tournament, hosted by Concordia in Seward, Nebraska. The Tiger split a doubleheader at Morningside on March 18.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State remains in first place at the Summit League Women’s Golf Championship after the second round Monday in Mesa, Arizona, holding an 11-shot lead heading into the final day. The Jackrabbits sit at 16-over par through 36 holes, after posting a 2-over in Monday’s round. Individually, SDSU senior McKenzie Mages surged into the lead with a three-under 68 in round two, the best single-round score in championship history for a Jackrabbit. She is now one-under for the tournament and holds a three-shot lead. Teammate Hannah Boraas is alone in second place after a one-under 70, giving SDSU the top two spots on the individual leaderboard heading into Tuesday’s final round.
— South Dakota State baseball will host Buena Vista on Tuesday at 3 pm, followed by Minnesota-Morris on Wednesday.
— South Dakota State softball will close the regular season on the road with a three-game series at North Dakota State beginning Thursday.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD softball ends the regular season vs. Omaha with a three-game series starting on Thursday at 3 pm in Vermillion.
MINNESOTA TWINS
— Kody Clemens homered and drove in five runs, Byron Buxton also went deep, while Connor Prielipp earned his first big league win as the Minnesota Twins beat the Seattle Mariners 11-4. Prielipp, the 25-year-old left-hander, gave up two runs on one hit with three walks and five strikeouts. Ryan Jeffers had two hits and two RBIs for Minnesota. Game two of the three game series is Tuesday at 6:40 pm.
NBA
— Nikola. Jokic had 27 points, 16 assists and 12 rebounds as the Denver Nuggets avoided elimination with a 125-113 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in game five of their playoff series. Jamal Murray scored 24 points as the Nuggets, who led the NBA in scoring, after being held under 100 points twice in Minneapolis. Julius Randle led Minnesota with 27 points. Game 6 is Thursday night in Minneapolis.
— The Orlando Magic are one win away from knocking off a No. 1 seed and winning their first playoff series in 16 years. Desmond Bane scored 22 points and Franz Wagner had 19 points in three quarters as the Magic beat the Detroit Pistons 94-88 to take a 3-1 series lead, putting the East’s No. 1 seed on the brink of elimination. Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 25 points. Orlando is on the verge of becoming just the seventh No. 8 seed to defeat a No. 1 in a series in league history. It’s happened only four times since the playoffs were expanded to a best-of-seven series for all rounds in 2003. Game 5 is Wednesday night in Detroit.
— Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points, while Chet Holmgren added 24 as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Phoenix Suns 131-122, capping a four-game sweep in the first-round series. The Thunder, who have a 12-0 record in the first round over the last three seasons, will face the winner of the Los Angeles Lakers-Houston Rockets series in the Western Conference semifinals. Phoenix has a 10-game losing streak in the playoffs, dating back to 2023.
— Cooper Flagg has been named NBA Rookie of the Year, edging former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel in one of the closest votes in league history, the NBA announced Monday night. Flagg becomes the first rookie since Michael Jordan in 1985 to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, and steals. The 19-year-old averaged 21 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 1.2 steals across 70 games including a 51-point performance against Orlando, the first 50-point game by a teenager in NBA history. Knueppel, meanwhile, finished second in voting after a breakout season with the Charlotte Hornets, where he averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.4 assists. He also led all rookies with 273 made 3-pointers and helped Charlotte improve by 25 wins, reaching the play-in tournament. Flagg and Knueppel were separated by just 26 points in voting from 100 media members. Philadelphia’s VJ Edgecombe finished third.
— Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones is set to plead guilty Tuesday to charges he cashed in on rigged poker games and gave sports bettors nonpublic injury information about stars, including his one-time teammate LeBron James. Jones will become the first person to plead guilty in a gambling investigation that led to the arrests of more than 30 people, including mobsters and other basketball figures. None of the other defendants have shown a willingness to plead guilty. On Monday, prosecutors said they were seeking additional charges against a co-defendant in the betting case, former Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier.
— The NBA and FIBA are moving through ownership bids for a planned new European basketball league, with strong interest coming from all 12 targeted cities. The league is targeting a potential launch in October 2027 and officials are now working to narrow proposals into a short list of preferred ownership groups. NBA, FIBA and EuroLeague officials are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Tuesday as discussions continue over structure and cooperation between existing European basketball systems. The proposed league is expected to include franchises in major European cities such as London, Paris, Madrid, Berlin, Rome, Athens, and Istanbul.
NBA PLAYOFFS – TUESDAY
Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers, 6 pm on ESPN – Boston leads 3-1
New York Knicks vs. Atlanta Hawks, 7 pm on NBC – Series tied 2-2
San Antonio Spurs vs. Portland Trail Blazers, 8:30 pm on NBC – San Antonio leads 3-1
STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS – MONDAY
Pittsburgh Pirates 3, Philadelphia Flyers 2 – Philadelphia leads 3-2
Vegas Golden Knights 5, Utah Mammoth 4 (OT) – Series tied 2-2
STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS – TUESDAY
Buffalo Sabres vs. Boston Bruins, 6:30 pm on TNT – Buffalo leads 3-1
Dallas Stars vs. Minnesota Wild, 7 pm on ESPN2 – Series tied 2-2
Edmonton Oilers vs. Anaheim Ducks, 9 pm on TNT – Anaheim leads 3-1
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
— Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby has taken an indefinite leave of absence to enter a residential treatment program for a gambling addiction, the school announced Monday. Texas Tech said it is supporting Sorsby’s recovery and offered no timetable for his return or clarity on his availability for the upcoming season. The 22-year-old transfer, who previously played at Indiana and Cincinnati, was one of the most high-profile additions in the transfer portal after reportedly signing a multimillion-dollar deal to join the Red Raiders for his final college season. According to ESPN, citing unidentified sources, Sorsby allegedly placed thousands of online bets on various sports through a gambling app, including wagers on Indiana football games during his freshman season in 2022. NCAA rules prohibit athletes from betting on their own sport, and the case is reportedly under investigation.
GOLF
— LIV Golf is expected to postpone its scheduled June tournament in New Orleans as the breakaway golf league continues to face uncertainty over long-term funding, according to sources familiar with the situation. The event, originally set for June 25-28, will be moved from its current slot, with an official announcement expected Tuesday. Sources said LIV Golf is working with Louisiana officials on possible rescheduling options later in the year, potentially in the fall, as organizers look to avoid extreme summer heat, course maintenance concerns, and scheduling conflicts with major global sporting events. The decision comes as LIV Golf continues to navigate financial uncertainty after reports that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has scaled back its commitment to fully finance the league beyond this season.
MLB
— Ranger Suárez threw eight shutout innings, allowing only one hit as the Boston Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-0. It’s the first time this season the Red Sox have won three straight.
— Ty France drove in four runs with a double and a triple to lead the San Diego Padres over the Chicago Cubs 9-7. Manny Machado had three hits and scored three times for the Padres, who won for the 17th time in 21 games. They are 18-5 this month, the best April winning percentage in franchise history. Mason Miller gave up two runs in the ninth, ending his scoreless streak at 34 2/3 innings dating back to last season, a San Diego record.
— Jose Fermin hit a tiebreaking two-run double after Pedro Pages and JJ Wetherholt hit consecutive homers, all in the ninth inning, as the St. Louis Cardinals rallied to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 after breaking up a perfect game bid in the seventh inning.
— Aaron Judge and Ben Rice had the first back-to-back homers for the Yankees this season, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also went deep as New York beat the Texas Rangers 4-2. Judge matched the big league lead with his 11th homer. It came right after Rice’s 10th homer, his sixth in 11 games.
— Kyle Tucker singled in the tying and go-ahead runs with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, rallying the Los Angeles Dodgers past the Miami Marlins 5-4.
— Munetaka Murakami hit a three-run homer in a big seventh-inning rally, as the Chicago White Sox held off the Los Angeles Angels for an 8-7 win. Andrew Benintendi had three RBIs as Chicago improved to 6-4 in its last 10 games. Jorge Soler hit a solo homer for Los Angeles in the rain-delayed opener of a three-game series.
— Ryan Vilade had three hits and drove in two runs, including the go-ahead single in the eighth inning, as the Tampa Bay Rays won their fifth straight by defeating the Cleveland Guardians 3-2.