Jupiter Energy (JPR:AU) has announced Variation to Noteholder Agreements
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The round of 16 has arrived in the NCAA softball tournament. The remaining teams are set to square off in eight super regional series, with the winners earning a ticket to the sport’s showcase event, the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
Two of the eight best-of-three matchups, hosted by fifth-seeded Florida State and No. 6 Texas, will get started Thursday night, with the rest starting on Friday. All could be wrapped up as early as Saturday, but the odds are there will be at least one series that will require a decisive third contest.
Here’s a breakdown of the matchups and the schedule with TV channels for each series (all times eastern).
No. 16 Oregon vs. Liberty
Liberty made the biggest splash of the regionals by eliminating top overall seed Texas A&M. Outfielder Rachel Roupe provides much of the pop from the plate with 23 homers and 73 RBI. Oregon’s Lyndsey Grein has a 28-2 record with a 2.15 ERA.
Friday, May 23
Game 1, 10 p.m., ESPNU
Saturday, May 24
Game 2, 7 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2
Sunday, May 25
Game 3, if necessary.
No. 2 Oklahoma vs. No. 15 Alabama
This Sooners team might not be quite as dominant as some of its recent championship squads, but it finds ways to win more often than not. It usually starts in the circle with Sam Landry, who is 22-4 with an ERA of 2.00. The sparkplug for the Crimson Tide is freshman sensation Audrey Vandagriff, who bats .406 and has swiped 50 bases.
Friday, May 23
Game 1, 5 p.m., ESPN2
Saturday, May 24
Game 2, 3 p.m., ESPN
Sunday, May 25
Game 3, if necessary.
No. 3 Florida vs. Georgia
The Bulldogs had to go on the road for their regional but overcame Duke in extra innings in an elimination game to earn this date with the archrival Gators. Florida’s Taylor Shumaker (.387, 21 HR, 83 RBI) was named national freshman of the year by Softball America.
Friday, May 23
Game 1, 11 a.m., ESPN2
Saturday, May 24
Game 2, 11 a.m. ET, ESPN
Sunday, May 25
Game 3, if necessary.
No. 4 Arkansas vs. Mississippi
Arkansas overcame an early challenge by Oklahoma State but powered through the remainder of its regional. The catalyst for the Razorbacks is Bri Ellis (.457, 26 HR, 72 RBI), who already has single-season school records in the latter two categories. Ole Miss, however, took two of three from the Razorbacks in Oxford back in March.
Friday, May 23
Game 1, 8 p.m., ESPNU
Saturday, May 24
Game 2, 9 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2
Sunday, May 25
Game 3, if necessary.
No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 12 Texas Tech
The Seminoles and Red Raiders take the field first this weekend. FSU shortstop Isa Torres is a textbook leadoff hitter with a .448 batting average and 70 runs scored. But she and the ‘Noles will be up against one of the nation’s most dominant pitchers in Red Raiders junior NiJaree Canady, who has struck out 272 over 191 innings.
Thursday, May 22
Game 1, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Friday, May 23
Game 2, 3 p.m., ESPN2
Saturday, May 24
Game 3, 7 p.m., if necessary.
No. 6 Texas vs. No. 11 Clemson
National runners-up in Oklahoma City a year ago, the Longhorns look to take the next step on their redemption tour. If they do it, it will likely be battery mates Teagan Kavan and Reese Atwood setting the tone. The Tigers feature ACC pitcher of the year Reese Basinger and do-everything freshman Macey Cintron.
Thursday, May 22
Game 1, 9 p.m., ESPN2
Friday, May 23
Game 2, 9 p.m., ESPN2
Saturday, May 24
Game 3, 9 p.m., if necessary.
No. 10 Tennessee vs. Nebraska
The star power in this series makes it arguably the most compelling of the weekend. In this corner, the Volunteers have the nation’s ERA leader in Karlyn Pickens with a minuscule 0.90 average through 186.1 innings pitched. The Cornhuskers, meanwhile, have two-way standout Jordyn Bahl, who can take over a game with her arm and her bat.
Friday, May 23
Game 1, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Saturday, May 24
Game 2, 5 p.m., ESPN
Sunday, May 25
Game 3, if necessary.
No. 8 South Carolina vs. No. 9 UCLA
The overall strength of the SEC likely helped the Gamecocks’ case for hosting privileges for this series that could certainly go either way. Jori Heard and the rest of the South Carolina pitching staff will have their hands full with the Bruins’ one-two power punch of Megan Grant (25 HRs) and Jordan Woolery (22).
Friday, May 23
Game 1, 1 p.m., ESPN2
Saturday, May 24
Game 2, 1 p.m., ESPN
Sunday, May 25
Game 3, if necessary.
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City Thunder superstar guard who led his team to the NBA’s best record, was named the league’s most valuable player during Wednesday’s ‘NBA on TNT Pregame Show.’
Gilgeous-Alexander, 26, is the third Thunder player to win the MVP. Kevin Durant took home the honors in 2014 and Russell Westbrook won it in 2017.
It’s the seventh consecutive season a foreign-born player has won the award, as Gilgeous-Alexander is a native of Canada.
ESPN first reported the news.
Led by Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder won 68 regular-season games, including going 29-1 against the Eastern Conference, winning games by an average of 12.9 points per game and outscoring their opponents by 1,055 points.
Gilgeous-Alexander also won his first scoring title, averaging 32.1 points per game, including a streak where he scored 20 or more points in 72 consecutive games. He also averaged five rebounds and a career-high 6.4 assists, and his value was not only on the offensive end but defensively as well, as Oklahoma City was first in defensive rating and third in offensive rating.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished ahead of Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who won the award last season. Jokic averaged 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 10.2 assists per game, finishing in the top three in each category, while leading the league in performance efficiency rating. Jokic recorded an NBA-high 34 triple-doubles this season and is the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season, joining Oscar Robertson and Westbrook.
Gilgeous-Alexander received 71 first-place votes (worth 10 points) and 29 second-place votes (worth seven points) to win the award with 913 points. Jokic received the other 29 first-place votes and 71 second-place votes to finish with 787 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo finished in third (470 points), marking the seventh consecutive year he’s finished in the top four. Jayson Tatum placed fourth (311 points) and Donovan Mitchell rounded out the top five (74 points).
A two-time first-team All-NBA performer, Gilgeous-Alexander is eligible to sign a four-year, $293 million supermax extension this summer. He made $35.8 million this year, and is scheduled to take home $38.3 million and $40.8 million in the final two years of his current contract, which he signed in 2021.
NBA MVP voting
Check out the full voting totals below:
Watch: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wins MVP
See the moment Gilgeous-Alexander was officially named the 2024-25 NBA MVP, and what he said:
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(This story has been updated with new information).
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NEW YORK – Tyrese Haliburton scored 31 points, posted 11 assists and made a game-tying step-back jumper to force overtime, and Aaron Nesmith scored 30 points with eight 3-pointers to key the Pacers’ 138-135 overtime victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden.
Game 2 is Friday in New York (8 p.m. ET, TNT).
Andrew Nembhard scored seven overtime points and finished with 15. Pascal Siakam scored 17 points and center Myles Turner had 14. Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 43 points and Karl-Anthony Towns added 35.
Here are three observations:
Andrew Nembhard keys Pacers in overtime
Andrew Nembhard had just eight points on 3-of-6 shooting in regulation and he struggled with foul trouble, but as he tends to do, he stepped up in overtime and helped the Pacers win a game they trailed by 17 points in the fourth quarter.
The Knicks scored the first four points in overtime, but Nembhard hit a 3-pointer and then hit two more buckets, found Obi Toppin for a key dunk in the final minute and deflected the ball off Jalen Brunson with 20 seconds left. He scored seven of the Pacers’ 13 overtime points to make sure their wild comeback in the fourth quarter wasn’t in vain.
Aaron Nesmith 3s, Tyrese Haliburton step-back force OT
The Pacers seemed to be finished when they allowed the Knicks to go on a 14-0 run while Brunson was on the bench with five fouls early in the fourth quarter. They fell behind by as many as 17 points in the fourth, but just as all hope seemed lost, Nesmith went wild from beyond the 3-point arc and willed the Pacers back into it.
The Knicks were up 113-98 with 4:55 to go when Nesmith hit the first of six straight 3-pointers, somehow keeping the Pacers alive with a chance in the final seconds. They were down three with the ball with 13 seconds left when the Knicks’ OG Anunoby fouled Nesmith before he could get off a score-tying 3-pointer. Nesmith made both free throws. Anunoby was fouled on the ensuing possession but made just one of two. The Knicks stopped the Pacers’ initial advance but Haliburton hit a step-back jumper that got an incredible bounce and somehow went in. The Pacers initially thought they had won. However, it was ruled that Haliburton’s foot was on the 3-point line and the shot tied the score rather than winning the game at the buzzer, forcing overtime.
Pacers show no early rust
If there was any question that the eight days the Pacers had between games cost them any rhythm, they answered it in the first 5:30 of the first quarter. They made nine straight shots in that stretch to start the game and 11 of their first 12 field goals, taking a 27-20 lead with 4:45 to go in the first. They cooled some in the period but not much, finishing 14 of 19 from the floor, 3 of 7 from 3 and 3 of 4 at the line in the first period to post 34 points, 1.49 per possession.
The Pacers got no separation in the period as the Knicks scored 36 points, shooting 15 of 23 from the floor and 4 of 6 from 3, for 1.59 points per possession. But the two teams spent much of the rest of Game 1 going shot for shot and the Pacers established out of the gate that time off hadn’t been a problem. After having already won last year’s Second-round series here, they aren’t intimidated by Madison Square Garden.
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Dallas Stars coach Peter DeBoer noted before Game 1 that during last year’s Western Conference finals, his team went 0-for-14 on the power play against the Edmonton Oilers.
It looked like that was going to be a problem again Wednesday after not much was going on with the man advantage in the first 1½ opportunities.
But the Stars had 58 seconds remaining on a carry-over power play heading into the third period. Miro Heiskanen scored and Dallas turned it on, scoring five unanswered goals (three on the power play) in the period for a 6-3 victory and another come-from-behind win.
“I’m happy for our power play,” DeBoer said. “It took a lot of heat last year at this point of the year. It was a difference tonight for us.”
The turnaround was stunning, considering that Edmonton led 3-1 going into the final period and was dominating play. The Stars were unable to contain Leon Draisaitl (three points) or the speed of Connor McDavid (two points) in the first two periods.
Mikael Granlund and Matt Duchene followed Heiskanen with power-play goals and Tyler Seguin scored his second goal of the game before Esa Lindell added an empty-netter.
“We have a lot of belief in us,” Seguin said. “We never really think we’re fully out of a game.”
Duchene, snake-bitten in the playoffs after a 30-goal regular season, hit teammate Roope Hintz with a shot on a wide-open net before picking up the rebound and getting his first goal of the postseason.
“That one bounced for me for tonight,” Duchene said. “Hopefully, there’s more of that to come and less of hitting my own teammate.”
Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner, coming off back-to-back shutouts, gave up five goals on 27 shots.
‘They’re competing to get goals, get guys around the net and make my life a lot harder,’ he said. ‘I just got to fight through that. I’ve got to battle them as much as battling for sight of the puck.’
The Stars won Game 1 for a second consecutive series after having lost their previous eight.
USA TODAY provided live updates from Game 1. Highlights:
Stars vs. Oilers highlights
Game recap
Stars-Oilers final score: Stars 6, Oilers 3
Stunning turnaround after the Stars trailed 3-1 heading into the third period. Their power play came to life and they scored five unanswered goals for a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference final.
Stars-Oilers score: Stars pile on
Esa Lindell scores into an empty net. Five unanswered goals. Stars 6, Oilers 3
Stars-Oilers score: Tyler Seguin scores again
Seguin deflects in a Sam Steel backhander. Stars 5, Oilers 3
Oilers go on power play
Lian Bichsel is called for hooking. Edmonton already has a power-play goal in the game. But not this time. Dallas kills the penalty, allowing only one shot.
Stars-Oilers score: Dallas strikes again on power play
That’s three consecutive power-play goals for Dallas and three goals in less than six minutes. Matt Duchene gets his first of the playoffs (after 30 in the regular season). Roope Hintz and Mikko Rantanen (20 point of the playoffs) get the assists. Stars 4, Oilers 3
Stars back on power play
Evander Kane is called for high-sticking.
Stars-Oilers score: Mikael Granlund ties it up
A second power-play goal for the Stars this period. Granlund rips a shot from the faceoff circle into the net. Officials initially waved it off but it went off the back bar, not the crossbar. Stars 3, Oilers 3
Stars go on power play
Corey Perry is called for high-sticking.
Stars-Oilers score: Miro Heiskanen scores on power play
Heiskanen scores from the point at 32 seconds as Mason Marchment screens Stuart Skinner. The power-play goal is a good sign for the Stars, who didn’t get one in the 2024 conference finals. Oilers 3, Stars 2
Third period underway
Stars start off the period with an abbreviated power play.
End of second period: Oilers 3, Stars 1
The Oilers once again are the more dangerous team, and they score twice on goals by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Evan Bouchard. The Stars can’t handle Connor McDavid’s speed as he enters the zone. He has two points, Leon Draisaitl has three and Nugent-Hopkins has two. Dallas forwards Matt Duchene, Wyatt Johnston and Jason Robertson are minus-2 each. Stars coach Peter DeBoer is juggling his lines a little with Dallas unable to mount much of an attack.
Stars go on power play
Brett Kulak’s second penalty of the game. Not much going on again, but 58 seconds will carry into the third period.
Oilers go on power play
Thomas Harley off for interference. The Oilers scored on their first opportunity, but Dallas kills this one.
Stars-Oilers score: Evan Bouchard adds to Edmonton lead
Evan Bouchard takes a pass, skates to the left faceoff circle and beats Jake Oettinger at 7:48. Leon Draisaitl picks up his third point of the game and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins his second. Oilers 3, Stars 1
Stars-Oilers score: Edmonton connects on power play
A Connor McDavid centering pass deflects off a Stars defender to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who scores to give Edmonton the lead at 6:08. Oilers 2, Stars 1
Oilers go on power play
Mason Marchment trips Zach Hyman. Oilers had four power-play goals in the 2024 conference final.
Second period underway
Game tied at one.
End of first period: Stars 1, Oilers 1
The Oilers have the more dangerous chances in that period. Connor McDavid is flying. Leon Draisaitl factors in both goal. He keeps the puck alive in the Dallas zone before scoring the opening goal. But he gives up the puck, leading to a Tyler Seguin tying goal on a breakaway. Shots are 12-9 Oilers and hits are even at 12.
Stars-Oilers score: Tyler Seguin ties it up
Seguin grabs the puck after a Leon Draisaitl giveaway and beats Stuart Skinner on a breakaway at 15:22. That ends Seguin’s 10-game goal drought and is the first goal allowed by Skinner since Game 3 of the second round.
Stars-Oilers score: Leon Draisaitl goal lifts Edmonton
The Oilers always put Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl out after the team kills a penalty, and they connect for the opening goal. Draisaitl’s shot beats Jake Oettinger to the far side at 10:19. Oilers 1, Stars 0
Stars go on power play
Brett Kulak is called for hooking. Stars power play is clicking at 30.8%. Dallas didn’t get a power-play goal in his last year’s series against the Oilers. Edmonton kills it off. No shot attempts for Dallas.
Edmonton Oilers chance
Connor McDavid uses his speed to get around the Stars defense but is stopped by Jake Oettinger. The Stars goalie stops Zach Hyman’s rebound.
Game underway
Second year in a row these teams are meeting in the conference finals. Dallas going 12 forwards, six defensemen after going recently with 11 and 7.
Starting lines
Strength vs. strength. Edmonton starting the Connor McDavid line. Dallas countering with the Mikko Rantanen line.
What time is Stars vs. Oilers NHL playoff game?
Game 1 of the NHL’s Western Conference finals between the Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers begins Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
How to watch Stars vs. Oilers NHL playoff game: TV, stream
- Time: 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. local
- Location: American Airlines Center (Dallas)
- TV: ESPN
- Stream: ESPN+, Fubo
Watch Game 1 of the Stars-Oilers series on Fubo
Dallas Stars lineup
Edmonton Oilers lineup
Connor Brown taking warmups
Brown, a game-time decision, is listed as playing on the NHL roster report.
Goaltending matchup
Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner (2-3, 3.05 goals-against average, .884 save percentage) has back-to-back shutouts. Dallas’ Jake Oettinger (8-5, 2.47, .919) has won six consecutive home games.
Stars seek better power-play numbers this year
A big factor in the Oilers’ win in the 2024 Western Conference finals: Edmonton went 14-for-14 on the penalty kill vs. Dallas. The Stars, though, enter this year’s series with the top playoff power play (30.8%) among the four conference finals teams. Roope Hintz leads the way with three power-play goals. Mikko Rantanen, who was acquired at the trade deadline, and Thomas Harley are tied with six points on the power play.
Stars still deciding defense/forward split vs. Oilers
Coach Peter DeBoer said Wednesday morning he hadn’t decided whether he’ll stick with seven defensemen and 11 forwards in games against the Oilers. He did that in the last round when Miro Heiskanen returned from injury, so the defenseman didn’t have to play big minutes right away. Forward Mikko Rantanen got double-shifted.
Oilers’ Connor Brown is game-time decision
Oilers forward Connor Brown is a game-time decision, coach Kris Knoblauch said.
If Brown (undisclosed injury) can’t go, Viktor Arvidsson would get into Game 1 after missing the past two games.
“I have no hesitation to have him in the lineup,” Knoblauch said of Arvidsson.
Western Conference finals predictions
Predictions from USA TODAY staffers:
Jason Anderson: Stars in 6. Both teams have players lighting it up on the offensive end in the postseason. Mikko Rantanen has 19 points for Dallas, while Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have combined for 25 assists. It’s at the other end where each team has had issues, with Edmonton’s goalies combining for a .886 save percentage. The Stars have given up a whopping 408 shots in the playoffs, but Jake Oettinger has been up to the challenge, leading the league in some key underlying metrics for goaltenders. Expect plenty of goals in this series, but ultimately Dallas moves on.
Mike Brehm: Stars in 7. The Oilers are deeper than they were last season, but so are the Stars, with the additions of forwards Mikko Rantanen and Mikael Granlund. Defenseman Thomas Harley took a big jump when Miro Heiskanen was hurt, and now Heiskanen is back. This series will go the distance because Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm will return at some point. The Stars get the edge in the series finale because they’re at home, and coach Peter DeBoer is 9-0 in Game 7.
Jace Evans: Oilers in 6. Seeking to erase last season’s heartbreak, Edmonton has some team of destiny vibes. They looked completely on the ropes against the Kings in the first round only to rally in wild fashion and win six consecutive games after switching to Calvin Pickard in net. After Pickard was injured, Stuart Skinner got his job back and responded with two consecutive shutouts to oust the Golden Knights. You need some magic to win the Stanley Cup. It certainly feels like the Oilers have it. (And having Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl also helps.)
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- The SEC cares so deeply for its rivalries. Enough to keep secondary rivalries on the long-term schedule? We’ll see.
- If SEC persists long term with eight-game schedule, that puts secondary rivalries like Auburn-Georgia and Alabama-Tennessee in jeopardy. A nine-game schedule format allows room to keep more key games.
- The ‘Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry’ is long on history, but other rivalries have been much better for the past decade.
The SEC cares so deeply for its rivalries that it once built its interdivisional schedule model around preserving the Auburn-Georgia and Alabama-Tennessee games. And those matchups don’t even rank as the No. 1 rivalry for those schools.
Then, the SEC built an eight-game conference schedule model for the 2024 and 2025 seasons that retained primary and prominent secondary rivalries after the conference expanded to 16 teams.
The two-year schedule format to accommodate Oklahoma and Texas joining the league served as a stop gap while conference brass continued to mull a long-term schedule plan.
SEC officials have, for years, debated increasing from an eight- to a nine-game conference schedule. The league membership consistently decided to stay at eight.
The SEC must soon consider that age-old question again, with a scheduling solution needed for 2026 and beyond.
The SEC spring meetings, which begin May 27, offer a stage for the schedule debate to revive. Oklahoma and Texas could help tip the vote to approve expansion.
The rivalry tentacle attaches to the debate. A nine-game conference schedule offers avenues to annually retain not only primary rivalries, but also secondary rivalry games. Continuing with an eight-game schedule probably would mean dialing back secondary rivalries that the SEC steadfastly protected for so long.
Some matchups like the Iron Bowl, Egg Bowl and Red River are non-negotiable. They’re going nowhere, no matter the format. The importance of other rivalries varies based on factors such as your age, where you’re from, and the extent to which history matters to you.
Here’s how I rate the conference’s 10 best rivalries, some of which likely would go on the chopping block if the eight-game schedule persists in perpetuity.
1. Alabama-Auburn (Iron Bowl)
Instate rivalries hit differently, especially when that state is football-crazed Alabama. As an Auburn fan once said, the Iron Bowl isn’t life or death. It’s much bigger than that. There been national title implications and memorable moments that serve to add to the lore.
2. Oklahoma-Texas (Red River)
When the SEC added Oklahoma and Texas, the conference didn’t just gain two iconic brands, it acquired one of college football’s best rivalries. Most games are better when played on college campuses, but this one at the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair of Texas stands as an exception to that rule.
3. Mississippi-Mississippi State (Egg Bowl)
Mississippians’ chosen side in this rivalry points not just to their allegiance, but to their identity. Opposing sides don’t just dislike each other. They despise each other. This rivalry often features a dash of zaniness. When Ole Miss won the game in 1926, fans of both teams stormed the field. Rebels fans went for the goal posts, and Mississippi State (then Mississippi A&M) fans rushed to fight Ole Miss fans.
4. Florida-Georgia
This rivalry touts its own hall of fame dedicated to the series. The longtime designation of this rivalry as “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” sums up the vibe for this game played in Jacksonville, Florida.
5. Texas-Texas A&M
Thanksgiving week felt incomplete during the 12 seasons this rivalry went dormant after the Aggies left the Big 12 for the SEC. The SEC’s addition of Texas rekindled the series. This game packs its stiffest punch when scheduled for Black Friday, like it is this year. The Texas fight song and the Aggie War Hymn each includes a line needling their in-state rival.
6. Alabama-LSU
LSU counts as many rivals as any SEC team, but none is more collectively hated than Alabama. You can thank Nick Saban (and copious amounts of liquor in Louisiana) for that. LSU fans even burned Saban in effigy in 2008. Vitriol for Saban aside, this game became one of the nation’s most influential clashes throughout the 2010s.
7. Auburn-Georgia
As the “Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry,” no SEC series touts more history. Georgia’s stretch of 11 victories in the past 12 matchups dulled the luster of a series that once delivered such thrills as the “Prayer at Jordan-Hare.” Throughout its history, this ranks as one of the SEC’s most evenly matched rivalries.
8. Alabama-Tennessee
Saban’s dominance took some shine off this series, but the Vols renewed vigor to “The Third Saturday in October” after they upset Alabama in 2022, then tore down the goal posts and baptized them in the river. This rivalry features a distinct smell. When cigar smoke wafts through the stadium, you know the outcome has been decided.
9. LSU-Mississippi (Magnolia Bowl)
The rivalry that supplied Billy Cannon’s Halloween run and “The Night the Clock Stopped” found its peak stride the past few seasons. Fans from the winning side stormed the field in each of the past three years. This rivalry is not as heated as some others, but its games usually supply rich entertainment value.
10. Florida-Tennessee
This rivalry lacks the tradition of others, but at its crescendo in the 1990s and early 2000s, this September clash charted the course for SEC supremacy. The game peaked when it pitted Steve Spurrier against Phillip Fulmer, but, even now, animosity lingers between these fan bases.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com. Follow him on X @btoppmeyer.
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Sports giant Fanatics is pitting fans against greats Tom Brady, Kevin Durant and Alex Rodriguez at an upcoming marketing event.
The company announced Tuesday it is introducing a skills-based competition at Fanatics Fest 2025, taking place June 20-22 in New York City. Fanatics says more than $2 million will be given away in prizes, including a $1 million cash prize for first place, a Ferrari 812 GTS for second place and a Lebron James collectors card worth $250,000 for third place. If no fans finish in the top three, falling short of the celebrity competitors, the highest-scoring fan will receive $100,000.
If a celebrity competitor comes in first, they take home the seven-figure prize.
“I think the thinking was, how do we create even more of an insane environment where fans and athletes and streamers are all running around, in this case, quite literally, having a great time and showcasing all of that,” said Lance Fensterman, CEO of Fanatics Events.
It’s the second Fanatics Fest after the inaugural event last year drew more than 70,000 fans and brought together major sports leagues and hundreds of current and former athletes. The offerings last year included league activations, autograph sessions and a trading cards and collectibles show.
This year, Fanatics is hoping to go even bigger — with a goal of bringing in 100,000 attendees — as the company continues to broaden its reach in sports marketing.
Michael Rubin acquired Fanatics in 2011 after merging it with his company, GSI Commerce. What began as a sports e-commerce platform has evolved in recent years into a diverse sports platform offering trading cards and sports memorabilia, live shopping, betting and gaming, as well as an events business.
Fifty fans will be selected to compete at Fanatics Fest 2025 against top talent that also includes comedian Kevin Hart, former New England Patriot Rob Gronkowski, Los Angeles Clippers shooting guard James Harden and Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles.
The competition will include Major League Baseball pitching accuracy, National Hockey League slapshot accuracy, National Football League passing accuracy, a National Basketball Association shooting competition, a FIFA goal scoring challenge and a golfing contest. Fans can apply to participate by submitting a short video in the Fanatics app.
While Fanatics’ events business represents just a small fraction of business — last valued at $25 billion, according to a person familiar with the company — Fensterman said Fanatics Fest creates a lot of positive sentiment around the company.
“It’s incredibly impactful in terms of bringing the entire ecosystem together for the sole focus of delighting,” he said.
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We now know who won the contest to attend an intimate dinner with President Donald Trump by buying his cryptocurrency — and he’s a familiar face to Securities and Exchange Commission regulators and law enforcement officials.
Justin Sun, a Chinese-born crypto entrepreneur, confirmed in an X post Tuesday that he was behind the account, labeled ‘SUN,’ that purchased the most $TRUMP meme coin to sit at the president’s table at a crypto-focused gala scheduled for Thursday.
‘Honored to support @POTUS and grateful for the invitation from @GetTrumpMemes to attend President Trump’s Gala Dinner as his TOP fan!’ Sun wrote. ‘As the top holder of $TRUMP, I’m excited to connect with everyone, talk crypto, and discuss the future of our industry.’
He capped the post with an American flag emoji.
Critics have blasted the dinner contest as potentially unconstitutional and a blatant opportunity for corruption. Trump has not publicly commented on the accusations, and the Office of Government Ethics has declined to comment. A White House official did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
The Trump administration is not directly involved in administering $TRUMP coin. As for the dinner, a White House official said in a statement that the president ‘is working to secure GOOD deals for the American people, not for himself.’
‘President Trump only acts in the best interests of the American public — which is why they overwhelmingly re-elected him to this office, despite years of lies and false accusations against him and his businesses from the fake news media,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said.
While Trump has not been as aggressive in directly promoting cryptocurrencies as some campaign backers in the industry had hoped, his administration has abandoned or paused many pending cases that had been brought against crypto entrepreneurs and businesses.
That includes Sun, who was charged in 2023 with market manipulation and offering unregistered securities. Regulators sought various injunctions against him that would have largely prevented him from participating in crypto in the U.S. The Verge, a tech industry website, had also reported Sun was the target of an FBI investigation.
But in February, the SEC, now controlled by Trump appointees, agreed to a 60-day pause of the suit in order to seek a resolution.
Two months earlier, Sun purchased $30 million in crypto tokens from World Liberty Financial (WLF), the crypto venture backed by Trump and his family, the website Popular Information reported.
Eventually, Sun became the largest publicly known investor in World Liberty after he brought his funding total to $75 million.
According to Bloomberg News, per the terms of World Liberty’s financial structure, 75% of the proceeds of token sales like Sun’s get sent to the Trump family as a fee — meaning they may have directly earned as much as $56 million.
On Jan. 22 — two days after Trump was inaugurated — Sun posted on X, “if I have made any money in cryptocurrency, all credit goes to President Trump.”
In April, The Wall Street Journal reported that Joe Biden’s Justice Department had been investigating Sun, noting that researchers had estimated that more than half of all illicit crypto activity took place on Sun’s Tron blockchain platform. The Journal said it wasn’t clear whether the investigation was ongoing. It said Sun’s representatives declined to comment about what they called “baseless allegations about legal matters” while denying Tron enables criminal activity.
Sun may now be a multibillionaire, with a net worth estimated at $8.5 billion, according to Forbes. He reportedly was forced to spend $2 billion to shore up one of his crypto firms that was facing collapse in 2022.
He did not immediately respond to a request for comment about what he hoped to get out of the dinner with the president.
Sun has also earned headlines for purchasing ‘Comedian,’ an art installation composed of a banana duct-taped to a wall, for $6.2 million, and for buying lunch with Warren Buffett for $4.57 million.
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Raising prices on consumers to cover the costs of President Donald Trump’s tariffs will be Target’s ‘very last resort,’ CEO Brian Cornell said Wednesday.
The remarks came as Target reported weaker-than-expected sales in its first quarter and cut its full-year forecast. The retailer, whose business hasn’t fared as well against rivals better known for bargain prices, has “many levers to use in mitigating the impact of tariffs,” Cornell said.
Major retailers appear to be treading cautiously around the question of price hikes after Trump slammed Walmart last weekend for warning that shoppers could pay more due to tariffs. In the days since, Target, Lowe’s and Home Depot have each made carefully worded remarks about the potential for higher prices or minimized discussion of tariffs altogether.
Walmart said last week that it customers would likely start seeing some prices climb as soon as this month because tariffs have created a more “challenging environment to operate in.” While presidents typically avoid appearing to dictate individual companies’ strategies, Trump castigated Walmart on his social media platform, demanding that it “EAT THE TARIFFS” and adding, “I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!!”
“We’ll keep prices as low as we can for as long as we can given the reality of small retail margins,” Walmart told NBC News Saturday in response to Trump’s post. Days later, Home Depot all but ruled out near-term price hikes, citing its scale and supply-chain arrangements. Lowe’s barely mentioned tariffs when it reported earnings Wednesday but said just 20% of what its shoppers buy now comes from China, after years of diversifying its sourcing.
For Target, Cornell emphasized that tariffs were just one factor in a series of “massive potential costs” the company is grappling with. He pointed to consumer uncertainty over the direction of the economy and a high-profile backlash over Target’s watering down of its diversity, equity and inclusion policies. The retailer had expanded those initiatives after police murdered George Floyd in its hometown, Minneapolis, five years ago this weekend.
Target has rolled out discounts over the past year to lure inflation-weary shoppers and touted plans to expand its third-party marketplace to offer a broader range of items. To deal with new trade policy challenges, it’s negotiating with vendors, reassessing its product lineup and adjusting its foreign supply chain, Chief Commercial Officer Rick Gomez told investors Wednesday.
‘Half of what we sell comes from the U.S.,’ he said, adding that Target is expanding production in the United States and in other countries outside of China, whose exports currently face a 30% import tax.
Target’s stock fell more than 5% Wednesday during a broader market sell-off.
Some major companies that sell products at leading retailers have raised prices or said they’re considering doing so, including toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker, consumer products giant Procter & Gamble, sportswear brand Adidas and toy maker Mattel.
Mattel, the maker of Barbie dolls, has also come under fire from Trump, who threatened to hit it with 100% tariffs this month, after it signaled price hikes were on the table.
Big companies generally have more latitude to handle cost increases and other economic headwinds than their smaller counterparts. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and independent business owners have warned that tariffs threaten to snuff out many small operators, chipping away at the competition for already large corporate rivals.
The National Retail Federation, which represents some of the biggest retailers in the country, has emphasized that risk in lobbying against new levies. “Small and medium-sized businesses will be disproportionately affected by the tariffs, with many saying they will have to raise prices or shut down,” it says on its website.
So far, “consumers are still spending despite widespread pessimism fueled by rising tariffs,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said in a statement last week after retail sales eked out a modest 0.1% rise in April.
But even the largest multinational companies aren’t insulated from tariff-driven uncertainty, the NFR and industry analysts say. Like Target, several large firms have revised or scrapped their financial outlooks in recent weeks, unsure how the White House’s trade agenda will affect them. Nike plans to increase prices on several items between now and June 1, a person familiar with the matter told NBC News on Wednesday.
Not every retailer is voicing tariff jitters. The parent company of T.J. Maxx and Marshalls beat sales estimates Wednesday and maintained its full-year forecast. The discounter, which buys unsold merchandise from other brands that have already paid tariffs on much of it, said it expects to be able to handle the pressure from higher import taxes.
Sportswear brand Canada Goose, which makes popular winter jackets, also exceeded Wall Street expectations. But it joined the slew of companies pulling their forecasts for the rest of the year, citing an “unpredictable global trade environment.”
This post appeared first on NBC NEWS
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