Hoskins' 2-run homer leads Eflin, Phillies over Twins(Minnesota Twins championship rings) 2-1

PHILADELPHIA (AP) For once, the Philadelphia Phillies(Philadelphia Phillies championship rings) relied on strong pitching to win a game.

Rhys Hoskins hit a two-run homer , Zach Eflin threw seven sharp innings and the Phillies beat the Minnesota Twins 2-1 Sunday. ''This was an important game for the direction of our team,'' Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said. ''We proved we didn't need to see a lot of pitches and score a lot of runs with our potent offense.'' Eflin (2-0) allowed a leadoff homer to Max Kepler and five singles, striking out five.

''It was nice to squeak out seven,'' Eflin said. ''The action on my sinker and change-up were working. I didn't have my best slider.''Jose Berrios (1-1) gave up only an infield hit before Hoskins connected. He had seven strikeouts in six innings. Bryce Harper was 0 for 2 with two walks and stole a base. Phillies left fielder Andrew McCutchen made a perfect one-hop throw to the plate to prevent Marwin Gonzalez from scoring on Ehire Adrianza's single in the third.

David Robertson got two outs in the eighth and Adam Morgan finished the inning. Hector Neris tossed a perfect ninth for his first save since last Sept. 18 against the Mets. ''Hector was spectacular,'' Kapler said. Neris was Philadelphia's closer until he got demoted to the minors after struggling last season. He pitched well after returning to the majors and is part of a closer-by-committee bullpen. ''I just come in and try to do my job whether it's the ninth, eighth, sixth inning,'' Neris said.

Kepler gave the Twins(mlb championship rings) a 1-0 lead when he drove a fastball into the seats in right-center for his first career leadoff homer. He went deep in each game of the series. Hoskins fouled off three straight 3-2 pitches in the sixth before launching his third homer into the flower bed just over the left-center field wall. ''I missed a few pitches previously,'' he said. ''I was able to get barrel to the ball and got enough of it to get it out.'' Berrios' pitch was in a good spot, down and away.

''Jose made a nice pitch,'' Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. ''He's a good hitter and he put it over the fence. Jose threw the ball really well.'' After averaging 8.2 runs in their first six gameschampionship rings), the Phillies have only scored four in the last two.

No. 1 seed North Carolina will face No. 5 seed Auburn in Friday's first semifinal in the Midwest Region, and it shapes up like a track meet on a basketball court. Following a narrow escape against New Mexico State, Auburn demolished Kansas, 89-75, in the second round. The Tigers raced to a 26-point halftime lead on the way to handing Kansas the fourth-worst NCAA(University/College Rings championship rings) tournament defeat in program history. Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl knows the acts only become more difficult by the round.

"I used the terminology that we're not afraid to run with North Carolina," Pearl said Tuesday. "It wasn't a challenge or trying to say we're not afraid of North Carolina. We've got a good, healthy fear and respect of North Carolina. It's just ... that's how we play too. For us to not try to play fast would go against how we play best also. Even though historically, the way to beat Carolina is to get them in a half-court game and not let them beat you in transition. That's going to be difficult to do because of the way we like to play." The selection committee put North Carolina (29-6) first in the region, and the favored Tar Heels looked the part through two games, thanks to a team that runs with the best of them. The Tar Heels manhandled Iona and Washington, controlling the boards and the tempo to set up their sprinting, fast-break offense.

"Needless to say, anybody who advances past this point you feel good about a win in the second round," UNC coach Roy Williams said. "I love our toughness, and I love the edge our bench gave us." Freshman forward Nassir Little has come off the bench to lead UNC with an average of 19.5 points through two tournament games, but he is questionable for the Sweet 16 because of flu-like symptoms, Williams said Thursday. Little is averaging 10.0 points and 4.7 rebounds per game for the season. Pearl sounded more concerned about size than speed in the regional semifinal. "North Carolina might be the best team left in the field," Pearl said Tuesday. "They're plus-10.5 rebound margin. We're about minus-3.5 rebound margin, for a difference of 14. Rebounding has been a problem for us all year."

Pearl knows the Tigers are about to step up in class. Awaiting in the regional final is second-seeded Kentucky or third-seeded Houston. "It's really hard to get here," he said, "and it's even harder to finish. This next round is blue bloods on steroids." Freshman point guard Coby White scored 17 points for North Carolina in the win over Washington on Sunday. Cam Johnson is the team's leading scorer at 16.9 points per game, but White and forward Luke Maye are more than capable of carrying the offense in stretches. White's blazing speed ignites the attack.

"They have really good big guys that are great interior passers and guys that can operate in that high post area. And it's a hard cover for us. It's a hard matchup," Washington coach Mike Hopkins said. "And I thought they got us everywhere. They got us in the high post. They got us on the 3. They got to the foul line." North Carolina is the third-highest scoring team in NCAA(custom championship rings) Division I at 86.1 points per game. Auburn is 36th at 79.5. On defense, Auburn ranks 93rd at 68.5 points per game allowed, while North Carolina is 208th at 72.5. When the brackets came out, it was reasonable to assume that North Carolina would be facing Kansas on their second "home court." Kansas is 44-10 all-time at Sprint Center.

Williams had reason to complain about that possibility, though he did not publicly. He coached at Kansas from 1988-2003, and he is 0-3 against his former team, including in 2013 at Sprint Center. Auburn, which tends to thrive in chaos on the court, is thrilled to be the closest thing to a bracket-buster in the region. The fifth seed is no pushover, having propelled into the tournament as SEC tournament champions. "We're playing really good basketball," Pearl said. "We were in the best position that the program could possibly be in to win that (Kansas) game ... I feel like we're in a really good position right now to make history."

Antetokounmpo may miss Bucks' battle with Cavs

On paper, Milwaukee versus Cleveland would appear to be no contest. The Bucks have the best record in the league. The Cavaliers(Cleveland Cavaliers championship rings) have the league's third-worst record. Milwaukee has cooled off of late and travels to Cleveland to take on the Cavaliers Wednesday night. The Bucks have defeated the Cavs twice this season. Despite their record, the Cavaliers don't resemble the team that lost to the Bucks by 16 back on Dec. 10. "Success is not always necessarily measured on wins and losses," Cavs coach Larry Drew said. "Are those guys the same players they were at the start of the season? By no stretch of the imagination are they. These guys have really, really shown growth."



While the future looks bright in Cleveland, the future is now for Milwaukee(Milwaukee Bucks championship rings). They've cooled off a bit and are just 5-4 in their last nine games after beating the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. Khris Middleton led the way with 30 points. Brook Lopez added 28. Giannis Antetokounmpo, who tweaked his right ankle while scoring 52 points in a loss to Philadelphia on Sunday, sat out. "I tweaked it a little bit and at first felt a bit of pain, but the adrenaline kicks in and I just wanted to keep playing," he said.

Antetokounmpo is listed as questionable for Wednesday's game. The Bucks were already adjusting to life without Malcolm Brogdon and his 15.6 points per game. Brogdon is out indefinitely with a plantar fascia tear in his right foot. "We definitely felt it tonight," Antetokounmpo said after the Philadelphia loss. "Not having Malcolm is a big loss. We have to play as a team and we have a lot of guys who have to be ready to step up." On Tuesday, Milwaukee signed Tim Frazier to help offset the loss of Brogdon. In 47 games with New Orleans this season, Frazier averaged 5.0 points and 4.4 assists per game.

"They're the No. 1 team for a reason," Frazier told the Journal Sentinel. "Great coaches, great players ... so I'm just coming in and trying to learn as much as possible and help." Milwaukee also was without Sterling Brown, Donte DiVincenzo and Ersan Ilyasova for the game against the Lakers. The Bucks will get no sympathy from the Cavaliers, who have dealt with injuries all season. Cleveland(nba championship rings) dressed just nine players -- seven who scored in double figures in a win over Detroit. Kevin Love, Larry Nance Jr., Tristan Thompson and Matthew Dellavedova all missed the game.

Since the All-Star Break(championship rings for sale), the Cavs are 5-2 at home and are averaging 112.1 points. The catalyst has been rookie Collin Sexton, who has elevated his game. Sexton is averaging 21.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 45 percent from 3-point range in the last 18 games. Sexton scored 27 against Detroit and became the first rookie to score at least 23 points in six consecutive games since Tim Duncan did it twice for the San Antonio Spurs in 1998. Criticized as a poor shooter coming out of Alabama, Sexton has worked hard. "I knew coming into the season that was the biggest thing, I couldn't shoot, so I work each and every day to try to make sure my 3 ball is good and make sure my jump shot looks good," Sexton said. "That motivates me a whole lot, just to show and prove people wrong."

Win-needy Blue Jackets face Bruins, fresh off rare loss

For the first time in nearly two months, the Boston Bruins(Boston Bruins championship rings) must bounce back from a regulation defeat. They'll get that chance Tuesday night, when they visit a Columbus Blue Jackets team fighting for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Boston's stellar 15-0-4 stretch ended with Sunday's 4-2 loss at Pittsburgh, but the hosts needed an empty-netter to secure the result. It was the Bruins' first regulation defeat since Jan. 19, at home to the New York Rangers.



In the end, the Bruins outscored their opponents 62-41 during a 19-game point streak that's the second-longest in team history. "I think we can be proud of that, but not satisfied," defenseman John Moore told the Bruins' official website. "There's no reason we can't get right back to work on Tuesday. "That's the special part about this group, is guys really push each other and we expected a lot of each other. We'll be ready to go on Tuesday."

Second in the Atlantic Division, Boston hasn't lost back-to-back games since an 0-1-2 slide from Jan. 19-31. It last dropped two straight in regulation on Dec. 23 and 27. The Bruins will try to get back on track while minus key defenseman Matt Grzelcyk (arm), who was injured Sunday. They're also unsure if forward Jake DeBrusk will miss a fourth consecutive game with a lower-body injury. The club remains without star winger David Pastrnak (thumb), who could be back this weekend when it returns from this three-game trip. After Jaroslav Halak made 33 saves against the Penguins, Tuukka Rask could be in net trying for his fifth straight win. Rask is 16-0-3 with a 1.94 goals-against average during a 20-start stretch in which he's earned a decision in all but one game.

In an interesting scheduling quirk, this is the first meeting of the season between the Bruins and Blue Jackets. The teams will play again Saturday at Boston and back in Columbus on April 2. The Blue Jackets have won three of the last four meetings against the Bruins(nhl championship rings), who earned four points during that stretch. However, while Boston is sitting comfortably in playoff position in the East, Columbus has work to do to remain in the postseason picture. Columbus returns home after falling 2-0 to the New York Islanders on Monday. The Blue Jackets outshot the Islanders 31-20, but were blanked for the third time in six games in March, going 2-4-0.

"We just need to score," Columbus captain Nick Foligno said. "We've just got to find a way to get the puck in the net. ... We've got to get some run support for our goalie." Columbus' Sergei Bobrovsky stopped all but one of the 19 shots he faced, and he could again get the call in this back-to-back since backup Joonas Korpisalo has lost four consecutive starts. Bobrovsky owns an 0.99 goals-against average and .962 save percentage in his last three starts. There's uncertainty about the availability of Blue Jackets(custom championship rings) forward Boone Jenner, who missed Monday's contest with an illness. Jenner has two goals with an assist in his last three games against the Bruins.

Boston's David Krejci has a goal in four straight contests. He has two with seven assists during a seven-game point streak versus Columbus. The Blue Jackets are 4-8-0 at home since a four-game winning streak there from Dec. 31-Jan. 15.

Panarin expected to play as Blue Jackets visit Senators

Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella painted a graphic picture in detailing why star forward Artemi Panarin was unable to play in the team's last game. Presumably over his illness, Panarin was spotted at Thursday's practice and is expected to play in his 300th NHL contest the following night as the Blue Jackets bid to end a two-game skid against the host Ottawa Senators. Panarin, whose name is a popular one as the NHL(stanley cup rings) trade deadline draws near, leads the team in assists (43) and points (67). The 27-year-old Russian has scored four goals and set up three others in a four-game stretch before being held off the scoresheet in Monday's 5-1 setback versus Tampa Bay.



Tortorella ventured into "TMI" territory in describing the ins and outs of Panarin's illness the following day, and Columbus was left feeling ill after a 3-2 loss in Montreal. "It's two games now where I felt like we played well and got nothing to show for it," captain Nick Foligno said. "We have to find a way to play the full game. These little blips in the game are what's costing us." Josh Anderson recorded his fifth multi-point performance of the season and second in the last seven games with a goal and an assist against the Canadiens. Anderson's career-high 21st goal in the second period accounted for his sixth in the last 10 contests and his 22:27 of ice time was the most among forwards.

"I feel pretty good," the 24-year-old Ontario native said. "I think I'm getting scoring chances and playing the game I need to play to be successful. I'm pretty confident right now." Two-time Vezina Trophy recipient Sergei Bobrovsky appears to have regained his confidence, answering his 2-5-0 mark with a bloated 4.18 goals-against average and pedestrian .858 save percentage in January with a 5-2-0 record to go along with a 2.30 GAA and .922 save percentage this month. Bobrovsky, who is also rumored to be swapped prior to the trade deadline, improved to 7-5-1 in 13 encounters with the Senators after turning aside 22 shots in a 6-3 win on New Year's Eve.

While Columbus sits one point out of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, Ottawa resides significantly lower in the standings. The Senators fell for the ninth time in 12 contests after concluding their four-game road trip with Thursday's 4-0 setback against New Jersey(custom New Jersey Devils championship rings).Ottawa reportedly is entertaining trade talks with unrestricted free-agent forwards Mark Stone, Matt Duchene and former Ohio State star Ryan Dzingel ahead of the deadline. All three players were scratched prior to Thursday's contest for precautionary reasons, according to the team. "You don't really have a choice, so it doesn't really matter to me," Dzingel said of the constant trade talk. "If it happens, you pack your stuff up and move on. It's a business and my fiancee and family know that, so it's pretty much that simple."

Craig Anderson will look to pick up his first win since Dec. 17 when he mans the crease on Friday(cheap championship rings). The 37-year-old Anderson, who has allowed nine goals in his last two outings, boasts a 12-6-0 record with two shutouts, a 2.47 goals-against average and .915 save percentage in 18 career encounters with Columbus.

The Philadelphia Flyers(Philadelphia Flyers championship rings) arrived at Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday hoping to end their three-game skid one day after the Nashville Predators stopped their six-game slide. However, Philly's 2019 didn't get off to such a good start as the Preds rolled to a 4-0 victory for their second consecutive win.

The first 10 minutes featured a long period without stoppages and some good flow, but Nashville (24-15-2) only registered one shot on goal through the halfway point of the first. After a scoreless opening period, Craig Smith opened the scoring 2:03 into the second frame by wiring a wrist shot past Michal Neuvirth for his 11th goal of the season. P.K. Subban was called for interference at the 3:38 mark, sending the Flyers (15-19-5) to the game's first power play. Sean Coutuier redirected a Jakob Voracek(nhl championship rings) shot in the slot, but it hit the crossbar to end Philadelphia's best chance with the man advantage.

The top line kept chugging along and connected on the Preds' second goal as Ryan Hartman and Ryan Johansen set up Viktor Arvidsson for a tap-in goal at 12:03 of the second period. Fiala went to the box at 16:02 for tripping, triggering the Flyers' second power play chance of the evening. At the end of the power play, Fiala broke up a pass at the blue line, resulting in Arvidsson and Neuvirth racing for the loose puck. Fiala had the loose puck with Neuvirth down and out of the play, but failed to put it on net. Nashville got its first power play 22 seconds into the third period as Michael Raffl was called for interference. The Predators managed three shots on goal during the power play, though nothing came of it. Arvidsson pushed the Preds' lead to three at the 6:15 mark off a pass from Ellis.

Rocco Grimaldi added to the fun with a top-shelf shot off a pass from Zac Rinaldo at the 11:37 mark. Raffl put the Preds back on the power play with 1:43 left with a holding call, but Nashville(custom championship rings) simply ran out the clock from there.

Random Observations
Happy New Year, everyone. Here's to writing the wrong year on everything for the next week.
Speaking of things that are wrong, why is this a 7:30 start, again?
Turns out some of the players' moms did make the trip back to Nashville for the game tonight. Maybe the mojo carries over?
And a catfish to ring in 2019, too.
Lots of stuff happening around the Philly net, nary a score nor a penalty to show for it.
Juuse Saros with the loud pad save
It's perfectly okay if the officials want to speed this game along. Some of us have to return to work tomorrow.
The top line has been top-line-ish so far, save for actually getting one in the net.
Saros is definitely awake, but I'm not sure about everybody else — and that includes the Flyers.
What a pass by Fiala, and what a shot by Smith.
A bit lucky this game isn't tied right now.
Some chaotic moments around Neuvirth, going to need to keep that pressure up.
Someone might want to check on that post to the right of Neuvirth. Arvy hit it HARD.
Shane Gostisbehere is fortunate he's not hurt worse after catching a puck with the top of his visor. Yikes.
Preds put together a pretty darn funny Gnash vs. Gritty video with a “Rocky” montage.
Good work by Hartman to set Joey up for Arvy's goal. Something about getting to the net that works.
I've lost count on the number of posts and crossbars hit tonight. For both teams.
Matt Irwin just Matt Irwin-ed again.
Man, hard hit on Fiala. Clean, too. And nothing happened after it. What a concept.
All sorts of stuff is happening. Great work by Ellis in the neutral zone to hit Arvidsson after the turnover.
Rocco and Rinaldo have something cooking.
Smooth move, Roman Josi. Did everything but score.