NBA

What many projected as a runaway FIBA World Cup victory early Friday morning turned into a nail-biter for an undersized Team USA squad facing a physical Montenegro national basketball team to open the second round.

Paolo Banchero led the way for Team USA with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field off the bench as the Americans opened World Cup play with a blowout win over New Zealand.

The Los Angeles Lakers plan to honor the late Kobe Bryant with a statue outside their home arena, further recognizing the five-time NBA champion as one of the franchise’s all-time greats.

Charles “Choo” Smith Jr., the newly elected chairman of the National Basketball Retired Players Association, seeks to fulfill his plan to build what he calls a “CommuniVersity” of a youth empowerment center surrounded by retail, housing and work development in the 4700 block of Greenspring Avenue.

The Maryland U.S. Senate race is heating up with both money and star power.

Houston Rockets rookie Cam Whitmore, an Archbishop Spalding graduate, earned MVP honors at the NBA Summer League after averaging 19.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists over six games in Las Vegas.

After Archbishop Spalding graduate Cam Whitmore fell to pick No. 20 in the NBA draft, those close to him knew the doubt would only add more fuel to his fire. “All you’ve done is motivate him even more,” Cavaliers coach Josh Pratt said.

For a brief moment, Bilal Coulibaly was an Indiana Pacer. Then, he was traded to the Washington Wizards. A whirlwind night for Coulibaly at the NBA draft on Thursday was part of a memorable one for his country of France.