NBA Playoffs: Magic, 76ers, Nuggets all win their Game 3 matchups

The Orlando Magic beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 121-83 on Thursday in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series- marking Cleveland’s worst playoff loss in franchise history.

The Magic’s Paolo Banchero had 31 points and 14 rebounds, while Jalen Suggs added 24 points and Franz Wagner finished with 16 points and eight assists to bring Orlando their first win of the series thus far. The Cavs now lead the series 2-1, with Game 4 scheduled to take place on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. in Orlando.

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The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the NY Knicks on Thursday night in their Game 3 matchup with a score of 125-114. The 76ers Joel Embiid scored an incredible 50 points, with 8 rebounds and 4 assists, while Tyrese Maxey had 25 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals to help Philly earn their first win of the series thus far, with the Knicks holding onto a 2-1 series lead.

Game 4 will take place on Sunday in Philly at the Wells Fargo Center at 1:00 PM EST.

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The LA Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets 112-105 in Game 3 of their first-round series at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday, to take a 3-0 series lead.

Aaron Gordon had a playoff career-high 29 points and 15 rebounds, with Nikola Jokic adding 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and Jamal Murray scoring 22 points.

The Lakers will attempt to avoid elimination when they face the Nuggets in Game 4 on Saturday night in LA.

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High schooler arrested in shooting death of fellow student on Texas school campus

Police have arrested a 17-year-old in the shooting death of a high school student on the campus of an Arlington, Texas, high school.

Arlington Police Chief Al Jones said 18-year-old Etavion Barnes was found unresponsive with multiple gunshot wounds on Wednesday afternoon outside portable buildings on the campus of Bowie High School. According to police, detectives still are working to determine a motive but said it appeared the two knew each other. Authorities have not yet recovered a weapon in the killing, and no other injuries were reported.

The suspect, identified as Julian Howard according to Arlington Jail records, was charged with murder, with police saying it appears that Barnes was targeted. Police Chief Jones said the shooting was reported about 2:50 p.m., shortly before classes were scheduled to be dismissed, and the school was placed on lockdown for about two hours before students were allowed to leave, adding: “we’re still early on in our investigation, our detectives are working to determine a motive.”

A press release from the Arlington PD read: “We, as a community, cannot tolerate this kind of violence. Not in our neighborhoods and not in our schools. Violence is never the right answer. We will continue to work in lock step with our partners at Arlington ISD to ensure our schools are safe spaces where students can learn.”

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Stanley Cup Playoffs: Panthers and Hurricanes earn wins, take 3-0 series leads

The Florida Panthers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning to take a 3-0 series lead, after winning their Game 3 matchup at Amalie Arena with a score of 5-3.  The Panthers’ Steven Stamkos scored two goals, with Andrei Vasilevskiy stopping 47 shots to help bring Florida the win.

The Panthers will try to complete the sweep when they face-off against the Lightning for Game 4 on Saturday night in Tampa, Florida.

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The Carolina Hurricanes took a 3-0 series lead against the New York Islanders in Game 3 on Thursday with a 3-2 win at UBS Arena.

Brent Burns and Dmitry Orlov scored in the first period to give the Hurricanes an early lead, while Sebastian Aho also scored, and Andrei Svechnikov had two assists. Goalie Frederik Andersen stopped 29 shots to help seal the Canes victory.

The Hurricanes will look to sweep the Islanders when they meet in Game 4 on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET in New York.

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Take a listen to Jason Aldean and John Morgan’s ‘Friends Like That’

John Morgan has enlisted Jason Aldean for a new version of his fan-favorite track, “Friends Like That.” The song racked up over 28 million on-demand streams, and was originally featured on his recently released debut EP, Remember Us?

Morgan said of his friend and mentor, Aldean:  “To have Jason Aldean as a mentor over the past few years, he went from being someone I was a fan of to someone I call a friend, so it’s extra special to have him on one of my songs. Having a song on the radio is what you always dream about when you pursue this career. I grew up on country radio and to know that another kid might grow up with me on the radio and want to pursue a music career too is a really cool thought.”

Aldean adds: “I’ve been in town here in Nashville for 25 years, and John Morgan is one of the most talented guys I’ve ever come across in all aspects – as a singer, as a songwriter and as a performer. It’s a really cool thing for me as an artist to sign another artist, so jumping on this song that’s also jumpstarting his career along with going to radio, I’m excited for what’s to come from John Morgan and glad he’s one of ours and on our team.”

Take a look at the video for ‘Friends Like That’ – here.

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Parker McCollum earns fourth No. 1 on Country Airplay charts with ‘Burn It Down’

Parker McCollum earned his fourth straight #1 hit at country radio with “Burn It Down,” taking the top spot on both the Mediabase chart and Billboard Country Airplay charts. ‘Burn It Down’ follows Parker’s previous #1 hits including “Pretty Heart,” “To Be Loved By You,” and most recently, “Handle On You”.

Per Billboard, ‘Burn It Down’, written by McCollum, Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose, is the sophomore single from McCollum’s LP, Never Enough, which hit the Top 20 on the Top Country Albums charts last May.

Parker announced just announced 13 additional tour stops on his current headlining Burn It Down Tour, taking him to the West Coast and more. McCollum will also play stadiums dates with Morgan Wallen on Wallen’s One Night at a Time World Tour.

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New York Appeals Court overturns Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape and sexual assault convictions

The New York State Court of Appeals has overturned Harvey Weinstein‘s rape conviction from 2020, making the 4-3 decision on Thursday, April 25 on the basis that the judge on the trial prejudiced Weinstein with “egregious” improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.

According to the Associated Press, the decision also stated: “We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes. The remedy for these egregious errors is a new trial,” and also noted that testimony “served no material non-propensity purpose” and “portrayed defendant in a highly prejudicial light.”  The court claimed that there was “an abuse of judicial discretion to permit untested allegations of nothing more than bad behavior that destroys a defendant’s character but sheds no light on their credibility as related to the criminal charges lodged against them.”

Weinstein was charged after being accused of forcibly performing oral sex on a woman in 2006 and raping another women in 2013; he was found guilty in February 2020 of criminal sexual act in the first degree and rape in the third degree in a New York City courtroom, and was subsequently sentenced to 23 years in prison.

PEOPLE reports that it is unclear at this time if Weinstein, 72, will face another trial in connection with these charges. The former Hollywood mogul will be transferred to the custody of prison authorities in California and will remain imprisoned, stemming from his Los Angeles conviction in 2022 on other rape charges, where he was sentenced to 16 years in prison. (Weinstein was acquitted in Los Angeles on charges involving one of the women who testified in New York.).

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New York Appeals Court overturns Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape and sexual assault convictions

The New York State Court of Appeals has overturned Harvey Weinstein‘s rape conviction from 2020, making the 4-3 decision on Thursday, April 25 on the basis that the judge on the trial prejudiced Weinstein with “egregious” improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.

According to the Associated Press, the decision also stated: “We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes. The remedy for these egregious errors is a new trial,” and also noted that testimony “served no material non-propensity purpose” and “portrayed defendant in a highly prejudicial light.”  The court claimed that there was “an abuse of judicial discretion to permit untested allegations of nothing more than bad behavior that destroys a defendant’s character but sheds no light on their credibility as related to the criminal charges lodged against them.”

Weinstein was charged after being accused of forcibly performing oral sex on a woman in 2006 and raping another women in 2013; he was found guilty in February 2020 of criminal sexual act in the first degree and rape in the third degree in a New York City courtroom, and was subsequently sentenced to 23 years in prison.

PEOPLE reports that it is unclear at this time if Weinstein, 72, will face another trial in connection with these charges. The former Hollywood mogul will be transferred to the custody of prison authorities in California and will remain imprisoned, stemming from his Los Angeles conviction in 2022 on other rape charges, where he was sentenced to 16 years in prison. (Weinstein was acquitted in Los Angeles on charges involving one of the women who testified in New York.).

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Travis Kelce to host new game show ‘Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?’

Amazon Prime Video announced that NFL star Travis Kelce, tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, will host the new game show ‘Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?,’ a spinoff of the series ‘Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?’ Amazon Prime Video posted on their socials:  “the man with the answers. Travis Kelce will host ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A CELEBRITY? Coming soon to Prime Video.”  Twenty episodes of the new game show have been ordered, though no launch date has been set.

Each game will feature an adult contestant who will call on a classroom full of celebrities to help them answer 11 questions on a range of subjects, pulled from elementary school curriculum, in pursuit of a $100,000 prize. An official synopsis reads: “they are not competing against the stars… they’re enlisting their help and, in some cases, can even ‘cheat’ off of them. And on the final question, worth $100,000, the contestant selects one celebrity to discuss the answer with before locking in. The final question is always at the 6th grade level.”

Lauren Anderson, head of AVOD originals unscripted and targeted programming at Amazon MGM Studios, said in a press release: “For years, fans around the world have tested their smarts with this fun, nostalgic game show, and we look forward to bring this reimagined format to Prime Video. Travis has proven to be an incredible talent on and off the field, and we appreciate the trust he has placed in us with his first foray into television. His natural, comedic dynamic with our panelists and guests, coupled with some exciting new twists, will keep our global customers coming back week after week.”

Kelce says in a statement via Entertainment Weekly: “I grew up loving game shows, and I’m excited to be following in the footsteps of so many TV icons by hosting my very first one with ‘Are you Smarter than a Celebrity?’ The original show is a great success, so to be bringing a new format with everyone’s favorite celebrities to the screen, will definitely be entertaining. I’m just happy to be on the hosting side of the equation here and excited to see how these famous faces keep up.”

Kelce is an eight-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro; his new hosting gig comes months after winning Super Bowl LVIII with the Chiefs in February (his third Super Bowl win) He is also famously dating superstar Taylor Swift, and hosts a podcast called ‘New Heights’ with his brother, former NFL offensive lineman Jason Kelce.

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NBA Playoffs: Heat beat Celtics, Thunder defeat Pelicans

On Wednesday night in Boston, the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference playoffs with a score of 111-101, to even the series at 1-1.

Miami broke their franchise record for 3-pointers in a playoff game after Jaime Jaquez Jr. connected on the Heat’s 21st of the game with 5:37 left in the fourth quarter (breaking Miami’s previous mark of 20, set in 2021.).

The teams will head to Miami for a Saturday night matchup in Game 3.

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The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 124-92 on Wednesday in Game 2 of their playoff series, to take a 2-0 lead. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points to help lead the Thunder past the Pelicans, while Chet Holmgren had 26 points and seven rebounds and Jalen Williams added 21 points.

Game 3 will take place on Saturday in New Orleans.

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NHL Playoffs: Bruins, Golden Knights, King all win

The Boston Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series. Brad Marchand had two goals (including the winning third period goal) and one assist; while Jake DeBrusk and Trent Frederic added the other 2 goals for Boston, and Jeremy Swayman earned 28 saves.

Game 4 of the best-of-seven series will take place at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday.

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The Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Dallas Stars 3-1 in Game 2 of the first round of the Western Conference at American Airlines Center on Wednesday. Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault each had a goal and an assist for the Golden Knights, with Noah Hanifin also scoring, and Logan Thompson making 20 saves.

Game 3 of the series will be held in Vegas on Saturday at 10:30 p.m. ET

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The Los Angeles Kings won in OT over the Edmonton Oilers with a 5-4 score, to tie their series at 1-1 on Wednesday. Anže Kopitar scored the winning goal at 2:07 in OT, and had a pair of assists, while Adrian Kempe also had a pair of goals, and Drew Doughty and Kevin Fiala also scored.

The series shifts to Los Angeles, with Game 3 taking place on Friday.

 

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