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Puck to the face could sideline Chara in Game 5

Published in Hockey
Monday, 03 June 2019 21:59

ST. LOUIS -- The Bruins could be without captain Zdeno Chara for Game 5 after the defenseman took a puck to the face during Boston's 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night.

The incident occurred in the second period. A shot from Blues forward Brayden Schenn deflected off a stick and struck Chara in the face. The 42-year-old defenseman bled profusely, and blood needed to be cleaned up on the ice as Chara was helped to the locker room.

Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said Chara had some stitches and might need some dental work later.

Cassidy said the training staff advised him that Chara should be done for the night, though he was OK'd to sit on the bench in the third period because he wanted to be with his teammates.

"That's the type of guy he is, come out and be there to support," said Bruins forward Charlie Coyle. "You never want to see that happen to anyone, especially someone on your team, someone who is such a big part of our team playing-wise, leadership-wise. It's not an ideal situation, but it's how you respond to adversity, and you see a lot of it during this time of year."

Cassidy said Chara will be re-evaluated when the team returns to Boston.

"I can't say whether he would play in Game 5 or not, I have no idea," Cassidy said.

Game 5 is set for Thursday night in Boston. The series is tied at two games apiece.

This isn't the first time Chara has dealt with an injury this postseason. The 6-foot-9 defenseman missed the clinching Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals with an undisclosed injury, but he put on his uniform and skates to join his teammates in the customary handshake line following the contest.

Chara returned to the lineup for the Stanley Cup Final after the team had a 10-day layoff between series.

Chara also sustained an injury toward the end of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. Chara blocked a shot from Vladimir Tarasenko that injured his wrist. Chara, however, said it was just a cut, and he returned to the lineup.

"He's a guy who wants to be out there," said Bruins center David Backes. "He wants to battle and be with the guys. ... If there's any chance for him to be back, he'll be back. If not, it'll be next man up again. Whoever our next guy up is will have to fill that role admirably -- and they're big feet to fill."

The Bruins already are without one for their top six defensemen; Matt Grzelcyk is in the concussion protocol after being boarded by Oskar Sundqvist in Game 2. Grzelcyk has not played since, though earlier Monday, Cassidy said he is "better than he was" and is a candidate to return at some point in this series.

If Chara cannot go for Game 5, the Bruins have several replacement options. Cassidy said the obvious choice would be veteran Steven Kampfer because he has Stanley Cup playoffs experience. Kampfer played one game in the first round against the Toronto Maple Leafs and one game in the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes, tallying one goal.

However, Kampfer is a right-shot defenseman, and Chara is a left. That means the team also will consider 20-year-old Urho Vaakanainen (two games in the regular season) or 22-year-old Jeremy Lauzon (16 games in the regular season).

Resilient Blues forget bad loss to even series

Published in Hockey
Monday, 03 June 2019 23:09

ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis forward Zach Sanford believes that a 7-2 loss last Saturday in the first Stanley Cup Final game the city had seen in 49 years could have torn a different team apart.

But not these Blues. Not this postseason.

"A tough loss like that, I think a lot of teams a lot of guys have been on start throwing each other around the bus, blaming other people and doing this and that," said Sanford, in reference to their Game 3 disaster against the Boston Bruins. "With this group, it's all just boosting each other and having each other's back, and that showed tonight."

The Blues evened the Stanley Cup Final 2-2 with a 4-2 victory on Monday night that was equal parts bludgeoning and buoyant. It continued a trend for St. Louis that has spanned the postseason, which is its ability to follow losses with strong efforts. Even losses as gutting as Game 3 last Saturday.

"It's the playoffs. You have to forget that game as quick as possible. It doesn't matter if it's 10-1 or 2-1. A loss is a loss. It's just another game," said forward Oskar Sundqvist, who returned to the Blues' lineup after being suspended for Game 3. "You need to refocus, and that's what we did."

The return of Sundqvist, one of the team's top penalty killers, highlighted a big improvement for the Blues in Game 4: their handling of the Bruins' top-ranked power play.

After scoring four goals on four shots in Game 3 with the man advantage, the Bruins went 0-for-2 on the power play. The key number there might have been the "2," as the Blues played by far their most disciplined game of the series, staying out of the penalty box after the Bruins had 14 power plays in the previous three games. But the fact that the Bruins didn't score on the power play for the first time in the Final was also key.

"A lot of sacrificing, blocking shots and great awareness. We really took their big guns away, and they're a talented group," said goalie Jordan Binnington.

When it comes to the Blues' resiliency, Binnington personifies it. The rookie goalie became the sixth goalie in NHL history to record seven wins after a defeat within a single postseason, moving to 7-2 after St. Louis losses in the playoffs. His numbers in those games? A 1.86 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage. He has also allowed two or fewer goals in eight of the nine games.

"I think we understand it's a series, right? And it's not going to be perfect, and things aren't going to go your way. We just regroup and prepare for the next game," he said.

But Binnington credited the team in front of him with having played their best game of the series and limiting the Bruins' chances.

"It's the second opportunities that we were giving up. A lot of them off the rush," said defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, agreeing with Binnington's premise. "The forwards did a great job. Anytime there's back pressure, it allows us to play up and limit those rush opportunities."

But at the heart of the Blues' resiliency is pride. Not just in putting that embarrassing blowout loss in Game 3 behind them, but in delivering the first home-ice Stanley Cup Final win in city history to a fan base that has waited since 1968 to see one.

"Every year, you keep hearing, 'Let's go win the Cup.' Even after last year," said winger Vladimir Tarasenko. "People start believing in us. We feel it. It gives us a really big emotional boost. We go around this city and see 'Let's go Blues' everywhere. It's unbelievable times."

Blues beat Bruins 4-2 to knot Stanley Cup Final at 2-2

Ryan O'Reilly scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period for his second of the night, and the St. Louis Blues thrived in a chaotic Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night to beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 and tie the series at two...

Commonsense has prevailed - with the help of a nifty pivot via the Cricket Australia constitution - to allow Earl Eddings to serve as chairman of the governing body for a further three years, outflanking the evident disapproval of Cricket Victoria, his own state.

Eddings was overnight confirmed as having the backing of the CA Board to continue as chairman, and will maintain his place to do so as a director by resigning as Victoria's state-appointed board member and instead taking the independent vacancy left by the removal of his predecessor David Peever last year amid the fallout from the Newlands scandal and subsequent Ethics Centre review.

This leaves Victoria free to choose their own director between now and the AGM in October, meaning the state gets the chance to select a figure with a relevant array of experience and gravitas to help guide CA into the future.

The NSW-appointed vacancy left by Mark Taylor's resignation last year has been taken by Richard Freudenstein, a longtime executive for media companies owned by Rupert Murdoch. Formerly CEO of Foxtel, Freudenstein has also been CEO of News Corp's digital arm News Digital Media, The Australian newspaper and worked as the chief operating officer for British Sky Broadcasting.

His appointment provides the board with deeper knowledge of News Corp and Foxtel in the midst of a A$1.18 billion broadcast deal that the pay television provider paid the majority share of, in conjunction with the free-to-air network Seven.

"It is a privilege to be joining the Board of Cricket Australia and I look forward to bringing my skills and experience to the organisation," Freudenstein said. "Cricket is in a very strong position and has deep roots in the sporting and cultural life of our country. Like many Australians, I love the game and the impact it has in communities, and I look forward to working with my fellow board colleagues to help take advantage of the opportunities ahead."

Since he took over from Peever late last year, Eddings had been shackled somewhat by Victoria's very public rejection of the board's decision to appoint him as chairman. As the CV chairman Paul Barker said in November: "Cricket Victoria has made its view clear and our preference remains that the interim chairman arrangements were maintained while Australian cricket undertakes a thorough process to fill the recent board vacancies.

"We have actively encouraged Cricket Australia to pursue this opportunity through an established nominations committee -- a process that Cricket Victoria firmly believes would deliver the best outcome for Australian cricket."

However Eddings has managed in the interim to chair the board effectively, while also avoiding the kinds of public humiliations that his predecessor Peever stumbled through in the lead-up to his resignation, after Cricket New South Wales and its chairman John Knox withdrew support. Barker said CV supported Eddings as an independent director.

"CV supports CA's decision to appoint Earl as an independent director," he said, "and looks forward to working with him and the CA Board as we continue to grow Australian Cricket."

Michelle Tredenick and John Harnden, meanwhile, are to remain as CA directors after they were endorsed by the rest of the board for further three-year terms. Harnden was a contender for the role of CA chief executive last year, before it was ultimately taken by the former CA director Kevin Roberts, a close ally of Peever.

The director Jacquie Hey, who sat alongside Peever when he released the findings of the Ethics Centre review into CA's culture last year, said that Eddings had earned the chance to work as CA director for a full three-year term.

"Earl is well respected and has deep connections across all levels of Australian cricket thanks to his involvement in cricket over a number of years as a player, club president and administrator," Hey said. "More recently Earl has contributed as the former co-Chair of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cricket Advisory Committee.

"The directors nominated are all very passionate about growing cricket, and to have professionals of such standing and success, commit to our sport for another term is excellent for Cricket Australia. Today's announcements reflect our continued commitment to good governance and to building a skills-based Board aligned to the needs of Australian Cricket."

Molineux misses Ashes squad, Vlaeminck included

Published in Cricket
Monday, 03 June 2019 20:27

Burgeoning allrounder Sophie Molineux has not recovered from a shoulder surgery in time to be named in Australia's women's Ashes squad to tour England this year, though she has been offered an indirect path back to selection via the Australia A group who will be touring in parallel with the senior team.

Following a strong domestic season in which she was part of the Melbourne Renegades side narrowly beaten by the Sydney Sixers in a thrilling WBBL season four semi-final at Drummoyne Oval in Sydney, Molineux went in for surgery with the hope of being fit in time for the Ashes.

However, her recovery is still progressing, meaning Molineux will be gently brought back to the international fold via Australia A's matches against the England Women's Academy and also a tour game against the England senior side, ahead of the one-off Ashes Test at Taunton from July 18 to 21. The one-day leg of the Ashes begins on July 3.

Tayla Vlaeminck, the 20-year-old quick bowler who has played one ODI and one T20I, has been included after overcoming injury. She had missed the ODI series against New Zealand earlier this year as did Nicole Bolton, who had opted to take a break due to personal reasons and has been included in the Ashes squad. Meanwhile, Lauren Cheatle - who returned to the national fold during the New Zealand - has been left out.

"We've been able to name a reasonably stable squad which is really important with Sophie Molineux the only player to miss out from Australia's most recent series against New Zealand," national selector Shawn Flegler said. "Sophie has been doing everything she could do prove her fitness having had a shoulder reconstruction back in February, but she still needs a bit more time to make sure she's 100% [fit], so she'll travel to England with the Australia A side.

"Tayla was also under an injury cloud but she's back bowling and has had a terrific off-season up in Brisbane, so we're really excited to see what she can do in English conditions. We're fortunate to be able to take an Australia A side to England as well which will give us flexibility with the squad as we move through the various formats.

"The Ashes is arguably Australia's biggest bilateral series and one that is always a really tightly fought contest. As holders of the Ashes it's going to be a big challenge for the team to bring the trophy back to Australia, but we believe the side has the right mix of talent and the depth to do exactly that."

The tour will follow the same aggregate format used in recent times, with points accumulated over three ODIs, the one-off Test, and then three T20Is. Molineux will be hopeful of resuming her place in the national team by the time the shortest of the three formats rolls around in late July.

Australia will depart for England on June 21, and will play two 50-over warm-up matches against England Women's Academy in Loughborough on June 26 and 28, and a three-day red-ball game in Swindon from July 11-13.

One name of note in the Australia A squad is the 17-year-old Annabel Sutherland, making her first international tour after appearing for the Governor-General's XI against the touring New Zealand side late in the home summer.

Australia Ashes squad: Nicole Bolton, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Meg Lanning, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Elyse Villani, Georgia Wareham, Tayla Vlaeminck

Australia A squad: Maitlan Brown, Erin Burns, Josie Dooley, Heather Graham, Sammy-Jo Johnson, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Georgia Redmayne, Molly Strano, Annabel Sutherland, Rachel Trenaman, Belinda Vakarewa, Amanda-Jade Wellington.

Joe Burns diagnosed with 'fatigue disorder'

Published in Cricket
Monday, 03 June 2019 20:39

Australia opening batsman Joe Burns has been diagnosed with a fatigue disorder stemming from a virus he suffered in October 2018 which has left his hopes of a place in the Ashes squad hanging in the balance.

Burns ended his stint with Lancashire in county cricket after one match last month, and it has been revealed he was suffering extended symptoms of fatigue and burn-out, the timeline meaning he was playing with the condition for much of last season.

Although there is no timeframe yet for his return, a Queensland Cricket statement said it was anticipated he would be available in the "near future". It is understood that the Ashes series, which starts on August 1, remains a realistic aim for Burns.

"After consultation with specialists, he was diagnosed with a protracted post-infectious fatigue disorder dating back to an October 2018 viral infection," Queensland Cricket said. "Joe is currently undertaking a treatment period of rest and recuperation. A definite prognosis for a recovery is unavailable at present; however it is anticipated he will be fully available for cricket in the near future."

Burns is currently an incumbent opening batsman in the Test team after he was recalled to face Sri Lanka earlier this season. He made 180 in the second Test in Canberra - his fourth hundred in 16 Tests - but even before the illness his performance did not guarantee him an Ashes berth with David Warner's return to international cricket.

The men's Ashes squad will be named very late - after the inter-squad game between Australia and Australia A in Southampton at the end of July - to give the selectors as much time as possible to assess their options.

Burns was not named in the Australia A squad, instead left to take up his deal with Lancashire but, if his recovery goes well, the selectors could consider adding him to the group.

Minnesota Vikings chief operating officer Kevin Warren is expected to be introduced Tuesday as the next commissioner of the Big Ten Conference, sources confirmed to ESPN.

Warren has informed the Vikings he is planning to take the job, and he was in Chicago on Monday, ready for Tuesday's news conference, per sources.

Warren, 55, would become the first black commissioner of a Power 5 conference. He would replace longtime Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany, who in March announced his plans to retire in 2020 after 30 years with the league.

In March, the Sun Belt Conference hired former Atlantic 10 executive associate commissioner Keith Gill, who became the first black commissioner of a Football Bowl Subdivision conference.

Big Ten officials are scheduled to announce Delany's replacement at noon ET on Tuesday. WSCR 670 The Score's Mully & Haugh Show was first to report the hire.

The Big Ten's presidents and chancellors held their annual meeting Sunday, and it is believed that they approved the hiring of Delany's successor. Warren has spent 21 seasons working in the NFL, including the past 14 with the Vikings. He is the highest-ranking black executive working on the business side of an NFL franchise.

In 2015, Warren was promoted from vice president of legal affairs and chief administrative officer to chief operating officer of the Vikings. He played a key role in the development of the $1.1 billion U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, which opened in 2016 and hosted Super Bowl LII in February 2018. He was a candidate to become president of the Oakland Raiders in 2014.

In 2013, Warren was named a member of the NFL Committee on Workplace Diversity. As COO of the Vikings, he has made promoting women a top priority, with four moving into executive roles. In 2017, the Vikings named Kelly Kleine a college scouting coordinator.

Prior to joining the Vikings, Warren worked for the international law firm of Greenberg Traurig, spent two seasons with the Detroit Lions as senior vice president of business operations and general counsel from 2001 to '03 and was vice president of player programs and legal counsel of the St. Louis Rams from 1997 to 2001.

A native of Tempe, Arizona, Warren played basketball at Penn and Grand Canyon University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1986. He has an MBA from Arizona State and a juris doctorate degree from the Notre Dame School of Law.

He worked at a law firm with late SEC commissioner Mike Slive and prominent sports attorney Mike Glazier, specializing in the representation of universities charged with NCAA violations.

While attending law school at Notre Dame, he founded Kevin Warren and Associates and represented professional athletes and entertainers. Fighting Irish defensive lineman Chris Zorich was Warren's first client, and he represented NFL players Will Shields and Lake Dawson.

Warren's late father, Dr. Morrison Warren Sr., played professional football for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948. His father became the first black president of a major college football bowl game when he was named president of the Fiesta Bowl board of directors in 1982.

His oldest brother, Morrison Warren Jr., was one of the first black scholarship football players at Stanford in the early 1960s.

"I was fortunate to grow up in a family of trailblazers," Warren told The Undefeated in January 2017. "My parents, my grandparents, they have always kind of been pioneers in their own regard."

When Warren was 12, he was struck by a car while riding his bike. He broke his femur and was forced into a body cast for six months. When doctors told him that he might not be able to play sports, he asked what he could do to help his recovery. His doctors told him to swim.

His parents' home in Phoenix didn't have a pool, and they couldn't afford to build one. So Warren used the $30,000 insurance settlement he received from the driver of the car to build one.

"I'm not supposed to be here," Warren told the Sports Business Journal in February. "I'm so grateful that as a young kid, I realized how fragile life is and how it truly is a gift. I should have died. My classmates should have been going to a funeral to say, 'He was a nice boy, a good athlete, a good student and was fair, but life was cut short.' That should have been the story of Kevin Fulbright Warren. But it wasn't."

Warren and his wife, Greta, have a daughter, Peri, and a son, Powers, who plays football at Mississippi State.

ESPN's Adam Rittenberg contributed to this report.

UCLA hits 4 HRs, rolls past Oklahoma in Game 1

Published in Breaking News
Monday, 03 June 2019 23:21

OKLAHOMA CITY -- After rolling past Oklahoma in record fashion, the Bruins now have to forget about it.

Rachel Garcia hit a two-run homer and gave up one run in five innings, and UCLA routed Oklahoma 16-3 on Monday night to take a 1-0 lead in the Women's College World Series' best-of-three championship series. The Bruins matched the WCWS single-game record for runs scored and earned the largest margin of victory ever for a championship series game since the three-game format started in 2005.

Game 2 will be played Tuesday. UCLA (55-6) can claim its 13th national title and first since 2010.

"Tomorrow is a completely different game," Kinsley Washington, who went 4-for-4 and scored three times for UCLA, said. "This past game we just played has nothing to do with tomorrow's game. We need to keep that mindset."

Garcia, who threw 179 pitches on Sunday to earn the win against Washington, threw just 61 on Monday and rested the final two innings.

"Being able to have the ability to score the runs and not have Rachel be in the whole game was an ideal plan," UCLA coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said. "It's huge. A lot of things came together tonight."

A day after hitting a dramatic, walk-off homer, Garcia cranked one of UCLA's four home runs against Oklahoma. The Bruins had 16 hits against the Sooners, who entered the night leading the nation in earned run average.

"First, I have to give absolute credit to UCLA," Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso said. "They cleaned our clocks. There's no tiptoeing around it. That's the bottom line. There's nothing in our game that worked tonight. It's very atypical of this team."

Oklahoma (57-5) can still win its third title in four years with victories on Tuesday and Wednesday. Gasso expects that her team will learn from what happened on Monday.

"This game absolutely does not define us or our season," she said. "This team is very resilient, and that's what we were trying to get out of the worst game we've played all season, on the biggest stage. Unfortunately, it happened that way. But it does not define who we are."

UCLA's Aaliyah Jordan hit a solo homer in the top of the first inning to open the scoring. Oklahoma's Shay Knighten answered with a solo shot in the second.

Oklahoma committed three errors in the third inning to help the Bruins score twice.

With UCLA up 3-1 in the third, Oklahoma got two on with two outs when Jocelyn Alo drove one deep to right field that was caught near the warning track for the third out.

The Bruins scored again in the fourth when Washington doubled to score Colleen Sullivan, and in the fifth when Taylor Pack singled to knock Bubba Nickles in.

Oklahoma pulled starting pitcher Giselle "G" Juarez after the fourth inning, but UCLA was just getting started. The Bruins hit three homers in the sixth. Brianna Tautalafua hit a solo shot, Briana Perez hit a 3-run homer and Garcia hit the two-run blast to put UCLA up 11-1.

Grace Green hit a solo homer for Oklahoma in the bottom of the sixth to make it 11-2, but UCLA scored five more in the seventh.

It was a disappointing showing for the Sooners just 25 miles from campus.

"I told them not to read what people are going to be saying about us," Gasso said. "Don't get caught up into that. I think the thing that hurt them the most is feeling like they disappointed our fans."

Kawhi files lawsuit against Nike over 'Klaw' logo

Published in Basketball
Monday, 03 June 2019 17:44

Toronto Raptors star Kawhi Leonard filed a lawsuit against Nike on Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California in an attempt to reclaim control over a logo Leonard says he created.

"In 2011, just after being drafted to the National Basketball Association, Kawhi Leonard authored a unique logo that included elements that were meaningful and unique to him," the lawsuit reads. "Leonard traced his notably large hand, and, inside the hand, drew stylized versions of his initials 'KL' and the number that he had worn for much of his career, '2.' The drawing Leonard authored was an extension and continuation of drawings he had been creating since early in his college career.

"Several years later, as part of an endorsement deal with Nike, Leonard allowed Nike to use on certain merchandise the logo he created while Leonard continued to use the logo on non-Nike goods. Unbeknownst to Leonard and without his consent, Nike filed an application for copyright registration of his logo and falsely represented in the application that Nike had authored the logo."

A Nike spokesperson declined to comment.

The lawsuit goes on to say that Leonard, who flew to California along with the Raptors on Monday afternoon ahead of Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors, intends to use the "Klaw" logo in various capacities -- including clothing lines, footwear and in connection with sports camps and charity functions -- but that Nike has objected to him doing so. Leonard, therefore, wants to regain control of the logo, which he created while he was part of Jordan Brand's stable of athletes.

Since then, though, Leonard became a shoe free agent -- before eventually signing a deal with New Balance earlier this season. The Boston-based company has created multiple campaigns involving Leonard this season -- one being "Fun Guy," and another, more recently, being "King of the North," playing off a phrase from the recently concluded HBO series "Game of Thrones."

The nine-page lawsuit would, in theory, allow for a new campaign with New Balance sometime in the future -- or at the very least would again give Leonard (should he win) control of a logo he says should be his.

The lawsuit goes on to explain, in detail, how Leonard came up with the idea for the logo, which was developed at the start of his rookie season during his lockout-shortened 2011-12 campaign with the San Antonio Spurs.

"Leonard is known for his extremely large hands," the lawsuit reads. "Throughout his career, spectators have noticed Leonard's large hands and they are often described as contributing to his success as a player.

"Since at least his college years, Leonard contemplated and conceived of ideas for a personal logo which would be unique to him and reflect something meaningful relating to his own image. In late December 2011 or January 2012, Leonard refined a logo he had been creating for several years that encompassed his large and powerful hands, his initials and his jersey number.

"Leonard shared his original work of authorship with family and friends, solicited the advice and expertise of a creative designer, received comments and suggestions, and made modifications to his design."

Later in the lawsuit, it states Leonard and Nike have gone back-and-forth multiple times over the past several months regarding the use of the logo, with the last correspondence being in March, when Nike told him, "it owns all intellectual property rights in the Leonard Logo and demanding that Leonard immediately cease and desist from what Nike claimed was the unauthorized use of the Leonard Logo."

Finally, the lawsuit says the goal of the plaintiff is for Leonard to be declared the sole author of the logo; that Leonard's use of his logo doesn't interfere with Nike's rights, including "without limitation any rights Nike may claim to possess with respect to the Leonard Logo"; and that the defendant committed fraud on the Copyright Office in registering the Leonard Logo, along with "any such other and further relief as this Court deems just and proper."

Leonard and the Raptors will face the Warriors for Game 3 of the Finals at Oakland's Oracle Arena on Wednesday night. The series is tied at a game apiece.

ESPN's Nick DePaula contributed to this report.

Golden State Warriors forward Kevon Looney is likely to be lost for the rest of the NBA Finals with a right upper body fracture of the first costal cartilage.

Looney "will be out indefinitely," the Warriors confirmed Monday night, following an MRI in the San Francisco Bay Area after he missed the second half of Sunday's 109-104 NBA Finals Game 2 victory at the Toronto Raptors. The costal cartilage connect the sternum to the ribs.

Without Looney, the Warriors will become more dependent on center DeMarcus Cousins, who made a strong return from his own injury woes in Game 2.

Looney appeared to be dragging his right shoulder in the first half, but it is unclear exactly when he suffered the injury.

Meanwhile, there is optimism among the Warriors that swingman Klay Thompson will play with a mild hamstring strain in Game 3 in Oakland on Wednesday, a league source told ESPN. He will rehab the injury over the next two days.

Thompson, who is officially listed as "questionable" for the next game, exited in the fourth quarter of Game 2 with left hamstring tightness. He said after the game that he expected to play Game 3, with the series tied at one game apiece.

The results of Thompson's MRI were slightly delayed because the Warriors' charter plane landed later than expected Monday morning, pushing back the process a few hours. The plane didn't arrive back in Oakland until after 4 a.m. local time Monday.

The Game 2 injuries were the latest setbacks for a Warriors group already playing without its star Kevin Durant, who continues rehabbing a right calf injury. Meanwhile, swingman Andre Iguodala is dealing with a lingering calf injury.

The Warriors remain buoyed by the fact that they still found a way to win Game 2 and the belief that Durant will be back at some point in this series. Kerr said before Sunday's game that it was "feasible" Durant could participate in a practice, then play in a Finals game.

A second Warriors flight out of Toronto, carrying staff and family members, was scheduled to leave after Game 2 but had a mechanical issue that forced the plane to return to its gate. The second flight arrived safely in Oakland late Monday afternoon. Staff members traveling on the coaches and players' plane said they were happy to have been on the first flight out.

Information from ESPN's Nick Friedell was used in this report.

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