The other half of the NBA's conference semifinal round will begin Tuesday night, when the Cleveland Cavaliers will play in Boston against the Eastern Conference's top-seeded Celtics, while the Dallas Mavericks will bring the Red River Rivalry to the hardwood when they travel to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder, the West's No. 1 seed.

For Cleveland, it marks a return to the conference semifinals for the first time since 2018 -- and the first time without LeBron James since 1993. Boston, meanwhile, has now reached the second round of the playoffs seven times in the past eight years and is looking to make it back to the conference finals for a sixth time during that span.

Dallas has advanced in the playoffs for a second time in three years after making it to the Western Conference finals two years ago, while Oklahoma City is in the second round for the first time since 2016 -- when it lost a classic seven-game conference finals against the 73-win Golden State Warriors.

Here's a look at three key storylines to watch in each series and which should play a large role in determining who will come out on top:

MORE: Everything to know about the playoffs | Offseason guides for every team

No. 1 Boston Celtics vs. No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers

Jarrett Allen's health

The biggest thing to watch coming into this series is whether Cleveland's starting center will be able to play after missing the final three games of the Cavaliers' first-round victory over the Orlando Magic with a bruised rib.

Allen is a strong two-way presence in the middle for Cleveland, and with Evan Mobley, they create one of the league's best defensive units. When they shared the floor during the playoffs, the Cavaliers allowed just 0.78 points per direct drive, according to Second Spectrum tracking.

With Kristaps Porzingis likely to miss the series for Boston due to a calf strain, Cleveland's size can be a real threat in the paint -- presuming Allen sees the court.

There have been some offensive issues with Cleveland playing two non-shooting bigs together. But the more pressing issue for the Cavaliers is that if Allen isn't available, that will mean running out either Tristan Thompson or Marcus Morris Sr. at center behind Mobley. Against the offensive firepower of the Celtics, the Cavs' lack of depth inside could become a serious problem as the series progresses.

Which backcourt can control the run of play?

While the focus in Boston begins with All-Star scorers Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, it will be the backcourt of Derrick White and Jrue Holiday -- one of the league's elite defensive duos -- that will help determine whether this series is competitive.

This postseason, the Celtics have a 96.6 defensive efficiency when White and Holiday both are on the court, per ESPN Stats & Information research.

They are also a tremendous matchup against Cleveland's starting backcourt of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, with Holiday having the strength to take on Mitchell and White having the size and quickness to give Garland trouble.

If Cleveland is to have a chance in this series, it's going to need Mitchell to be the best player on the court and for Garland to be far more impactful than he was against Orlando in Game 7, when he scored 12 points on 3-for-13 shooting.

But if White and Holiday play their counterparts to a draw or win this matchup completely, this series could be a sweep. The first round showcased the Cavaliers' reliance on Mitchell's scoring; that won't be any different going up against the league's highest-powered offense in Boston.

Can Cleveland keep up with Boston's 3-point shooting?

One way an extreme underdog can make a series more competitive is to outshoot its opponent from the 3-point line.

The problem with taking that approach against the Celtics, though, is that they both made and attempted more 3s than any other team (by a significant amount) this season, and they finished second in the league in 3-point percentage -- one tenth of a point off the league-leading Oklahoma City Thunder.

Last summer, Cleveland signed Georges Niang and Max Strus after not having enough shooting in its first-round defeat to the New York Knicks. And while Cleveland climbed inside the top 10 in makes (seventh) and attempts (eighth) from 3-point range this season, they were last in makes, third-to-last in attempts and second-to-last in 3-point percentage (28.9%) during their series with the Magic. Meanwhile, no team made more 3s per game in the first round than Boston.

-- Tim Bontemps

No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 5 Dallas Mavericks

Luka Doncic vs. Lu Dort

Dallas advanced past the first round despite its MVP candidate enduring a shooting slump and playing most of the series on a sprained right knee. Now, Doncic has to deal with Dort, a brick wall with quick feet and one of the league's premier on-ball defenders. Dort is fresh off bullying New Orleans' Brandon Ingram in the Thunder's first-round sweep, but Doncic is a much tougher challenge as a rare elite offensive creator who can match Dort's brute strength.

Doncic fared well in the two games he played against the Thunder this season, averaging 34.0 points and 13.5 assists with a 71.0 true shooting percentage. According to NBA Advanced Stats player tracking, Doncic scored 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting when Dort was his primary defender, including 4-of-8 from 3-point range.

However, Doncic's 3-point touch abandoned him in the first round, as he made only 23.9% of his long-range attempts against the LA Clippers. He especially struggled after spraining his knee during the first quarter of Game 3, going 7-of-41 on 3s in the final four games of the series. The stiffness in the knee makes it difficult for Doncic to create the kind of separation and lift that he's accustomed to getting on his step-back jumper, which is the NBA scoring leader's favorite weapon. And Doncic anticipates the knee bothering him for the rest of the Mavs' playoff run.

"I don't think it's going to get better before I get some rest," Doncic said after playing 43 minutes in the Game 6 win. "It's a lot of minutes, so maybe this summer."

Will Josh Giddey make the Mavs pay?

The Mavs basically didn't guard Giddey during Dallas' blowout win on Feb. 10, the only one of the four meetings between the teams in which Doncic and Kyrie Irving both played. The Mavs' centers were the primary defenders on Giddey, sagging far off him to clog the driving lanes and basically begging the OKC guard to fire away from the corners.

Giddey finished 3-of-14 from the floor -- 3-of-9 from 3-point range -- and the Thunder were outscored by 23 points in his 23 minutes on the court.

"We've seen it all year, so it's nothing new for us," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said postgame of Dallas' defensive strategy. "We want to have a diversity of attacks against it, which includes the cutting, includes using him as a screener. Then he's going to shoot with confidence when he has the open shots. It was effective today for a number of reasons outside of just [Giddey]. We've seen it a lot. We've attacked it well in the past. We've got to keep learning from it and growing."

That game added fuel to the discussion about whether Giddey was a long-term fit alongside Oklahoma City's star trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams. It also increased doubts about whether Giddey could play extended minutes in the playoffs.

Will that strategy work in this series? Giddey shot the ball much better after the All-Star break (36.0 on 3s) and was 8-of-13 from behind the arc in the last two games of the Thunder's sweep of the Pelicans.

How much will the Mavs miss Maxi Kleber?

The shoulder injury that will sideline Kleber, a key reserve, for the series is a major blow.

Kleber's impact goes far beyond his box score numbers (5.7 points and 2.7 rebounds per game in the first round). He's the Mavs' "secret weapon for the playoffs," one team source said. He's an outstanding defender -- the Clippers shot only 29.8% when Kelber was the primary defender, according to ESPN Stats & Information -- who shot 45.8% on 3s over his past two postseasons and provides coach Jason Kidd with lineup versatility.

The Mavs no longer have an attractive small-ball lineup without Kleber, who played center in a lineup that could switch everything defensively and play a five-out offensive style. That would have been a valuable option to mitigate Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren's presence as a rim-protector.

Kleber was also an essential component to the Mavs' supersized lineups, which could have been useful against an Oklahoma City squad that ranked 28th in the league in rebounding percentage this season. That lineup played a critical role in the Mavs' rout of the Clippers in a pivotal Game 5, when Dallas outscored LA by 17 points in 19 minutes when Kleber was paired alongside either Daniel Gafford or Dereck Lively II.

-- Tim MacMahon

ATLANTA -- The Braves lost another reliever to an injury on Tuesday when they placed left-hander Tyler Matzek on the 15-day injured list with left elbow inflammation.

The Braves place right-hander Pierce Johnson on the 15-day IL on Sunday with right elbow inflammation.

The move with Matzek came after he allowed three runs while recording only two outs in Saturday night's 11-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 33-year-old has a 9.90 ERA in 11 games this season, allowing 11 runs in 10 innings.

The Braves recalled left-hander Ray Kerr from Triple-A Gwinnett before Tuesday night's game against the Boston Red Sox.

Major League Baseball has sent a warning to clubs about encouraging players subject to the MLB draft to withdraw from high school baseball to become eligible to sign as international players. An MLB spokesman declined comment.

The key section of the memo sent to teams Monday and obtained by ESPN reads: "It has come to our attention that Clubs have been encouraging amateur players in the United States to withdraw from, or otherwise refrain from playing, high school baseball in the United States and/or Canada, in order to try to establish residency in a foreign country, in an effort to make themselves eligible to sign under the International Amateur Talent System instead of the Rule 4 Draft."

In the MLB draft, picks largely cannot be traded, so teams' access to elite players is largely determined by their draft order. In the international system, teams have similar-sized bonus pools, and any player is able to be negotiated with. All but the best handful of players are acquirable by every team in the international market.

In the memo, the league clarified the rules around eligibility and what rules teams were breaking by encouraging players to change their eligibility. The memo says that encouraging players to make this change "shall be subject to significant penalties, including, but not limited to, the denial of player selection rights under the [MLB draft] or loss of benefits under the International Amateur Talent System."

A recent example of a legal version of this maneuver was made by shortstop Lucius Fox in 2015. He was a native of the Bahamas who had moved to Florida to play high school baseball and was regarded as a fringe first-round prospect after his junior year of high school. Fox moved back to the Bahamas and was declared a free agent by the league in April 2015, eventually signing for $6 million with the San Francisco Giants in July 2015.

The international bonus pools weren't hard-capped then like they are now, so that sort of bonus is unlikely, but this illustrates the potential benefit of this kind of move. Fox would've received roughly half that bonus if he had stayed in the draft process, but he was evaluated differently as an 18-year-old in the international market, where the biggest bonuses are largely given to 16-year-old prospects. Fox, now 26 years old, is a free agent. He has played in 10 big league games, all in 2022 for the Washington Nationals.

BOSTON -- Prior to last season, the Boston Red Sox renovated the home clubhouse, constructing new maple lockers, adding 16 TV displays and updating the lighting and sound systems to create a modern, sleek look. Maybe most importantly, there is also room to squeeze in a couple of temporary lockers -- no small consideration given the current state of the team.

The Red Sox have 13 players on the injured list. It's been a carousel of players coming and going to fill those spots, lockers emptied for those designated for assignment or sent down to the minors, new ones squeezed into the middle of the floor.

"It's crazy. Definitely more than I can remember," outfielder Tyler O'Neill said. "Obviously, we have a lot of star players on the list right now. That sucks. It's up to the rest of us guys to take a step up to try and fill those holes, but man, we want those guys on the field for sure."

In April, the Red Sox lost more days and more player dollars to the IL than any other team. Four-fifths of their projected starting rotation is injured, with Lucas Giolito out for the season. Shortstop Trevor Story is also out for the season after fracturing his shoulder. Cleanup hitter Triston Casas, who posted an OPS over 1.000 in the second half in 2023, is out two months with torn cartilage in his rib cage. Designated hitter Masataka Yoshida landed on the IL last week with a hand injury. O'Neill even missed a week himself after suffering a concussion in a collision with third baseman Rafael Devers.

Craig Breslow, the first-year chief baseball officer, has been busy just trying to keep the 26-man active roster filled, while manager Alex Cora has had no choice but to be pragmatic about the whole situation, as the team makes moves on the fly to shore up the roster before a game. Cora believes bench production can help a team win eight or nine games a season -- and the Red Sox are certainly testing the limits of that theory right now.

"It's a star-driven league, we know that, but what you do with the edge of the roster is very important," Cora said. "We work so hard on chemistry and culture in spring training. Then you have a whole different team in the beginning of May. It's going to keep changing, but I do believe we're in a good place. We're playing good baseball, which is awesome."

Indeed, the Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 9-2 on Sunday to snap a three-game skid and end Minnesota's 12-game winning streak. Boston is 19-16, within shouting distance of the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees in the American League East despite all the injuries.

How have the Red Sox done it? The pitching staff is atop the majors with a 2.59 ERA led by a rotation that has posted the lowest ERA (2.10) through a team's first 35 games since the 1981 Dodgers had a 2.06 mark. With Giolito (Tommy John surgery), Brayan Bello (back tightness), Nick Pivetta (elbow strain) and Garrett Whitlock (oblique strain) all sidelined at the moment (although Pivetta is expected to return this week), Tanner Houck and Kutter Crawford have stepped up to lead the group -- but the success can be attributed as much to a change in philosophy as any one starter's improvement.

"If we keep doing the things we're doing on the mound, it doesn't matter who comes in," Cora said. "We're going to be in a good place."

Breslow and Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey insist their approach to pitching, while unprecedented, isn't some kind of revolution.

The two were bullpen teammates with the Oakland Athletics and Red Sox during their playing days. They remained friends as Breslow worked for the Chicago Cubs from 2019 to 2023, first as director of pitching and then as assistant GM/vice president of pitching, while Bailey worked as a coach with the Los Angeles Angels and then as the San Francisco Giants' pitching coach the past four seasons.

"We talked a lot about staying in the game of baseball and working together. Craig's a brilliant mind and you always knew he was going to be a GM or a manager," Bailey said, not even mentioning the fact that Breslow majored in molecular biophysics and biochemistry at Yale. "So, yeah, I was like, 'If you never need a bullpen coach or a pitching coach.'"

After the Red Sox hired Breslow in late October, one of his first calls was to Bailey. Since joining Boston, Bailey has implemented a concept that was one of the trademarks of the Giants under his guidance and has been the key to Boston's pitching success this season: fewer fastballs.

The Red Sox are throwing the fewest fastballs of any team in MLB in 2024. Just 31.8% of their pitches have been fastballs (either four-seamers or sinkers), well below the MLB average of 47%. Just one other team is under 40%, and no team was below that last season.

"I know a lot has been made of this," Breslow said, "but if you were to take a step back and say, 'OK, we can rank all of your pitches and what we're asking you to do is take your best pitch and throw it more and take your worst pitches and throw them less,' I don't think anyone would be like, 'You've reinvented the game.'

"I think what we have done is refuse to be beholden to traditional baseball thought, which says you have to be able to throw a fastball down and away. I would argue you have to be able to throw a pitch over the plate. I have no idea why that has to be a fastball."

What the Red Sox are doing is simply a more extreme version of a trend we've seen across the sport. Detailed pitch tracking data goes back to 2008, and the percentage of fastballs has steadily dropped since then:

2008: 59.8%
2014: 57.0%
2019: 52.4%
2023: 47.8%
2024: 47.0%

That's happening even as average fastball velocity continues to increase. But fastballs, no matter how hard they're thrown, get hit -- at least more than other pitches. Check out the numbers from 2023:

All fastballs: .269/.354/.447
Curveballs: .224/.274/.372
Sliders/sweepers: .220/.275/.379
Changeups: .239/.287/.381
Cutters: .269/.333/.448

"I think every pitch we make is a business decision," Bailey said. "These guys are competing to provide income and to obviously play a game at the end of the day, but this is their livelihood, and if they do well, the Red Sox do well, and we win and get to the playoffs. So every pitch we throw is a business decision to make a bet to suppress damage or induce swing-and-miss."

You can see that mentality in the changes in approach from individual Red Sox pitchers, especially the starters.

Houck has ditched a four-seamer he threw nearly 10% of the time last season -- which batters hit .325 and slugged .550 against -- and started throwing his splitter more often. His overall fastball rate has dropped 9 percentage points. He has a 1.99 ERA; his strikeout rate has increased 4 percentage points while his walk rate is down 5.

Batters hit just .163 against Crawford's four-seamer last season, but he's still throwing it 10% less often in favor of a big increase in his sweeper usage and a slight increase in his splitter. His strikeout and walk rates have held steady, but his hard-hit rate has improved from the 76th percentile to the 95th percentile, resulting in a lower home run rate. His 1.56 ERA through seven starts ranks second in the majors.

Whitlock threw a sinker 53% of the time last season and batters hit .326 and slugged .538 against it. In his four starts before his injury, he added a slider and cutter and dropped his sinker usage to just 22.7%. He has a 1.96 ERA in his limited time. Bello has a 3.04 ERA in five starts after scrapping a four-seam fastball that he threw 21% of the time and which batters hit .310 and slugged .646 off in 2023, now sticking with a three-pitch mix, throwing his changeup and slider more often to go with his sinker.

"I don't really say that it's we don't want to throw fastballs," Bailey said. "It's just they don't produce as great of outcomes as off-speed pitches in general -- and some guys have unicorn fastballs. We just want guys to know their identity as a pitcher and use that to their strength."

The initial talks between Bailey and the pitching staff surrounding a change in approach began in the offseason. Red Sox players took quickly to the message upon arriving at spring training.

"If you know that a certain pitch type is going to outperform another and you can throw that in the zone, why wouldn't you want to throw that more often than not?" Bailey said.

Finding what to replace the fastball with is essential. For Houck, a splitter he is throwing twice as frequently as a season ago has become an option after he improved it this offseason. A slight grip change has added a little more depth and north-south movement to it, but Houck has also simply grown more confident in using it. Batters hit .310 against the splitter last season, but are hitting .208 without a home run against it in 2024.

"I think my splitter is better than it's ever been, so I feel more comfortable throwing it any count, where in the past maybe I'd throw a fastball," he said.

No matter the pitch, an important key for the Red Sox is still strike one and "pounding the zone relentlessly," as Bailey put it. With fewer fastballs, that means pitchers have to throw breaking balls or off-speed pitches often enough for strikes rather than simply as chase pitches, otherwise batters will eventually adjust to take those pitches for balls and get ahead in the count -- forcing pitchers to come in with a fastball that might not be their best pitch.

In the first pitch of a plate appearance, MLB pitchers throw a fastball 51% of the time in 2024 -- slightly more often than overall. There can be a price to pay for that, however: When batters put the first pitch in play in 2024, they're hitting .327 with a .544 slugging percentage. The Red Sox throw a first-pitch fastball just 34.2% of the time, yet they're still getting a first-pitch strike 62% of the time -- a hair above the MLB average. And when the first pitch is in play, Red Sox pitchers have allowed the third-lowest OPS, behind only the Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners.

Maybe it's not quite a revolution, but it's certainly different from any team we've seen before.

"Anytime you stand off on a limb and challenge the norms of what we do ..." Bailey started to say, and then paused. "It's not really challenging the norms. I want our pitchers to succeed. I want them to be the best versions of themselves. I want them to be happy and excited and purposeful and fulfilled. When you look at things through an analytical lens, then you can build a relationship with a player and provide them the support they need to become that best version. You're just educating them on what they do well and what makes them an outlier relative to the league."

Breslow is quick to point out that this could just be a moment in time, that in a couple months, maybe the percentages will have changed. Baseball is, after all, a game of adjustments. There is no doubt, however, that the Red Sox are the extreme case of the fewer fastballs movement. Just as every team eventually joined the shift revolution, perhaps in five years every team will be throwing 32% fastballs.

For now, the approach has helped Red Sox pitchers to an extraordinary start that has kept the team over .500 despite all the injuries, a makeshift roster -- and one crowded clubhouse.

European Indoor 3000m bronze medallist reflects on the challenges she has faced after Olympic rejection, as she prepares to make return at the Night of the 10,000m PBs

Verity Ockenden is back in Highgate next weekend (May 18) as she will make her fifth appearance on the track at Night of the 10,000m PBs.

Since changing her set-up and moving to Italy almost two and a half years ago, the 32-year-old has had great success. Last season, she finished eighth over 5km at the World Road Running Championships and achieved a lifetime best of 15:18 in Riga, Latvia.

Ockenden has since gone quicker on the track and recently clocked a super 15:16.29 over 5000m (May 1) in Modena, Italy.

However, it has not all been plain sailing for the British athlete, opening up about the struggles shes faced describing it as putting herself back together as a result of not making the Tokyo Olympic team.

While the On athlete hoped to run both the 5000m and 10,000m in the Japanese capital, she missed out on qualifying and watched Eilish McColgan, Jessica Warner-Judd and Amy-Eloise Neale make the trip instead.

Ockenden has since been on a journey, and with the help from On, now has Paris 2024 in her sights.  The first priority however is Highgate.

Her best time at Night of the 10,000m PBs came last year when she clocked 32:34:16. This time round, with a different training set-up, she hopes to break the 32-minute mark.

How has the 2024 season been for you so far?

I think from the outside looking in I would say its nothing special what Ive done so far. My first 10km of the year in Valencia was probably the most high-profile road race that Ive ever done and it went horrifically for me.

So, it was a tough start of the year in January and it really felt like a disappointing run because I felt like my training had been going really well and it felt like the perfect race to show that off. I got quite a bad chest infection which really ruined it and I was then out for a month.

It was one of those scenarios where I should have made the executive decision that I didnt make and I should have called it [Valencia] off and said I am not ready to race.

Its really hard to say no to things and so that was a tough lesson to learn that it would have been better for me not to go.

But everything since then, such as running Trafford in 32:01, the Podium 5k event and Cheshire 5km, have all been really good. Im not super excited about the times on paper but the feedback that we got was all really positive and the confidence in my strength in how I felt rather than the result on paper that was all really good.

How did it feel to run that 32:01 PB at Trafford this year?

It was definitely nice to prove to myself that I was as fit as I thought I was, particularly because our aim with doing those races was just to gain experience in the 10km in preparation for Highgate, thats what it has all been about.

Getting a variety of different types of races and doing well in some of them has all been good preparation with how to deal with it if it goes your way or it doesnt go your way, thats what you have to be able to do in a 10km.

Do you have a preferred distance to race?

Definitely the 5km, thats the reason we have been doing 10kms because its not my favourite.

My coach Chris [Jones] says, well you know it can be once you get comfortable with it and you feel in control then you will be able to enjoy them and that is the goal but for now I just love the 5km, its my baby.

How has training been over the last few months?

Strangely I know a lot of people have already been away to altitude but we decided to stay at home and be consistent.

This is the first time in my life Ive had some stability in my home set up and I am lucky that living in Italy its already starting to get quite warm so I am viewing it as being a kind of a warm weather training camp and get some heat adaptations in and then we will go to altitude later.

Im pleasantly surprised sometimes with some of the things I am able to do in training. I know that there is still a lot of training left to do to really hit that peak and we are not quite there yet but I think coming into Highgate its really exciting for me.

What does a normal training week look like for you?

On Tuesday I will go down to the track with the local group of teenage boys who are brilliant, they are so passionate and they give it everything to pace me as much as they can, a very selfless group of guys. Its a very important social thing for me and a grassroots thing which helps keep my head in the right place because its all just running and we are all the same no matter what level you are doing it at.

Depending on the week, it is a two or three session week alternating. We do a lot of tempo stuff still, a classic Sunday long run and then I will go to the gym a couple times of the week.

How did it feel to run for GB at the World Athletics Road Running Championships last year?

That was a really important moment for me because it had been a long time since I had last worn the vest and Id had really quite a lot of struggles about putting myself back together about not making the last Olympic team.

That was kind of a moment of you actually can do this, you do belong here still, you are still good enough. you always were and this can be a new beginning.

To do it with my new set up as well cemented that belief that I have chosen the right people and it made me feel confident in what Ive built here.

How did you deal with the process of not making the Olympic team in Tokyo?

I really didnt deal with it at all last time and that has been one of the biggest things that I have focused on since.

I am thinking if I am going to put myself through that again I have to be able to deal with it better if I dont get what I want. There is always such a huge chance that you are not going to make it and you have to make sure you are going to be okay with that.

I think that is a huge part of what I have built over here now is that my life as a whole is so much happier. Not only does that make me be able to perform better so it increases my chances of being able to make the team but if I dont then it also increases my chances of still being able to perform well after that disappointment and being able to carry on in my career and do well in other races.

How has your set-up changed in the last few years?

I had a wonderful coach in Tony Houchin who was brilliant during that whole six-year build-up and the Olympics and I had a great team back at Salisbury where I used to train in the UK but I think one of the major changes is now I have a sponsor.

In that build-up to start with I was working part time as a chef and then when I quit my job as a chef to focus on preparing on the Olympics it was all based off my family and friends chipping in to get me out to Flagstaff.

Afterwards, when I came home and I didnt make it I had nothing. They supported me up until that point but then when you come home and you dont have a job, I didnt have a house either, that is what made it really hard.

I just felt like I had nothing but now this is my job and I can rely on On to support me and I dont have to be asking my friends and family for help which makes a huge difference.

What was it like to get that sponsorship with On and how has it helped you as an athlete?

It was actually a huge surprise when they approached me. I think I was still feeling quite low about myself and I didnt see the value in myself that they saw.

That was an amazing boost in itself and I think one of the best things about them is they really focus on the individual. They recognise that not everybodys journey is the same so they are very patient with the athletes and listen to what you need. My journey has definitely not been a normal journey, they understand that if that is what works for you then they work with you on that.

What has your past experiences of Night of the 10,000m PBs been like? 

I have always loved it. I will admit that I have never really gone into the race 100% prepared.

It has always been something I have done and always wanted to do because of the atmosphere and because it is the Olympic trials and you just cant say no to it. For that reason I have sometimes done it when I havent really done the specific training for it, I just thought I wanna do it anyway and I dont really care if I am not in the shape for it.

The crowd can really get you through it, you still enjoy it even if it is a hard race. I have always had to jump in at the deep end because its always been my first race of the season and because its a 10km that is really nasty way to do it.

What do you expect from yourself at this years Night of the 10,000m PBs?

This year is the first year that it is not going to be my first race of the season. We have planned specifically to train for this race, I have done a 1500m and a 5km now in the build up to sharpen up for it and I feel a lot more prepared.

I always enjoyed it anyway but this time hopefully its going to make it that little bit more enjoyable performance wise.

The time I ran last week at a meet in Italy [Meeting Internazionale Frate 150] gives me a lot of confidence. I ran 15:16.29 over 5000m so in theory I think I should definitely be able to break 32 minutes at Highgate. By how much, I dont know.

Having the option of choosing their playoff opponent wasn't taken lightly by the staff and players of the Professional Women's Hockey League's Toronto franchise for clinching first-place in the standings.

So sensitive and in-depth were the discussions, coach Troy Ryan knew better on Monday night than to disclose the reasons behind Toronto's decision to face fourth-place Minnesota over third-place Boston -- two teams who finished with identical 12-9-3 records (including four OT/SO wins apiece), with Boston having the tiebreaking edge.

"To be honest, from a hockey perspective, I think it would be somewhat irresponsible to tip my hat to the exact details," Ryan said. "So at this point, we'll keep that within house."

Of all the aspects taken into consideration, ranging from analytics, head-to-head records, travel and injuries, among the most important, perhaps, was the fear of providing their opponent any additional motivation entering the best-of-five semifinal series, which opens in Toronto on Wednesday. Montreal, which finished second, will face Boston in the other semifinal starting on Thursday.

Minnesota coach Ken Klee expressed little surprise in Toronto's decision by saying: "To me, that's who I expected."

Boston coach Courtney Kessel couldn't help but envision what her player's reaction would have been had they been selected.

"I think it's a good thing and a bad thing to kind of be in their position," Kessel said of Toronto. "I think if they would have chosen us, we would have had a little bit more fuel, you know, like them thinking that they can beat us in choosing the third-place team."

Leave it to the PWHL to provide an intriguing plot twist entering the playoffs, and following its inaugural 72-game regular season in which the playoff race wasn't settled until the final game. Toronto played a central role in determining the final standings with its season-ending 5-2 win over Ottawa on Sunday night eliminating Ottawa from contention and securing Minnesota its playoff berth.

The concept of teams selecting playoff opponents has long been entertained in theory in North America's four major pro sports, but yet to become a reality. The Southern Professional Hockey League introduced a pick-your-opponent first-round playoff format in 2018 before abandoning it two years later.

Toronto's decision to choose Minnesota as its playoff opponent made sense in various aspects.

Toronto had a 3-1 record against Minnesota in the regular season, while going 3-2 against Boston. Minnesota closed the season losing its final five games, while Boston went 3-1-1, including a 2-1 win over Toronto.

Klee acknowledged travel as being an issue, with Minnesota logging the most air miles in a league whose other five teams are concentrated in the northeast.

"If I was (Toronto), I would say who has the furthest to come and has the toughest travel to get here," Klee said. But in my mind, our group's excited. We're in the playoffs."

Toronto GM Gina Kingsbury said the process in determining which opponent to select began last week after Toronto clinched first place. Kingsbury first consulted with Ryan before getting feedback from the team's leadership core and eventually the entire roster.

"In the end, it wasn't an easy decision. Minnesota was not the necessarily the lead in that right away," Kingsbury said. "There were a lot of pros and cons on picking Boston or Minnesota. And in the end we just went with what seemed to be a little more pros than cons."

Toronto captain Blayre Turnbull said the most important thing to remember during the selection process was players focusing on their team and not the opponent.

"No matter who we picked, there's going to be some people that might think we should have gone the other way," Turnbull said. "But I think at the end of the day, no matter who we're going to face in the semifinal round is going to be a really tough opponent."

Mason Greenwood will not return to Manchester United next season, Getafe president Angel Torres has said, adding that he expects the forward to remain at the Spanish club.

Greenwood, 22, joined Getafe on a season-loan from United in September following a criminal investigation into a possible attempted rape that was closed by prosecutors. He had not played for United since January 2022 after he was implicated in controlling and coercive behaviour and assault relating to a woman after images and videos were posted online.

"If it was up to the lad, his parents and the club [Getafe], I think he would continue for another year," Torres told Radio Marca. "But regarding Manchester [United], the news that we have from last week where the [Getafe] sporting director went to England to see some games and was with them, is that if a good offer comes along, they would want to sell because he is not going to go back there [to Manchester].

"We'll have to wait until the end of June. The family and the player are very comfortable and very happy here, with our fans. When he came here, he hadn't played for 16 months. He has recovered his form, he has scored eight league goals and two in the Copa. The people and the coach are very happy with him. I think he will remain with us for another season, or at least until January. He is a good footballer."

Real Madrid will receive the LaLiga trophy in a behind-closed-doors ceremony at the club's Valdebebas training ground on Sunday, sources have confirmed to ESPN.

The Spanish football federation [RFEF] -- which is responsible for the league trophy -- had initially planned to hand over the trophy at Madrid's next game, away at Granada's Nuevo Los Cármenes stadium on Saturday.

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However, Madrid were reluctant for the ceremony to take place away from home, after a game which could mathematically seal hosts Granada's relegation from the first division, and rejected that proposal.

Sources said that instead, the trophy would be handed over by RFEF president Pedro Rocha to Madrid's players, staff and president Florentino Pérez in a private event at Real Madrid City on the morning of May 12.

The squad will later present the trophy to fans and the city's local authorities, although details of the celebrations are yet to be made official.

"On Saturday we were happy to have won the league," Ancelotti told a news conference on Tuesday. "But we had to control our happiness because we had to prepare for this game. Now the league is put to one side. On Thursday we'll think about celebrating."

Madrid clinched the LaLiga title last weekend when they beat Cádiz 3-0 before rivals Barcelona were beaten 4-2 at Girona, giving Madrid a 13-point lead at the top of the table with four games left to play.

It was a Spanish record 36th league for Madrid, who are also chasing Champions League success this season, hosting Bayern Munich in their semifinal second leg on Wednesday after the first leg finished 2-2.

The club traditionally parade through Madrid's streets on an open-top bus, visiting the city's regional government headquarters at Puerta del Sol and then the town hall, before joining fans at Cibeles, the fountain where they celebrate trophy wins.

Madrid's 2023-24 league win is their fourth in the last decade, and the second in three seasons under coach Carlo Ancelotti.

They have won 27, drawn six and lost just once in LaLiga this season, to earn a tally of 87 points after 34 games.

Meanwhile, Ancelotti outlined Madrid's respect for Bayern ahead of their Champions League semifinal second leg on Wednesday,

"As clubs, they're similar," he said. "They have great tradition, great history, a lot of success in the Champions League. We respect each other and that's right, you have to respect your opponent, also because they did well, better than us, in the first leg."

However, the former Bayern coach said Madrid are taking nothing for granted against the Bundesliga giants

"We aren't optimistic, but we're very excited," he said. "It could be another magical night for us and our fans. But there's no optimism. There's an awareness of the difficulties we could face in the game."

Rees-Zammit said the latest three-day camp with the full Chiefs roster had meant a chance to "dive deep into the playbook".

"Its been a good week overall and definitely helped doing rookie minicamp, getting reps, because the way I learn is actually doing the reps, he said.

The Chiefs have listed Rees-Zammit as a running back, but the four-cap British and Irish Lions wing still believes he could feature as a receiver in the future.

Ive been put in the running back group to start with," he explained.

"I think theres going to be a versatile role for me, Im hoping. The coaches are very creative here, so see what they can do. But its all about me learning the playbook and learning the game because without that I cant do anything else.

"I am fully focused on the now. You know, Ive got to make the team. How am I going to do that? Ive got to perform on the field, Ive got to learn the playbook and then well go from there.

The ex-Gloucester wing, who scored 14 tries in 32 Tests for Wales, feels his current role will help ease his transition from rugby union.

Being in the running back position its easier because I can get the ball earlier as opposed to being out playing wide receiver," he added.

"Its obviously different and catching - you catch laterally in rugby, you dont catch forwards. Thats been a bit different.

"Im just loving being able to work and work on all these crafts because the more I can do, the more I can try and help the team.