data-mm-id=”_kq880cv13″>The uproar over Caitlin Clark’s omission from the United States women’s basketball team resonated for weeks, but the debate died down once Team USA got rolling at the Paris Olympics.Stocked with WNBA legends, All-Stars and former league MVPs, the Americans are well on their way to winning an eighth-straight Olympic championship. They completed group play in dominant fashion Sunday, beating Germany 87-68 for their 58th consecutive victory. They remain overwhelming favorites to top the podium.The U.S. women’s 3×3 basketball team also features WNBA players. It was looking to defend its Tokyo Games title, too. However, the Americans lost to Spain in the semifinals and beat Canada to win bronze on Monday.Could the USA 3×3 squad have used Clark? Maybe. Probably. The decision to include her would’ve had to been made months ago, though — not weeks before the Paris Games.Unlike the 5×5 competition, 3×3 players must gain Olympic eligibility by playing in FIBA events and accruing the necessary rankings points. USA Basketball would’ve had to plan for Clark’s inclusion long ago — when she was still playing in college and starring for Iowa — by having her compete regularly on FIBA’s 3×3 circuit.And if Clark had any interest in playing 3×3, she would’ve expressed it while playing for USA Basketball as a teenager. She has won three gold medals on U.S. youth teams, but all three squads played 5×5 basketball. Hailey Van Lith, the former LSU star who’s on USA’s Paris Games 3×3 team, has been playing 3×3 since 2019, when she won gold at the FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup.Clark’s rabid fans probably already knew the reasons why Clark wasn’t a 3×3 possibility. But for the rest of you, well, now you know.Could Clark excel at 3×3? It's a physical style of basketball that requires defensive focus and commitment in constant isolation matchups, a characteristic that's not one of her strengths.On offense, though, Clark's impact would be immense with her long-range 3-point shooting creating plenty of space for teammates to attack the basket. It also would be fun to see how creative she could get with her passing with all of the off-ball movement in 3×3.
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Market: Atalanta win
Odds: 4/11 @
Looking to extend on their European charge in midweek, Atalanta will welcome Spezia to the Gewiss Stadium on Wednesday evening.
Starting with the hosts, last seen over the weekend snatching a stunning last-gasp 2-1 victory away at Torino, Atalanta are enjoying an eye-catching end to the season. While Gian Piero Gasperini’s men might have suffered a shock 2-0 loss at the hands of Bologna on April 8th, La Dea have proven that was nothing more than a minor blip. Laying down a real Serie A marker earlier in the month as they stormed their way to a 3-1 romp at home against Roma, fans around the Gewiss Stadium are desperate to see their side clinch a Champions League return in 2023. Marking their return from March’s international …
Egypt entered the record books here on Sunday, beating Ghana 1-0 in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations with supersub Mohamed Gedo Nagy lifting the Pharaohs to their third straight title.
Gedo, who has scored from the bench in Egypt s last four games in Angola, came on in the 63rd minute and produced his magic with five minutes left on the clock to cement Egypt s standing as the kings of Africa.
The win also gave veteran coach Hassan Shehata a history-making third championship after Cairo in 2006 and Accra in 2008 and extended Egypt s unbeaten record in the competition to an astonishing 19 games.
Shehata s assistant, Shawky Garib, said: I d like to congratulate Ghana for what they did today (Sunday).
It s important to take your chance, and today we …
Chairman Huw Jenkins has revealed Swansea City are in ongoing discussions with Neil Taylor over a new contract.
The Wales left-back has been a regular fixture in Garry Monk s side this season following the departure of Ben Davies to Tottenham.
Taylor s current deal expires at the end of next term and Jenkins told the South Wales Evening Post: That needs to be looked at between now and the summer; it s an obvious one for us to sort out.
Jenkins added: With Neil, this is the first time for a long time that he has had a good run of games [after injury disrupted his 2012-13 season], and it always takes players time to get up to speed.
As the season has gone on and Neil has played more games, I think we have seen that he is getting back to his best.
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Las Palmas striker Sergio Araujo has been sentenced to nine months in prison for refusing to take a breathalyser test, but he may not have to serve any time behind bars.
Araujo was also banned from driving for two years following an incident that occurred in the town of Ingenio on September 26, two days after he scored a late equaliser in a 2-2 home LaLiga draw with Real Madrid.
Reports in Spain say Araujo s defence attorney has appealed the sentence.
Back in September, Las Palmas president Miguel Angel Ramirez told Onda Cero the club would stand by the Argentine even if he was convicted.
Sergio s issue is non-sporting related and it will be the courts to determine if he has been negligent and the severity of the offense, Ramirez said.
If A…
Winning Margin is a type of single sports betting market that focuses on the final goal difference. It has a lot of similarities to due to the many possible outcomes and wagering options. Like Correct Score, though, it’s notoriously hard to get right – even more so if you want to be consistent. As a relatively niche high-risk bet, though, it can contain surprising for the perceptive punter.
In this Winning Margin betting guide, we’ll take a close look at this often-overlooked market and consider if it’s worth your time.
What Is a Winning Margin Bet?
A Winning Margin bet is a type of wager that attempts to predict the exact difference in goals between the winning team and the losing team. ‘Exact’ is the keyword here because the possible options can be anyw…
Real Betis are interested in signing Christian Eriksen from Inter Milan in the summer of 2021, according to . It has been reported that a transfer fee of €15 million could be enough for the Spanish club to secure the services of the former Tottenham Hotspur attacking midfielder.
Eriksen joined Inter from Tottenham in January 2020 and struggled in the second half of last season and the first half of the 2020-21 campaign. There were strong suggestions that the 29-year-old could go back to the Premier League in the January transfer window, but nothing materialised.
Since then, Eriksen has been playing well for Inter and has established himself as an important player in head coach Antonio Conte’s team. According to , the 29-year-old has made nine starts and seven substi…
Metalist Kharkiv are set to sign Argentine winger Alejandro Gomez from Catania, .
The Ukrainians have reportedly had a €7 million bid for the player accepted by the Serie A side, with the 25-year-old also striking personal terms with the club.
Inter Milan, Napoli, AC Milan and Genoa were all keen on the Argentine footballer, but Catania chiefs ultimately decided to sell their star player to the highest bidder.
Gomez becomes Metalist s third major signing this summer, following the captures of Rodrigo Moledo and Diego Souza.
Alejandro Gomez played for Arsenal de Sarandi and San Lorenzo before joining the Elephants in the summer of 2010, and he proved to be an instant hit at Stadio Angelo Massimino.
The winger quickly developed into a key member …
Manchester City youngster Marcos Lopes hopes to use Saturday s FA Cup tie with Watford as a chance to shine in front of Manuel Pellegrini.
The 18-year-old became City s youngest ever goalscorer when he scored against Watford in the same competition last season and, after a handful of League Cup outings recently, he hopes to take advantage of a rare start.
Lopes has had to be patient at the Etihad Stadium with the likes of David Silva, Samir Nasri and Yaya Toure all playing in his preferred position, and he knows he must take the opportunity to impress Pellegrini this weekend.
Cup games represent a big opportunity for younger the players at the club and I m looking forward to being involved in more matches, he told City s official website.
It s a different level p…
Michael Tarnat believes Leroy Sane can become a star of the German national team if he maintains his fine form for Manchester City.
Sane moved to the Premier League club from Schalke, having featured in Joachim Low s squad at Euro 2016, for a fee understood to be worth in the region of £37million.
The 21-year-old winger initially struggled to adapt to life in Manchester, grasping for form and fitness, before scoring his first goal in City colours during December s 2-1 comeback win over Arsenal.
Manager Pep Guardiola has since acknowledged something clicked in that match and Sane netted in his next two appearances versus Tottenham and Crystal Palace.
Ex-Germany and Bayern Munich left-back Tarnat spent a season with City towards the end of his career in 20…
According to El Desmarque, Sebastien Corchia is on the verge of completing a loan move to Benfica. The 27-year-old defender is unlikely to get much game time with Sevilla this season, despite only arriving at the club back in 2017. He made the jump over to Spanish football from Lille, where he made over 100 appearances for the French side.
Benfica are said to be willing to spend €700,000 in order to actually secure the signing of the full-back, as Benfica go in search of reclaiming their top-flight title in Portugal.
One of the primary reasons behind Corchia s impending departure is the signing of Alex Vidal, who is expected to take up a starting role for the club. Corchia is a French international with just one cap to his name, but he ll be hoping that an extended ru…