SAN JOSE, Calif. — Malik Tillman scored twice as the United States built a three-goal, first-half lead and ended a four-game losing streak by routing Trinidad and Tobago 5-0 on Sunday in a Concacaf Gold Cup opener.
Tillman scored in the 16th and 41st minutes for his first two international goals, both following giveaways by Alvin Jones, and Patrick Agyemang scored his fourth international goal in the 44th.
Brenden Aaronson added his ninth goal in the 82nd and Haji Wright his fifth just 1 minute, 13 seconds later as the 16th-ranked Americans overwhelmed the No. 100 Soca Warriors and ended their longest losing streak since 2007.
Victory in the Group D opener came after days of controversy over Christian Pulisic‘s desire to rest during the Gold Cup and coach Mauricio Pochettino not including the star in a pair of pre-tournament friendlies in which the attacker offered to play.
The U.S. had 70.5% possession and a 21-3 advantage in shots against the Soca Warriors, whose 2-1 home win against the Americans in 2017 ended a streak of seven straight World Cup appearances by the U.S.
United States players celebrate after scoring a goal against Trinidad and Tobago in the Gold Cup.
The Americans have won their group in 16 of 17 Gold Cups, along with a second-place finish behind Panama in 2011, and improved their group stage record to 41 wins, 1 loss and 5 draws. They play invited guest Saudi Arabia on Thursday in Austin, Texas, then close group play on June 22 against Haiti in Arlington, Texas.
Matthew Freese was in goal in place Matt Turner, who had started 14 consecutive competitive matches for the U.S. and 23 of 24 dating to the 2022 World Cup. The lone exception was a Gold Cup group stage game against St. Kitts and Nevis in 2023.
He went on to praise his wife, emphasizing that she carried their son “with such grace and love, singing to him each night and morning in bed.”
“She brought him into the world with fierce devotion,” he continued. “She’s been traveling through this heartbreak and physical pain with unwavering courage. She feels it all fully. I am inspired by her.”
For Emma, she is learning to accept this new reality.
“I must of spent hours every day just imagining all the things I would do with my baby and the mother I would get to be,” she shared. “We were preparing for the happiest day our life and instead we got our worst.”
“This is not a share about some silver lining or Gods plan though I have felt the divinity and love like a breath for air that desperately gasp for while I drown,” she continued. “This is me sharing my shock. For any human that has felt the ground ripped from underneath them. For any mother that has lost her baby. The shock, denial, confusion, longing, love and unbearable heartbreak of a loss like this all gets a seat at the table.”
Evans is looking to rebuild his ranking, having dropped from a career-high 21st in the world a couple of years ago to 199th.
Given a wildcard entry at Queen’s, the 35-year-old was handed a tough start against American Tiafoe, who reached the quarter-finals of the French Open this year.
But Tiafoe has often struggled on grass and Evans took full advantage, playing some of his best tennis in years to claim an impressive straight-set win.
Evans dropped more than 110 ranking spots last year when he opted to focus on partnering Andy Murray in the doubles at the Paris Olympics, so it was apt that this impressive display came at the arena newly named after the Scot.
The pair reached the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, with the match the last of Murray’s long and illustrious career.
Asked afterwards about how much Murray has inspired his own career, Evans said: “Not just mine but the whole of British tennis.
“He always has time for everyone and it’s fitting he has an arena called after him.
“The Olympics was one of the best things I’ve done. It is something that will stick with me forever and I am immensely proud to have played with him [Murray].”
Evans started strongly against Tiafoe, fending off a break point before securing the break himself at 3-3.
Tiafoe broke back immediately when Evans overcooked his forehand and momentum appeared to swing the American’s way in a 10-minute spell where his opponent had little answer to him.
But Evans, encouraged by the vocal home crowd, dug in and battled from 5-4 down to secure a second break before closing out the set – helped on his way by coming out on top of a gruelling 37-shot rally.
The momentum was now with Evans and a five-game winning streak put him 2-0 up at the start of the second set.
Evans got a stroke of luck at 3-1 up when his forehand clipped the net cord to drop over and secure a double break.
From then on he closed out the match before receiving a standing ovation from the crowd.
“Days like today, whatever happens this week, is why I’ve been carrying on – to get out here and put my game on the court and enjoy it,” Evans added.
“I’m delighted with the win. It was probably one of my best performances I’ve ever played. I didn’t have to think too much, which has been a bit of a problem lately.”
The State Department is warning against travel to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza amid the conflict between Iran and Israel.
In a travel advisory on its website, the department warned travelers not to go to Israel “due to armed conflict, terrorism, and civil unrest,” to avoid the West Bank “due to terrorism and civil unrest” and to stay away from Gaza “due to terrorism and armed conflict.”
“Terrorist groups, lone-actor terrorists and other violent extremists continue plotting possible attacks in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. Terrorists and violent extremists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, and local government facilities,” the State Department said in the advisory.
“The security environment is complex and can change quickly, and violence can occur in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza without warning. Increased regional tensions can cause airlines to cancel and/or curtail flights into and out of Israel,” it added.
The conflict between Israel and Iran on Monday stretched into its fourth day, and President Trump has said “it’s possible” that the U.S. gets involved in the fighting.
“We’re not involved in it. It’s possible we could get involved. But we are not at this moment involved,” Trump told ABC News over the weekend.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that his country was close to “eliminating the nuclear threat and eliminating the missile threat” from Iran.
The new conflict between Israel and Iran is also taking place as leaders from around the world, including Trump, meet in Canada for a Group of Seven (G7) summit.
Reddit is launching a new feature for advertisers that slots positive posts from Reddit users right under their ads.
The new alpha feature, called Conversation Summary Add-ons, “dynamically integrates positive content from Reddit users directly below an advertiser’s creative, putting community conversations front-and-center in the user experience and blending AI-driven efficiency with real human perspectives,” according to a post from Reddit.
As shown by Reddit, you’ll be able to scroll through the posts that appear under an ad. You’ll also see a short summary of what Reddit users are saying about the advertiser. Jackbox Games and Lucid are alpha testers of the feature.
Powering this new feature is an “engine” Reddit calls Reddit Community Intelligence. According to the company, Reddit Community Intelligence can turn the platform’s more than 22 billion posts and comments “into structured intelligence for smarter marketing decisions.”
As part of today’s announcements, which Reddit is making alongside the Cannes Lions festival, the company is also introducing a “scalable, AI-powered social listening tool” called Reddit Insights. “Informed by proprietary metadata, it provides precise, real-time insights that help marketers confidently plan campaigns, validate creative ideas, and make smarter business decisions,” Reddit says.
Zach Kram is a national NBA writer for ESPN.com, specializing in short- and long-term trends across the league’s analytics landscape. He previously worked at The Ringer covering the NBA and MLB. You can follow Zach on X via @zachkram.
An unexpectedly competitive, but expectedly entertaining, NBA Finals have transformed from a best-of-seven to a best-of-three, as the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder alternated wins in the first four games.
Recently, they’ve even alternated winning styles, too. The Thunder led most of Game 3, but the Pacers surged ahead with a big fourth quarter, and Oklahoma City pulled the same comeback trick in Game 4.
Through four games, the two teams are separated by just six points, and they could be headed for the first Finals Game 7 since the clash between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors in 2016. In advance of a pivotal Game 5 (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC), here are seven plays that have defined the tactics and narratives of the 2025 Finals, explaining how the series reached 2-2 and where it might be headed.
Let’s start in Game 3, when the Pacers took one of their favorite tactics to the extreme. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander‘s pick-and-rolls have set the stage for a delightful game-within-a-game in the Finals. The Pacers harried him in Game 1, so Oklahoma City tweaked its screening tactics in Game 2, setting more picks high up the court to open space for the league MVP.
Then, Indiana responded, denying Gilgeous-Alexander the ball. If he doesn’t have possession, it doesn’t matter where the Thunder would prefer to screen for him. Through Game 2 of the Finals, Gilgeous-Alexander had brought up the ball on 61% of the Thunder’s possessions when he was on the court, according to an analysis of GeniusIQ tracking data.
But against Indiana’s intense full-court pressure in Games 3 and 4, that percentage dropped by half, as SGA brought up the ball on just 30% of the Thunder’s possessions in each game. That’s a major change of pace for Oklahoma City’s offense: Out of 342 games that Gilgeous-Alexander has played over the past five seasons, these were his second- and third-lowest percentages.
After Indiana’s first made shot of Game 3, Andrew Nembhard denied Gilgeous-Alexander the inbounds pass, preventing him from initiating Oklahoma City’s offense. And though that first possession still produced a bucket for Williams, SGA never touched the ball.
More often than not, that setup is a win for Indiana — like on this possession midway through the first quarter of Game 3, when Oklahoma City’s most talented offensive player didn’t touch the ball and an out-of-control Williams committed a turnover.
Overall, the Thunder are averaging 122 points per 100 half-court possessions in the Finals when Gilgeous-Alexander brings up the ball, versus just 107 when he’s on the court but doesn’t bring up the ball, per GeniusIQ. That’s not the whole story.
Not bringing up the ball could help Gilgeous-Alexander avoid early fatigue, setting him up for better luck in crunch time, as was the case in Game 4. But it helps illustrate why Indiana’s middling defense has slowed the Thunder, who had the No. 3 offense in the regular season.
Game 4, third quarter: OKC commits a shot clock violation
Facing a growing deficit in front of a frenzied Pacers crowd, Oklahoma City called a timeout to regroup. But that plan failed. After Alex Caruso brought up the ball — because of Nembhard’s continued denial of SGA in the backcourt — Isaiah Hartenstein‘s handoff was almost a turnover, then Nembhard stonewalled Gilgeous-Alexander’s attempt to isolate in the midrange.
Eventually, with the shot clock winding down, the ball deflected out of bounds, and after another deflection of the inbound pass, Indiana forced a violation.
This possession illustrates Oklahoma City’s sudden lack of offensive flow. It’s astonishing how much the Thunder have relied on tough one-on-one scoring in this series, as opposed to rhythmic playmaking as a team. The three lowest-assist games of Oklahoma City’s season are:
Game 4 of the Finals: 11 assists.
Game 1 of the Finals: 13 assists.
Game 3 of the Finals: 16 assists. (The Thunder had more than 16 assists in every regular-season game except Game No. 82, when they had 16 with all their starters resting.)
That’s a massive shock to OKC’s system, as the team averaged 27 assists in the regular season and 25 in the playoffs until the Finals. In Game 4, Gilgeous-Alexander didn’t have an assist for the first time in five years.
Game 4, fourth quarter: Aaron Nesmith fouls Gilgeous-Alexander
Though Nesmith was the Pacers’ key defender in the Eastern Conference finals, as he had the greatest success guarding the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson, Indiana prefers Nembhard to guard Gilgeous-Alexander. Nembhard has matched up against Gilgeous-Alexander on 187 possessions in the Finals, per GeniusIQ, versus 119 for the rest of the Pacers combined.
The results show why. Out of 27 defenders who have guarded SGA for at least 10 matchups this postseason, his three highest points-per-matchup figures are against non-Nembhard Pacers: Bennedict Mathurin (0.89 points per matchup), Nesmith (0.73) and Myles Turner (0.73). For comparison, Gilgeous-Alexander has scored only 0.33 points per matchup against Nembhard.
Gilgeous-Alexander is still getting his typical share of points in the Finals (32.8 points per game, versus 32.7 in the regular season), but Nembhard is making him work a lot harder for them than anyone else.
Those numbers might reflect a small sample, but down the stretch of Game 4, the Thunder geared their offense toward shifting Nesmith onto Gilgeous-Alexander instead. Oklahoma City — which typically asks its guards to set the most picks in the league — repeatedly sent Gilgeous-Alexander to screen for Williams, who was being guarded by Nesmith, to coax Indiana into a switch.
Gilgeous-Alexander set five picks for Williams in the fourth quarter of Game 4 — tied for the most in any quarter of their careers playing together, per GeniusIQ. The other time was the fourth quarter of Game 4 against the Dallas Mavericks in last year’s playoffs, another must-win game for the Thunder. They clearly trust this action in desperate moments.
Against Indiana, those five plays produced excellent results as the Thunder completed their comeback: a layup, a 3-pointer, two shooting fouls (which led to Nesmith fouling out) and an open midrange jumper that he missed. The Thunder evened the series, and Gilgeous-Alexander scored the most points in the last five minutes of a Finals game (15) since 1971.
Indiana’s first made field goal of the Finals showcased one advantage for the Pacers: Siakam is too big and too adept at finishing to switch a guard onto him. Cason Wallace is an excellent perimeter defender, but on this play, he couldn’t offer meaningful resistance as Indiana recognized the mismatch, cleared out one side of the court and let Siakam go to work.
Siakam, who won a title with the 2018-19 Toronto Raptors, leads the Pacers in the Finals with 18.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, and he’s contributing 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks. He’s on pace to become the 12th player this century to average 18/7/1/1 in the Finals, joining an elite list: Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan (twice), Dwyane Wade (twice), Kevin Garnett, LeBron James (three times), Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Andrew Wiggins.
But it’s Siakam’s ability to overwhelm smaller defenders on the block that has had so much impact on the Finals. It’s not just that it allows Siakam to generate easy buckets, which are rare against this historically great Thunder defense. It’s also that Siakam forced Thunder coach Mark Daigneault to change his game plan. For Game 4, Daigneault reinserted Hartenstein into the starting lineup, replacing Wallace to give the Thunder more size.
The Thunder’s double-big lineup opens holes elsewhere, though, because it reduces Oklahoma City’s speed on the floor — which is necessary when countering Indiana’s high-octane attack. The Pacers are well-rounded enough that they force trade-offs from their opponents, and Siakam, with his ability to run the floor and power through defenders at the rim, is the epitome of that strength.
The Thunder allowed the most corner 3s this season, and the Pacers have taken advantage. On this play, some clever Tyrese Haliburton head and ball fakes created an open look for Nembhard. But NBA teams try to avoid helping off the strong-side corner — because this kickout pass would be easy for any guard, let alone the playoff leader in assists per game.
The Thunder are more aggressive with this sort of help than other teams. Usually, that’s to their benefit and they have the personnel to make it work, but Indiana has twisted the Thunder’s tendencies against them. The Pacers are 25-for-52 on corner 3s (48%) in the Finals, versus 27-for-87 (31%) above the break. Corner shots account for nearly half of their 3-point makes on only about a third of their attempts.
For comparison, Oklahoma City has matched Indiana with 27 above-the-break 3s, but has gone only 11-for-33 from the corners. That disparity has granted Indiana 14 more 3s overall, or 42 extra points from beyond the arc.
Indiana’s hot shooting from the corners likely won’t regress much as the Finals continue. Throughout the postseason, the Pacers are shooting 47% on corner 3s. That’s the best mark for any team (minimum 100 attempts) since the Phoenix Suns shot 48% from the corners in the 2009-10 playoffs.
So, if the Pacers are generating some mismatches, even against the Thunder’s ferocious defense, and are feasting on corner 3s, then why is Indiana scoring just 109.8 points per 100 possessions in the Finals, after topping 116 in the previous playoff rounds?
This bucket gives a hint. It was the result of a dynamite play from Haliburton, who intercepted a pass, created a 3-on-2 fast break and tossed in a sprinkle of razzle-dazzle as he went behind the back in midair and found Toppin cutting to the hoop.
But this sequence stands out, in part, because of how absent that open-court verve, which defines Indiana’s offense, has been in these Finals.
Over the postseason, the Pacers have scored 127 points per 100 chances in transition, versus just 102 points per 100 chances in the half court, per GeniusIQ. Among teams that advanced at least one round, only the Minnesota Timberwolves had a larger gap, so it’s crucial for Indiana to run.
That’s easier said than done against Oklahoma City. Transition play has accounted for 11% of the Pacers’ chances against Oklahoma City, per GeniusIQ, versus 15% in the first three rounds and 16% in the regular season. Indiana was one of the most frequent transition teams earlier in the playoffs but has fallen to the bottom of that statistic against the Thunder.
Minnesota followed a similar pattern: The Timberwolves had an above-average transition rate in the first two rounds, but a mere 11% transition rate against the Thunder in the conference finals. That’s a big reason the Timberwolves’ offense sputtered and Oklahoma City reached the Finals, and it’s why Indiana is struggling to score more than ever.
Game 2, second quarter: Indiana loses the ball out of bounds
Haliburton doesn’t have the reputation of an isolation master, but his numbers tell a different story. Over the past three seasons, Haliburton leads all high-volume players with 1.16 points per isolation that leads directly to a shot, turnover or foul, per GeniusIQ. (SGA is second, 0.002 points per iso behind Haliburton.)
That effectiveness mostly continued through the conference finals. But against Oklahoma City, the Pacers have scored just 0.50 points per Haliburton isolation. It’s a small sample, but an important one, because several of Haliburton’s failed isolations came as Indiana’s offense stalled down the stretch of Game 4.
On this play from Game 2, Haliburton failed to find an opening against Chet Holmgren in space, ultimately forcing a pass that trickled out of bounds for a turnover. Haliburton has maneuvered past Holmgren for contested layups a couple of times in the series, but this early play presaged his difficulty attacking any Thunder player by himself.
While Oklahoma City and Indiana boast two of the deepest rotations in the league, this closely contested Finals might be decided in crunch time by Haliburton and Gilgeous-Alexander, and whether they can beat their man one-on-one. In Game 1, SGA missed a midrange jumper, and Haliburton took advantage with a game winner.
In Game 4, Gilgeous-Alexander tormented Nesmith down the stretch while Haliburton squandered a couple of crucial isolation opportunities, letting the Thunder back into the series and setting the stage for a furious best-of-three to finish the 2024-25 season.
Among her updates was a video chronicling her growing baby bump during her pregnancy with Elliott. She captioned the May 11 post, which also included clips of her son’s first weeks of life, “Growing you has been the greatest gift of my life. Thank you for making me your mommy baby boy.”
And the family of three have a number one fan in Hailie’s father, Eminem(real name Marshall Mathers). After all, when his daughter’s first wedding anniversary fell on the same date as one of his shows, the rapper made sure to share a special shoutout onstage.
“Long time, no see, Detroit,” Eminem said in a clip shared to social media after performing with Jelly Roll. “One more time, make some noise for Jelly Roll, y’all. Hailie and Evan, happy anniversary, I love y’all.”
A woman looks out of her bomb-damaged flat in Tehran
Israel’s conflict with Iran may look like a mismatch on paper – a nation of nine million people taking on a giant of the Middle East, home to 88 million.
But Israel’s formidable and sophisticated military forces – with an arsenal largely, but not exclusively, provided by the United States – are enabling it to overpower a much larger enemy.
The BBC looks at the military balance in the latest war in the Middle East.
What has Israel achieved so far?
Israel already says it has gained control over the skies over Tehran. It has been a complete mismatch in the air – with no sign of Iran’s few ageing fighter jets even getting off the ground.
Israel’s fleet of modern, US-made fighters have been able to drop guided bombs from short range – with apparently little concern of being shot down.
Much of the threat from Iran’s air defences was destroyed in an earlier Israeli strike in October – using longer range “stand-off” weapons to target Iran’s S300 missile systems.
In recent days Israel’s air force has continued to target ground-based radar and launchers. Even before the attack got under way, Israel had intelligence operatives inside Iran preparing to disrupt its response.
Mossad agents used drones smuggled into the country to target Iran’s remaining air defence systems.
Israeli attacks also wiped out many in Iran’s top level of command, which would have also undermined Iran’s response.
Is Iran still able to strike back?
Before Israel began its attacks, Iran had what the US described as the “largest ballistic missile arsenal” in the Middle East.
Estimates vary from between 2,000 to 3,000. Some of those, and the factories in which they were produced, have already been hit by Israel.
But Tehran has still been able to fire wave after wave into Israel, and some missiles have penetrated its sophisticated air defences.
The Israeli military says it has now destroyed a third of Iran’s surface to surface launchers. But while Iran’s missile programme will have been degraded, it has not been destroyed. It remains the greatest direct threat to Israel.
And despite Israel’s attacks, Iran still has many short range air defence missiles.
Justin Bronk, of the defence think tank Rusi, said that while Israel may now be able to claim air superiority over Tehran, it has still not achieved air dominance and the threat of short range missiles remain.
EPA
The US said Iran had the biggest missile stockpile in the Middle East.
Does Iran have allies – and what could they do?
Iran has for years invested in Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon with military advice, weapons and technology.
But their ability to threaten Israel on its frontiers has been greatly diminished by Israeli action over the last two years: Hamas has been all but destroyed in Gaza, and Hezbollah’s potency reduced to the point where it has not responded to Israel’s attack on its paymaster.
The Houthis, while more distant in Yemen, have still been able to fire the occasional salvo of missiles into Israel.
They survived a sustained US bombing campaign earlier this year, and were able to bring down several US Reaper drones with short range ground-to-air missiles.
Could other countries be dragged in?
Iran has the ability to strike western interests in the region. Iranian-backed militant groups in Iraq have targeted western military bases in the region. The US and the UK have been preparing for the worst.
There are still around 100 UK personnel based in Baghdad alongside the US military. Their safety is one reason why Kier Starmer, the British prime minister, recently ordered additional RAF Typhoon jets to Cyprus.
US and UK military naval personnel and ships are also stationed in Bahrain. The longer this war goes on the greater the risk for western forces in the region.
Iran still has the ability to disrupt or choke one of the world’s main shipping lanes in the Straight of Hormuz. It may not currently seem wise for Tehran to widen the conflict, but it could do so if it chooses.
Getty Images
Israel has US-made jets, like the F-35, but are they enough to achieve its goals in Iran?
Can Israel achieve its goals?
Israel has the upper hand, but the continuation of its military campaign is still largely dependent on US backing.
It receives billions of dollars of US military aid each year. Most of the weapons being fired from their American-made jets have been flown in from the US. Even some of the interceptor missiles for its own Iron Dome air defences are made in the US.
The “bunker busting” bombs Israel has been using to target Iran’s underground nuclear programme are mostly US-supplied. Donald Trump, the US president, has so far been willing to back their use, though it is reported that he vetoed Israeli plans to target Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei.
Nor has the US given Israel access to the one weapon that would probably be needed to penetrate Iran’s underground nuclear complex at Fordow – the Massive Ordnance Penetrator, a 30,000lb (13,600kg) bomb, which also can only be delivered by US B2 strategic bombers.
Even with continuing US military support there will be limits to what Israel can achieve. Air power may set back Iran’s nuclear programme, but it won’t destroy it. Israeli hopes of toppling the Iranian regime seem highly unlikely.
Air campaigns can create fear and chaos and rubble. But think of Libya in 2011, or Israel’s continuing assault on Gaza: they rarely result in a clear-cut victory.
Federal prosecutors unveiled murder and stalking charges Monday against the man suspected of shooting two Minnesota state lawmakers and their spouses.
Vance Boelter, 57, was arrested on state murder charges Sunday night after a two-day manhunt. Minnesota does not have the death penalty, but federal prosecutors could try to execute him if Boelter is convicted on his six new federal charges.
Authorities say Boelter shot and killed former Minnesota Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, at their home early Saturday. He also stands accused of injuring State Sen. John Hoffman (D) and his wife Yvette in a shooting at their home about 8 miles away the same morning.
According to a newly unsealed affidavit, Boelter also visited the homes of two other elected officials that morning. Boelter left one after finding that no one was home, and police saw him in a dark SUV at the other before he drove off.
Boelter faces a stalking charge for each lawmaker he shot, murder charges for the killings of Hortman and her husband and two counts of using a firearm during a crime of violence.
Joe Thompson, the acting U.S. attorney for Minnesota, at a Monday press conference announcing the charges said Boetler “stalked his victims like prey.”
“It is no exaggeration to say this is the stuff of nightmares,” Thompson said.
He declined to say whether he would seek the death penalty but did not rule it out.
“It’s too early to tell, but that is one of the options for several of the charges,” he said.
