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The Los Angeles Lakers continue a four-game road swing Monday, visiting a host Miami Heat team fresh off snapping an early-season skid. Tyler Herro came one assist away from his second career triple-double Friday, with 24 points and 10 rebounds in Miami’s 121-114 victory over Washington. “He’s made himself more dynamic to the point where if you blitz him, he makes a crosscourt pass,” Bam Adebayo said of Herro. “He’s really improved on looking off

An uneven four games saw the Milwaukee Bucks struggle immensely on defense, and following a blowout in Toronto, players suggested a change in defensive strategy to new coach Adrian Griffin. Coming off their best defensive showing under Griffin, the Bucks will attempt to produce another stout performance Monday night when they visit the Brooklyn Nets. Milwaukee allowed its first four opponents to average 122 points and gave up at least 50 percent shooting in three

The Philadelphia 76ers dropped a gut-wrenching season opener by one point on the road against the Milwaukee Bucks. Philadelphia hasn’t lost since. The Sixers will try to land their fifth consecutive victory when they host the Washington Wizards on Monday. Following the blockbuster trade of James Harden to the Los Angeles Clippers, the Sixers have been moving the ball much more than in Harden’s ball-dominant style. The Sixers defeated the Phoenix Suns 112-100 on Saturday

The Charlotte Hornets are fresh off a victory because of a defensive stop on the game’s final possession. They’ll likely need more of that kind of defense against the host Dallas Mavericks on Sunday night. The Mavericks are coming off their first loss of the season, returning home from Denver following a 125-114 setback Friday night. Dallas won its first four games of the regular season — three by single-digit margins. The status of Mavericks

The Phoenix Suns on Sunday will be facing their former coach’s current team for the first time this season, but they’re more concerned about getting their health and collecting a much-needed win when they visit the Detroit Pistons. Monty Williams was fired by Phoenix after last season, and Pistons owner Tom Gores coaxed him into coaching his team with a record-breaking six-year, $78.5 million contract. The teams matched up in the preseason but this time,

The Western Conference’s top seed is out to avoid disappointment amid a historic season as St. Louis City SC hit the road to face Sporting Kansas City on Sunday in the second leg of a best-of-three first-round playoff series. Sporting KC earned a 4-1 win last Sunday at St. Louis, stunning the first-year club with just its fifth home loss all season. One more win for Sporting KC and St. Louis’ inaugural season is done.

The Los Angeles Kings will try to remain perfect on the road this season when they continue their four-game trek against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night. The Kings, who opened the trip with a 4-1 victory at Toronto on Tuesday, improved to an NHL-best 5-0-0 on the road with a 3-2 win at Ottawa on Thursday. After the Saturday game, they will fly home to Los Angeles before heading to Las Vegas to the

Missouri posted a 25-10 record and reached the NCAA Tournament last season despite struggling with interior defense and rebounding. The Tigers ranked 360th among Division I schools last season with a minus-7.2 rebounding differential. They addressed that shortcoming by landing 7-foot-5 Connor Vanover in the transfer portal and recruiting freshmen Jordan Butler, a 7-foot center, and Trent Pierce, a 6-foot-10 wing player. They will feature their bigger look on Monday when they open their season

LSU head coach Matt McMahon is hoping for significant improvement from his team in his second season. The Tigers posted a 14-19 record overall and 2-16 mark in Southeastern Conference play in 2022-23. They open the new season against Mississippi Valley State on Monday night in Baton Rouge, La. McMahon knows what happens in the early season can be misleading as far as what’s going to occur in the SEC. Last season LSU went 11-1

The Colorado Buffaloes didn’t reach their goal of making the NCAA Tournament last spring, but they hope some key additions will help return them to the Big Dance. After posting an 18-17 record in 2022-23, Colorado will open the new season against Towson on Monday night in Boulder, Colo. The game will mark the debut of 6-foot-11 senior Eddie Lampkin Jr., who transferred from TCU. Lampkin underwent back surgery in the offseason and likely will