Victor Wembanyama went to a park in New York City and played 1-on-1 with fans on Saturday. He even lost a couple of games. Not in basketball, though. Wemby was playing chess. Before the San Antonio Spurs left New York for a flight to Minnesota, Wembanyama put out the call on social media: “Who wants to meet me at the SW corner of Washington Square park to play chess? Im there,” Wembanyama wrote. It was 9:36 a.m. People began showing up almost immediately. Washington Square Park is a known spot for chess in New York — Bobby Fischer among others have famously played there, and it's been a spot used for multiple movie scenes featuring the game. Wembanyama was there for an hour in the rain, from about 10-11 a.m. He played four games, winning two and losing two before departing to catch the Spurs' flight. Wembanyama had been trying to get somewhere to play chess for the bulk of the team's time in New York — the Spurs played the Knicks on Christmas and won at Brooklyn on Friday night. The schedule never aligned, until Saturday morning. And even with bad weather, he bundled up to make it happen. He posed for photos with a couple of dozen people who showed up, braving a morning of cold rain to play chess with one of the NBA's biggest stars. “We need an NBA players only Chess tournament, proceeds go to the charity of choice of the winner,” he wrote on social media after his chess trip was over. Wembanyama is averaging 25.2 points and 10.1 rebounds this season, his second in the NBA after winning rookie of the year last season. NBA: /hub/NBA This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
During a recent interview with Sports Illustrated , Mercedes Mone revealed what led to her starting a website and digital magazine. Mone launched “Mone Mag” earlier this year and has since announced a new website, MercedesMone.com , to go along with it. She says the idea behind both is to “control the narrative” and get her voice back. Mone said: “This whole last two to three years, the internet, people just wanna create their own stories. Really [the website] was just to control the narrative and to get my voice back. Going on social media every single day and seeing these made up stories... It’s like enough’s enough.” “Oh, things don’t get to me at all anymore (laughs). I learned a long time ago to not let words affect me, because the internet used to affect me so much. Just the littlest things... would ruin my whole day.” “We have no idea who is on the other side of the keyboard. I don’t know if these are bots. I don’t know if it’s someone who looks like you. I don’t know if it’s a witch or rat or whoever, but at the end of the day I don’t care what you have to say about me.” For the TBS Championship! Mercedes Moné (c) vs. Kris Statlander TBS Champion @MercedesVarnado will defend the title against former champ @callmekrisstat at #AEWFullGear THIS SATURDAY LIVE on PPV from the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ! https://t.co/JlBXZPMlvR pic.twitter.com/mTw2AlLYEc Mone is scheduled to defend her TBS title against Kris Statlander at AEW Full Gear on Saturday. During the interview with Sports Illustrated, Mone also spoke about how she enjoys devising a game plan/moveset geared specifically to her opponent. “I love training for my opponent. I love to try to create different moves and move sets that I can outdo their moves. I made sure I stepped into the ring for Kris Statlander because she is a legit powerhouse in this women’s division. And I definitely won’t take her lightly. My back still hurts from being thrown into the wall.” Mone says she enjoys working with wrestlers who have a size and strength advantage over her. “I become more agile. I become faster... because I have to think about how and what am I gonna do to take down these bigger opponents. How much faster do I have to be? Do I have to climb to the top rope to jump on them? Do I have to take out a knee, an ankle? I have such amazing matches with stronger people and people who are bigger than me because I love doing high flying stuff. I love when I can have a good base to try out these cool new moves that I have imagined in my head.” Tonight will be Mone’s tenth match in AEW. She has a perfect 10-0 record, winning the TBS title in her first match and defending it successfully nine times since. Mone’s full interview with Sports Illustrated is available here . Source
NoneCOLUMBUS, Ohio — Will Howard passed for two touchdowns and rushed for another, TreVeyon Henderson ran for a score, and No. 2 Ohio State beat previously undefeated No. 5 Indiana 38-15 on Saturday. All Ohio State (10-1, 7-1) has to do now is beat Michigan at home next Saturday and it will earn a return to the Big Ten championship game for the first time since 2020 and get a rematch with No. 1 Oregon. The Ducks beat Ohio State 32-31 in a wild one back on Oct. 12. The Hoosiers (10-1, 7-1) had their best chance to beat the Buckeyes for the first time since 1988 but were hurt by special teams mistakes and disrupted by an Ohio State defense that sacked quarterback Kurtis Rourke five times. Howard finished 22 for 26 for 201 yards. Emeka Egbuka had seven catches for 80 yards and a TD. NO. 25 ILLINOIS 38, RUTGERS 31: Luke Altmyer found Pat Bryant for a catch-and-run, 40-yard touchdown pass with 4 seconds left, sending Illinois to a wild road victory over Rutgers. Illinois (8-3, 5-3) was down 31-30 when it sent long kicker Ethan Moczulski out for a desperation 58-yard field goal with 14 seconds to go. Rutgers (6-5, 3-5) coach Greg Schiano then called for a timeout right before Moczulski’s attempt was wide left and about 15 yards short. After the missed field goal was waved off by the timeout, Illinois coach Bret Bielema sent his offense back on the field. Altmyer hit Bryant on an in cut on the left side at the 22, and he continued across the field and scored untouched in a game that featured three lead changes in the final 3:07. IOWA 29, MARYLAND 13: Kaleb Johnson rushed for 164 yards and a touchdown on a career-high 35 carries, and Kamari Moulton scored on a 68-yard run in the fourth quarter to help Iowa outlast Maryland in College Park. Johnson scored from 2 yards out in the second quarter for his 21st rushing touchdown of the season, and the Hawkeyes (7-4, 5-3) rebounded from their loss to UCLA in their previous game. Maryland (4-7, 1-7) needed to win its final two regular-season games to reach six wins and bowl eligibility, but the Terrapins were dominated in the first half and eventually fell behind 16-0. Drew Stevens made five field goals for Iowa, including kicks from 54 yards in the second quarter, then 50 and 49 in the third. LATE FRIDAY MICHIGAN STATE 24, PURDUE 17: Aidan Chiles threw for two scores in the first half to build a three-touchdown lead and Michigan State (5-6, 3-5) held on to beat Purdue (1-10, 0-8) at home. The Spartans are a win away from being eligible for a bowl with first-year coach Jonathan Smith and they play Rutgers at home in the final regular-season game.