DETROIT — What a difference a fit and fired up Mule makes. Detroit Red Wings mercurial forward Johan Franzen showed strength, finesse and plenty of kick in the team’s 7-4 win over the New Jersey Devils at Joe Louis Arena on Friday night. Franzen, who has been hot since his return to the team from […]
MINNEAPOLIS — Assist-to-turnover ratio is one way to gauge how willing a team shares the basketball. So what do you take away from the Detroit Pistons’ 4-to-5 ratio in the first half Friday night vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves? The first takeaway is that the Pistons were down by 21 points and halftime and well on […]
Let the negotiations begin. More than a month after he fired his longtime representatives at Relativity Sports, Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh finally has hired a new agent: CAA’s Jimmy Sexton, according to the Sports Business Journal. Suh has one year left on the rookie contract he signed in 2010 — the deal voids […]
DETROIT — The reunion stretched on a little long, because the perfect good-bye was to let Nicklas Lidstrom linger. The Swede who played his way into hockey history books and Detroit Red Wings lore kept his face neutral for most of the evening Thursday, finally breaking into a smile and a sweet look at his […]
DETROIT — Perfect? Not quite. On a night when the Detroit Red Wings honored the so-called “perfect human” by retiring Nicklas Lidstrom’s No. 5 at Joe Louis Arena, his present-day counterparts tried to do their best imitation of their former All-Star defenseman. And that wasn’t limited to all of them wearing No. 5 Lidstrom sweaters […]
EAST LANSING — Michigan State said good-bye to its point guard Thursday night. The Spartans said hello to him, too. The last game of the season at Breslin Center, an 86-76 win for No. 22 MSU over No. 24 Iowa, served many of the Spartans’ needs — to feel good about themselves again, to start […]
LAKELAND, Fla. — In his most advanced work yet in 2014, Justin Verlander continued to seek 2012. The Tigers right-hander had his delayed first scheduled start of the exhibition season was rained out Thursday. So he threw, by his report, 45 pitches in a batting cage with hitters standing — but not swinging — at […]
LAKELAND, Fla. — Detroit Tigers outfielder Andy Dirks was upbeat and resilient Thursday as he spoke about the pending back surgery that will sideline him at least three months. “You can’t get down about it,” Dirks said. “I’ve got to remind myself it could be a lot worse. “It really stinks, and when I first […]
ANN ARBOR — Michigan center Jordan Morgan will have his Senior Day ceremony on Saturday, one that coach John Beilein said “is going to be a hard one” emotionally because of Morgan’s impact on the program. But his playing status remains uncertain. Morgan played only seven minutes against Illinois — all in the first half […]
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A week ago, it was a small group, the Michigan basketball players who held a Big Ten championship ring. The Wolverines shared the conference title in 2012, gaining their piece while watching another game on television in the team’s Player Development Center video room. Only three players — Jordan Morgan, Jon Horford […]