May 2026

There were 22 posts published in May 2026 (this is page 2 of 3).

WR DJ Huggins commits to South Carolina over Alabama and Georgia

DJ Huggins has committed to Shane Beamer and the South Carolina Gamecocks. The talented wide receiver out of Kennesaw (Ga.) Harrison was back in Columbia earlier this month, and that sealed the deal.

“South Carolina has been so consistent,” Huggins told Rivals. “From the beginning, they have reached out a lot, they have been consistent and they recruited me the hardest.

“The relationship was the biggest factor in my decision. They truly want me there. It is just different with South Carolina. When I left that practice on April 11, I knew it. I just felt it. I can wholeheartedly see myself there. South Carolina just felt right.”

Huggins visited multiple times this spring, and he loved the energy.

“The atmosphere was crazy… The energy was really high. When I was there for practice, there was a lot of competition. I saw the players compete and the coaches coach. It showed me a lot when I was there for the last spring practice.”

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The staff made a big impact in Huggins’ decision

Mike Furrey, South Carolina’s wide receiver coach, was a big factor. The two have built a strong relationship.

“When I was there this spring, being able to spend time with Coach Furrey, eat dinner with him and his wife was great. I like how he coaches and how he teaches his players. He is big on relationships too.”

Beamer and Kendall Briles were also part of this decision. He has spent time around the head coach and the offensive coordinator, and both impressed.

“I really like Coach Briles, and his offensive scheme,” Huggins said. “It is a scheme I can fit into. He is very smart and I like his philosophy. I like the relationships with him, Coach Beamer and the whole staff, too.

“Coach Beamer has a lot of energy, and I really like the direction that Coach Beamer has the program going in.”

Huggins is the second commitment in as many days for South Carolina. Defensive John Archer committed on Wednesday. There could be more soon.

South Carolina lands commitment from 2027 WR DJ Huggins

Kennesaw (Ga.) Harrison three-star wide receiver DJ Huggins has committed to South Carolina, according to Rivals’ Hayes Fawcett.

He chose the Gamecocks over Alabama and Georgia, among others.

Huggins is the No. 442 overall prospect and No. 61 wide receiver in the 2027 cycle, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 45 recruit in Georgia.

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Head coach Shane Beamer and the staff in Columbia have added an impressive pass-catcher to their 2027 class. As a junior for the Harrison Hoyas, Huggins caught 67 passes and racked up 1,127 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also rushed for two scores, per MaxPreps.

South Carolina got Huggins back on campus this month for spring practice and he also visited in March. The latest trip helped the SEC program snag the momentum in his recruitment. Receivers coach Mike Furrey has been pushing hard for the rising Peach State prospect.

“I got a lot of time with Coach Furrey,” Huggins told Rivals’ Chad Simmons. “I like how he coaches with energy but also makes sure you understand the why behind everything. He is knowledgeable and played my position at the highest level. You can tell he’s focused on developing his guys the right way, both on and off the field.”

Huggins becomes commitment No. 5 for South Carolina this cycle. Earlier this week, it landed a commitment from four-star defensive lineman John Archer.

This story will be updated.

Biggest blowouts in NBA playoff history: Knicks take record lead at half

The New York Knicks have a chance to make some NBA playoff history on Thursday night.

Holding a 3-2 series lead entering Game 6, the Knicks came out and blitzed the Hawks in Atlanta, taking an 83-36 lead into the half. It’s the largest halftime lead in an NBA playoff game, per ESPN.

If events continue on this trajectory, the Knicks have a shot at authoring the biggest blowout win in NBA playoff history. They’re up 47 at the half. The record margin of victory in a playoff game is 58 points, held by two teams.

Here’s a look at the biggest blowouts in NBA playoff history:

Biggest blowouts in NBA playoff history

Via StatMuse:

  • 1 (tie). 58 points – Denver Nuggets over New Orleans Pelicans, 121-63, April 27, 2009
  • 1 (tie). 58 points – Minneapolis Lakers over St .Louis Hawks, 133-75, March 19, 1956
  • 3. 56 points – Los Angeles Lakers over Golden State Warriors, 126-70, April 21, 1973
  • 4. 55 points – Cleveland Cavaliers over Miami Heat, 138-83, April 28, 2025
  • 5. 54 points – Chicago Bulls over Milwaukee Bucks, 120-66, April 30, 2015
  • 6. 51 points – Oklahoma City Thunder over Memphis Grizzlies, 131-80, April 20, 2025
  • 7. 50 points – Milwaukee Bucks over San Francisco Warriors, 136-86, April 4, 1971
  • 8 (tie). 47 points – Orlando Magic over Boston Celtics, 124-77, April 28, 1995
  • 8 (tie). 47 points – Los Angeles Lakers over San Antonio Spurs, 135-88, April 17, 1986
  • 10. 45 points – Minnesota Timbewolves over Denver Nuggets, 115-70, May 16, 2024

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biggest blowouts in NBA playoffs as Knicks take record lead on Hawks

Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson, Hawks Dyson Daniels ejected after first-half altercation

Frustrated by his team getting blown out by 50 in the first half of a must-win playoff game, Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels threw an extra elbow and then got into it with New York’s Mitchell Robinson after a fight for free-throw rebound positioning. Quickly, things escalated, with other players stepping in to keep them separated, a referee and a security guard falling over, and a whole lot of pushing and shoving.

After review, both Robinson and Daniels were given technicals and ejected.

Daniels was clearly the instigator, throwing an elbow during the initial fight for position, but something must have been said that made Robinson try to charge Daniels after they had already been separated.

There’s some history here, Robinson picked up a technical in Game 2 for stepping over Daniels.

The ejections will have no impact on Game 6, which New York led by 50 when the incident occurred with 4:39 remaining in the first half. This game was over. The only question is about the league punishments that will follow. Most likely, Daniels and Robinson each get fined, and that’s it. However, it’s possible that, with the ejection, the league would suspend Robinson for a game, which would mean he would miss Game 1 of the Knicks’ second-round series against Boston or Philadelphia.

The wildest numbers of the Knicks’ record 47-point beatdown of the Hawks in first half of Game 6

That probably wasn’t the kind of history the Atlanta Hawks wanted to make on Thursday.

As the buzzer sounded to end the first half, the Hawks found themselves down 83-36 to the New York Knicks in an elimination game. That’s not just a beatdown, it’s the largest halftime lead in the history of the NBA playoffs at 47 points.

But that wasn’t the end of the futility for Atlanta. Let’s just run through how bad a half of basketball that was, via the magic of numbers.

That was the Knicks’ largest lead of the first half. If that margin held up to halftime, it would have been the largest halftime lead in NBA history, regular season or postseason. The current record-holder is 50 points, held by the Dallas Mavericks in 2020.

There were plenty of ridiculous scores in that first half — 48-15, 72-22, 83-35 — but the most absurd was 60-19. That’s the precise score that led to the scoreboard displaying “Kinda One Sided Isn’t It” in Space Jam.

The Haws committed eight turnovers in the first quarter, then two more in the first minute of the second quarter. That’s 12 turnovers in the span of 13 minutes.

There have been 4,550 playoff games in the history of the NBA. That’s 9,099 teams the Hawks performed worse than in the first half.

Bench forward Mouhamed Gueye had a plus/minus of minus-17 in the first half. That is normally bad. In the context of the Hawks, it was the best mark of any player who saw more than five minutes. The worst: Jonathan Kuminga at minus-40 in 12 minutes.

Hawks guard Dyson Daniels was ejected in the second quarter after getting into it with Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson, leaving the game with 3 points on 1-of-4 shooting in 15 minutes.

The wildest numbers of the Knicks’ record 47-point beatdown of the Hawks in first half of Game 6

That probably wasn’t the kind of history the Atlanta Hawks wanted to make on Thursday.

As the buzzer sounded to end the first half, the Hawks found themselves down 83-36 to the New York Knicks in an elimination game. That’s not just a beatdown, it’s the largest halftime lead in the history of the NBA playoffs at 47 points.

But that wasn’t the end of the futility for Atlanta. Let’s just run through how bad a half of basketball that was, via the magic of numbers.

That was the Knicks’ largest lead of the first half. If that margin held up to halftime, it would have been the largest halftime lead in NBA history, regular season or postseason. The current record-holder is 50 points, held by the Dallas Mavericks in 2020.

There were plenty of ridiculous scores in that first half — 48-15, 72-22, 83-35 — but the most absurd was 60-19. That’s the precise score that led to the scoreboard displaying “Kinda One Sided Isn’t It” in Space Jam.

The Haws committed eight turnovers in the first quarter, then two more in the first minute of the second quarter. That’s 12 turnovers in the span of 13 minutes.

There have been 4,550 playoff games in the history of the NBA. That’s 9,099 teams the Hawks performed worse than in the first half.

Bench forward Mouhamed Gueye had a plus/minus of minus-17 in the first half. That is normally bad. In the context of the Hawks, it was the best mark of any player who saw more than five minutes. The worst: Jonathan Kuminga at minus-40 in 12 minutes.

Hawks guard Dyson Daniels was ejected in the second quarter after getting into it with Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson, leaving the game with 3 points on 1-of-4 shooting in 15 minutes.

A 47-point halftime lead! Knicks built a giant edge over the Hawks in Game 6

ATLANTA (AP) — The New York Knicks set an NBA playoff record Thursday night by taking a 47-point halftime lead over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 6 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

The Knicks led 83-36 at the break, after leading by as many as 51 at one point in the second quarter.

Before Thursday, the biggest halftime playoff lead was 41 points. It had happened twice: Cleveland led in Boston 72-31 at the break on May 19, 2017, and Indiana led the Cavaliers 80-39 at the half of game on May 11, 2025.

The 47-point lead tied for the second-biggest — including regular season games — in the NBA’s shot-clock era, which started in 1954. Dallas led the Los Angeles Clippers by 50 points at the break on Dec. 27, 2020, and Golden State led Sacramento by 47 at the half of their game on Nov. 2, 1991.

New York also tied for the third-highest first-half point total in NBA playoff history. Oklahoma City scored 87 against Denver on May 7, 2025; Cleveland scored 86 against Golden State on June 9, 2017; and Dallas scored 83 against Sacramento on May 8, 2003.

Atlanta actually had a 9-0 run in the early moments to take a 9-5 lead. The Knicks answered that with a 43-6 run.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson ejected after altercation with Hawks’ Dyson Daniels during Game 6

Mitchell Robinson doesn’t back down from a fight during games, and that attitude got the Knicks center ejected during Thursday’s Game 6 against the Hawks.

With the Knicks up big in the second quarter, Robinson was on the floor while OG Anunoby was taking a free throw. Dyson Daniels of the Hawks tried to box out Robinson and seemingly gave the Knicks big man a strong elbow to the rib area. Robinson didn’t take kindly to the move and got in Daniels’ face and held the Hawks forward. Oneyeka Okongwu pulled Robinson off his teammate, but Daniels must have said something that caused Robinson to go after him again. Players, officials and coaches eventually separated the two, but both were eventually ejected.

Robinson, in his 8:35 minutes on the court, scored six points on 3-of-3 shooting while coming down with three rebounds and picking up two blocks. 

Dyson Daniels, Mitchell Robinson ejected for fight as Knicks embarrass Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks‘ Dyson Daniels and New York Knicks‘ Mitchell Robinson were ejected as tempers boiled over in a one-sided first half Thursday night.

The ejections occurred with 4:39 remaining in the second quarter of Game 6 with the Knicks leading by 50(!) points. Up 72-22, Robinson was called for a loose-ball foul, and things exploded from there.

Robinson took exception to Daniels’ actions when they were trying to box each other out after a free throw and the players latched on to each other. They were pulled apart, with several players and staff ending up on the court in the process, but they repeatedly tried to go after each other.

No punches were thrown and eventually cooler heads prevailed, but both players were ejected from the game after reviews.

The Knicks lead the series 3-2 and are well on their way to punching their ticket to the second round.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dyson Daniels, Mitchell Robinson ejected from Knicks vs Hawks

Mitchell Robinson and Dyson Daniels ejected as Knicks break record for largest NBA playoff halftime lead in Game 6 beatdown of Hawks

ATLANTA — The Hawks finally showed some fight against the Knicks in Game 6 of their opening-round playoff series. Unfortunately, Atlanta was down by 50 points at the time, and the fight ended in ejections.

It was that kind of (probably season-ending) night for Atlanta, which ended up trailing by 47 points (83-36) at the half — the largest halftime deficit ever in an NBA playoff game. The previous record was 41 points, initially set when the Cleveland Cavaliers led the Boston Celtics 72–31 at halftime in Game 2 of the 2017 Eastern Conference finals then tied when the Indiana Pacers led the Cavs 80-39 in Game 4 of their 2025 second-round series.

The Knicks spent the first quarter-plus of Thursday night’s game kicking Atlanta up and down the court, riding a 40-15 first quarter and a combined 55-10 run to bury the Hawks long before halftime. With 4:39 remaining in the first half and New York’s OG Annunoby at the line, Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels and New York’s Mitchell Robinson tangled up … and then all hell broke loose.

The fight spilled over onto the front row of fans, seemingly involving most of the on-court members of both teams. After an initial review, referees ejected both Robinson and Daniels. Video reviews will surely determine whether further punishment will be necessary for any other players, (likely) next round for New York or next season for Atlanta.

The Hawks’ frustration was obvious, even though they had no one to blame but themselves for the mile-deep hole they were in at the time of the fight. The Knicks, meanwhile, rode the wave of the surprisingly large number of New York fans in Atlanta’s State Farm Arena, keeping the throttle down even after the ejections.

In almost any other game, this would have been the ugliest moment. But in this one, the fight didn’t come anywhere near the grotesque scoreboard. The game resumed after the ejections, a march to the inevitable for both teams.