BASKETBALL

Kobe's towel from finale sells for $33K

The towel that was draped over the shoulders of Kobe Bryant during his farewell speech following his final NBA game sold for over $33,000 at an online auction, CNN reported on Sunday.

The Lakers star ended his speech at Staples Center in Los Angeles with his trademark "Mamba Out" before walking off the court. A fan grabbed the towel, beginning a stretch in which that souvenir has been sold multiple times.

The winning bid for the towel on Sunday－along with two tickets from the game on April 13, 2016－was $33,077.16. Bryant scored 60 points in the Lakers' 101-96 win over the Utah Jazz that night.

Jeff Woolf, president of Iconic Auctions, told CNN that the buyer is known for having the largest collection of Lakers memorabilia worldwide. Woolf noted that the same bidder previously spent $30,000 on a yearbook from Bryant's middle-school days.

Bryant, 41, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven other people perished in a helicopter crash on Jan 26 in Calabasas, California.

Flying Leopards land ex-NBA guard Mayo

OJ Mayo

Former NBA guard OJ Mayo will play for the Liaoning Flying Leopards when the CBA resumes following its stoppage for the coronavirus outbreak.

Liaoning, which is currently third in the standings, announced on Sunday that Mayo is in Shenyang, the team's home base, and will sign a contract after he spends time in quarantine and passes a physical.

The CBA suspended play amid the epidemic on Feb 1. The league had been expected to return in mid-April with teams based in one or two cities and without fans in the stands. However, China's indefinite ban on foreign nationals entering the country is thought to have scuppered those plans.

Mayo, 32, was drafted No 3 overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2008. He was sent to the Memphis Grizzlies in a draft-day trade that shipped Kevin Love to Minnesota.

He has been out of the NBA since 2016 after being banned for violating the league's anti-drug policy.

In 547 NBA games (325 starts), Mayo averaged 13.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.

GOLF

Women's tour plays on with toilet-paper prizes

While most global sports have shut down over the coronavirus pandemic, a US third-level women's golf tour is playing on, aided by a ruling declaring Arizona courses as essential businesses－and where a winner's prize recently included a toilet roll.

The Cactus Tour will stage its 12th 54-hole event of the year, and third since major US sports leagues went silent, starting Tuesday at Sun City Country Club in Arizona.

There are precautions to allow for safety and cut the chances of spreading or contracting the deadly virus, with players only in pairs to help follow distancing guidelines.

And while last week's top prize was only $2,800, it brought winner Sarah Burnham an even more prized treasure seldom seen on store shelves these days.

"They gave some toilet paper," Burnham told the Detroit News. "He was like, 'Here's a little extra prize for the winner.'"

She described the atmosphere to the newspaper, such as no rakes in bunkers and players leaving flag-sticks in cups, which were partly filled with pieces of pool noodles－children's foam floating swim toys－so players could more easily reclaim their ball.

CRICKET

Smith's captaincy ban ends following scandal

Steve Smith

Steve Smith's two-year leadership ban ended quietly on Sunday, leaving him eligible to again captain Australia at a time of uncertainty over when international cricket will resume.

Smith was stripped of the captaincy and banned from leading Australia for two years over his involvement in the 2018 ball-tampering scandal in South Africa. His sentence ended on Sunday and he can now captain Australia if called upon.

Australian players were this week scheduled to conclude a series of matches in New Zealand and, for some, to join the Indian Premier League.

However, it wasn't clear on Sunday if the IPL will take place this year and when international matches will resume. Australia's scheduled mid-year tours to England and Bangladesh are in doubt.

SOCCER

Trophy-hungry Kane open to Tottenham exit

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane said on Sunday that he could leave the Premier League club if it does not progress in the right direction as he wants to win trophies "sooner rather than later".

Kane has scored 181 goals for Spurs in all competitions－averaging 30 goals a season since his breakthrough into the starting lineup in 2014－but he is yet to win a trophy with the London club.

The England striker signed a six-year contract extension in 2018 that would keep him at Spurs until 2024 but admitted in an Instagram Q&A with Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp that he could not guarantee he would stay if Spurs were not successful.

"I'll always love Spurs, but it's one of them things. I've always said if I don't feel like we're progressing as a team or going in the right direction, I'm not someone to stay there just for the sake of it," Kane said.

"I'm an ambitious player, I want to improve and become better. I want to become a top, top player, so it all depends on what happens as a team and how we progress as a team.

"So, it's not a definite' I'm going to stay there forever' but it's not a no either."

Xinhua - Agencies