Sports News Roundup: Soccer-Koeman to succeed Van Gaal as Netherlands coach after World Cup; Golf-Tiger return at Augusta National has Masters buzzing and more

The match will take place at Sydney's 80,000-seater Olympic Stadium on Wednesday May 25, a few days before the A-League season comes to a conclusion with the championship "Grand Final". NBA roundup: Suns end Lakers' postseason hopes Devin Booker scored 32 points and made six 3-pointers in three quarters on Tuesday night to help Phoenix post a 121-110 victory over visiting Los Angeles, a triumph that eliminated the Lakers from the play-in berth race as well as providing the Suns with a franchise-record 63rd victory.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Soccer-Koeman to succeed Van Gaal as Netherlands coach after World Cup

Ronald Koeman is to return as Netherlands coach when Louis van Gaal leaves the role after the World Cup in Qatar, the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) confirmed on Wednesday. Van Gaal, who has long made it clear he will leave after the global soccer showpiece later this year, said last week he was receiving treatment for an aggressive form of prostate cancer.

Golf-Tiger return at Augusta National has Masters buzzing

The Masters is always something special but add in a Tiger Woods comeback and the end of COVID-19 restrictions and the year's first major is poised to be turned into a golfing celebration. After COVID limited the number of spectators allowed onto the grounds over the last two years, the galleries are back in full force and so is the unmistakable Augusta National buzz amplified by the presence of Woods on the manicured fairways.

Motorcycling-Marquez to return at Austin MotoGP after recovering from double vision

Six-times MotoGP champion Marc Marquez will return to action at this weekend's Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin, Texas following his recovery from double vision suffered after a crash in Indonesia, Honda said on Wednesday. Marquez did not race at the Indonesian Grand Prix, the second round of the season, after a crash in the warm-up session and also sat out the Argentine Grand Prix a week ago.

Golf-Life at the top not so different for world number one Scheffler

Scottie Scheffler said his life has not changed very much since he capped his meteoric rise from obscurity to world number one last month, and that suits him just fine. The affable American said his peers have stopped to congratulate him since he won three tournaments to take top spot from Jon Rahm, but otherwise, it was business as usual.

Soccer-Barcelona to make first trip to Australia in May

Five-times European champions Barcelona will pay their first visit to Australia to play an A-League All Stars team in a friendly in Sydney next month, the club announced on Wednesday. The match will take place at Sydney's 80,000-seater Olympic Stadium on Wednesday, May 25, a few days before the A-League season comes to a conclusion with the championship "Grand Final".

NBA roundup: Suns end Lakers' postseason hopes

Devin Booker scored 32 points and made six 3-pointers in three quarters on Tuesday night to help Phoenix post a 121-110 victory over visiting Los Angeles, a triumph that eliminated the Lakers from the play-in berth race as well as provided the Suns with a franchise-record 63rd victory. LeBron James sat out with an ankle injury for the fifth time in seven games as Los Angeles lost its seventh straight game. The setback stomped out the Lakers' final hope after the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Denver Nuggets earlier in the night.

Cricket-Root still the right man to lead England, says Gough

England's record of one win in their last 17 tests is clearly not good enough but Joe Root is still the right man to skipper the side, former bowler Darren Gough told Reuters. Root has come under pressure after England slumped to a 4-0 defeat in the last Ashes series and lost 1-0 in West Indies, with former captains Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain among those saying it was time for a leadership change.

NHL roundup: Panthers escape 4-goal hole, beat Leafs in OT

Jonathan Huberdeau scored his second goal of the game at 2:47 of overtime and the Florida Panthers overcame a four-goal deficit to defeat the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs 7-6 on Tuesday night in Sunrise, Fla. Toronto led 5-1 in the second period, but Florida rallied with five straight goals. Huberdeau, who also had three assists, tied the game at 2:45 of the third period, on a power play. Aleksander Barkov then scored at 8:01 of the third to give Florida the lead.

Soccer-Atletico must have more possession in the return leg against Man City: Simeone

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone was happy with his side's defending in Tuesday's 1-0 Champions League quarter-final first-leg defeat at Manchester City but said they must get a bigger share of possession in the return leg if they are to advance. Kevin De Bruyne's 70th-minute strike was the only goal in a game that featured few clear-cut chances, with Atletico failing to produce a single shot on target after spending much of the contest camped in their own half.

ATP roundup: Nick Kyrgios picks up the three-set win in Houston opener

Nick Kyrgios of Australia used three sets to defeat American Mackenzie McDonald 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 Tuesday in the first round of the Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men's Clay Court Championship in Houston. Playing as a wild card, Kyrgios earned his first win on clay since 2019. He most recently made a stellar run at the Miami Open but was fined $35,000 for unsportsmanlike behavior during his Round of 16 defeat.