Sports News Roundup: Celtics edge Lakers in OT thriller; Italy's Berlusconi promises prostitutes if Monza players win and more

The South Americans, two times World Cup winners, roared past Croatia 3-0 on Tuesday, which saw tens of thousands of fans flood the streets of Buenos Aires with blue-and-white flags, jerseys and banners of Maradona and current star Lionel Messi. NBA roundup: Celtics edge Lakers in OT thriller Jayson Tatum scored 44 points and Jaylen Brown added 25 points and 15 rebounds as the visiting Boston Celtics ended a rare losing skid with a 122-118 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Golf-LIV Golf announces three new events for the United States

LIV Golf added three new stops in the United States to its 2023 calendar on Wednesday announcing events in Tucson, Tulsa and West Virginia. The three events set for the Gallery Golf Club in Tucson (March 17-19), Cedar Ridge Country Club in Tulsa, (May 12-14), and The Greenbrier in West Virginia (Aug. 4-6) will be part of the a 14 tournament schedule that LIV Golf said will be unveiled in full in the coming weeks.

Soccer-Messi's World Cup dream alive as Alvarez helps Argentina cruise past Croatia into final

Lionel Messi earned a last shot at World Cup glory after his penalty and a double from Julian Alvarez helped Argentina sweep past Croatia 3-0 on Tuesday and into the final where they will face either holders France or Morocco. While all eyes were on Argentina captain Messi and his fifth bid to win the one major trophy eluding him, it was 22-year-old Alvarez who stole the show, earning the penalty before opening his own account at the end of a scintillating 50-metre run.

Soccer-Croatia's semi-final exit fails to overshadow glittering World Cup run

Croatia's run to the semi-finals of a second consecutive World Cup was nothing short of remarkable for the small Balkan nation and even Tuesday's 3-0 defeat by Argentina does not overshadow their achievements on football's biggest stage. Reaching the last four in Russia and Qatar was barely conceivable six years ago. Croatia were a team in near disarray, their fans were fighting each other at Euro 2016 and the leadership of the Croatian FA faced corruption allegations.

Italy's Berlusconi promises prostitutes if Monza players win

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi told players of his Monza soccer team he would bring prostitutes into their locker room if they managed to beat again a top Serie A rival, a video published on social media showed on Wednesday. Berlusconi, who often uses colourful language, was accused in 2011 of having sex with an underage prostitute at one of his infamous 'bunga bunga' parties. He was acquitted on appeal in 2015 after a judge ruled he had not known she was a minor.

U.S. soccer writer died of aneurysm at World Cup, his widow says

An aortic aneurysm caused the death of Grant Wahl, an American sportswriter who collapsed and died last week while covering a World Cup match in Qatar, his widow said on Wednesday. "Grant died from the rupture of a slowly growing, undetected ascending aortic aneurysm with hemopericardium," his widow, physician Celine Gounder, wrote in a statement.

'The world stops': Argentines in dreamland as Messi and co ready for final showdown

Argentines were in a dazed dreamland on Wednesday in the heady aftermath of a soccer World Cup victory that sets the country up for a final showdown on Sunday and the chance to win the tournament for the first time since Diego Maradona in 1986. The South Americans, two times World Cup winners, roared past Croatia 3-0 on Tuesday, which saw tens of thousands of fans flood the streets of Buenos Aires with blue-and-white flags, jerseys and banners of Maradona and current star Lionel Messi.

NBA roundup: Celtics edge Lakers in OT thriller

Jayson Tatum scored 44 points and Jaylen Brown added 25 points and 15 rebounds as the visiting Boston Celtics ended a rare losing skid with a 122-118 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. Marcus Smart scored 18 points and Derrick White had 10 as the Celtics rebounded after losing their previous two games. Boston was upended by the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers, while losing consecutive games for just the second time this season.

Soccer-Capturing matches volumetrically could enhance TV viewing experience

How people watch soccer is changing each year with multiple camera angles giving fans immersive viewing but capturing games volumetrically could lead to a whole new TV experience. British broadcaster Sky Sports caused a buzz in 2019 when they used over 100 cameras so their presenters could analyse the techniques of top golfers using holographic replicas of each player in 360 degrees.

Soccer-FIFA to re-think 2026 format as they face spoiling winning recipe

Having just delivered the most exciting group stage ever seen at a World Cup, with a tried and tested format that keeps hundreds of millions of fans enthralled, FIFA now faces the prospect of ripping it all up. Instead, they risk a turgid fortnight of drab games and dead rubbers, plus the possibility of unwanted controversy, as they try to accommodate 48 teams at the 2026 edition in North America.

Athletics-American Ross gets three-year ban over whereabouts violation

American 400 metres runner Randolph Ross has been handed a three-year suspension for violating whereabouts rules and falsifying an email sent to anti-doping authorities, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said. Ross, who was part of the U.S. squad which won 4x400m relay gold at last year's Tokyo Olympics, will be suspended until 2025, meaning he will not be eligible for participation at the 2024 Games in Paris.