Reuters Sports News Summary

Belichick, who won six Super Bowl titles as head coach of the New England Patriots ‍and two as an assistant with the New York Giants, fell short of the 40 out of 50 votes needed for induction in his first year of eligibility, according to an ESPN report on Tuesday. NBA roundup: Cavaliers honor LeBron James, then pound Lakers Donovan Mitchell scored 25 points and Jaylon Tyson added 20 points and six assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 129-99, extending their season-best winning streak to five games while also honoring LeBron James on Wednesday night.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Tennis-Djokovic eyes semi-final nemesis Sinner at Australian Open

Novak Djokovic will look to ride his good fortune into an 11th Australian Open final but the 10-times champion needs to hit the ground running in a generational semi-final clash with holder Jannik Sinner. Needing one more major crown to move past ‌Margaret Court and claim the outright record of 25 Grand Slam titles, Djokovic comes into the Sinner showdown as fresh as he could hope to be following walkovers in his previous two matches.

Tennis-Rybakina beats Pegula, to meet Sabalenka in Australian Open final

Elena Rybakina beat Jessica Pegula 6-3 7-6(7) on Thursday to reach the Australian Open final. Rybakina will meet ⁠Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday's championship match.

Patriots elect to wear all white for Super Bowl

The New England Patriots will wear white jerseys and white pants in Super Bowl LX next weekend in Santa Clara, Calif., ESPN reported Thursday. As the designated home team for the game against the Seattle Seahawks, New England got its call on the uniform color scheme.

NFL-Trump leads defence of Belichick after reported Hall of Fame snub

U.S. President Donald Trump joined a chorus of disbelief after reports ​that Bill Belichick, widely considered the greatest coach in NFL history, was denied first-ballot induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Belichick, who won six Super Bowl titles as head coach of the New England Patriots ‍and two as an assistant with the New York Giants, fell short of the 40 out of 50 votes needed for induction in his first year of eligibility, according to an ESPN report on Tuesday.

NBA roundup: Cavaliers honor LeBron James, then pound Lakers

Donovan Mitchell scored 25 points and Jaylon Tyson added 20 points and six assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 129-99, extending their season-best winning streak to five games while also honoring LeBron James on Wednesday night. De'Andre Hunter scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half ⁠and Jarrett ‌Allen had 17 points and nine rebounds for Cleveland, which is ⁠12-4 since Dec. 29. Dean Wade added 11 points and Thomas Bryant scored 10.

Cavaliers' video tribute leaves LeBron James in tears

LeBron James maintains that he has yet to decide if he is playing in his final NBA season, yet his emotions on Wednesday might have ‍given a hint into his mindset. During a visit back to his longtime home, Cleveland, the 41-year-old Los Angeles Lakers star cried as the Cavaliers played a video tribute honoring him.

NHL roundup: Senators' defense supplies offense in win over Avs

Ottawa used its defense ​to spur its offense Wednesday as the six Senators defensemen tallied seven assists in the team's 5-2 home victory over the Colorado Avalanche. Tim Stutzle had a goal and an assist while Ridly Greig, ⁠Nick Cousins, Claude Giroux and Brady Tkachuk also scored. Blueliner Artem Zub finished with two assists, while Thomas Chabot, Jake Sanderson, Tyler Kleven, Jordan Spence, and Nick Jensen also finished with assists.

Tennis-Sabalenka says hindrance call against her helped in semi-final win

Aryna Sabalenka said losing a point for hindrance after grunting in ⁠a rally helped fire her up on the way to an emphatic Australian Open semi-final win over Elina Svitolina. World number one Sabalenka beat Svitolina 6-2 6-3 to reach her fourth successive Australian Open final but she was infuriated at 2-1 in the first set when Swede Louise Azemar Engzell awarded the point to Svitolina mid-rally.

Tennis-Supreme Sabalenka and Rybakina set up Australian Open final showdown

Aryna Sabalenka swept to her fourth successive Australian Open final with a 6-2 ⁠6-3 victory over Ukrainian Elina Svitolina on Thursday in a semi-final overshadowed by geopolitical tension and will play familiar rival Elena Rybakina next. Rybakina set up a blockbuster rematch of the 2023 final at Melbourne Park by overcoming American ⁠Jessica Pegula 6-3 7-6(7), as the Russian-born Kazakh ramped up ‌her own hunt for a second major title following her 2022 Wimbledon triumph.

Olympics-Italy's Winter Games security plan keeps US ICE in advisory role

Italy has detailed a sweeping security plan for the Winter Olympics, stressing that it will keep command of all operations after news emerged that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement staff would be assisting the U.S. delegation. The ⁠Games will be one of the most complex security operations Italy has had to manage, with the event split between two main hubs, Milan and ‍Cortina d'Ampezzo, with additional events held elsewhere across the north.