TMZ Sports - Page 50

More quarterback drama for the Seattle Seahawks ...

The guy who backs up Russell Wilson is being investigated by police for allegedly punching a man in the face at a bar on St. Patrick's Day ... TMZ Sports has learned.

25-year-old Alex McGough -- a 7th round pick in 2018 out of FIU -- was allegedly at the Green Parrot Pub in Tampa, FL when an altercation broke out ... and things got violent.

TMZ Sports spoke with the alleged victim, 24-year-old Anthony Albino -- who tells us he was reconnecting with an old friend at the bar when McGough approached him and accused him of shooting his shot at his girlfriend.

Anthony says the NFL player got heated -- and all of the sudden, McGough socked him in the face out of nowhere.

In video taken after the alleged incident -- and obtained by TMZ Sports -- you can see Anthony with red marks on his face ... surrounded by bloody paper towels he used to clean himself up.

Anthony says he suffered minor injuries from the incident ... including a bloody nose and a gash to his elbow.

We're told Anthony went to cops the following day and filled out a report with the intention of pressing charges.

So far, McGough has neither been arrested nor charged with a crime -- but our law enforcement sources confirm the incident is under investigation and officers are hoping to speak with McGough soon

We've reached out to McGough's camp for comment ... so far, no word back.

The Seahawks signed McGough to its practice squad back in December 2020 -- and he's currently listed as the #2 quarterback on the team depth chart.

Brian Ortega says he might not be fighting for the title if not for the beating he took from Max Holloway ... 'cause the L opened his eyes to some major holes in his game.

TMZ Sports talked to the 30-year-old fighter -- the #2 ranked UFC featherweight -- days before he'll take on champ Alex Volkanovski at UFC 260 on Saturday ... and we asked if he's changed since his last title shot.

"I feel like I’m finally learning how to fight more, ya know. I feel like before, I was kind of just stuck with my old ways, and if it ain’t broken don’t fix it," T-City told us.

Remember, Ortega lost to Holloway at UFC 231 in December 2018 ... and it was a bloodbath. The Octagon-side doctor stopped the fight in the 4th round ... after Brian ate 290 significant strikes (244 to the head).

T-City -- who broke his nose and thumb in the match -- took nearly 2 years off after the fight. He returned to face the Korean Zombie -- Chan Sung Jung -- in October 2020.

Ortega won by unanimous decision ... and looked AWESOME.

So, did the dominating loss to Holloway actually help Brian?? Absolutely, according to Ortega.

"That was the best thing about it because [losing] showed me that there’s a flaw in your system. So now we have to fix that," Ortega said.

He added ... "The fact that you saw and notice that there is a flaw in the system, and luckily I was able to have a team, a new one, surround me and help me kind of cover all those holes, and guide me now on the right track."

Speaking of Max, the former champ recently told us he's "the cloud over [the Ortega-Volkanovski] fight" ... and Brian actually agrees.

"He's right. Alex wins, he has to fight [Max]. I win, I have to fight [Max]. Us three are a pain in each others’ asses that are going to keep being there."

Erik Spoelstra -- the only Asian-American head coach in the NBA -- ain't buying the notion that the massacre in ATL wasn't racially motivated ... and he's really pissed off about it.

The Miami Heat head coach -- who's of Filipino descent -- sounded off during a media session Friday ... saying the shooting incident which claimed 8 lives is nothing short of "sickening."

"Look, I’m Asian-American, I’m proud to be Asian-American, and seeing what’s happening with another outright form of racism and hatred really is sickening," Spoelstra said ... "It breaks my heart.”

There is some controversy over the suspected motive -- officials say 21-year-old Robert Long has admitted to opening fire at 3 Asian-run spas in the Atlanta area, killing 8 people ... but he told authorities the incident was more about his "sex addiction" than racism.

6 of the 8 victims are Asian -- and leaders in the Asian community are saying the attack was CLEARLY racially motivated.

Add Spoelstra to the list of people not buying what Long is selling.

"You have to see that this is wrong. It’s heartbreaking and this shows you where we are," Spoelstra continued.

"There is hatred abundantly still out there and people feel empowered to attack the Asian community ... and I just pray in my heart that this can stop."

As we previously reported, the L.A. Lakers and the Atlanta Hawks honored the victims with a moment of silence before Thursday night's games.

LeBron James has also spoken out against the shooter -- calling him a "coward ass young man."

His leg is still busted ... but Klay Thompson's jumper is still wet as hell!!

The 31-year-old is still rehabbing his torn right Achilles, but it hasn't impacted his ability to shoot the 3-ball ... just watch this video showing Klay nailing TWELVE long-distance shots in a row during a workout with Warriors staffer Zaza Pachulia.

Yeah, Klay isn't running around yet -- but every time Zaza dishes him the rock, Thompson hits nothing but net ... until that pesky 13th shot!

"Pure water," the Splash Bro quipped as he sank shot after shot -- the guy looks like a frickin' scoring machine!

Thompson hasn't seen live NBA action since Game 5 of the 2019-2020 NBA finals when he suffered a torn ACL in his left knee while driving to the hoop.

Tragedy struck again in Nov. 2020 when Klay tore his right Achilles at a pickup game with other NBA players.

Earlier this week, Klay spoke with reporters and gave an update on his recovery -- saying, "I'm not running yet but I'm running on the treadmill underwater and that's good for my psyche."

He added that he's hoping to return to action by opening day of the 2021-22 NBA season.

By the way, the 12 shots in a row are super impressive -- but his Splash Bro, Steph Curry, once hit 100 straight 3s in one of the most epic shooting displays of all time.

These guys ... unreal.

There are now TWELVE women making sexual misconduct allegations against Deshaun Watson -- with 10 more accusers being vetted, according to attorney Tony Buzbee.

Buzbee represents the 7 women who have already filed lawsuits against Watson -- and at a news conference on Friday, he announced 5 more lawsuits are in the works.

"We are now representing 12 women and we will file 5 more cases in due course. We have spoken to more than 10 additional women, 22 women," Buzbee said.

To clarify, Buzbee said the additional 10 women all have similar stories to the first 12 ... but he's still gathering information before filing lawsuits on their behalf.

Of the 12 accusers, Buzbee says the women did NOT know each other before coming forward with their allegations.

The women come from different racial backgrounds -- 7 of them are Black, 2 Hispanic and 3 are Caucasian.

Additionally, Buzbee says he's been contacted by the Houston Police Dept. -- which is now looking into the allegations.

Buzbee says none of the accusers had gone to police before contacting his firm -- but says the "next step" is to submit a "package" of information to police, presumably to help launch a criminal probe.

During his news conference, Buzbee also shot down conspiracy theories that the Houston Texans were driving the lawsuits as a result of a standoff between Watson and Texans ownership. Buzbee says he lives near the family that owns the Texans but does not know them personally.

There's more ... Buzbee also notes that one of the accusers claims Watson assaulted her AFTER Buzbee had already been in contact with Watson's agent to inform him about a claim from another woman.

Buzbee says he's been personally sitting down with each accuser to vet their stories -- explaining he "wanted to make damn sure" the women were truthful.

Buzbee says the first accuser's story "certainly passes the smell test" and praised her as a brave and truthful person.

Earlier in the day, Deshaun's agent, David Mulugheta, broke his silence about the allegations against Watson -- doubling down on the notion the women are making up the accusations for "financial gain."

"Sexual assault is real. Victims should be heard, offenders prosecuted," Mulugheta said in a statement Friday morning.

"Individuals fabricate stories in pursuit of financial gain often. Their victims should be heard, and those offenders also prosecuted."

"I simply hope we keep this same energy with the truth."

In other words, Mulugheta strongly believes the accusers are lying and he's extremely confident Watson will be vindicated in the end.

TMZ Sports has obtained all 7 of the lawsuits filed against Watson -- and they're all very similar.

Each of the women claims Watson reached out seeking a massage -- most of the women claim he first contacted them on Instagram.

But, when they met for the massage therapy sessions, the women claim Watson became aggressive in pursuit of a sex act.

One of the women claims Watson forced her to perform oral sex on him, against her will.

All of the accusers say they never consented and felt violated. They're all suing for civil assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Buzbee claims he has text messages and DMs from the QB which back his client's allegations ... including an apparent apology from Deshaun after a massage session gone bad.

The first woman who filed her lawsuit against the Houston Texans QB claims Watson became aggressive during a treatment in March 2020 ... which ended after he allegedly repeatedly tried to direct the woman to massage his genitals.

In her suit, the woman claims a fully-erect Watson exposed his penis and "purposely touched [Jane Doe's] hand with the tip."

The woman claims she ended the massage immediately and began to cry. Afterward, she claims Watson sent her a text message apologizing for his behavior.

On Friday, Buzbee went public with the alleged apology text from Deshaun.

"Sorry about you feeling uncomfortable. Never were the intentions. LMK if you want to work in the future. My apologies."

For his part, Watson adamantly denies the allegations -- and claims he's the victim of a shakedown by an attorney looking to score a cash grab from his lying clients.

The NCAA is ADMITTING it gave the men's tournament teams a better weight room set up than the women -- but it's blaming the disparity on a lack of space.

Riiiiight.

It all started when Stanford's performance coach, Ali Kershner, exposed the difference in the two setups Thursday on social media ... showing a giant workout area for the men in Indianapolis complete with machines, benches, racks, etc.

The women in San Antonio got stuck with yoga mats and 6 sets of dumbbells.

The post drew outrage from WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu and NBAers like Ja Morant and CJ McCollum ... who blasted the NCAA over the disparity.

"Thought this was a joke," Ionescu said. "WTF is this?!?"

NCAA VP Lynn Holzman tried to justify the difference by claiming they simply couldn't find the space for a larger, more comprehensive training area ... and the organization was working on getting more equipment to the women's facility.

"We acknowledge that some of the amenities teams would typically have access to have not been as available inside the controlled environment," Holzman said.

"In part, this is due to the limited space and the original plan was to expand the workout area once additional space was available later in the tournament."

Oregon Ducks player Sedona Prince was quick to call B.S. on the NCAA ... sharing a video of plenty of open space at the women's facility.

The vid caught Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry's attention ... who demanded the issue be fixed.

"Wow-come on now," Curry said. "@marchmadness @NCAA yall trippin trippin."

Holzman added the NCAA is "actively working to enhance existing resources at practice courts, including additional weight training equipment," ... although it's unclear when that'll actually happen.

WARNING: This is tough to watch ...

UFC fighter Julija Stoliarenko collapsed TWICE on Friday while trying to weigh-in for her fight ... and was ultimately taken away on a stretcher.

27-year-old Stoliarenko (9-4-2) was supposed to take on Julia Avila (8-2) at UFC on ESPN 21 on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Stoliarenko had to cut weight down to 135 pounds for the fight -- and she didn't show up to the scale until there were less than 15 minutes left in her official weigh-in window, according to MMA Junkie.

When she first stepped on the scale, she was clearly woozy ... and stumbled backward before collapsing.

Medical personnel raced to Stoliarenko within seconds and provided aid.

She got back up a few minutes later and went back on the scale ... but collapsed a second time.

Julia sat up and began to drink fluids -- but was wheeled out of the weigh-in area on a gurney to seek further treatment.

The UFC has since confirmed the fight has been canceled "due to weight cut issues with Stoliarenko."

No word on her current condition.

The King just gave his stamp of approval to Charlotte Hornets star rookie LaMelo Ball ... saying the 19-year-old is looking pretty "damn" impressive for a young rookie.

LeBron's Lakers took on Melo's Charlotte Hornets at Staples Center on Thursday -- logging a solid 26 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds in a losing effort against the defending champs.

The Lakers ultimately won the game 116 to 105 -- thanks to a 37-point effort from James -- and during the post-game presser, Bron admits Melo looked pretty good out there!

"I think he's, ya know, damn good ... to be his age," Bron said.

"His speed, his quickness, his ability to make shots at all facets, ya know in the paint, floaters, threes, he has the 3-tier already, and he's going to only get better."

In other words, Brown says Melo can score from everywhere.

LeBron continued ... "Every game is a learning experience for him. He's going to get better and better as the season goes on, as his career goes on, and so on and so on.”

James ain't lying ... Ball is having a great rookie season -- the #3 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft is averaging 16 point-per-game, 6.2 assists, and 5.9 rebounds on the season.

He’s also the reigning 2-time Eastern conference rookie of the month.

James also praised Melo's big bro, Lonzo Ball -- Bron's former teammate who is now a member of the New Orleans Pelicans -- saying both of the Balls are special players.

"[Melo] and Zo are two just very unique players in our league, and they showcase that every night."

Talk about TEAMWORK!!!

The BYU men's hoops team had a unique form of team bonding before the NCAA tournament ... by having to save a teammate who was TRAPPED inside an elevator!!!

The disaster moment went down at the team hotel on Thursday ... when Cougars junior guard Jesse Wade experienced the "Scariest moment of my life."

But, BYU was NOT about to leave a fellow Coug behind ... so they teamed together to help pry the doors open to let Wade out.

The video is equally freaky and scary at the same time -- Wade’s face appears through the small opening of the trapped elevator doors ... and then screams "Oh my god" as his teammates break out in laughter while trying to get him out.

It was a true team effort -- several players’ hands and feet are seen prying Wade out to his safety.

The Cougs ended up getting their first win of the tournament when Wade broke free ... which was met with cheering and laughter.

Unclear on how long Wade was stuck -- but let's be honest, any amount of time would have anyone panicking.

Two NBA teams paid tribute to the victims of the massacre in Georgia -- with the Lakers labelling the incident as an "act of anti-Asian racism."

As we previously reported, officials say 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long went on a shooting spree in Atlanta Tuesday night, killing 8 people, including 6 Asian women.

Officials have not said if race was the motivating factor in the shooting -- with one sheriff’s office spokesman suggesting Tuesday that "sex addiction" was the driving force.

Asian community leaders have called BS -- insisting race was obviously a factor since the gunman seemingly targeted Asian-ran spas in his rampage.

The L.A. Lakers aren't buying the "sex addiction" explanation -- and straight-up labeled the incident as a hate crime when the team held a moment of silence on Thursday evening when the team hosted the Charlotte Hornets.

"The Lakers family was saddened to hear the events late Tuesday night in Atlanta Georgia where 8 people lost their lives in an act of anti-Asian racism," the announcer said over the P.A. system before tip-off.

"As an organization, the Lakers stand in solidarity with the Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders community and are committed to taking action towards being a part of the change we want to see take place."

"At this time, please join the Lakers organization in a moment of silence for the 8 victims of this senseless tragedy."

Over in Atlanta, the Hawks also held a moment of silence for the victims -- noting, "We stand with the entire Asian community in grief and solidarity over Tuesday's senseless and tragic acts of violence."

The announcer read a statement over the loudspeaker which said, "Independent of the motivations, racist and gender-based crime have absolutely no place in our society and we're committed to being an ally to communities in need."

"Please join me in a moment of silence in memory of those whose lives were lost on Tuesday."

Kamaru Usman isn't just looking to beat Jorge Masvidal at UFC 261 -- he wants to make a statement ... telling TMZ Sports, "I want to put the nail in that coffin once and for all."

Usman -- the reigning welterweight champ -- already defeated Masvidal when they clashed on Fight Island back in July ... but it's worth noting Jorge only took the fight on less than a week's notice.

Remember, Usman's original opponent for UFC 251 was Gilbert Burns -- but he caught COVID and Masvidal stepped up on less than a week's notice to save the card.

Masvidal fought hard -- but it was obvious his conditioning wasn't great ... and Usman proceeded to maul him for 5 straight rounds, winning by unanimous decision.

Ever since that fight, Jorge has been saying he'd wreck Usman if given a proper training camp -- and his wish was granted.

Masvidal will now have 6 full weeks to prepare for Usman before they face off on April 24 and Kamaru says he's fired up!!!

"I am more than excited," Usman tells TMZ Sports ... "I'm blessed for the opportunity that Allah has given me and being able to go out there and do major things. I'm so thankful."

As for Masvidal's claim that he'll whoop Usman the 2nd time around ... Kamaru is clapping back at that, too.

"There's two things -- One, either he truly believes it which I have to take very very very seriously ... or he's just too stupid to understand what's happening right now."

"So, I gotta believe that it's the first one and I gotta take him at his word."

Usman says he knows Masvidal is dangerous -- but at the end of the day he's a "journeyman" fighter who peaked in 2019 ... and those days are long over.

"Now it's time to come back to reality. It's 2021. The ship has sailed my man."

There will be no 30th fight for Khabib Nurmagomedov -- the UFC superstar is "officially retired," following a face-to-face meeting with Dana White.

White previously told TMZ Sports he wanted to meet with Khabib in hopes of convincing the 29-0 fighter to "un-retire" and take a final, 30th fight. Khabib's late father had told people his dream was to see his son end his career with a 30-0 record.

But 32-year-old Dagestani had unexpectedly announced his retirement back in October after beating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 ... Khabib's first fight since the death of his father.

Well, Dana and Khabib got together on Thursday to talk things out -- and despite a hard sell from Dana, Khabib will remain retired.

"29-0 it is," White posted along under a selfie with Khabib ... "He is 100% retired."

"It was incredible to watch you work [Khabib]. Thank you for EVERYTHING and enjoy whatever is next my friend.

Khabib will go down as one of the greatest fighters in UFC history -- smothering opponents with ease ... and never unanimously losing a single round!

The couple that speeds together, stays together?!

NASCAR superstar Tony Stewart is punching the gas all the way to the alter ... he just got engaged to his drag racer girlfriend Leah Pruett and the diamond ring is MASSIVE!

Stewart confirmed the engagement on social media late Thursday night -- saying, "So excited to spend the rest of my life with a truly amazing woman."

"She’s motivated, hard working, funny as hell, and as dedicated to her sport as anyone I’ve ever known. Love you babe."

49-year-old Stewart had just celebrated his 1-year dating anniversary with 32-year-old Pruett ... when he decided to put a ring on it this past weekend.

Pruett was so stoked, she casually showed off the hardware on her IG page ... and yeah, we noticed!

The couple met in 2019 -- but didn't go "official" until 2020 and reportedly spent the majority of the pandemic quarantined together ... and apparently, it's been going great!

During their 1-year anniversary last week, Tony posted a love note for his lady ... saying, "The last 365 days with this beautiful lady have been the highlight of my life."

"Cheers to one year together and many more to come!"

Looks like he meant what he said ... he's hoping they spend the rest of their lives together!

Stewart is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champ and he was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2020.

Pruett is also BEAST on the track -- the NHRA Top Fuel driver has 11 total wins in her career.

Stewart has been engaged before ... he proposed to actress/model Pennelope Jimenez back in 2017 but ultimately called things off in 2019.

As for Pruett, she's been married once before -- but that ended in 2019.

No word on when the race car driving lovebirds will formally tie the knot -- but we're guessing it'll be one helluva party.

Meyers Leonard is free to stream on Twitch again -- we've learned his ban has been lifted just over a week after he used an anti-Semitic slur during a video game session.

Remember, the former Miami Heat player was playing "Call of Duty" on March 9 when he hurled the K-word at an opposing player.

Twitch immediately blocked Leonard from the platform -- and the NBA hit Meyers with a $50k fine and a 1-week suspension.

Leonard apologized for using the slur and he's been working with various Jewish leaders to educate himself about why the word is dangerous and offensive ever since.

Now, Leonard's Twitch account has been reactivated -- which means he can get back to playing games in front of his 69,000 followers.

So far, Leonard has not logged back on -- and we're told he doesn't plan on doing so for a while -- while he continues to focus on educating himself.

In the meantime, Leonard has been traded from the Miami Heat to the OKC Thunder (though the Thunder don't plan on keeping him) ... and Meyers' wife issued a statement thanking the Heat franchise and the fan base.

"Our experience with the Heat has been anything but ordinary. Yet, it was nothing but exceptional", Elle Leonard said in a statement on social media.

Deshaun Watson is now being investigated by the NFL -- the league has reached out to the lawyer representing the 9 women who are making sexual misconduct claims against the QB.

Attorney Tony Buzbee posted the letter he received from NFL investigator Lisa Friel -- who previously had a lead role in the NFL's investigation of Ezekiel Elliott. A league source confirms to TMZ Sports the letter is authentic.

In her letter, Friel states the league is aware of the 3 lawsuits Buzbee has filed on behalf of the female massage therapists who claim they were sexually assaulted by Watson and she's hoping to conduct interviews with them as soon as possible.

The league has invited Buzbee to be included in the interviews, if the women agree to participate.

Unclear if the women will cooperate -- especially while their lawsuits are still pending.

As we previously reported, Buzbee claims he's representing 9 women who are all making similar allegations against Watson -- that what was supposed to be an innocent and professional massage session turned into an aggressive push for sex acts.

Watson has issued a statement denying the allegations and insisting Buzbee is only looking to score an unwarranted payday for his clients based on lies.

Watson has not been charged with a crime or even named a person of interest in a criminal investigation.

However, the NFL has made it clear they don't need a criminal conviction in order to take disciplinary action against a player ... and that's exactly what happened in the Ezekiel Elliot case.

Zeke was hit with a 6 game suspension in 2017 following a probe into domestic violence allegations ... despite the fact he was never charged with a crime.

The NFL said at the time it found enough evidence to show Zeke violated the league's personal conduct policy, which the league claims justified the punishment.

The Houston Texans have released a statement on the Watson allegations Thursday afternoon ... saying the team will fully cooperate with the league's investigation.

"The NFL informed us today that they will conduct an investigation into the allegations made in the civil lawsuits filed against Deshaun Watson," the team said. "We will stay in close contact with the league as they do."

The allegations against NFL superstar Deshaun Watson are piling up ... a third female masseuse has filed a lawsuit against the QB, claiming he forced her to perform oral sex during a Dec. 2020 encounter.

The woman, who filed her suit under the pseudonym Jane Doe to protect her identity, claims Watson reached out on Instagram to set up a session.

The woman says the two agreed to an appointment at a Houston, Texas office building on Dec. 28, 2020 at 10 a.m.

Jane Doe -- who claims she was newly engaged and had just graduated chiropractic school -- says her mother dropped her off at the job, and then she met Watson ... and that's when she claims things immediately got weird.

The woman says Watson insisted she focus on massaging his "inner thighs" and "inner glutes" -- while repeatedly telling her he's a professional football player.

She claims Watson "got more aggressive" -- and eventually "coerced [Jane Doe] to move her mouth toward his penis, forcing [Jane Doe] to perform oral sex on him."

The woman claims she never consented to the sex act ... and actually "blacked out for a few minutes from the fear."

In her suit, the woman claims she was so terrified, she defecated on herself.

The woman says Watson got up, got dressed and left as if nothing happened.

The woman is suing for sexual assault, civil assault and intentional inflection of emotional distress.

It's the third lawsuit filed against Watson by attorney Tony Buzbee ... who claims there are at least 3 other women who will be taking legal action against the Houston Texans player.

Watson has not been arrest nor charged with a crime ... and has adamantly denied all wrongdoing, insisting Buzbee is just trying to score an unwarranted payday for the women.