TMZ Sports - Page 43

An 8-year-old girl belted out an ultra-passionate rendition of the national anthem at a Pacers game earlier this week ... and it was so epic, the team praised it as an "unmatched" performance!

The youngster's name is Kinsley Murray -- and after gaining fame for singing pregame anthems all across the country -- Indiana tapped her to grab the microphone just prior to its tip-off on Monday against the Toronto Raptors.

Murray -- decked out in a red, white and blue dress -- first sang "O Canada" ... before she began her confident version of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Check out video from the Gainbridge Fieldhouse court ... Murray attacked all of the high notes with a whole lot of flare -- and the crowd roared every time.

Afterward, the Pacers took to TikTok to applaud the show.

"The passion. The oufit," the team wrote. "This anthem performance was unmatched."

Murray, though, has been crushing the song long before the NBA world got its glimpse of her this week ... as she's been croonin' at games since she was at least 6 years old!!

In fact, Murray cruised over to the Dayton vs Davidson game the night after her Pacers show ... to wow the crowd in Ohio.

WWE legend Virgil -- famous for being the "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase's personal bodyguard and assistant -- has died, his family announced Wednesday. He was just 61 years old.

Virgil -- real name Michael Jones -- dealt with serious health issues in recent years ... including several strokes and a dementia diagnosis.

Jones made his wrestling debut in 1985 ... and would go on to compete for promotions like Championship Wrestling Association, where he won the heavyweight title, as well as tag team championship with Rocky Johnson.

He then moved to the WWE, where he gained popularity alongside DiBiase ... often carrying his money and protecting him from opponents -- before eventually turning on him at Summerslam 1991 and defeating him at WrestleMania VII.

After a brief stint with the National Wrestling Conference, Jones debuted with WCW under the name Vincent, becoming a member of nWo as the head of security.

He'd continue to work with Hulk Hogan and other notable stars before his departure in 1999.

Jones briefly returned to WWE in 2010 as Ted DiBiase Jr.'s bodyguard ... and went on to make several appearances as Soul Train Jones in AEW.

Those close to Jones say he passed away peacefully at the hospital.

WWE released a statement on Jones' death ... saying, "WWE is saddened to learn that Michael Jones, known to WWE fans as Virgil, has passed away."

"WWE extends its condolences to Jones' family, friends and fans."

A Campbellsville University wrestler was been tragically killed after his teammate allegedly strangled him to death in their dorm, according to police.

The fatal incident happened over the weekend at the central Kentucky campus when Campbellsville Police say they responded to a call for an unresponsive male in the school's living quarters.

The call was for 18-year-old freshman wrestler Josiah Kilman ... who despite rescuers' efforts, was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Shortly after Kilman passed away, officials got an arrest warrant for Charles Escalera ... for murder. Escalera was also a wrestler on the Tigers team.

The 21-year-old Oklahoma native wasn't on the loose for long ... he was captured after police received a call of a suspicious male inside a barn near the Taylor County line several hours later.

"Escalera was taken into custody by Kentucky State Police without incident," CPD said.

Escalera, who is being charged with second-degree murder and burglary, is currently being held at Taylor County Detention Center. His bond was set at $2 million.

Kilman's family set up a GoFundMe to raise money to help transport the wrestler back to his home state of Montana for a proper burial which they say will cost over $10K.

People have responded with generous donations for the hurting family ... they've already amassed over $68K.

"Our family will be eternally grateful for any assistance that you may be able to provide," a Kilman family spokesperson said.

A soccer reporter who was covering a famed rivalry game in Brazil over the weekend says she was forced to go to cops following the conclusion of the match ... after she claims one of the team's mascots sexually harassed her.

Canal Monumental journalist Gisele Kumpel alleged the misconduct happened while she was on the sidelines of Sunday's Grêmio vs. Sport Club Internacional tilt -- which soccer aficionados call "Gre-Nal."

Kumpel said in an interview with GloboEsporte that at several points during the match, Internacional's masked cheerleader, known as Saci, began making gestures at her ... before he bent over and looked down at her phone.

Then, according to Kumpel, following a big goal by Internacional in the second half ... Saci grabbed her and made kissing noises.

"He stopped next to me and simply hugged me," she told GE. "He hugged me. Even with the mask on, he pushed my head and made to kiss me. I could hear the kiss crack and I felt his sweat."

Kumpel went on to say she was the only female reporter in attendance ... and the only one who Saci embraced.

"Another day of women wanting to do their job in football and suffering for it with some idiots who are criminals," she wrote in a post on X ... while adding photos of her reporting the incident to local authorities. "I'm going to the end so that no other woman goes through this."

Internacional officials said in a statement to the U.S. Sun that they've suspended the person in the Saci costume as they and law enforcement continue to investigate the allegations.

Kumpel, meanwhile, said she's doing OK despite the incident ... writing on her social media page, "Everything is fine."

Dan Dakich says college basketball fans advocating for the end of court-stormings need to relax ... telling TMZ Sports the solution to the problem is super simple.

According to the former Hoosiers star ... all schools need to do in order to avoid issues with the end-of-game fan rush is beef up police presence on nights where it's likely to happen.

"The biggest deterrent is you get the cops -- the police -- big bright jackets," Dakich, host of Outkick's Don't @ Me said, "you surround the [losing] team, and no one's coming."

Dakich explained the protection from cops would still allow students to celebrate their universities' biggest in-season achievements while keeping the most vulnerable safe. And, if schools fail to properly prepare for the potential outcome and things do get out of hand, he thinks hefty fines would make sure they stay on top of things.

"You've got to make it hurt," Dakich said of the penalties. "You've got to make it a million."

Of course, many in and out of the sport have called for an end to the longstanding tradition after Kyle Filipowski was injured by Wake Forest supporters after they rushed the floor following an 83-79 win on Saturday.

In fact, Jay Bilas -- an ESPN analyst and a former Duke player -- suggested citations or even arrests should be imposed in order to stop the madness.

But, Dakich -- who actually had one of his players sustain a serious injury in a court-storming situation during his time as Bowling Green head coach -- made it clear ... he's entirely opposed to all of that.

It's hump day at TMZ, and while we're only halfway there ... we're going all the way on TV!

Let's start out on 'TMZ Live,' where we talked about yet another lawsuit that's been filed against Diddy -- which is again alleging sexual assault, among various other claims ... all of which he's denied. This time, it's a man who's suing him -- and he's claiming a lot.

While this guy has quite a story to tell, some questions have been raised about the validity of some of his accusations -- and we talked about it all with Harvey and Charles Tuesday.

Over on 'TMZ on TV,' the gang talked about Taylor Swift's latest run-in with paparazzi down under -- only here, it was her father who's alleged to have gotten into a bit of a scuffle.

Taylor's team has insisted it was the paps who were aggressive here, and our team's torn.

Finally, we land on 'TMZ Sports' ... where Babcock and Mojo talked Chuck Liddel!

Check your local listings for when TMZ is on in your area or catch up on past episodes!

Chanel Iman and Davon Godchaux just got married in one of the most romantic ways ever ... exchanging vows on a yacht in the Caribbean Sea!

The New England Patriots defensive tackle and Victoria's Secret model said their "I dos" on a Parillion yacht on February 24, after making things legal at a civil ceremony the month before.

Everything was picturesque ... from Chanel's beautiful white Natalie De-Banco gown to Godchaux's black and white tuxedo, to the scenery off the coast of Anguilla.

Iman's two daughters, whom she had with ex-hubby, retired NY Giants receiver Sterling Shepard, were also there ... as was the newborn baby she had with DG. The kids wore adorable Mona Lisa flower girl dresses, as shown in images by photographer Corbin Gurkin.

"This was our ideal, dream day," Iman told VOGUE. "A handful of people attended the wedding ... and we chartered a yacht to sail from island to island in the Caribbean Sea."

Iman, 33, and Godchaux, 29, set sail to several surrounding islands following the wedding, including St. Barths ... and plan to return to Anguilla for their honeymoon at Cap Juluca.

"We celebrated for three days on our charter, island hopping and making stops at beach clubs, where it all started," Iman said.

The couple first revealed they were together after Shepard filed for divorce from Iman in 2021. Chanel got pregnant in May 2023 ... and Godchaux proposed shortly after.

They welcomed their baby girl, Capri Summer, last September.

3:08 PM PT -- Kristin Cavallari just took her relationship to the next level, going IG official with her new boo in a cute selfie. She captioned the post, "He makes me happy."

Kristin Cavallari has a new stud in her orbit -- and it looks like she brought the young buck with her on vacation south of the border ... and TMZ has the first picture of this hunky fella!

Check out this photo we obtained, which was taken last Friday down in Cabo -- where we're told she'd just landed with dude ... whom we've identified as 24-year-old model Mark Estes. Eyewitnesses tell us this is them on the tram at the airport in Cabo heading to customs.

Even before this, though, we're told Kristin and Mark were very flirty on the flight over -- showing a lot of PDA ... and certainly looking like a couple.

Sources familiar with the situation tell us Kristin and Mark have been spending time together for about a month now -- but it's unclear if things are exactly romantic or not.

We're told Kristin was down in Mexico last week to work on her Uncommon James jewelry line ... and our sources say Mark tagged along for the quick trip. No word on how exactly they met ... but we're told they're hanging out right now, and that it ain't that serious.

Remember ... the last high-profile relationship Kristin was in -- post-Jay Cutler, of course -- was actually Tyler Cameron ... another model who's hobnobbed in and around Hollywood.

Doesn't look like Mark's as famous as him ... but he's definitely just as good-looking.

Taylor Swift really knew how to win over Travis Kelce's teammates ... 'cause Kansas City head coach Andy Reid just revealed she baked homemade Pop-Tarts for the Chiefs' offensive linemen -- and they were so good, he couldn't get his hands on one!!

Big Red shared the interesting anecdote at the NFL Combine on Tuesday ... when he was asked about the pop superstar's presence around the team.

As it turns out, it was certainly a sweet experience for many ... 'cause Reid said the big boys up front felt the love in the form of some pastries at some point during their championship season.

Big Red explained to "PFT Live" the gesture might have been an attempt to fit in with Kelce's friends ... and he thinks she sincerely enjoyed the "escape" football provided her this season.

Reid -- who pointed out he's known the Swift family for years -- praised how grounded Taylor's continued to be throughout her career ... even though she's the most famous woman on the planet (in his opinion).

Of course, Taylor was present at the majority of Kelce's games this season ... including the Super Bowl, which was a great night for her man's team, and all the postgame celebrations that went down in Vegas.

A social media influencer with two million followers on Instagram is claiming Tyreek Hill broke her leg in a fit of rage in his backyard during a football drill last summer ... and now, she wants him to fork over some serious cash for it all.

Sophie Hall made the allegations in a lawsuit filed in Broward County, Fla. last week ... alleging the incident went down a short time after she had booked a ticket for her son to attend one of the NFL star's football camps in South Florida.

She claimed that after her purchase went through, she received some flirtatious messages from Hill on IG. One of the texts, she said, included a line from the Dolphins wide receiver that read, "I've been know to be a good stepdad."

Hall says during their chat on the social media app, Hill also invited her to "come a day early so me and mom can hang" -- before he gave her his personal cell phone.

In her suit, Hall says she went on to attend the camp with her son on June 17 -- and while there, Hill asked her to come back and visit him at his Southwest Ranches mansion.

Hall says days later, Hill purchased a flight and travel arrangements for her to reconnect with him on June 28.

Hall claims after she made her way to Hill's home, he asked her to participate in some football drills during a training session he was having in his backyard. Hill allegedly asked her to rush against him in a defensive line vs. offensive line, 1-on-1 style workout. According to Hall, she shoved the Super Bowl champion backward, which caused him to be embarrassed.

"Mr. Hill's attitude changed and he became angry," Hall said in her suit.

Hall alleges Hill then flipped the drill around so he could rush against her. And, after a couple reps, she said Hill "charged into her violently and with great force" ... 'causing her to suffer a right leg injury.

Hall says she complained that she was hurt ... but claims Hill has downplayed the severity of her injury, telling her to just rest on a bed and ice the leg.

In her suit, Hall says when she eventually got back home on July 1, 2023, an orthopedist diagnosed her with a leg fracture ... that required metal hardware implantation to fix.

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid gave a brief eulogy for the woman who lost her life in the Kansas City parade shooting on Tuesday ... praising Lisa Lopez-Galvan as someone who had a positive impact on so many people.

The three-time Super Bowl-winning coach met with the media at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis minutes ago ... but before he started talking football, he wanted to address the tragedy that resulted in the local DJ's death -- and injuries to 22 others.

"I want to share my condolences for the Galvan and Lopez family for their loss of Lisa, and for the people of Kansas City," Reid told reporters.

"She was a personality there, and a very good human being, first of all. We'll all miss her, as I know her family will."

Reid said the shooting is not what Kansas City stands for as a whole ... and he called on the next generation to take action and be a part of the solution.

"You're our future," he added, "and as great as we can make this place, we want to do that. So we can turn this, which was a negative, into a real positive. With just a little togetherness and love we can fix a lot of problems."

As we previously reported, the Chiefs launched a fundraiser for those affected by the incident ... with Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and Patrick and Brittany Mahomes donating to the cause.

Harrison Butker -- whose jersey Lopez-Galvan was wearing at the celebration -- also donated one of his own tops to the family for her funeral services.

Brendan Schaub flipped his truck in a terrifying off-roading crash earlier this month ... and the wild accident was all captured on video.

It happened while the former UFC fighter was trying to show off his souped-up TRX for an episode of his "Tune Town" YouTube show.

The 40-year-old took the ride to Johnson Valley, Calif. for a day of fun after getting it all tricked out ... and, initially, everything was going according to plan.

He and the vehicle were getting good shots blowing through dirt, sand and boulders -- and despite getting stuck at one point, the afternoon still appeared to be a success.

But, as he was getting set to leave, Schaub tried to spin some donuts ... and lost control.

You can see in video that Schaub posted to his social media pages, his airbag exploded as he was thrown around inside of the cab.

Thankfully, he was able to make it out of the car relatively unscathed ... though he did reveal he suffered a concussion in the wreck.

"Definitely didn't need another one," he said of the head injury. "But it could be a whole lot worse."

Schaub wrote on his YouTube page that the truck cost him in the area of $200,000.

"My favorite vehicle I've ever owned is that TRX," he said.

Damon Arnette attempted to conceal drugs on his body the night he was arrested, according to police in Texas ... who say the former first-round draft pick hid a pill stuffed with meth inside his sock.

The entire arrest is spelled out in court docs obtained by TMZ Sports, where officers document the stop ... from the time they pulled over the 27-year-old football player for speeding.

A Richardson (TX) police officer stopped Arnette for going 60 MPH in a 45 MPH zone in a white 2021 Dodge Challenger at 1:48 AM on January 6.

From the start, cops claim Damon, who told them he was a pro football player who had substance abuse issues in the past, was "unusually nervous and talkative."

Taking those factors into account, officers say they summoned a K9 to the scene ... and when the dog arrived, it signaled narcotics were present.

Arnette told officers there weren't drugs or weapons on him or in the car.

Since the dog alerted to the vehicle, officers began a search ... and discovered a loaded black Glock 20 10mm pistol under the passenger seat.

At that point, officers placed Arnette in handcuffs "due to his dishonesty."

Cops continued to search the Challenger, but came up empty. They then searched Damon.

Officers located a white and orange capsule with no markings inside Arnette's left sock, which the football player claimed was Adderall, an ADHD medicine, that had been prescribed by a doctor.

Cops say they were suspicious because of how the pill was hidden, and upon further inspection, they say it was clear the capsule had been tampered with as if it'd been "manually opened."

Officers researched Adderall, and concluded Arnette's pill wasn't consistent with the look of the actual medication. Cops popped open the pill and observed a "white, crystal-like substance," which they tested at the scene.

The results ... methamphetamine, according to police.

At that point, Arnette was officially placed under arrest, and transported to the city jail on drug and gun charges.

Despite how the situation looks, Arnette's lawyers say their client did nothing wrong ... insisting the pill was in fact medication prescribed by a physician.

If Arnette's version of the story is accurate, there's a good chance the case could go away ... it's the drugs that made the gun illegal. Legal drugs likely means a legal gun for Damon.

Reps for the former Raiders CB tell us they're working with local officials to resolve the matter.

Forget Tom Cruise -- Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou are the newest big action stars on the scene ... 'cause the two boxing superstars just dropped a Hollywood-esque trailer for their upcoming fight!!

DAZN released the high-budget promo for the March 8 bout on Tuesday ... and it could easily pass as a teaser for any major entertainment studio.

The clip is titled "Knockout Chaos" ... and kicks off with Ngannou learning the news of his matchup with AJ being finalized and saying he'll take him on "anytime, anywhere."

As luck would have it, the two fighters bump into each other in the street right after ... and a crowd forms around them in anticipation of an impromptu showdown.

The trailer then channels the classic "Street Fighter" series ... and the two start duking it out, bouncing between real world and video game.

AJ and Ngannou trade vicious blows -- even getting knocked into outer space before crashing back down to earth.

The vid ends with both guys knocking each other out in the ring ... officially putting a stop to the madness after more than a minute of violence.

New Kyrie Irving shoes are about to hit the shelves for the first time since his split with Nike ... ANTA and the NBA superstar just announced the "ANTA KAI 1's" are here.

The Chinese apparel company revealed the purple-colored kicks will be available for purchase starting next week ... roughly eight months after Irving agreed to join the co. on a five-year pact.

The shoes -- which will retail for $125 -- feature homages to Irving all over them, the company said in a statement Tuesday morning.

The design is a nod to Kyrie's "slick, gravity-defying transitions and crossovers," the org. said, and parts of the colors and the graphics represent ties to Kyrie's Native American roots.

"As Chief Creative Officer and a player, I've woven the essence of my heritage and my heart for basketball into the design of ANTA KAI 1," Irving said of the new shoes. "This is more than a shoe; it embodies our ancestors' strength and the future we're building."

"Every detail, from the hieroglyphics to the aerodynamic shape, tells the story of where we've been and where we're going."

Of course, Irving's Nike shoes were some of the greatest-selling ones of all-time. From 2011 to 2022, he and the Swoosh debuted several signature ones in total -- all with great success. However, in 2021, things between the Dallas Mavericks star and the apparel giant went sideways.

First, Irving was critical of Nike's eighth iteration of his shoe -- before the project was scrapped. Then, following the controversy that surrounded him after he shared a link to an antisemitic film in 2022, he was suspended by the company. Weeks later, the two formally broke up.

Monty Williams is clearly over bad NBA officiating ... the Pistons head coach put the refs on blast for the "worst no-call" in the final seconds of their game against the Knicks, which led to their 49th loss of the season.

"The absolute worst call of the season, no call," Williams said before storming out of the post-game press conference at Madison Square Garden on Monday, saying, "Enough's enough!"

Williams is referring to a sequence late in the 4th quarter that likely cost the Pistons a win.

With just under 10 seconds remaining in the game, and with Detroit up 1 point, NYK guard Donte DiVincenzo threw an errant pass that was stolen by DET forward Ausar Thompson who started down the court towards Detroit's basket. DD attempted to steal the ball back, and in doing so, he crashed into Ausar, who lost the ball.

It was seemingly a blatant foul ... but no whistle came. Jalen Brunson picked up the ball and fired it to Josh Hart, who was able to make a contested shot at the basket. And one. Instead of the Pistons possessing the ball with 8 seconds left, up 1 and headed to the free throw line, they were down 3 with only 2.8 seconds left.

Knicks win. Monty big mad.

"We had a chance to win the game, and the guy dove into Ausar’s legs, and there was a no-call," Williams said. "That's an abomination. You cannot miss that in an NBA game. Period!

"That situation is Exhibit A in what we've been dealing with all season long and enough is enough!"

The referees even admitted they blew it (or should we say didn't) ... crew chief James Wiliams told a pool reporter that a foul should have been called on DiVincenzo.

For his part, Donte says he was going for the basketball.

"I went for the ball," DiVincenzo said after the game, "I didn't look at the play ... I respect everybody's opinion."

Ironically, the Knicks dealt with a similar scenario not too long ago .... but they were on the other side. Officials called Brunson for a bad foul which resulted in the Knicks losing to the Rockets earlier this month.