TMZ Sports - Page 2

Former college basketball star Mike Babul has passed away, UMass announced on Tuesday. He was 47 years old.

The school broke the news just minutes ago ... saying in a heartfelt statement the Minutemen fanbase is grieving the loss of an iconic member of the community.

"Babul was a true Massachusetts basketball legend on the court, serving as a positive force in his community and on many sidelines as a coach," the school said.

Need one last feel-good moment heading into 2025?? Kirk Herbstreit's got ya covered ... 'cause the popular sports announcer shared footage of his 14-month-old dog, Peter, enjoying the beach for the first time -- and it'll warm your heart.

The adorable pup accompanied Kirk out to Los Angeles for the massive College Football Playoff matchup between Ohio State and Oregon going down at the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day ... and with more than 24 hours before kickoff, the two took a stroll at Manhattan Beach for the final sunrise of 2024.

Peter clearly loved running around the shore ... and while we don't know if he took a dip in the Pacific, it's much warmer than snowy Indiana!!

A boxing referee turned into a human punching bag on Tuesday ... getting hit in the face multiple times as he tried to break up the action -- but surprisingly, he took it all like a champ!!

It happened at the RIZIN 49: Decade event in Saitama, Japan ... where Rukiya Anpo -- who was originally scheduled to fight Ryan Garcia -- took on K-1 champ Sina Karimian in the bout.

The sixth and final round of the exhibition got intense when Karimian landed an illegal spinning back fist on Anpo ... which sparked an all-out brawl between the two fighters.

Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair's three-game suspension for his brutal hit on Trevor Lawrence is over ... and the the six-year NFL veteran revealed he met with commissioner Roger Goodell and other league higher-ups to own up to his actions and defend his character while serving his punishment.

The 27-year-old released a statement on X ahead of Houston's Week 18 matchup against the Tennessee Titans ... in which he stated his play on the former No. 1 overall pick and the fight that ensued "was an embarrassing and eye-opening moment for me."

"That was not the way I want to represent myself or my family and I will continue to learn and grow from that moment."

Things got heated during the 49ers vs. Lions matchup on "Monday Night Football" ... when San Francisco receiver Jauan Jennings got in a scuffle with multiple Detroit defensive stars -- which ended with him getting shoved into the stands.

The wild moment went down during the first possession of the contest ... when Jennings was tasked with blocking Lions corner Terrion Arnold in the end zone -- and it's safe to say he understood the assignment.

Jennings continued to defend Arnold even after their momentum moved them out of bounds ... and the two wound up on the turf.

Janet Jackson's paying homage to one of her career milestones ... 'cause one of her dancers grabbed her chest from behind during her recent show -- and, it's pretty clearly a throwback to her 1993 album, "Janet."

The singer-songwriter took the stage at Resorts World in Vegas Monday ... and, while outfitted in a tight black leather bodysuit, a dancer came up and ran his hands over Jackson's chest ... while Ms. Jackson looked ready to get 'Nasty' with it.

The Vegas pose calls back to the cover of her 1993 album "Janet," which showed Jackson facing the camera with her arms up in the air, with two hands cupping her bare breasts from behind -- the wide release only showed her from the neck up, but the limited edition featured the full photo. The image was also on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine that year.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Gabriela Dabrowski is opening up on her breast cancer diagnosis ... revealing she competed in the Paris Olympics and the WTA Tour Finals while battling the disease.

The 32-year-old tennis pro shared her journey in a lengthy Instagram post on Tuesday ... saying she discovered a lump in her left breast in 2023, but medical professionals initially said it was nothing to worry about.

One year later, Gaby realized the lump was bigger ... and in mid-April, it was determined it was cancer. Thankfully, it was caught early ... and after several surgeries, she can call herself a survivor.

Dana Stubblefield is on his way to being a free man -- his rape conviction was overturned last week -- and according to the former NFL star's attorneys, his first order of business when he gets out will be a bunch of family time.

Kenneth Rosenfeld and Allen Sawyer sat down with TMZ Sports just days after a California appellate court vacated Stubblefield's prison sentence ... and they said he's "euphoric" over the decision -- and is now looking forward to hanging with his loved ones.

"He's going to be with his family," Sawyer said of Dana's immediate plans. "If there's one thing that Dana misses the most, it's being with his family."

A Los Angeles-area home with deep ties to both the Kardashian family and the O.J. Simpson murder trial has hit the market ... TMZ has learned.

Real estate sources tell TMZ ... an Encino, Calif. residence, which currently belongs to comedian Russell Peters, is now on the market -- several years after he scooped up the storied property for a notable $5.6 million.

Russell is looking to offload the estate for $5.995 million ... which would give him a decent profit if it's snapped up at this price -- and we're sure the residence will have some takers given its unique history.

Ex-WWE Superstar Eva Marie has filed for divorce from her husband of 10 years, Jonathan Coyle, TMZ Sports has learned.

According to court records, the "Total Divas" television show star -- real name Natalie Eva Marie Nelson -- filed papers earlier this month ... which stated they got hitched back on October 20, 2014.

The docs state the two initially separated in October 2023 ... and the reason for the split was listed as irreconcilable differences.

LeBron James says he could play at a "high level" in the NBA for up to seven more years, but will walk away from the sport long before that ever happens ... telling reporters his thoughts on retirement have intensified over time.

The King spoke with the media on his 40th birthday ... and he opened up on how much longer he'll continue his legendary career.

When asked if he'll know when it's time to hang it up for good, James said it won't be due to lack of ability ... as he has more gas left in the tank -- but he plans to go out on top.

A charter jet carrying the Gonzaga men's basketball team was just yards away from being wiped out by an outbound plane over the weekend ... and the near collision was all captured on video.

Check out footage from LAX at around 4:30 PM on Friday ... you can see as the Bulldogs' Embraer E135 aircraft was taxiing to its gate after landing in Los Angeles, a Delta flight was taking off on a nearby runway, and the two planes got so close to each other, an air traffic controller actually had to tell the Zags' pilot to stop.

Thankfully, the two avoided one another ... but the FAA still said in a statement to TMZ Sports on Monday it's investigating the situation.

Kristin Cavallari will not be single heading into 2025 ... the reality TV star is dating someone new after splitting from TikTok star Mark Estes.

The "Laguna Beach" alum issued the relationship update while appearing on Bunnie XO's "Dumb Blonde" podcast, confirming she's "kinda dating someone else now."

However, Kristin stayed tight-lipped about the man's identity, as she noted the romance is still "really new."

Deion Sanders is fed up with reports regarding his sons, Shedeur and Shilo -- saying there are a bunch of morons running around spewing fake news on where he would like to see them land in the NFL.

The leader of the Colorado Buffaloes' sidelines teed off on social media on Monday ... amid a lot of chatter surrounding which team is at the top of his wish list ahead of April's draft.

There has been a ton of speculation on preferred destinations within the Sanders family ... especially with Shedeur expected to be a top-five talent -- and some not-so-respected franchises in position to pick high.

The FBI is warning pro athletes to be vigilant ... confirming Monday groups of organized thieves are targeting stars' homes in search of high-priced valuables.

The feds issued the alert just a couple days after NBA superstar Luka Doncic became the latest A-lister to have his place broken into ... explaining criminals are hitting residences belonging to big-time players while they're on the road or at games.

"These homes are targeted for burglary due to the perception they may have high-end goods like designer handbags, jewelry, watches, and cash," FBI officials said, according to ABC News.

Kings star De'Aaron Fox has a bone to pick with Lou Williams ... calling out the ex-NBAer for comments he made regarding Mike Brown's firing in Sacramento -- saying it's nothing but "bulls***."

The former Sixth Man of the Year was weighing in on Sac-Town's surprising decision to sack Brown last week ... when he claimed on FanDuel's "Run It Back" he heard there was "pushback" from players over Fox getting blamed for the team's woes prior to the move.

Williams went on to say the front office had to decide whether to stick with the current roster or keep the former Coach of the Year -- and Brown obviously ended up getting the short end of the stick.