A clip widely broadcast on state television shows hundreds of workers at a Yekaterinburg branch of Sima-Land marching and then thrusting their fists into the air, shouting “Vladimir Vladimirovich, we are with you.” But one staff member told local outlet E1 News that they were unaware of how the video would be used, thinking that they were simply taking part in a flash mob, which is a frequent occurrence in their stores....

But a local Ukrainian leader also expressed confidence on Friday that the arrival of new air defense equipment in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv would allow Ukraine to better protect itself from Russian attacks on its critical infrastructure. In a post on his Telegram channel, Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, noted what he said was the Kyiv regime’s purchase of electricity from Slovakia. On Thursday, the JSC Energy Company of Ukraine announced that it had made the “first test delivery of electricity from Slovakia” in order to “support the energy system of Ukraine in the event of a shortage of generating capacity....

Do you remember how bad it was? Can you even conceive it? It was Puerto Rico 92, United States 73, a scoreline that now seems more fantastic than the best work of J.K. Rowling. We forget now that such a thing even was possible, that American basketball had disintegrated so badly a team with Tim Duncan, Allen Iverson, LeBron James, Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade could be humiliated in such a fashion, could lose three times in the space of two weeks and be relieved to leave the Athens Olympics with a mere bronze medal....

The defender dumped the Akure based outfit in 2016 for Romania’s Botosani before moving to the north African side and played crucial league in the league second-place finish. However, Odunlami has been allowed to go back to his former team after struggling to break into the Leader’s first team in his second season. Pleased with the arrival of the 28-year-old, the club took to social media to announce the arrival of Odunlami alongside Ajibola Otegbeye and Ghanaian forward Godbless Asamoah....

And it doesn’t involve politics, prayer or other off-track silliness. This is racer vs. racer, the kind of howling and yowling that will make this week’s race at Richmond one to anticipate. MORE: Wrongheaded slap at women drivers | Richmond look-ahead Not that fans don’t look forward to Richmond. But having Kurt Busch fussing and cussing in the general direction of Brad Keselowski … yes, and thank you. Bristol brought out the worst in several drivers; two of them just happen to be named Busch....

In the first of two practice sessions Friday, Busch’s lap of 95.470 mph topped the 42 drivers who posted speeds on the 1.99-mile road course. Busch won the 2011 event at Sonoma. MORE: Sonoma picks | Road rage coming | Stewart’s crash at Indy | Danica’s road adventures Bowyer (95.421), the 2012 Sonoma winner, and Brian Vickers (95.080) were the other drivers to top 95 mph in the first practice....

“I was giving it all I had,” Busch said Friday, praising crew chief Tony Gibson for his adjustment on the last round of qualifying. “I’m really proud of the team to help me get to that third round. I was overdriving the car and I needed to settle in. MORE: 12 NASCAR upsets we want to see | Tony Stewarts awaits back surgery updates “I was hoping to put on a show for the home crowd, get the pole, but now we’ve got to go to work tomorrow....

It was Busch’s first career Xfinity win at his hometown track in 78 tries. “This Toyota Camry was really, really fast today,” Busch told Fox Sports after the race. “It’s great to check that box off here at Vegas.” MORE: NASCAR Sprint Cup winners of the 2016 season Fellow Joe Gibbs drivers Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones finished second and third, respectively. Chase Elliott crossed the finish line in fourth place, while Sprint Cup regulars Austin Dillon and Aric Almirola finished sixth and 12th, respectively....

MORE: Danica hoping to win fan vote | Earnhardt, Logano warned about cheating | Power Rankings Busch broke bones in his right leg and left foot in a Feb. 21crash at Daytona, causing him to miss the season’s first 11 Sprint Cup races. He returned to action during practice Friday at Charlotte Motor Speedway and will race for the first time since the injury in the Sprint All-Star Race Saturday night....

Korver wound up with few chances and his NBA-record streak of 127 games with a 3-pointer was snapped in Atlanta's 102-78 loss to Portland on Wednesday night. "I'm a little bummed," Korver said. "The streak was good, it was good while it lasted. Someday I'll look on it and be proud. Not tonight, obviously. This was a tough game all the way around for us." Korver had surpassed Dana Barros' record of 89 straight, set from 1994-96, earlier this season....

Rittenhouse, who was cleared of two counts of murder following the highly divisive trial in November 2021, shared the clip on his Twitter account on Thursday, where it has since been reshared more than 4,300 times. The edited video shows Rittenhouse filling up a car at a gas station while in tears. The clip superimposes Rittenhouse’s body from when he was hyperventilating while describing to the jury the circumstances that led up to him shooting Joseph Rosenbaum during the Black Lives Matter protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August 2020....

Two of the individuals allegedly shot by Kyle Rittenhouse—Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum—died as a result of their injuries, and the third—Gaige Grosskreutz—was injured in the shooting. Rittenhouse was 17 at the time of his arrest for the shootings, which occurred the evening of August 25. He was arrested the next day and charged on August 28. During a Zoom conference call that lasted less than four minutes, Rittenhouse sat beside his attorney, Mark Richards, who told Kenosha County Court Commissioner Loren Keating that his client was pleading not guilty to all charges....

Rittenhouse criticized Wood and John Pierce, another fellow former attorney of his, during a lengthy interview with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson on Monday night—days after he was found not guilty on all charges—including two counts of homicide—on Friday. During the interview, the 18-year-old told how he was kept in jail for 87 days while Wood and Pierce attempted to raise the $2 million bail needed to have him released from custody via a fundraising effort from their Fightback Foundation....

Garoppolo is on injured reserve with an ankle injury and the San Francisco QB’s future has been thrust into the spotlight amid criticism, while the 4-6 49ers struggle to reach the lofty heights of 2019. The former New England Patriots quarterback, who led the 49ers to last season’s Super Bowl, has completed 94 of 140 passes for 1,096 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions in six games this season....

For what it’s worth, that speech was not made before Buffalo’s Week 13 game in Oakland. The Bills in their tweet did not specify when Williams delivered the words. MORE: Week 13 NFL scoreboard Williams, 33, is a four-time Pro Bowler who has played multiple positions in multiple defensive schemes for Buffalo over the years. He also apparently is a master motivator. The 6-5 Bills opened as three-point underdogs against the 9-2 Raiders....

Kyrie Irving says it’s a play he’ll have a hard time forgetting. MORE: Kyrie Irving’s big night still not big enough for Cavs “I’ll probably be replaying that play for a while,” Kyrie Irving said following the 118-113 loss. “It hurts. Did some great things tonight. Came down to the stretch, and they made some big time plays. But it definitely hurts. I’m human, as well as my teammates, and to lay it all on the line like that, you want to come out on the winning side....

Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving came up big as the Cavs held off the Pistons for a 106-101 victory in their first-round opener. PHOTOS: Best images from first round of NBA playoffs Irving scored a game-high 31 points and added six assists while Love scored 28 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. “It felt good. Between Kyrie and myself, we’ve had many conversations,” Love told ABC after the game. “We want to prove ourselves....

Previous reports indicated Irving would have been able to only play in road games, in accordance with New York City’s guidelines, meaning he wouldn’t be available for 41 home games in the regular season, however, Nets GM Sean Marks today confirmed in a statement that Irving will not be able to play or practice with the team until he is “eligible to be a full participant.” According to a report from The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Irving, who hasn’t been with the team during pre-season, is not opposed to the vaccine itself, rather the broader implications of the workplace mandates in place, with a source saying “Kyrie wants to be a voice for the voiceless....

But 2017 was no ordinary summer. Two months earlier, after the Cavaliers — the only professional franchise Irving had known in his six years in the NBA — had been ousted from the NBA Finals by the Warriors, Irving asked Cleveland for a trade out of town. Shortly thereafter, Irving headed to Georgia to begin work on the first feature film of his career, starring his ornery, youngblood-trashing, fundamentals-loving basketball guru of a character, Uncle Drew....

In a proof-of-concept experiment, Aleph Farm—in collaboration with partners 3D Bioprinting Solutions, Meal Source Technologies and Finless Foods—produced the meat aboard the International Space Space Station, which orbits the Earth at an average altitude of about 250 miles. The latest method, which requires less resources than traditional animal farming,could potentially be used in future to produce food on long space missions, according to the company. They also say that the technique could have important implications for cultivating lab grown meat on Earth....