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Team USA opened the World Cup with a historic 4-1 win over Paraguay at SoFi Stadium behind two goals from Folarin Balogun. Darron Lee was indicted for first-degree murder, and Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper faces new charges after a second arrest
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Welcome to The Sports Hangover Daily, I'm Michael Benatar. Today on the show: Team USA kicks off the World Cup with a statement win at SoFi, Darron Lee's murder case gets worse, Jonathon Cooper can't stay out of trouble in Denver, and Carolina is one win from the Cup. Let's get into it.
Alright, I know the rule is NFL first, but last night was the biggest American soccer moment in thirty years, it happened in my city, and I'm not gonna pretend it didn't. USA four, Paraguay one at SoFi Stadium. The World Cup is on American soil for the first time since nineteen ninety-four, and the boys showed up. Folarin Balogun scored twice. The first came off an own goal by Paraguayan midfielder Damian Bobadilla in the seventh minute — fastest goal the U.S. men have ever scored in a World Cup. Then Balogun got fed by Christian Pulisic to make it two to nothing. Then Balogun AGAIN right before the half for the brace. Three to nothing at the break. Paraguay got one back in the seventy-third, but Gio Reyna buried one in the ninety-eighth minute to make it four to one. That's a record. The U.S. men had never scored more than three goals in a single World Cup match. Ever. And they did it at home, in LA, in front of a packed house that was going nuts. One concern — Pulisic took a kick to the back of his left calf. He says he's hopeful for the next match, but you hold your breath with that guy. The U.S. plays Australia next Friday in Seattle, then wraps the group stage against Turkey back in LA on June twenty-fifth. If this team keeps playing like this, this tournament is gonna be special.
Now to the NFL, where the news is dark. Former first-round linebacker Darron Lee has been indicted on a first-degree murder charge in Hamilton County, Tennessee. Lee is accused of killing his girlfriend, Gabriella Perpetuo, back in February. The autopsy report listed twelve different injuries — multiple hematomas, bone fractures, stab wounds. Prosecutors dropped a tampering with evidence charge to focus entirely on murder. First-degree murder carries a life sentence, and a decision on whether to pursue the death penalty is still coming. This is horrific. There's nothing to analyze here from a football perspective. A twenty-nine-year-old woman is dead.
Broncos outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper was arrested Thursday night. Again. Second time in a month. He was initially charged with a misdemeanor after a domestic dispute with his girlfriend on June fourth. Now he's facing additional charges for violating a protection order, two more domestic violence counts, harassment for repeated phone calls, plus a felony charge of second-degree assault from the original incident. That's a pile of charges, and this guy should not be near football right now. Denver has to act on this. You can't just wait around and see how it plays out.
On a lighter note — Stefon Diggs got cleared by the league. No personal conduct violation. He was found not guilty last month of assaulting his personal chef, and the NFL wrapped its investigation with insufficient evidence. Diggs is a free agent after the Patriots cut him in March. He can sign anywhere now with no league cloud hanging over him. Whether anybody wants a thirty-two-year-old receiver coming off an Achilles tear is a different question, but at least the path is clear.
Over in Carolina, Jalen Coker locked in a three-year, thirty-five million dollar extension with the Panthers. Can go up to forty-one million with incentives. Good for him. And up in New England, A.J. Brown and Drake Maye are already connecting at minicamp. Early reviews on that pairing are strong. Patriots fans should be excited — Brown is still one of the best receivers in football, and Maye needed a true number one.
Carolina is one win away from the Stanley Cup. The Hurricanes beat Vegas four to two in Game five at home to take a three to two series lead. Andrei Svechnikov scored twice, Sebastian Aho added one, and Jordan Staal kept doing his thing — scoring in his fifth straight Finals game to tie an NHL record. Only four other players in history have done that. Carter Hart gave up four goals on twenty-four shots for Vegas. Game six is Sunday night in Las Vegas, and Carolina can close it out on the road.
Here's my Hangover Take. The Knicks are about to win the NBA Finals tonight, and it won't be close. Game five is in San Antonio, and normally you'd say the Spurs have home court, Wemby's back, it's a must-win. But that Game four collapse broke something. The Spurs led by twenty-nine points. They shot sixty percent in the first half. They led ninety-seven percent of the game. And they STILL lost by one on an OG Anunoby tip-in with one point two seconds left. Wemby picked up a flagrant one for elbowing Karl-Anthony Towns in the head, so he's one more flagrant point from a suspension. The Spurs scored thirty points on eight of thirty-nine shooting in the second half. Thirty points. In a half. In the Finals. That kind of loss doesn't just sit on the stat sheet — it lives in your head. And Jalen Brunson — the guy who dropped thirty-six in that comeback — is not the kind of player who lets you recover. New York is winning its first title since nineteen seventy-three tonight. Book it.
That's your hangover. Go hydrate. I'll see you tomorrow.