TMZ Sports - Page 50

College basketball coaching legend Bob Huggins stuck his foot firmly in his mouth during a radio appearance on Monday morning ... using a homophobic slur not once -- but twice -- on the show.

Huggins, who's been the men's basketball head coach at West Virginia since 2007, dropped the offensive remarks while talking with Bill Cunningham about Xavier on the radio personality's 700 WLW show in Cincinnati.

Bill brought up the NCAA transfer portal with Huggins -- and asked if he had "poached any Xavier guys to come to play for West Virginia?"

Huggins responded that "Catholics don't do that" -- before he added, "Any school that can throw rubber penises on the floor and then say they didn’t do it, by God they can get away with anything."

Huggins seemed to be referencing an incident that happened when he was coaching for the Cincinnati Bearcats against the Musketeers in a Crosstown Shootout rivalry game prior to his time at WVU.

"I think it was transgender night wasn’t it?" Cunningham said ... before Huggins responded, "No, what it was, was all those f**s. Those Catholic f**s I think."

"They were envious they didn't have one."

Huggins coached at UC from 1989 to 2005. He had a brief stint as Kansas State's head coach from 2006 to 2007 before he joined the Mountaineers. In his career, he's earned 934 wins -- the eighth-most all-time -- and made two Final Fours.

Last season, he helped lead WVU to the NCAA tournament but lost in the first round to Maryland.

West Virginia has yet to comment on the coach's interview. Xavier has not yet either.

Nikola Jokic's 53-point masterpiece Sunday night was somewhat overshadowed ... the Nuggets' superstar had a heated exchange with a "fan," who turned out to be Suns' owner Mat Ishbia.

Ishbia was sitting along the baseline for Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals game between the Nuggets and Suns ... when things got testy in the second quarter.

Suns forward Josh Okogie was trying to gain possession of a loose ball when he flew into the area where Ishbia was sitting, prompting Mat to check on his player. The owner was holding the basketball.

Jokic sprinted over to Ishbia and tried to take it from his arms, but the Suns' owner wasn't giving it up, which clearly ticked Nikola off.

As Jokic tries to get the ball back from the 43-year-old billionaire, the two-time MVP nudges him with his left forearm, prompting an exaggerated flop from Ishbia, who fell backward in his seat.

Fortunately, officials quickly intervened and were able to separate everyone ... however, Nikola was slapped with a technical foul for "deliberately" making contact with Ishbia.

Ishbia reportedly told the Associated Press at halftime that he was more concerned with the outcome of the playoff game than the incident with Jokic.

"The fan put a hand on me first," Jokic told reporters after the game. "I thought the league is supposed to protect us. But maybe I'm wrong."

Meanwhile, Nuggets head coach Mike Malone supported his star player, saying he thought it was "crazy" Jokić got a technical foul for trying to get the ball from a fan, and added he doesn't "give a s***" the fan was the Suns' owner.

The NBA has yet to announce if they will discipline Jokić further with a fine or suspension, but with Game 5 on Tuesday in Denver and the series hanging in the balance, Nuggets fans are holding their collective breaths.

Antonio Brown may not have many friends left, but there's at least one person still standing by his side amid all the drama surrounding the former NFL star -- Michael Blackson.

The actor/comedian showed up to watch Brown's team, the Albany Empire, play the West Texas Warbirds in a National Arena League showdown this past weekend.

AB posted a photo of Blackson, who came dressed for the occasion, holding an Albany Empire sign, on social media, with the caption, "Family here."

MB was all smiles ... and he seemed to enjoy his time as AB's guest despite claims the Super Bowl champ has been destroying the team since he became owner.

We broke the story ... former Albany Empire coach Damon Ware and quarterback Sam Castronova both told us the experience has been a disaster.

Ware alleges Brown threatened him through text messages after an argument over paying the players ... a problem that has guys mulling sitting out games.

Meanwhile, Castronova told us the players were seemingly locked out of their hotel rooms after previously confronting team officials about not receiving payment for playing games.

Kim Zolciak is pulling the plug on her marriage, filing for divorce from Kroy Biermann on the heels of the couple's financial struggles.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, The 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' star lists April 30 as the date of separation between her and the former NFL star ... the two were married for 11 years and had 4 kids together during that time.

Kim says she's filing because the marriage is "irretrievably broken with no hope of reconciliation." She's asking for primary physical custody of the kids and joint legal custody ... Kim also wants spousal support and to legally restore her maiden name.

TMZ broke the story ... Kim and Kroy owe $1.1 million to the IRS in unpaid taxes, interest and penalties from 2013, 2017, and 2018 ... and they also owe the state of Georgia $15,000 for unpaid taxes from 2018.

Remember ... Kim and Kroy's massive country club mansion in Alpharetta, GA -- which was heavily featured on multiple reality shows -- entered foreclosure in February ... though Kim's daughters, Brielle and Ariana, denied their home was heading to the auction block.

Kim and Kroy met at a charity event way back in May 2010, when he was playing with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons. Their relationship was featured on 'RHOA' and they tied the knot on Nov. 11, 2011, at their former estate in Roswell, GA.

Their four minor children ... 11-year-old Kroy Jagger, 10-year-old Kash Kade and 9-year-old twins Kaia Rose and Kane Ren. Kroy also adopted Kim's daughters, Brielle and Ariana -- they took his last name.

It's the second divorce for Kim, who was previously married to Daniel Toce from 2001 to 2003, and the first for Kroy.

It turns out you CAN see Angel Reese after all ... the LSU superstar just landed her next big gig -- the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition!!

The hooper has been on top of the world ever since she led the Tigers to a championship over Iowa in April ... largely in part thanks to her unapologetic John Cena "You Can't See Me" celebration right in Caitlin Clark's face.

Now that she's a household name, Reese has been getting a ton of NIL deals and other opportunities ... including officially becoming an S.I. model!!

The photo shoot is pretty fitting -- not only is Reese rocking an LSU purple bikini, but she's also pointing at her finger in one of the shots ... just like she did as the Tigers beat the Hawkeyes to secure the title.

"Despite her quick rise to fame, Angel has continued to stay unapologetically herself and allowed her confidence to always shine through, which is why we applaud her for the inspiration she has become both on and off the court," the publication said of the decision to include her in this year's issue, which hits shelves on May 18.

Reese isn't the only Tiger getting the honor -- gymnastics and social media star Olivia Dunne was also picked to pose for the mag.

Mark Zuckerberg's putting his martial arts training to good use -- the Facebook founder won gold and silver medals at a local jiu-jitsu tourney in Northern California ... his first time competing!

38-year-old Zuckerberg kicked ass at a tourney on Saturday in Redwood City, CA -- about 10 miles from Palo Alto -- where he put his new skills on display, competing in both Gi (jacket) and no Gi.

It's super impressive for a guy who has only been training for a short amount of time. In fact, Zuckerberg told Joe Rogan last year that he began practicing martial arts during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Despite Mark winning most of his matches, the day wasn't without controversy. During one fight, Zuckerberg became visibly upset with a ref. It's unclear why Zuck was upset, but after a short, but rather heated convo with the official and his opponent, everyone shook hands.

But, all in all ... Zuck was awesome.

And, some of the biggest stars in MMA congratulated him on the medals ... with guys like Israel Adesanya, Brandon Moreno, and Alex Volkanovski heaping praise on the billionaire.

"Wow congrats 👏👏," Moreno, the UFC flyweight champ wrote.

Volk, the UFC featherweight champ commented ... "Legend! Love the shorts mate"

"When the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world gives you shorts, you wear them" ... Zuckerberg responded to Alex.

Somebody get a pinstriped onesie -- Derek and Hannah Jeter just welcomed their fourth child together ... and it's a boy!!

The couple shared the news on Monday ... announcing Kaius Green Jeter was born on May 5.

"Welcome to the world lil man!!!" the Yankees legend said on Instagram.

The new arrival comes as a surprise to pretty much everyone -- the two kept the whole thing a secret throughout the pregnancy, which the Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model has done in the past.

Derek and Hannah -- who got engaged in 2015 and tied the knot a year later -- also have three other children together ... Bella (5), Story (4) and River (1).

It's an amazing time for the happy couple ... and we're sure Derek can't wait 'til Kaius gets old enough to play catch in the backyard.

Of course, the kid can be a quantum physicist if he wants ... but new Yankees shortstop coming in a couple decades?!?!

Kim Zolciak of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" fame and her former NFL-star husband Kroy Biermann are deep in the hole ... owing a TON in unpaid taxes -- some of which has built up from a decade ago.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the couple owes a whopping $1.1M to the IRS for unpaid taxes, interest, and penalties from 2013, 2017, and 2018 -- they also owe the state of Georgia $15K for unpaid taxes for 2018.

As we reported, this news comes after their massive country club mansion in Alpharetta, GA -- which was heavily featured on 'RHOA' -- entered foreclosure in February ... with Truist Bank hiring a law firm to handle the process.

Kim's daughters, Brielle and Ariana, denied their swanky pad was heading to the auction block ... saying they were still hunkered down in the estate with no plans to get out of there.

It appears the family's still posting on social media from inside the GA home, so it looks like authorities haven't yet moved in to secure the property.

We covered it all on the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.

Kenny "The Jet" Smith was the center of attention during Sunday night's edition of "NBA on TNT" ... with Charles Barkley cracking jokes over his recent beach trip with a beautiful woman -- and the whole thing was hilarious!!

The crew was back on the desk after having several days off from playoff coverage ... and just a few minutes into their pregame show, Ernie Johnson asked if anyone had some photos to share from their mini vacations.

"I got one of Kenny," Barkley said ... hinting at the pics TMZ Sports posted of Kenny at the beach with model Aline Bernardes last week.

Kenny tried to downplay the jab ... claiming all he did was go to the Miami Grand Prix and hang out with Shaquille O'Neal.

Barkley wasn't about to let him off that easily ... saying, "TMZ ain't ever wrong!!"

Luckily for Kenny, Ernie switched topics ... but he wasn't off the hook just yet -- the show's producers shared a few memes that poked fun at the NBA champ a bit more.

You gotta hand it to Smith -- he was a good sport about it all ... and let his cohosts have their fun.

As we previously reported, Smith and Bernardes had some fun in the sun on Thursday ... although it's unclear if they're an item.

A NASCAR race looked more like a boxing match on Sunday ... after star drivers Ross Chastain and Noah Gragson got into a wild fight on pit road.

The tiff happened following the AdventHealth 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway ... after Chastain had put Gragson's car into the wall on the track, ending the driver's day early.

Gragson was clearly furious over the move -- especially after the two had a similar incident during a race earlier this year -- so he confronted Chastain about it when the race concluded.

You can see in video of their altercation -- the two traded words, before Gragson grabbed Chastain.

The guys then tussled a bit -- before Chastain fired off a huge right hand that connected flush with Gragson's cheek.

Gragson tried to fire back punches of his own -- but NASCAR security stepped in, preventing the fight from escalating further.

After the incident, Gragson told FOX he was "sick and tired" of the way Chastain has been racing -- and wanted to make sure the driver knew about it.

As for Chastain, he spoke generally about the beef, but noted, "We have a no-push policy here at Trackhouse."

Tiger Woods' public split with Erica Herman is getting nastier ... the golfer's ex is now specifically accusing him of sexually harassing her on multiple occasions during their relationship.

Herman made the allegations in new court documents that were filed on Friday ... claiming Woods initially sexually harassed her shortly after she began working for his Florida restaurant, The Woods Jupiter.

Herman says in the docs Woods personally hired her in 2014, and then developed a romantic relationship with her. In 2017, she claims he then "forced her to sign an NDA ... or else be fired from her job."

"A boss imposing different work conditions on his employee because of their sexual relationship is sexual harassment," Herman's attorneys wrote in the court filing.

Herman then claimed in the docs Woods sexually harassed her again in 2022.

She alleged that because their sexual relationship had ended, he kicked her out of their home -- which she claims is clear sexual harassment.

"The landlord made the availability of her housing conditional on her having sexual relationship with a co-tenant," Herman's attorneys wrote in the docs. "That conduct amounts to sexual harassment under federal and Florida fair housing laws."

Woods has yet to address the new, specific sexual harassment claims -- though he adamantly denied any sexual misconduct with Herman in court documents that were filed in March. In part of his denial, Woods called Herman "a jilted ex-girlfriend."

In her filing Friday, Herman addressed the remark ... calling it "consistent with his harassing behavior."

"That peevish response is taken from the classic playbook of powerful men accused of sexual harassment who respond by belittling and insulting their victims," Herman's attorneys wrote in the filing.

Herman argued in the docs, once again, that an NDA she had with the golfing legend should be declared unenforceable under the federal Speak Out Act, which prohibits the enforceability of an NDA agreed to before a dispute arises involving sexual assault or sexual harassment.

Darby Allin is taking his daredevil reputation to new heights -- the AEW star tells TMZ Sports he plans to climb Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, next year ... one of the most physically and mentally demanding feats known to man!

30-year-old Allin says he's on a mission to surpass what other wrestlers have done before him, not just inside the ring, but outside, too, "pushing the boundaries."

"That's been my whole MO since AEW started," Darby told Mojo Muhtadi, adding, "That's why it's so important for me to meet up with guys like [Travis] Pastrana, and make stuff happen. Do stuff that no wrestler's ever done before."

That's when Darby revealed his intention ... to climb one of the most unforgiving mountains on planet Earth.

"The thing I'm going to be doing next year that no wrestler's done before is climb Mount Everest. You heard it here first."

Of course, at 29,035 feet above sea level, Everest, located in Nepal and Tibet, is one of the most unforgiving and challenging mountains to climb. In fact, hundreds of climbers have died attempting to summit the peak.

Around 4,000 have successfully climbed the mountain.

As daunting a task as it is, Allin's known for his death-defying stunts in and outside the squared circle ... and he seems up for the challenge, telling us he's looking for his "next rush."

You may recall ... last August, DA completed a 96-foot jump over his home in a jeep, calling it the "sketchiest stunt" he had ever attempted.

When we spoke to Darby about the insane jump, he told us he was "terrified" because the stunt car had no breaks or speedometer.

Travis Pastrana helped organize the stunt for Darby last year, and even the notorious action sports star told Darby there was a good chance he'd break his back.

The X Games gold medalist introduced us to Brandon Taylor, who nailed a motocross backflip at his famous "Pastranaland" compound in Maryland ... and the clip is pretty sick!

Hollywood's all about the fast life, and this weekend proved to be no different with the number of stars that made it out to the Miami Grand Prix ... including some big, big names.

Sunday turned out to be quite a who's-who at the Miami International Autodrome -- where F1 was hosting its latest professional race ... and where the stars came flocking to catch a glimpse of the action up-close and in person. There was some heavy hitters walking the grid.

Among some of the most famous people noodling around the grounds ... Tom Cruise, Shakira, Nick Jonas, Ludacris, Roger Federer, Serena Williams, LL Cool J and Patrick Mahomes, to name a few.

There were even more A-listers, though, beyond that -- folks like J Balvin and his girlfriend, Valentina Ferrer, DJ Khaled, Paul Wesley, Michelle Rodriguez, Will.I.Am, Becky G, Blaise Matuidi, Jason Oppenheim, Cowboys stars Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb were also roaming around and posing for pics.

Indeed, the Grand Prix turned out to be a huge celebrity draw, and it's becoming more common with each passing year. Formula 1 seems to really be growing on the masses here -- and with more starry outings like this ... it's bound to expand its reach even further.

BTW, this wasn't just a one-day thing either. Like we reported ... Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos were on the scene on Saturday during the final practice rounds, so it brings in techies too.

Vida Blue -- one of the greatest pitchers in the Oakland Athletics' history -- has died.

The team announced his passing Sunday, writing ... "There are few players with a more decorated career than Vida Blue. He was a three-time champion, an MVP, a six-time All-Star, a Cy Young Award winner, and an Oakland A's Hall of Famer."

The A's add ... "Vida will always be a franchise legend and a friend. We send our deepest condolences to his family and friends during this arduous time." No other details about a cause of death were released -- the condolences, however, are pouring in from all over.

The man certainly left a mark on the game. As the A's noted, he'd won three World Series with the team in '72, '73 and '74 ... serving as an integral part of the starting rotations during their five years of dominance in baseball. And, as they note ... he was voted in as the best pitcher in the American League during his breakout year with the A's in 1971.

His stats, at times, were off the charts ... once achieving a 1.82 ERA in a season -- which means people weren't getting very many hits off him. He was a southpaw pitcher, and Vida had nasty stuff for that era. By and large, he was considered a massive threat on the mound.

VB was also known for his shrewd business savvy behind the scenes. He famously locked horns with the A's ownership for a big bump in salary -- and he ultimately got it.

Like we mentioned, just about every organization tied to MLB is sending a tribute to the guy ... which speaks to his impact. In addition to playing for the A's, Vida was also on the SF Giants and the Kansas City Royals before he retired in 1987. Vida was also a 6-time All-Star and the American League MVP in 1971 ... on top of all his other accolades.

UFC fighter Tony Ferguson was no match for cops early Sunday ... he was busted for DUI.

Tony apparently crashed his pickup truck into 2 parked cars outside a Hollywood club just before 2 AM. His truck flipped on its side. Miraculously, he was not injured nor was anyone else.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Tony refused to take a field sobriety test and was "very uncooperative" at the scene.

According to our sources, the cops who eyeballed him say he reeked of alcohol and had bloodshot eyes.

Tony was arrested at the scene and is facing misdemeanor DUI. He's also facing license suspension for refusing the field sobriety test.

Rapper Cash Gotti, the owner of one of the cars Tony allegedly hit says he came out of the club to find his Mercedes destroyed.

Kevin Costner is shooting his shot in the middle of his divorce drama ... he was spotted taking some solid swings at a driving range in Utah while he shoots his latest movie project.

The actor was at BigShots Golf in St. George Tuesday night, just hours after TMZ broke the story his wife Christine's calling it quits after 18 years of marriage ... and those at the range tell us he was having a great time.

He's in the Beehive State for his new western epic, "Horizon: An American Saga," so the group he was with was likely part of the cast and crew. Kev had a pretty great swing and even appeared to be doing some coaching.

As we reported, sources familiar told us Kevin was completely blindsided by Christine's filing ... and it was devastating for him. There were internet rumors Kevin got a woman pregnant on the set of "Yellowstone," but sources close to the actor called it "total BS."