April 2008 in sports

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This list shows notable sports-related deaths, events, and notable outcomes that occurred in April of 2008. Deaths

28: Will Robinson 25: John H. McConnell 19: Constant Vanden Stock

Current sporting seasons

Australian rules football: AFL

Auto racing 2008: Formula 1 Sprint Cup Nationwide Craftsman Truck World Rally Championship IndyCar Series American Le Mans GP2 Le Mans Series Rolex Sports Car FIA GT WTCC

Baseball 2008: Nippon Professional Baseball Major League Baseball

Basketball 2008: National Basketball Association Euroleague Philippine Basketball Association Russian Basketball Super League Turkish Basketball League

Cricket 2008: Indian Premier League

Cycling UCI ProTour

Football (soccer) 2007–08: Argentina Denmark England Ecuador France Germany Italy Spain UEFA Champions League UEFA Cup Football (soccer) 2008: Brazil Japan MLS Norway

Golf 2008: PGA Tour European Tour LPGA Tour

Ice hockey 2007–08 National Hockey League

Lacrosse 2008 National Lacrosse League

Motorcycle racing 2008: Moto GP Superbike

Rugby league Super League NRL

Rugby union 2007–08: Super 14 IRB Sevens Heineken Cup English Premiership Celtic League Top 14

30 April 2008 (Wednesday) Association football: UEFA Champions League semifinals, second leg Chelsea 3–2 Liverpool (aet): Chelsea win 4–3 on aggregate In a tense second leg at Stamford Bridge, Liverpool's Fernando Torres sends the tie into extra time with a late goal. A Frank Lampard penalty and Didier Drogba's second goal of the night give Chelsea breathing room, and they hold on to book their trip to Moscow to take on Manchester United. National Basketball Association The Dallas Mavericks fire head coach Avery Johnson, who tallied a 194–70 regular-season record over three full years but lost in the first round of the playoffs the last two years. (AP via Yahoo) National Hockey League The New York Rangers announce forward Sean Avery has been hospitalized with a lacerated spleen and will miss the rest of the playoffs. The team denies a New York Daily News report that Avery suffered cardiac arrest. (AP via Yahoo) College football The Bowl Championship Series announces the system will retain its current format through at least 2014. (AP via Yahoo)

29 April 2008 (Tuesday) Association football: UEFA Champions League semifinals, second leg Manchester United 1–0 Barcelona: Man United win 1–0 on aggregate Paul Scholes scores the only goal of the match in the 14th minute, and United hold on to book a place in the final. National Basketball Association The Charlotte Bobcats hire Larry Brown as head coach. Brown previously coached eight other NBA teams. (AP via Yahoo) NBA Playoffs-First Round: Western Conference First Round: New Orleans Hornets 99, Dallas Mavericks 94, New Orleans wins series 4–1 San Antonio Spurs 92, Phoenix Suns 87, San Antonio wins series 4–1 Rugby union: 2008 IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy in Chile Final: Chile 8–20 <div id="28_April_2008"> </div id>

28 April 2008 (Monday) Basketball – NBA Playoffs-First Round: Eastern Conference First Round: Orlando Magic 102, Toronto Raptors 92, Orlando wins series 4–1 Western Conference First Round: Los Angeles Lakers 107, Denver Nuggets 101, L.A. Lakers wins series 4–0

27 April 2008 (Sunday) Baseball: Cleveland Indians center fielder Grady Sizemore sits out Cleveland's 1–0 loss to the New York Yankees with a sore ankle. Sizemore's streak of consecutive games played, which had been the longest in the Major Leagues, ends at 382. Jeff Francoeur of the Atlanta Braves now has the longest active streak at 351 games. (Canton Repository) National Football League 2008 NFL draft Day 2 notable picks: 65. Detroit Lions: Running back Kevin Smith, UCF 73. Kansas City Chiefs (from Denver through Minnesota): Running back Jamaal Charles, Texas 81. Arizona Cardinals: Wide receiver Early Doucet, LSU 86. Baltimore Ravens (from Seattle): Free safety Tom Zbikowski, Notre Dame 89. Houston Texans (from Jacksonville through Baltimore): Running back Steve Slaton, West Virginia 95. New York Giants: Wide receiver Mario Manningham, Michigan 137. Minnesota Vikings (from St. Louis through Green Bay): Quarterback John David Booty, USC 156. Pittsburgh Steelers: Quarterback Dennis Dixon, Oregon 162. New York Jets (from Green Bay): Quarterback Erik Ainge, Tennessee 186. Washington Redskins: Quarterback Colt Brennan, Hawaii 202. Indianapolis Colts: Running back Mike Hart, Michigan 209. Green Bay Packers (From St. Louis through Minnesota): Quarterback Matt Flynn, LSU 252 (Mr. Irrelevant). St. Louis Rams: Linebacker David Vobora, Idaho

Auto racing: Formula One: Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, Spain (1) Kimi Räikkönen (2) Felipe Massa (3) Lewis Hamilton Indy Racing League: RoadRunner Turbo Indy 300 in Kansas City, Kansas (1) Dan Wheldon (2) Tony Kanaan (3) Scott Dixon Le Mans Series: 1000km of Monza in Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Italy (1) Pedro Lamy & Stéphane Sarrazin (2) Alexandre Prémat & Mike Rockenfeller (3) Harald Primat & Christophe Tinseau NASCAR Sprint Cup: Aaron's 499 in Talladega, Alabama (1) Kyle Busch (2) Juan Pablo Montoya (3) Denny Hamlin World Rally Championship: Jordan Rally in Amman, Jordan (1) Mikko Hirvonen (2) Dani Sordo (3) Chris Atkinson

Motorcycle racing: Superbike: Assen Superbike World Championship round, at TT Circuit Assen, Netherlands: Race 1 (1) Troy Bayliss (2) Carlos Checa (3) Max Neukirchner Race 2 (1) Troy Bayliss (2) Noriyuki Haga (3) Carlos Checa Rugby union: Heineken Cup semifinals Saracens 16–18 (Ireland) Munster at Ricoh Arena, Coventry

26 April 2008 (Saturday) Association football: English Premier League Chelsea 2–1 Manchester United Chelsea's win at home brought them level with Manchester United on points at the top of the league table with two matches to go. Basketball: FIBA, the sport's international governing body, announces major rules changes, set to take effect for major international competitions in late 2010 and other competitions in late 2012, which will result in its court markings being much more similar to those of the NBA. These changes are: (FIBA) FIBA will scrap its trapezoidal restricted area (free-throw lane) and adopt a rectangular area with the same dimensions as currently used by the NBA. The three-point line will move to 6.75 m (22 ft 2 in) from the center of the basket, compared with the current 6.25 m (20 ft 6 in). FIBA will adopt the "no-charge semicircle" currently used in the NBA, by which an offensive player cannot be called for charging if the defensive player is within this semicircle near the defender's basket. NBA: Michael Jordan and the Charlotte Bobcats fire head coach Sam Vincent. They replace him with Larry Brown, who sets an NBA record by taking the helm of his ninth team. (AP via Yahoo) Rugby union: Heineken Cup semifinals London Irish 15–21 Toulouse at Twickenham, London National Football League: 2008 NFL draft: Top picks: Miami Dolphins: Offensive tackle Jake Long, Michigan St. Louis Rams: Defensive end Chris Long, Virginia Atlanta Falcons: Quarterback Matt Ryan, Boston College Oakland Raiders: Running back Darren McFadden, Arkansas Kansas City Chiefs: Defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, LSU New York Jets: Defensive end Vernon Gholston, Ohio State New Orleans Saints (from San Francisco via New England): Defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis, USC Jacksonville Jaguars (from Baltimore): Defensive end Derrick Harvey, Florida Cincinnati Bengals: Linebacker Keith Rivers, USC New England Patriots (from New Orleans): Linebacker Jerod Mayo, Tennessee Other notables: 13. Carolina Panthers: Running back Jonathan Stewart, Oregon 18. Baltimore Ravens: Quarterback Joe Flacco, Delaware 55. Baltimore (from Seattle): Running back Ray Rice, Rutgers 56. Green Bay Packers (from Cleveland): Quarterback Brian Brohm, (Louisville) 57. Miami (from San Diego): Quarterback Chad Henne, Michigan

22 April 2008 (Tuesday) NBA: Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics is named Defensive Player of the Year. National Football League: 2008 NFL draft: Four days before the formal start of the draft, the Miami Dolphins, who hold the No. 1 pick, sign Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long to a five-year contract. The St. Louis Rams, who have the No. 2 pick, are now "on the clock." (AP via Yahoo) The Seattle Seahawks release former MVP Shaun Alexander. (AP via Yahoo) NHL 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Philadelphia Flyers 3, Washington Capitals 2, OT, Philadelphia wins series 4–3 Western Conference Quarterfinals San Jose Sharks 5, Calgary Flames 3, San Jose wins series 4–3

21 April 2008 (Monday) Boston Marathon: Kenya's Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot wins the men's event for the fourth time, with a time of 2:07:46. Dire Tune of Ethiopia wins the women's race in 2:25:25. NHL 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Montreal Canadiens 5, Boston Bruins 0, Montreal wins series 4–3 Major League Baseball Chase Utley of the Philadelphia Phillies hits a home run in his fifth consecutive game, a 9–5 victory over the Colorado Rockies. NBA: Manu Ginóbili of the San Antonio Spurs receives the Sixth Man Award.

20 April 2008 (Sunday) Auto racing: American Le Mans Series: Long Beach Grand Prix on the streets of Long Beach, California (1) Marco Werner & Lucas Luhr (2) Frank Biela & Emanuele Pirro (3) Scott Sharp & David Brabham Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters: Round 2 at Oschersleben, Germany (1) Timo Scheider (2) Martin Tomczyk (3) Bruno Spengler FIA GT Championship: RAC Tourist Trophy in Silverstone, Great Britain (1) Karl Wendlinger & Ryan Sharp (2) Michael Bartels & Andrea Bertolini (3) Philipp Peter & Allan Simonsen Indy Racing League: Indy Japan 300 in Motegi, Japan (1) Danica Patrick (2) Hélio Castroneves (3) Scott Dixon Danica Patrick becomes the first woman to win a race in a top-flight American motor racing series. Indy Racing League: Long Beach Grand Prix on the streets of Long Beach, California (1) Will Power (2) Franck Montagny (3) Mario Domínguez Will Power claims his debut IRL victory, winning the last ever Champ Car race after 28 seasons of Champ Car racing. V8 Supercar: Hamilton 400, at Hamilton Street Circuit, New Zealand: (1) Garth Tander (2) Steven Richards (3) James Courtney

NHL 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs Western Conference Quarterfinals Detroit Red Wings 3, Nashville Predators 0, Detroit wins series 4–2 Dallas Stars 4, Anaheim Ducks 1, Dallas wins series 4–2

19 April 2008 (Saturday) Auto racing: Indy Racing League: Indy Japan 300 in Motegi, Japan Rain, and rain water seeping through the track forced officials to delay the race until April 20.

Cricket: Bangladesh cricket team in Pakistan in 2008 5th ODI- 329/9 (50 ov.) beat 179 (40.5 ov.) by 150 runs NHL 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs Western Conference Quarterfinals Colorado Avalanche 2, Minnesota Wild 1, Colorado wins series 4–2

18 April 2008 (Friday) Basketball: NBA team owners vote 28–2 in favor of allowing the Seattle SuperSonics to move to Oklahoma City. Although the team could potentially move for the 2008–09 season, the move is contingent on the settlement of a lawsuit filed by the city of Seattle in an attempt to force the team to honor its lease at KeyArena, which does not expire until 2010. It may also hinge on a potential breach-of-contract lawsuit by former owner Howard Schultz to reclaim the franchise. NHL 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs Eastern Conference Quarterfinals New York Rangers 5, New Jersey Devils 3, New York wins series 4–1

17 April 2008 (Thursday) National Football League:

April 2008 in sports

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