Austrian MPs on Wednesday approved a law aimed at banning the headscarf in primary schools, a measure proposed by the ruling right-wing government.

To avoid charges that the law discriminates against Muslims, the text refers to any “ideologically or religiously influenced clothing which is associated with the covering of the head”.

However, representatives of both parts of the governing coalition, the centre-right People’s Party (OeVP) and the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe), have made it clear that the law is targeted at the Muslim headscarf.

FPOe education spokesman Wendelin Moelzer said the law was “a signal against political Islam” while OeVP MP Rudolf Taschner said the measure was necessary to free girls from “subjugation”.

The government says the patka head covering worn by Sikh boys or the Jewish kippa would not be affected.

Austria’s official Muslim community organisation IGGOe has previously condemned the proposals as “shameless” and a “diversionary tactic”.

The IGGOe said that in any case only a “miniscule number” of girls would be affected.

Opposition MPs almost all voted against the measure, with some accusing the government of focusing on garnering positive headlines rather than child welfare.

The government admits that the law is likely to be challenged at Austria’s constitutional court, either on grounds of religious discrimination or because similar legislation affecting schools is normally passed with a two-thirds majority of MPs.

The OeVP and FPOe formed a coalition in late 2017 after elections in which both parties took a tough anti-immigration stance and warned of the dangers of so-called “parallel societies”.

SOURCE:
AFP news agency

The Eastern Conference Finals were supposed to be all about Kawhi Leonard and Giannis Antetokounmpo. And for stretches of the Milwaukee Bucks’ 108-100 win over the Toronto Raptors in Game 1, that was the case.

But Kyle Lowry carried Toronto for much of the second half, and Milwaukee overcame his heroics because of Giannis’ supporting cast, a group led by 7’0″ anomaly Brook Lopez.

The Raptors had no answer for the Bucks’ shooting guard in a center’s body. He finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks and two assists on 12-of-21 shooting (4-of-11 from three).

“This is the Brook we all know and we all love,” Antetokounmpo told reporters after the game. “We want him to be aggressive, especially in this series. Marc Gasol is trying to be active, trying to help a lot, and he’s going to be wide open most of the time, and he’s going to knock down shots like he did tonight.”

Lopez has made teams pay for leaving him open all season, and that includes shots from well beyond the arc. Above the break, the NBA three-point line is just under 24 feet to the rim. In 2018-19, Lopez went 38-of-102 (37.3 percent) on shots from at least 28 feet.

That kind of range from an opposing center puts any team, including the defensively stout Raptors, in a sort of pick-your-poison situation. Marc Gasol can either hug up on Lopez four or five feet outside the line and give the lane to Giannis, or he can play free safety and hope Lopez doesn’t burn him, as he does on this wild kickout from Giannis:

You see, Lopez doesn’t even need the ball right in the shooting pocket to bail his team out of a possession. He’s become so adept with traditional shooting guard skills, like getting the ball from anywhere to his shooting motion in a snap, that Giannis doesn’t even need pinpoint accuracy passing out of high-tension drives.

On Wednesday, Gasol and the Raptors did a solid enough job crowding those Giannis takes. Somehow, holding him to 24 points on 7-of-16 shooting feels like something of a success. But Lopez did indeed burn them from the outside. He finished 4-of-11 from deep, but he was 3-of-5 in the fourth quarter alone. Milwaukee outscored Toronto 32-17 in that final frame, turning a seven-point deficit into an eight-point win.

The Bucks have used their center to invert the floor all season. When your best player can’t light it up from the outside, you need a supporting cast that can. And Lopez is perfect for them at center.

He’d already started to expand his game prior to this season. Over his first eight years in the league, Lopez was 3-of-31 (9.7 percent) from three. In 2016-17 and 2017-18, he was 246-of-712 (34.6 percent). During his inaugural campaign with the Bucks, he went 187-of-512 (36.5 percent). A whopping 65.1 percent of the shots he took for Milwaukee were threes.

However, Lopez’ stroke was a bit off heading into Wednesday night, and he entered the series’ opening game just 12-of-43 (27.9 percent) in the postseason. The magic seemed to be wearing off during this playoff run.

Or, at least, the magic seemed to be wearing off to outside observers.

Lopez told reporters his teammates have been in his ear the last few weeks, telling him: “‘Keep shooting the ball. You just need one to go down. Keep letting it fly.’”

If the lid is off the rim for Lopez, Toronto could be in trouble. During regular-season games in which Lopez hit at least 50 percent of his attempts from deep, the Bucks had an average point differential of plus-9.6—nearly a full point above their average (plus-8.8).

What’s perhaps even scarier for the Raptors is that, again, they held Giannis in check, relatively speaking.

Milwaukee’s depth has been an underrated aspect of its success all season. The Bucks were able to get away with playing their MVP candidate just 32.8 minutes per game throughout 2018-19 because they have several guys they can trust in big moments like the Eastern Conference Finals.

Lopez was just the headliner on Wednesday.

Elsewhere in Game 1, Malcolm Brogdon came off the bench to score 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting. George Hill was 0-of-6 from the field, but he had four steals and four assists. Pat Connaughton recorded six boards and a block in just 11 minutes. Nikola Mirotic and Khris Middleton both struggled with their shots, but each hit a big three in the second half.

Milwaukee is legitimately eight or nine players deep, and pretty much everyone is capable of adding more to a box score than points. Even when a given player’s shot isn’t falling, he can help.

This front office has done a masterful job assembling a team that fits its superstar’s strengths. Giannis and his teammates enjoy a symbiosis that makes the Bucks as scary as any team left playing.

Lopez provided the Game 1 fireworks, but the Raptors can’t know who might provide the encore Friday night in Game 2. 

Erik Karlsson‘s controversial overtime goal helped the San Jose Sharks pull out a 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Blues in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final on Wednesday night, giving San Jose a 2-1 series lead.

Karlsson and Joe Thornton each had two goals for the Sharks, who used Logan Couture’s late third-period score to force overtime. Martin Jones had 28 saves on the night. 

David Perron scored twice as the Blues netted all four of their goals in the second. Jordan Binnington made 27 saves in a losing effort for St. Louis.    

It took a while for either team to light the lamp, but once the first goal went in, both goalies had a hard time keeping the puck out of the net.

With less than seven minutes to play in the first, Karlsson opened the scoring with a shot through traffic:

That marked Karlsson’s first goal of the 2018-19 postseason. He had tallied 13 assists through his first 16 appearances.

A few minutes later, Thornton would give the Sharks some breathing room:

With that goal, San Jose took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission, but the action was just getting started.

St. Louis got on the board only 78 seconds into the middle period to cut the lead in half:

Less than 20 seconds later, the Sharks had an answer thanks to their captain:

Per NHL Public Relations, Thornton (39 years, 317 days) became the oldest player in NHL history to record his first career multigoal playoff game.

The Blues did not back down, however. Roughly two-and-a-half minutes after Thornton’s second goal of the night, Vladimir Tarasenko brought the margin back down to one by beating the defense and slipping one past Jones:

Just like that, the two teams had scored five goals in approximately 11 minutes of game time.

The scoring barrage eventually slowed down, as San Jose clung to a one-goal lead for the majority of the second. However, Perron eventually powered his team to the lead:

After being held scoreless through the opening 20 minutes, St. Louis managed to beat Jones four times in the second. According to NHL Public Relations, it was the first time since the 2000 conference quarterfinals that the Blues had scored four goals in a single period in the postseason. 

San Jose spent nearly the entire third period trying to net the equalizer, but Binnington held his ground in the crease. Ultimately, though, Couture evened the score with one minute remaining in regulation while the Sharks had an extra attacker:

That gave Couture an NHL-high 14 goals and 20 points this postseason, while no other player has reached double digits. 

Couture has five goals through the first three games against St. Louis. Wednesday was the first time he failed to record a multigoal game in the series.

Riding the momentum from the end of the third, San Jose wasted little time in finishing off the come-from-behind victory. 

Five minutes into overtime, Karlsson ended the contest, though it did not come without controversy. It appeared as though Sharks forward Timo Meier assisted the game-winning goal with a hand pass, but none of the officials on the ice saw it.

The Blues attempted to plead their case to the referees, but it was to no avail. Unfortunately for them, the play was not reviewable.

With the victory, San Jose has recaptured home-ice advantage after losing Game 2 on Monday.

What’s Next

St. Louis will have the opportunity to even the series at two games apiece on Friday, with Game 4 being played at Enterprise Center at 8 p.m. ET.

Erik Karlsson‘s controversial overtime goal helped the San Jose Sharks pull out a 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Blues in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final on Wednesday night, giving San Jose a 2-1 series lead.

Karlsson and Joe Thornton each had two goals for the Sharks, who used Logan Couture’s late third-period score to force overtime. Martin Jones had 28 saves on the night. 

David Perron scored twice as the Blues netted all four of their goals in the second. Jordan Binnington made 27 saves in a losing effort for St. Louis.    

It took a while for either team to light the lamp, but once the first goal went in, both goalies had a hard time keeping the puck out of the net.

With less than seven minutes to play in the first, Karlsson opened the scoring with a shot through traffic:

That marked Karlsson’s first goal of the 2018-19 postseason. He had tallied 13 assists through his first 16 appearances.

A few minutes later, Thornton would give the Sharks some breathing room:

With that goal, San Jose took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission, but the action was just getting started.

St. Louis got on the board only 78 seconds into the middle period to cut the lead in half:

Less than 20 seconds later, the Sharks had an answer thanks to their captain:

Per NHL Public Relations, Thornton (39 years, 317 days) became the oldest player in NHL history to record his first career multigoal playoff game.

The Blues did not back down, however. Roughly two-and-a-half minutes after Thornton’s second goal of the night, Vladimir Tarasenko brought the margin back down to one by beating the defense and slipping one past Jones:

Just like that, the two teams had scored five goals in approximately 11 minutes of game time.

The scoring barrage eventually slowed down, as San Jose clung to a one-goal lead for the majority of the second. However, Perron eventually powered his team to the lead:

After being held scoreless through the opening 20 minutes, St. Louis managed to beat Jones four times in the second. According to NHL Public Relations, it was the first time since the 2000 conference quarterfinals that the Blues had scored four goals in a single period in the postseason. 

San Jose spent nearly the entire third period trying to net the equalizer, but Binnington held his ground in the crease. Ultimately, though, Couture evened the score with one minute remaining in regulation while the Sharks had an extra attacker:

That gave Couture an NHL-high 14 goals and 20 points this postseason, while no other player has reached double digits. 

Couture has five goals through the first three games against St. Louis. Wednesday was the first time he failed to record a multigoal game in the series.

Riding the momentum from the end of the third, San Jose wasted little time in finishing off the come-from-behind victory. 

Five minutes into overtime, Karlsson ended the contest, though it did not come without controversy. It appeared as though Sharks forward Timo Meier assisted the game-winning goal with a hand pass, but none of the officials on the ice saw it.

The Blues attempted to plead their case to the referees, but it was to no avail. Unfortunately for them, the play was not reviewable.

With the victory, San Jose has recaptured home-ice advantage after losing Game 2 on Monday.

What’s Next

St. Louis will have the opportunity to even the series at two games apiece on Friday, with Game 4 being played at Enterprise Center at 8 p.m. ET.

Brook Lopez scored a team-high 29 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 24 points, 14 rebounds and six assists as the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks beat the No. 2 Toronto Raptors 108-100 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Wednesday.

Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points for the visiting Raptors, who trail the Bucks 1-0 in the best-of-seven series. Kyle Lowry posted 30 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including 7-of-9 from three-point range.

The Raptors led by 13 points in the first quarter and held an 83-76 edge heading into the fourth. However, the Bucks outscored Toronto 32-17 in the final 12 minutes thanks in part to 13 Lopez points.

Toronto led 100-98 with 3:31 left, but the Bucks went on a 10-0 game-ending run. The Raptors missed eight straight shots during that stretch.

Brogdon Is Bucks’ Key To Making NBA Finals

Malcolm Brogdon is only two games into his return after he missed nearly two months with a minor plantar fascia tear in his right foot, but he’s been fantastic in limited action.

The ex-Virginia star scored 10 points in 17 minutes to close out the Bucks’ second-round playoff series against the Boston Celtics, and he followed that up with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting against the Raptors in Game 1, finishing a team-high plus-18.

He didn’t take long to make an impact Wednesday, per Kevin Pelton of ESPN:

ESPN’s Tim Bontemps noted how good the Bucks looked with him on the court:

Brogdon came through for Milwaukee after Toronto surged out to an early lead in the first quarter. Of note, he nailed a three-pointer to cut the Bucks’ deficit to 30-21 late in the frame:

Milwaukee needed his second-quarter scoring output as well. His eight points during that frame helped keep the Bucks within eight heading into halftime.

Brogdon hit three of six three-pointers on a night where his team largely struggled from beyond the arc. Scott Grodsky of CBS 58 pointed to the differential after three quarters:

Milwaukee got hot in the fourth en route to a series-opening win, but the Bucks wouldn’t have been in position for the comeback sans the President’s efforts.

Brogdon will need more nights like that for Milwaukee to make its first NBA Finals in 45 years, but he’s capable of doing so. He finished second on the team in true-shooting percentage, third in win shares per 48 minutes, third in player efficiency rating and third in offensive box plus-minus, per Basketball Reference.

He’s one of the most valuable players on the team and came back to the lineup right on time. If his Game 1 performance is symbolic of what to expect from him in this series, the Bucks will be difficult to beat.

What’s Next?

Milwaukee will host Toronto for Game 2 on Friday at 8:30 p.m. ET. TNT will televise the game.

This article will be updated to provide more information soon.

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Dak Prescott may as well be playing Tina Turner’s “Don’t Rush the Good Things” on a loop while negotiating his new contract with the Dallas Cowboys.

“I want to be a Cowboy forever,” the quarterback told reporters Wednesday. “I think the people doing the deal feel the same way, so to me it’s no rush. I know it will get done.”

Prescott is entering the final year on his four-year rookie contract, and he has every reason to believe that the franchise wants to lock him in long-term, as Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has reiterated his commitment to his 2016 fourth-round pick countless times publicly.

“When I say man, he’s our future,” Jones said in November, per Clarence Hill Jr. of the Star-Telegram (h/t SportsDay). “I don’t know how we could ask for more, to have this opportunity for him to progress the way he has. If someone walked in here right now and looked like they were going to get the No. 1 pick in the draft and said we’ll give you two picks for Dak, I wouldn’t even consider it. No.”

Earlier this month, Jones doubled down when speaking to Hall of Fame Cowboys legend Michael Irvin on The Rich Eisen Show:

A day after Jones’ conversation with Irvin, NFL Network’s Jane Slater reported that team sources relayed to her a deal between the two sides couldn’t be described as close. She added that the Cowboys presented Prescott’s agent with their initial offer and were waiting for a counter.

The Cowboys ideally will want to keep Prescott alongside running back Ezekiel Elliott and receiver Amari Cooper, both of whom are also seeking new contracts. Dallas’ chief operating officer and executive vice president Stephen Jones spoke to the Dallas Morning News (h/t Joel Corry of CBSSports.com) about how all three could fit in the franchise’s long-term plans:

“If we can talk them into not maxing out, doing well, but not maxed out, that allows us to have other good football players around them. And we all know what happens, you look at the TV booths and look at what these players do off the field. If we can put Super Bowl rings on these guys, they’ll be legends around this area for many, many, many years to come.

“What they may give up a little bit in their contract, they should be able to invest in being a Cowboy and making our teams better.”

Giving up guaranteed money for the prospect of potentially, maybe winning rings and becoming Cowboys legends will be a hard sell, but Corry outlined how the Cowboys could realistically keep all three in the Big D.

For now, Prescott is so unbothered by his contract negotiations that he smashed a home run at a local charity event Wednesday night to raise $2,000.

The 25-year-old two-time Pro Bowler has compiled a solid resume to rest on in three NFL seasons, starting every game. Prescott exceeded all fourth-round expectations his rookie season with 23 touchdowns opposed to just four interceptions as the Cowboys went 13-3 to win the NFC East and land the top seed in the NFC.

While he suffered a sophomore slump—22 touchdowns, 13 picks on 62.9 completion percentage—in 2017, Prescott resembled his rookie self last season, as he led the Cowboys to the divisional round with 3,885 yards, 22 touchdowns and eight interceptions on 67.7 completion percentage.