Brazil legend Pele said Friday that outrage at the throwing of a banana toward compatriot and Barcelona defender Dani Alves was a social media storm in a tea cup.

Alves ate the fruit thrown on the pitch near him during a match at Villarreal and the host club banned the culprit who lobbed it for life, while the “twittersphere” buzzed with acclaim for the player's cool reaction.

Manchester United interim manager Ryan Giggs admits Louis van Gaal has the right credentials to take charge at any of the world's top clubs.

Van Gaal is widely expected to be appointed as United's new permanent boss before the end of the season despite strong support for Giggs from the team's fans and players.

U.S. sprint star Tyson Gay has received a one-year doping ban from the U.S. Anti-Doping Association (USADA) and returned his 2012 London Olympics silver medal to the U.S. Olympic Committee.

USADA announced Friday that the 31-year-old American track star tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid in two random out-of-competition tests and one event doping test in urine samples taken last year by both USADA and the world governing body IAAF.

The Toronto Raptors held off the charging Brooklyn Nets, hanging on for a 115-113 victory on Wednesday to move one win away from advancing in the NBA playoffs.

The Raptors squandered a 26-point lead, but escaped with a victory that gave them a 3-2 edge in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference first-round series.

Mike D'Antoni resigned Wednesday as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers after one of the worst seasons in the NBA club's history.

The Lakers announced D'Antoni's resignation less than 18 months after they brought him in to take the place of Mike Brown early in the 2012-13 campaign.

Marc Marquez eyes a fourth win in four races this season in Spain on Sunday but faces a Yamaha challenge from Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo who have eight elite class MotoGP wins between them at Jerez.

World champion Marquez, lining up for his 100th race in all categories, has swept all three grands prix so far at Qatar, the United States and Argentina.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was left to rue the performance of the club's own goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois after their Champions League semifinal elimination by Atletico Madrid.

Belgian international Courtois, 21, has been on loan at Atletico from Chelsea since 2011 and he produced a save in Wednesday's second leg at Stamford Bridge that Mourinho identified as the key moment in the tie.

A jubilant Real Madrid celebrated the opportunity to play for "La Decima" on Wednesday after coach Carlo Ancelotti quenched an obsessive 12-year wait to reach the Champions League final.

Madrid sailed there for the first time since 2002 thanks to Tuesday's 4-0 win at titleholder Bayern Munich for a 5-0 aggregate semifinal victory.

Spanish police arrested the man who racially insulted Barcelona defender Dani Alves by throwing a banana at him, with reports on Wednesday claiming the perpetrator worked for Villarreal.

Police confirmed 26-year-old David Campayo Lleo was arrested, with Spanish media reporting he was fired from his role on the coaching staff of one of the club's youth teams.

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling was banned for life by the NBA and handed a big fine as the league handed down a harsh penalty on Tuesday for his racial remarks caught in a recorded conversation.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver then called on other franchise owners to force the 80-year-old Sterling to sell the team and they agreed almost unanimously. If three quarters of the other 29 owners agree, he will be forced to sell the team he has owned since 1981.