Clint Capela has 23 as Rockets rest stars in 132-101 rout of Grizzlies

HOUSTON (AP) — Clint Capela had a season-high 23 points with 13 rebounds on Sunday night as Houston’s stars sat out in a 132-101 rout of the injury-plagued Memphis Grizzlies to end the regular season.

The Rockets went 4-0 against the Grizzlies this season for their first season sweep against them since 2009-10.

The Rockets played without starters Kevin Durant, Amen Thompson, Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr. with the fifth seed in the Western Conference playoffs secured. They'll face the fourth-seeded Lakers in the first round.

Tari Eason, Reed Sheppard and Josh Okogie, who have all started at times this season, were in the starting lineup Sunday and played through the third quarter.

Sheppard had 19 points Sunday and is the only Rocket to play all 82 games this season. Eason added 20 points with eight assists and Jae’Sean Tate had 13 points.

Dariq Whitehead led Memphis with a career-high 26 points and Rayan Rupert added 21 as the Grizzlies capped a disappointing 25-57 season. The Grizzlies dressed just eight players and started Toby Okani and Whitehead, who both signed 10-day contracts on April 3.

Capela, a center in his 12th NBA season, made the first 3-pointer of his career early in the fourth quarter after missing the first seven attempts of his career, including his first try Sunday night. Capela raised his arms in celebration after hitting the shot and Houston’s bench stood and cheered.

Forty-year-old Taj Gibson had four points in 19 minutes for the Grizzlies and 39-year-old Jeff Green scored six points in 24 minutes for Houston. They are two of seven players 39 or older to have appeared in a game this season and Sunday was the 30th time they’ve faced each other in the regular season with the first meeting coming in 2010.

The Rockets will begin the playoffs next weekend at the LA Lakers.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Memphis Grizzlies guard Jahmai Mashack (21) looks to shoot while under pressure from Houston Rockets forward Jeff Green, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)

Houston Rockets center Clint Capela, left, knocks the ball away from Memphis Grizzlies forward Taj Gibson (67) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)

Memphis Grizzlies guard Rayan Rupert, center with ball, battles to keep a rebound between Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason, guard JD Davison, left, and forward Dorian Finney-Smith, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)

Memphis Grizzlies forward Dariq Whitehead (00) lays up a shot between Houston Rockets center Clint Capela, left, and guard Reed Sheppard (15) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)

Houston Rockets center Clint Capela (30) and guard Josh Okogie (20) battle for a rebound with Memphis Grizzlies forward Dariq Whitehead, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump delivered an extraordinary broadside against Pope Leo XIV on Sunday night, saying he didn't think the U.S.-born global leader of the Catholic Church is “doing a very good job” and that “he's a very liberal person," while also suggesting the pontiff should “stop catering to the Radical Left.”

Flying back to Washington from Florida, Trump used a lengthy social media post to sharply criticize Leo, then kept it up after deplaning, in comments on the tarmac to reporters.

“I’m not a fan of Pope Leo,” he said.

Trump's comments came after Leo suggested over the weekend that a “delusion of omnipotence” is fueling the U.S.-Israel war in Iran. While it’s not unusual for popes and presidents to be at cross purposes, it’s exceedingly rare for the pope to directly criticize a U.S. leader — and Trump’s stinging response is equally uncommon, if not more so.

“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” the president wrote in his post, adding, “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon."

He repeated that sentiment in comments to reporters, saying, “We don’t like a pope who says it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon.”

Later, Trump posted a picture suggesting he had saint-like powers akin to those of Jesus Christ. Wearing a biblical-style robe, Trump is seen laying hands on a bedridden man as light emanates from his fingers, while a soldier, a nurse, a praying woman and a bearded man in a baseball cap all look on admiringly. The sky above is filled with eagles, an American flag and vaporous images.

All of that came after Leo presided over an evening prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica on Saturday, the same day the United States and Iran began face-to-face negotiations in Pakistan during a fragile ceasefire. The pope didn’t mention the United States or Trump by name, but his tone and message appeared directed at Trump and U.S. officials, who have boasted of U.S. military superiority and justified the war in religious terms.

Leo — who is scheduled to leave Monday for an 11-day trip to Africa — has previously said that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.” He's also referenced an Old Testament passage from Isaiah, saying that “even though you make many prayers, I will not listen — your hands are full of blood.”

Before the ceasefire, when Trump warned of mass strikes against Iranian power plants and other infrastructure and that “an entire civilization will die tonight,” Leo described such sentiments as “truly unacceptable.”

In his social media post on Sunday night, however, Trump went far beyond the war in Iran in criticizing Leo.

The president wrote, “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a Country that was sending massive amounts of Drugs into the United States.” That was a reference to the Trump administration having ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January.

“I don’t want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do,” Trump added, referencing his 2024 election victory.

He also suggested in the post that Leo only got his position “because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump.”

“If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” Trump wrote, adding, “Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician. It’s hurting him very badly and, more importantly, it’s hurting the Catholic Church!”

In his subsequent comments to reporters, Trump remained highly critical, saying of Leo, “I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. He likes crime I guess” and adding, “He’s a very liberal person.”

In the 2024 election, Trump won 55% of Catholic voters, according to AP VoteCast, an extensive survey of the electorate. But Trump's administration also has close ties to conservative evangelical Protestant leaders and has claimed heavenly endorsement for the war on Iran.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth urged Americans to pray for victory “in the name of Jesus Christ.” And, when Trump was asked whether he thought God approved of the war, he said, “I do, because God is good — because God is good and God wants to see people taken care of.”

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, April 12, 2026, after he returned from Miami. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Pope Leo XIV delivers the Regina Coeli prayer in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, April 12, 2026, after he returned from Miami. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)