Russell Westbrook produced his third consecutive triple-double but it was not enough to inspire the Washington Wizards to victory as they went down 114-104 to the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday.

Westbrook, who made NBA history with 35 points, 14 rebounds and 21 assists on Monday, was outstanding again with Bradley Beal out for the Wizards with 22 points, 15 rebounds and 14 assists.

However, despite LaMelo Ball's absence, the Hornets got the edge after a strong first half which left the Wizards playing catch-up.

Gordon Hayward stepped up for Charlotte with 15 first-quarter points, to finish with 26 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, while Terry Rozier (27 points) was clutch at the business end.

76ers and Clippers downed

Eastern Conference leaders Philadelphia 76ers lost their second straight game as they were humbled 104-95 by the Denver Nuggets.

The 76ers are starting to feel the effects of missing Joel Embiid with a knee injury, as MVP candidate Nikola Jokic scored 21 points and had 10 rebounds for Denver.

Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr had 27 points, 12 rebounds and four assists while Jamal Murray scored 30 points.

The Phoenix Suns moved into second in the Western Conference with a 32-14 record after a 117-110 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Dario Saric scored 20 points off the bench for the Suns, while Deandre Ayton had 14 rebounds along with his 13 points.

The Los Angeles Clippers let slip a three-quarter-time lead to lose 103-96 to the lowly Orlando Magic.

Clippers collapse

The Clippers actually led 51-37 at half-time and by as many as 16 points against the Magic before an awful second-half showing as they were outscored 66-45.

Air Russ

There is lots of love for Westbrook right now and he produced a nice play, driving past two into the key and slamming over Hornets center Bismack Biyombo.

Top seed Daniil Medvedev powered his way into the Miami Open quarter-finals, along with Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev on Tuesday.

Medvedev won in straight sets against unseeded American Frances Tiafoe, hitting 24 winners.

Second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas won in straight sets against 24th seed Lorenzo Sonego, although the second went to a tie-break which the Greek dominated.

World number eight Andrey Rublev got past Marin Cilic in straight sets to book his last-eight spot.

Fifth seed Diego Schwartzman was the major casualty on Tuesday, losing to unseeded American Sebastian Korda in three sets. Seeds Josh Isner, Milos Raonic and Taylor Fritz also exited.

TOP SEED EASES INTO LAST EIGHT

World number two Medvedev was too good for Tiafoe in a 6-4 6-3 victory.

Medvedev improved his 2021 record to 17-2, sending down 11 aces with a dominant first-serve display while taking three of his four break points.

The 2021 Australian Open runner-up will meet seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut in his maiden Miami Open quarter-finals appearance.

"It was definitely a tough match," the Russian said in his post-match on-court interview. "I am just looking forward to tomorrow. Roberto is a hell of a player.

"I feel like sometimes, when I have practised with him and played against him, that his ranking should be higher. There are reasons why it is not and I am going to try to do something with it tomorrow."

STEFANOS SIZZLES PAST SONEGO

Tsitsipas kept up his good form after making last month's Australian Open semi-finals, by booking his first Miami Open quarter-final appearance.

The Greek world number five defeated Sonego 6-2 7-6 (7-2) with a clinical performance to keep alive his dream of a maiden ATP Masters title.

Tsitsipas won in just over an hour and a half, proving too good on serve, having not offered up one break point and winning 89 per cent of first-serve points.

He was also too good with his return for the Italian, winning 35 per cent of the points on Sonego's serve.

The Greek will take on Polish 26th seed Hubert Hurkacz in the last eight, after he knocked out 12th seed Raonic 4-6 6-3 7-6 (7-4).

FIFTH SEED TOPPLED BY KORDA

World number nine Schwartzman was knocked out in three sets by Korda 6-3 4-6 7-5 as he continues his super run.

Florida resident Korda, 20, reached his maiden ATP 1000 quarter-final, showing fight after the Argentinian raised his game in the second set, winning after an early break in the last.

Rublev made light work of former US Open champion Marin Cilic, triumphing 6-4 6-4.

Bautista Agut got past 18th seed Isner 6-3 4-6 7-6 (9-7), while Jannik Sinner defeated Alexander Zverev's conqueror Emil Ruusuvuori 6-3 6-2.

Alexander Bublik, seeded 32nd, sent down 23 aces as he beat Taylor Fritz 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4.

Spain coach Luis Enrique has defended his rotation policy following their slow start to 2022 World Cup qualifying.

La Roja needed a 92nd-minute Dani Olmo strike to edge Georgia 2-1 following their opening 1-1 home draw with Greece, with Luis Enrique rotating his starting XI for both matches.

The situation led to criticism of Luis Enrique, who pointed out only months ago Spain defeated Germany 6-0 in the Nations League.

Spain take on Kosovo on Wednesday and Luis Enrique insisted his approach would not change.

"Why don't we have a first-choice starting XI? Well, that's right. I have to make my decisions," Enrique said.

"What I am not going to do as the national team manager is – and if people don't agree I don't care – to make my decision according to what Pepe, Manolo or Lucas want.

"I'm a professional coach with an extensive CV that proves what I achieved as a football manager, so that is why the Spanish FA hired me.

"I won't change my way of doing things. I have a 24-player squad right now and any of them could play tomorrow, which is much better than having just 11 key players."

The former Barcelona coach added that there were benefits to giving his players more experience in the starting line-up with a view to this year's European Championship.

"In that case, if three players suddenly get injured, then I would have to use some players at the Euros who would be lacking in confidence," he said.

"I don't believe in doing that. I had a successful career, so why should I change now? I respect every opinion but I am the manager and my experience proves that.

"And in the Euros that is how I will do it, it's the same for the World Cup when my contract will expire."

The former Spain international added he respected Kosovo and their style ahead of Wednesday's game in Seville.

"I have watched them in some games where they press high up the field intensely, a daring and brave side that try to play the ball from the back," Luis Enrique said.

"I like their team, given that they take risks. They will make it hard for us in some stages of the game. They have good attacking players with a good striker and then [Valon] Berisha and some other good creative midfielders."

Ash Barty's grip on the world number one ranking remains for now after winning in three sets against seventh seed Aryna Sabalenka in the Miami Open quarter-finals on Tuesday.

The 2019 Miami Open champion defeated Sabalenka 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 in humid conditions in South Florida to reach the last four, where the Australian will face fifth seed Elina Svitolina.

Svitolina won in the later match on Tuesday over Latvia's Anastasija Sevastova 6-3 6-2.

Barty, the 2019 French Open champion, did not drop her serve once against the Belarusian, saving seven break points throughout the match as she bids to retain her top ranking.

Barty is under threat from 2021 Australian Open winner Naomi Osaka for the number one ranking, with the Japanese also into the quarters.

The Australian will retain the top ranking by reaching the decider, regardless of second seed Osaka's results.

"It was a brilliant match today," Barty said in her on-court interview. "It was certainly the best level I’ve played for a long time and especially over a sustained period.

"Aryna really made me bring out my best stuff today. She’s an exceptional competitor."

Barty has now won 10 consecutive matches in Miami, dating back to her 2019 title with 2020's event cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ukraine's Svitolina, ranked fifth in the world, reached the Miami Open semi-finals for the first time with her win over the unseeded Sevastova.

"I've always wanted to play well here in Miami," said Svitolina, who made last year's French Open quarter-finals.

"It's one of the biggest tournaments and playing here is always amazing, so I'm really pleased with the performance tonight."

Belgium coach Roberto Martinez says he would like to see squad size limits expanded for Euro 2020 due to the COVID-19 situation.

Martinez revealed after Belgium's 8-0 2022 World Cup qualifying win over Belarus on Tuesday that the idea had been discussed among coaches including England's Gareth Southgate and Italy's Roberto Mancini.

Mancini flagged the idea of expanding squad sizes from 23 to 26 in the media on Monday, while Martinez noted the Royal Belgian Football Association (KBVB) was pushing for a change.

"I support the Royal Belgian Football Association completely in the idea of increasing the squad numbers," Martinez said.

"I think it's something that's needed. It would match the changes that've been made in the current situation in world football, with the five substitutions, the uncertainty of the pandemic attack and the extra level of injuries, I think it would be a good thing to do."

The Euros are set to be played across 12 cities in a dozen European countries, with Belgium's group playing in Copenhagen and St Petersburg, adding unique logistical challenges to the event.

Mancini and Martinez have argued that the congested recent football schedule and subsequent increase in injuries means the change made sense.

"I think we've got a bigger picture now international football is not what it used to be," Martinez said.

"They only had one big tournament around the corner. Now the Euros were delayed, in the next 18 months we're going to be participating in the qualifiers for the World Cup. You've got the World Cup at the end of it and you've got the Nations League final.

"There's many, many players who'll be needed over the next 18 months and everything is a process."

Belgium, who made the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, are among the favourites to lift the European title and Martinez said he was narrowing in on his final squad for the tournament.

"The information of this camp will be essential for the final list for the Euros," the former Everton and Swansea City boss said. "Everything is taken into consideration.

"When you go to tournament football, it's very, very different. We think that tournament football, you've got two tournaments in one tournament. First you've got the group phase, the three games, and then the knockout.

"We need to have players for both tournaments. It's a mixture. I'm willing to do it like we did in the World Cup 2018, making sure we take every individual to fit a good balance in the squad and pick the best members for the best squad possible."

Wednesday's meeting between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Milwaukee Bucks should be one of the most mouth-watering contests of the NBA season.

But the allure of the matchup has been lost somewhat – the Lakers still without LeBron James because of an ankle injury and Anthony Davis due to a calf/Achilles issue that has kept him on the sideline since February.

As such, the Bucks, three games back of the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers, will be the favourites against a Lakers team that stands as the fourth seed in the West.

However, the Lakers have shown fight in ending a four-game losing skid with back-to-back victories and recently added a two-time All-Star center to their roster.

Here, with the help of Stats Perform data, we look at the performers and the battles that will decide this marquee game.

TOP PERFORMERS

Milwaukee Bucks - Giannis Antetokounmpo

The back-to-back MVP returned to something approaching his best in the Bucks' defeat to the Los Angeles Clippers last time out.

Coming off a nagging knee injury, Antetokounmpo dropped 32 points for Milwaukee, going 10 for 21 from the field and two of five from the three-point line.

It was his first 30-point game since the win over the Philadelphia 76ers on March 17 and served as an ominous warning to the under-strength Lakers.

Los Angeles Lakers - Montrezl Harrell

Averaging 15.2 points for the season, Harrell has stepped it up in the absence of Davis and James.

He has put up 19.5 points per game across March. James (25) is the only Laker with a better average in that regard.

The former Clippers big man has produced seven 20-point games this month and may need an eighth to propel the Lakers to another victory without their two stars.

KEY BATTLE - CAN DRUMMOND BOOST LAKERS ON BOARDS

After reaching a buyout agreement with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Drummond signed with the Lakers with an eye on helping them retain the title by any means necessary.

"For me, I'm just here to help in any capacity," Drummond said on Monday. "I'm not here to do anything besides win."

"I'm just here to help in whatever capacity it may be. I'm not here to steal nobody's shine."

The center will primarily be asked to help the Lakers on the boards. Without LeBron and Davis, their rebounding has declined this month.

For the season, they are ninth in the NBA in rebounds per game with 45.2, but that number has tailed off to 43.5 in March, tied for 17th.

Frank Vogel has confirmed Drummond will start against Milwaukee, with the Lakers surely looking for the four-time rebounding leader to help them compete on the glass against a Bucks team second in the league with 48.2 rebounds per game.

HEAD TO HEAD

Having previously won six straight against the Lakers, the Bucks head into this potential Finals preview out to avoid a third consecutive defeat to Los Angeles, having come undone at the hands of James in their 113-106 loss back in January.

Joao Felix is not expected to be a combative player for Portugal, but Fernando Santos suggested the Atletico Madrid star must do more to stand out.

Portugal came from behind to beat Luxembourg 3-1 on Tuesday, moving top of World Cup qualifying Group A in the process.

Gerson Rodrigues scored his second goal in as many games to put Luxembourg ahead, but Diogo Jota, Cristiano Ronaldo and substitute Joao Palhinha sealed the points for Portugal.

Jota's equaliser – a header from inside the six-yard box – was teed up by the Liverpool forward's former Wolves team-mate Pedro Neto, who replaced Joao Felix in the 41st minute.

Making his first start of the qualifying campaign, Joao Felix appeared to be struggling with an injury to his right ankle, seemingly sustained when he had a shot blocked in Luxembourg's box.

It was the youngster's only attempt, while he also failed to create a chance and completed just 18 of 25 attempted passes.

Neto, on the other hand, ended the match with two assists, for Jota and Palhinha respectively, and it was a performance that drew the praise of Santos, who hinted that it is difficult to fit Joao Felix into a certain role in his team.

"Neto had different movement, another dynamic, he looked for depth, he went looking for the ball," Santos told reporters.

"He always participated in defensive actions. Joao always had more difficulty. He has his own way of playing, he is not a combative player, we are not expecting that either.

"He has a lot of technical quality, he has the quality to make a difference, but we all have to be together so that these things can work."

It is an issue that has also stymied Joao Felix's Atleti career to date, with the 21-year-old delivering some quality displays at the start of the campaign, but scoring just twice in LaLiga since the turn of the year.

Ronaldo's goal was his 103rd for Portugal, taking the 36-year-old to within six strikes of Iran legend Ali Daei's record, while he has also scored in every calendar year since making his international debut in 2004.

The Juventus star squandered two gilt-edged chances to double his tally at 2-1, in what was a rather laboured performance from the reigning European champions, and Santos acknowledged he has to strike a balance between playing to the strengths of the attacking talent he has available, while also remaining organised.

"Technical quality alone doesn't win here, if we don't balance these important factors," he added. 

"It's not that the players don't want to. We had difficulties. But then there was an instant reaction, we scored in an important moment.

"The second half was [better]. The goals appeared and we could have scored more. We had opportunities."

Spain and Italy have joined fellow heavyweights Netherlands and Germany in the European Under-21 Championship quarter-finals.

All four sides picked up the results they required in Tuesday's final round of fixtures in Groups A and B to advance through to the knockout stages later this year.

Germany were pushed all the way by Romania in one of the early kick-offs, a goalless draw in Budapest enough to send the 2019 runners-up through on goal difference at Romania's expense.

Romania, now unbeaten in their last seven group matches in the competition, hit the post through Alexandru Matan in the first half and had a shot blocked on the line.

But a point apiece was just about the right outcome in the end as Amos Pieper was also denied by the frame of the goal in the second half and Lukas Nmecha missed a penalty.

The Netherlands had far less trouble seeing off tournament joint-hosts Hungary as they ran out 6-1 winners at MOL Arena Sosto to pip Germany to top spot in Group A by virtue of a superior head-to-head record.

Dani de Wit opened the scoring three minutes before half-time and Cody Gakpo, who set up that goal, scored two of the Netherlands' five second-half goals

Myron Boadu was also on target from the penalty spot for the Netherlands, before Sven Botman and substitute Brian Brobbey got in on the act late on, rendering Bendeguz Bolla's own spot-kick little more than a consolation. 

Holders Spain had a couple of second-half Dani Gomez goals to thank for their 2-0 win over the Czech Republic, who required a victory in Celje to keep their tournament participation alive.

The Levante forward was brought on with 65 minutes played and did not take long to do what his team-mates could not in breaking down a stubborn Czech side after being teed up by Ander Barrenetxea.

Gomez volleyed in a second nine minutes later and that proved enough to seal first place in Group B, despite an emphatic 4-0 win for Italy in their meeting with Slovenia at Stadion Ljudski vrt.

Record five-time winners Italy were two goals ahead inside 19 minutes via clinical finishes from Giulio Maggiore and Giacomo Raspadori, which Patrick Cutrone added to from the penalty spot six minutes later.

Cutrone missed a second spot-kick on the verge of half-time, though it ultimately mattered little as he bagged an impressive second five minutes into the second period.

The only negative for Italy was substitute Riccardo Marchizza's late dismissal after receiving two yellow cards - the centre-back's second sending-off in this year's tournament.

Spain, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands will discover their quarter-final opponents on Wednesday when the final round of group fixtures take place, with the knockout stages to begin in late May.

Frank de Boer hit out at Gibraltar for perceived histrionics that he felt amounted to "anti-football" during Netherlands' 7-0 win on Tuesday.

The Oranje crushed their hosts in World Cup qualifying Group G, scoring six times in the second half as the Dutch took full advantage of their superiority – Gibraltar did not have a single shot.

Steven Berghuis, Luuk de Jong, Georginio Wijnaldum, Donyell Malen, Donny van de Beek and a Memphis Depay brace did the damage for the away side, who were challenged by De Boer to net at least five.

The former Ajax boss had been frustrated by his team's profligacy in the 2-0 win over Latvia at the weekend and made the curious decision to publicly set a goals target.

While he was largely pleased with the manner of the win, he took aim at Gibraltar for their conduct during the match.

"I am very satisfied with the seven goals, but it is really almost anti-football," he told NOS.

"All the players going down after a single touch, while every time the whole bench went crazy, complaining to the referee.

"The goalkeeper was taking a minute for a goal-kick… I got tired of it. I'm glad the game is behind us."

It was then relayed to De Boer that Latvia had held Turkey to a 3-3 draw in Istanbul, to which he replied with a hint of smugness following the criticism that came the Netherlands' away after Saturday's performance.

"We did well against Latvia then," he said with a wink.

But it was not all rosy for the Oranje, as they lost Daley Blind to injury early in the second half, the Ajax centre-back falling awkwardly as he bailed out Matthijs de Ligt and collided with Tjay de Barr.

While De Boer did allay fears of a nasty knee injury, as it initially appeared, it remains unclear how severe the issue is.

"I don't know how serious it is, but it wasn't his knee. He fell on his ankle," De Boer said.

Asked if Blind had gone to hospital, the coach added: "No, he's here, lying on the massage table. We wait and see – if it is serious, it will throw a dark cloud over this evening."

Victory moved Netherlands up to second in the group with six points from three games, one point adrift of leaders Turkey, who beat the Oranje 4-2 last week.

Cristiano Ronaldo edged closer to Ali Daei's international goals record as he opened his account for the World Cup qualifying campaign in Portugal's 3-1 comeback win over Luxembourg.

Ronaldo had a last-gasp winner disallowed against Serbia on Saturday, but the Juventus star had no need to throw his captain's armband to the floor in anger this time around, nudging home to make it 2-1 to Portugal five minutes into the second half.

Fresh from his goal in Luxembourg's victory over the Republic of Ireland, Gerson Rodrigues had put the minnows – who had Maxime Chanot sent off late on – ahead with a smart header.

Diogo Jota levelled proceedings on the cusp of half-time to pave the way for Ronaldo's 103rd international goal and Joao Palhinha's header to send Portugal top of Group A.

Leandro Trossard and Hans Vanaken scored twice as Belgium eased past Belarus 8-0 to move to the top of their World Cup 2022 qualifying group in style.

Belgium fell behind in their first two Group E games - a 3-1 win comeback win over Wales and 1-1 draw with Czech Republic - but were four goals ahead at half-time on Tuesday.

Michy Batshuayi opened the scoring for Belgium after 14 minutes at Den Dreef in Leuven in the absence of the rested Romelu Lukaku and Vanaken added a quickfire second for the home side.

Trossard and Jeremy Doku were also on the scoresheet before half-time and further strikes followed after the interval from Dennis Praet and Christian Benteke, before Trossard and Vanaken completed the rout - Belarus' heaviest-ever loss.

Batshuayi failed to beat Aleksandr Gutor from close range early on but he made amends by picking out the roof of the net from a tight angle from the next chance that fell his way.

Vanaken doubled Belgium's lead three minutes later with a thumping volley from six yards and Trossard sent a glorious third into the top-left corner from long range.

Martinez's men were home and dry before the interval as Doku beat Gutor with a well-taken strike after being played in by Praet.

Praet went from provider to goalscorer four minutes into the second half with a precise drive from outside the box to join Vanaken and Trossard in scoring his first senior international goal.

Belgium squandered some presentable opportunities before Benteke guided Toby Alderweireld's cross into the bottom-right corner with a crisp first-time finish for a sixth goal. 

Vanaken was somehow denied his second by a Gutor save on the line, but he would go on to round off the scoring late on after Trossard had doubled his own tally with a shot through the legs of the Belarus goalkeeper.

Netherlands had little difficulty seeing off Gibraltar in Tuesday's World Cup qualifier as their crushing 7-0 victory saw them meet coach Frank de Boer's pre-match expectations.

The Oranje were subject to criticism despite beating Latvia 2-0 in Saturday's meeting, with De Boer demanding a more clinical performance in Gibraltar, and that was exactly what he got.

Just as Latvia goalkeeper Roberts Ozols impressed at the weekend, Dayle Coleing proved a worthy adversary between the posts for Gibraltar until his goal was eventually breached just before half-time – Steven Berghuis netting in successive games for his country.

Luuk de Jong made it 2-0 with a well-taken finish early in the second half and the floodgates opened, with Memphis Depay, Georginio Wijnaldum and Donyell Malen all scoring in the following nine minutes.

Although a lull followed, Donny van de Beek and Depay added further gloss late on as the Dutch strolled to victory.

Unsurprisingly the Oranje were in control right from the start but their attempts to make an early breakthrough were unsuccessful as Coleing rose to the occasion.

The Gibraltar goalkeeper then watched gratefully as Denzel Dumfries headed wide in the 25th minute, before scooping away Davy Klaassen's close-range effort in unorthodox fashion as the hosts looked set to hold out until the break.

But Netherlands finally found a way through a minute later, Berghuis producing an emphatic finish into the top-left corner after the ball broke kindly for him in the crowded penalty area.

De Boer lost Daley Blind to injury early in the second half, though it had little impact on the dominant visitors and De Jong made it 2-0 less than 60 seconds later, steering in from Berghuis' delivery.

Depay's free-kick took a wicked deflection en route to the bottom-right corner for the Dutch's third in the 61st minute, and that was soon followed by Wijnaldum slamming in from 10 yards after Coleing parried the Liverpool man's header straight back to him.

Malen, brought on for Blind, got in on the act with a simple finish from Klaassen's squared pass.

Although the tempo dropped significantly after their fifth goal, Netherlands did add the extras in the final 10 minutes – Van de Beek took advantage of a kind bounce before converting from close range, before Depay turned in Owen Wijndal's drilled cross.