Joel Embiid made his closing statement for the MVP award and all but wrapped up the NBA scoring title in the Philadelphia 76ers' 133-120 win over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.
Embiid put up monster numbers of 41 points, 20 rebounds and four assists, while going 14-of-17 from the floor and 11-of-15 from the free-throw line. It was the first time this NBA season that a player scored 40 points or more and had 20 or more rebounds in a game.
The 28-year-old is currently the league's scoring leader, averaging an astounding 30.6 points per game, just ahead of LeBron James' 30.3 and Kevin Durant's 30.1 points per game.
James Harden had 22 points and 14 assists for Philadelphia, who had a healthy spread of scorers with Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey both scoring 18 points, and Danny Green adding 15.
The Sixers remain in the hunt for the Eastern Conference's third seed with the win, moving to the same record as the Boston Celtics at 50-31, while the Milwaukee Bucks are second at 51-30.
A win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday combined with a Boston loss to the Memphis Grizzlies would move the Sixers into the third seed.
Morant makes timely return for Grizzlies
Ja Morant returned to action after a nine-game absence on Saturday night, as the Memphis Grizzlies secured a comfortable 141-114 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans.
Morant finished with 21 points off seven-of-14 shooting, along with nine assists and four rebounds, while Jaren Jackson Jr. contributed a solid 12 points, nine rebounds and four blocks.
The Grizzlies are set to finish second in the Western Conference, to face the winner of the 7-8 matchup in the play-in between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Clippers.
Warriors continue winning run
The Golden State Warriors claimed their fourth consecutive victory despite an off shooting night from Jordan Poole, defeating the San Antonio Spurs on the road 100-94.
With Stephen Curry yet to return from injury and Klay Thompson rested, Poole had to take on more offensive responsibility and went three-of-19 from the floor in win.
A combined 30 points at nine-of-14 shooting off the bench from Jonathan Kuminga and Nemanja Bjelica was able to counteract it, along with 12 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists from Draymond Green.
All-Star guard Ja Morant was content with his return ahead of the playoffs after missing the past three weeks with knee soreness.
Morant had not played since March 18 for the Memphis Grizzlies but returned with 21 points, four rebounds and nine assists in a 141-114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
The 56-25 Grizzlies are locked into the second seed in the Western Conference, with Morant's return coming with the playoffs around the corner.
"[I] felt like I needed a game or two to get my legs back under me," Morant told reporters.
"Get the game-type feel, nothing compares to a game, whether its practice or whatever. Just wanted to be ready to go.
"Obviously been in and out of the line-up, my teammates were playing a lot of basketball without me. I was just going out there to adapt."
Despite his All-Star status, the Grizzlies have a remarkable 20-4 record without Morant this season.
The 22-year-old point guard said it was important he developed synergy with his teammates, likely with two games fielding their preferred starting line-up ahead of the playoffs of Morant, Dillon Brooks, Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr and Steven Adams.
Morant has only played 12 games alongside Brooks this season, while he has had limited opportunities alongside Steven Adams who moved to Memphis from the Pelicans in the off-season.
"One hundred per cent," Morant said about the significance of developing connection among the starting five. "Obviously I've played with Dillon since I've been here and most of the other guys I've played with before, so I know their game.
"Being out there at the same time as Steveo [Adams] to get that chemistry, it's basically the starting line-up I felt like we did a very good job tonight."
Morant continued: "Tonight I felt like we looked damn good. Look at that third quarter [55-33 points]. Obviously there's some stuff we've still got to correct."
The 2019 NBA Draft second pick added that he had no preference on second seed Memphis' playoffs opponents, with the side to face either the Los Angeles Clippers or Minnesota Timberwolves via the play-in tournament.
"I really don’t care who we play," he said. "I'm focused on us getting better and being ready to play. No matter who it is, we go out in the games the same way."
Scottie Scheffler will head into the final round of the Masters with a three-stroke lead from Cameron Smith, after a volatile back nine on Saturday at Augusta National.
The world number one opened moving day with a five-shot lead, and charged out the gate on Saturday with four birdies over the opening nine holes.
Seeking his first major title, Scheffler then delivered three bogeys on four holes on the back nine, before taking a penalty for an unplayable lie on the par-four 18th.
Yet he salvaged what could have been an even worse outcome, gambling with a long iron and making a tricky up-and-down to finish with just a bogey and an eventual one-under 71.
In windy and icy conditions at Augusta, Smith emerged as the likeliest challenger with a second four-under 68 to finish Saturday on six-under-par.
The Australian world number six will be paired with Scheffler despite trailing by seven shots midway through the third round, claiming three birdies in six holes on the back nine.
Like Scheffler, Smith also skewed his tee shot into the trees on the 18th, but was eventually able to scramble for par.
Smith's Presidents Cup teammate Im Sung-jae is in outright third, shooting a one-under-par 71 in the third round.
Meanwhile, Tiger Woods' six-over-par 78 was his worst in 93 rounds over his career at Augusta, leaving him at seven-over-par.
Reilly Opelka and John Isner will meet in the US Men's Clay Court Championship final in Houston, after they claimed semi-final wins on Saturday.
Opelka kept up his strong early-season form with an imposing 6-3 7-5 victory over Nick Kyrgios in the first semi-final, getting the job done in just one hour and nine minutes.
Opelka slung down 18 aces to 11 from Kyrgios and faced only one break point across the contest.
The 24-year-old Opelka won a title in Dallas in February and followed up with a run to the Delray Beach final, with a third trophy match of the season now awaiting him.
The American world number 18 said he admired the "intangibles" from Kyrgios that "you can't teach."
"He's got one of the best serves in the world and when he turns it on he can come up with some shots that not many guys outside the top 10 can," Opelka said in his on-court interview.
Opelka enjoyed the high-tempo match with Kyrgios, who typically wastes no time between points.
"I prefer to play at that speed rather than, for example, Rafa [Nadal] where it's 50-55 seconds between points," Opelka said.
"It's a totally different speed here and I thought I did a good job managing the whole tempo of the match. I put a lot of returns into play and I came up big with my second serve."
He will face 2013 Houston champion Isner, who came from a set down to defeat defending champion Cristian Garin 4-6 6-3 6-4.
The 36-year-old's serve improved as the match went on and ultimately propelled him to victory, facing four break points in the opening set, one in the second and none in the decider.
Isner also served 17 aces on his way to the final, and won 80 per cent of points on his first serve.
"It's never easy when you have to come back from one set down," he said. "My serve certainly helped me out a lot. I didn't have to hit too many balls there in the end, and I didn't want to.
"I'm so happy to be in the final again here. At my age you never really know when you can get back to a final of a tournament like this."
Belinda Bencic wondered if she would ever be able to compete for titles on clay but will do exactly that on Sunday.
The Swiss reached her first ever WTA Tour final on the red dirt of the Charleston Open, beating semi-final opponent Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4 6-3.
Although she has four WTA titles to her name, this was only Bencic's third last-four appearance on clay – losing the prior two, including a 2014 Charleston challenge as a 17-year-old.
But she finally has glory in her sights, and the omens are good for the final, facing Ons Jabeur having won their only prior meeting in 2021 at the Madrid Open, another clay-court event.
"I'm happy this moment came," Bencic said. "I didn't think it would, but I'm super happy with how I played today. I thought it was a great match in tough conditions."
Bencic needed only 78 minutes to complete the job, but Jabeur found life tougher, forced to rally from a set down to Amanda Anisimova.
The 20-year-old American had herself recovered to eliminate top seed Aryna Sabalenka earlier in the tournament but was now on the wrong side of such a comeback.
Jabeur, who lost in the final of the WTA 250 Charleston Open II last year, prevailed 2-6 6-1 6-4.
Meanwhile, at the Copa Colsanitas, there will be no repeat win for Camila Osorio after the defending champion and top seed lost to Laura Pigossi in straight sets in the semis.
Tatjana Maria is now Pigossi's opponent in the title match.
Scottie Scheffler made a superb start to the third round of the Masters to extend his lead to six shots on Saturday.
The mission for the chasing pack was clear going into moving day at Augusta National: chase down the world number one, who ended day two with a five-stroke lead.
But Scheffler, seeking his first major title, made that task even harder with four birdies on the front nine.
After saving par at a tricky first hole, Scheffler produced a stunning second shot at the 575-yard second to put him on the edge of the green.
He chipped to four feet to set up a simple birdie, which was followed by another gain at the third following a superb approach shot to eight feet to move to 10 under par.
A dropped shot at the fourth gave hope to his prospective challengers, but that stroke was clawed back courtesy of an excellent 17-foot putt at the sixth.
He chipped to six feet for another gain at the eighth to improve to 11 under, with a par at the ninth leaving Cameron Smith as his closest challenger at five under through 12.
David Goffin is wary he will face "a great fighter" when he tackles Alex Molcan in Sunday's final of the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakesh.
Experienced Belgian Goffin is a five-time tournament winner on the ATP Tour, and his Slovakian opponent is chasing his first title at this level.
However, their one past meeting went Molcan's way when they met in the Melbourne ATP 250 tournament in January, and although that match was on hardcourts and this final is on clay, Goffin respects his left-handed opponent's game.
Goffin made sure of his place in the title match with a 6-3 6-3 win over Argentinian Federico Coria, while Molcan, who beat Felix Auger-Aliassime earlier in the week, was a 6-1 7-5 victor against Serbian Laslo Djere.
Speaking of the threat posed by Molcan, Goffin said: "He's a great fighter, he's moving so well. He's lefty, so he's using his lefty game really well on clay, especially two days ago against Felix, he played well. So it's a tough opponent."
Goffin, quoted on the ATP Tour website, said he was pleased to get his clay season under way in fine style, even if he felt jittery at times against Coria.
"I managed to deal with my emotions at the end to finish the match, so I'm happy to play another final, especially here, the first tournament on clay," Goffin said. "I will give everything tomorrow."
Gennady Golovkin became the unified middleweight champion after stopping home favourite Ryota Murata in Saitama, Japan.
The Kazakh regained the WBA (super) belt, which he lost to Cancelo Alvarez in 2018, to add to his IBF title following a ninth-round stoppage against the former Olympic champion.
Golovkin endured a slow start in what was his first bout in over a year, as he looked to set up a potential rematch with Alvarez later in 2022.
Murata, who won gold at London 2012, directed a series of relentless attacks and body shots to gain the upper hand in the opening four rounds.
But the Japanese fighter was unable to build on his early momentum and Golovkin gradually settled into his flow in round five.
The pendulum began to swing in favour of the 40-year-old, who finally put combinations together and sent Murata's mouthpiece flying in the sixth.
The Golovkin onslaught continued until the start of the ninth; flooring his opponent with a devastating shot and the towel came in from the corner, spelling the 42nd win of his career.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Dwayne Haskins has died at the age of 24 after being struck by a car on Saturday.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the 2019 first-round pick was hit by a vehicle in South Florida, where he had been training with other Steelers quarterbacks, running backs and receivers.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin read: "I am devastated and at a loss for words with the unfortunate passing of Dwayne Haskins.
"He quickly became part of our Steelers family upon his arrival in Pittsburgh and was one of our hardest workers, both on the field and in our community. Dwayne was a great team-mate, but even more so a tremendous friend to so many. I am truly heartbroken.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Kalabrya, and his entire family during this difficult time."
Haskins signed with the Steelers in 2021 after being released by the Washington Commanders late in the 2020 season.
Washington selected Haskins with the 15th pick of the 2019 draft after his stellar 2018 season with Ohio State, throwing 50 touchdowns to eight interceptions in that campaign.
Commanders head coach Ron Rivera said in a statement: "I am absolutely heartbroken to hear of the news of the passing of Dwayne Haskins Jr. Dwayne was a talented young man who had a long life ahead of him.
"This is a very sad time and I am honestly at a loss for words. I know I speak for the rest of our team in saying he will be sorely missed. Our entire team is sending our heartfelt condolences and thoughts and prayers to the Haskins family at this time."
Washington co-owners Dan and Tara Snyder added: "We are devastated to hear the news of the tragic passing of Dwayne Haskins Jr. He was a young man with a tremendous amount of potential who had an infectious personality.
"To say we are heartbroken is an understatement. Our hearts and prayers are with the members of the Dwayne's family and all of those who knew him and loved him."
Max Verstappen believes the Australian Grand Prix has been hindered by the FIA removing a DRS zone.
Reigning Formula One champion Verstappen was pipped to pole position for Sunday's race in Melbourne by Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.
The Dutchman questioned the FIA's decision to continue with three DRS zones for the rest of the weekend after removing one between turns eight and nine for "safety reasons".
"Of course, with taking away one DRS zone, it's going to be harder," Verstappen said of overtaking at a restructured Albert Park.
"I don't really understand why they took it away, because it was much safer than what we did in Jeddah, for example. So, it's a bit of a mystery to me why that happened. But we'll give it our best.
"There was only one team who complained about it and it got removed this morning, so I don't really understand because, for me, it was way easier than doing it in, for example, in Jeddah because there were way more corners.
"For me, there was never any issue with driving there with the DRS open. You'll have to ask the FIA why they took it away. It's a shame because it would have helped the racing."
Verstappen's Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez, who qualified third, added: "I think it's a bit of a shame because I think definitely the racing could have been a lot better.
"And it sounds like when you look at Jeddah where we have the DRS within the corners, within the walls ... but I think I'm not the right one to answer."
Lewis Hamilton described the temperament of his Mercedes as that of "a viper, or a rattlesnake" after qualifying fifth for the Australian Grand Prix.
The seven-time Formula One champion recognised a significant shift in performance as he finished just ahead of team-mate George Russell, with both Mercedes cars starting on the third row for Sunday's race.
That is a welcome boost to the team, after Hamilton was eliminated in Q1 last time out in Saudi Arabia.
This time, both cars safely made it through to the third round of qualifying, and Hamilton said it was "nice to be back up there" as he and Mercedes looks to challenge early-season pace-setters Ferrari.
"Jeddah was really, really, really tough, to be so far back and not really be able to make progress," Hamilton said.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Hamilton said the Mercedes team had worked through the night in an effort to draw the best possible lap from the car.
And he claimed there could be better still to come, but the danger lies in pushing too hard.
"I feel like with my lap today there was a little bit more in the car," Hamilton said. "I'm naturally also gutted I wasn't able to extract that little bit.
"But the problem is when you push that car a little bit more, she's quite spiteful. She's like a viper, or like a rattlesnake, you never know."
Hamilton has complained about the W13 car bouncing during the early weeks of the season, and that remains an issue.
He was almost a full second behind Ferrari pole-sitter Charles Leclerc in Q3 on Saturday at Melbourne's Albert Park circuit, meaning there remains a significant gap in performance.
"We just have to try to find a level of the bouncing as hardcore as we can go, without rattling our brains out of our skulls, and that's what we try to do," Hamilton said.
"[Russell] and I have slightly different cars because we're trying all different things. I've got something in my car that makes the car a little bit heavier.
"Hopefully it will enable the team to gain more information from the race tomorrow. I hope from that we can start making some progress."
Hamilton has previously taken eight pole positions at Albert Park, matching the all-time record for any F1 circuit. Eight poles has also been previously achieved by Michael Schumacher at Suzuka, Ayrton Senna at Imola and Hamilton himself at Hungaroring.
Qualifying success has not typically translated to success on race day for Hamilton in Australia, however, as he has only recorded two wins at Albert Park, in the 2008 and 2015 seasons.
Max Verstappen admits he is still finding it a "struggle" to drive his Red Bull after being pipped to pole for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix by Charles Leclerc.
Championship leader Leclerc outpaced Verstappen with his final lap of a dramatic qualifying session in Melbourne on Saturday to ensure he will start at the top of the grid.
The Ferrari driver, who has finished first and second in the opening two races of 2022, posted 1:17.868 late on in Q3 to finish 0.286s ahead of Verstappen.
"It feels great and very happy to be starting on pole," Leclerc said. "Again, we were quite surprised by our pace in qualifying, so we will see what happens.
"Overall, I'm very happy because it's a track where I've always struggled in the past and I've struggled this weekend.
"You probably couldn't see from outside because we were quite fast, but I was struggling quite a lot with mistakes, being inconsistent.
"I really worked on that to try to put a good lap together in Q3. I knew it was just all about putting it together and I managed to do it in Q3, so I'm very happy."
Verstappen was edged out by Leclerc in a thrilling Saudi Arabian Grand Prix two weeks ago and is third in the drivers' standings, with Carlos Sainz occupying second place.
Leclerc's Ferrari team-mate Sainz will start Sunday's race down in ninth, however, after being caught by red flags that were brought out following a crash for Fernando Alonso.
Red Bull's Verstappen will therefore have a chance to climb the standings this weekend, but the Dutchman is not entirely pleased with how the weekend has gone thus far.
"I would have hoped to start first, but we have to accept where we finish, but the whole weekend has been a bit tricky for me," he said.
"I've never really found a stable grip whether it's front or rear and that's just not nice. For me, that's really been the case all year.
"I've never found a comfortable balance where I could attack corners, especially in qualifying and that's a big limitation – it's something very new for me in the last three years.
"Of course, I'm talking like I'm P18, but I think we have a lot of potential in the car we're not showing and I think that's a bit of a shame.
"But I expect it to be tight [on Sunday]. Maybe Ferrari will find something, but I hope not and hopefully we can have a good battle again."
Despite his complaints, it is Verstappen's first front row start at Albert Park as he seeks just a second podium finish in six appearances Down Under.
Verstappen's team-mate Sergio Perez finished third in qualifying, though that will be reviewed as he is under investigation.
That is due to the Mexican failing to slow for double waved flags after Lance Stroll inadvertently turned into Nicholas Latifi, with both drivers blaming each other for the crash.
Perez, who could only finish four in Jeddah last time out after claiming pole – the first Mexican to ever do so – was more upbeat than Verstappen.
"It felt good. Q1, Q2 things were going good. With all the red flags, it's always very hard to keep the momentum going," he said.
"I regret a bit the decision to go into Q3 with our strategy on the tyres, but I think P3 is a decent start for tomorrow."
Elsewhere in Saturday's qualifying session, Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton, who has taken a record eight poles in Australia, finished fifth, narrowly behind McLaren's Lando Norris.
Anthony Joshua's rematch with Oleksandr Usyk may yet be staged in the United Kingdom, according to promoter Eddie Hearn.
Usyk outclassed Joshua to claim the WBA, WBO and IBF titles at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September, inflicting just a second professional defeat on his opponent.
Joshua activated his rematch clause, but plans for a second bout were thrown into doubt after Usyk returned to Ukraine to defend his homeland following the Russian invasion.
However, Usyk has now started preparing for the rematch, which his promoter Alexander Krassyuk recently revealed looked set to be staged in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking on Friday, though, Hearn said venues in the UK are still being considered, with an announcement due to be made later this month.
"We're in final negotiations for a couple of sites for either the end of June or early-to-mid-July," Hearn said.
"I reckon within two weeks we'll have some news in terms of where that's going to be.
"An option is in the UK. The difference is, we don't really need negotiations with a venue in the UK, we just book it."
Aaron Judge said the New York Yankees are one of 30 teams he will talk to when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season.
Judge made the confession in an explosive post-game interview after the Yankees defeated the Boston Red Sox 6-5 in extra innings on Friday.
He had two hits from five at-bats in the win, including a double, but the 2017 AL Rookie of the Year may not remain with the team following this season after failing to agree on an extension prior to Opening Day.
While there is no rule to say Judge and the Yankees have to cease contract talks during the season, Judge himself imposed the cut-off date of Opening Day, saying he does not want the distraction during the season.
As well as his long-term extension, Judge and the Yankees are also at odds about his salary for his season, and due to MLB's rules – which stipulate players during their 'service years' receive a salary offer which can be negotiated through third-party arbitration – it may be an issue that is resolved in the courtroom.
Speaking with post-game media, Judge did not hold back about his disappointment with the way things have been handled.
"I'm just disappointed, because I have been vocal about wanting to be a Yankee for life," he said.
"I want to bring a championship back to New York. I want to do it for the fans here – this is home for me – and I'm not getting that done right now."
He later added: "At the end of the year, I'm a free agent – I will talk to 30 teams, and the Yankees will be one of those 30 teams.
"It's always nice to try to wrap something up sooner, the better. But we weren't able to get it done and it's on to baseball."
In an eyebrow-raising move, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman disclosed his club's contract offer to Judge when talking to reporters earlier in the day, saying the star was offered a seven-year, $213million deal.
When questioned about it, Judge was not interested in discussing specifics.
"I don't like talking numbers," he said. "I like to keep that private – something I kind of felt like was private between my team and the Yankees.
"I'm a ballplayer. [Cashman] has a job to do, and I can't control that… it didn't take me by surprise; there's nothing to get upset about.
"It's business. It's a side of the sport that I love to play. In business, anything can happen, so you got to roll with it."
Touching on potential arbitration for this season, Judge said he does not want to get into a situation where both parties are presenting arguments to discredit the other.
"We're prepared for both [situations]," he said.
"Nobody likes going in that courtroom. I don't really think it's good for both sides, because they say some stuff that I wouldn't want to hear, and we say some stuff they don't want to hear.
"I think if we can avoid it at all cost, that'd be great. But myself and our team, we're ready for either way to go."
Baseball's best rivalry delivered once again on Friday as the New York Yankees defeated the Boston Red Sox 6-5 in extra innings at Yankee Stadium.
In the first game of the season for both sides, sparks flew in the opening inning as Rafael Devers hit a two-run bomb over the fence, before J.D. Martinez made it 3-0 for the Red Sox with a RBI double.
The Yankees wasted little time striking back as Anthony Rizzo launched a 414-foot two-run homer in the bottom of the first inning, and three innings later a Giancarlo Stanton solo shot tied proceedings at 3-3.
After the Red Sox manufactured a run in the sixth inning to take the lead, the Yankees tied things up once again with another solo home run, this time from D.J. LeMahieu in the eighth frame to take things to extra innings.
Boston scored first in the 10th inning through a Xander Bogaerts RBI single, only for Gleyber Torres to extend the game a further inning with a sacrifice fly, setting the table for Yankee debutant Josh Donaldson.
In his first game for New York, Donaldson delivered the game-winning walk-off base hit to bring Isiah Kiner-Falefa around to score in the bottom of the 11th inning.
AL Cy Young favorite Gerrit Cole was disappointing for the Yankees, getting pulled after four innings and 68 pitches after allowing three earned runs from four hits and a walk, while Michael King was credited with the win for pitching both extra frames.
Dodgers make winning start
The most expensive team in baseball, and World Series favorites, the Los Angeles Dodgers received strong contributions from their big names in a 5-3 away win against the Colorado Rockies.
Mookie Betts and Trae Turner collected RBI knocks, while new signing Freddie Freeman had one hit, one walk and scored a run from his four at-bats.
Dodgers ace Walker Buehler pitched a solid outing, giving up two runs from four hits and two walks, while racking up five strikeouts in five innings.
Blue Jays mount massive comeback
In the top of the fourth inning, the Toronto Blue Jays trailed the Texas Rangers 7-0, before the home side caught fire and stormed back to win 10-8.
Blue Jays starter and ace pitcher Jose Berrios was only able to record one out before getting pulled as the Rangers scored four runs off him, before the bullpen took over, only giving up one run in the last five innings.
Vladimir Guerrero had a pair of RBI base hits, Bo Bichette also had a multi-hit game and the duo of Teoscar Hernandez and Danny Jansen both blasted long home runs.
Angels off to slow start
Boasting arguably the best two players in the league – Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout – the Los Angeles Angels are off to a disappointing start after getting blown out by the Houston Astros 13-6.
The Astros used an eight-run seventh inning to blow the game open as Jeremy Pena and Kyle Tucker both hit home runs in the frame, while Jose Altuve, Aledmys Diaz and Alex Bregman all finished the game with multiple RBIs.
For the Angels, Ohtani registered a hit and scored a run, while Trout was withdrawn for a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning.
Friday's results
New York Yankees 6-5 Boston Red Sox
Detroit Tigers 5-4 Chicago White Sox
Philadelphia Phillies 9-5 Oakland Athletics
Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 Baltimore Orioles
Colorado Rockies 3-5 Los Angeles Dodgers
Minnesota Twins 1-2 Seattle Mariners
San Francisco Giants 6-5 Miami Marlins
Washington Nationals 3-7 New York Mets
Toronto Blue Jays 10-8 Texas Rangers
Atlanta Braves 7-6 Cincinnati Reds
Los Angeles Angels 6-13 Houston Astros
Arizona Diamondbacks 0-3 San Diego Padres
Red Sox at Yankees
Boston versus New York remains the biggest rivalry in the sport, and the Red Sox will look to even the ledger in the second of the three-game series.
The Brooklyn Nets showed how they plan to approach their playoff rotation in a 118-107 home win against the Cleveland Cavaliers to leapfrog into the seven seed with one more game to play.
In a game considered a must-win for the Nets to avoid the much more difficult Play-In Tournament setup for teams who finish ninth and 10th, Brooklyn cut their rotation down to eight players while Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Bruce Brown all played at least 39 minutes.
Seth Curry and Andre Drummond filled out the starting five, while Kessler Edwards, Patty Mills and Nic Claxton came off the bench, with LaMarcus Aldrige, Blake Griffin and rookie Cam Thomas out of the mix.
Durant went on to finish with a game-high 36 points on 11-of-20 shooting (four-of-six from long range, 10-of-10 from the free throw line) to go with five assists, five rebounds, two steals and a block, while Brown had 10 rebounds, eight assists and four blocks to go with his 18 points (six-of-12 shooting).
With the win, Brooklyn is now in position to host their first Play-In Tournament game – likely against the Cavaliers – with the winner entering the playoffs as the seven seed, while the loser gets another chance to play for the eight seed.
Most Improved Player contender Darius Garland was spectacular for the Cavs, scoring 31 points on 12-of-24 shooting, but the loss means his side has now lost eight of their past 10, and have been sputtering without injured center Jarrett Allen.
Overall, the Cavaliers are 43-38 this season, but just 8-17 in games Allen has missed.
No stoppin' Obi Toppin
It was a career night for New York Knicks cult figure Obi Toppin as he scored a career-high 35 points in his side's 114-92 away win against the Washington Wizards.
In only his eighth start of the season, the former first-round pick shot 14-of-22 from the field, including six-of-nine from deep, while fellow fan-favorite Immanuel Quickley was terrific off the bench, scoring 23 points (nine-of-18 shooting) with 10 assists.
Siakam shines, Heat hang on
Pascal Siakam seems destined to receive All-NBA honors this season after another great performance lifted his Toronto Raptors to a 117-115 win against the Houston Rockets.
In his past 10 games, Siakam is averaging 27 points, nine rebounds and six assists while shooting 53 per cent from the field, and improved those numbers with 29 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists against the Rockets.
Meanwhile, the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks played their shortened playoff rotations, and Trae Young's 35 points and eight assists was not enough as the top-seeded Heat prevailed 113-109 at home.
World number 18 Reilly Opelka is through to the semi-final of the US Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston after defeating qualifier Gijs Brouwer 6-3 7-5.
The giant American, who measures in at six-foot-11, was terrific in the opening set, winning 84 per cent of his successful first serves (16-19) and allowing no break point opportunities.
The second set was much more competitive, as Brouwer broke first to go up 3-1, but Opelka answered instantly and then grabbed the match-winning break when 6-5 up to avoid a tie-breaker.
Opelka will face a fresh Nick Kyrgios in the semi-final after the Australian was gifted a walkover win against Michael Mmoh due to injury.
In a clash between two top-five seeds, world number 29 Christian Garin got the better of world number 13 Taylor Fritz 6-2 6-7 (5-7) 6-3.
What made Garin successful in the first and third sets was his return game, winning more than half of his return points in those sets combined (26-51).
Fritz had chances to get back into the game, but Garin saved 11 of 14 break point opportunities, including six of seven in the deciding third set.
Garin will play American John Isner in the semi-final after Isner triumphed in a three-set battle against Frances Tiafoe 6-4 2-6 6-3.
Isner's trademark serve was inconsistent, and abandoned him in a grim second-set performance, winning just 11 of 21 service points on his way to getting broken twice to allow Tiafoe to force the match into a third frame.
In Isner's two successful sets, he won more than 80 per cent of his first serves (35-41), and allowed no break point opportunities in the third.
Belinda Bencic has beaten world number three Paula Badosa 2-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 to move on to the semi-finals of the Charleston Open.
Bencic, the 10th seed, appeared overmatched early on as she won less than half (12-25) of her service points in the opening set, getting her serve broken twice.
But as Bencic found her rhythm with her serve – winning 77 per cent of her first-serve points in the second set (24-31) – she wrestled the momentum away from Badosa, dominating the tie-break before breaking in the opening game of the third frame.
Bencic will face Ekaterina Alexandrova in the semi-final after the Russian dominated Magda Linette 6-0 6-2.
For the match, Alexandrova won 62 per cent of her points on serve (28-45) and 62 per cent of her points on return (26-42).
Fourth seed Ons Jabeur needed just 64 minutes to get the job done 6-3 6-2 against Anhelina Kalinina, winning 81 per cent of her successful first serves (29-36).
Jabeur will play 15th seed Amanda Anisimova in the semi-final after the American cruised past compatriot Coco Vandeweghe 6-1 6-2.
It was not a perfect performance from Anisimova, but she saved all five break points that she faced to never allow her opponent to get close.
Meanwhile, in Bogota at the Copa Colsanitas, top seed Camila Osorio is through to the semi-final after defeating Elina Avanesyan 6-1 6-4, where she will meet Laura Pigossi.
Scottie Scheffler admitted to having some fortune after windy conditions that had caused many players to struggle on day two of the Masters died down for him later in his round of 67.
The world number one established a five-shot lead at Augusta after shooting a five-under round for the day, a total matched only by Justin Thomas on Friday.
Scheffler sits well ahead of the chasing pack, with previous overnight leader Im Sung-jae, Charl Schwartzel, Shane Lowry and reigning champion Hideki Matsuyama all on three under par.
Speaking after his round, the 25-year-old exclaimed his happiness with his game, saying: "I feel like my game is in a good spot. I've done a good job managing my way around the golf course the last two days, and I've made some really nice up and downs and key putts that have kept my rounds going.
"I've kept my cards pretty clean for the most part, which is nice."
When asked about the pressure of holding the lead at Augusta, Scheffler added: "If anything, it gives me more confidence. Once I saw that I took the lead at one point today, and my first thought was to just keep trying to build it just because I feel like I'm playing well.
"That will be the goal going into tomorrow, just to keep putting myself in good positions, execute shots, and as long as I'm committed to everything, everything should be fine. The rest really isn't up to me."
Scheffler was among many players to comment on the windy conditions, but did admit that after it had died down, it allowed him to make a strong finish, birdieing four of his last seven holes.
"To be completely honest, the front nine was such a grind," he said. "The wind was crazy. There was some times where we saw the sand blowing up out of the bunkers out there. It was ridiculous.
"I think we were a little bit fortunate that it did die down a little bit towards the end of the day. It was still gusty, but you were able to find some spots where, for instance, on 16 I almost didn't even play any wind. We were definitely fortunate in that sense, but we were also playing in some pretty aggressive winds at the beginning of the round."
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