The Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics will tangle in the second round of the NBA playoffs after completing four-game sweeps. The Celtics took advantage of an injury and defeating the 76ers, 110-106. The game changed when Tobias Harris crashed to the floor at the 2:40 mark of the third quarter. Without Harris, Boston went on a 12-0 run and eventually led 96-79 in the opening minutes of the fourth.
Kemba Walker poured in 32 points in his first NBA series-clinching win. Jayson Tatum finished with 28 points and a playoff career-high 15 rebounds. Harris had 20 points despite his lengthy absence in the second half. Joel Embiid finished with 30 points and 10 boards for Philadelphia.
The Raptors put an emphatic stamp on their sweep by blasting the Nets, 150-122. The Raptors had two players score at least 20 points off the bench, led by 29 from Norman Powell. Serge Ibaka added 27 points on 12 of 14 shooting and grabbed 15 rebounds. Toronto set an all-time NBA record with 100 bench points. Pascal Siakam finished with 20 points and 10 boards as the lone Toronto starter with more than 10 points. The Raptors are 11-1 in the bubble, with the lone loss coming against Boston.
Also in NBA first-round action:
Luka Doncic drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Mavericks a 135-133 triumph over the Clippers, evening the series at two games apiece. Doncic was sensational despite playing on a badly sprained ankle, delivering 43 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists. Trey Burke finished with 25 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 21 in a game that featured eight lead changes in OT. The Mavericks were without forward/center Kristaps Porzingis because of right knee soreness. Lou Williams pumped in 36 points and Kawhi Leonard had 32 for the Clippers, who trailed by eight heading into the fourth quarter.
The Jazz are a win away from advancing to the second round following a 129-127 win over the Nuggets in Game 4. Donovan Mitchell scored 18 of his 51 points in the fourth quarter and was 15 of 27 from the floor. He's averaging 39 1/2 points in the seconds, including a 57-point assault in the opener. Jamal Murray set a Denver playoff record with 50 points. That topped the old mark of 45 set by Spencer Haywood during the 1970 ABA playoffs, when the team was the Denver Rockets. Rudy Gobert contributed 17 points and 11 rebounds for Utah. Mike Conley added 26 points in his second game since returning to the NBA bubble after leaving for the birth of his son.
In NBA news, Magic forward James Ennis and Bucks forward Marvin Williams have been fined $15,000 each for a fight that led to their ejections from Game 3 of their teams' first-round playoff series Saturday. Ennis and Williams had been competing for rebounding position midway through the second quarter of the Bucks' 121-107 victory. They exchanged shoves as they headed back up the floor.
NHL
The Boston Bruins have opened the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by defeating the team that took the No. 1 seed from them in the round-robin tournament. Brad Marchand scored the eventual game-winning goal and had an assist while the Bruins were building a 3-0 lead in a 3-2 win over the Lightning. Marchand tallied 1:17 in the third period and set up Charlie Coyle late in the first. David Pastrnak had a power-play goal and Jaroslav Halak stopped 35 shots for Boston. Halak blanked Tampa Bay until Victor Hedman scored twice over the 11 minutes.
Meanwhile, the Golden Knights are 8-1 in the Edmonton bubble after cruising to a Game 1 victory in the second round. Reilly Smith, Mark Stone and Alex Tuch each had a goal and an assist to support Robin Lehner in the Knights' 5-0 shutout of the Canucks. Vegas took the lead on Jonathan Marchessault's goal midway through the first period. That was enough offense for Lehner, who turned back 26 shots in his first shutout in 17 postseason games. Vancouver netminder Jacob Markstrom was pulled midway through the third period after allowing five goals on 34 shots.
In NHL news, Todd Reirden is out after just two seasons as head coach of the Washington Capitals. The Capitals won two division titles in each season under Reirden but failed to capture a playoff series. He replaced Barry Trotz, who led the team to the 2018 Stanley Cup before heading to the Islanders in a contract dispute. The Islanders completed a five-game series win against the Capitals on Thursday.
MLB
Rio Ruiz drove in four runs and the Orioles gained a four-game split by downing the Red Sox for the second straight day, 5-4. Winning pitcher Thomas Eshelman entered the game with two out in the first inning and walked his first batter before retiring his last 13.
Elsewhere in the majors:
Josh Fleming won his big league debut by pitching five innings of two-run ball in the Rays' 5-4 decision over the Blue Jays. Austin Meadows drove in two runs and Brandon Lowe provided an RBI single that put Tampa Bay ahead to stay.
Outfielder Roman Quinn threw out Dansby Swanson at the plate to end the Phillies' 5-4 win over the Braves. Alex Bohm, Rhys Hoskins and Didi Gregorius homered to give Philadelphia a 4-0 lead by the third inning.
Trea Turner was 3-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs scored in the Nationals' lopsided victory over the Marlins, 9-3. Winning pitcher Anibal Sánchez allowed one run and five hits over a season-high seven innings.
The Detroit Tigers have won a three-game series in Cleveland after absorbing 20 consecutive losses to the Indians. Tarik Skubal and Daniel Norris combined to pitch six innings of one-run ball in the Tigers' 7-4 victory over the Indians. Miguel Cabrera drove in two and Detroit belted three home runs in the rubber match of the series. Jorge Bonifacio hit a two-run homer and Niko Goodrum and Grayson Greiner had solo shots for the Tigers.
Nelson Cruz blasted his 10th homer and Marwin Gonzalez had two RBIs before closer Taylor Rogers dodged trouble in the ninth inning of the Twins' 5-4 win against the Royals. Cruz hit a solo shot an estimated 453-feet to center field in the ninth inning for a two-run lead, helping Minnesota win its eighth series in nine tries this season.
Mark Canha lifted a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning to give the Athletics a 5-4 win versus the Angels. Oakland trailed 4-2 before rallying on RBI singles by Stephen Piscotty and Sean Murphy in the sixth.
Kyle Lewis and Austin Nola belted early solo home runs and Sam Haggerty's two-run blow gave the Mariners a 4-0 lead in the fifth inning of a 4-1 win over the Rangers. Justin Dunn allowed just one hit over six scoreless frames before three relievers finished the combined three-hitter.
Kiké Hernández hit a three-run drive and Mookie Betts went deep twice in a seven-homer assault that propelled the Dodgers to an 11-3 pounding of the Rockies and a three-game sweep. The Dodgers have won 11 of 12 games overall and own the best record in baseball at 22-8 at the halfway point of this abbreviated season.
Fernando Tatis Jr. made two spectacular plays at shortstop and Manny Machado hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning to help the Padres earn a 5-3 victory and a three-game sweep of the Astros. San Diego has won seven straight, all against Texas ballclubs.
Mike Yastrzemski smacked a go-ahead homer on his 30th birthday to help the Giants pick up their season-high sixth consecutive win, 6-1 over Arizona. Alex Dickerson added a three-run homer off Hector Rondon in the seventh to provide cushion and make it a 5-1 game.
Cubs ace Yu Darvish struck out 10 over seven innings of his career-high fifth consecutive victory, a 2-1 triumph over the White Sox. Kyle Schwarber belted a two-run homer in the sixth inning to help the Cubs end the White Sox's seven-game winning streak.
Yadier Molina had four hits and top prospect Dylan Carlson hit his first career homer as the Cardinals dumped the Reds, 6-2. Harrison Bader added a two-run shot for St. Louis, which won three of four in the series.
Gregory Polanco's two-run blast in the eighth inning pushed the Pirates past the Brewers, 5-4. Bryan Reynolds, Jarrod Dyson and Adam Frazier furnished RBI singles in the Pirates' third straight win since a nine-game losing streak.
In MLB news:
The San Francisco Giants have cut ties with outfielder Hunter Pence, ending a second stint with the fan favorite that didn't go nearly as well as his first. The 37-year-old was designated for assignment to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for utility man Daniel Robertson, who was acquired Sunday from the Rays for cash or a player to be named later. Pence was hitting just .096 with two home runs and six RBIs in 17 games. He was a fiery, emotional leader for the Giants from 2012-2018, helping anchor teams that won the World Series in 2012 and 2014.
The Angels will face the Indians in the 2021 Little League Classic at Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The game is scheduled for Aug. 22 at Bowman Field in front of a crowd predominantly made up of players, coaches and parents in Williamsport for the Little League World Series.
NASCAR
Kevin Harvick has regained the NASCAR Cup Series victory lead by dominating Sunday's race at Dover International Speedway. A day after Denny Hamlin opened the doubleheader weekend with his sixth win to match Harvick and one-upped his closest rival to claim NASCAR's regular-season title. Harvick has 56 career Cup victories to tie Kyle Busch for ninth on the career list. Martin Truex Jr. was second and Jimmie Johnson third. Johnson is on the bubble, four points outside of the cutoff with his fate to be decided under the lights at Daytona.
INDYCAR
Takuma Sato snatched a second Indianapolis 500 victory as the Japanese racer held off Scott Dixon and ultimately won under caution. IndyCar officials declined to throw a red flag after a violent crash by Spencer Pigot with just a handful of laps remaining. Pigot needed medical attention on the track, the crash scene was a debris field and there was no way the race could resume without a stoppage. Dixon dominated the race and asked on his radio if IndyCar was going to give the drivers a final shootout to the checkered flag, NASCAR style. But the five-time Indy-Car champion had to settle for second after Sato led him across the finish line under yellow. Sato's teammate, Graham Rahal, was third.
GOLF
Dustin Johnson played the final two holes in near darkness after a late storm delay and finished with a birdie for an 8-under 63 and an 11-shot victory over Harris English at The Northern Trust. It was the 22nd victory of his PGA Tour career and fifth in a FedEx Cup playoffs event, tied with Rory McIlroy for most. Johnson finished at 30 under and returned to No. 1 in the world.
Also, Sophia Popov became the first female golfer from Germany to capture a major title when she won the Women's British Open by two strokes at Royal Troon. Popov went into the final round with a three-shot lead. She bounced back from a first-hole bogey by making five birdies in her 3-under 68. Jasmine Suwannapura was the runner-up after shooting 67. Popov is ranked No. 304 and dropped off the LPGA Tour last year. She hadn't previously won on the LPGA Tour, the second-tier Symetra Tour or on the Ladies European Tour.
NFL
The NFL has asked a New Jersey lab to investigate a new batch of COVID-19 test results amid reports from several teams of false positives. Among teams reporting false positives, the Minnesota Vikings said they had 12, the New York Jets 10 and the Chicago Bears nine. Other teams that were affected are the Buffalo Bills, Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns.
In other NFL news:
The Ravens have terminated the contract of seven-time Pro Bowl safety Earl Thomas. The action stems from Thomas' fray with defensive back Chuck Clark at Friday's practice after Thomas admittedly blew a coverage assignment.
Washington has released wideout Cody Latimer amid his legal issues before he practiced a single snap with the team. He was arrested in May and charged with a felony count of illegal discharge of a firearm. He also faces charges of second-degree assault, menacing, prohibited use of a weapon and reckless endangerment.
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