Aces advances to their franchise’s 2nd WNBA Finals
BRADENTON, Fla. — A’ja Wilson had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Angel McCoughtry added 20 points and the top-seeded Las Vegas Aces held off the No. 7 seed Connecticut Sun 66-63 on Tuesday night to advance to the franchise’s second WNBA Finals.
Las Vegas will play on Friday against Seattle, which advanced to its second championship series in three seasons on Sunday after sweeping Minnesota. The Aces’ franchise hadn’t reached the finals since doing so as the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2008.
Carolyn Swords and Danielle Robinson each grabbed 10 rebounds for Las Vegas, which overcame 18 turnovers. The Aces were without Dearica Hamby, last season’s sixth woman of the year, because of a season-ending knee injury. She averaged 13 points and 7.1 rebounds during the regular season.
Las Vegas trailed 49-39 early in the third quarter but went on a 13-0 run, with McCoughtry, Wilson and Kayla McBride combining for 13 points, to take the lead.
McCoughtry missed a free-throw line jumper and Connecticut guard Jasmine Thomas called a timeout with 13.4 seconds left, down 66-63. Thomas received the inbounds pass and got it to DeWanna Bonner at the
top of the arc, but her contested shot didn’t hit the rim as time expired.
Alyssa Thomas, dealing with a shoulder injury, had 22 points and 10 rebounds for Connecticut, which was going for its second straight trip to the finals. Bonner had 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Connecticut was held to 18 second-half points.
DQ forgotten, Djokovic leaves French Open foe ‘suffocated’
PARIS — Novak Djokovic’s backhand clipped the net and landed wide, so he shook his head. That was it.
Later, a too-soft drop shot found the white tape and bounced back on his own side, finally ceding a game in a dominant debut performance at the 2020 French Open. Djokovic simply bowed and walked to the sideline.
And when he flubbed yet another drop shot — he kept using them on the slow red clay during a 6-0, 6-3, 6-2 win over 80th-ranked Mikael Ymer — and got broken Tuesday, Djokovic pulled an extra tennis ball out of his pocket and merely gave it a gentle tap with his racket strings.
The ball landed right behind him, safely in the middle of the court.
Playing his first Grand Slam match since his U.S. Open disqualification for smacking a ball after dropping a game and accidentally striking a line judge in throat, Djokovic never really gave himself reason for histrionics or shouts of dismay or displays of anger. Sure, there was some eye-rolling and one sarcastic kiss directed at one of the few fans on hand under the roof at Court Philippe Chatrier.
But otherwise, what was there for Djokovic to be disturbed about?
“I just felt very suffocated out there. It’s just corner, corner; very, very rarely miss. His position is unreal in the court,” Ymer explained.
“You know how the snake kills its prey?” Ymer said, pantomiming a boa constrictor’s attack by bringing his arms around and putting his hands together. “That’s a little bit how I felt being out there.”
Ymer said he didn’t pay any attention to Djokovic’s mood or energy.
Virus knocks out South Alabama-Troy game
South Alabama called off its Saturday game with Sun Belt rival Troy because of COVID-19.
The school on Tuesday didn’t say how many players had been affected by the coronavirus, but the team was stopping workouts.
South Alabama, Troy and the league will try to find a makeup date.
“This postponement is unfortunate, however it’s prudent and wise,” South Alabama athletic director Joel Erdmann said. “Our most significant concern is the wellbeing of our student-athletes.”
South Alabama’s next scheduled game isn’t until Oct. 17, when Texas State visits.
Appalachian League leads off in minor league contraction
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball started the process of contracting minor league affiliates Tuesday, with the Appalachian League converted to a college summer circuit for rising freshmen and sophomores.
The agreement between MLB and the minor leagues expires Wednesday. MLB has proposed cutting the minimum guaranteed minor league affiliates from 160 to 120 next year, or to four per major league organization plus teams at their spring training complexes.
Many teams from the Pioneer League and the New York-Penn League also are likely to become part of college summer leagues.