Djokovic wins, moves to semis

Defending champion and top seed Novak Djokovic advanced to the Western & Southern Open semifinals with a 76 (72) 61 win over Lucas Pouille in Mason, Ohio, on Friday.

World No. 1 Djokovic next plays Daniil Medvedev, a 62, 63 winner over Andrey Rublev, on Saturday.

Also, qualifier Yoshihito Nishioka withdrew because of illness, sending David Goffin into the semifinals. Goffin will face Richard Gasquet, who advanced with a threeset victory over Roberto Bautista Agut.

On the women’s side, topseeded Ash Barty reached the semifinals and moved closer to regaining the No. 1 world ranking by beating Maria Sakkari 57, 62, 60.

No. 1 Naomi Osaka dropped out of her semifinal match because of a knee injury.

Barty will face Svetlana Kuznetsova, who reached her first semifinal of the season by beating thirdseeded Karolina Pliskova 36, 76 (2), 63.

Motor sports: Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin won the pole for Saturday night’s NASCAR Cup race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, a critical shorttrack showdown for drivers trying to qualify for the playoffs.

WNBA: Shekinna Stricklen scored 24 points and made a pair of free throws with 4.3 seconds left to help host Connecticut beat Seattle 7978 . ... Ariel Atkins scored 18 points and Washington clinched a playoff berth with an 8679 win over host Minnesota . ... Allisha Gray scored 22 points and host Dallas beat New York 8377 . ... Allie Quigley scored 26 points as Chicago beat visiting Los Angeles 9181 . ... DeWanna Bonner had 27 points and 13 rebounds as host Phoenix topped Atlanta 7768.

Obituary: Former Cincinnati, USC and South Carolina athletic director Mike McGee, a 1959 Outland Trophy winner at Duke who hired Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier to lead Gamecocks football, died at age 80 in Montrose, Colo.