Aces earn top seed in WNBA playoffs
Chelsea Gray had 33 points, seven rebounds and nine assists and the Aces wrapped up the best regular-season record in the WNBA and top seed in the upcoming playoffs, defeating the Storms 109-100 in a regular-season finale on Sunday in Las Vegas.
Kelsey Plum, who had 23 points for the Aces, scored seven points in the final minute. Her 3-pointer with 58 seconds left put the hosts up by six and she added two more field goals for the Aces (26-10), who are led by first-year coach and former longtime NBA assistant Becky Hammon.
The Storm’s Jewell Loyd scored a careerhigh 38 points that included 8 of 14 from 3-point distance. The Storm (22-14) made 18 3s.
A’Ja Wilson had 25 points and 10 boards for the Aces. Gray was 10-for-15 from the field and 11-for-11 from the free throw line where the Aces made 20 of 24 as a team. The Storm were 6-for-7 from the line.
The Aces defeated the Sky and Storm in consecutive games to clinch the top playoff spot, having defeated the defending champion Sky 89-78 on Thursday.
The Storm already were assured of the No. 4 seed.
In another regular-season finale, Natasha Howard scored 18 points and hit a big 3 in the final minute as the Liberty clinched a playoff berth with an 87-83 victory over the visiting Dream.
It was the Liberty’s sixth win in seven games. They will open the playoffs on the road as the No. 7 seed.
College football: Steve Worster, a two-time All-American at Texas and the bruising fullback who was the inspiration for the creation of the wishbone offense that came to dominate college football in the 1970s and ’80s, died Saturday at 73.
Golf: Maja Stark of Sweden captured her third title of the year on the Ladies European Tour. She shot 63 in the final round for a five-shot victory in the ISPS Handa World Invitational in Northern Ireland. The event was co-sanctioned by the LPGA Tour, meaning the 22-year-old former Oklahoma State player now can become an LPGA Tour member.
NFL: Nearly three weeks after having his appendix removed, QB Joe Burrow participated in practice at Bengals training camp. All of his work in team drills came in a 7-on-7 period . ... Jets QB Zach Wilson will have arthroscopic surgery on his injured right knee Tuesday in Los Angeles. Wilson suffered a bone bruise and torn meniscus during the Jets’ second offensive series Friday night in their preseason opener against the Eagles. The procedure to repair the meniscus will be performed by orthopedic surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache. It will determine the timeline on how long Wilson will be sidelined. He’s currently expected to be out two to four weeks. There’s a chance he could be out longer depending on the condition of the knee.
Soccer: Defending champ Real Madrid overcame a slow start in their first match of the LaLiga season with a 2-1 comeback road win over newly-promoted Almeria. David Alaba netted a divine winner after Lucas Vazquez had drawn Madrid level following a surprise opener from Almeria’s Largie Ramazani in the sixth minute.