ODDS AND ENDS

Golf: Patrick Reed showed no sign of fatigue in his travels from Dubai to Hong Kong to the Bahamas in successive weeks, making birdie on three of his last five holes Thursday for a 7-under 65 and a share of the Hero World Challenge lead with late entry Patrick Cantlay.

Tournament host Tiger Woods was never under par at any point and opened with a 73, eight shots behind, tied for 16th in an 18-man field.

The World Challenge is his first 72-hole event since he won the Tour Championship at East Lake on Sept. 23, the end of a remarkable comeback season from a fourth back surgery.

■ Marc Leishman’s quest for a first professional victory at home made a good start with a 4-under 68 to sit two strokes behind Australian PGA first-round leaders Jake McLeod and Matt Jager.

College football: East Carolina fired coach Scottie Montgomery with the team 3-8 and assured its third straight losing season. Chancellor Cecil Staton announced the dismissal two days before the Pirates complete their season at North Carolina State. Defensive coordinator David Blackwell will be the interim head coach for that game and during the transition. Montgomery went just 9-26 with a 4-20 record in American Athletic Conference play.

College basketball: Topranked Gonzaga is heading into a tough stretch without two of its key players. Star forward Killian Tillie and guard Geno Crandall are sidelined for at least the next month with injuries suffered in practice. That leaves the Zags short-handed as they prepare to face No. 6 Tennessee, No. 11 North Carolina, Creighton and Washington in the next two weeks.