Bader stops Lawall

Ryan Bader made a quick and impressive debut in the heavyweight division, stopping Muhammed Lawall 15 seconds into the first round of the main event at Bellator 199 at San Jose.

Bader (25-5, 11 knockouts) sent Lawall sprawling to the mat with a crisp left hook — the first punch of the fight. Bader quickly pounced and landed repeated right hands before referee Mike Beltron stepped in to stop the fight, the last of the quarterfinal matches of the Bellator Heavyweight Grand Prix.

Bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes scored a fifthround technical knockout of Raquel Pennington in the main event of UFC 224 in Brazil. Former champion Vitor Belfort announced his retirement to the home crowd after being knocked out by Lyoto Machida.

Canada’s bid for a third title in four years suffered another blow at the ice hockey world championship in Denmark when it lost to Finland 5-1. Russia rebounded from a defeat to the Czech Republic by topping Switzerland 4-3.

The Chargers signed defensive tackle Justin Jones, a third-round pick from North Carolina State, to a four-year contract . ... The Detroit Lions signed offensive lineman Brett Kendrick, an undrafted rookie free agent out of Tennessee. The Lions also waived safety Anthony Sherrils . ... ... The Buffalo Bills signed first-round pick

Tremaine Edmunds of Virginia Tech to a four-year deal.

Some of the world’s top cyclists will begin the weeklong Amgen Tour of California in Long Beach on Sunday. The three-stage women’s race begins Thursday in Elk Grove, and proceeds alongside the men’s race to the finish May 19 in Sacramento.

Chelsea Gray had 17 points and 10 assists to lead the Sparks to an 82-61 victory over the China National Team in an exhibition game at Pasadena City College.

Minnesota basketball coach Richard Pitino said Pittsburgh’s Marcus Carr will join the Gophers. The transfer, who averaged 10 points a game for the Panthers, will have three years of eligibility left.

Clare Droesch, who helped lead the Boston College women’s basketball team to the 2004 Big East title, died of cancer at 36.