Carter and Billups headline Basketball Hall of Fame class
GLENDALE, ARIZ. >> Vince Carter wowed the basketball world with his highflying dunks for more than two decades. Chauncey Billups was a clutch guard and Finals MVP for the Detroit Pistons.
Two icons from the 2000s era of basketball are headed to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
The 13-member class announced Saturday also includes former Lakers, Grizzlies and Warriors executive Jerry West, who has already been inducted as a player and as a member of the 1960 U.S. Olympic team. Also in the class: players Seimone Augustus, Michael Cooper, Walter Davis, Dick Barnett and Michele Timms, coaches Charles Smith, Harley Redin and Bo Ryan, broadcaster/coach Doug Collins and owner Herb Simon.
The 2024 class will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, in August.
Baseball
BIEBER OUT FOR SEASON >>
Shane Bieber pitched until the pain stopped him.
Cleveland's ace will have season-ending Tommy John elbow surgery, a major blow to the Guardians and the 2020 Cy Young winner, who had looked like his dominant self in two strong recent starts.
Bieber struck out a league-leading 20 and pitched 12 scoreless innings in starts against Oakland and Seattle despite the elbow getting progressively worse.
FORMER MAJOR LEAGUER DIES >> Pat Zachry, who won a share of the 1976 National League Rookie of the Year for the World Series champion Cincinnati Reds and was traded to the New York Mets the following year for Tom Seaver, has died. He was 71.
Zachry died Thursday at son Josh's home in Austin, Texas, following a lengthy illness, Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said.
STRIDER INJURED >> Braves ace right-hander Spencer Strider has damage to the ulnar collateral ligament
in his right elbow, an MRI revealed, leaving his status for the remainder of the season in doubt.
The Braves said Strider will be evaluated further by Dr. Keith Meister in Arlington, Texas, at a date to be determined. Even though the team did not announce the severity of the damage, Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said the result “wasn't good.” STRASBURG OFFICIALLY RETIRED >> Stephen Strasburg, the 2019 World Series MVP whose career was derailed by injuries, officially was listed by Major League Baseball as being retired.
This had been the expected outcome for quite some time, but it was unclear when — and how — word would emerge. In August, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press that Strasburg had decided not to try to resume pitching.
The 35-year-old Strasburg was a hard-throwing right-hander who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 amateur draft and briefly rose to stardom, leading the franchise to the first championship in Nationals history.
Soccer
U.S. WOMEN BEAT JAPAN >> Lindsey Horan converted
a penalty kick in the 77th minute and the United States came from behind to defeat Japan 2-1 to open the SheBelieves Cup before a record crowd.
Jaedyn Shaw also scored for the United States in the match played before 50,644 fans at MercedesBenz Stadium, a record for a friendly match for the United States women on home soil. It was also the largest crowd for a women's game in the United States since the 1999 World Cup final.
Golf
BHATIA LEADING >> Akshay Bhatia birdied his last two holes at the TPC San Antonio for a 4-under 68, taking a four-shot lead over Denny McCarthy into the final round of the Valero Texas Open as he tries to get the last spot in the Masters.
McCarthy was the only player who managed to stay close to the 22-yearold Bhatia, and his three birdies in a four-hole stretch in the middle of the back nine enabled him to cut the lead to two shots. He closed with three pars for a 67.
GARCIA HAS LEAD >> Sergio Garcia birdied his final hole for a 4-under 68, giving him a two-shot lead in LIV Golf Miami as he goes
after his first title in the Saudi-funded circuit.
Garcia has lost in two playoffs during his three years with LIV, including one to Joaquin Niemann in Mexico at the start of the season.
Motor sports VERSTAPPEN WINS POLE >>
Max Verstappen claimed the pole for Red Bull in qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, poised to return to his unprecedented dominance in Formula 1 after the blip in Australia.
Verstappen clocked 1 minute 28.197 seconds, just 0.066 ahead of Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez. Lando Norris of McLaren and Carlos Sainz of Ferrari — the winner in Australia — will make up the second row.
Tennis
COLLINS WINS AGAIN >> Miami Open champion Danielle Collins won her 12th straight match and will play for a second straight title, defeating Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-3 in the Charleston Open semifinals.
Collins will go for lucky No. 13 in Sunday's final against Daria Kasatkina, who beat top-seeded Jessica Pegula in a third-set tiebreaker.