U.S. takes seventh in Cup
Donovan Mitchell scored 16 points and handed out 10 assists, Joe Harris scored 14 and the U.S. defeated Poland, 87-74, on Saturday for seventh place at the World Cup in Beijing, China.
Milwaukee Bucks star Khris Middleton had 13 points, six rebounds and six assists for the Americans, who will head home with a 6-2 record – yet their worst placing ever in a World Cup – world championship as it used to be known – or Olympics.
Derrick White scored 12 and Harrison Barnes added 10 for the U.S.
There was little to play for except pride, and the Americans were playing with the realization that, for some of them, it easily could be their last time wearing the red, white and blue uniforms with “USA” across the chest. The roster for the U.S. trip to the Tokyo Olympics next summer is likely to look considerably different from this one.
HOCKEY Washington Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov was suspended without pay for three regularseason games by the NHL for “inappropriate conduct,” less than a month after he was banned from playing for Russia for four years because of a positive test for cocaine.
The NHL announced its punishment, saying it followed a meeting in New York on Monday with Commissioner Gary Bettman, Kuznetsov and union representatives. The league did not elaborate on its decision. Kuznetsov will not appeal.
Kuznetsov, a key part of Washington’s run to the Stanley Cup in 2018, tested positive while playing for Russia at the world championship in May. He faced allegations of drug use at the world championship after a video posted on social media showed him near a table with lines of white powder and American dollar bills.
AUTO RACING
Stewart-Haas Racing surged into the opening race of NASCAR’s playoffs with a Clint Bowyer- led sweep of the front two rows for Sunday’s South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Bowyer had to claw his way into the playoff field, is seeded 15th, and last won a pole 12 years ago to the day at New Hampshire. He had gone 431 starts between poles.
The entire SHR fleet was fast, with Daniel Suarez qualifying second, followed by Kevin Harvick and Aric Almirola. Suarez is the only SHR driver not in the playoffs.
NHRA: Brittany Force broke the Top Fuel time record in qualifying for the Mopar Express Lane in Mohnton, Pennsylvania.
Force had a 3.623-second pass at 331.61 mph in the first race of the NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs. Erica Enders was the fastest in Pro Stock, and Angelle Sampey led the Pro Stock Motorcycle field, marking the first time three women’s have been No. 1 qualifiers in an event in the four professional divisions.
NBA
NBA teams could be fined up to $10 million for tampering and up to $6 million for entering into unauthorized agreements with players.
Other maximum-fine levels could be raised significantly as well, provided the league’s board of governors approves the measures Sept. 20. The league sent a memo to teams detailing the proposed fines.
The memo addresses what the league called a “widespread perception that many of the league’s rules are being broken on a frequent basis” when it comes to tampering and the timing of free agency discussions.