Nuggets make a turnaround
Nikola Jokic had 29 points and 12 rebounds, Jamal Murray added 24 points and the Nuggets rebounded from a flat performance to beat the Spurs 117-103 on Saturday in San Antonio and tie the series at two games each.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 24 points and nine rebounds for the Spurs. DeMar DeRozan added 19 points before he was ejected with five minutes remaining after arguing with an official over an offensive foul.
The Nuggets were more aggressive and physical after a deflating Game 3 loss, just as coach Michael Malone hoped.
“I want to see some emotion. I want to see some fire. I want to see some passion,” Malone said before the game.
Malone was able to stir that fire with a couple of changes. Torrey Craig started over a struggling Will Barton and was charged with defending Derrick White.
White was limited to eight points on 3-for-8 shooting after going 15for-21 on Thursday. Craig finished with 18 points, going 5-for-7 on 3-pointers. Barton finished with 12 points and made three of his 3-point all attempts.
76ers 112, Nets 108: Joel Embiid scored and rebounded. He blocked shots and even threw the most important pass of the game.
One thing he didn’t do is lose his cool after his foul triggered a scuffle.
Embiid had 31 points and 16 rebounds and passed to Mike Scott for the go-ahead 3-pointer with 18 seconds left as the 76ers beat the Nets to take a 3-1 series lead.
He also had a flagrant foul that led to a scuffle and two ejections.
“I know these guys are going to go at me because they want me to retaliate, so I’ve got to be mature when I’m on the court and just stay cool and not react,” Embiid said. “Today I could have reacted, but I felt like my team needed me more than they needed Jared Dudley.”
Embiid swung his arm forcefully while fouling Jarrett Allen, and Dudley quickly moved in and bumped Embiid. Jimmy Butler then ran in and pushed Dudley to start the shoving. Butler and Dudley were given technical fouls and ejected.
NFL: Former running back Reggie Cobb died at 50, the 49ers announced. He scouted for the team for the last 10 years. Details of his death were not disclosed. Cobb played in the NFL for seven years. He was drafted by the Buccaneers in 1990 and also played for the Packers, Jaguars and Jets.
Soccer: Cristiano Ronaldo played a key role on the winning goal, and Juventus beat Fiorentina 2-1 to clinch a record-extending eighth straight Serie A title. It’s the first time in Europe’s five major leagues — Italy, England, Spain, Germany and France — that a club has won eight straight titles. And it was a big relief for Juventus following its elimination by Ajax in the Champions League on Tuesday, after failing to clinch last weekend with a surprise loss at Spal. Ronaldo, who joined Juventus this season, became the first player to win the English Premier League (with Manchester United), the Spanish league (with Madrid) and Serie A.
Track and field: Former Olympic and three-time world champion Asbel Kiprop of Kenya was banned for four years for testing positive for EPO after his claim that urine samples might have been tampered with by disreputable doping control officers was rejected. The 2008 Olympic 1,500-meter champion failed an out-of-competition test in November 2017. His backup “B” sample also tested positive for EPO. His case was complicated when it was revealed he was given advance notice of the visit by Kenyan anti-doping officers — a breach of testing protocol. Kiprop also conceded he paid money to one of the anti-doping officers following the test. The 29year-old Kiprop, who won three straight world titles from 2011-2015, said his samples could have been tampered with when he left them unattended while he got his cellphone to make a money transfer to the anti-doping official.
Tennis: Fabio Fognini ended Rafael Nadal’s winning streak at the Monte Carlo Masters, stunning the defending champion 6-4, 6-2 to hand Nadal his first defeat in Monaco since the 2015 semifinals. Nadal is usually the undisputed crowd favorite on the French Riviera, but shouts of “Fabio, Fabio, Fabio” rang out at the Monte Carlo Country Club. Fognini will face unseeded Serb Dusan Lajovic in a final few would have predicted.