MORNING ROUNDUP

Griner leads U.S. to win over Latvia

Brittney Griner felt like a kid in timeout having to sit out the past two games because of a mild ankle injury.

She made an impressive debut in this year's FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Spain, scoring 15 points to lead the U.S. to a 102-76 victory over Latvia on Tuesday night.

With Latvia hanging around in the second half only down 11, Griner took over. She scored the first seven points during a 17-0 run to close the third quarter, including a three-point play with 2:16 left.

A'ja Wilson then scored the next seven points and Latvia was finished. The U.S. (3-0) doesn't play again until Friday.

The victory was the Americans' 19th in a row in the tournament and 44th in the past 45 games in the World Cup. The only blemish over the past 20 years was a loss to Russia in the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup.

Kaepernick ads not hurting Nike’s profits

Nike caused an uproar earlier this month with its ad featuring former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick that debuted just as the football season was about to begin. But the shoe maker's stock is up and sales have been steady.

The furor seems to have largely died down and the company reported an earnings beat on Tuesday.

While purpose-driven marketing can be a land mine for some companies, others like Nike have found it a useful way to appeal to their core demographic and differentiate themselves in an increasingly polarized political landscape.

Women’s title bout set in Atlantic City

Claressa Shields offered reporters a catchy play on words to promote her next fight.

The two-time Olympic champion will face unbeaten Christina Hammer of Germany in a middleweight unification bout Nov. 17 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The fight is a blockbuster between two of boxing's stars, and the two names lend themselves to some clever lines.

"Claressa Shields versus Christina Hammer," Shields said. "Make sure you guys use the shield, make sure you guys use the hammer. Make sure you guys use the graphics. You could make up all kind of stuff with this, OK?"

This fight may not need many promotional gimmicks. It's been anticipated for a while. Shields (6-0) holds the IBF and WBA titles at 160 pounds, and Hammer (23-0) has the WBC and WBO belts.