Luis Scola scored 23 points, Yao Ming added 19 points and 12 rebounds and the Houston Rockets made a second-half surge without injured seven-time All-Star Tracy McGrady to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-89 on Monday.
McGrady left the game in the opening minute of the second half after aggravating his surgically repaired left knee, but the Rockets were still able to mount a 14-3 run powered by Scola and Yao.
Kevin Durant had 29 points to lead the Thunder, Jeff Green scored 16 and Russell Westbrook added 14 points.
SPURS 86, CLIPPERS 83
At Los Angeles, Roger Mason’s 3-pointer with 8.4 seconds remaining lifted the San Antonio Spurs to an 86-83 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers for their third straight victory.
Mason, who led the Spurs with 21 points, got away from Ricky Davis near the top of the key and had no trouble nailing his third 3-pointer of the game after the Clippers had rallied from an 11-point deficit in the final 6{ minutes.
Baron Davis’ 3-point attempt as time expired didn’t come close.
Tim Duncan had 20 points, 15 rebounds and six blocked shots.
Michael Finley added 19 points for the short-handed Spurs, who have won nine straight and 17 of 18 over the Clippers.
JAZZ 109, SUNS 97
At Salt Lake City, Carlos Boozer had 21 points and 15 rebounds, Andrei Kirilenko added 19 points and two big blocks in the fourth quarter, and Utah snapped a three-game losing streak by beating Phoenix.
C.J. Miles scored a season-high 21 points and Brevin Knight had six assists and 12 points, going 6-for-7 from the floor as the Jazz got the Suns in foul trouble and pulled away in the second half.
Amare Stoudemire led Phoenix with 30 points and eight rebounds.
Steve Nash had 14 points and eight assists, but Shaquille O’Neal finished with just nine points and one rebound. O’Neal had back-to-back shots blocked by Kirilenko during Phoenix’s slump in the fourth quarter.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Forget Real Madrid, Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain, the world’s best soccer team — statistically speaking — might be a little-known outfit from the closed central Asian nation of Turkmenistan. Founded last year, Arkadag, named in honor of former Turkmen president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, have been unstoppable, notching up 36 consecutive domestic victories in a run still ongoing. The side have not lost a single competitive match and swept to a league and cup double in their inaugural season — success unthinkable almost anywhere else. However, in Turkmenistan, it could hardly have gone any other way. The energy-rich country is one of the most closed
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and