Sports briefs
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark reacts during the first half against the Minnesota Lynx, Thursday, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt)
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (20) and teammates stand together after a timeout during the second half of a WNBA game against the Minnesota Lynx, Sept. 18, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark reacts during the first half against the Minnesota Lynx, Thursday, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt)
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (20) and teammates stand together after a timeout during the second half of a WNBA game against the Minnesota Lynx, Sept. 18, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Trending
WNBA seems
evenly matched
NEW YORK (AP) -- The race for WNBA playoff seeding went down to the wire, illustrating just how evenly matched the eight teams heading into the postseason are. It’s why every coach, player and fan base in the playoffs believe they have a legitimate shot to win the title.
The Lynx will face the Liberty in the opening round -- a rematch of the 2024 WNBA Finals. No. 2 Golden State will play seven-seed Dallas, third-seeded Las Vegas will play No. 6 Indiana and fourth-seed Atlanta will host No. 5 Washington as the playoffs get underway Sunday.
Team USA
trails 7-3
MEDINAH, Ill. (AP) -- The Internationals delivered another sweep in foursomes and have the Americans on their heels in the Presidents Cup. Nick Taylor hit a 9-iron to a foot to save par on the 18th hole as he and fellow Canadian Corey Conners took down Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns.
British Open champion Ryan Fox holed two key birdie putts and closed out a par as he and Min Woo Lee toppled Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark. The sweep means the Internationals have a 7-3 lead.
It’s their largest after two sessions since 1998. That’s the only year they won the Presidents Cup.
Guerrero Jr.
apologizes
TORONTO (AP) -- Toronto Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has apologized for comments he made about his $500 million, 14-year contract. In a Spanish language interview, Guerrero said he was being paid for his past achievements, not future performance.
A clip of the interview became public on Wednesday. Guerrero faced criticism and expressed regret on Friday, saying he felt his fans and teammates deserved an apology. He promised to continue working hard to justify his contract.
Guerrero has struggled this season with injuries and a slump in performance. His contract is the third-largest in baseball history.
Bosa out
for 49ers
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- San Francisco 49ers star pass rusher Nick Bosa injured his calf warming up for practice earlier this week and will miss a few games. Coach Kyle Shanahan said that Bosa got hurt before practice on Thursday doing “high knees.”
Shanahan said Friday that the injury wasn’t believed to be long term but he would likely miss a few weeks starting with Sunday’s game against Arizona. The injury to Bosa is the latest to hit the defensive line for the 49ers.
No punishment
from NASCAR
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) -- Ryan Blaney arrived at Kansas Speedway on Friday with a black eye from a scuffle with Carson Hocevar. The tension between them has eased since the incident at Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend. Blaney called it “just a racing” thing and admitted he gets fired up quickly but calms down just as fast.
The brouhaha began when Blaney spun into the wall after a clash with Hocevar, impacting his championship hopes. After the race, Blaney confronted Hocevar on pit road, leading to a brief fight.
NASCAR chose not to punish either driver. Blaney agreed with the decision and was happy to move onto this week’s race at Kansas.