Ching’s goal sends Dynamo to East finals

MLS: Brian Ching scored at the end of the first half, and the Houston Dynamo defeated the visiting Philadelphia Union 1-0 Thursday night to advance to the MLS Eastern Conference finals.

Houston won the two-game series 3-1 on aggregate scoring after a 2-1 win Sunday at Philadelphia. The Dynamo play Sporting Kansas City on Sunday in Kansas City for the chance to move on to the MLS Cup for the first time since 2007 when they won their second of back-to-back titles.

Ching (Gonzaga University) scored in first-half stoppage time, taking a free kick by Brad Davis and heading it in from the penalty spot and into the upper right corner, just inside the far post.

Wild uncork offense in win over Canucks

NHL: Matt Cullen had two goals and an assist for Minnesota, and the Wild let their sputtering offense loose by dominating the Vancouver Canucks from start to finish with 45 shots on net in a 5-1 victory at St. Paul, Minn.

The Wild won their third straight game, all with backup Josh Harding in goal. After missing last season recovering from two torn ligaments in his knee, Harding is 3-0-1 – with 98 saves on 100 shots over his last three games.

• Red Wings’ slump continues: Jarome Iginla scored twice on similar one-timers, and the visiting Calgary Flames beat the slumping Detroit Red Wings 4-1. Detroit has lost six straight (0-5-1) after winning its first five.

Bradley moves toward third victory

Golf: A dream year for PGA champion Keegan Bradley might not be over yet.

Bradley relied on power off the tee and some big putts in the HSBC Champions for a 7-under-par 65 that gave him a two-shot lead after the opening round of the final World Golf Championship in Shanghai.

The 25-year-old rookie already has two wins on the PGA Tour, and the HSBC would count as a third. It might be enough to at least make tour players consider him as the player of the year. No one else has more than two wins this year.

Two shots behind were defending champion Francesco Molinari, Alex Noren and Malaysia winner Bo Van Pelt.

Rory McIlroy, with tennis star Caroline Wozniacki walking inside the ropes, opened with a 70.

• Couples, Haas share lead: U.S. Presidents Cup captain Fred Couples shot a 3-under 68 for a share of the lead with assistant captain Jay Haas after the first round of the Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Championship at San Francisco.

MLB players select Verlander for honor

Baseball: Detroit Tigers ace Justin Verlander was selected player of the year in voting by the Major League Baseball Players Association, becoming the second pitcher to earn the honor.

Verlander beat out Boston first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and New York Yankees outfielder Curtis Granderson for the Players Choice Award. The only other pitcher to win it was Boston’s Pedro Martinez in 1999.

• Hodges, Bavasi lead ballot: Former Dodgers first baseman Gil Hodges and general manager Buzzie Bavasi and former Athletics owner Charlie Finley are among 10 candidates for the baseball Hall of Fame who will be on the Veterans Committee ballot next month.

Ken Boyer, Jim Kaat, Minnie Minoso, Tony Oliva, Allie Reynolds, Ron Santo and Luis Tiant also will be on the Golden Era ballot, which will be voted on by the 16-member committee on Dec. 5.

• Cano powers MLB team: New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano doubled in a run in the seventh inning to help an MLB All-Star team beat Taiwan’s national team 5-3 in the second game of a five-game series at Taipei, Taiwan.

The MLB team also won 7-0 on Tuesday.

• McCourt must pay $131 million: Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt must pay his former wife and ex-team CEO Jamie McCourt $131 million by the end of April as part of their divorce settlement, according to a binding settlement filed in Los Angeles.

Jacobs’ work load may increase

NFL: New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs might get those extra carries he’s been asking for.

Starting back Ahmad Bradshaw has a broken bone in his foot and his status for Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots is uncertain. That means the disgruntled Jacobs could carry more of the load.

Giants coach Tom Coughlin disclosed that Bradshaw has a stress fracture.

Rahal team returns to IndyCar Series

Auto racing: Bobby Rahal will be back in the IndyCar Series next season with Honda engines and it could be with a full-time team.

The 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner is trying to finalize sponsorship deals for a two-car team for Rahal Letterman Lanigan, team spokesman Eric Mauk said in an email to The Associated Press.

• Martin expected to join Waltrip team: David Reutimann will not be back with Michael Waltrip Racing next season, the team announced.

MWR has a news conference scheduled today and is expected to announce that Mark Martin will take over the No. 00 Toyota next year.

• Penske keeps team in place: Team Penske will field its current three-car lineup in IndyCar next season.

The team said it will field cars for Ryan Briscoe, Helio Castroneves and Will Power – the same lineup Penske has fielded since 2009.