Pacers pull away from Heat in Game 1
NBA: Paul George scored 24 points, David West had 19, and the Indiana Pacers protected their home court with a 107-96 victory over the Miami Heat on Sunday to take a 1-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.
Indiana led wire-to-wire and never even gave the Heat a chance to tie the score after starting the game with a 5-0 lead.
Dwyane Wade scored 27 points and LeBron James had 25 for the two-time defending NBA champions, who lost for only the second time in 10 playoff games.
Indiana extended the lead to 19 in the third quarter and Miami couldn’t get closer than nine the rest of the way.
Blackhawks handle Kings in Game 1
HOCKEY: Corey Crawford made 25 saves, Jonathan Toews had a big goal in the third period and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-1 in Game 1 of the Western Conference final.
Brandon Saad added a goal and an assist for Chicago, which remained perfect in seven home playoff games this year. Duncan Keith had a tiebreaking score in the third period.
Playing just two days after a Game 7 victory over Anaheim, the Kings got a second-period goal from Tyler Toffoli and outshot the Blackhawks 26-20. But Crawford made a couple of solid stops in another terrific performance.
• Johnson lifts U.S. over Finland: Defenseman Ryan Ellis scored in overtime to give Canada a 3-2 comeback victory over defending champion Sweden at the ice hockey world championship in Minsk, Belarus, while two goals from Spokane native Tyler Johnson lifted the United States 3-1 over Finland.
Johnson scored in the third to make it 2-0 with a wrist shot and added his second into an empty net with 46 seconds left for the U.S. to move into the second place in Group B.
Star forward Alex Ovechkin sustained a right leg injury during Russia’s 3-0 win over Germany and taken to a hospital for check-ups, while the Czech Republic overcame Norway 1-0.
Ovechkin took a hit to his right knee from forward Marcus Kink midway through the third period and the Washington Capitals star stayed on the ice for several minutes before he needed assistance to leave the ice.
Russia coach Oleg Znarok said he couldn’t “share any information now” about the injury, and that more details would be disclosed after Ovechkin was examined.
Russia’s victory secured the Americans a place among the top four teams which advance to the quarterfinals from each group.
Brazil runs World Cup stadium test matches
SOCCER: Brazilian organizers held the final two stadium tests for the World Cup, including at the troubled venue that will host the tournament opener in a few weeks.
Brazilian league matches were played to inaugurate the Itaquerao stadium in Sao Paulo and the Arena Pantanal in the western city of Cuiaba.
Now all 12 World Cup stadiums have held test events ahead of soccer’s showcase tournament.
None of the test matches were held at full capacity, however, as there is still a lot of work left to be done at the venues, including the installation of seats.
• Chicago defeats Sporting Kansas City: Mike Magee converted two penalty kicks in a 10-minute span of the first half and the Chicago Fire beat Sporting Kansas City 2-1 in an MLS match in Bridgeville, Illinois.
Sporting Kansas City, missing five players due to national team call and injuries, pressed 17-year-old defender Erik Palmer-Brown into service. He was ejected after picking up two yellow cards.
Palmer-Brown is the youngest player in MLS history to start as a defender, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Hornish Jr. takes Nationwide race
AUTO RACING: Sam Hornish Jr. beat Ryan Blaney off a restart with 21 laps to go and hung on to win the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Iowa Speedway in Newton.
Pole-sitter Ryan Blaney was second, followed by Regan Smith, Chase Elliott and Elliott Sadler in the first standalone event of the season.
Elliott has a two-point lead over Sadler and Smith in the series points standings.
• NHRA postponed: Rain Sunday at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga., forced NHRA officials to postpone the final eliminations in the Southern Nationals to today.
• Brabham passes away: Three-time Formula One champion Jack Brabham died early Monday at his home on the Gold Coast of Australia, his family said. He was 88.
He was known as Sir Jack in racing paddocks around the world after he was knighted in 1979. He won world titles in 1959 and 1960, and became the only F1 driver to win a world championship in a car of his own construction – the rear-engined BT19 – which he drove to the title in 1966.
Wiggins prevails in Tour of California
CYCLING: Bradley Wiggins of Britain won the Tour of California in Thousand Oaks after holding the lead for the final week.
The 2012 Tour de France winner finished in the pack in 20th place in the eighth and final stage captured by compatriot Mark Cavendish.
Wiggins defeated Australia’s Rohan Dennis of Garmin-Sharp by 30 seconds in the 720-mile race. American Lawson Craddock of Giant-Shimano was third overall, 1 minute, 48 seconds behind.
• Weening claims ninth stage in Giro: Pieter Weening of the Netherlands edged out Davide Malacarne to win the ninth stage of the Giro d’Italia in Sestola, Italy, while Cadel Evans retained the overall lead.
Weening had been part of a breakaway group and apologized to Malacarne as he sprinted past him at the end of the final climb of the 107-mile leg from Lugo to Sestola for his second individual victory.
Falcons WR White’s brother killed
MISCELLANY: Authorities say the brother of Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White has been shot and killed outside a South Carolina nightclub.
The Charleston County Coroner’s Office said 21-year-old Tyrone Moore Jr. died in the shooting early Saturday morning outside the Lake House Club south of Charleston. Investigators say no arrests have been made.
• Djokovic gets by Nadal: Novak Djokovic extended his recent dominance over Rafael Nadal by rallying for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory in Rome to win the Italian Open tennis title for the third time.
Having also been beaten in Monte Carlo and Barcelona recently, it marked the first time in a decade that the top-ranked Nadal has lost more than two matches on clay in the same year.
The second-ranked Djokovic has now won four straight matches against Nadal – the previous three in straight sets – and takes the psychological edge into the French Open, which starts next weekend.
In the women’s final, Serena Williams kept the crowd from being a factor in a 6-3, 6-0 victory over 10th-seeded home favorite Sara Errani to win her third Rome title.
• Marquez maintains streak: Marquez of Spain pulled off a remarkable comeback at the French Grand Prix in Le Mans, France, to earn his fifth win in as many MotoGP races this season.
Marquez slipped to 10th place on the opening lap despite taking pole position on Saturday, but the reigning world champion quickly made up ground on the Bugatti track and overtook Valentino Rossi of Italy on the 13th lap.
At 21, Marquez became the youngest rider to win five straight races in the top motorcycling category.