In brief: Buzzer-beater waived off; Hawks go on
NBA: Avoiding overtime in Game 6 when Paul Pierce’s potential tying 3-pointer was released after the clock expired, the visiting Atlanta Hawks made it to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time by beating the Washington Wizards 94-91 on Friday.
The Hawks held on thanks primarily to DeMarre Carroll’s playoff career-high 25 points.
Trailing by 3, the Wizards inbounded the ball with 6.4 seconds left. They got the ball to Pierce, who won Game 3 on a banked-in buzzer-beater. This time, his 3 from the corner swished through, but a replay determined it was too late.
Atlanta hosts the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the conference finals on Wednesday.
• Warriors advance to Western final: Stephen Curry scored 32 points, including a 62-footer to end the third quarter, and the visiting Golden State Warriors advanced to their first Western Conference finals since 1976 by beating the Memphis Grizzlies 108-95.
They advanced with some of the best shooting in the NBA postseason since 1985, becoming the first team since that year to hit 14 or more 3s in three consecutive playoff games. Curry was 8 of 13 from beyond the arc as the Warriors knocked down a playoff-best 15 3-pointers.
Marc Gasol led Memphis with 21 points and 15 rebounds.
Seahawks sign McGill; Slater to injured list
NFL: The Seahawks signed rookie defensive tackle T.Y. McGill to take the roster spot of injured defensive lineman Tory Slater.
Slater had been waived/injured on Thursday but cleared waivers and reverted to Seattle’s injured reserve list. He does not count against the Seahawks’ 90-man roster limit.
McGill started 21 of 49 career games at North Carolina State.
Big names chasing at Wells Fargo
Golf: Webb Simpson chipped in twice for birdie and shot a 5-under 67 for a share of the second-round lead with Robert Streb in the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Streb had a 69 to match Simpson at 10-under 134.
Top-ranked Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson were three shots back. Mickelson had a 66, and McIlroy matched Simpson’s 67.
Spokane native Alex Prugh shot 77-75 and missed the cut.
• Alison Lee leads Kingsmill Championship: Alison Lee shot a 4-under 67 to take a two-stroke lead in the LPGA Tour’s Kingsmill Championship in Williamsburg, Virginia.
The 20-year-old Lee, still a student at UCLA after turning pro in December, had a 9-under 133 total on Kingsmill Resort’s River Course.
Australia’s Minjee Lee and France’s Perrine Delacour were tied for second.
• Sutherland, Maggert share Regions Tradition lead: Kevin Sutherland and Jeff Maggert both eagled the par-5 11th hole and shared the second-round lead at 10 under in the Regions Tradition in Birmingham, Alabama.
Sutherland shot a 6-under 66 at Shoal Creek to catch up to Maggert, the opening-round leader in the first of the Champions Tour’s five majors.
Miscellany: The French Open is rapidly approaching and Rafael Nadal is suddenly not so dominant on clay anymore.
The Spaniard was beaten 7-6 (7), 6-2 by eighth-seeded Stan Wawrinka in the Italian Open quarterfinals in Rome.
The last time Nadal was beaten so many times on his favorite surface was 12 years ago – in his rookie season.
• Shields wins 200 fly to overshadow Phelps-Lochte: Former NCAA champion Tom Shields won the Arena Pro Swim Series’ 100-meter butterfly final in Charlotte, North Carolina, overshadowing the head-to-head matchup between Olympic gold medalists Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.
A second head-to-head matchup was avoided when Phelps failed to make the final in the 200 freestyle.
• Slovakia’s Peter Sagan takes Tour of California lead: Slovakia’s Peter Sagan took the Tour of California lead in Santa Clarita, California, in the sixth stage, racing to a dominating victory in the rescheduled and shortened individual time trial.
• Gatlin wins 100 at Diamond League opener: Justin Gatlin lived up to the preseason hype, winning the 100 meters in world-leading 9.74 seconds at the Diamond League opener in Doha, Qatar, for a personal-best time and a meet record.
Jasmin Stowers showed she’s a rising star by winning the 100 hurdles in a personal-best 12.35 seconds.
• Contador retains Giro lead: A day after dislocating his shoulder in a crash, Alberto Contador retained the overall lead in cycling’s Giro d’italia.
The Spaniard is attempting to become the first rider since Marco Pantani in 1998 to win the Giro and Tour de France in the same year.
The 98th Giro ends on May 31 in Milan.
• Hernandez lawyers ask judge to throw out conviction: Lawyers for former Patriots player Aaron Hernandez have asked a judge in Fall River, Massachusetts, to throw out his murder conviction.
Hernandez was convicted in April of first-degree murder and sentenced to a mandatory term of life in prison without parole.
A perjury charge was dropped against Hernandez’ fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins.
Prosecutors asked a judge to dismiss the charge, citing Jenkins’ testimony in Hernandez’s trial in March.