Update on the latest sports

NBA-NEWS

Curry, Sabonis win NBA Al-Star pregame contests

UNDATED (AP) — Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry is the NBA’s 3-point shooting champion for the second time in his career.

Curry finished first in both rounds to edge Utah’s Mike Conley and Boston’s Jayson Tatum. Curry had 28 points in the finals, one more than Conley.

Indiana forward Domantas Sabonis was the winner of the skills challenge, defeating Oaland forward Nikola Vucevic in the final. Sabonis knocked out New York’s Julius Randle in the first round and Dallas guard Luka Doncic in the second.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia 76ers standouts Joel Embiid (joh-EHL’ ehm-BEED’) and Ben Simmons were ruled out of Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game in Atlanta because of a coronavirus contact tracing issue.

The NBA made the announcement about eight hours before tipoff. The league said the two had contact with an individual who later tested positive for the coronavirus.

A person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press that the contact was with a barber who is regularly tested for COVID-19 and often works with Embiid and Simmons. The person said both Embiid and Simmons saw the barber in recent days before traveling to Atlanta and have continued to test negative.

The league said participation for other All-Stars and members of the 76ers coaching staff in Atlanta is not affected because they were not exposed to the individual.

T25 MEN’S BASKETBALL-SCHEDULE

Teague 35 points as No. 3 Baylor beats No. 18 Texas Tech

UNDATED (AP) — MaCio Teague scored 35 points while matching a school record with 10 made 3-pointers and No. 3 Baylor beat No. 18 Texas Tech 88-73 in the regular season finale.

The Big 12 champion Bears finished undefeated at home for the first time in 73 years.

Teague made 10-of-12 shots from long range. Jared Butler scored 18 points and Davion Mitchell 17 as Baylor finished 10-0 in the Ferrell Center.

Mark Vital had 10 points and 15 rebounds. Kyler Edwards had 18 points for Texas Tech in its most lopsided loss this season.

In other top 25 games Sunday:

— Rocket Watts scored 21 points and Aaron Henry had 18 to lead Michigan State to a 70-64 victory over No. 2 Michigan that seems to seal coach Tom Izzo’s 23rd consecutive NCAA Tournament bid. The Spartans have won five of their last seven games, beating No. 4 Ohio State, No. 5 Illinois and their second-ranked rivals during the late-season surge. Michigan senior guard Eli Brooks hurt his left ankle early in the game at the Breslin Center and did not return in what potentially could be a problem going into the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.

— Luka Garza scored 21 points and had 16 rebounds as No. 5 Iowa defeated No. 25 Wisconsin 77-73. It was the 12th double-double of the season for Garza, who leads the Big Ten in scoring and is third in the nation. Iowa has won seven of eight and is 20-7 overall. The Hawkeyes will be the third seed in the Big Ten Tournament.

— Tramon Mark hit a long 3-pointer as time expired to give No. 9 Houston a 67-64 win over Memphis. After Memphis had tied it with 1.7 seconds left, Marcus Sasser threw the ball to midcourt where Mark picked it up. He dribbled through two Memphis defenders and launched a 35-footer off the backboard ending a six- game winning streak for Memphis.

— Cameron Krutwig and Braden Norris scored 20 points apiece to help Loyola Chicago roll past Drake 75-65 in the Missouri Valley Conference championship game for a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Keith Clemons added 13 points for the Ramblers, who will be making their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance and first since the 2018 team reached the Final Four as a No. 11 seed.

NHL-SCHEDULE

Islanders cruise past Sabres 5-2 for 5th straight win

UNDATED (AP) — Anders Lee and Brock Nelson scored 62 seconds apart early in the second period and rookie Ilya Sorokin made 24 saves as the New York Islanders defeated the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 for their fifth straight win.

The victory was the Islanders’ sixth straight over the Sabres this season. Sorokin earned his fourth win of the season as the Islanders improved to 10-0-2 at Nassau Coliseum.

Last-place Buffalo lost for the seventh straight time.

Elsewhere in the NHL:

— Yanni Gourde, Ondrej Palat and Victor Hedman each scored a power-play goal in the second period, helping the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Chicago Blackhawks 6-3. Pat Maroon added his 100th career goal in the third period, giving Tampa Bay a season-high four goals with the man advantage. Gourde finished with two goals and two assists. The Lightning improved to 3-0-1 taking two of three in the series between Central Division contenders.

— Vincent Trocheck and James Reimer continued to torment their former team, lifting the Carolina Hurricanes to their fifth straight victory with a 4-2 win over the Florida Panthers. Trocheck scored for the fourth time this season against the Panthers. Nino Niederreiter, Sebastian Aho and Warren Foegele also had goals for the Hurricanes, who have won eight of 10 home games this season. Reimer made 21 saves to improve to 3-0-0 since being traded by the Panthers. MacKenzie Weegar and Mason Marchment scored for Florida, which had a five-game points streak snapped.

— Scott Wedgewood made 40 saves, Kyle Palmieri scored out of a scramble with 4:37 left and the New Jersey Devils snapped a five-game losing streak with a 1-0 victory over the Boston Bruins. Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask made 24 saves and remained stuck at 299 career victories. The Bruins have lost four of six games. Palmieri scored about two minutes after Wedgewood robbed Craig Smith’s bid at the end of a Bruins’ power play.

NHL-BRUINS-CARLO

Bruins coach: Carlo ‘feeling better,’ week-to-week after hit

BOSTON (AP) — Boston Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy says defenseman Brandon Carlo “is feeling better” but remains week-to-week from the hit that earned Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson a seven-game suspension.

Although no diagnosis has been released, Carlo was woozy leaving the ice after Wilson smashed his head into the glass.

The NHL suspended Wilson for the fifth time in his career on Saturday, the day after his hit in the first period of Friday night’s game sent Carlo to the hospital in an ambulance. The Capitals wing will also lose $311,781.61 in pay.

MLB-NEWS

Pirates acquire RHP Underwood in trade with Cubs

UNDATED (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates have acquired right-hander Duane Underwood Jr. in a trade with the Chicago Cubs.

Underwood went 1-0 with a 5.66 ERA in 17 games with Chicago during the pandemic-shortened season. He was designated for assignment on Tuesday. Underwood, a second-round pick in the 2012 amateur draft, is 1-1 with a 5.20 ERA in 30 career games.

The Cubs received minor league first baseman Shendrik Apostel in the deal. The 20-year-old Apostel was signed by the Pirates out of Curaçao in July 2017.

In other MLB news:

— The Washington Nationals have released reliever Jeremy Jeffress for what general manager Mike Rizzo called unspecified “personnel reasons.” The move comes less than two weeks after Jeffress agreed to terms on a minor league deal. Jeffress was expected to add to a a Nationals bullpen that already included Brad Hand, Daniel Hudson, Will Harris and Tanner Rainey. The 33-year-old Jeffress pitched for the Cubs last season.

— Cleveland Indians third baseman José Ramírez and slugger Franmil Reyes have been isolated from their teammates at spring training after breaking COVID-19 protocols when they dined indoors after getting haircuts. Manager Terry Francona said the two players have been sent to their temporary homes in Arizona as the Indians await word from the league as to when they can rejoin the team.

— Chicago Cubs reliever Pedro Strop is away from the team after he violated baseball’s COVID-19 protocols. The 35-year-old is in camp on a minor league deal. The Cubs said Major League Baseball will decide when Strop is allowed to rejoin the team.

NASCAR-LAS VEGAS

Larson gets for win since suspension

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Kyle Larson is back in NASCAR and back in victory lane.

On Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Larson raced to his first NASCAR victory since he was reinstated from a nearly yearlong suspension. He ran just the first four races last season, then lost his job for using a racial slur while playing a video game early in the pandemic.

He worked all last year on rebuilding his image and was hired by Hendrick Motorsports when NASCAR said the suspension would lift at the start of this year.

Brad Keselowski of Team Penske was second in a Ford and followed by hometown driver Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin in Toyotas for Joe Gibbs Racing.

Ryan Blaney was fifth for Penske and then Martin Truex Jr. and Bell put all four JGR cars in the top seven.

PGA-ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL

DeChambeau outlasts Westwood at Bay Hill

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The long ball helped Bryson DeChambeau outlast Lee Westwood on Sunday to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational, only the key shots were more with his putter than his driver.

DeChambeau holed a 40-foot birdie putt on the front nine and a 50-foot par putt early on the back nine. He closed it out with a nervy 5-foot par putt for a 1-under 71 and a one-shot victory over the 47-year-old Westwood.

It matched the low score of the day, one of only three rounds under par in the toughest final round at Bay Hill in 41 years.

DeChambeau and Westwood were never separated by more than one shot over the final 15 holes, a fascinating duel of generations that came down to the last shot.

GOLF-LPGA TOUR

Ernst wins Drive On Championship for 3rd LPGA Tour title

OCALA, Fla. (AP) — Austin Ernst won the Drive On Championship on Sunday for her third LPGA Tour title, pulling away to beat fellow former NCAA champion Jennifer Kupcho by five strokes at Golden Ocala. Ernst closed with a 2-under 70 to finish at 15-under 273. Kupcho had a double bogey and three bogeys in a 74.

Following sisters Jessica and Nelly Korda in the first two events of the year, Ernst gave the United States three straight victories to open a season for the first time since 2007.

The 29-year-old former LSU star from South Carolina, showing her school spirit with a purple shirt, also won the 2014 Portland Classic and the 2020 NW Arkansas Championship.

GOLF-NEWS

Koepka withdraws from Players Championship with knee injury

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Brooks Koepka is out of The Players Championship with a knee injury. This time it’s his right knee. His manager says only that the four-time major champion strained his right knee. Koepka is to meet with doctors this week to get a better idea of what’s going on. Koepka has been saddled the last few years with injuries to his left knee.

He ended 18 months without winning at the Phoenix Open last month. He was runner-up at the World Golf Championship last week. Koepka is being replaced at The Players Championship by Anirban Lahiri.