Update on the latest sports

NBA PLAYOFFS-SCHEDULE

76ers finish off Wizards without Embiid

UNDATED (AP) — No Joel Embiid (joh-EHL’ ehm-BEED’)? No problem as the Philadelphia 76ers advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs.

Seth Curry scored a playoff career-high 30 points and the Sixers beat Washington 129-112 to end the series in five games, overcoming Embiid’s absence because of a knee injury.

Tobias Harris added 28 points and teamed with Curry and Ben Simmons to carry the offensive load with Embiid out. Simmons had 19 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds to keep the top-seeded 76ers in the hunt for their first championship since 1983.

Embiid is day to day with a small lateral meniscus tear in his right knee. Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers says he expects his All-Star center to be back for the postseason.

The Hawks have earned the right to face the Sixers in the next round by disposing of the Knicks in five games.

Trae Young put the finishing touches on his impressive first playoff series with 36 points and nine assists, guiding the Hawks past the Knicks, 103-89. Young hit the winning shot with 0.9 seconds left in the opener and scored at least 20 points in each game. He made a 3-pointer with 43 seconds left Wednesday for a 15-point lead, then stood at midcourt and bowed to the crowd that jeered him all series.

Clint Capela backed up his confident words from a day earlier with 14 points and 15 rebounds.

Julius Randle had 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks to finish his disappointing first postseason. The winner of the NBA’s Most Improved Player award shot 8 for 21 from the field and finished 30% for the series.

The Hawks-Sixers series begins Sunday in Philadelphia.

NBA-NEWS

Ainge steps down

UNDATED (AP) — Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge (aynj) has retired and head coach Brad Stevens has moved into the front office. The moves came the morning after Boston’s season-ending loss to the Nets in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series. Ainge took over as the team president in 2003 and was voted the league’s top executive five years later, when Boston won its 17th championship.

Also in the NBA:

— Former University of Michigan men’s basketball coach John Bielein (BEE’-lyn) has been hired by the Pistons as a senior adviser for player development. Beilein spent 12 seasons with the Wolverines, winning 278 games and reaching the NCAA Sweet 16 five times in nine tournaments. He reached the 2013 and 2018 title games, losing both before leaving to become head coach of the Cavaliers for part of the 2019-20 season.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL-DUKE-KRZYZEWSKI

Krzyzewski to coach last season in 2021-22

UNDATED (AP) — Duke’s Hall of Fame basketball coach is about to hang up his whistle.

Mike Krzyzewski (shuh-SHEF’-skee) will step down at the end of next season. His successor will be former Duke player and associate head coach Jon Scheyer.

Krzyzewski issued a statement Wednesday saying he and his family view the announcement as a celebration.

The 74-year-old Krzyzewski has led Duke to five national championships, most recently in 2015. His 1,170 victories are the most in men’s Division I basketball history.

Scheyer coached the Blue Devils last season while Krzyzewski was in quarantine.

NHL-DRAFT LOTTERY

Sabres get top pick

SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) — The Buffalo Sabres were the NHL’s big winners on Wednesday after serving as the league’s biggest losers this season.

The Sabres have won the draft lottery and will have the No. 1 pick this summer. Buffalo had the best shot of getting the top pick after finishing a league-worst 15-34-7.

Two draws were held. The first determined the club selecting first overall and the second determined the team receiving the No. 2 choice.

Seattle will choose second, followed by Anaheim, New Jersey and Columbus. Detroit, San Jose, Los Angeles, Vancouver and Ottawa round out the top 10.

HORSE RACING-BAFFERT

Baffert suspended by Churchill Downs officials

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Bob Baffert won’t be strolling through the stalls at Churchill Downs for a while.

Track officials have suspended the Hall of Fame trainer for two years after an additional drug test of Medina Spirit confirmed the presence of the steroid betamethasone in the Kentucky Derby winner’s system. The next step could be the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission disqualifying Medina Spirit, expunging Baffert’s record seventh Kentucky Derby victory.

Baffert won’t be able to enter any horses in the Derby or other races at the storied track through the spring of 2023.

Churchill Downs reserves the right to extend Baffert’s suspension if he has any other violations in other states. Baffert has had five in the past 13 months.

New York banned Baffert indefinitely and prevented him from entering any horses in the Belmont Stakes.

MLB-SCHEDULE

Cubs stay hot

UNDATED (AP) — The Chicago Cubs hit the road having won nine of their last 10 games.

Javier Baez and Anthony Rizzo led the Cubs’ offense in a 6-1 win over the Padres. Baez launched his 14th homer of the season and third in three games, a two-run shot in the seventh inning. Rizzo was 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles, including a two-run two-bagger that snapped a one-all tie in the fifth.

Adbert Alzolay (AD’-burt AL’-zoh-ly) allowed one run on three hits and struck out seven in five innings for the win.

The Cubs homered eight times in sweeping the Padres in a three-game set at Wrigley Field for the first time since May 2012.

San Diego lost its fourth straight.

Also on the major league schedule:

— Francisco Lindor (lihn-DOHR’) had three hits and scored the winning run on Pete Alonso’s single in the ninth inning in the Mets’ 7-6 victory over the Diamondbacks. James McCann smacked a three-run homer and had four RBIs as the Mets took the rubber match of the three-game set to win for the sixth time in seven games.

— Ryan Mountcastle slammed a three-run homer that gave the Orioles a 6-1 lead in the seventh inning of a 6-3 decision over the Twins. DJ Stewart also went deep and Tyler Wells worked three innings of one-hit relief as the Birds won their second straight since a 14-game losing streak.

— The Indians postponed their game against the White Sox because of rain. The teams will play a split doubleheader on Sept. 23.

— The Phillies and Reds were rained out in Cincinnati. The game will be made up on June 28, a scheduled off day for both teams.

MLB-NATIONALS-STRASBURG

Strasburg hurt again

UNDATED (AP) — The Washington Nationals placed right-hander Stephen Strasburg on the 10-day injured list with a neck strain, the second time he’s been sidelined this season.

Strasburg flew to Washington to be examined on Wednesday after he complained of tightness in his shoulder and neck in Tuesday night’s 11-6 win over the Braves. The 32-year-old was pulled after only 1 1/3 innings.

FRENCH OPEN-DAY 4

Serena recovers in time to advance

PARIS (AP) — Serena Williams was able to win her second-round match at the French Open after being forced to three sets against 174th-ranked Mihaela Buzarnescu.

Williams advanced with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 victory, surviving a stretch in which her serve was broken three times in 10 games. By the end of the first set, Williams had won 20 of 23 points she served. She regrouped in the third set and stayed in line for a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title.

Next for the No. 7-seeded Williams is an all-American matchup against Danielle Collins, who overwhelmed Anhelina Kalinina 6-0, 6-2.

Joining Williams in the third round are third seed Aryna Sabalenka, 15th seed Victoria Azarenka and American Madison Keys, all in straight sets.

No. 10 Belinda Bencic (BEHN’-chihch) was the highest women’s seed to fall, losing 6-2, 6-2 to Daria Kasatkina.

Men’s No. 2 Daniil Medvedev has reached the third round in Paris for the first time by coming back from a poor start to eliminate American Tommy Paul in four sets. Medvedev had been 0-4 at Roland Garros heading into this tournament.

Winners on the men’s side include fifth seed Stafanos Tsitsipas and No. 6 Alexander Zverev, along with Americans John Isler, Reilly Opelka, Marcos Giron and Steve Johnson. No. 11 Roberto Bautista Agut (ah-GOO’) dropped a 6-3, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 decision to Henri Laaksonen.

French Open organizers say that both members of a men’s doubles team have tested positive for COVID-19 and have been dropped from the tournament. The tournament did not identify the players, who were placed in quarantine.

TENNIS-OSAKA

Relaxation app willing to pay tennis fines

PARIS (AP) — An app that bills itself as helping with “sleep, relaxation and meditation” says it is showing support for Naomi Osaka by offering to pay fines for tennis players who don’t fulfill 2021 Grand Slam media obligations for mental health reasons.

Calm also tweeted Wednesday that it would donate $15,000 to a group in France that it says works “in the mental health space.” That’s the amount Osaka was fined for skipping her postmatch news conference at the French Open.

The second-ranked Osaka said she didn’t want to speak to the press at Roland Garros. She later withdraw from the tournament, citing “huge waves of anxiety” before meeting with the media and said she has “suffered long bouts of depression.”

NFL-NEWS

49ers center Richburg retires

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers center Weston Richburg has retired at age 29 after a knee injury derailed his career.

Richburg missed the entire 2020 season recovering from knee surgery and remained on San Francisco’s roster until now to delay some of the salary cap impact until 2021.