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AUDIO: Eagle Radio Sports for Tuesday

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

CHICAGO (AP) — White Sox manager Tony La Russa wound up a winner in his first game against the team that ensured his Hall of Fame induction as Chicago beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 behind Lance Lynn's arm and Andrew Vaughn's bat. The victory ended a three-game skid for the AL Central leaders, who were swept by the New York Yankees after winning 10 of 13. The NL Central-leading Cardinals dropped their second straight. Lynn held the Cardinals hitless for 5 1/3 innings. Vaughn hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the sixth. After winning a World Series in Oakland, La Russa guided the Cardinals to two World Series championships, three pennants and nine postseason appearances from 1996-2011.

CHICAGO (AP) — The birds-on-the-bat uniforms, the players in the other dugout, the opposing manager, it all looked familiar to Tony La Russa. Too familiar, in fact. The 76-year-old Hall of Fame manager of the Chicago White Sox found himself in a strange spot Monday night: Leading his club against the team he guided to a pair of World Series titles during a long, prosperous portion of his career, the St. Louis Cardinals. La Russa said the three-game series in Chicago would definitely be different, adding it would be a bit "distracting." La Russa and the White Sox wound up with a 5-1 win in the opener.

UNDATED (AP) — The St. Louis Blues go into an offseason of soul-searching after a second consecutive first-round exit following their Stanley Cup run in 2019. The Blues were swept by the Presidents' Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche and outscored 20-7. St. Louis didn't have a handful of its best players, but coach Craig Berube doesn't want to use injury or illness as an excuse. Winger Vladimir Tarasenko was almost at a loss for words and called the Blues' performance in the series embarrassing. More changes are coming to a team that already looks different than Game 7 of the 2019 Cup Final.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa basketball player Jordan Bohannon is recovering after sustaining a serious head injury while being assaulted. The university athletic department says the assault occurred early Sunday. Iowa City police did not immediately respond to a request for details. Coach Fran McCaffery says Bohannon is recovering well after being attacked by an individual he did not see coming at him. McCaffery says friends who were with Bohannon at the time kept the incident from escalating. Bohannon announced in April he would return to the Hawkeyes for his sixth season in 2021-22.&nbsp;

UNDATED (AP) — Automatic bids for the NCAA Tournament are on the line as conference baseball tournaments begin in earnest this week. The 16 NCAA regional hosts will be announced Sunday and the rest of the 64-team field next Monday. There are 30 automatic qualifiers instead of 31 this year because the Ivy League canceled its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Top seeds in Power Five conferences are Notre Dame in the ACC, Texas in the Big 12, and Arkansas in the SEC. The Big Ten's Nebraska and Pac-12's Arizona locked up bids by winning regular-season titles.

HOOVER, Ala. (AP) — The Southeastern Conference is loaded at the top, with No. 1 Arkansas followed closely by teams like Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Mississippi State. But Bulldogs coach Chris Lemonis's message is beware of those teams in the middle of the pack. The SEC Tournament runs Tuesday through Sunday at the Hoover Met in suburban Birmingham, with the top seeds opening play on Day 2 after a round of single-elimination games. Mississippi State is led by SEC player of the year Tanner Allen. Arkansas reliever Kevin Kopps is pitcher of the year.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Shannan Lum has been hired as recruiting coordinator for the Nebraska men's basketball program. Lum will be the second woman to hold the title at a Power Five school. The other is Bailey Bachamp. She's been Kansas State's recruiting coordinator and assistant to the head coach for four years. Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg created the recruiting coordinator job after last season. Lum will monitor the NCAA transfer portal, implement and manage the team's recruiting database and assist with recruiting research. She also will help the staff with scouting and game preparation.

Bucks capitalize on hot start to roll past Heat 132-98

UNDATED (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH'-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON'-poh) scored 31 points and Bryn Forbes led Milwaukee's scorching start from 3-point range as the Bucks trounced the Miami Heat 132-98 to extend their lead in this first-round playoff series. 

Milwaukee shot 22 of 53 from 3-point range – including 15 of 29 in the first half – and never trailed while leading by as many as 36 points. The Bucks' 22 3-pointers were their highest total ever in a playoff game. 

The Bucks own a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series as they attempt to oust the team that beat them 4-1 in the second round last year. Game 3 takes place Thursday in Miami.

— Nikola Jokic scored 38 points to overcome a 3-point shooting barrage from Damian Lillard and the Denver Nuggets evened the first-round series by beating the Portland Trail Blazers 128-109 in a chippy Game 2. Jokic also had eight rebounds and five assists. The Nuggets had few answers for Lillard early on as the dynamic playmaker scored 32 of his 42 points in the first half. His eight 3-pointers before intermission tied an NBA playoff record for most in a half. Lillard finished 9 of 16 from 3-point range. Game 3 will be in Portland.

GM Myers confident Warriors will re-sign Stephen Curry

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Warriors general manager Bob Myers is confident Golden State will sign newly crowned scoring champion Stephen Curry to a contract extension this offseason. 

Curry said in December that discussions were underway and that he is fully committed. The two-time NBA MVP signed a $201 million, five-year contract in July 2017 that initially was the richest ever, until James Harden topped it with a $228 million extension from the Rockets. Curry also has yet to make a formal decision on whether to play in the Tokyo Olympics. 

Rielly lifts Maple Leafs to 2-1 win over Canadiens in Game 3

UNDATED (AP) — Morgan Rielly scored the go-ahead goal in the second period, Jack Campbell made 27 saves, and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series.

William Nylander scored his third goal in as many games for Toronto, which hasn't won a playoff series since 2004. Game 4 is Tuesday night in Montreal. Nick Suzuki had the lone goal for Montreal, and Carey Price stopped 27 shots. The Maple Leafs remained without captain John Tavares, who's expected to miss at least two weeks with a concussion and knee injury suffered during a scary collision in Game 1. 

— Nikolaj Ehlers scored his second goal of the game at 9:13 in overtime, completing a massive rally for the Winnipeg Jets who erased a three-goal deficit in the third period to beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 and take a 3-0 lead in their opening-round playoff series. Mathieu Perreault, Blake Wheeler and Josh Morrissey each scored for Winnipeg in a stretch of 3:03 of the third to tie it and send it to overtime. The Jets can sweep the series Monday night with Game 4 in Edmonton. Leon Draisaitl had two goals and an assist for Edmonton, Zack Kassian and Jujhar Khaira also scored and Connor McDavid had three assists. 

— The Florida Panthers entrusted their season to a rookie goalie making his playoff debut. Spencer Knight delivered. The 20-year-old Knight stopped 36 shots, Mackenzie Weegar had a goal and an assist, and the Panthers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 in Game 5 of their Central Division playoff series. The Lightning still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 and host Game 6 on Wednesday night. 

— Josh Bailey scored 51 seconds into the second overtime to lift the New York Islanders to a 3-2 victory over Pittsburgh in Game 5 of their first-round series. Bailey took advantage of a giveaway by Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry to fire the puck into the empty net as New York grabbed a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Anthony Beauvillier and Jordan Eberle also scored for New York. Rookie goaltender Ilya Sorokin stopped 48 shots for the Islanders. Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust scored for Pittsburgh but the Penguins are in danger of a third straight early playoff exit.

Rays win 11th in a row, score 7 in 11th to beat Toronto 14-8

UNDATED (AP) —Francisco Mejía (meh-HEE'-yah) hit a tiebreaking, two-run single during a seven-run burst in the 11th inning and the Tampa Bay Rays won their 11th straight game, outlasting the Toronto Blue Jays 14-8. Tampa Bay moved within one win of the team record for consecutive victories.

In 2004, playing as the Devil Rays, they won 12 in a row under manager Lou Piniella. After both teams scored twice in the 10th to make it 7-all, the Rays erupted. Joey Wendle hit an early grand slam for Tampa Bay. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit two of Toronto's five home runs. The Blue Jays lost their sixth in a row.

— Kyle Lewis homered and made a diving catch in center field, Yusei Kikuchi (YOO'-say kih-KOO'-chee) pitched six smooth innings before leaving with a possible back injury, and the Seattle Mariners ended a six-game losing streak by beating the Oakland Athletics 4-2. Jarred Kelenic also went deep for Seattle, playing its sixth of 12 straight road games in California covering separate trips. 

— Brewers closer Josh Hader stopped San Diego's rally in the ninth inning and the Padres' nine-game winning streak ended with a 5-3 loss to Milwaukee. The Padres were fresh off sweeping a nine-game homestand. Hade notched his 11th save of the season.

— White Sox manager Tony La Russa wound up a winner in his first game against the team that ensured his Hall of Fame induction as Chicago beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 behind Lance Lynn's arm and Andrew Vaughn's bat. The victory ended a three-game skid for the AL Central leaders, who were swept by the New York Yankees after winning 10 of 13. The NL Central-leading Cardinals dropped their second straight. 

— Mitch Garver hit a two-run double and the short-handed Minnesota Twins used a six-run eighth inning to beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-3. Baltimore's DJ Stewart hit a two-run homer for a 3-2 lead as the first batter following a 45-minute rain delay in the eighth. But Minnesota rallied with six straight two-out hits in the bottom half. 

— Jordan Luplow made a diving catch on Eric Haase's sinking liner to right field with the bases loaded, preserving a 6-5 victory for the Cleveland Indians over the Detroit Tigers. Luplow, who entered as a defensive replacement an inning earlier, made the catch look rather easy, but the ninth inning was anything but for closer Emmanuel Clase, who held on for his eighth save in nine chances. Spencer Turnbull allowed three runs in six innings for Detroit in his first game since pitching a no-hitter last week.

— Adam Duvall hit a three-run homer and Jesús Aguilar drove in two runs with a double and a single to help the Miami Marlins beat the Philadelphia Phillies 9-6. Corey Dickerson hit a tiebreaking two-run triple in the sixth, and Garrett Cooper had two hits and an RBI off the bench for the Marlins. They've won five of their past six and closed within one game of the NL East-leading New York Mets. 

— Austin Gomber pitched two-hit ball through eight innings, Ryan McMahon and Elias Díaz hit second-inning home runs off David Peterson and the Colorado Rockies beat the banged-up New York Mets 3-2 for a rare road win. 

Mets' Conforto, McNeil likely out until late June

UNDATED (AP) — New York Mets right fielder Michael Conforto and second baseman Jeff McNeil have hamstring injuries that are likely to keep them out of action for another month. Conforto and McNeil both got hurt on April 30. 

Right-hander Carlos Carrasco, sidelined by a strained right hamstring, won't be ready to pitch for the Mets until late June or early July. New York has a major league-high 16 players on the injured list. Right-hander Yordan Yamamoto, bothered by shoulder soreness, is likely to go on the IL on Tuesday. 

In interview, Jones says he's ready to leave Falcons

ATLANTA (AP) — Wide receiver Julio Jones says he's ready to leave the Atlanta Falcons. The 32-year-old star told FS1 "Undisputed" host Shannon Sharpe via telephone that "I'm outta there" in a brief interview. 

Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot has been reportedly entertaining trade offers for Jones since last month. When asked where he wants to play, Jones replied, "Right now, I wanna win."

— Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers wasn't present for the first day of organized team activities. These OTA sessions are voluntary, but Rodgers generally has participated in them in the past. ESPN first reported Rodgers wasn't with the team on Monday. Rodgers' decision not to participate this time comes amid reports that the reigning MVP doesn't want to return to the Packers. The Packers have said they have no plans to trade Rodgers.

— Matthew Stafford says his offseason thumb surgery isn't an impediment to anything he wants to do during his first offseason workouts with the Los Angeles Rams. Learning a new offense and getting to know every player in the Rams' locker room present more than enough challenges for the veteran passer, but he's confident he has enough time to get everything done. And after the NFL missed out on most offseason team work last spring due to the coronavirus pandemic, Stafford is grateful he picked this year to switch teams.

— The Denver Broncos' latest quarterback competition kicked off Monday when Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater shared snaps at the team's start of Phase III on-field workouts. Lock is the incumbent and he says he's been so busy fixing flaws in his game this offseason that he hasn't paid any attention to one report after another that his job was in jeopardy. 

Sun coach suspended, fined for comment about player's weight

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut Sun coach Curt Miller has been fined $10,000 and suspended for one game for a remark he made to a referee about the weight of Las Vegas Aces' post Liz Cambage. 

In a social media post following the Aces' 72-65 loss to the Sun on Sunday, Cambage said Miller had disrespected her during the game, saying she weighed 300 pounds while arguing whether a call should have gone the Sun's way. Cambage said she will never let a man disrespect her. Miller issued a statement Monday apologizing to Cambage and the Aces organization. 

US warns against all travel to Japan as Olympics loom

UNDATED (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the State Department are warning Americans against all travel to Japan because of a surge in coronavirus cases in the country as it prepares to host the Olympics in just two months. 

The twin alerts issued Monday don't ban U.S. citizens from visiting the country, but they could have an impact on insurance rates for travelers and may factor into decisions by Olympic athletes and spectators on whether to compete in or attend the games, which are due to start in July. The United States Olympic &amp; Paralympic Committee said it still anticipates that American athletes will be able to safely compete.

— The governor of New Jersey has cleared the way for the Giants and Jets to play games at MetLife Stadium at full capacity for the 2021 NFL season. 

Meanwhile, Carolina Panthers president Tom Glick says Bank of America Stadium will open at full capacity for all events this year, including NFL and college games. The Panthers had extremely limited seating last year due to COVID-19.

And the University of Maryland will allow full seating capacity for the 2021-22 season at home games for its sports teams now that coronavirus restrictions have been lifted locally.

<h2>Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press</h2>CHICAGO (AP) — White Sox manager Tony La Russa wound up a winner in his first game against the team that ensured his Hall of Fame induction as Chicago beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 behind Lance Lynn's arm and Andrew Vaughn's bat. The victory ended a three-game skid for the AL Central leaders, who were swept by the New York Yankees after winning 10 of 13. The NL Central-leading Cardinals dropped their second straight. Lynn held the Cardinals hitless for 5 1/3 innings. Vaughn hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the sixth. After winning a World Series in Oakland, La Russa guided the Cardinals to two World Series championships, three pennants and nine postseason appearances from 1996-2011.CHICAGO (AP) — The birds-on-the-bat uniforms, the players in the other dugout, the opposing manager, it all looked familiar to Tony La Russa. Too familiar, in fact. The 76-year-old Hall of Fame manager of the Chicago White Sox found himself in a strange spot Monday night: Leading his club against the team he guided to a pair of World Series titles during a long, prosperous portion of his career, the St. Louis Cardinals. La Russa said the three-game series in Chicago would definitely be different, adding it would be a bit "distracting." La Russa and the White Sox wound up with a 5-1 win in the opener.UNDATED (AP) — The St. Louis Blues go into an offseason of soul-searching after a second consecutive first-round exit following their Stanley Cup run in 2019. The Blues were swept by the Presidents' Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche and outscored 20-7. St. Louis didn't have a handful of its best players, but coach Craig Berube doesn't want to use injury or illness as an excuse. Winger Vladimir Tarasenko was almost at a loss for words and called the Blues' performance in the series embarrassing. More changes are coming to a team that already looks different than Game 7 of the 2019 Cup Final.IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa basketball player Jordan Bohannon is recovering after sustaining a serious head injury while being assaulted. The university athletic department says the assault occurred early Sunday. Iowa City police did not immediately respond to a request for details. Coach Fran McCaffery says Bohannon is recovering well after being attacked by an individual he did not see coming at him. McCaffery says friends who were with Bohannon at the time kept the incident from escalating. Bohannon announced in April he would return to the Hawkeyes for his sixth season in 2021-22.&nbsp;UNDATED (AP) — Automatic bids for the NCAA Tournament are on the line as conference baseball tournaments begin in earnest this week. The 16 NCAA regional hosts will be announced Sunday and the rest of the 64-team field next Monday. There are 30 automatic qualifiers instead of 31 this year because the Ivy League canceled its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Top seeds in Power Five conferences are Notre Dame in the ACC, Texas in the Big 12, and Arkansas in the SEC. The Big Ten's Nebraska and Pac-12's Arizona locked up bids by winning regular-season titles.HOOVER, Ala. (AP) — The Southeastern Conference is loaded at the top, with No. 1 Arkansas followed closely by teams like Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Mississippi State. But Bulldogs coach Chris Lemonis's message is beware of those teams in the middle of the pack. The SEC Tournament runs Tuesday through Sunday at the Hoover Met in suburban Birmingham, with the top seeds opening play on Day 2 after a round of single-elimination games. Mississippi State is led by SEC player of the year Tanner Allen. Arkansas reliever Kevin Kopps is pitcher of the year.LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Shannan Lum has been hired as recruiting coordinator for the Nebraska men's basketball program. Lum will be the second woman to hold the title at a Power Five school. The other is Bailey Bachamp. She's been Kansas State's recruiting coordinator and assistant to the head coach for four years. Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg created the recruiting coordinator job after last season. Lum will monitor the NCAA transfer portal, implement and manage the team's recruiting database and assist with recruiting research. She also will help the staff with scouting and game preparation.NBA PLAYOFFSBucks capitalize on hot start to roll past Heat 132-98UNDATED (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH'-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON'-poh) scored 31 points and Bryn Forbes led Milwaukee's scorching start from 3-point range as the Bucks trounced the Miami Heat 132-98 to extend their lead in this first-round playoff series. Milwaukee shot 22 of 53 from 3-point range – including 15 of 29 in the first half – and never trailed while leading by as many as 36 points. The Bucks' 22 3-pointers were their highest total ever in a playoff game. The Bucks own a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series as they attempt to oust the team that beat them 4-1 in the second round last year. Game 3 takes place Thursday in Miami.In the second NBA playoff game:— Nikola Jokic scored 38 points to overcome a 3-point shooting barrage from Damian Lillard and the Denver Nuggets evened the first-round series by beating the Portland Trail Blazers 128-109 in a chippy Game 2. Jokic also had eight rebounds and five assists. The Nuggets had few answers for Lillard early on as the dynamic playmaker scored 32 of his 42 points in the first half. His eight 3-pointers before intermission tied an NBA playoff record for most in a half. Lillard finished 9 of 16 from 3-point range. Game 3 will be in Portland.NBA-NEWSGM Myers confident Warriors will re-sign Stephen CurrySAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Warriors general manager Bob Myers is confident Golden State will sign newly crowned scoring champion Stephen Curry to a contract extension this offseason. Curry said in December that discussions were underway and that he is fully committed. The two-time NBA MVP signed a $201 million, five-year contract in July 2017 that initially was the richest ever, until James Harden topped it with a $228 million extension from the Rockets. Curry also has yet to make a formal decision on whether to play in the Tokyo Olympics. NHL-PLAYOFFSRielly lifts Maple Leafs to 2-1 win over Canadiens in Game 3UNDATED (AP) — Morgan Rielly scored the go-ahead goal in the second period, Jack Campbell made 27 saves, and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series.William Nylander scored his third goal in as many games for Toronto, which hasn't won a playoff series since 2004. Game 4 is Tuesday night in Montreal. Nick Suzuki had the lone goal for Montreal, and Carey Price stopped 27 shots. The Maple Leafs remained without captain John Tavares, who's expected to miss at least two weeks with a concussion and knee injury suffered during a scary collision in Game 1. In other playoff action:— Nikolaj Ehlers scored his second goal of the game at 9:13 in overtime, completing a massive rally for the Winnipeg Jets who erased a three-goal deficit in the third period to beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 and take a 3-0 lead in their opening-round playoff series. Mathieu Perreault, Blake Wheeler and Josh Morrissey each scored for Winnipeg in a stretch of 3:03 of the third to tie it and send it to overtime. The Jets can sweep the series Monday night with Game 4 in Edmonton. Leon Draisaitl had two goals and an assist for Edmonton, Zack Kassian and Jujhar Khaira also scored and Connor McDavid had three assists. — The Florida Panthers entrusted their season to a rookie goalie making his playoff debut. Spencer Knight delivered. The 20-year-old Knight stopped 36 shots, Mackenzie Weegar had a goal and an assist, and the Panthers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 in Game 5 of their Central Division playoff series. The Lightning still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 and host Game 6 on Wednesday night. — Josh Bailey scored 51 seconds into the second overtime to lift the New York Islanders to a 3-2 victory over Pittsburgh in Game 5 of their first-round series. Bailey took advantage of a giveaway by Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry to fire the puck into the empty net as New York grabbed a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Anthony Beauvillier and Jordan Eberle also scored for New York. Rookie goaltender Ilya Sorokin stopped 48 shots for the Islanders. Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust scored for Pittsburgh but the Penguins are in danger of a third straight early playoff exit.MLBRays win 11th in a row, score 7 in 11th to beat Toronto 14-8UNDATED (AP) —Francisco Mejía (meh-HEE'-yah) hit a tiebreaking, two-run single during a seven-run burst in the 11th inning and the Tampa Bay Rays won their 11th straight game, outlasting the Toronto Blue Jays 14-8. Tampa Bay moved within one win of the team record for consecutive victories.In 2004, playing as the Devil Rays, they won 12 in a row under manager Lou Piniella. After both teams scored twice in the 10th to make it 7-all, the Rays erupted. Joey Wendle hit an early grand slam for Tampa Bay. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit two of Toronto's five home runs. The Blue Jays lost their sixth in a row.In other major league action:— Kyle Lewis homered and made a diving catch in center field, Yusei Kikuchi (YOO'-say kih-KOO'-chee) pitched six smooth innings before leaving with a possible back injury, and the Seattle Mariners ended a six-game losing streak by beating the Oakland Athletics 4-2. Jarred Kelenic also went deep for Seattle, playing its sixth of 12 straight road games in California covering separate trips. — Brewers closer Josh Hader stopped San Diego's rally in the ninth inning and the Padres' nine-game winning streak ended with a 5-3 loss to Milwaukee. The Padres were fresh off sweeping a nine-game homestand. Hade notched his 11th save of the season.— White Sox manager Tony La Russa wound up a winner in his first game against the team that ensured his Hall of Fame induction as Chicago beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 behind Lance Lynn's arm and Andrew Vaughn's bat. The victory ended a three-game skid for the AL Central leaders, who were swept by the New York Yankees after winning 10 of 13. The NL Central-leading Cardinals dropped their second straight. — Mitch Garver hit a two-run double and the short-handed Minnesota Twins used a six-run eighth inning to beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-3. Baltimore's DJ Stewart hit a two-run homer for a 3-2 lead as the first batter following a 45-minute rain delay in the eighth. But Minnesota rallied with six straight two-out hits in the bottom half. — Jordan Luplow made a diving catch on Eric Haase's sinking liner to right field with the bases loaded, preserving a 6-5 victory for the Cleveland Indians over the Detroit Tigers. Luplow, who entered as a defensive replacement an inning earlier, made the catch look rather easy, but the ninth inning was anything but for closer Emmanuel Clase, who held on for his eighth save in nine chances. Spencer Turnbull allowed three runs in six innings for Detroit in his first game since pitching a no-hitter last week.— Adam Duvall hit a three-run homer and Jesús Aguilar drove in two runs with a double and a single to help the Miami Marlins beat the Philadelphia Phillies 9-6. Corey Dickerson hit a tiebreaking two-run triple in the sixth, and Garrett Cooper had two hits and an RBI off the bench for the Marlins. They've won five of their past six and closed within one game of the NL East-leading New York Mets. — Austin Gomber pitched two-hit ball through eight innings, Ryan McMahon and Elias Díaz hit second-inning home runs off David Peterson and the Colorado Rockies beat the banged-up New York Mets 3-2 for a rare road win. Mets' Conforto, McNeil likely out until late JuneUNDATED (AP) — New York Mets right fielder Michael Conforto and second baseman Jeff McNeil have hamstring injuries that are likely to keep them out of action for another month. Conforto and McNeil both got hurt on April 30. Right-hander Carlos Carrasco, sidelined by a strained right hamstring, won't be ready to pitch for the Mets until late June or early July. New York has a major league-high 16 players on the injured list. Right-hander Yordan Yamamoto, bothered by shoulder soreness, is likely to go on the IL on Tuesday. NFLIn interview, Jones says he's ready to leave FalconsATLANTA (AP) — Wide receiver Julio Jones says he's ready to leave the Atlanta Falcons. The 32-year-old star told FS1 "Undisputed" host Shannon Sharpe via telephone that "I'm outta there" in a brief interview. Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot has been reportedly entertaining trade offers for Jones since last month. When asked where he wants to play, Jones replied, "Right now, I wanna win."Elsewhere in the NFL:— Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers wasn't present for the first day of organized team activities. These OTA sessions are voluntary, but Rodgers generally has participated in them in the past. ESPN first reported Rodgers wasn't with the team on Monday. Rodgers' decision not to participate this time comes amid reports that the reigning MVP doesn't want to return to the Packers. The Packers have said they have no plans to trade Rodgers.— Matthew Stafford says his offseason thumb surgery isn't an impediment to anything he wants to do during his first offseason workouts with the Los Angeles Rams. Learning a new offense and getting to know every player in the Rams' locker room present more than enough challenges for the veteran passer, but he's confident he has enough time to get everything done. And after the NFL missed out on most offseason team work last spring due to the coronavirus pandemic, Stafford is grateful he picked this year to switch teams.— The Denver Broncos' latest quarterback competition kicked off Monday when Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater shared snaps at the team's start of Phase III on-field workouts. Lock is the incumbent and he says he's been so busy fixing flaws in his game this offseason that he hasn't paid any attention to one report after another that his job was in jeopardy. SUN-MILLER APOLOGYSun coach suspended, fined for comment about player's weightUNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut Sun coach Curt Miller has been fined $10,000 and suspended for one game for a remark he made to a referee about the weight of Las Vegas Aces' post Liz Cambage. In a social media post following the Aces' 72-65 loss to the Sun on Sunday, Cambage said Miller had disrespected her during the game, saying she weighed 300 pounds while arguing whether a call should have gone the Sun's way. Cambage said she will never let a man disrespect her. Miller issued a statement Monday apologizing to Cambage and the Aces organization. VIRUS OUTBREAK-SPORTSUS warns against all travel to Japan as Olympics loomUNDATED (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the State Department are warning Americans against all travel to Japan because of a surge in coronavirus cases in the country as it prepares to host the Olympics in just two months. The twin alerts issued Monday don't ban U.S. citizens from visiting the country, but they could have an impact on insurance rates for travelers and may factor into decisions by Olympic athletes and spectators on whether to compete in or attend the games, which are due to start in July. The United States Olympic &amp; Paralympic Committee said it still anticipates that American athletes will be able to safely compete.In other virus outbreak sports items:— The governor of New Jersey has cleared the way for the Giants and Jets to play games at MetLife Stadium at full capacity for the 2021 NFL season. Meanwhile, Carolina Panthers president Tom Glick says Bank of America Stadium will open at full capacity for all events this year, including NFL and college games. The Panthers had extremely limited seating last year due to COVID-19.And the University of Maryland will allow full seating capacity for the 2021-22 season at home games for its sports teams now that coronavirus restrictions have been lifted locally.<a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Sports Headlines for Tuesday

May 24, 2021 Afternoon Sports

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The 2020-21 Hutchinson Community College football team has already scratched one goal off the preseason wish list – a Jayhawk Conference championship.

Now the Blue Dragons get to go after the other coveted item on that list – to play for a national championship.

The NJCAA announced on Monday that the No. 1-ranked Blue Dragons (7-0) will play No. 2 Snow College (8-0) in the 2020-21 NJCAA Football Championship game. The game will be played at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas, at 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 5.

The game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network.

Tickets for the NJCAA Football National Championship presented by Bob McCloskey Insurance can be purchased online at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.njcaa.org/tickets">https://www.njcaa.org/tickets</a>. Tickets will range from $12 to $45.

The Blue Dragon Athletic Department is planning on a “Fan Bus” for the championship game. Details on the Fan Bus will be released later this week.

The Blue Dragons will play for a national championship for the first time in the program’s 89-year history. The highest final ranking the Blue Dragons have ever had in football was No. 3 after the 2019 season. The only other seasons the Blue Dragons finished undefeated were 1947 and 1969.

The championship game matchup will be the first between Hutchinson and Snow.

The Badgers will be looking for their second national title in football. Snow won the 1985 championship defeating NEO in the Mid-America Bowl. Snow also played in the 2008 national championship game and lost 37-30 in double overtime to Butler.

That was the first year that the NJCAA started designating bowl games as the national championship game. Then in 2018, the NJCAA created a game for the Nos. 1 and 2 teams in the final poll to play for the national championship. In 2018 and 2019, those games were at Pittsburg State University’s Brandenburg Stadium.

Under first-year head coach Drew Dallas, the Blue Dragons rolled through the Jayhawk Conference for its first KJCCC title since 2014 and seventh in program history. Hutchinson outscored its opponents 334-80 this season.

The Blue Dragons own two dominant Top 10 victories this season. Hutchinson defeated then No. 3 (now No. 5) Garden City 23-7 on April 25. One week later, the Blue Dragons traveled to and defeated then No. 6 (now No. 7) Independence 42-24.

Snow opened the season with an impressive 31-30 victory at Iowa Western. The Badgers also own victories of 27-7 at Lackawanna, a 27-6 home win over ASA Miami and back-to-back wins in Iowa of 69-18 at Ellsworth and 48-14 at Iowa Central. Snow closed the season with a 77-0 win over Gordon’s Fine Arts and Sports Academy on May 15.

The Blue Dragons have gone wire-to-wire in the NJCAA Rankings this season. Hutchinson was the preseason No. 1 pick in the poll and did not drop during the regular season. The Blue Dragons and Snow were 1-2 in the final regular-season poll released on Monday. The remainder of the Top 5 was Cisco (7-0), Iowa Western (7-1) and Garden City (7-1).

Blue Dragon Football will be making its 23rd postseason appearance. The Blue Dragons are 13-7-2 in postseason games.

The Blue Dragons bid to become the first Jayhawk Conference team to win a national football title since Garden City in 2016. The Blue Dragons also seek to become the fifth KJCCC school to win a national championship (Butler 6, Coffeyville 3, Garden City 1, Fort Scott 1).

<a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.

By STEVE CARPENTERBlue Dragon Sports InformationHUTCHINSON, Kan. — The 2020-21 Hutchinson Community College football team has already scratched one goal off the preseason wish list – a Jayhawk Conference championship.Now the Blue Dragons get to go after the other coveted item on that list – to play for a national championship.The NJCAA announced on Monday that the No. 1-ranked Blue Dragons (7-0) will play No. 2 Snow College (8-0) in the 2020-21 NJCAA Football Championship game. The game will be played at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas, at 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 5.The game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network.Tickets for the NJCAA Football National Championship presented by Bob McCloskey Insurance can be purchased online at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.njcaa.org/tickets">https://www.njcaa.org/tickets</a>. Tickets will range from $12 to $45.The Blue Dragon Athletic Department is planning on a “Fan Bus” for the championship game. Details on the Fan Bus will be released later this week.The Blue Dragons will play for a national championship for the first time in the program’s 89-year history. The highest final ranking the Blue Dragons have ever had in football was No. 3 after the 2019 season. The only other seasons the Blue Dragons finished undefeated were 1947 and 1969.The championship game matchup will be the first between Hutchinson and Snow.The Badgers will be looking for their second national title in football. Snow won the 1985 championship defeating NEO in the Mid-America Bowl. Snow also played in the 2008 national championship game and lost 37-30 in double overtime to Butler.That was the first year that the NJCAA started designating bowl games as the national championship game. Then in 2018, the NJCAA created a game for the Nos. 1 and 2 teams in the final poll to play for the national championship. In 2018 and 2019, those games were at Pittsburg State University’s Brandenburg Stadium.Under first-year head coach Drew Dallas, the Blue Dragons rolled through the Jayhawk Conference for its first KJCCC title since 2014 and seventh in program history. Hutchinson outscored its opponents 334-80 this season.The Blue Dragons own two dominant Top 10 victories this season. Hutchinson defeated then No. 3 (now No. 5) Garden City 23-7 on April 25. One week later, the Blue Dragons traveled to and defeated then No. 6 (now No. 7) Independence 42-24.Snow opened the season with an impressive 31-30 victory at Iowa Western. The Badgers also own victories of 27-7 at Lackawanna, a 27-6 home win over ASA Miami and back-to-back wins in Iowa of 69-18 at Ellsworth and 48-14 at Iowa Central. Snow closed the season with a 77-0 win over Gordon’s Fine Arts and Sports Academy on May 15.The Blue Dragons have gone wire-to-wire in the NJCAA Rankings this season. Hutchinson was the preseason No. 1 pick in the poll and did not drop during the regular season. The Blue Dragons and Snow were 1-2 in the final regular-season poll released on Monday. The remainder of the Top 5 was Cisco (7-0), Iowa Western (7-1) and Garden City (7-1).Blue Dragon Football will be making its 23rd postseason appearance. The Blue Dragons are 13-7-2 in postseason games.The Blue Dragons bid to become the first Jayhawk Conference team to win a national football title since Garden City in 2016. The Blue Dragons also seek to become the fifth KJCCC school to win a national championship (Butler 6, Coffeyville 3, Garden City 1, Fort Scott 1).<a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.

🏈 Dragons will play for national championship

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The NBC baseball tournament is coming back to Hutchinson this summer.&nbsp;

The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission announced its continued partnership with Visit Hutch and Hutch Rec to bring five days of the World Series back to Hobart-Detter Field. The dates of play in Hutchinson will be August 4-8.

The 2021 World Series will feature 16 teams from across the country with all teams playing their first games in Hutchinson. Each day in Hutchinson will feature four games. The last half of the World Series will be played at Riverfront Stadium in Wichita.

“We are looking forward to welcoming the NBC World Series back to Hutchinson this summer. The Hutchinson community has a strong love for baseball, and we are excited to be able to showcase these great players again this year. Hosting this event in Hutchinson will strengthen our partnership with the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission and we are looking forward to continuing to grow that relationship,” LeAnn Cox, vice president of operations &amp; tourism for Visit Hutch, said.

The qualifying teams and full schedule will be released later this summer.&nbsp;

Tickets for both locations go on sale Tuesday, June 8th at 10:00am and can be purchased at www.nbcbaseball.com.

<div><iframe width="660" height="415" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/W4Vrv6ZF6-4" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The NBC baseball tournament is coming back to Hutchinson this summer.&nbsp;The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission announced its continued partnership with Visit Hutch and Hutch Rec to bring five days of the World Series back to Hobart-Detter Field. The dates of play in Hutchinson will be August 4-8.The 2021 World Series will feature 16 teams from across the country with all teams playing their first games in Hutchinson. Each day in Hutchinson will feature four games. The last half of the World Series will be played at Riverfront Stadium in Wichita.“We are looking forward to welcoming the NBC World Series back to Hutchinson this summer. The Hutchinson community has a strong love for baseball, and we are excited to be able to showcase these great players again this year. Hosting this event in Hutchinson will strengthen our partnership with the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission and we are looking forward to continuing to grow that relationship,” LeAnn Cox, vice president of operations &amp; tourism for Visit Hutch, said.The qualifying teams and full schedule will be released later this summer.&nbsp;Tickets for both locations go on sale Tuesday, June 8th at 10:00am and can be purchased at www.nbcbaseball.com.<a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.&nbsp;&nbsp;

NBC coming back to Hutchinson in 2021

<div><iframe title="AUDIO: Eagle Radio Sports for Monday" allowtransparency="true" height="150" width="100%" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?i=aeqss-1045781-pb&from=pb6admin&download=1&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=1&btn-skin=7"></iframe></div><a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.&nbsp;&nbsp;

AUDIO: Eagle Radio Sports for Monday

Tulsa, OK –&nbsp;Wind Surge starter Austin Schulfer had a no-hit bid going into the seventh inning and allowed just one hit and Wichita shut-out the Tulsa Drillers 3-0 to earn a series split Sunday.

Schulfer bounced back from a loss on Tuesday against Tulsa, he worked six and two third innings allowed one hit, one walk and hit a batter and six strikeouts for his first win of the season.

Jose Miranda singled in the third inning and scored on a sacrifice fly. The Surge added two more runs in the fifth with RBI single from Ernie De La Trinadad and RBI double from Jermaine Palacios to extend the lead to 3-0.

The Surge bullpen of Jovani Moran, Alex Phillips and Yennier Cano silenced the Drillers bats and held Tulsa to a season low one hit. Wichita picked up its league leading fourth shutout.

The Wind Surge improve to 11-7 and remain a half game back of first place Arkansas.

The Wind Surge improve to a league best 8-4 record on the road.&nbsp; Wichita pitchers held Tulsa to a .139 batting average in the six game series. Sunday’s game was delayed 28 minutes at the start due to potential rain.

The Wind Surge are back home against the Springfield Cardinals starting Tuesday.

Tulsa, OK –&nbsp;Wind Surge starter Austin Schulfer had a no-hit bid going into the seventh inning and allowed just one hit and Wichita shut-out the Tulsa Drillers 3-0 to earn a series split Sunday.Schulfer bounced back from a loss on Tuesday against Tulsa, he worked six and two third innings allowed one hit, one walk and hit a batter and six strikeouts for his first win of the season.Jose Miranda singled in the third inning and scored on a sacrifice fly. The Surge added two more runs in the fifth with RBI single from Ernie De La Trinadad and RBI double from Jermaine Palacios to extend the lead to 3-0.The Surge bullpen of Jovani Moran, Alex Phillips and Yennier Cano silenced the Drillers bats and held Tulsa to a season low one hit. Wichita picked up its league leading fourth shutout.The Wind Surge improve to 11-7 and remain a half game back of first place Arkansas.The Wind Surge improve to a league best 8-4 record on the road.&nbsp; Wichita pitchers held Tulsa to a .139 batting average in the six game series. Sunday’s game was delayed 28 minutes at the start due to potential rain.The Wind Surge are back home against the Springfield Cardinals starting Tuesday.

Surge shut out Drillers Sunday in Tulsa

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Carlos Santana belted a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Kansas City Royals a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Kansas City was held to three hits until the ninth, when Whit Merrifield led off with an infield single before Santana connected against Michael Fulmer. 

Kyle Zimmer struck out three in two hitless innings for the win. Royals manager Mike Matheny was ejected for the second time this season for arguing in the sixth. 

Detroit scored twice in the first against Kris Bubic, sparked by Robbie Grossman’s leadoff double. Jeimer Candelario and Ethan Haase each hit an RBI single.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Carlos Santana belted a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Kansas City Royals a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Kansas City was held to three hits until the ninth, when Whit Merrifield led off with an infield single before Santana connected against Michael Fulmer. Kyle Zimmer struck out three in two hitless innings for the win. Royals manager Mike Matheny was ejected for the second time this season for arguing in the sixth. Detroit scored twice in the first against Kris Bubic, sparked by Robbie Grossman’s leadoff double. Jeimer Candelario and Ethan Haase each hit an RBI single.

Royals get late win over Detroit Sunday

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Philipp Grubauer made 18 saves and Gabriel Landeskog scored the go-ahead goal in the second period to lift Colorado to a series sweep of the St. Louis Blues with a 5-2 win in Game 4 of the West Division series. Colorado outscored St. Louis 20-7 in the series and trailed for just 7:12 over the four games. Colorado completed its first four-game sweep since beating Vancouver in the quarterfinal round of the 2001 playoffs. Vladimir Tarasenko scored twice for the Blues.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jávier Báez hit a two-run homer in the 10th inning to break a scoreless tie and propel the Chicago Cubs to a 2-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Baez hit the second pitch he saw from Alex Reyes 417 feet onto the center field batter's eye for his 11th home run of the season. It was just the second earned run allowed by Reyes in 25 innings this season. Craig Kimbrel recorded four outs to improve Chicago's record to 4-4 in extra inning contests. Adam Wainwright did not earn a decision despite allowing just one hit and one walk with seven strikeouts in eight innings. &nbsp;

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Carlos Santana belted a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Kansas City Royals a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Kansas City was held to three hits until the ninth, when Whit Merrifield led off with an infield single before Santana connected against Michael Fulmer. Kyle Zimmer struck out three in two hitless innings for the win. Royals manager Mike Matheny was ejected for the second time this season for arguing in the sixth. Detroit scored twice in the first against Kris Bubic, sparked by Robbie Grossman's leadoff double. Jeimer Candelario and Ethan Haase each hit an RBI single.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The questions being asked at one of skateboarding's last major qualifying events for the Olympics in July are whether the Olympics are ready for skateboarding and whether skateboarding is ready for the Olympics. More than 20 years after its wintertime cousin, snowboarding, reluctantly took to the biggest stage in sports, skateboarding is grinding its way into the much more crowded summer program. It's one of a number of attempts by the International Olympic Committee to appeal to a younger, trendier, more easily distracted audience. Whether any of this is truly "saving" the Olympics for the next generation is a matter of opinion. But viewership numbers indicate the games still have issues with the in-demand 18-to-34 market that skateboarding attracts.

Mickelson in record books with PGA Championship title

KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. (AP) — Phil Mickelson has become the oldest major champion by surviving a somewhat chaotic final round at the PGA Championship.

The 50-year-old Mickelson squandered most of a five-stroke lead on the back nine before finishing two strokes ahead of Brooks Koepka (KEHP'-kuh) and Louis Oosthuizen (OOST'-hay-zehn) at Kiawah Island. Mickelson closed with a 1-over 73 to finish 6 under for his sixth career major championship.

Julius Boros was 48 when he won the 1968 PGA Championship in San Antonio. Boros held the distinction of oldest major champ for 53 years before Mickelson added to his legacy. Lefty also became the first player to win tournaments 30 years apart, and the 10th to win in three different decades. 

Koepka was 4 over on the par 5s when the game was still on and closed with a 74. Oosthuizen hit into the water as he was trying to make a final run and shot 73.

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) — Wei-Ling Shu has her first career LPGA victory after capturing the Pure Silk Championship in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Shu eagled the par-5 15th hole to created a four-shot swing that gave her a two-shot lead. She closed with a 3-under 68 to finish at 13-under 271, two shots clear of playing partner Moriya Jutanugarn.

UNDATED (AP) — The top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers won their NBA playoffs opener on Sunday, but the league's other No. 1 seed fell at home.

Tobias Harris and Joel Embiid (joh-EHL' ehm-BED') led the 76ers to a victory over the Wizards, 125-118.

Harris scored 28 of his game-high 37 points in the first half, filling a scoring void with Embiid on the bench in early foul trouble. 

Embiid finished with 30 points despite sitting out a huge portion of the first half. Ben Simmons shot poorly but contributed 15 assists and 15 rebounds.

Bradley Beal had 33 points for the Wizards, who take on the Sixers in Philadelphia on Wednesday.

The Suns were winners in their first playoff game in 11 years as Devin Booker delivered 34 points in a 99-90 decision over the Lakers. Deandre Ayton had 21 points and 16 rebounds in his playoff debut, helping Phoenix defeat the defending champs.

The Suns managed to win without much help from Chris Paul, who didn't look healthy after a right shoulder injury in the second quarter. 

LeBron James had team highs of 18 points and 10 assists for Los Angeles. No other Laker had more than 14 points.

The Grizzlies pulled off the day's biggest stunner as Dillon Brooks provided 31 points and seven rebounds in their 112-109 win at Utah. Brooks set a single-game franchise scoring record for a Memphis player making their NBA playoff debut, including layup that put the Grizzlies ahead by three in the closing seconds.

Ja (jah) Morant added 26 points and Jonas Valanciunas (YOH'-nuhs val-an-CHOO'-nuhs) chipped in 15 with 12 rebounds.

Bojan (BOY'-ahn) Bogdanovic furnished 20 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, but he missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer with 1.9 seconds remaining.

The Hawks stole home-court advantage from the Knicks with a 107-105 victory at Madison Square Garden. Trae Young made a runner in the lane with 0.9 seconds left. Young finished with 32 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds.

Bogdan Bogdanovic added 18 points for the Hawks in their first postseason game since 2017.

Alec Burks scored 27 points for the Knicks, who are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Derrick Rose scored 17 points, but Julius Randle shot just 6 for 23 while finishing with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

UNDATED (AP) — The Nashville Predators weren't given much of a chance to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, but they are two wins away from doing just that.

Luke Kunin (KUH'-nihn) scored his second goal of the game at 16:10 of double-overtime to give the Predators a 4-3 win over the Hurricanes. Ryan Johansen and Nick Cousins also scored and Mattias (mah-TEE'-uhs) Ekholm and Mikael Granlund had two assists apiece. 

Goalie Juuse Saros (YOO'-see SAH'-rohs) made a franchise-record 58 saves to help Nashville even the series at two games apiece.

Carolina's Brock McGinn had his first two-goal playoff game, Vincent Trocheck (TROH'-chehk) also tallied and Jordan Martinook added two assists.

Meanwhile, the Avalanche completed their first four-game sweep in 20 years.

Gabriel Landeskog (LAN'-dehs-kahg) netted the go-ahead goal in the second period of Colorado's 5-2 victory over the Blues. Landeskog tipped in a shot from Samuel Girard at 14:53 of the second period to break a 1-1 tie.

Brandon Saad (sahd), Mikko Rantanen (MEE'-koh RAN'-tah-nehn), Nathan MacKinnon and Valeri Nichushkin (nih-KUHSH'-kihn) also scored for the Avs, while Philipp Grubauer turned back 18 shots. Grubauer stopped 103 of 110 shots over the four games.

The Avalanche outscored the Blues 20-7 and trailed for only 7:12 over the four games.

The Bruins also advanced to Round 2 by finishing off the Capitals in five games. 

Patrice Bergeron (BEHR'-zhuh-rahn) scored twice at crucial times after David Pastrnak's (PAHS'-tur-nahks) highlight-reel goal as Boston knocked out Washington, 3-1. Bergeron delivered the dagger with 7:35 left to set up a second-round showdown against either the Penguins or Islanders.

Tuukka (TOO'-kah) Rask made 40 saves for the Bruins, who won four straight after losing the opener in overtime. The only shot that beat Rask was Conor Sheary hammering home his own rebound 11 seconds into the third period.

The Jets are on the verge of a four-game sweep after Nikolaj Ehlers (NIH'-koh-ly EE'-lurz) scored his second goal of the game at 9:13 in overtime to cap the Jets' wild comeback in a 5-4 win over the Oilers. Edmonton led 4-1 until Mathieu Perreault (peh-ROH'), Blake Wheeler and Josh Morrissey each scored for Winnipeg in a stretch of 3:03 of the third to send it to overtime. 

Leon Draisaitl (DRY'-sy-tul) had two goals and an assist for Edmonton.

The Jets can sweep the series Monday night with Game 4 in Edmonton.

UNDATED (AP) — Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri (NA'-zehm KA'-dree) is appealing his eight-game suspension for an illegal check to the head of St. Louis defenseman Justin Faulk.

Kadri is looking for a reduced punishment with the Avalanche moving on to the second round. 

Kadri has six games left to serve on the initial suspension, pending the appeals process. 

Urias pitches, hits Dodgers to sweep of Giants

UNDATED (AP) — Julio Urias (oo-REE'-uhs) looked very good on the mound Sunday afternoon, and he was even better at the plate.

The Los Angeles Dodgers' starter is 7-1 after tossing six innings and driving in three runs in an 11-5 pounding of the Giants. Urías didn't allow a baserunner until Mike Tauchman's one-out infield single in the sixth, two batters before Austin Slater homered to end a shutout bid. Urias also supplied a two-run double and an RBI single while fanning 10 Giants.

Gavin Lux hit a grand slam as the Dodgers won their eighth in a row and completed a sweep of the Giants in San Francisco.

— Fernando Tatis (tah-TEES') Jr. drove in six runs and homered twice, including a 447-foot grand slam in the Padres' 9-2 pounding of the Mariners. Tatis singled in the go-ahead run during a three-run rally as San Diego completed a sweep of its nine-game homestand.

— Trevor Story led off the ninth with a walk-off homer to send the Rockies past the Diamondbacks, 4-3. Josh Fuentes had two doubles and Daniel Bard pitched the ninth to get the win.

— Jávier Báez belted a two-run homer in the 10th inning to break a scoreless tie and propel the Cubs to a 2-1 win over the Cardinals. St. Louis pitcher Adam Wainwright had to settle for a no-decision after allowing just one hit and one walk with seven strikeouts in eight innings.

— The Brewers whipped the Reds, 9-4, as Christian Yelich (YEH'-lihch) slammed his first homer of the season and Kolten Wong had three hits. Avisaíl (av-ih-sah-EEL') García homered for Milwaukee in the third.

— Rookie Cody Poteet pitched seven scoreless innings and retired the last 14 batters he faced to help the Marlins beat the Mets 5-1. Poteet also collected his first major league hit and RBI in a five-run second inning.

— Austin Riley drove in five runs while hitting two of the Braves' three home runs in a 7-1 downing of the Pirates. Atlanta banged out 15 round-trippers while taking three of four in the series.

— Zack Wheeler struck out a career high-tying 12 and the Phillies ended a four-game skid by topping the Red Sox, 6-2. Brad Miller hit a three-run homer as the Phillies averted a sweep and stopped Boston's four-game winning string. 

— Kyle Schwarber homered in the first inning and the Nationals immediately erased an early three-run deficit to beat the Orioles, 6-5 and complete a three-game sweep. Trea Turner had two hits and provided a sacrifice fly that broke a 4-all tie in the fourth.

— Aroldis Chapman blew a 4-3 lead in the ninth before Aaron Judge walked against Liam Hendriks with the bases loaded to give the Yankees their sixth straight win, 5-4 versus the White Sox. James Taillon (TY'-ahn) worked five scoreless innings to run the Yankees' string of shutout ball by their starters to 35 frames, the team's longest since 1947.

— Austin Meadows, Manuel Margot (mahn-WEHL' mahr-GOH') and Mike Brosseau (broh-SOH') drew consecutive bases-loaded walks with two out in the ninth as the Rays jogged away with their 10th consecutive win, 6-4 over the Blue Jays. The Rays trailed 4-2 in the ninth before taking advantage of five walks by relievers Tyler Chatwood and Travis Bergen to send Toronto to its fifth straight loss. 

— The Twins pulled out an 8-5 win over the Indians on Kyle Garlick's three-run homer in the 10th inning. Garlick was a replacement in right field in the seventh inning for Max Kepler, who hit his 13th career homer at Progressive Field in the fourth. 

— The Royals pulled out a 3-2 win over the Tigers on Carlos Santana's two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. Kansas City was held to three hits until the ninth, when Whit Merrifield led off with an infield single before Santana connected against Michael Fulmer.

— Adolis García's infield single scored automatic runner Nick Solak in the 10th inning, giving the Rangers a 3-2 victory over the Astros and a sweep of their Texas rivals. It was the second game-ending hit in the 10th in the series for García, who belted a three-run homer in the opener. 

— Jared Walsh homered and Justin Upton hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the eighth inning of the Angels' 6-5 victory against the Athletics. Los Angeles trailed 4-1 in the fifth before winning for just the second time in seven games since three-time AL MVP Mike Trout went on the injured list with a calf strain.

UNDATED (AP) — Mets ace Jacob deGrom is on track to start Tuesday in New York against the Rockies after being sidelined since May 9 with tightness in his right side. 

DeGrom threw a side session Sunday, and manager Luis Rojas said "everything looked good." The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner struck out eight and walked none Thursday in three hitless innings during an injury rehabilitation outing for the St. Lucie Mets. 

DeGrom is 3-2 and has an MLB-leading 0.68 ERA in six starts this year, recording 65 strikeouts and seven walks in 40 innings.

— The Indians will be without cleanup hitter Franmil Reyes (FRAHN'-meel RAY'-uhs) for between five and seven weeks because of an internal oblique strain. The designated hitter left Saturday's game with the injury, which the Indians initially called a strained left abdominal muscle. 

— The Twins have placed pitcher Kenta Maeda (KEHN'-tah mah-EH'-dah) on the 10-day injured list with a right adductor strain. The right-hander was pulled from Saturday's game against Cleveland before the sixth inning. Maeda has been bothered by the injury in previous starts, so manager Rocco Baldelli said the decision was made to give him some time off. 

— Nationals outfielder Victor Robles has landed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to Wednesday with a sprained right ankle. Robles is hitting .246 with five RBIs in 39 games. Washington also placed right-handed pitcher Will Harris on the 10-day injured list with right hand inflammation. 

— Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier has another freaky injury: left eye irritation stemming from an eyelash. Kiermaier left Saturday night's game against Toronto in the fifth inning after first experiencing discomfort while shagging balls during batting practice. He has a history of offbeat injuries, including hurting his hand during a base-running slide and injuring a wrist while attempting a diving catch. Kiermaier said it "seems like this stuff could only happen to me."

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Chase Elliott benefitted from poor weather to win NASCAR's debut at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. 

The race was called while under a red flag on Lap 54 of 68 because of poor visibility and standing water on the track caused by heavy rain. 

Elliott won for the first time this year and the sixth time on a road course. He has won five of the last six road races. 

Elliott also earned his 12th career victory, No. 800 for Chevrolet and No. 268 for Hendrick Motorsports, tying Petty Enterprises for most wins.

Elliott's teammate, Kyle Larson, and Team Penske's Joey Logano rounded out the top three. 

MONACO (AP) — Max Verstappen has won the Monaco Grand Prix for the first time to take the Formula One championship lead from Lewis Hamilton. 

Verstappen's second win this season and 12th of his career moved him four points ahead of Hamilton overall. The seven-time world champion finished seventh on a bad day for the usually ultra-reliable Mercedes team. 

<h2>Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press</h2>ST. LOUIS (AP) — Philipp Grubauer made 18 saves and Gabriel Landeskog scored the go-ahead goal in the second period to lift Colorado to a series sweep of the St. Louis Blues with a 5-2 win in Game 4 of the West Division series. Colorado outscored St. Louis 20-7 in the series and trailed for just 7:12 over the four games. Colorado completed its first four-game sweep since beating Vancouver in the quarterfinal round of the 2001 playoffs. Vladimir Tarasenko scored twice for the Blues.ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jávier Báez hit a two-run homer in the 10th inning to break a scoreless tie and propel the Chicago Cubs to a 2-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Baez hit the second pitch he saw from Alex Reyes 417 feet onto the center field batter's eye for his 11th home run of the season. It was just the second earned run allowed by Reyes in 25 innings this season. Craig Kimbrel recorded four outs to improve Chicago's record to 4-4 in extra inning contests. Adam Wainwright did not earn a decision despite allowing just one hit and one walk with seven strikeouts in eight innings. &nbsp;KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Carlos Santana belted a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Kansas City Royals a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Kansas City was held to three hits until the ninth, when Whit Merrifield led off with an infield single before Santana connected against Michael Fulmer. Kyle Zimmer struck out three in two hitless innings for the win. Royals manager Mike Matheny was ejected for the second time this season for arguing in the sixth. Detroit scored twice in the first against Kris Bubic, sparked by Robbie Grossman's leadoff double. Jeimer Candelario and Ethan Haase each hit an RBI single.DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The questions being asked at one of skateboarding's last major qualifying events for the Olympics in July are whether the Olympics are ready for skateboarding and whether skateboarding is ready for the Olympics. More than 20 years after its wintertime cousin, snowboarding, reluctantly took to the biggest stage in sports, skateboarding is grinding its way into the much more crowded summer program. It's one of a number of attempts by the International Olympic Committee to appeal to a younger, trendier, more easily distracted audience. Whether any of this is truly "saving" the Olympics for the next generation is a matter of opinion. But viewership numbers indicate the games still have issues with the in-demand 18-to-34 market that skateboarding attracts.PGA-CHAMPIONSHIPMickelson in record books with PGA Championship titleKIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. (AP) — Phil Mickelson has become the oldest major champion by surviving a somewhat chaotic final round at the PGA Championship.The 50-year-old Mickelson squandered most of a five-stroke lead on the back nine before finishing two strokes ahead of Brooks Koepka (KEHP'-kuh) and Louis Oosthuizen (OOST'-hay-zehn) at Kiawah Island. Mickelson closed with a 1-over 73 to finish 6 under for his sixth career major championship.Julius Boros was 48 when he won the 1968 PGA Championship in San Antonio. Boros held the distinction of oldest major champ for 53 years before Mickelson added to his legacy. Lefty also became the first player to win tournaments 30 years apart, and the 10th to win in three different decades. Koepka was 4 over on the par 5s when the game was still on and closed with a 74. Oosthuizen hit into the water as he was trying to make a final run and shot 73.LPGA-PURE SILK CHAMPIONSHIPShu gets first LPGA winWILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) — Wei-Ling Shu has her first career LPGA victory after capturing the Pure Silk Championship in Williamsburg, Virginia.Shu eagled the par-5 15th hole to created a four-shot swing that gave her a two-shot lead. She closed with a 3-under 68 to finish at 13-under 271, two shots clear of playing partner Moriya Jutanugarn.NBA-PLAYOFFSSixers win, Jazz stumbleUNDATED (AP) — The top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers won their NBA playoffs opener on Sunday, but the league's other No. 1 seed fell at home.Tobias Harris and Joel Embiid (joh-EHL' ehm-BED') led the 76ers to a victory over the Wizards, 125-118.Harris scored 28 of his game-high 37 points in the first half, filling a scoring void with Embiid on the bench in early foul trouble. Embiid finished with 30 points despite sitting out a huge portion of the first half. Ben Simmons shot poorly but contributed 15 assists and 15 rebounds.Bradley Beal had 33 points for the Wizards, who take on the Sixers in Philadelphia on Wednesday.The Suns were winners in their first playoff game in 11 years as Devin Booker delivered 34 points in a 99-90 decision over the Lakers. Deandre Ayton had 21 points and 16 rebounds in his playoff debut, helping Phoenix defeat the defending champs.The Suns managed to win without much help from Chris Paul, who didn't look healthy after a right shoulder injury in the second quarter. LeBron James had team highs of 18 points and 10 assists for Los Angeles. No other Laker had more than 14 points.Game 2 is Tuesday in Phoenix.The Grizzlies pulled off the day's biggest stunner as Dillon Brooks provided 31 points and seven rebounds in their 112-109 win at Utah. Brooks set a single-game franchise scoring record for a Memphis player making their NBA playoff debut, including layup that put the Grizzlies ahead by three in the closing seconds.Ja (jah) Morant added 26 points and Jonas Valanciunas (YOH'-nuhs val-an-CHOO'-nuhs) chipped in 15 with 12 rebounds.Bojan (BOY'-ahn) Bogdanovic furnished 20 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, but he missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer with 1.9 seconds remaining.Game 2 is Wednesday in Salt Lake City.The Hawks stole home-court advantage from the Knicks with a 107-105 victory at Madison Square Garden. Trae Young made a runner in the lane with 0.9 seconds left. Young finished with 32 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds.Bogdan Bogdanovic added 18 points for the Hawks in their first postseason game since 2017.Alec Burks scored 27 points for the Knicks, who are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Derrick Rose scored 17 points, but Julius Randle shot just 6 for 23 while finishing with 15 points and 12 rebounds.The Knicks host Game 2 on Wednesday.NHL PLAYOFFS-SCHEDULEPreds get even, Avs, Bruins advanceUNDATED (AP) — The Nashville Predators weren't given much of a chance to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, but they are two wins away from doing just that.Luke Kunin (KUH'-nihn) scored his second goal of the game at 16:10 of double-overtime to give the Predators a 4-3 win over the Hurricanes. Ryan Johansen and Nick Cousins also scored and Mattias (mah-TEE'-uhs) Ekholm and Mikael Granlund had two assists apiece. Goalie Juuse Saros (YOO'-see SAH'-rohs) made a franchise-record 58 saves to help Nashville even the series at two games apiece.Carolina's Brock McGinn had his first two-goal playoff game, Vincent Trocheck (TROH'-chehk) also tallied and Jordan Martinook added two assists.Game 5 is Tuesday in Raleigh.Meanwhile, the Avalanche completed their first four-game sweep in 20 years.Gabriel Landeskog (LAN'-dehs-kahg) netted the go-ahead goal in the second period of Colorado's 5-2 victory over the Blues. Landeskog tipped in a shot from Samuel Girard at 14:53 of the second period to break a 1-1 tie.Brandon Saad (sahd), Mikko Rantanen (MEE'-koh RAN'-tah-nehn), Nathan MacKinnon and Valeri Nichushkin (nih-KUHSH'-kihn) also scored for the Avs, while Philipp Grubauer turned back 18 shots. Grubauer stopped 103 of 110 shots over the four games.The Avalanche outscored the Blues 20-7 and trailed for only 7:12 over the four games.The Bruins also advanced to Round 2 by finishing off the Capitals in five games. Patrice Bergeron (BEHR'-zhuh-rahn) scored twice at crucial times after David Pastrnak's (PAHS'-tur-nahks) highlight-reel goal as Boston knocked out Washington, 3-1. Bergeron delivered the dagger with 7:35 left to set up a second-round showdown against either the Penguins or Islanders.Tuukka (TOO'-kah) Rask made 40 saves for the Bruins, who won four straight after losing the opener in overtime. The only shot that beat Rask was Conor Sheary hammering home his own rebound 11 seconds into the third period.The Jets are on the verge of a four-game sweep after Nikolaj Ehlers (NIH'-koh-ly EE'-lurz) scored his second goal of the game at 9:13 in overtime to cap the Jets' wild comeback in a 5-4 win over the Oilers. Edmonton led 4-1 until Mathieu Perreault (peh-ROH'), Blake Wheeler and Josh Morrissey each scored for Winnipeg in a stretch of 3:03 of the third to send it to overtime. Leon Draisaitl (DRY'-sy-tul) had two goals and an assist for Edmonton.The Jets can sweep the series Monday night with Game 4 in Edmonton.NHLKadri appealing suspensionUNDATED (AP) — Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri (NA'-zehm KA'-dree) is appealing his eight-game suspension for an illegal check to the head of St. Louis defenseman Justin Faulk.Kadri is looking for a reduced punishment with the Avalanche moving on to the second round. Kadri has six games left to serve on the initial suspension, pending the appeals process. MLB-SCHEDULEUrias pitches, hits Dodgers to sweep of GiantsUNDATED (AP) — Julio Urias (oo-REE'-uhs) looked very good on the mound Sunday afternoon, and he was even better at the plate.The Los Angeles Dodgers' starter is 7-1 after tossing six innings and driving in three runs in an 11-5 pounding of the Giants. Urías didn't allow a baserunner until Mike Tauchman's one-out infield single in the sixth, two batters before Austin Slater homered to end a shutout bid. Urias also supplied a two-run double and an RBI single while fanning 10 Giants.Gavin Lux hit a grand slam as the Dodgers won their eighth in a row and completed a sweep of the Giants in San Francisco.Elsewhere in the majors:— Fernando Tatis (tah-TEES') Jr. drove in six runs and homered twice, including a 447-foot grand slam in the Padres' 9-2 pounding of the Mariners. Tatis singled in the go-ahead run during a three-run rally as San Diego completed a sweep of its nine-game homestand.— Trevor Story led off the ninth with a walk-off homer to send the Rockies past the Diamondbacks, 4-3. Josh Fuentes had two doubles and Daniel Bard pitched the ninth to get the win.— Jávier Báez belted a two-run homer in the 10th inning to break a scoreless tie and propel the Cubs to a 2-1 win over the Cardinals. St. Louis pitcher Adam Wainwright had to settle for a no-decision after allowing just one hit and one walk with seven strikeouts in eight innings.— The Brewers whipped the Reds, 9-4, as Christian Yelich (YEH'-lihch) slammed his first homer of the season and Kolten Wong had three hits. Avisaíl (av-ih-sah-EEL') García homered for Milwaukee in the third.— Rookie Cody Poteet pitched seven scoreless innings and retired the last 14 batters he faced to help the Marlins beat the Mets 5-1. Poteet also collected his first major league hit and RBI in a five-run second inning.— Austin Riley drove in five runs while hitting two of the Braves' three home runs in a 7-1 downing of the Pirates. Atlanta banged out 15 round-trippers while taking three of four in the series.— Zack Wheeler struck out a career high-tying 12 and the Phillies ended a four-game skid by topping the Red Sox, 6-2. Brad Miller hit a three-run homer as the Phillies averted a sweep and stopped Boston's four-game winning string. — Kyle Schwarber homered in the first inning and the Nationals immediately erased an early three-run deficit to beat the Orioles, 6-5 and complete a three-game sweep. Trea Turner had two hits and provided a sacrifice fly that broke a 4-all tie in the fourth.— Aroldis Chapman blew a 4-3 lead in the ninth before Aaron Judge walked against Liam Hendriks with the bases loaded to give the Yankees their sixth straight win, 5-4 versus the White Sox. James Taillon (TY'-ahn) worked five scoreless innings to run the Yankees' string of shutout ball by their starters to 35 frames, the team's longest since 1947.— Austin Meadows, Manuel Margot (mahn-WEHL' mahr-GOH') and Mike Brosseau (broh-SOH') drew consecutive bases-loaded walks with two out in the ninth as the Rays jogged away with their 10th consecutive win, 6-4 over the Blue Jays. The Rays trailed 4-2 in the ninth before taking advantage of five walks by relievers Tyler Chatwood and Travis Bergen to send Toronto to its fifth straight loss. — The Twins pulled out an 8-5 win over the Indians on Kyle Garlick's three-run homer in the 10th inning. Garlick was a replacement in right field in the seventh inning for Max Kepler, who hit his 13th career homer at Progressive Field in the fourth. — The Royals pulled out a 3-2 win over the Tigers on Carlos Santana's two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. Kansas City was held to three hits until the ninth, when Whit Merrifield led off with an infield single before Santana connected against Michael Fulmer.— Adolis García's infield single scored automatic runner Nick Solak in the 10th inning, giving the Rangers a 3-2 victory over the Astros and a sweep of their Texas rivals. It was the second game-ending hit in the 10th in the series for García, who belted a three-run homer in the opener. — Jared Walsh homered and Justin Upton hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the eighth inning of the Angels' 6-5 victory against the Athletics. Los Angeles trailed 4-1 in the fifth before winning for just the second time in seven games since three-time AL MVP Mike Trout went on the injured list with a calf strain.MLBDeGrom nears returnUNDATED (AP) — Mets ace Jacob deGrom is on track to start Tuesday in New York against the Rockies after being sidelined since May 9 with tightness in his right side. DeGrom threw a side session Sunday, and manager Luis Rojas said "everything looked good." The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner struck out eight and walked none Thursday in three hitless innings during an injury rehabilitation outing for the St. Lucie Mets. DeGrom is 3-2 and has an MLB-leading 0.68 ERA in six starts this year, recording 65 strikeouts and seven walks in 40 innings.Elsewhere around the majors:— The Indians will be without cleanup hitter Franmil Reyes (FRAHN'-meel RAY'-uhs) for between five and seven weeks because of an internal oblique strain. The designated hitter left Saturday's game with the injury, which the Indians initially called a strained left abdominal muscle. — The Twins have placed pitcher Kenta Maeda (KEHN'-tah mah-EH'-dah) on the 10-day injured list with a right adductor strain. The right-hander was pulled from Saturday's game against Cleveland before the sixth inning. Maeda has been bothered by the injury in previous starts, so manager Rocco Baldelli said the decision was made to give him some time off. — Nationals outfielder Victor Robles has landed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to Wednesday with a sprained right ankle. Robles is hitting .246 with five RBIs in 39 games. Washington also placed right-handed pitcher Will Harris on the 10-day injured list with right hand inflammation. — Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier has another freaky injury: left eye irritation stemming from an eyelash. Kiermaier left Saturday night's game against Toronto in the fifth inning after first experiencing discomfort while shagging balls during batting practice. He has a history of offbeat injuries, including hurting his hand during a base-running slide and injuring a wrist while attempting a diving catch. Kiermaier said it "seems like this stuff could only happen to me."NASCARElliott wins in the rainAUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Chase Elliott benefitted from poor weather to win NASCAR's debut at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. The race was called while under a red flag on Lap 54 of 68 because of poor visibility and standing water on the track caused by heavy rain. Elliott won for the first time this year and the sixth time on a road course. He has won five of the last six road races. Elliott also earned his 12th career victory, No. 800 for Chevrolet and No. 268 for Hendrick Motorsports, tying Petty Enterprises for most wins.Elliott's teammate, Kyle Larson, and Team Penske's Joey Logano rounded out the top three. F1-MONACO GRAND PRIXVerstappen grabs F1 leadMONACO (AP) — Max Verstappen has won the Monaco Grand Prix for the first time to take the Formula One championship lead from Lewis Hamilton. Verstappen's second win this season and 12th of his career moved him four points ahead of Hamilton overall. The seven-time world champion finished seventh on a bad day for the usually ultra-reliable Mercedes team. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Sports Headlines for Monday

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Four pitchers combined for five innings of scoreless, two-hit relief after Miles Mikolas appeared to injury his forearm in his delayed season debut, and Yadier Molina hit a tiebreaking home run that lifted the St. Louis Cardinals over the Chicago Cubs 2-1. Molina broke a 1-1 tie when led off the seventh inning with his seventh home run this season, connecting on a slider with an 0-2 count from Adbert Alzolay. Mikolas was activated Saturday. He missed last season after flexor tendon surgery, then hurt his pitching shoulder in his first bullpen session of 2021.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Andrew Benintendi drove in three runs, Josh Staumount escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth inning and the Kansas City Royals beat Detroit 7-5, stopping the Tigers' four-game winning streak. The Tigers trailed 7-3 going into the ninth before Robbie Grossman hit a two-run homer. Detroit then loaded the bases with one out. Staumont struck out Jonathan Schoop and Willi Castro to end it, finishing with a 100 mph fastball. The Tigers went 3 for 15 with runners in scoring position. Miguel Cabrera struck out with the bases loaded to end the seventh with Detroit down 6-3.

NEW YORK (AP) — Colorado Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri was suspended for eight games by the NHL on Friday night for a head shot on St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk in Game 2 of a first-round playoff series. The NHL announced the punishment during Colorado's 5-1 victory in Game 3 in St. Louis that gave the top-seeded Avalanche a 3-0 series lead. In its video report, the NHL cited Kadri's "substantial disciplinary history" and noted he could have taken a different angle rather than targeting the head. The league said Kadri argued he intended to deliver a full body check. If the suspension — the sixth of Kadri's career — is not completed during the playoffs, the remaining games will be served at the beginning of next season.

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Alan Pulido and Dániel Sallói each had a goal and an assist to help Sporting Kansas City beat the San Jose Earthquakes 3-1. Tim Melia had four saves, including a diving one-handed stop of a shot by Cristian Espinoza in the 52nd minute, for Kansas City (4-2-1). Pulido took a pass from Sallói, faked left and blasted a shot from the top of the penalty area that deflected off defender Tommy Thompson and then the crossbar before finding the net to give Sporting a 2-1 lead in the 60th minute. Javier López took a corner kick by Espinoza and, on the second touch, side-netted a left-footer from outside the area to give San Jose (3-4-0) a 1-0 lead in the fourth minute.

UNDATED (AP) — The Brooklyn Nets' Big 3 shook off a poor start to lead a 104-93 win over the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their NBA first-round series.

Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden combined for 82 points despite going 0 for 11 from 3-point range in the first half. They sparked an 18-4 run at the start of the second half and provided 28 of the Nets' 31 third-quarter points.

Durant had 32 points and 12 rebounds, Irving scored 29 points and Harden had 21.

Jayson Tatum scored 22 points for the Celtics but shot just 6 for 20 and couldn't come to his 50-point effort in the play-in tournament.

The series stays in Brooklyn for Game 2 on Tuesday.

The Bucks have opened their NBA playoffs schedule by defeating the team that knocked them out of last year's postseason.

Khris Middleton nailed a jumper with 0.5 seconds left in overtime to give the Bucks a 109-107, playoff-opening win over the Heat.

Middleton was closely guarded by Duncan Robinson before releasing a 19-footer for the last of his 27 points. It came about 20 seconds after Miami's Goran Dragic (DRAH'-gihch) tied it with a 3-pointer.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH'-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON'-poh) contributed 26 points, 18 rebounds and five assists but was just 6 of 13 on free-throw attempts.

Dragic had a team-high 25 points and Robinson chipped in 24 for the Heat.

The Mavericks also took their playoff opener as Luka Doncic (DAHN'-chihch) dropped in 31 points in a 113-102 decision over the Clippers. Doncic and Tim Hardaway Jr. made five 3-pointers each, and Dorian Finney-Smith had four to help Dallas shoot 47% from long-range.

Hardaway Jr. added 21 points and Finney-Smith had 18 for the Mavs, who led most of the game.

Kawhi (kah-WY') Leonard had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, and Paul George added 23 points. But they were a combined 3 of 14 on 3-pointers as the Clippers shot 31% after leading the NBA at 41% during the regular season.

Like the Mavericks, the Trail Blazers used their long-range snipers to earn a road win.

Damian Lillard poured in 34 points and led a 3-point barrage that sparked the Trail Blazers' 123-109 win over the Nuggets. The Blazers shot 19-for-40 from beyond the arc, with Lillard providing five treys.

Subs Carmelo Anthony and Anfernee Simons added four each as Portland outscored Denver by 24 points from beyond the arc. CJ McCollum added 21 points and Anthony scored 18 in his first playoff game against the team that drafted him 18 years ago.

MVP favorite Nikola Jokic (nih-KOH'-lah YOH'-kihch) led Denver with 34 points.

NBA tells head coaches they can go without masks in games

UNDATED (AP) — Just in time for the playoffs, the NBA told its head coaches Saturday they may work without masks during games if they have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Miami's Erik Spoelstra (SPOHL'-struh) and Milwaukee's Mike Budenholzer quickly took advantage of the new guidance. Both ditched their masks for Game 1 of their series that started Saturday afternoon.

Assistant coaches and players will still be required to wear masks in the bench area. 

<h2>Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press</h2>ST. LOUIS (AP) — Four pitchers combined for five innings of scoreless, two-hit relief after Miles Mikolas appeared to injury his forearm in his delayed season debut, and Yadier Molina hit a tiebreaking home run that lifted the St. Louis Cardinals over the Chicago Cubs 2-1. Molina broke a 1-1 tie when led off the seventh inning with his seventh home run this season, connecting on a slider with an 0-2 count from Adbert Alzolay. Mikolas was activated Saturday. He missed last season after flexor tendon surgery, then hurt his pitching shoulder in his first bullpen session of 2021.KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Andrew Benintendi drove in three runs, Josh Staumount escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth inning and the Kansas City Royals beat Detroit 7-5, stopping the Tigers' four-game winning streak. The Tigers trailed 7-3 going into the ninth before Robbie Grossman hit a two-run homer. Detroit then loaded the bases with one out. Staumont struck out Jonathan Schoop and Willi Castro to end it, finishing with a 100 mph fastball. The Tigers went 3 for 15 with runners in scoring position. Miguel Cabrera struck out with the bases loaded to end the seventh with Detroit down 6-3.NEW YORK (AP) — Colorado Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri was suspended for eight games by the NHL on Friday night for a head shot on St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk in Game 2 of a first-round playoff series. The NHL announced the punishment during Colorado's 5-1 victory in Game 3 in St. Louis that gave the top-seeded Avalanche a 3-0 series lead. In its video report, the NHL cited Kadri's "substantial disciplinary history" and noted he could have taken a different angle rather than targeting the head. The league said Kadri argued he intended to deliver a full body check. If the suspension — the sixth of Kadri's career — is not completed during the playoffs, the remaining games will be served at the beginning of next season.SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Alan Pulido and Dániel Sallói each had a goal and an assist to help Sporting Kansas City beat the San Jose Earthquakes 3-1. Tim Melia had four saves, including a diving one-handed stop of a shot by Cristian Espinoza in the 52nd minute, for Kansas City (4-2-1). Pulido took a pass from Sallói, faked left and blasted a shot from the top of the penalty area that deflected off defender Tommy Thompson and then the crossbar before finding the net to give Sporting a 2-1 lead in the 60th minute. Javier López took a corner kick by Espinoza and, on the second touch, side-netted a left-footer from outside the area to give San Jose (3-4-0) a 1-0 lead in the fourth minute.<h2>Update on the latest sports</h2>NBA-PLAYOFFSBig 3 lead Nets past CelticsUNDATED (AP) — The Brooklyn Nets' Big 3 shook off a poor start to lead a 104-93 win over the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their NBA first-round series.Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden combined for 82 points despite going 0 for 11 from 3-point range in the first half. They sparked an 18-4 run at the start of the second half and provided 28 of the Nets' 31 third-quarter points.Durant had 32 points and 12 rebounds, Irving scored 29 points and Harden had 21.Jayson Tatum scored 22 points for the Celtics but shot just 6 for 20 and couldn't come to his 50-point effort in the play-in tournament.The series stays in Brooklyn for Game 2 on Tuesday.The Bucks have opened their NBA playoffs schedule by defeating the team that knocked them out of last year's postseason.Khris Middleton nailed a jumper with 0.5 seconds left in overtime to give the Bucks a 109-107, playoff-opening win over the Heat.Middleton was closely guarded by Duncan Robinson before releasing a 19-footer for the last of his 27 points. It came about 20 seconds after Miami's Goran Dragic (DRAH'-gihch) tied it with a 3-pointer.Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH'-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON'-poh) contributed 26 points, 18 rebounds and five assists but was just 6 of 13 on free-throw attempts.Dragic had a team-high 25 points and Robinson chipped in 24 for the Heat.Game 2 is Monday in Milwaukee.The Mavericks also took their playoff opener as Luka Doncic (DAHN'-chihch) dropped in 31 points in a 113-102 decision over the Clippers. Doncic and Tim Hardaway Jr. made five 3-pointers each, and Dorian Finney-Smith had four to help Dallas shoot 47% from long-range.Hardaway Jr. added 21 points and Finney-Smith had 18 for the Mavs, who led most of the game.Kawhi (kah-WY') Leonard had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, and Paul George added 23 points. But they were a combined 3 of 14 on 3-pointers as the Clippers shot 31% after leading the NBA at 41% during the regular season.Game 2 is Tuesday in Los Angeles.Like the Mavericks, the Trail Blazers used their long-range snipers to earn a road win.Damian Lillard poured in 34 points and led a 3-point barrage that sparked the Trail Blazers' 123-109 win over the Nuggets. The Blazers shot 19-for-40 from beyond the arc, with Lillard providing five treys.Subs Carmelo Anthony and Anfernee Simons added four each as Portland outscored Denver by 24 points from beyond the arc. CJ McCollum added 21 points and Anthony scored 18 in his first playoff game against the team that drafted him 18 years ago.MVP favorite Nikola Jokic (nih-KOH'-lah YOH'-kihch) led Denver with 34 points.Game 2 is Monday.NBA PLAYOFFS-VIRUS RULESNBA tells head coaches they can go without masks in gamesUNDATED (AP) — Just in time for the playoffs, the NBA told its head coaches Saturday they may work without masks during games if they have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.Miami's Erik Spoelstra (SPOHL'-struh) and Milwaukee's Mike Budenholzer quickly took advantage of the new guidance. Both ditched their masks for Game 1 of their series that started Saturday afternoon.Assistant coaches and players will still be required to wear masks in the bench area. NHL-PLAYOFFSBolts, Isles winUNDATED (AP) — The Tampa Bay Lightning and Vegas Golden Knights were able to take a three-games-to-one lead in their Stanley Cup first-round series. The Pittsburgh Penguins were not.Alex Killorn (kih-LOHRN') scored a pair of second-period goals and Nikita Kucherov (KOO'-cheh-rahv) collected four points as the Lightning hammered the Panthers, 6-2. Kucherov provided a goal and three assists in the rout, giving him three goals and nine points already in the series after missing the entire regular season.Killorn tallied twice in a 94-second span to chase Sergei Bobrovsky (boh-BRAHV'-skee). Andrei Vasilevskiy (va-sih-LEHV'-skee) turned back 39 shots for the Bolts, who can wrap up the series on Monday.The Golden Knights were 4-0 winners over the Wild as Marc-Andre Fleury made 35 saves for his 16th career postseason shutout. Nicolas Roy scored twice for Vegas, who have netted the last nine goals of the series. Alex Tuch (tuhk) and Mark Stone each got their third goal of the series and Keegan Kolesar (koh'-leh-sahr) had two assists in the Knights' third win in a row.Minnesota's Joel Eriksson Ek had a goal challenged and erased by a replay review for the second straight game.The Knights can close out the series at home on Monday. The Islanders have evened their first-round series at two games apiece with a 4-1 win over the Penguins.The Isles took control when Oliver Wahlstrom and Jordan Eberle scored 24 seconds apart early in the third period to make it 4-0. Wahlstrom's goal actually was knocked in on a clearing attempt by Teddy Blueger (BLOO'-gur).Wahlstrom and Ryan Pulock (POO'-lahk) each had a goal and an assist to back Ilya Sorokin (sah-ROH'-kihn), who stopped 29 shots. Sorokin has been in goal for both Islanders' wins.Tristan Jarry made 23 saves for the Penguins, who host Game 5 on Monday.Toronto has knotted its first-round series at a game apiece by scoring five unanswered goals in a 5-1 win over the Canadiens. Auston Matthews led the way with the game-winning goal and two assists as the Maple Leafs solved Carey Price after scoring just once in the opener. Rasmus Sandin and William Nylander (NEE'-lan-dur) provided power-play goals against Price, who finished with 29 saves.Jack Campbell handled 22 shots for the Leafs, who head to Montreal for Game 3 on Monday.NHL-NEWSTavares has concussion, knee injury; likely to miss seriesUNDATED (AP) — Toronto captain John Tavares is probably going to miss the rest of the Maple Leafs' first-round series against Montreal after sustaining a concussion and a knee injury in Game 1. General manager Kyle Dubas (DOO'-buhs) said there is no structural damage to the head, neck or spine after the center took an accidental knee to the face from Canadiens forward Corey Perry. Dubas indicated the knee issue is expected to keep Tavares out of the lineup at least two weeks. Tavares' availability for the rest of the postseason is uncertain if the Maple Leafs advance.In other NHL news:— Hurricanes forward Jordan Staal has been fined $5,000 for what the NHL called a dangerous trip on Nashville's Luke Kunin (KUH'-nihn). The fine is the maximum allowed under the labor agreement. GOLF-PGA CHAMPIONSHIPLefty leads after tumultuous back nineKIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. (AP) — Phil Mickelson bent, but he didn't break as he flirts with history at the PGA Championship.Mickelson survived a wild ride at Kiawah Island with a 2-under 70 that leaves him 18 holes away from becoming golf's oldest major champion.The 50-year-old Mickelson walked off the 10th green with a five-shot lead, only to give it all away while Brooks Koepka (KEHP'-kuh) rattled off three birdies to tie him for the lead.Lefty curled in the 4-foot par putt to become the oldest player with a 54-hole lead in a major since 59-year-old Tom Watson at Turnberry in 2009.Mickelson is 7 under, one shot ahead of Koepka. Louis Oosthuizen (OOST'-hay-zehn) is two back after beginning the round in a first-place tie with Mickelson.Kevin Streelman remains three off the lead.LPGA-PURE SILK CHAMPIONSHIPHsu, Jutanugarn share lead through 54WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) — Wei-Ling Hsu birdied the final hole for a 6-under 65 and a share of the third-round lead with Moriya Jutanugarn in the LPGA Tour's Pure Silk Championship.The 26-year-old Hsu reeled off five straight birdies on the front nine as she seeks her first LPGA Tour victory.Jutanugarn eagled the par-5 seventh in a 65 to match Hsu at 10-under 203.MLB-SCHEDULEYanks starters still firing blanksUNDATED (AP) — Starting pitching was supposed to be a question mark when the New York Yankees opened the season. That isn't the case right now.Gerrit Cole scattered four hits over seven shutout innings to lead the Yankees' 7-0 rout of the White Sox. The Yanks now have four consecutive starts of at least seven shutout innings for the first time since May 1932.New York starters have thrown 30 consecutive shutout innings, a prime reason for their five-game winning streak.Gleyber (GLAY'-bur) Torres followed Friday night's walk-off hit with three hits and four RBIs, including a two-run double.In other major league action:— The Red Sox have a four-game winning streak after Xander Bogaerts (BOH'-gahrts) and Danny Santana hit consecutive home runs in the sixth inning of their 4-3 win over the Phillies. Nathan Eovaldi (eh-VAHL'-dee) allowed two runs over 5 1/3 innings before four relievers combined for one-run, two-hit relief to help Boston move a season-high 11 games over .500.— The Rays picked up their ninth straight win as Taylor Walls hit a pair of doubles in his major league debut, helping Tampa Bay earn a 3-1 win over the Blue Jays. Manuel Margot (mahn-WEHL' mahr-GOH') hit a go-ahead single in the eighth inning and Mike Zunino (zuh-NEE'-noh) homered for the Rays.— César Hernández belted a two-run homer in the 10th inning off Alex Colomé to give the Indians a 5-3 triumph over the Twins. Cleveland ace Shane Bieber struck out six over 5 1/3 innings, ending his 23-game streak of at least seven strikeouts.— Andrew Benintendi drove in three runs and the Royals ended Detroit's four-game winning streak by topping the Tigers, 7-5. Benintendi gave the Royals an early lead with a two-run, bases-loaded single in the first and made it 5-3 with an RBI single in the fifth.— Chris Bassitt pitched five-hit ball into the eighth inning of the Athletics' 6-2 verdict over the Angels. Seth Brown hit a two-run homer for Oakland, which also received solo shots from Matt Olson and Aramís (ah-RAH'-mihs) García. — Adolis García has 14 homers this season after connecting twice in helping power the Rangers past the Astros, 8-4. Jose Trevino hit a two-run double during a five-run seventh inning as the Rangers overcame a 4-3 deficit.— Yadier (YAH'-dee-ehr) Molina delivered a tiebreaking, solo homer in the seventh inning to send the Cardinals past the Cubs, 2-1. Four pitchers combined for five innings of scoreless, two-hit relief after Miles Mikolas (MY'-koh-las) appeared to get injured in his delayed season debut.— Daniel Robertson hit his first home run in more than two years, a tiebreaking, seventh-inning drive in the Brewers' 4-3 victory over the Reds. Cincinnati outfielder Jesse Winker hit his 12th home run of the season and fourth in two games.— Ryan Zimmerman hit a tiebreaking three-run homer and finished with three hits as the Nationals rallied for a 12-9 win over the Orioles. Josh Harrison started for the first time in center field for Washington and hit his first career grand-slam in the third after Baltimore built a 6-1 lead.— The Marlins pulled out a 3-1 win over the Mets on Garrett Cooper's two-run, walk-off homer in the ninth. Miami's Pablo López allowed four hits in seven scoreless innings and struck out eight.— Ozzie Albies homered from both sides of the plate and Ronald Acuña (ah-KOON'-yah) Jr. led off with his major league-best 15th home run as the Braves dumped the Pirates, 6-1. Albies hit a two-run shot and a solo blast, one day after Atlanta banged out seven round-trippers in a 20-1 thrashing of Pittsburgh.— Eric Hosmer (HAHS'-mur) hit a two-run, bases-loaded single and Fernando Tatis Jr. came flying around third to score on an error on the play, highlight a five-run fifth in the Padres' eighth straight win, 6-4 against the Mariners. Seattle committed three errors in the fifth, two after Hosmer singled.— Max Muncy slammed a ball into McCovey Cove, Austin Barnes went deep and Walker Buehler worked seven innings of the Dodgers' 6-3 win at San Francisco. Muncy homered off Scott Kazmir, who worked four innings in his first major league appearance since 2016.— Charlie Blackmon hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer off Madison Bumgarner in a four-run sixth that pushed the Rockies past the Diamondbacks, 7-6. Blackmon's sixth homer off Bumgarner put the Rockies ahead 5-3.MLB-NEWSPirates' Cahill lands on 10-day IL with left side discomfortUNDATED (AP) — Pittsburgh right-hander Trevor Cahill has been placed on the 10-day injured list with left side discomfort. Pirates manager Derek Shelton says Cahill "hadn't seen a ton of improvement" since suffering the injury in Wednesday's start against St. Louis. Shelton says no decision has been made on who will fill Cahill's next scheduled start on Tuesday against the Cubs. In other MLB news:— Pitchers Robert Dugger and Anthony Misiewicz were reinstated by the Mariners, one day after they and two other relievers were placed on the COVID-19 injured list. Right-handers Will Vest and Drew Steckenrider remain on the COVID IL.— The Blue Jays have placed third baseman Cavan Biggio on the 10-day injured list with a cervical spine ligament sprain. Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo expects Biggio to be ready to return when eligible to come off the IL.— Texas right-hander Kohei Arihara needs shoulder surgery and is expected to miss at least 12 weeks. Rangers general manager Chris Young says Arihara has an aneurysm in his pitching shoulder. Arihara has been on the 10-day injured list since May 9. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/download" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to download the Hutch Post mobile app. <a href="https://hutchpost.com/posts/5e73b532afae0f4d5f5d90ea" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.&nbsp;&nbsp;