AP National Sports

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Sports Writer MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Forget three-setters. Jessica Pegula doesn’t even need second sets these days. The No. 16 seed has made the semifinals at the Miami Open and benefitted from a second consecutive abrupt ending. She won her quarterfinal against fifth-seeded Paula Badosa on Wednesday after the Spaniard

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — A doctor died because of a heart issue while working at a World Cup qualifying game in Nigeria. FIFA says Joseph Kabungo was the official FIFA doctor overseeing doping controls of players at the Nigeria-Ghana playoff game in Abuja on Tuesday. Kabungo became ill soon after the game, which was marred

By The Associated Press 2020 U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem says he tested positive for COVID-19 after his first match in more than nine months. Thiem lost 6-3, 6-4 to Pedro Cachin at the Andalucía Open on the lower-level Challenger Tour on Tuesday, then felt what he called mild symptoms later in the day. He

By JIMMY GOLEN AP Sports Writer BOSTON (AP) — The Red Sox had the advantage of low expectations last season. They were coming off a last-place finish and their second straight season without a playoff appearance. Now Boston is looking to build on a surprising 2021 when it turned 92 wins and a wild-card berth

By EDDIE PELLS AP National Writer NEW ORLEANS (AP) — At long last, some of the cold, hard cash in the billion-dollar world of college sports is hitting the wallets of the players themselves by legitimate means. One expert estimates by the time next year’s Final Four rolls around, every men’s basketball and football player

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Celtics say center Robert Williams III is expected to miss four to six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair torn cartilage in his left knee. The team says Williams underwent a partial knee meniscectomy Wednesday morning at a Boston hospital. He was hurt Sunday against Minnesota. Williams was averaging 10

SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) — Retired pitcher Jake Peavy and outfielder Hunter Pence have joined the MLB Network as analysts. The 40-year-old Peavy last played in 2016. A three-time All-Star, he won the 2007 NL Cy Young Award. Pence was a four-time All-Star who last played in 2020. Newly retired players Alex Avila and Cameron Maybin

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Celtics say center Robert Williams III is expected to miss four to six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair torn cartilage in his left knee. The team says Williams underwent a partial knee meniscectomy Wednesday morning at a Boston hospital. He was hurt Sunday against Minnesota. Williams was averaging 10

CHICAGO (AP) — The U.S. Soccer Federation and the union for its women’s national team are set to negotiate past the expiration of their collective bargaining agreement on Thursday in an effort to reach a deal on equal pay. The sides announced in December that they had agreed to a three-month extension of a labor

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild have signed defenseman Alex Goligoski to a two-year, $4 million contract extension. Goligoski is in his first season with the Wild, his home-state club. The 36-year-old has two goals, 26 assists and a team-leading plus-34 rating in 58 games. His new deal runs through the 2023-24 season.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The Jacksonville Jaguars have signed defensive end Arden Key to a one-year contract to give them an athletic pass rusher to play opposite Josh Allen and potentially alongside rookie Aiden Hutchinson. Key should be an upgrade from 2020 first-round draft pick K’Lavon Chaisson and veteran Jihad Ward. He is coming off

By NOAH TRISTER AP Sports Writer This year’s Final Four is either unprecedented or pretty close. North Carolina is making a record 21st appearance in the Final Four. Its semifinal opponent, Duke, is waiting with the sport’s winningest coach. Mike Krzyzewski surpassed 1,200 victories during this postseason run. Kansas arrives having recently taken over the

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — An eclectic array of celebrities including singer Elton John, golfing legend Greg Norman and champion surfer Kelly Slater have paid tribute to their friend, former Australian cricketer Shane Warne, at a star-studded state memorial service. More than 50,000 mourners chanted their hero’s nickname “Warnie” at the