NBA – FINALS
The Golden State Warriors are one win away from sweeping their entire NBA playoff schedule.
The Warriors have a three-games-to-none lead in the finals after rallying in the fourth quarter for a 118-113 triumph over the Cavaliers in Cleveland. Kevin Durant capped his 31-point performance by nailing a go-ahead 3-pointer with 45 seconds remaining. Durant was 10-for-18 from the field, including 4-for-7 from beyond the arc.
Klay Thompson scored 16 of his 30 points in the first quarter and was 6-for-11 from 3-point range. Thompson hit four treys in the opening period to help the Warriors finish with a finals-record nine for the period.
Stephen Curry contributed 26 points, 13 rebounds and six assists for the Warriors, who are trying to become the first team in league history to run the table in the postseason.
The Cavs outscored the Warriors 33-22 in the third quarter to take a five-point advantage. Cleveland led by six with three minutes left before Golden State closed on an 11-0 run.
LeBron James delivered 39 points, 11 boards and nine assists for the Cavaliers, but he was held to two points over the final six minutes. Kyrie Irving added 38 points and had a chance to put the Cavs back on top before missing a 3-point try in the closing seconds.
Game 4 is Friday in Cleveland.
MLB – ROCKIES
Kyle Freeland pitched 6 1/3 effective innings, Nolan Arenado drove in three runs and the Colorado Rockies beat the Cleveland Indians 8-1 on Wednesday for their fourth straight win.
Charlie Blackmon, the reigning National League Player of the Month, added two RBIs for the Rockies, who lead the NL with 38 wins. Ian Desmond had three hits and scored two runs.
Freeland (7-3) allowed one run and six hits, struck out five and walked none while lowering his ERA to 3.34. The Denver native has turned in a quality start in eight of his last nine starts.
Cleveland right-hander Trevor Bauer (5-5), pitching on two days’ rest, allowed four runs and tied his season high with five walks in 3 1/3 innings. He threw just 30 pitches Sunday against Kansas City before rain halted the game and ended his appearance.
MLB – Around the Majors Wednesday
The New York Yankees have bounced back from Tuesday’s loss to the Boston Red Sox.
CC Sabathia won his fifth consecutive start and Chris Carter had four RBIs as the Yankees thumped the Bosox, 8-0. Sabathia allowed five hits and no walks over eight innings before coming out of the game after throwing 95 pitches. The lefty has a 1.11 ERA during his winning streak, with all five wins following losses by Masahiro Tanaka. Carter cracked a three-run homer and added an RBI single to back Sabathia’s seventh win in nine decisions.
The Yankees now lead the American League East by two games over Boston.
— Trey Mancini was the hitting star in Baltimore’s 9-6 comeback over Pittsburgh, tying the game with a two-run homer in the ninth before launching a three-run blast in the 11th. The Orioles trailed 6-1 in the eighth until Adam Jones went deep. Tony Watson blew a 6-2 lead in the ninth as the O’s rallied for the second straight night.
— Jason Vargas is 8-3 after limiting the Astros to two runs and six hits in five innings of Kansas City’s 7-5 verdict over Houston. Dayan Diaz surrendered three runs over 2 2/3 innings while starting in place of Dallas Keuchel (KY’-kul), who was scratched due to illness. Brian McCann hit a two-run homer for the Al West leaders, who have dropped two straight since an 11-game winning streak.
— Mike Zunino’s second homer of the night was a two-run, walk-off blast in the bottom of the ninth to give the Mariners a 6-5 decision over Minnesota. Kyle Seager also went deep for Seattle, which trailed by three before winning for the ninth time in 10 games. The Twins were one out from a 5-4 win until Ben Gamel singled and scored on Zunino’s fourth over of the season.
— The Dodgers avoided a three-game sweep as Clayton Kershaw outpitched Stephen Strasburg in a 2-1 win over Washington. Kershaw limited the Nationals to a run and three hits while striking out nine to improve to 8-2. Corey Seager homered and Yasmani Grandal doubled home the tiebreaking run off Strasburg, who is 7-2 following his first loss since April 29.
— Jake Lamb and Brandon Drury homered in a five-run third that propelled the Diamondbacks over the Padres, 7-4. Zack Greinke gave up three runs over five innings and ended his night by fanning Hunter Renfroe and Ryan Schimpf with two runners on. The Diamondbacks picked up their eighth straight home win and improved to 23-8 in Phoenix.
— Jimmy Nelson tossed six innings and overcame the Giants’ three-run third in the Brewers’ 6-3 victory against San Francisco. Nelson settled down after giving up Buster Posey’s two-run homer, one of the seven hits allowed by the Brewers’ starter. Jesus Aguilar went 2-for-4 with a go-ahead double, giving him a .328 average over his last 23 games.
— Milwaukee leads the NL Central by one game following the Cubs’ 6-5 loss to Miami. Marcell Ozuna hit his 15th homer and J.T. Realmuto added a solo shot off loser John Lackey. Dee Gordon had two hits and scored twice to help the Marlins end the Cubs’ five-game winning streak.
— Pinch-hitter Patrick Kivlehan belted a three-run homer while Cincinnati scored five times in the seventh to turn a 4-1 deficit into a 6-4 win against St. Louis. Joey Votto also homered in the seventh as the Reds dealt the Cardinals their sixth straight loss, their longest skid in four years. Reds second baseman Scooter Gennett grounded into a double play in his first at-bat after homering in his last four plate appearances on Tuesday.
— Detroit won for the fifth time in six games as Buck Farmer combined with two relievers on a three-hitter in a 4-0 shutout of the Angels. Farmer scattered three hits over 6 2/3s leaving him scoreless over 13 innings in two starts this season. Justin Upton broke it open with a three-run shot in the eighth after the Tigers managed just three hits off Alex Meyer through six innings.
— Jay Bruce hit a pair of homers off Yu Darvish and the Mets scored an unearned run in the ninth to beat the Rangers, 4-3 in Texas. The Mets blew a 3-1 lead in the eighth before scoring the tiebreaking run on a throwing error by second baseman Rougned Odor. Mets starter Zack Wheeler allowed one run in seven strong innings.
— The Blue Jays homered twice in the 10th inning to pull out a 7-5 victory at Oakland. Josh Donaldson launched a tiebreaking, two-run blast before Justin Smoak slammed his second homer of the afternoon. Kevin Pillar smacked a three-run shot to help the Blue Jays avoid a three-game sweep.
— Jacob Faria took a three-hitter into the seventh inning of his major league debut to pitch Tampa Bay past the Chicago White Sox, 3-1. He spotted the White Sox a 1-0 lead in the first but worked 6 1/3 innings before three relievers combined to complete a four-hitter. The Rays scored three runs in the third to end a four-game losing streak.
— Nick Markakis supplied a pair of two-run doubles and had five RBIs in Atlanta’s 14-1 laugher over Philadelphia. Dansby Swanson smacked a three-run homer to back Mike Foltynewicz, who allowed only four hits in seven scoreless innings. Phillies infielder Andres Blanco made his debut as a pitcher and served up Matt Adams’ two-run shot in the eighth.