Sports News Roundup: Bruins send Sabres to 13th straight loss; Bradley Beal pours in 43 as Wizards beat Jazz and more

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Spring training roundup: Nats' Jon Lester makes spring debut

Jon Lester, just two weeks from having his parathyroid gland removed due to a medical condition, threw two innings Thursday in his spring debut as a member of the Washington Nationals. Lester allowed a run on one hit and one walk while striking out two, and the Nationals went on to beat the New York Mets 3-1 in Port St. Lucie, Fla.

NHL roundup: Bruins send Sabres to 13th straight loss

David Krejci recorded his 700th career point on the first of his three assists, and David Pastrnak had a goal and an assist as the visiting Boston Bruins handed the reeling Buffalo Sabres their 13th consecutive loss, 4-1 on Thursday. Greg McKegg posted his first goal of the season while Jake DeBrusk and Craig Smith also scored for Boston, which won back-to-back contests for the first time since a five-game winning streak from Feb. 1-12. Jaroslav Halak stopped 23 of 24 shots as the Bruins beat Buffalo for a sixth straight time.

Athletics: Failure to follow rules led to COVID cases after Torun meet - European Athletics

A number of athletes who tested positive for COVID-19 upon their return home from the European Indoor Championships in Torun, Poland earlier this month did not follow strict health and safety protocols while in the country, European Athletics said on Friday. European Athletics said it had been informed of several positive cases detected after the end of the March 4-7 event, following tests conducted on competitors on arrival in their respective countries.

NBA roundup: Bradley Beal pours in 43 as Wizards beat Jazz

Bradley Beal scored 43 points on 16-of-24 shooting to lead the Washington Wizards to a 131-122 victory over the visiting Utah Jazz on Thursday night. Russell Westbrook tallied 35 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists for the Wizards, earning his 13th triple-double of the season. Rui Hachimura chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds and Robin Lopez scored 11 points as Washington snapped a five-game losing streak.

ATP roundup: Qualifier Lloyd Harris makes Dubai semis

South African qualifier Lloyd Harris fired 14 aces while beating Japan's Kei Nishikori 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 on Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in the United Arab Emirates. The decisive third set was on serve until Harris broke for a 5-3 lead, and he served out the match in the ensuing game.

WTA roundup: Record 7 Russians move to St. Petersburg quarters

Two more Russian players earned victories in the Round of 16 at the St. Petersburg (Russia) Ladies Trophy Thursday, helping set a WTA mark in the process. With wins by eighth-seeded Daria Kasatkina and wild card Margarita Gasparyan, the pair joined five countrywomen in the tournament quarterfinals -- the first time in the history of the WTA that seven players from Russia had made the quarters in the same event.

NFL reaches long-term media deals with Amazon, Disney and others

The National Football League (NFL) said on Thursday it reached long-term media deals with Amazon.com Inc and major broadcast and cable companies that run through 2033. Amazon.com will become the exclusive partner for the league's "Thursday Night Football" games. The NFL also made deals with Walt Disney Co's ESPN and ABC networks, ViacomCBS Inc, Fox Corp and Comcast Corp.

'No silver bullet': torch relay struggles highlight hurdles for pandemic Olympics

Gold medal Paralympian Rina Akiyama pulled out of the Olympic torch relay at the eleventh hour this month, worried about drawing crowds that might spread the coronavirus, the latest in a series of cancellations that have plagued the event. The withdrawal by Akiyama and more than a dozen celebrities from the relay, which starts Thursday, underscores the challenges facing organisers of one of the world's most complex events, hosted by a nation where vaccinations have barely begun, in the midst of a yet-untamed pandemic.

Olympics: Tokyo organisers expected to discuss foreign spectators on Saturday Tokyo Olympics organisers will meet with Japanese government officials on Saturday, the local organising committee said, with discussion of whether to allow in foreign spectators expected to be on the agenda. The meeting, from 6 p.m. (0900 GMT), will be held by the Tokyo 2020 organising committee, the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the central government of Japan, Tokyo 2020 said in a statement on Friday.

Report: Texans give P Cameron Johnston a 3-year, $8 million deal The Houston Texans are signing punter Cameron Johnston to a three-year, $8 million deal that includes a $1 million signing bonus, the Houston Chronicle reported Friday. The 29-year-old Australian appeared in all 48 games over the past three seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles.

(With inputs from agencies.)