Sports News Roundup: Wings escape 4-goal hole, top Pens in OT; Zion Williamson's career night propels Pelicans and more

That Moriyasu would continue in the role came as little surprise after he led Japan to victories over former World Cup winners Germany and Spain during the finals in Qatar en route to topping what was considered the most difficult group at the tournament. Tennis-Greece, U.S. make strong starts on United Cup's opening day Stefanos Tsitsipas battled back after losing the opening set to outlast Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 4-6 6-2 7-6(4) and give Greece a 2-0 lead on Thursday, the first day of the inaugural United Cup mixed team tournament in Perth.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Alpine skiing-Swiss Odermatt takes super-G win in Bormio

Swiss Olympic champion Marco Odermatt won the super-G event in Bormio, Italy on Thursday to extend his lead atop the overall World Cup standings. Odermatt beat Austria's Vincent Kriechmayr by 0.64 seconds, while Loic Meillard took third place, 1.22 seconds behind his Swiss compatriot.

Tennis-Kyrgios withdrew from United Cup to give himself best chance at Australian Open

Nick Kyrgios said he withdrew from the inaugural edition of the United Cup to be in peak condition for next month's Australian Open, adding that he did not expect everyone to understand the reasoning behind his decision. Kyrgios, who is ranked 22nd in the world, was set to lead Australia in the joint ATP and WTA event but withdrew from the tournament due to injury on Wednesday, taking his own team mates by surprise with the late announcement.

Alpine skiing-Triple Olympic champion Mayer announces retirement

Three-time Olympic champion Matthias Mayer of Austria announced his retirement from Alpine skiing on Thursday, saying he had arrived at the decision after days of consideration. The 32-year-old had a successful outing at this year's Winter Games in Beijing, taking home gold in the super-G and bronze in the downhill race.

NHL roundup: Wings escape 4-goal hole, top Pens in OT

Jake Walman's sixth career goal came off a feed from Andrew Copp on a two-on-one at 2:13 of overtime Wednesday as the visiting Detroit Red Wings erased a four-goal deficit to top the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-4. Dylan Larkin, Joe Veleno, Jonatan Berggren and David Perron also scored and Lucas Raymond had two assists for the Red Wings, who won their second straight game.

Soccer-Liverpool got timing of Gakpo deal right - Klopp

Manager Juergen Klopp heaped praise on new signing Cody Gakpo's potential, adding that the Premier League club had got their timing just right to secure the signature of the highly sought-after Dutch forward. Gakpo, who scored three goals for the Netherlands at the World Cup, joined Liverpool from PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday for a reported initial fee of 37 million pounds ($44.57 million).

Tennis-Djokovic can't forget being deported but ready to move on in Australia

Novak Djokovic will never forget how it felt to be deported from Australia earlier this year but the Serb said his willingness to return for next month's Grand Slam at Melbourne Park shows the depth of feeling he has for the country. Djokovic was deported on the eve of the 2022 Australian Open in January for not being vaccinated against COVID-19 and received a three-year travel ban for the country.

Soccer-Nearly-man Moriyasu remains in charge of Japan for another four-year cycle

Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu will remain in charge of the Asian team for another World Cup cycle, the country's football association announced on Thursday, with the aim of breaking new ground after a number of near misses. That Moriyasu would continue in the role came as little surprise after he led Japan to victories over former World Cup winners Germany and Spain during the finals in Qatar en route to topping what was considered the most difficult group at the tournament.

Tennis-Greece, U.S. make strong starts on United Cup's opening day

Stefanos Tsitsipas battled back after losing the opening set to outlast Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 4-6 6-2 7-6(4) and give Greece a 2-0 lead on Thursday, the first day of the inaugural United Cup mixed team tournament in Perth. Despina Papamichail earlier put Greece 1-0 up with a 3-6 6-4 6-1 win over Isabella Shinikova, and Maria Sakkari can seal the tie with victory over Viktoriya Tomova when Group A action resumes on Friday.

NBA roundup: Zion Williamson's career night propels Pelicans

Zion Williamson scored his team's final 14 points as part of a career-high 43-point night as the host New Orleans Pelicans came from behind to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 119-118 on Wednesday night. The Timberwolves led by five points before Williamson took over with 2:44 to play. His 3-pointer and hook shot on back-to-back possessions tied the score at 112-112 with 1:49 left.

Soccer-Real Madrid is ready and needs no signings, says Ancelotti

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti said his team does not need winter signings as it is in good shape to resume the season in LaLiga, where they trail leaders Barcelona by two points. The Italian coach considers that having healthy players, such as striker Karim Benzema, will be the key to face the schedule that awaits the Madrid side, who will be looking to defend their LaLiga, Spanish Super Cup and Champions League titles.