Sports News Roundup: Warriors' win, Kings' loss tightens play-in race; Capitals cannot afford home loss to Lightning and more

A marathon day at Augusta National began early with 27 golfers, including Woods, pulling double duty by finishing up weather-delayed first rounds before heading right back out onto a sun bathed layout. NBA roundup: Warriors' win, Kings' loss tightens play-in race Stephen Curry recorded 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to help the Golden State Warriors post a 100-92 victory over the host Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday, creating a three-way tie for eighth place in the Western Conference.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Knicks, in tight East seeding battle, meet Nets

A surge by Jalen Brunson is creating a weekend of varied playoff scenarios for the New York Knicks. Brunson is heating up heading into the final weekend of the regular season, and the Knicks still have a shot at landing the second seed in the Eastern Conference as they prepare for a Friday night home game against the Brooklyn Nets.

MLB roundup: A's stifle Rangers 1-0, take series

Left-hander JP Sears took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and Seth Brown homered and doubled as the visiting Oakland Athletics defeated the Texas Rangers 1-0 in the rubber game of their three-game series Thursday in Arlington, Texas. Sears (1-1) was making just the 46th start of his major league career. He walked three, struck out five and gave up just one hit en route to his 12th career win. Sears threw 88 pitches, 56 for strikes.

Capitals cannot afford home loss to Lightning

Time is running out for the Washington Capitals, whose weekend plans will include some scoreboard watching. The Eastern Conference's No. 2 wild-card holder as Thursday night's games began, the Capitals (37-31-11, 85 points) could not top the Buffalo Sabres and fell out of the final postseason spot in a 4-2 loss. They desperately need two points Saturday when the Tampa Bay Lightning come to the nation's capital.

Trial for NHL players in Canada case won't start before next season

The sexual assault case against five players from Canada's 2018 World Juniors hockey team -- four of whom started the 2023-24 season on NHL rosters -- won't go to trial before the start of next season. The attorneys for the players appeared virtually before a judge in London, Ontario, on Tuesday, largely for scheduling purposes. TSN reported the lawyers were ordered to file pretrial motions prior to Oct. 23, and the court set hearings pertaining to the motions on the calendar for Nov. 25, setting aside 15 days.

Golf-Marathon ahead as DeChambeau leads, Woods looks for more Augusta magic

The Masters was poised for a second round thriller on Friday with LIV Golf standard bearer Bryson DeChambeau sitting one shot clear of top-ranked Scottie Scheffler and Tiger Woods searching for some of his old major magic. A marathon day at Augusta National began early with 27 golfers, including Woods, pulling double duty by finishing up weather-delayed first rounds before heading right back out onto a sun bathed layout.

NBA roundup: Warriors' win, Kings' loss tightens play-in race

Stephen Curry recorded 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to help the Golden State Warriors post a 100-92 victory over the host Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday, creating a three-way tie for eighth place in the Western Conference. Jonathan Kuminga scored 19 points and Andrew Wiggins added 15 as Golden State won for the ninth time in 10 games. The victory keeps the Warriors alive for a spot in the No. 7 vs. No. 8 game in the Western Conference play-in round. Golden State, the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers all have the same record with two regular-season games left.

NHL roundup: Sidney Crosby, Pens score crucial OT win

Erik Karlsson scored from the top of the slot at 1:40 of overtime Thursday as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the visiting Detroit Red Wings 6-5 to move into the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Sidney Crosby had a legacy night for the Penguins, moving past Phil Esposito into 10th on the NHL's all-time scoring with 1,591 points. Crosby finished with a goal and two assists, reaching 1,000 assists in his career.

Soccer-The sequel: Wrexham tantalisingly close to second straight promotion

Wrexham AFC can clinch promotion for the second successive year if results go their way on Saturday in what would be the latest thrilling chapter in the Welsh team's Hollywood story. Wrexham need five points from their final three games to guarantee promotion to League One and their return to the third tier of English football for the first time since 2004-05.

Basketball-'Unlike anyone we've seen': WNBA seizes Clark spotlight

The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) will look to harness record-smashing sharpshooter Caitlin Clark's super-sized star power when she joins the professional ranks on Monday. Clark is expected to go first overall in the WNBA Draft to the Indiana Fever after more than 18 million tuned in for her final college game this week, where South Carolina stayed undefeated to deny her Iowa team the NCAA title.

Braves, Max Fried seek turnaround vs. Marlins

The Atlanta Braves -- among the favorites to win the 2024 World Series -- have been humbled. On Thursday, the Braves were routed 16-4 by the visiting New York Mets. Atlanta lost two of three games in that series, and the team finished the finale with a backup middle infielder on the mound.

(With inputs from agencies.)