Reuters Sports News Summary

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs. NFL notebook: Pierre-Paul out at least 5 to 6 months

Tampa Bay Buccaneers pass rusher Jason Pierre-Paul will miss five to six months as a best-case scenario due to the broken neck he suffered in a car accident last week, head coach Bruce Arians told reporters on Friday. A decision on whether Pierre-Paul will need neck surgery hasn't yet been reached. "Very unfortunate," Arians said of the situation. "All we can do is just pray and hope for the best and hope it's one of those five- or six-month things and go from there." MLB notebook: Cubs' Russell respects fan criticism

Chicago Cubs shortstop Addison Russell seemed to change his tune Friday, one day after his "that's on them" comment toward fans who booed him after his return from a suspension for violating Major League Baseball's domestic abuse policy. "Everyone is entitled to doing whatever they want to do, think whatever they want to think, say whatever they want to say," Russell, 25, said to reporters Friday morning. "The reaction to me, I have to respect that. My actions are what they are. I have to be responsible for them." NASCAR notebook: Truex Jr. barely escapes disaster in final practice

-- It was one of those incidents that unfolds almost in slow motion. During Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice for Saturday night's Digital Ally 400 at Kansas Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the rear of Kyle Larson's No. 42 Chevrolet stepped out as he ran near the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2. Thiem ousts Federer in Madrid Open thriller to reach semis

Dominic Thiem edged a thrilling clash with Roger Federer 3-6 7-6(11) 6-4 to end the Swiss veteran's clay season comeback and reach the Madrid Open semi-finals on Friday. The fifth-seeded Austrian, who saved two match points, will face Novak Djokovic on Saturday after the world number one's opponent Marin Cilic withdrew with food poisoning. NBA notebook: Lakers reportedly to interview Bickerstaff

The Los Angeles Lakers were expected to interview J.B. Bickerstaff on Friday for their vacant head coach position, the Los Angeles Times reported. The former Memphis Grizzlies head coach is the second candidate to be interviewed by the Lakers in two days after the team met with former Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic coach Frank Vogel on Thursday. Woods, Koepka, Molinari to tee off early in first round at PGA

Fans wanting to watch Tiger Woods start his quest for a 16th major title will have to be up early for the first round at the PGA Championship next Thursday. Masters winner Tiger Woods has an 8:24 a.m. (1224 GMT) tee time, starting at the 10th hole at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, New York. MLB roundup: Verlander, Astros stifle Rangers

Justin Verlander allowed one hit over seven strong innings, and the Houston Astros belted three solo homers while overcoming an injury to star Jose Altuve to beat the visiting Texas Rangers 3-0 on Friday night for their third consecutive victory. Verlander, who improved to 6-1 with a 2.51 ERA, struck out eight and yielded only Asdrubal Cabrera's single to lead off the fifth inning as the Astros won for the sixth time in seven games. It's the third time in Verlander's career that he has allowed just one hit in a start against the Rangers. Golf: South Korea's Kang bolts clear in Dallas with sparkling 61

South Korea's Sung Kang shot a magnificent 10-under 61 in tough conditions to vault to a four-stroke halfway lead at the AT&T Byron Nelson in his home-town Dallas on Friday. Kang said he could hardly move his body on an unusually cold May day in north Texas but notched six consecutive birdies en route to a 16-under 126 total at Trinity Forest. Curry, Warriors close out Rockets in Game 6

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 60 points, and the visiting Golden State Warriors pulled away late in Game 6 to claim their Western Conference semifinal series with a 118-113 victory over the Houston Rockets on Friday. The Warriors prevailed in the finale of the best-of-seven series despite playing without their leading scorer this postseason, Kevin Durant, sidelined due to a calf injury. Durant's status is uncertain ahead of Game 1 of the Western Conference finals in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday against the Portland Trail Blazers or the Denver Nuggets. Blues, Sharks took hard roads to conference finals

The road to winning the Stanley Cup is only halfway over, yet both combatants in the Western Conference final are truly battle tested. When the San Jose Sharks play host to the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night to kick off the third round of the NHL playoffs -- a rematch of the 2016 Western Conference final won by the Sharks -- both teams have already overcome so much.