AP Wednesday Sports Roundup
Green Bay, Fairleigh Dickinson, South Dakota State and Gonzaga are in
UNDATED (AP) — Four teams have played their way into the 68-team NCAA tournament that starts next week:
— Jordan Fouse scored 16 points, and Green Bay wrapped up a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996 by beating Wright State, 78-69, in the Horizon League title game.
— Fairleigh Dickinson wins the Northeast Conference by beating Wagner, 87-79. Darian Anderson scored 28 points and Earl Potts Jr. had 27 to lead Fairleigh Dickinson, which is in the NCAA tournament for the fifth time but first since 2005.
— South Dakota State beat North Dakota State, 67-59, to win the Summit League title. Freshman forward Mike Daum scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Jackrabbits, who are in the NCAA tourney for the third time in five years.
— And Gonzaga is going to the NCAA tourney for the 18th straight year, and 17th straight time under coach Mark Few. The 'Zags beat St. Mary's, 85-75, to win the West Coast Conference tourney. Eric McClellan scored 20 points and Kyle Wiltjer added 17.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Spurs climb within 3 of Warriors...Raptors close gap on Cavaliers.
UNDATED (AP) — The San Antonio Spurs rebounded from Monday's loss in Indiana to beat Minnesota, 116-91. LaMarcus Aldridge had 29 points and seven rebounds for the 54-10 Spurs, who moved within three games of idle Golden State for best record in the NBA.
Kawhi Leonard scored 15 points and the Spurs (54-10) led by as many as 26 points in a game they played without stars Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili who were resting. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich also missed the game because of a family medical emergency.
In other NBA:
— DeMar DeRozan had 25 points, Kyle Lowry added 23 points and nine assists, and the Toronto Raptors beat the Brooklyn Nets, 104-99. The victory moves the Raptors within two games of Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland, which was idle.
— Jeff Teague scored 24 points to lead the Atlanta Hawks to a 91-84 victory over the Utah Jazz. The Hawks moved within one and a-half games of the Miami Heat for the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference.
— Kenneth Faried had 24 points and 10 rebounds to help the Denver Nuggets beat New York, 110-94. That's the Nuggets' eighth straight win over the Knicks at the Pepsi Center.
— Damian Lillard poured in 41 points -- including nine in overtime -- and the Portland Trail Blazers outlasted the Washington Wizards, 116-109, in overtime. Lillard sealed the victory with a driving layup with 23.5 seconds left.
— The L.A. Lakers beat Orlando, 107-98. D'Angelo Russell led the Lakers with 27. Backcourt mate Jordan Clarkson added 24.
NBA-BULLS-BUTLER
Butler's knee improves
CHICAGO (AP) — The Bulls hope to have Jimmy Butler back for Thursday's game against San Antonio after the swelling in the two-time All-Star guard's left knee went down.
Butler sat out Monday's win over Milwaukee because of swelling in the same knee that had sidelined him for 11 games.
He returned to score 24 points while playing 34 minutes in Saturday's win over Houston but experienced stiffness in his back the following day. Butler then developed swelling in his knee on Monday.
NHL-SCHEDULE
B's tie Lightning for conference lead
UNDATED (AP) — The Boston Bruins have skated into a tie for the NHL's Atlantic Division lead by outlasting the Tampa Bay Lightning 1-0 on Brad Marchand's goal 10 seconds into overtime. Both teams have 83 points, although Tampa Bay has a game in hand.
In other hockey:
— Mats Zuccarello had a goal and two assists, and the New York Rangers beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-2. The Rangers are 13-2 in their last 15 meetings with the Sabres.
— Anders Lee scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period, and the surging New York Islanders beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1. Jaroslav Halak stopped 31 shots before leaving late in the third period and got his 200th career victory. The Islanders are 11-2-1 in their last 14 games.
— Cam Atkinson scored twice in the third period and Boone Jenner had a goal and an assist while the Columbus Blue Jackets held off the Detroit Red Wings, 5-3.
— Montreal outlasted Dallas 4-3 in overtime. Alex Galchenyuk scored twice, including the game-winner at 1:59 of OT.
— Carolina beat Ottawa, 4-3, in a shootout. Rookie Jaccob Slavin scored in the fourth round of the shootout.
— Nashville doubled up Winnipeg 4-2. Craig Smith scored twice for the Predators, who are 9-0-4 in their last 13.
— San Jose blanked Edmonton 3-0. James Reimer got the shutout with 31 saves between the pipes for the Sharks. Logan Couture scored twice.
NFL-MOVES
Lions receiver Johnson ends career...Vinatieri re-ups with Colts
UNDATED (AP) — Receiver Calvin Johnson has retired from the Detroit Lions.
The 30-year-old issued a statement announcing his decision to walk away from the NFL after nine seasons with the Lions. Johnson had 88 receptions for 1,214 yards and nine touchdowns last season. He leaves the game with 731 career receptions for 11,619 yards and 83 TDs.
In other NFL developments in free agent deals that can't be finalized until Wednesday:
— Forty-three-year-old kicker Adam Vinatieri, the NFL's oldest player, has agreed to terms to remain with the Indianapolis Colts. Vinatieri has been with the Colts for 10 seasons, including the 2006 NFL championship season. He also won three titles with the Patriots before joining Indianapolis as a free agent.
— A person with knowledge of the negotiations says the Patriots have picked up the option that will keep Pro Bowl tight end Rob Gronkowski in New England through 2019. The 26-year-old Gronkowski alluded to the move on Monday when he tweeted that he was taking a pay cut for the next four years. The deal made in 2012 was a six-year extension worth $54 million, including a $10 million option that would activate the deal for 2016-19.
— A person familiar with the negotiations says Jacksonville has agreed to a six-year, $90 million contract with Denver defensive end Malik Jackson. Jackson had 129 tackles, 14 sacks and two forced fumbles in his past three seasons. He started all 16 games in 2015, finishing with 45 tackles, seven passes defensed and five sacks as a mainstay on the Broncos Super Bowl team.
— Tight end Jordan Cameron has accepted a $1.5 million pay cut this year to stay with the Miami Dolphins. Cameron agreed to a restructured contract that reduces his salary to $6 million from $7.5 million. The club saves the difference in salary cap space. Cameron caught 35 passes for 386 yards and three scores last season.
— A person familiar with the situation has told The Associated Press that the Chiefs and linebacker Tamba Hali have agreed to a three-year contract. The 32-year-old is coming off his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl season, finishing with 6 1/2 sacks while starting 14 of the 15 games he played.
— Buffalo has reached an agreement to re-sign offensive guard Richie Incognito to a three-year contract worth $15 million. He started all 16 games for the Bills and was part of an offensive line that helped lead the NFL in rushing yards.
— Free agent defensive end Mario Williams has signed a $16 million, two-year contract with the Miami Dolphins. The pass rush could use an upgrade — Miami tied for 25th in the NFL with 31 sacks last season.
— Longtime Bills cornerback Leodis McKelvin has agreed to terms on a two-year contract with Philadelphia. The 30-year old spent eight seasons with Buffalo after being the 11th overall pick in 2008.
— Bears receiver Alshon Jeffery has signed his one-year, $14.6 million franchise tender offer. Injuries limited him to nine games last season but he still led the team in receiving with 807 yards.
— The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have released linebacker Bruce Carter and re-signed safety Keith Tandy. Carter was one of the team's top acquisitions in free agency a year ago, signing a four-year, $17 million contract after spending the first four seasons of his career with the Dallas Cowboys. But he lost the starting middle linebacker job to rookie Kwon Alexander and never had much of an impact.
MLB-NEWS
Bringing the game to the troops
UNDATED (AP) — Atlanta and Miami will play a Major League game at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, on July 3. It will be played in a 12,500-seat ballpark to be built on the base with funding from Major League Baseball and the players' association.
The ballpark will be converted to a softball field and multi-purpose facility after the game.
Elsewhere:
— Miami reliever Carter Capps has a torn ligament in his throwing elbow and will be out for the entire season after Tommy John surgery. He missed the last two months of last season with elbow soreness and complained about discomfort last week.
TENNIS-SHARAPOVA
Sponsors drop Sharapova
MOSCOW (AP) — Three of Maria Sharapova's major sponsors are cutting ties with the Russian tennis star after she admitted to failing a doping test at the Australian Open. The sponsors are Nike, Tag Heuer and Porsche.
Sharapova says a drug she has taken for medical reasons for 10 years became banned this year and she failed to realize it. The manufacturer of the drug, meldonium, says the normal course of treatment for the drug is four to six weeks.
TENNIS-HALL OF FAME
Two stars headed to the Hall
NEW YORK (AP) — Justine Henin and Marat Safin have been elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Henin won seven Grand Slam singles titles, an Olympic gold medal and helped Belgium win its first Fed Cup championship. Safin earned two major titles and briefly reached No. 1.