NBA – 2021 NBA Finals – Best of 7

Last Night

Milwaukee Bucks 109, Phoenix Suns 103                                              (Series tied 2-2)

Bucks 109, Suns 103 – Middleton sends Bucks past Suns to tie NBA Finals at 2-2

Khris Middleton scored 40 points, including 10 straight for the Milwaukee Bucks down the stretch to send them past the Phoenix Suns, 109-103 in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. Middleton’s hot hand and a big block from Giannis Antetokounmpo gave the Bucks their second straight victory in the first close game of the series. Antetokounmpo had 26 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists. His streak of two straight 40-point games ended but the only number that matters for the Bucks is on the series scoreboard. Devin Booker had 42 for Phoenix, which hosts Game 5 on Saturday.

WNBA – Women’s National Basketball Association – 2021 All Star Game

Last Night

WNBA All-Stars 93, US Olympic Team 85

Team WNBA 93, Team USA 85 – Ogunbowale leads WNBA All-Stars over US Olympic team 93-85

Arike Ogunbowale scored 26 points and the WNBA All-Star team beat the U.S. Olympic team 93-85 in the league’s All-Star Game. It wasn’t a typical All-Star Game with the teams playing hard on both ends of the court for the entire game. Usually there isn’t much defense played until late in the fourth quarter. The WNBA team led 75-73 midway through the fourth quarter before Ogunbowale had a four-point play to extend the advantage to six. The Olympic squad rallied within 83-78 before Ogunbowale, who earned MVP honors for the game, hit another 3-pointer and posed to the crowd.

WNBA – Candace Parker to be first woman on cover of NBA 2K game

Candace Parker grew up playing video games and now she’ll be the first female basketball player on the cover of one. The Chicago Sky star will appear on the NBA 2K22 cover for the WNBA 25th Anniversary special edition when it’s released on Sept. 10. Parker joins Luka Dončić, who was named cover athlete for the game’s regular edition, and Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who were recognized as cover athletes for the NBA 75th Anniversary Edition.

WNBA/Olympics – AP sources: Ogwumike denied by FIBA to play for Nigeria

Nneka Ogwumike and Elizabeth Williams have been notified by FIBA that their petitions to play for Nigeria in the upcoming Olympics were denied because they played for the U.S. for too long, says two people familiar with the situation. The people spoke to The Associated Press Wednesday night on condition of anonymity because no official announcement has been made. One person says Nigeria will appeal the decision and that both players are exploring their options of how to potentially still play for Nigeria in the Tokyo Games that start next week.

MLB – AP source: No word by weekend on Blue Jays' return

The Toronto Blue Jays won’t find out by this weekend whether they will get permission from the federal government to play in Canada soon, a government official familiar with the talks told The Associated Press. A team spokeswoman said the club continues to work with the federal government toward playing games at Rogers Centre starting July 30, and expected to receive a response by Friday. But the government official familiar with the talks said the Blue Jays will not learn whether they will get to play in Toronto by the weekend. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because no one has been authorized to discuss the talks publicly. The Blue Jays started this season in Dunedin, Florida, before moving to Buffalo, New York.

MLB – On deck for MLB's 2nd half: Trades, playoff races and prizes

The second half of the major league baseball season starts Thursday night when Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers and the AL East-leading Boston Red Sox visit Yankee Stadium. In a season already featuring big hitting by Shohei...