BASKETBALL
When the Maine Celtics play the Cleveland Charge in the NBA G League playoffs at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Portland Expo, they will not have their leading scorer.
Luka Šamanić , who averaged 22 points per game, signed a 10-day contract with the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.
Originally a First Round selection by San Antonio in the 2019 NBA Draft, Šamanić has played in 36 NBA games in his career, averaging 3.8 points and 2.2 rebounds in 9.9 minutes per game. The 23-year-old also played on a Two-Way contract with the New York Knicks last season.
TENNIS
MIAMI OPEN: Reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina extended her winning streak to 12 matches and delivered at least 10 aces for the fourth straight outing while beating 25th-seeded Martina Trevisan 6-3, 6-0 to reach the semifinals at Miami Gardens, Florida.
Rybakina’s 10 aces raised her totals to 46 through four matches at the hard-court tournament in Florida and a WTA-leading 201 this season.
In fourth-round men’s action, No. 2 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas was beaten 7-6 (4), 6-4 by No. 14 Karen Khachanov, and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz and Jannik Sinner all beat seeded opponents in straight sets.
Alcaraz, who returned to No. 1 in the ATP rankings last week, got past Australian Open semifinalist Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-4 to set up a meeting against Fritz, the top-ranked American man and seeded ninth in Miami.
Fritz compiled twice as many winners, 22, as unforced errors, 11, and only dropped serve once during a 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 7 Holger Rune. That put Fritz into his first quarterfinal in seven appearances in Miami — and his first matchup against Alcaraz, a 19-year-old from Spain who won the U.S. Open in September for his first Grand Slam title.
No. 10 Sinner eliminated No. 6 Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-4 and has yet to drop a set in the tournament.
Sinner’s next opponent will be unseeded Emil Ruusuvuori, a 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 winner against No. 26 Botic van de Zandschulp.
SOCCER
U.S. WOMEN: Julie Ertz has been named to the U.S. roster for a pair of upcoming matches against Ireland after taking time off for the birth of her son.
Ertz has not played for the United States since the bronze medal-winning victory over Australia at the Tokyo Olympics. She and husband Zach Ertz, who plays for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, welcomed son Madden last August.
Ertz was among 26 players named to the roster announced by Coach Vlatko Andonovski.
The United States first plays Ireland on April 7 in Austin, Texas, before the second match on April 11 in St. Louis. They are the last international games for the United States before Andonovski selects a 23-player roster for the World Cup this summer in Australia and New Zealand.
ARGENTINA: Lionel Messi surpassed 100 career goals for Argentina with three in the first half of Tuesday’s international friendly against Curacao at Santiago del Estero, Argentina.
Argentina was leading Curacao 5-0 at halftime, with Nico Gonzalez and Enzo Fernandez also scoring.
Messi trails only two players on the list of most goals scored for national teams in official matches; Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, with 122, and Iran’s Ali Daei, with 109.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
