Reuters Sports News Summary
Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.
Mickelson hits 'number two' best bunker shot ever, one back at Pebble
Phil Mickelson has made a career out of a sublime short game, so when he describes a bunker shot as the second best of his life it is worthy of attention. Mickelson holed a relatively routine 45-foot sand shot at the 13th hole during the third round at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in California on Saturday, a feat that had the gallery cheering wildly.
Judo: Frenchman Riner suffers first loss in 10 years
France's double Olympic champion judoka Teddy Riner suffered his first defeat in nearly 10 years on Sunday, losing to Japan's Kokoro Kageura in the IJF Paris Grand Slam at Bercy. The 30-year-old heavyweight, who is on the comeback trail following a spell out since winning the Brasilia Grand Slam in October, had won his previous 152 bouts.
Home hero Lee emulates sister to break European Tour duck at Vic Open
The anticipated family double did not materialize but Min Woo Lee emulated sister Minjee at the Vic Open on Sunday to claim his maiden European Tour title with a two-shot victory over Ryan Fox. Lee went into the final round with a three-shot lead and the 21-year-old showed no signs of nerve as he carded a four-under-par 68 to finish with a winning aggregate of 19-under 269.
NHL roundup: Bruins down Coyotes for 6th straight win
Charlie Coyle scored twice, and Patrice Bergeron had a goal and two assists as the Boston Bruins continued their dominance of the visiting Arizona Coyotes with a 4-2 win Saturday. Jake DeBrusk also scored, and David Pastrnak had two assists as the Bruins extended their winning streak to six. Tuukka Rask stopped 29 shots for Boston and improved to 12-0-6 at home.
Figure skating: Hanyu survives fall to claim gold at Four Continents
Japan's double Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu picked himself up after a fall to win the men's free program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul on Sunday. The 25-year-old, who set a world record score in the short program on Friday, performed a quad Salchow, a quad toe-Euler-triple Salchow, a triple Axel and a triple flip in his skate to "Seimei".
Duplantis can soar higher, says former pole vault record holder
World silver medalist Mondo Duplantis who soared to a pole vault world record 6.17 meters on Saturday can reach even higher heights, said Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie, whose mark the Swede shattered by a centimeter. "It is completely conceivable, there is no reason why it cannot be in the long term," Lavillenie told newspaper L'Equipe when asked if Duplantis might one day clear 6.20 meters.
Top 25 roundup: Duke survives UNC on two buzzer beaters
Wendell Moore Jr.'s putback at the overtime buzzer of teammate Tre Jones' air ball gave No. 7 Duke a thrilling 98-96 victory against host North Carolina on Saturday night at the Smith Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. It was the second buzzer-beating shot that saved Duke (20-3, 10-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) in a game the Blue Devils trailed by seven with just over a minute left in regulation and by five with 20 seconds left in overtime.
ATP roundup: Monfils wins third Montpellier title
Top-seeded Frenchman Gael Monfils defeated Canadian Vasek Pospisil 7-5, 6-3 on Sunday to become the second three-time winner of the Open Sud de France in Montpellier. Monfils saved all four break points he faced and improved to 6-0 against Pospisil. He tied countryman Richard Gasquet with his third Montpellier crown, the eighth ATP title of his career.
Basketball: Spain dash British hopes and secure Olympic women's berth
European champions Spain secured their slot for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic women's basketball tournament on Sunday and dashed British hopes of a breakthrough qualification. Australia, Serbia, Belgium, South Korea and Puerto Rico joined the Spaniards in punching their tickets for Tokyo and completing the 12-strong lineup.
NBA roundup: New-look Wolves stomp Clippers
The new-look Minnesota Timberwolves were a puzzle too difficult to solve Saturday, getting 24 points from Jordan McLaughlin and 23 from Malik Beasley to earn a resounding 142-115 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers and end a 13-game losing streak. Three players were making their debut for a Timberwolves team that was busy in advance of Thursday's NBA trade deadline. One player who did not suit up was D'Angelo Russell, who was one of the biggest acquisitions on the final trading day.
