Parker leads West to All-Star victory
Candace Parker had a blast in her All-Star debut. Parker scored a record 23 points to lead the West to a 102-98 win over the East on Saturday at Uncasville, Conn., and earn MVP honors.
The Sparks star was voted a starter for the 2011 game, but she couldn’t play because of a knee injury. This time, she put on a show.
After a quiet first half, Parker helped rally the West after the break.
With her team trailing by 11 early in the third quarter, Parker scored seven straight points.
Then, after Sparks teammate Kristi Toliver hit back-to-back three-point shots to the tie score, Ivory Latta hit her own three-pointers to give the East an 81-74 advantage heading into the final period.
Parker, who also had 11 rebounds, broke Swin Cash’s All-Star game record of 22 points with a layup midway through the fourth quarter. Toliver finished with 21 points.
Epiphanny Prince and Latta scored 15 points each to lead the East.
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NBA
Pacers get Scola in trade with Suns
The Indiana Pacers bolstered their front-line depth with the acquisition of Luis Scola from the Phoenix Suns.
The Pacers sent forward Gerald Green, center Miles Plumlee and a lottery-protected first-round draft pick to the rebuilding Suns.
Scola, a 6-foot-9 forward from Argentina, played his first five NBA seasons with the Houston Rockets before joining Phoenix a year ago when the Suns submitted the winning bid under the league’s amnesty rule. He appeared in all 82 games for the Suns, averaging 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds. Scola, who has averaged 14.2 points and 7.5 rebounds in his career, joins a team that figures to contend in the Eastern Conference after he toiled for a season with a Suns squad that compiled the worst record in the Western Conference.
Charlotte shooting guard Gerald Henderson and the Bobcats agreed to a three-year, $18-million contract, said a person familiar with the situation.
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ETC.
Mahan gives up lead to join wife
Hunter Mahan gave up the lead in the Canadian Open when his wife went into labor, and Brandt Snedeker grabbed the top spot a few hours later.
Mahan was 13 under after two rounds when he got a call before he was scheduled to tee off at Oakville, Ontario, saying his wife, Kandi, had gone into labor. The American rushed to the airport for a flight to Texas. The couple are expecting their first child.
Snedeker had a nine-under 63 at Glen Abbey to take the lead. Sweden’s David Lingmerth was a stroke back after a 65, and Matt Kuchar and Jason Bohn were 12 under.
Germany’s Bernhard Langer took three-shot lead in the Senior British Open, mastering Royal Birkdale at Southport, England, for a four-under 66. Langer had a nine-under 201 total.
South Africa’s David Frost was second after a 68. American Mark Wiebe, tied for the second round lead with Langer, had a 70 to drop four strokes back.
Gabriella Then of Upland won the U.S. Junior Championship, beating Lakareber Abe of Angleton, Texas, 2 and 1, in the 36-hole final at Sycamore Hills in Fort Wayne, Ind.
Scottie Scheffler of Dallas won the U.S. Junior Amateur at Truckee, Calif., beating Davis Riley of Hattiesburg, Miss., 3 and 2, in the 36-hole final at Martis Camp Club.
Top-seeded John Isner and second-seeded Kevin Anderson advanced to the Atlanta Open final.
Isner beat Lleyton Hewitt, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (5). Anderson beat American Ryan Harrison, 6-3, 7-6 (3).
Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska beat American Jamie Hampton, 6-3, 6-2, in a Bank of the West Classic semifinal in Stanford. In the final on Sunday she’ll face Dominika Cibulkova, who beat Sorana Cirstea, 6-4, 6-0.
Trainer John Sadler’s 6-year-old Kettle Corn came back from last place to beat Bob Baffert’s heavy favorite Paynter in the $200,000 San Diego Handicap at Del Mar. Kettle Corn and jockey Victor Espinoza charged from the far outside for a half-length victory, covering 11/16 miles in 1:41.83.
Jesus Soto Karass stopped Andre Berto with a left hook for a technical knockout in the 12th round of their welterweight fight in San Antonio, possibly ending Berto’s once-promising career. Berto, who won his first 27 professional fights, has lost three of his last four.
Demetrious Johnson used an armbar on John Moraga in the fifth round to successfully defend his UFC flyweight championship with a submission victory in Seattle.