Basketball

DALLAS (AP) — Mavericks center Dereck Lively II was out of Game 4 of the Western Conference finals with a sprained neck, and Dallas missed a chance to sweep Minnesota, losing 105-100 on Tuesday night.

DALLAS (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns finally found his rhythm, and the Timberwolves finally closed a game in the Western Conference finals. Now they head back to Minnesota to see if they can make things even more interesting against Dallas.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Kia Nurse scored 22 points and Aari McDonald added a season-high 21 points to rally the Los Angeles Sparks to an 88-82 victory over the Indiana Fever on Tuesday night, handing Caitlin Clark her third straight home loss.

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Bill Walton might have been the ultimate San Diegan. While he went away to play basketball at UCLA and the bulk of his NBA career, he never missed a chance to celebrate his hometown.

The WNBA annual Commissioner's Cup gets underway this week using a new format for the in-season tournament. The league tweaked the format this year and teams now will play five games against conference opponents over a two-week period.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Boston Celtics completed one quest Monday night by returning to the NBA Finals. Now, they'll chase an even bigger goal, the one that's eluded this team for more than a decade — capturing the franchise’s 18th championship.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Derrick White stood stoically at midcourt as his teammates celebrated Monday night.

Reaction from the basketball world to the death Monday of Bill Walton : ___ “My very close friend, fellow Bruin and NBA rival Bill Walton died today. And the world feels so much heavier now.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle poured out his heart Monday night when he started reflecting on the impact of Bill Walton.

Bill Walton was never afraid to be himself.