CHICAGO -- It was a step forward for New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson on Wednesday against the Chicago Bulls. It was also a step back for the Pelicans' defense.

Despite a game-high 29 points for Williamson through the 3:54 mark of the third quarter, New Orleans trailed by as many as 23 points early in the fourth quarter.

Even though neither Williamson nor any of the other Pelicans starters checked back in, New Orleans stormed back to take a 127-125 preseason victory over the Bulls.

It was clear from the start that the Pelicans were going to try to get Williamson involved often and early.

"We have to get him moving," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. "We want him in space. We want to play him in space. The way you can do that is you have to get him on the move. I thought we did a good job, and he did a good job and being able to finish."

Williamson had 16 points at halftime and put up 13 more in the third quarter while shooting a combined 12-of-13 from the field.

In his preseason debut on Monday in Atlanta, Williamson was 6-of-13 from the floor while missing all three of his 3-point attempts. Against the Bulls, he lived at the rim.

All 13 of his shot attempts came from within 5 feet of the basket. Williamson said he wants to attack the rim by nature, and he was doing that against Chicago. But it also helped that he was getting going more.

"It was not trying to stay still," Williamson said. "Sometimes I find myself standing still. If I feel like I'm standing, I circle around and try to find an open spot."

Count Bulls coach Jim Boylen and guard Zach LaVine among those who were impressed by Williamson's showing.

"I was amazed at his body control for a guy that big," Boylen said of the 285-pound Williamson. "I was amazed where it looked like moments where he wasn't going to get to the rim, but he did.

"It's the first time I've seen him in person. I saw him in the summer league for the five minutes he played or whatever it was, so it's amazing for a guy that big to kind of be able to slither through and snake through things and get to the rim, even though people are in front of him. It's a heckuva skill."

LaVine smirked when he talked about Williamson after the game.

"I wanted to see what it was like firsthand," he said. "I'm a competitive guy, and he's the truth."

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Williamson's 29 points were the most by a rookie in the preseason in the past three seasons and the most by a No. 1 pick in the preseason since Derrick Rose had 30 points in 2008.

Even with Williamson's scoring, the Pelicans found themselves trialing 107-86 entering the final frame.

Chicago was shooting 53.7%, and Gentry wasn't pleased with what he saw. But the veteran coach rolled with Josh Hart, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Frank Jackson, Kenrich Williams and Jahlil Okafor for the entire fourth quarter, and there was marked improvement.

The Bulls were just 5-of-22 from the field in the fourth quarter as New Orleans outscored Chicago 41-18.

"I think it speaks loudly about the depth that we have," Gentry said.

Three of those players -- Hart, Alexander-Walker and Williams -- were not among the 10 Pelicans to play in the first half.

Alexander-Walker showed his resolve when he missed a pair of free throws late in the fourth but turned around with a game-tying 3-pointer and the go-ahead free throws with 57.9 to play.

His play didn't surprise Williamson at all.

"I know Nickeil. I know what he can do," Williamson said. "I was happy he got to go out there and show the world he could do that."

ESPN's Eric Woodyard contributed to this report.

In a video that surfaced online Wednesday night, St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Shildt can be seen giving a fiery, expletive-filled speech to his team in the locker room following a win over the Atlanta Braves in Game 5 of the National League Division Series.

"The [Braves] started some s---. We finished the s---," Shildt says in the video, which outfielder Randy Arozarena later acknowledged he streamed live on Instagram. "And that's how we roll. No one f---s with us ever. Now, I don't give a f--- who we play. We're gonna f--- them up. We're gonna take it right to them the whole f---ing way. We're gonna kick their f---ing ass."

The video is no longer available on Arozarena's Instagram account, but it gained traction and spread on social media. Arozarena, 24, said in a statement that he was sorry for the release of the video.

"I want to apologize to my teammates, manager, the Cardinals organization and baseball fans for the video I posted tonight after our victory in Atlanta," Arozarena said. "It was a moment meant to be private. I made a rookie mistake by sharing it on my social media account."

It's unclear exactly what Shildt was insinuating the Braves started. There doesn't appear to be media present as he talked to his players.

The Cardinals defeated the Braves 13-1 after scoring 10 runs in the first inning of Wednesday's game. They'll play in the National League Championship Series against the Washington Nationals, who beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-3 in 10 innings.

Arozarena made three appearances in the series against the Braves, including as a pinch hitter Wednesday. He went 0-for-3 in the series with two strikeouts.

Arozarena made his major league debut in mid-August but saw inconsistent playing time. He finished the regular season 6-for-20 from the plate with one homer, two RBIs, four runs scored and two stolen bases in 19 games.

LOS ANGELES -- Howie Kendrick hit a tiebreaking grand slam in the 10th inning, and the Washington Nationals, boosted by a stunning rally against Clayton Kershaw, beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-3 on Wednesday to advance to the NL Championship Series against St. Louis.

Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto homered on consecutive pitches to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the eighth against Kershaw, a three-time Cy Young Award winner. Soto started the comeback from a 3-0 hole with an RBI single in the sixth off starter Walker Buehler, then hit a 449-foot drive off Kershaw.

Adam Eaton walked against Joe Kelly to lead off the 10th, Rendon doubled on a drive that lodged in the left-field wall, and Soto was intentionally walked.

Kendrick, 4-for-19 with one RBI in the series, fouled off a pitch and then hit a 97 mph fastball over the wall in dead center for his second career grand slam. The other was a game-ending, 11th-inning drive against San Francisco in August 2017. Center fielder Cody Bellinger chased the ball all the way to the wall, putting his arms up against the fence as he ran out of room.

England's Rugby World Cup Pool C match against France on Saturday has been called off because of Typhoon Hagibis.

World Rugby is expected to provide official confirmation of the cancellation at 04:00 BST on Thursday.

Hagibis is moving towards Japan and expected to make landfall on Saturday.

England were due to meet France in Yokohama. There is no news yet on Scotland's Pool A match against Japan, which is scheduled to take place in the same stadium on Sunday.

If the Scotland-Japan match was to be cancelled, under tournament rules Gregor Townsend's side are likely be knocked out of the World Cup.

Cancelled matches are declared a draw with both sides awarded two points each.

England and France have already qualified for the quarter-finals and their match was due to decide top spot in Pool C.

The cancellation means Eddie Jones' side, who lead the French by two points, will progress as winners and face a probable quarter-final against Australia, with Wales expected to top Pool D and therefore play France.

Scotland are third in Pool A on 10 points with leaders Japan on 14 and need to beat the hosts to go through, potentially relying on bonus points.

If second-placed Ireland beat Samoa in Fukuoka on Saturday, a weather-enforced two-point haul would mean Scotland finish third in Pool A and go out.

It has been suggested Scotland's match with Japan could delayed by 24 hours, even though that would be against tournament rules.

BBC weather presenter and meteorologist Simon King said Hagibis is "one of the most powerful tropical cyclones this year".

World Rugby tournament director Alan Gilpin and Akira Shimazu, chief executive of Japan Rugby 2019, are due to attend Thursday's 04:00 news conference.

What is the forecast?

A Met Office spokesperson said on Wednesday that Typhoon Hagibis was in the western North Pacific and on track to hit Japan this weekend.

It was located around 900 miles south of Tokyo with estimated wind speeds of around 120mph and gusts of 170mph.

The Met Office says strong and severe winds, very heavy rain and large waves mean a risk of flash flooding in the Tokyo region.

Yokohama is approximately 17 miles south of Tokyo.

King explained: "It is equivalent to a category five hurricane, making it one of the most powerful tropical cyclones around the world this year.

"The typhoon will start to weaken as it continues its track northward. However, forecasts from the Joint Typhoon Warning centre and the Japanese Meteorological Service suggest it will make landfall in southern Honshu, around the Tokyo area on Saturday lunchtime UK time.

"By this point, it'll still be categorised as a 'very strong typhoon' with wind gusts in excess of 100mph and bring between 200-500mm of rain.

"This will be significant in a built-up area such as Tokyo with damage and flooding expected."

Could it change before the weekend?

"Yes, it could," added King.

"Forecasting the path of a typhoon is a tricky one and while there is growing confidence of a landfall near to Tokyo, it still could shift path slightly, even up to 24 hours before time.

"However, Typhoon Hagibis is huge, covering a diameter of around 500 miles.

"On landfall, the most powerful winds are expected to extend out 60 miles from its centre. Therefore, even if the location of direct landfall changes, the winds, flooding rain and impacts will still be felt over a large area."

Veteran flat track motorcycle racer and multi-time champion Jared Mees slows down for a few minutes to join The Ralph Sheheen Show presented by Lucas Oil. The Indian Motorcycle competitor has had an incredible career and shares some of his passion for the sport in this long-form conversation.

Catch this week’s full episode on SPEEDSPORT.com or download the podcast on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, iHeart Radio, or Spotify.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Buffalo Sabres rookie forward Victor Olofsson has tied an NHL record by becoming the fourth player to score each of his first six career goals on the power play.

Olofsson made it six in a row with a one-timer off Jack Eichel's pass into the right circle to open the scoring 5:04 into the first period against Montreal on Wednesday night. The Swede's streak dates to the end of last season, when he scored twice in two games.

Winnipeg's Craig Norwich in 1979-80, Hartford's Sylvain Turgeon in 1983-84 and the New York Islanders' Jeff Norton, from 1987-88 to 1989-90, share the record.

Nicknamed "Goal-ofsson" by Sabres fans, the 24-year-old Olofsson was selected in the seventh round of the 2014 draft. He spent five seasons playing in the Swedish Elite League before signing with the Sabres in April 2018.

Club matches may be on hiatus for the next 10 days, but that doesn't mean that there isn't some tasty football morsels to tuck into. Nick Miller takes a look at this week's Euro qualifiers.

JUMP TO: Dutch need some courage | France limping into Reykjavik | All eyes on England | Can Ramsey inspire Wales? | Danes wary of cheesed Swiss | Kosovo needs some luck | Paint drying, grass growing, and Ireland | ESPN's fearless predictions

THE WEEKEND'S BIG QUESTIONS

Will the Netherlands be able to deliver on their promise?

The last year or so has seen a nascent revival in the Dutch national team's fortunes: From not qualifying for either of the last two major tournaments, they ripped into the Nations League and ultimately came second to Portugal in the summer. Were they back? Well, they were getting there, with an improving collection of talent that includes, in Virgil van Dijk and Matthijs de Ligt, probably the best central defensive pairing in international football.

But they're not absolutely "back" just yet -- in fact, they're not even in the automatic qualification spots, three points behind Northern Ireland with a game in hand. They face the Northern Irish on Thursday, knowing that they have to win unless they want the last round of games to be very uncomfortable indeed. They have the security of a playoff place if they do slip up, but if they lose then they will be six points behind with three games remaining. The revival isn't complete just yet.

Could Iceland upset the injury-ravaged world champions?

Another potential upset could come in Reykjavik, where a slightly depleted France travel to face a potentially very ticklish tie indeed. Without the injured Hugo Lloris, Kylian Mbappe and Paul Pogba, plus a host of other players carrying assorted ailments, France aren't exactly going into this one in roaring good health.

Didier Deschamps' side beat Iceland 4-0 in March, but since then have been far from convincing, and that shock defeat to Turkey in June means they go into this one in third place, three points ahead of Friday's opponents, who will sniff a genuine chance to spring a surprise. If they do, that will introduce a large and hungry cat to a crowd of skittish pigeons, France will have to seek revenge against the Turks when they come to Paris on Monday, and it will make the last few games in Group H absolutely fascinating.

Will England have to deal with ugly racism again?

Depressing as it is to have to contemplate this prospect in 2019, there are fears that England's black players could once again be subject to racist abuse when they travel to Sofia on Monday to face Bulgaria. It's been a problem there before, and is anticipated to the extent that the players have already discussed what they would do if the situation arose.

Clearly, it's an abysmal indictment of society that someone like Tammy Abraham should even be put in this position, but the Chelsea forward confirmed this week that in the event of racist abuse the England side would consider ignoring UEFA's prescribed "three steps" policy -- an appeal over the PA, then temporary suspension of the game, then abandonment -- and just walk off the field.

Whatever happens, England will act as a collective. "It's a team thing," said Abraham. "Don't isolate one person...It's not just affecting one person, it's affecting the team. If we decide that we don't want to play this game because of what's going on, we'll come off as a team."

MAN TO WATCH

Aaron Ramsey: Who knows whether Wales would be in a stronger position to qualify for the finals if Ramsey had been fit. The Juventus midfielder has not been available for a single minute of their four games so far, so you can understand just how anxiously Welsh fans everywhere were waiting for reports on his fitness for their games against Slovakia and Croatia this weekend.

This time an abductor muscle problem has kept him out of the former, but he is training hard to be fit for the latter in Cardiff on Sunday. Four points from those two games would put Wales right back in the mix with two games to go after that.

Could Ramsey be the difference?

THE GAME YOU'RE NOT PLANNING TO WATCH ... BUT SHOULD

Denmark vs. Switzerland: On the face of it, this might look like a moderately interesting game between two moderately good teams, but actually this could be a bit of a thriller. Certainly if it's anything like the last time they faced each other in March: That time the Swiss were 3-0 ahead in the 84th minute, only for the Danes to roar back and score three times in nine minutes to clinch a 3-3 draw deep into injury-time, Henrik Dalsgaard swooping at the last.

The two sides have scored 25 goals between them in qualifying so far, so if you're stuck for entertainment on Saturday, this is the one for you.

THE TEAM THAT NEEDS A BIT OF LUCK

Kosovo: It's pretty remarkable that Kosovo, who weren't even UEFA members when the last qualification period started, are in a very decent position to make it through this time.

Here they are, currently in third place in Group A, but this is one of those tricky rounds of games where they're only playing once, and are simultaneously looking for a favour from England: Should Gareth Southgate's side beat the Czech Republic on Friday night, and they beat Montenegro at home a few days later, then they will go into the final two games in pole position to go through automatically. Remarkable.

ONE THING THAT WILL DEFINITELY HAPPEN

Nobody will have much fun watching Ireland: In Mick McCarthy's second spell in charge, the Republic of Ireland are a slightly curious proposition. They sit top of Group D, two points ahead of Denmark and three clear of Switzerland, who have a game in hand. This weekend they have two away games, against Georgia and the Swiss, and we simply cannot recommend watching either of them.

It's perhaps not McCarthy's fault, as his remit is very short-term -- to get them to the finals before Stephen Kenny takes over next summer -- and he has a relatively shallow pool of talent with which to carry out that task. But they've played five games and scored six goals, and they are nobody's idea of a team that produces free-flowing football. Maybe just wait and check the scores afterwards for these ones.

SELECTED PREDICTIONS

Group A: Czech Republic 0-3 England; Bulgaria 1-4 England
Group B: Ukraine 1-2 Portugal
Group C: Netherlands 3-1 Northern Ireland; Estonia 1-3 Germany
Group D: Denmark 3-2 Switzerland; Switzerland 2-1 Ireland
Group E: Slovakia 1-1 Wales; Wales 2-1 Croatia
Group F: Sweden 1-3 Spain
Group G: Latvia 0-3 Poland; Slovenia 2-1 Austria
Group H: Iceland 2-2 France; France 3-0 Turkey
Group I: Belgium 7-0 San Marino; Russia 4-0 Scotland
Group J: Italy 3-0 Greece

Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann said Wednesday that he is retiring after 15 major league seasons.

McCann, 35, revealed his plans after Atlanta's 13-1 loss to St. Louis in the decisive Game 5 of the National League Division Series.

"This is it for me," he told reporters in the locker room, saying he made the decision about a month and a half ago. "I'm going to go home and be a dad and play with those kids."

The Georgia native began his career with nine seasons with the Braves and was named an All-Star seven times before moving to the New York Yankees in 2014. He won the World Series in 2017 after a trade to the Houston Astros.

Alex Bregman, who played with McCann in Houston, quickly paid tribute to his former teammate via Twitter.

Brian McCann is one of the best catchers to ever play the game but also the best dude I met in Professional Baseball. Love you bro.

— Alex Bregman (@ABREG_1) October 10, 2019

McCann re-signed with Atlanta as a free agent last November to play for manager Brian Snitker, who was his manager at Double-A Mississippi when the Braves first called him up directly to the majors in 2005.

"Yeah, he knew," McCann said of Snitker. "I've known him for a long, long time. He was my Double-A manager. Being able to do this with him as my manager is something I'll always remember."

A six-time Silver Slugger, McCann passed 1,000 career RBIs in his final season. He finished with a career .262 average, 282 home runs and 1,018 RBIs. This season, he hit .249 with 12 homers and 45 RBIs in 85 games.

"This is everything that I wanted to do," McCann said. "I wanted to come back and get a chance at the postseason."

That top of the fifth felt like a very big turn of events. The Nats got the first two batters on, Walker Buehler was reeling, but Dave Martinez chose not to pinch-hit for Stephen Strasburg. What followed was three consecutive outs, and the Dodgers maintaining a three-run lead.