The New Orleans Pelicans will be short-handed once again Saturday when they take on the Miami Heat.

On Saturday afternoon, the team downgraded guard Lonzo Ball (right adductor), guard JJ Redick (left big toe sprain) and center Jahlil Okafor (left ankle sprain) from questionable to out.

They also downgraded forward Brandon Ingram (right knee soreness) from probable to questionable.

If Ingram sits against Miami, the Pelicans could be down seven players.

Ingram told reporters that he hyperextended the knee against Charlotte on Nov. 9 but planned to play against Houston on Tuesday. After going through his pregame warm-ups, Ingram was scratched just before tipoff.

Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said Ingram's MRI on Wednesday came back clean.

Guard Josh Hart, who missed Thursday's win over the Clippers, had already been ruled out with left ankle and left knee sprains. Darius Miller is out with an Achilles injury, and Zion Williamson is missing time after surgery on his meniscus.

Ball has missed the last three games with his adductor injury. He was injured against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 2 but played the next two games. He left the Nov. 4 game against Brooklyn with cramps and then was pulled from the Nov. 8 game against Toronto after favoring his right leg in the third quarter.

Okafor injured his ankle late against the Rockets on Tuesday and missed the Clippers game.

Redick, who scored 19 points against the Clippers and had averaged 21.7 points in the last three games without Ball, injured his foot late against Los Angeles. He left the Smoothie King Center with a slight limp on Thursday night.

Miami will also be missing some pieces. The team said that Goran Dragic and Jimmy Butler are questionable with an illness, while Justise Winslow (concussion), Derrick Jones (hip) and KZ Okpala (left Achilles strain) are out.

Golden State Warriors guard D'Angelo Russell is out at least two weeks with a sprained right thumb.

The Warriors announced that an MRI performed on Russell's right thumb after Friday night's loss to the Boston Celtics game confirmed the sprain.

He will not travel with the Warriors on their upcoming four-game road trip and will be reevaluated in two weeks.

His injury is the latest setback for a Warriors team that has battled them all season. Star guard Stephen Curry broke his left hand Oct. 30 and will miss at least three months. All-Star swingman Klay Thompson continues to rehab from a torn ACL in his left knee; his return this season remains unclear. Center Kevon Looney has been out since playing 10 minutes in a season-opening loss to the LA Clippers because of a nerve condition. Jacob Evans has been out since straining his adductor Oct. 28. Damion Lee has been out since Monday because of a non-displaced fracture on his right hand. Rookie Alen Smailagic has been out all season because of a right ankle sprain.

Famous racecourse sees English veteran cross-country runners get the best of their rivals at the British and Irish Masters International on Saturday

With home and population advantage, as expected England dominated at Aintree taking 12 of the 17 team titles at the annual British and Irish Masters International cross-country event, although the other nations had their moments as England struggled in a few younger age groups.

England won 10 of the 18 individual titles on offer and some of the best ever and current top masters such as Nigel Gates, Tim Hartley, Andrew Leach, Clare Elms and Angela Copson were among their winners.

All-time great Gates, who was second in the M65 race last year, went one better this time, pulling clear on the last lap from England team-mate David Butler, who himself was a three-time M55 winner and has made a good recovery recently from a broken leg.

Northern Ireland had a great day in Aintree and their former M65 champion Terry Eakin dominated the last lap of the M70 race, having he admitted trained hard on the sand in recent weeks on the Ulster coast.

Peter Giles, who was once in a band with famed guitarist Robert Fripp, was the day’s biggest winner – close on two minutes – as he won the M75 title having clung on to the back of a group containing Eakin until the final flat 2km circuit inside the famous Merseyside venue, which stages the Grand National horse race every April.

The M65 and W65+ race was making its debut as a separate race, and was previously lost among the women but sensibly splitting the field gave more space and allowed Ann White of Scotland more attention as she, like Gates, went one better than in 2018 as she also led Scotland to a team win.

Only a few seconds back at the end was W70 champion Angela Copson, who incredibly won her 12^th successive title in the event. She was followed in by European champion and Olympian Penny Forse.

Ann White leads Scotland to a clear win in the W65 team race at the British and Ireland Masters International at Aintree a few seconds ahead of W70 winner Angela Copson of England pic.twitter.com/aYZwxbfTVA

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) November 16, 2019

Northern Ireland also won W75 gold as Brigid Quinn won the inaugural title from former England team manager Elaine Statham.

The main women’s race followed, also over three laps, and that saw a great battle between last year’s top two Teresa Doherty of Ireland and England’s Kirsty Longley.

This time it was Longley who was stronger on the last lap and buoyed by her recent 33:40 10km PB at Leeds, she won by 11 seconds from Doherty.

Third overall and retaining her W35 title was Scotland’s Michelle Sandison.

The W35 team race went to Ireland as England were only the fifth team.

Longley did lead the English to W40 team gold and former multiple overall winner Claire Martin led England to W45 team success with a 25-second win over marathon international Emma Stepto.

England also won the W50s and W55s and their W55 and British masters athlete of the year Clare Elms was the only runner to beat all the younger age group.

The three-time W50 winner was disappointed with her third place last year but was happier with her run here in her new age group, just behind W45 Stepto and well clear of European 5000m champion Annette Kealy of Ireland, who took the W50 crown ahead of England’s Sue McDonald to replicate their world masters positions from Torun earlier this year, where Elms also headed Kealy.

W55 Clare Elms wins the British and Ireland Masters international in her age group around 30 seconds ahead of fellow European champion Annette Kealy of Ireland who wins the W50 title at the British and Ireland Masters International at Aintree pic.twitter.com/vlrvqr5f01

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) November 16, 2019

In the W60s, England’s Sue Cordingly dominated, defeating 2018 winner Pauline Moran of Ireland.

The third race off was the M50 to M60 event and there M50 Tim Hartley was another to hold back before easing away on the final lap and he won by 20 seconds from Northern Ireland’s Eamonn White, who with Steve Cairns third led Northern Ireland to a clear win over England.

Third overall in the race was European M55 10,000m champion Andrew Leach who was another coming off a fast 10km in Leeds, where he almost broke the British record for his age group.

He won by half a minute from Ireland’s Tommy Hughes, who had a sensational road result of his own recently when he ran a world 59 age best of 2:27 for the marathon in Frankfurt.

World champion and former overall M50 winner Ben Reynolds was third as England won easily (the main image above features Leach (centre), Hughes (left) and Reynolds).

The M60 race was the closest of the day. Defending champion Alastair Walker, who is the reigning world and European champion at 10km on the road, moved clear on the last lap and seemed destined for another clear win but Robert Atkinson finished fast and was just a second down at the finish.

The day’s final international race was the M35 to M45 race. That also saw a defending champion win in style as Mark McKinstry, the current Northern Ireland senior champion, blasted away on the first lap and won in a sensational 24:51 for the 8km, which had quite a few muddy sections.

Mark McKinstry retains his M35 title with a runaway 30 second victory at the British and Ireland Masters International at Aintree in a lightening fast 24:51 for the 8km pic.twitter.com/ZAeclRlkZX

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) November 16, 2019

Scotland’s M35s Stuart Gibson and Richard Mair followed and led their team to a big win over Ireland with England again out of the medals in the youngest age group.

Second overall was European M40 1500m champion Matt Barnes, who took gold in his age group with Paul Moloney in second leading Ireland to victory.

English M45 Terry Scott headed the M40s on the first lap and though slowing held on well to easily win the age group and while England had disappointment in some age groups that wasn’t the case in the in Scott’s age group as they packed six in the first eight for the most dominant team display of the whole day.

There was an open race at the end of the programme where European masters W40 champion won the women’s race, but full results weren’t available after the event.

The best-known competitor, though, was further back. Ian Thompson was there supporting his wife Margaret and, now in the M70 category, the 1974 European and Commonwealth champion, who when he ran his European and Commonwealth record 2:09:12 was the second fastest in history, enjoyed his three laps around the racecourse.

The 1974 European and Commonwealth marathon champion and record-holder (2:09:12) Ian Thompson, who recently turned 70, competing in the open race at the British and Ireland Masters International at Aintree. He was the world No.1 that year and second fastest in history pic.twitter.com/rLd75AQG7d

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) November 16, 2019

Results

M35: 1 Mark McKinstry (NIR) 24:51; 2 Stuart Gibson (SCO) 25:24; 3 Richard Mair (SCO) 25:26. TEAM: 1 SCO 22; 2 IRL 29; 3 NIR 45

M40:  1 Matt Barnes (ENG) 25:21; 2 Paul Moloney (IRL) 25:25; 3 Alan O’Brien (IRL) 25:27. TEAM: 1 IRL 16; 2 ENG 27; 3 SCO 46

M45:  1 Terry Scott (ENG) 25:37; 2 Scott Brember (SCO) 25:54; 3 Andrew Grant (ENG) 26:02. TEAM: 1 ENG 14; 2 IRL 25; 3 SCO 44

M50: 1 Tim Hartley (ENG) 26:06; 2 Eamon White (NIR) 26:26; 3 Steve Cairns (NIR) 27:08. TEAM: 1 NIR 20; 2 ENG 27; 3 SCO 57

M55: 1 Andrew Leach (ENG) 26:58; 2 Tommy Hughes (IRL) 27:26; 3 Ben Reynolds (ENG) 27:36. TEAM: 1 ENG 9; 2 IRL 13; 3 SCO 32

M60:  1 Alastair Walker (SCO) 28:18; 2 Robert Atkinson (ENG) 28:19; 3 David Clarke (NIR) 28:33. TEAM: 1 ENG 14; 2 SCO 22; 3 Wales 23

M65:  1 Nigel Gates (ENG) 22:28; 2 David Butler (ENG) 22:42; 3 Paul Elliot (IRL) 23:02. TEAM: 1 ENG 9; 2 SCO 17; 3 IRL 19

M70: 1 Terry Eakin (NIR) 25:05; 2 Alex Sutherland (SCO) 25:17; 3 Mick Casey (ENG) 25:26. TEAM: 1 ENG 12; 2 SCO 17; 3 IRL 33

M75: 1 Peter Giles (ENG) 25:22; 2 Bobby Young (SCO) 27:19; 3 Emyr Davies (WAL) 27:31. TEAM: 1 ENG 10; 2 SCO 21; 3 WAL 25

W35: 1 Michelle Sandison (SCO) 21:35; 2 Fiona Kehoe (IRL) 21:33; 3 Claire McGuigan (IRL) 21:37. TEAM: 1 IRL 9; 2 SCO 12; 3 NIR 29; 4 WAL 40; 5 ENG 46

W40: 1 Kirsty Longley (ENG) 21:00; 2 Teresa Doherty (IRL) 21:11; 3 Elizabeth Renondeau (ENG) 21:58. TEAM: 1 ENG 8; 2 IRL 16; 3 SCO 33

W45: 1 Claire Martin (ENG) 22:02; 2 Emma Stepto (ENG) 22:27; 3 Jennifer MacLean (SCO) 22:44. TEAM: 1 ENG 8; 2 IRL 18; 3 SCO 26

W50:  1 1 Annette Kealy (IRL) 22:49; 2 Susan McDonald (ENG) 23:09; 3 Wendy Chapman (ENG) 23:13. TEAM: 1 ENG 11; 2 IRL 18; 3 SCO 25

W55: 1 Clare Elms (ENG) 22:31; 2 Kay Byrne (IRL) 22:53; 3 Niamh O’Sullivan (IRL) 23:21. TEAM: 1 ENG 10; 2 IRL 16; 3 SCO 23

W60: 1 Sue Cordingley (ENG) 24:42; 2 Pauline Moran (IRL) 25:09; 3 Jane Davies (ENG) 25:53. TEAM: 1 ENG 8; 2 IRL 16; 3 SCO 24

W65: 1 Ann White (SCO) 27:18; 2 Jane Waterhouse (SCO) 27:35; 3 Dot Kesterton (ENG) 27:39. TEAM: 1 SCO 7; 2 ENG 21; 3 IRL 22

W70: 1 Angela Copson (ENG) 27:24; 2 Penny Forse (ENG) 27:59; 3 Margaret Glavey (IRL) 28:02. TEAM: 1 ENG 7; 2 Ireland 18; 3 Wales 21

W75: 1 Brigid Quinn (NIR) 33:50; 2 Elaine Statham (ENG) 34:10; 3 Lesley Bowcott (ENG) 34:20 (no team competition)

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Though Ross Chastain, Brett Moffitt and Stewart Friesen all tried, each of them fell short of NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series championship glory on Friday night at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The trio that dominated the season – and the wins column, tallying nine victories combined during the 23-race campaign – was felled by a savvy veteran in Matt Crafton who found a way to shine despite going winless on the year.

Chastain came the closest to being able to stop Crafton, taking the lead off the initial start from Friesen and dominating the first stage of the Ford EcoBoost 200 before being overhauled by eventual race winner and non-championship contender Austin Hill with two to go in that first segment.

Despite Hill taking over the race lead, Chastain remained in control of the championship picture until a lap-55 restart, when he spun the tires and got shuffled back into traffic as Crafton came through and took the title tilt by the horns.

From there, it just seemed as though Chastain’s truck didn’t handle as well in dirty air as it had out front, a fact that the Alva, Fla., native spoke to after the race.

“We finished the best out of the Chevys. We can’t hang our heads, man; we did everything we could,” said Chastain, who led 36 laps on the night. “That says a lot. Tonight we fired off well and had a lot of speed. We were just too loose all night long, and just stayed too loose as the track changed. We tightened our truck up, but we built free with the track all night. We just could never make a big enough dent in it and then were just too far back when it mattered because of that.”

Despite a runner-up finish in points, Chastain still carried a smile at just being in the Championship 4, considering that he didn’t switch his series declaration to the Trucks until the early part of the summer.

“We wrote a new story. It hadn’t been done,” Chastain noted. “I’m so proud of the effort all year. We started out with a handful of races a calendar year ago; I was going to run five races in Al’s truck, but when everything went down over the off‑season and then with the Xfinity side of things not going well, the goal became just to run as many races as possible. It was a no‑brainer, and I was totally on board.

“But that was about four nights of the scariest time of my life of thinking of switching points, because it had not been done before, never on purpose and never with this mentality that you’re going to go win a championship. It’s pretty crazy that we did that and that we made it to Homestead at all.”

Brett Moffitt, the defending Truck Series champion who led the series in wins with four coming into Friday night, only headed the title fight for a brief moment after pit stops at the end of the first stage.

Other than that glimpse of hope, the Grimes, Iowa driver never really played a factor, finishing fifth in the race and third in the final point standings.

GMS Racing struggled a year ago at Homestead, when Moffitt won the title at Hattori Racing Enterprises, and despite adding the defending champion during the offseason it was clear that they weren’t able to solve the mystery of Miami’s sun-baked pavement this weekend either.

“This was not good. We were fighting a loose truck all day, so we kept tightening the truck up and finally got a decent balance, but we just missed it on overall speed and grip a little bit,” Moffitt said. “We had okay long run speed, but we just couldn’t fire off and run pace, and we couldn’t run the bottom. Scott (Zipadelli) and those (Hattori) guys have a really good setup for here, and it can run the bottom long and fast. It’s proven to be the truck to beat here the last two years, and we just need to go to work.

“We need to get better here.”

Moffitt tried to short-pit and force the hands of his rivals in the closing stages, but it just wasn’t enough.

“With the tire falloff here, there’s no way we could have short pitted enough to make our deficit back up,” he noted. “Our only hope after the pit stops was for a caution, and obviously that didn’t come.”

As for Friesen, who started from the pole after a qualifying washout on Friday, he dropped back immediately and never showed the same pace as the other three title contenders.

The Canadian finished outside the top 10, and despite ending a career-best fourth in points, it meant he was worst among the championship quartet when it mattered most.

“We had a little bit of short run speed. I think I just had to push it too hard to keep up with the guys that we were racing, and the bottom would fall out of it there,” Friesen explained. “We could hang for part of a stage, and then it would just back up. We backed up at the end of the first stage, and we were able to mount some charges on restarts, but we just didn’t have the long run stability to make a bid for the title.

“It’s been a dream to compete at this level, but I’m a firm believer in you’re only as good as your last race, and this being our last race doesn’t really sit too well with me.”

VALENCIA, Spain – Fabio Quartararo continued to flex his muscle during qualifying by earning his sixth MotoGP pole of the season Saturday at Circuit Ricardo Tormo.

Quartararo edged MotoGP champion Marc Marquez for the pole at the final event of the season. Riding for Petronas Yamaha SRT, Quartararo put together a 1:29.978 lap time, which was .032 seconds faster than Marquez.

Marquez will start second to begin the final MotoGP event of the season on Sunday. Pramac Racing’s Jack Miller qualified third, .108 seconds off the lap time set by Quartararo.

Maverick Viñales was fourth on the factory Yamaha, followed by Yamaha SRT rider Franco Morbidelli and Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso.

Suzuki’s Joan Mir and Alex Rins were seventh and eighth, respectively, followed by Cal Crutchlow and Danilo Petrucci to complete the top-10.

Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving will not play in Saturday's game against the Chicago Bulls, the team announced.

Irving has been dealing with a right shoulder impingement and had been questionable to play in Thursday's contest against the Denver Nuggets. He received treatment and posted 17 points, nine assists and six rebounds in 35 minutes during the 101-93 Nets loss.

This will be Irving's first missed game since joining the Nets in the offseason. Brooklyn finishes a five-game road trip -- on which it is 1-3 so far -- against Chicago and next plays Monday against the Indiana Pacers.

Irving leads the Nets in scoring (28.5 PPG), assists (7.2) and minutes (33.8).