GLENEAGLES, Scotland – The Korda sisters rocked the first tee together Friday making a spirited entrance at the Solheim Cup while also making some history.

And then they rocked Europe.

Americans Jessica and Nelly Korda, the first sister combination to pair together in a Solheim Cup, won the first two holes of their foursomes match and never looked back in a 6-and-4 rout of Caroline Masson and Jodi Ewart Shadoff.

The Kordas put the first point of the competition on the board.

“It was awesome,” Jessica said. “We had fun starting on the driving range, actually. So, it was really relaxed.”

They walked through the tunnel on the first tee clapping together with smoke spewing around them. Nelly said she has dreamed of that moment together since she followed her big sister in Jessica’s first Solheim Cup, outside Denver, six years ago.

“Ever since Colorado, that was the goal that I set in my mind,” Nelly said. “I think both of us did.

“On the first tee, it was so fun. And we had such a good day, really lighthearted.”

They weren’t the first sisters to play in a Solheim Cup. Annika and Charlotta Sorenstam played together for Europe in 1998. But the Kordas were the first sisters to be paired in the competition.

Jessica, 26, and Nelly, 21, have similar games. They aren’t just two of the longest hitters playing the LPGA. They’re two of the straightest long hitters. At one point this year, they ranked 1-2 in total driving.

Jessica said being alongside Nelly made this start less nerve wracking than it might have been.

“I was definitely a lot more calm than I was the last Solheim Cup,” Jessica said. “So, I think that helped me as well.

“Just joking around with her all day. There's nothing I can say wrong. I know where her buttons are, so I know where not to step, and vice versa. I was very comfortable with myself and just being out there with her.”

U.S. captain Juli Inkster said her inclination was not to play them together, but they showed her they could perform well at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational team event in July. They tied for 12^th there.

Still, Inkster split them up for afternoon fourballs in Scotland.

Lexi Thompson, whose run of nine consecutive matches without a loss in Solheim Cup play ended Friday morning, was paired with Jessica in the afternoon. Brittany Altomare, who played with Thompson in a morning foursomes loss, was paired with Nelly.

“She can put us with anyone and it would be fine,” Jessica said. “I don’t feel like it’s that difficult in terms of how our personalities match up. We have a lot of friends on the team. We all get along.”

Northamptonshire 357 (Keogh 132, Rossington 63, David 4-73) and 142 for 3 beat Leicestershire 308 (Azad 86, Cosgrove 65, Rhodes 61) and 189 (Ackermann 60) by seven wickets

Northamptonshire moved into second place in Division Two after completing a seven wicket victory over Leicestershire in the Specsavers County Championship match at the Fischer County Ground.

Beginning the day on 22-0, with a target of just 141 to win, openers Ben Curran and Rob Newton extended their partnership to 68 before Newton went leg before to an Alex Evans delivery that came back in to the right-hander.

Curran, on 40, edged a flat-footed drive at Will Davis to Colin Ackermann at second slip, and Ackermann picked up a second catch when first innings centurion Rob Keogh edged a drive at left-arm spinner Callum Parkinson.

The odd ball was beginning to turn for Parkinson, but by that stage Alex Wakely was well established, and the vistors' former skipper saw his side across the line with an unbeaten 40.

After a gruelling few months of preparation, South Africa women's head coach Hilton Moreeng feels his team has given itself "a good chance" ahead of the trip to India for five T20Is and three ODIs.

"The preparation building up to the India tour has been very good," Moreeng said. "Playing Bangladesh [in the emerging series] was important because we will face similar bowlers in India."

The South Africa emerging side went down 2-1 to Bangladesh Emerging Players in the one-dayers, but won the three-match T20 series 2-0, with the third match tied. Trisha Chetty topped the batting charts with 153 runs at 51.00 in the one-dayers, while medium-pacer Tumi Sekhukhune shone in the T20s, taking seven wickets at just 9 and an economy of 5.25. Both have been included in South Africa's touring party.

Several members of the national squad took part in the emerging series, as well as spending time at the National Academy in Pretoria. More recently, they came together for a ten-day training camp in Pietermaritzburg to firm up plans ahead of the tour.

"In Maritzburg, we also practised in slow and low conditions," Moreeng explained. "The planning has been spot on, now it's about execution in those tough conditions. But we have given ourselves a good chance."

The trip to India forms an important part of South Africa's preparations for next year's T20 World Cup in Australia, while the three ODIs will provide valuable game time ahead of crunch fixtures in the ICC Women's Championship (IWC), away against New Zealand and at home against Australia.

Allrounder Sune Luus will be captaining both ODI and T20I sides during the India tour, with regular captain Dane van Niekerk having suffered a recurrence of the foot injury - that had kept her out of much of the home summer - during a recent stint in the Kia Super League in England.

"It will be very exciting to see how things go in India where we are playing against one of the top teams and in their conditions," Moreeng said. "If we can do well, I think it can set us up nicely for the season ahead, including our IWC series against New Zealand in January.

"Maritzburg was very good for us. It was sort of a pre-season for us as a team. A lot of the focus was on skill work, not just at the camp but throughout the pre-season at all the different levels. It's very important for us to improve. We want to have a better season ahead, thus the camps and all the planning."

The South Africans endured a poor 2018 T20 World Cup in the West Indies, where they failed to progress to the knockouts. This time around, they will be aiming for much better and the trip to India will aid those preparations.

"The bigger picture is always the World Cup," Moreeng said. "Knowing what is coming, how you're going to test yourself there against a very good team that knows the conditions well. This tour to India will also be about giving youngsters an opportunity knowing that you want to continue growing the team because we know that World Cups are going to come thick and fast now. The IWC is also crucial. It's two-fold for us."

Moreeng believes his squad is now in a much better space in terms of depth compared to 12 months ago. The touring party was named on Monday with unfamiliar faces like Anneke Bosch - who last played for her country nearly three years ago - and the uncapped Nonkululeko Mlaba included. There was also a return for senior players Ayabonga Khaka and Chetty after injuries.

"The youngsters are coming through and I think we can safely say that we have three players per position that are competing," Moreeng said. "This puts us in a better position compared to where we were 12 months ago.

"We also have to look at 2021 when there's another 50 overs World Cup, so have to be thinking long-term. The youngsters coming through also have a great opportunity to play alongside the experienced girls in the squad. Remember some of these girls are playing in T20 leagues and lining up alongside these players is of huge benefit. It's a really exciting time for young girls to be involved in cricket."

T20I squad: Sune Luus (capt), Anneke Bosch, Tasmin Brits, Nadine de Klerk, Shabnim Ismail, Sinalo Jafta, Ayabonga Khaka, Lara Goodall, Lizelle Lee, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Tumi Sekhukhune, Nondumiso Shangase, Mignon du Preez, Lara Wolvaardt

ODI squad: Sune Luus (capt), Anneke Bosch, Trisha Chetty, Nadine de Klerk, Shabnim Ismail, Ayabonga Khaka, Lara Goodall, Marizanne Kapp, Lizelle Lee, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Tumi Sekhukhune, Nondumiso Shangase, Mignon du Preez, Lara Wolvaardt

Sarfaraz Ahmed has been retained as Pakistan captain for three ODIs and three T20Is against Sri Lanka in Karachi and Lahore later this month. The PCB have been appointing Sarfaraz on a series-by-series basis and there had been speculation that they may not retain him after Pakistan failed to make it to the semi-finals of the World Cup.

The PCB had already chosen to move on from Mickey Arthur who had been the Pakistan coach at the World Cup and Sarfaraz's performances, as captain and player, had not been the best. The 32-year old wicketkeeper has made 621 runs from his last 29 innings at an average of 32, with only four fifties.

But perhaps encouraged by the way Pakistan ended their World Cup campaign, with four wins in a row and only missing out on the semi-finals on net run-rate, both the PCB and new coach Misbah-ul-Haq have given him their full backing. The board has also appointed the 24-year old Babar Azam as vice-captain in both formats.

Speaking to reporters in Lahore, Sarfaraz said he was "honoured" to be re-appointed and that he will do all he can to increase Pakistan's consistency. "I am aware we have not done justice to our potential in ODIs, which has disappointed us as well as our fans," he said. "I am hopeful we will be able to turn things around in the coming season and in this relation. I remain committed to stepping up to the challenge with my performances and captaincy.

"I also have complete faith in my team, which has time and again shown talent, class and charisma it possesses. The only thing missing has been consistency, which Misbah-ul-Haq and I would like to focus and improve across all departments of the game. I assure all our fans we will not leave any stone unturned in our preparations for the forthcoming assignments and will do our best to translate these preparations into solid performances."

Babar, who is ranked 16th in Tests, third in ODIs and No. 1 in T20Is, has previous leadership experience, albeit at the Under-19 level when he captained Pakistan at the World Cup in 2012.

Misbah, who last week had expressed the desire to build a team that can not only dominate opponents but can also fight its way through when they get behind in a game, said he was well placed to bring out the best of Sarfaraz considering they had worked together as Pakistan captain and wicketkeeper for a long time in Test cricket.

"I want to congratulate Sarfaraz on his confirmation as Pakistan captain and Babar on his appointment as vice-captain. Both are one of the most talented and exceptionally gifted Pakistan cricketers and thoroughly deserve these assignments.

"Consistency backed up by good performance has been my yardstick for recommending Sarfaraz as captain. Furthermore, I think I am better placed to get the best out of Sarfaraz as I know him better than most of the cricketers as he has played most of his cricket under my captaincy. I have always been an admirer of his commitment and the energy he brings to the side."

Despite the Patriots' opening as more than a two-touchdown favorite over the Dolphins, bettors have continued to push the line with bets on New England ahead of Sunday's game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

After opening at Patriots minus-14.5, the line grew to as high as New England minus-20 at some U.S. sportsbooks before settling at a consensus of minus-18.5. According to ESPN Stats & Information, only one team in the Super Bowl era has been favored by 20 points or more in September: the 1968 New York Jets (-20) against the Buffalo Bills.

The big spread hasn't scared many bettors away from backing the Patriots. As the line grew at DraftKings sportsbook, from New England minus-15 to minus-18.5, the action was overwhelmingly on the Patriots.

"Ninety percent of the money still was on the Patriots at that number (18.5)," Johnny Avello, sportsbook director from DraftKings, told ESPN. "And then, when we hit 19, we got a little bit of buyback. So I think we found the number."

If the line closes at minus-18.5, the Dolphins would be the biggest home underdog in the past 12 seasons. New England was favored by 19.5 at Baltimore in 2007.

DraftKings reported taking a $20,000 bet on Dolphins plus-19, which pushed the point spread back to 18.5. Caesars Sportsbook reported taking a "sharp play" Tuesday on Dolphins plus-19, at reduced juice.

At Caesars, the Patriots were massive minus-3,000 money-line favorites to win the game, meaning bettors would need to risk $3,000 to make a $100 on New England. As of Thursday night, 86.1% of the money-line bets and 95.1% of the dollars wagered on the money line were on the Patriots.

The Patriots had been listed as 11.5-point favorites over the Dolphins in the look-ahead lines posted by sportsbooks prior to Week 1 games. New England was impressive in an opening 33-3 rout of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Miami didn't look competitive in a 59-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1. As a result, the point spread on Sunday's Patriots-Dolphins game was pushing 20 heading into the weekend.

"The spread, to me, looks really higher than it should be," Avello said. "We'll see how many takers are out there."

Neither the 1968 Jets nor the 2007 Patriots covered those massive numbers, with the Bills upsetting New York and the Patriots winning by just three points.

Along with making the Dolphins a massive underdog, sportsbooks have already begun posting offering Yes/No bets on "Will the Dolphins go 0-16?" DraftKings reported taking a $3,400 bet on the "Yes" at 30-1, which would pay a net $102,000 if Miami goes winless.

Bookmakers operating in multiple states, on the East Coast, Midwest and Nevada, said the action was same everywhere.

"All the money is basically on New England," Caesars senior oddsmaker Alan Berg told ESPN. "Indiana loves the Pats as much as Nevada does right now."

Nick Bogdanovich, director of trading for William Hill US, said the Patriots-Dolphins game was going to be a "monster decision" for the company's Rhode Island sportsbooks.

"Every bet is Patriots," Bogdanovich told Covers.com. "All [states] are a burial. But Rhode Island is way worse.

College football's Week 3 schedule feels kind of light, doesn't it?

Granted, both Alabama and Clemson hit the road to face opponents that are by no means incompetent. Bama faces South Carolina, which looked great against Charleston Southern in quarterback Ryan Hilinski's first start, and Clemson has to head north to face Syracuse, the only ACC team to beat, or really even scare, the Tigers in the past two years.

Still, the odds favor the two heavyweights (they always do), and there are no Top 25 vs. Top 25 games on the docket. Of the top eight teams in the AP poll, one is playing an FCS foe (LSU vs. Northwestern State), and the other seven are favored by an average of 28 points. Not many fireworks there.

Really, though, weeks like this can be a lot of fun. We don't have to worry about the national title race just yet, and we get some prime opportunities to figure out which of the season's surprising early storylines are real and which aren't.

Let's walk through some of the questions that might get answered this weekend.

All times Eastern

Is Maryland for real?
Week 3 game: at Temple (noon, CBS Sports)

It has been a pretty good season for second chances. LSU, led by Ed Orgeron (who went 10-25 in three seasons at Ole Miss and had to wait a decade for another major head-coaching gig) is coming off a big road win over Texas and has his team ranked fourth in the AP poll, fourth in my SP+ rankings and third in ESPN's FPI. Meanwhile, up near the Chesapeake Bay, Mike Locksley's Maryland is the early story of the season.

The Terrapins are coming off a 63-20 rout of Syracuse, a result that dropped the Orange out of the polls and from 40th to 70th in SP+. They embarrassed Howard 79-0 in Week 1, which means they've already scored more points in two games (142) than Locksley's New Mexico Lobos did in his last seven games in charge there (118). Locksley went an astounding 2-26 in parts of three seasons at New Mexico, then set about rebuilding his career. As Maryland offensive coordinator, he couldn't save Randy Edsall's job, and he ended up in the Nick Saban Coach Reclamation Project, serving first as an analyst, then receivers coach, then offensive coordinator. Nearly eight years after bombing out at UNM, he got another head-coaching gig.

It seems he has learned some lessons, huh? After receiving no votes in the preseason polls, the Terps are already up to 21st, their highest ranking in 16 years. They are averaging 7.9 yards per play, they are in the top 20 in both rushing and passing success rate, and they are giving up almost no negative plays whatsoever.

The offense Locksley and offensive coordinator Scottie Montgomery (another former head coach/reclamation project after four years leading East Carolina) have crafted seems based on two general principles: get your best personnel on the field -- even if that means you have to, say, figure out a formation for three good RBs -- and once defenses are in conflict, kill 'em with run-pass options

"We run a style of offense that the defense can't be right unless they out-execute us," Locksley said after the Syracuse win. Conceptually, the offense is all sorts of logical: run well enough that the defense has to compensate, then punish them with the pass. "When you start running the football with the way we have the capability to run it," Locksley said, "the only way you can stop it is by adding the extra guy in the box."

According to data provided by Sports Info Solutions, Maryland has attempted 19 RPOs this year; they have resulted in 10 passes, nine runs and 172 yards (9.1 per play). The Terps made Syracuse look like it had never seen an RPO before, gashing the Orange repeatedly and punishing them for putting too many defenders in the box.

So is this surge real? Maryland isn't going to average 70 points per game for the season -- a hot take, I know -- but can the Terps continue their general offensive success as opponents adjust and the Big Ten East schedule takes its toll?

SP+ is designed to not overreact to brief surges, but the fact that Maryland has risen from 68th to 37th in two weeks suggests the Terps could keep climbing. Still, with a schedule that features four current SP+ top-20 teams and only one ranked lower than 58th, there are likely lots of close games and potential losses on the schedule.

This week's game at Temple is a perfect test. The Owls are an untested 1-0 but rank 44th in SP+ and walloped the Terps by three touchdowns in College Park last year.

No, these first two weeks probably don't portend a Maryland national title run. But in just two weeks, the Terps have gone from having a 27 percent chance at bowl eligibility (per SP+) to a 28 percent chance of winning eight or more games. We can take a moment to marvel at that, even if reality is on its way.

Is Nebraska in trouble?
Week 3 game: vs. Northern Illinois (8 p.m., FS1)

You know the story pretty well by now. Nebraska won four of six to finish 2018 and headed into the offseason with major hype and second-year leap potential under Scott Frost. The Huskers remained among the top 15 teams in terms of national title odds as the season approached, but whichever ratings system you prefer -- FPI, SP+, etc. -- it wasn't nearly as high on them as the conventional wisdom.

Thus far, it seems even the ratings were too high on them. The offense performed poorly in a 14-point win against South Alabama, then Nebraska leaped to an early lead at Colorado only to falter late and suffer a demoralizing overtime loss. Instead of a resounding 2-0, the Huskers are 1-1. With the schedule ahead, SP+ has dropped their odds of bowl eligibility to just 40 percent, and any hopes of a 2019 surge require an immediate step forward: Their three worst opponents (per SP+) show up on the schedule over the next four weeks.

The biggest issues right now: The run game has been terribly ineffective, and the defense is giving up too many big plays (and not just of the "96-yard flea-flicker" variety). That makes Northern Illinois an interesting opponent. The Huskies are 38th in marginal explosiveness on offense (a measure of mine that looks at the magnitude of a team's successful plays and adjusts for down, distance and field position), and their defense ranks 12th in stuff rate (run stops at or behind the line).

The Huskies probably aren't good enough to beat the Huskers without help, but they have plenty of leftover personnel (like linebacker Antonio Jones-Davis) from last year's dynamite defense and will test QB Adrian Martinez and the NU offense. If the Huskers struggle in this one, they might keep struggling for a while.

Is North Carolina an ACC Coastal contender?
Week 3 game: at Wake Forest (Friday, 6 p.m., ESPN)

The Mack Brown Comeback Tour picked up its second win in as many tries last week, enduring a double-digit comeback by Miami and then scoring late to win anyway. But if SP+ has been slow to warm too much to Maryland, it's still downright glacial when it comes to the Tar Heels. After starting the season 66th in SP+, they are only up to 56th at the moment despite two power conference wins.

The major reason is, on paper, they shouldn't have beaten Miami. SP+ is a predictive measure and is therefore built primarily around the steadier and more predictive aspects of the game. I refer often to a measure called postgame win expectancy, which basically looks at the more predictive stats from a game and says, "based on these stats, you could have expected to win this game X percent of the time." UNC's postgame win expectancy against Miami: 31 percent. The Canes had the higher success rate and better field position and created more scoring opportunities. They win that game most of the time.

A win's a win, but UNC's stat profile isn't particularly impressive just yet, and now the Heels are a 3-point underdog in Friday's oddly timed, oddly nonconference game at Wake. Granted, they weren't supposed to beat South Carolina or Miami either, but there's justifiable reason why both Vegas and the numbers have been slow to warm. Not even Mack's dance moves have swayed them. Yet.

So USC has an offense now?
Week 3 game: at BYU (3:30 p.m., ABC)

As I wrote on Monday, Graham Harrell's tenure as USC offensive coordinator has already overcome a hiccup: JT Daniels' second-ending Week 1 injury. But Kedon Slovis took over and went 28-for-33 for 370 yards and three scores against Stanford, and the Trojans closed out a surprisingly easy win on a 42-3 run.

So that's it, then? USC has an exciting quarterback and an Air Raid-style offense, and now the Trojans are good again? We'll see. It's apparently a rite of passage for a hyped freshman at an L.A. school to have to go through BYU.

The Cougars gave UCLA's Josh Rosen his first real bump (11-for-23 for 106 yards and three picks) when Rosen was a freshman back in 2015. They've also defended the pass reasonably well this year, forcing both Utah's Tyler Huntley and Tennessee's Jarrett Guarantano to throw short and holding them to a combined 132.5 passer rating -- not terrible, but far from great.

Is Trevor Lawrence ... shaky?
Week 3 game: at Syracuse (7:30 p.m., ABC)

OK, spoiler: No, he's not.

That said, he hasn't been great either. He has thrown three interceptions to two touchdowns, and he needed help from his amazing receivers to haul in a few off-target balls against A&M last week. After ranking ninth in QBR as a freshman and finishing the year playing as well as a college QB can possibly play, he's just 22nd so far this year. The shame!

The obvious disclaimers apply. (A) It has been two games; (B) Even if his amazing receivers had to bail him out, he's going to have those receivers all year, so that doesn't really matter; (C) Clemson just beat maybe the best team on its schedule by two touchdowns with him playing "shaky" ball by his standards. Now he gets to face a shell-shocked Syracuse defense, and only a couple of other defenses on the schedule can even slightly keep up with Clemson athletically. Even if it takes him all year to find fifth gear, as long as he finds it before the postseason, the Tigers' title hopes are probably fine.

Syracuse's defense is pretty active, by the way. Safety Andre Cisco is as good a ball hawk as there is in the country, and a couple of early turnovers are basically the only thing that could make Saturday night's game interesting.

Week 3 playlist

Here are 10 games -- at least one from each weekend time slot -- that you should pay attention to if you want to get the absolute most out of the weekend, from both an information and entertainment perspective.

Friday night
Houston vs. No. 20 Washington State (9:15 p.m., ESPN)
Houston head coach Dana Holgorsen welcomes his old mentor, Mike Leach, to town. It doesn't take advanced stats to suggest this one's going to be pretty high-scoring.
SP+ projection: Wazzu 46, Houston 34

Early Saturday
Pitt at No. 13 Penn State (noon, ABC)
The Nittany Lions appear to hold most of the advantages in this one, but this might be the last game in the rivalry for a while. Watch because of that, if nothing else.
SP+ projection: PSU 43, Pitt 17

No. 6 Ohio State at Indiana (noon, Fox)
I'm not going to try to convince you Indiana can win this game, but the Hoosiers can test the Buckeyes in certain ways -- namely, run defense and pass offense (QB Michael Penix Jr., a game-time decision this weekend, has looked excellent so far for IU).
SP+ projection: Ohio State 41, Indiana 23

Kansas State at Mississippi State (noon, ESPN)
The Wildcats have played two flawless games (against drastically inferior competition), and MSU QB Tommy Stevens hurt his shoulder last week but should be ready to go. This will test whether the Bulldogs are worthy of SP+'s high opinions -- ranked 13th -- of them.
SP+ projection: MSU 44, KSU 31

Saturday afternoon
Go ahead and watch Bama-South Carolina for a bit, just in case, but flip to these games if or when Ryan Hilinski succumbs to the Bama defense.

No. 19 Iowa at Iowa State (4 p.m., FS1)
ISU has had a week to figure out what (nearly) went wrong against Northern Iowa, but if Iowa wins its fifth in a row in this series, it's probably more because of the Hawkeyes' own high quality than the Cyclones' lack thereof.
SP+ projection: Iowa 29, ISU 25

Stanford at No. 17 UCF (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
The most high-tempo team in the country against the slowest. This game is fascinating from a styles-make-fights perspective, but UCF is better at its style than Stanford is at the moment, even if the Knights have a potential QB controversy on their hands.
SP+ projection: UCF 36, Stanford 20

Saturday evening
Go ahead and watch Clemson-Syracuse for a bit, just in case, but flip to these games if or when it gets out of hand.

No. 9 Florida at Kentucky (7 p.m., ESPN)
UK quarterback Terry Wilson was lost for the season with an injury last week, but Sawyer Smith came in and exceeded Wilson's passing production. Will Florida's sack-heavy defense bring him to earth really quickly?
SP+ projection: Florida 39, Kentucky 28

Florida State at No. 25 Virginia (7:30 p.m., ACC Network)
FSU's offense has found loads of success early before opponents could adjust to offensive coordinator Kendal Briles' tempo. UVA's defense is talented and confident, and I'm extremely curious how it will choose to defend this offense. (I'm also curious about whether FSU will defend.)
SP+ projection: Virginia 40, FSU 32

Shippensburg at Slippery Rock (6 p.m., Rock Athletics)
This week's deep cut. Slippery Rock is ranked 11th in the Division II coaches poll, but you're watching this because of QB Roland Rivers III -- he put up 405 passing yards and 67 rushing yards in The Rock's 62-37 win over Wayne State last week, despite the fact that it was 49-13 at the half and the offense shifted into second gear.
SP+ projection (based on 2018 numbers): Rock 32, Ship 27

Saturday late shift
Texas Tech at Arizona (10:30 p.m., ESPN)
Tech outscored Montana State and UTEP by a combined 83-13 -- this would be impressive in a non-Maryland universe -- and while Arizona's defense appears to be as problematic as ever, the Wildcats' offense is also as explosive as ever. Points are what we want from Pac-12 After Dark, right?
SP+ projection: Tech 40, Arizona 36

BEIJING -- After a clutch performance Friday, Marc Gasol has a chance to pull off the rare double of winning an NBA championship and a FIBA World Cup title in the same summer.

Gasol scored 33 points and made four crucial free throws in Spain's 95-88 double-overtime victory over Australia in the semifinals. Gasol earned a ring with the Toronto Raptors in June; he would add a FIBA gold medal with a victory Sunday over Argentina.

That last player to earn NBA and FIBA titles in the same summer was Lamar Odom in 2010, when he won with the Los Angeles Lakers and was a part of Team USA's victory in the World Championships in Turkey.

"I don't want to lose a second to think what it would mean," Gasol said. "You look at the big picture. I'm very fortunate I committed to the national team this summer."

Gasol only took about a week off after the Raptors' title before starting preparations with Team Spain. While many of his NBA peers elected to skip the World Cup, Gasol said he felt a commitment to set an example to younger Spanish players.

"It's so worth it and not just because we're playing in the title game," Gasol said. "It's the responsibility of passing along the commitment and the loyalty to the team. Those values that we were taught so many years, now it is our turn to pass on the legacy to the next generation. That's not talent, that's just commitment."

Gasol was a 21-year-old role player in 2006 when Spain won its last world title. Now he is a team leader who has carried the Spanish to the brink of redemption after they were upset and didn't medal in the 2014 World Cup in their home country.

"When you come to national team for 8-10 weeks in the summer, it's not very practical," Gasol said. "You don't get to work on your game, you don't get to recover, you don't get to work on your body like you would if you had 20 weeks off. You're committing a lot of time to your teammates and it's completely worth it."

Several times during the intense victory over the Aussies, whom the Spanish beat for the bronze medal in the 2016 Olympics, Gasol had exchanges with Kobe Bryant, who was sitting courtside.

"I met Marc when Marc was really young," Bryant said. "So [to] see how far he's come as a basketball player, as a man and now as an NBA champion, I'm very happy and proud."

BEIJING -- Kobe Bryant thinks Team USA might have to get used to a new reality of losing in major events.

Bryant was part of arguably the second-most relevant Team USA in history. After the original Dream Team in 1992, the Bryant-led 2008 "Redeem Team" that won gold at the Beijing Olympics is held in high esteem. He was at the start of a 58-game tournament winning streak for the Americans that was snapped with a loss to France this week.

Back in the same arena Friday where his big fourth quarter clinched gold against Spain 11 years ago, Bryant said this summer's national team doesn't need to be redeemed next year at the Tokyo Olympics.

"It's not a matter of the rest of the world catching up to the U.S., it's that the rest of the world has been caught up for quite some time," Bryant said at the Wukesong Sports Center. "And it's to the point now where us in the U.S. are going to win some, we're going lose some. And that's just how it goes."

The Americans weren't playing in the World Cup semifinals Bryant attended Friday Night, and they won't play Sunday when the title is handed out. Instead they will play in the lowest-stakes game of the weekend, Saturday afternoon's seventh-place game against Poland.

But Bryant slapped away the concept that Team USA's struggles in China can be assigned to the top players who elected not to play this summer and that all will be well if the front line re-commits and goes to Japan next July.

"I hear that a lot: 'Did we send the best possible team that we can put out there?" Bryant said.

"You have to remember on the Redeem Team we needed a hell of a fourth quarter to beat Spain. That was a hell of a team we had. We still needed a real late push to beat Spain in that gold medal match. So I say that to say, put the best players that you think are going to make the best U.S. team out on the floor, we are still going to have challenges. It's not going to be a cakewalk. The days of the 92 Barcelona Dream Team are gone. They're over, so it's going to be tough."

Bryant played with Team USA three times and never lost a game, winning the 2007 FIBA Americas title and then Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012 in London. He passed on playing several times earlier in his career both due to injuries and for personal reasons, like in 2000 when he passed on the Sydney Olympics because he was getting married.

With that understanding, Bryant said American stars who decided to skip playing this summer had their reasons and he supported them.

"Some of those guys haven't had the opportunity to play for the United States, so I'm sure if their health allowed them to, they certainly would've been over here playing," Bryant said in an interview with ESPN.

"But a lot of those guys are coming off of serious injuries and trying to figure out how to navigate through that to get healthy again and back to 100 percent. Other guys are moving, moving to different cities and getting their families to settle in. It's a big adjustment for families, so I certainly understand it."

The regular season is coming down to the wire, with the wild-card races holding most of the drama and those teams poised for the postseason trying to position themselves for a deep run.

Here's what we'll be watching this weekend:

The Dodgers, who face the Mets on Sunday Night Baseball (ESPN, 7 p.m.), already have clinched their seventh straight National League West title. What is the best reason L.A. fans should be optimistic that this postseason will have the happy ending the previous six did not?

Eddie Matz: Three of the past four teams to clinch first have won the World Series: The '15 Royals, '16 Cubs and '18 Red Sox. So recent history favors the Dodgers, who were the first to clinch this year. Of course, the team that clinched first in 2017 and didn't win it all was ... the Dodgers. But I'm choosing to ignore that here because the question asked for optimism. Full disclosure? I'm not optimistic that L.A. (or any other NL team) can get past Atlanta right now. And even if they do, there's no getting past Houston.

Sam Miller: Two years ago, the Dodgers made a blockbuster July trade to get Yu Darvish. Darvish made two World Series starts, allowed nine runs in three total innings, and lost Game 7. Then last year, the Dodgers made a blockbuster July trade to get Manny Machado. Machado hit .182/.208/.182 in the World Series, and struck out to end the Series. This year, the Dodgers (/invoke forehead-tap meme) made no blockbuster July trades! The more sincere answer is that this is the best team the Dodgers have had in their recent run, one of the dozen best baseball teams in the past half-century, and -- with due respect to the Braves -- the more challenging side of the postseason bracket is in the American League. That all makes the Dodgers ... still underdogs against the field. A lot just has to go right.

David Schoenfield: I could overanalyze this, but the simplest answer is that Clayton Kershaw and Kenley Jansen are due. They've obviously been the Dodgers' best pitchers during this period and while both have had some good moments in the postseason, both have had more than a few absolutely crushing moments. Of course, the problem is that neither is as dominant as they once were and Kershaw isn't pitching that well at the moment and Jansen has the worst ERA of his career. ... Dang it, I'm supposed to instill optimism in Dodgers fans. So let's go with this: In the year of the home run, the Dodgers have hit the most home runs in the National League and allowed the second fewest. They're good at winning baseball games in 2019.

It looks as if the race for the best record in the American League could go down to the wire between the Astros and Yankees, with the No. 1 seed facing the wild-card game winner and the No. 2 seed most likely facing the Twins. Of the four potential first-round opponents, whom should Houston and New York most want to avoid?

Matz: Between the return of Mike Clevinger from injury and the emergence of Shane Bieber (a young Justin Verlander, anyone?), Cleveland has the best one-two punch of any of the four would-be first-round foes, and it's not particularly close. If I'm the Astros or Yankees, I'd be developing at least a mild case of Tribe-o-phobia.

Miller: We tend to so fetishize pitching -- especially in the postseason, and especially top-of-the-order starters -- that it's common to describe Tampa Bay or Cleveland, rather than Oakland or Minnesota, as particularly "dangerous in October." But there's not really a better way to be better in the postseason -- just being better, full stop, is almost always best. Of these four teams, Minnesota is probably the "better" team. They have eight 20-homer hitters this year -- that's a record -- and they're probably going to end up with 13 above-average hitters (minimum 200 plate appearances each), also a record. That's exhausting, especially when, as a pitcher, you have to treat every single pitch you throw as a potential run. Minnesota's pitching is just fine. Their offense is a siege, though, and I think we might be surprised to see what they can do even against great pitching staffs.

Schoenfield: Eddie and Sam both make good points. I'm going to go, however, with the A's, who have neither Cleveland's top-line starting pitching (but Oakland's pitching is better than you think) nor Minnesota's awesome power (but the A's do have plenty of it). Plus, there's this. Entering Thursday, the A's were 34-27 against teams above .500. The Twins were 30-35 and the Indians were 22-33. The AL Central is junk. The A's are the best team of the bunch. They just need to get in.

With the NL wild-card race changing by the minute, what will you be keeping an eye on this weekend among the contenders?

Matz: How the Brewers respond to losing Christian Yelich. Common sense says that they'll fold up like one of those paper thingamajigs that you used back in the fifth grade to forecast who you'd marry, where you'd live or what kind of car you'd drive (Google informs me that they're called paper fortune tellers). But common sense doesn't always prevail in times like these. Just ask Chuma Okeke and the Auburn basketball squad. By the way, prior to Yelich suffering that busted kneecap, Milwaukee was 9-4 this year in games that the reigning MVP didn't play. Just sayin'.

Miller: How the Cubs respond to losing their lead for the second wild-card spot. Common sense says they'll stiffen up their backs, draw on their veteran resilience, tap into the confidence that comes from four years of success and a recent World Series title. Maybe Joe Maddon will bring a giraffe on roller skates into the locker room to keep things loose. But common sense doesn't always prevail in times like these: After Wednesday's games, the Cubs' playoff odds dropped to 49.9%, their lowest since April, and down from 87% just a week ago. The Brewers had closed a five-game gap, and a bunch of teams that had seemingly been buried were back to hanging around, imposingly. The Cubs have the toughest schedule remaining, and their best player -- Javier Baez -- is out for the month. In the back of their minds, in the quiet voice of doubt they hear in the evenings between dinner and bed, they might even remember that way back in March a bunch of algorithms sort of warned about exactly this. They might wonder in those moments whether they're really good enough. So, do they panic? Probably not. This a good team that has won a lot, a team of players who have been winning together for a long time.

Schoenfield: How the Mets respond against the Dodgers now that they're back in the wild-card race. They have their rotation lined up with Noah Syndergaard going on Friday and Jacob deGrom on Saturday -- facing Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu in two must-see matchups. They may also be catching the Dodgers at the right time as Kershaw and Ryu have both struggled of late -- Kershaw with a 5.73 ERA over his past four stars, Ryu with a 9.95 ERA over his past four. Max Muncy is out and Justin Turner is battling a sore ankle. It's set up as a big weekend for the Mets with huge crowds at Citi Field.

PICK 'EM TIME

Friday night features a matchup of likely playoff teams and Cy Young-caliber starters when Atlanta's Mike Soroka squares off with Washington's Max Scherzer. Who's your pick?

Matz: Soroka has been filthy away from Turner Field (1.44 ERA), but the Nationals kinda have his number: In 21 innings, they've gone yard five times against the rookie, accounting for nearly half the homers that Soroka has allowed this season. Yes, Washington's offense has gone cold lately, but they're due to bust out. Plus, Scherzer finally seems to be approaching his old self again. Nationals 7, Braves 5 (with three of those runs coming against the Nats' bullpen).

Miller: You know, the Braves would probably be better off skipping Soroka. There's a decent chance they'll need him to face the Nationals in the postseason, and greater familiarity generally only helps the hitters. The Nationals still need to keep winning games, but the Braves can coast a little, and pushing Soroka back three games -- he already has set a career high in innings -- would be a useful little coast. And Scherzer's my pick, anyway.

Schoenfield: Scherzer allowed one run against the Braves in his outing last Sunday. I'm expecting more of the same. He can smell the Cy Young award and needs a couple of dominant starts down the stretch. He'll get them.

In case you hadn't heard, there have been a lot of home runs this season. What team will hit the most homers this weekend?

Matz: Bronx Bombers bombard Blue Jays beyond border. (Read: Yankees)

Miller: The A's had their best slugging month of the year in August, and are slugging even higher in September. They'll be in Texas, the weather will be hot, the ball will be flying and a playoff spot will be on the line. They're reaching double digits this weekend.

Schoenfield: I'll also go with the A's, who are facing Brock Burke, Mike Minor and Un Decided.

TWO TRUE OUTCOMES

Home run hitters

Matz: Austin Meadows

Miller: Matt Olson

Schoenfield: Nolan Arenado

Strikeout pitchers

Matz: Jack Flaherty

Miller: Zac Gallen

Schoenfield: Shane Bieber