PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid inspired the Philadelphia 76ers with his return from a facial injury, Danny Green and Tyrese Maxey each scored 21 points and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Miami Heat 99-79 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Wearing a black mask, Embiid had 18 points and 11 rebounds after missing the first two games of the series. Jimmy Butler scored 33 points for the Heat, who lead the series 2-1. Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia. Embiid sat out the first two games with a right orbital fracture and a mild concussion suffered in the last round. 

Marchand, Swayman give Bruins 4-2 win, Canes lead series 2-1

BOSTON (AP) — Brad Marchand had a goal and two assists to help the Boston Bruins take their first lead against the Hurricanes all season and hold onto it for a 4-2 victory over Carolina in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. Rookie Jeremy Swayman stopped 25 shots in his first career playoff start. Charlie Coyle scored a short-handed goal and added an assist. David Pastrnak had a power-play goal and an assist for Boston. The Bruins hope to even the best-of-seven series when they host Game 4 on Sunday. Vincent Trocheck and Jaccob Slavin scored for Carolina, and backup goalie Pyotr Kochetkov made 24 saves in his first career playoff start. 

MLB umpire apologizes after ejecting D-backs star Bumgarner

PHOENIX (AP) — Major League Baseball veteran umpire Dan Bellino has issued an apology after ejecting Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner from a game this week. The Diamondbacks said it received a copy of Bellino’s apology from MLB. Bellino was giving a routine foreign substance check to Bumgarner following the first inning Wednesday in Miami when the ejection occurred. Bumgarner said something to Bellino as the check was ending, and the umpire threw him out. The 32-year-old pitcher then started yelling at Bellino and had to be restrained by some coaches. The 43-year-old Bellino became a full-time member of the MLB umpiring staff in 2011 and worked the World Series last year.

Campbell shines, Maple Leafs beat Lightning 5-2 in Game 3

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Jack Cambell had 32 saves — including three to protect the lead on a late power play — and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-2 in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. Ilya Mikheyer had two empty-net goals in the final two minutes, and Morgan Rielly, Colin Blackwell and David Kampf also scored to help Toronto take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference matchup. Ross Colton and Ondrej Palat scored for Tampa Bay, and Andrei Vasilevskiy had 31 saves. Game 4 in Sunday night in Tampa.

To the showers! 6 MLB rainouts, most in a day since 2018

All-Star aces Max Scherzer, Shane Bieber and Gerrit Cole all got early showers. So did many other players after six games were rained out Friday, the most Major League Baseball postponements in a day because of inclement weather since 2018. Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium and Camden Yards were among the ballparks where games were wiped out. And there’s no guarantee the rain will go away this weekend, either. The last time there were a half-dozen games called off because of weather was April 15, 2018, when snow, sleet, wind and rain conspired to close ballparks. 

Brittney Griner detained in Russia as Mercury opens season

PHOENIX (AP) — The Phoenix Mercury are opening the season at home against the Las Vegas Aces without star center Brittney Griner. Griner is nearing the three-month mark of her detention in Russia with no timetable for her release. Griner was detained on Feb. 17 after authorities at the Moscow airport said they found vape cartridges that allegedly contained oil derived from cannabis in her luggage, which could carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The WNBA is acknowledging Griner with a floor decal with her initials on her No. 42 in arenas across the league.

20 horses, full house: Kentucky Derby returns with no limits

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Twenty colts will break from the starting gate in the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. The 148th edition of America's longest continuously held sporting event returns with a full house of about 150,000 fans at Churchill Downs for the first time after two years of COVID-19 restrictions. Zandon is the early 3-1 favorite, trained by Chad Brown. Horse racing's best-known trainer, Bob Baffert, won't be in Louisville. He's been banned for two years by Churchill Downs. Two horses he previously trained, Messier and Taiba, will be saddled by Tim Yakteen. 

Jason Day handles rain, expands lead at Wells Fargo

POTOMAC, Md. (AP) — Jason Day expected a grind on a rainy day at the Wells Fargo Championship. He got one, but his retooled swing held up for a 3-under 67 that expanded his lead to three shots over Max Homa. Day is seeking his first win since four years ago in this tournament at Quail Hollow. The Wells Fargo moved to TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm this year because its usual venue is hosting the Presidents Cup in September. Homa played with Day and shot 66. Denny McCarthy, Luke List, Kurt Kitayama and James Hahn were four shots back.

Canelo is confident before light heavyweight bout with Bivol

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Saul “Canelo” Álvarez remains supremely confident as he moves back up to the heaviest weight of his career for another big challenge. Álvarez is favored to take the WBA 175-pound title from unbeaten Dmitry Bivol on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip. The pound-for-pound superstar has fought at light heavyweight only once previously in his career, taking out Sergey Kovalev in late 2019. With victories over every established opponent at super middleweight, where he became the division’s undisputed champion last year, Álvarez is eager to take on the larger, rangier Bivol in his latest self-appointed challenge.

Triple threat: Hall of Famer Martin honored at Darlington

DARLINGTON, S.C. (AP) — Hall of Famer Mark Martin will be a major presence at Darlington Raceway this weekend, just like he usually was throughout his stellar NASCAR career. Martin will have three car paint-schemes in his honor during Darlington's throwback weekend, which year celebrates NASCAR's past. Cup drivers Brad Keselowski and Alex Bowman will pilot machines that pay to tribute to Martin. Xfinity racer Brett Moffitt's car throws back to Martin's rookie NASCAR season. The trio of tributes was enough to lure Martin from his Montana spread to the East Coast for the weekend races.