A Sports Filled Weekend It Was

Anyone expecting the results of the Golden State Warriors-Oklahoma City Thunder series to be lopsided has been enjoying a dream come true.

Almost. In a weird turnabout from a bad beating (27) on Thursday night, the Thunder took a 2-1 lead in the NBA’s Western Conference finals on Sunday night by smacking the Warriors 133-105.

And anyone expecting the Cleveland Cavaliers to go undefeated through the playoffs had their dream end badly on Saturday night when the Toronto Raptors hammered the Cavs 99-81, ending Cleveland’s string of 10 straight playoff triumphs.

NHL

The Tampa Bay Lightning moved to within a game of returning to the Stanley Cup finals by topping the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in overtime on Sunday night. The Lightning trailed 2-0 and 3-2 but won it 53 seconds into OT on Tyler Johnson’s deflection. The Lightning lead the series 3-2. In the Western Conference, the St. Louis Blues won a 6-3 decision on Saturday night to even the series at two apiece.

Horse Racing

No Triple Crown winner this year. Not after Exaggerator outslogged Nyquist on a muddy track at Pimlico to win the Preakness Stakes on Saturday. Cherry Wine finished second and Nyquist, previously undefeated in eight races was third. The day was badly marred by the deaths of two horses in earlier races, one of apparent heart failure. The other had to be put down after breaking a cannon bone.

Elsewhere
Sergio Garcia’s par on the first extra hole gave the 36-year-old Spaniard a victory in the AT&T Byron Nelson. His ninth PGA Tour victory came at the expense of Brooks Koepka, who bogeyed the 14th and 15th holes and missed a chance for a birdie on No. 18. … The New York Yankees took last week’s scolding by owner Hal Steinbrenner to heart. Their 5-4 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Sunday was their fifth straight and that’s the longest current winning streak in the majors. … After playing 11 innings in Saturday’s game, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres showed a taste for working even later on Sunday. The Dodgers prevailed 9-5, scoring four runs in the 17th inning. … San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner drove in the only run in a 1-0 win over the Chicago Cubs. … The Seattle Mariners beat the Cincinnati Reds 5-4, handing the Reds their seventh straight loss. The Reds, who are 3-14 on the road, now have a 10-game road trip ahead of them. … Both No. 1 seeds in the NCAA men’s and women’s lacrosse tournament won to advance to their respective final fours, and both are from Maryland. The men defeated Syracuse 13-7 and the unbeaten women scorched Massachusetts 18-3. The women are in their eighth straight final four.

Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman