BASKETBALL

The Austin Spurs rallied from a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter Tuesday and overcame a career-high 34 points by DJ Steward to beat the Maine Celtics 121-116 at the G League Winter Showcase in Orlando, Florida.

Steward made 7 of 10 3-pointers and also had five steals, but the Celtics were outscored 40-24 in the fourth quarter. They finished with 32 turnovers. JD Davison had 22 points and 10 assists for Maine, and Drew Peterson scored 21 points.

Maine plays the Salt Lake City Stars at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Showcase before starting its Christmas break.

NBA: Houston Rockets forward Dillon Brooks and Coach Ime Udoka were fined for directing inappropriate language to officials Sunday at the end of a 128-119 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Brooks was fined $35,000 for his language and for publicly criticizing the officiating. Udoka was fined $25,000. Also, the Chicago Bulls expect veteran forward Torrey Craig to miss at least two months because of a right foot injury.

SOCCER

CLUB WORLD CUP: Manchester City set aside struggles at home to ease past Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan 3-0 in the semifinals at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and is one win away from a fifth title in 2023.

Manchester City will take on Fluminense of Brazil in the final Friday.

MLS: Caleb Porter was hired as the New England Revolution coach after leading Portland and Columbus to titles.

ITALIAN LEAGUE: Juventus Coach Massimiliano Allegri was fined $11,000 for disrespecting the referee and his assistants in their locker room after a match at Genoa, Italy.

BELGIUM: Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois won’t be able to play at the European Championship next summer because of the long-term knee injury that has sidelined him since the start of the season.

PREMIER LEAGUE: Nottingham Forest fired Manager Steve Cooper after owner Evangelos Marinakis lost patience seeing the club plunge toward the relegation zone.

BASEBALL

PIRATES: Andrew McCutchen, 37, agreed to a one-year contract worth $5 million to remain with Pittsburgh.

McCutchen hit .256 with 12 home runs and 43 RBI in 112 games while serving primarily as a designated hitter. He got his 2,000th hit in June and was sitting on 299 career home runs in September when he partially tore his left Achilles tendon while legging out a double against Milwaukee.

YANKEES: New York claimed shortstop Jeter Downs, 25, off waivers from Washington. Downs, who is named after former Yankees captain Derek Jeter, made his big league debut with Boston in 2022 and hit .154 (6 for 39) with one homer and four RBI. He was claimed by the Nationals off waivers last Dec. 22.

TRADE: Outfielder TJ Hopkins was acquired by San Francisco from Cincinnati for a player to be named or cash.

ROYALS: Hunter Renfroe and Kansas City finalized a $13 million, two-year contract, filling the biggest offensive hole for a club that has spent heavily in free agency in the AL Central.

ATHLETICS: Right-handed reliever Trevor Gott, who spent last season with Seattle and the Mets, finalized a $1.5 million, one-year contract with Oakland.

TRACK AND FIELD

ITALIAN BANNED: American-born Italian shot putter Nick Ponzio was banned for 18 months by the Italian Anti-Doping Agency for drug-testing violations, ruling him out of next year’s Paris Olympics.

Ponzio reached a plea deal with doping authorities after he was unable to be found for surprise tests on three occasions.

GOLF

CABRERA RETURNING: Angel Cabrera, a two-time major champion released on parole from an Argentina prison in August for gender violence, was cleared to play in PGA Tour-sanctioned events. He said in a Golf Digest interview he wants to clean up his image from “serious mistakes.”

Without confirming Cabrera was ever suspended — the PGA Tour does not publicize conduct violations — a tour spokesman confirmed the 54-year-old Argentine is eligible to play.

HOCKEY

NHL: Kevin Korchinski rejoined the Chicago Blackhawks following the death of his father, Larry.

Korchinski, 19, was on the ice for Chicago’s morning skate ahead of the game against Colorado. Coach Luke Richardson said the rookie defenseman is going to need some time before he is ready for games again.

— Staff and news service report