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Sports at a glance

Lefty struggles at Wells Fargo

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Phil Mickelson was 11 shots worse than his previous round at Quail Hollow. Bryson DeChambeau made an 8 on his 16th hole and headed straight for the exit.

Turns out nothing was as bad as it seemed Friday in the Wells Fargo Championship.

Morning gusts gave way to a relentless wind in the afternoon and had just about everyone trying to finish without too much damage. Former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland had a 2-under 69 in the morning and shared the 36-hole lead with Matt Wallace (67) and Patrick Rodgers (68).

As for Mickelson?

Never mind that he followed a 64 with a 75, losing a little focus at the end when different swing thoughts entered his head on holes with water, the wrong kind of ripple effect.

“I’m excited to be in contention heading into the weekend, and I know I’m playing well,” Mickelson said.

Nadal stopped in Madrid

MADRID — Alexander Zverev ended his winless streak on clay against Rafael Nadal on Friday, keeping the Spaniard from winning a sixth Madrid Open.

Zverev defeated Nadal 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals, picking up his third consecutive win over the 20-time grand slam champion — but first on clay. His previous two wins over Nadal were on indoor hard courts.

“Beating Rafa on a clay court is the hardest thing in our sport,” the fifth-seeded German said. “Not many people have done it. This week so far it’s been incredible for me. It’s an incredible feeling right now.”

The other semifinal will be between Casper Ruud and eighth-seeded Matteo Berrettini.

Pelicans star out indefinitely

PHILADELPHIA — New Orleans star Zion Williamson is sidelined indefinitely with a fractured left finger, a major blow to the Pelicans’ run at a Western Conference play-in spot.

The 20-year-old forward is averaging 27 points and 7.2 rebounds in 61 games and the injury comes before the Pelicans opened a five-game trip against certain or potential playoff teams. The Pelicans made the announcement Friday before they played the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers.

The Pelicans said a timetable for Williamson’s return would be determined upon further evaluation. He appeared to hurt the finger trying to grab a rebound Tuesday against Golden State.

Creed gets first of season

DARLINGTON, S.C. — Reigning NASCAR Truck Series champion Sheldon Creed won for the first time this season, moving past Ben Rhodes on a restart three laps from the end and holding on for victory at Darlington Raceway on Friday night.

Creed raced to his sixth career victory. He’d been shutout since he won the close the 2020 season at Phoenix and capture the truck championship.

He wasn’t much of a factor until the final laps as crashes — including a 17-car pileup with 30 laps left — knocked out several stronger cars including points leader John Hunter Nemechek.

The Associated Press

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