France, Portugal and Russia all moved closer to next year's World Cup finals with first leg playoff wins on Saturday, although none of them did enough to take victory for granted in the second legs next week.

Michael Phelps admitted Saturday he is in poor form after another disappointing performance saw him finish fifth in the men's 200m butterfly final as world records tumbled here at the shortcourse World Cup meet.

South Korea's Kim Yu-na set a world record for a short program at Skate America, breaking her own mark with 76.28 points on Saturday.

Carmelo Anthony got the better of Ron Artest, scoring 25 points in 29 minutes to lead the Denver Nuggets past the Los Angeles Lakers 105-79 Friday.

Chacarita Juniors midfielder Omar Zarif conceded a freak own goal to give Newell's Old Boys a 1-0 win Friday and top spot in Argentina's Apertura tournament.

Gregg Berhalter and Landon Donovan scored in extra time Friday as the Los Angeles Galaxy secured their berth in Major League Soccer's title match with a 2-0 victory over Houston. David Beckham's free kick set up Berhalter's goal in the 102nd minute.

Brian Pothier scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period as the Washington Capitals beat the Minnesota Wild 3-1 on Friday for their fourth win in a row without Alex Ovechkin.

Formula One world champion Jenson Button visited McLaren on Friday, fuelling speculation he could be lining up a switch from Brawn to become Lewis Hamilton's team mate next season.

Japanese catcher Kenji Johjima, who quit the Seattle Mariners hoping to play full-time, signed a four-year contract Friday with the Hanshin Tigers of Japan's Central League.

Tony Pike threw two touchdown passes in a cameo appearance Friday as No. 5 Cincinnati overcame a self-destructive first half to beat West Virginia 24-21 for the best start in school history.