GETAFE, Spain--Spanish forward Joselu scored twice to give Real Madrid a 2-0 win at local rivals Getafe on Thursday, propelling them back to the LaLiga summit, two points ahead of surprise package Girona. Real had a game in hand after their match against Getafe was postponed due to the Spanish Super Cup and they did not waste the opportunity to reclaim top spot with a solid performance. They dominated from the start and Joselu netted a towering header from Dani Carvajal's cross in the 14th minute to put the visitors ahead. He had a great chance to extend Real's lead in the 38th minute, but his shot was saved one-handed by goalkeeper David Soria. Already missing regulars including goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and defenders David Alaba and Eder Militao, Real manager Carlo Ancelotti suffered another setback when centre back Antonio Rudiger did not return after the break due to a leg injury. Mason Greenwood almost levelled for Getafe in the 51st minute when his strike from the edge of the box hit the post. Joselu extended Real's lead five minutes later, slotting home a low strike assisted by a fine pass from Vinicius Jr. He could have completed his hat-trick when he burst through following a quick counter-attack, but tried to set up Vinicius who chipped the ball straight at Soria from close range. Soria made fine saves from Federico Valverde and Vinicius and Getafe could have reduced the deficit after Borja Mayoral took advantage of a mistake but Real goalkeeper Andriy Lunin made a brilliant save to deflect his point-blank strike on to the post. Real moved to 57 points, two ahead Girona and 10 clear of Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. The leaders host Atletico on Sunday and Girona six days later in games that will be crucial in the LaLiga title run-in. "If we win the next two games we will have six more points and that will be good," Ancelotti told a press conference. "Let's hope we can count on Rudiger (for Sunday's derby), I think he can recover. We have two days to try to get him back, it's a strong blow to the thigh."
LIVERPOOL, England-- Twenty-year-old Conor Bradley scored his first goal for Liverpool and claimed two assists as Juergen Klopp's team moved five points clear at the top of the Premier League table with a 4-1 thrashing of Chelsea on Wednesday.
DOHA-- Jordan advanced to the Asian Cup quarter-finals after two stoppage-time goals secured a 3-2 win over Iraq, who had striker and tournament top scorer Aymen Hussein sent off late on for his goal celebrations on Monday.
AL RAYYAN, Qatar-- South Korea beat Saudi Arabia 4-2 in a penalty shootout to advance to the Asian Cup quarter-finals after a thrilling last-16 tie ended 1-1 after extra time at Education City Stadium on Tuesday.
DETROIT-- The Pistons unleashed a dominating scoring run midway through the second half and the team with the NBA's worst record earned a 120-104 home victory Sunday over the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder. Jalen Duran scored 22 points and with a career-high 21 rebounds and Jaden Ivey added 19 points as the Pistons used a decisive 20-6 scoring burst from the late third into the fourth quarter to win for the second time in three games. Detroit was playing without star Cade Cunningham for injury-maintenance purposes. Behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 13 of his game-high 31 points in the third quarter, Oklahoma City cut a 14-point deficit to 87-84 with 4:21 remaining in the period. Detroit answered with a 13-2 surge to close out the third, and the run carried over into the final quarter. The Pistons' lead swelled to as many as 19 points thanks to balanced scoring and aggressive defense. Eight Pistons scored nine points or more, while added six assists to his double-double. Bojan Bogdanovic scored 17 points, and Marcus Sasser added 12 points off the bench for Detroit. Isaiah Stewart scored 11 points and Alec Burks added 10 points off the bench. The Pistons held the Thunder to 8-of-28 shooting from 3-point range (28.6 percent). Jalen Williams scored 20 points and Josh Giddey added 12 for Oklahoma City. Chet Holmgren, who grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds for the Thunder, shot 4 of 11 from the floor and 1 of 5 from 3-point range en route to nine points. The 16-point margin of victory matched Detroit's largest this season, also done Oct. 28 in a 118-102 victory over the Chicago Bulls. Two days later, starting with a road loss to the Thunder, the Pistons began their NBA-record losing streak of 28 games. Cunningham, who returned from an eight-game absence due to a knee injury in Saturday's contest, was a late scratch on Sunday.
