Your Top Plays for Today: AP's Sports Guide

By John O'Brien SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Park In-bee curled in a three-meter birdie putt on the final hole to maintain a share of the lead at the halfway stage of the HSBC Women's Champions, the Korean going bogey-free for the second straight day to reach nine-under for the tournament. The world number two and overnight leader overcame a frustrating day with the putter by picking up three birdies over the final five holes to card a three-under 69 and join big-hitting Spaniard Carlota Cigna at the top of the leader board. Cigna made the most of her prodigious length off the tee to offset two bogeys with eight birdies for a best-of-the-day six-under 66, two strokes clear of fellow Spaniard Azahara Munoz, who is alone in third place on seven-under. World number one Lydia Koo remains on course for a hat-trick of wins following recent triumphs in Australia and her native New Zealand, the 17-year-old carding a two-under 70 to join Stacy Lewis, Karri Webb and Jenny Shin on six-under overall.

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr thinks guard Stephen Curry deserves Most Valuable Player consideration, but he won't campaign for the honor. "I think he deserves it, but I don't think it's our job to promote it," Kerr said Thursday in Oakland, California, where the Warriors will host Dallas on Friday. We've got a lot of work to do," added Kerr, comparing his team's focus on a strong push to the post-season to Houston general manager Daryl Morey's public comments hyping Rockets forward James Harden's claim to the award. Last week, Morey said during a conference on sports analytics at the Massachusets Institute of Technology in Boston that Harden was MVP material.

E'Twaun Moore's go-ahead three-pointer with 2.1 seconds remaining helped Chicago withstand another monster night from Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook in a 108-105 NBA triumph over the Thunder. Moore, whose on-court time has been boosted by the Bulls recent spate of injuries, scored 13 of his career-high 19 points in the fourth quarter, on Thursday. Fellow reserve Nikola Mirotic, an NBA rookie from Montenegro, added 14 of his 216 points in the final period while Pau Gasol and Mike Dunleavey contributed 21 points apiece for Chicago. The Bulls notched their third straight win, despite trailing by as many as 16 and by 10 with less than nine minutes left to play.

San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence suffered a fractured left forearm after being struck by a pitch on Thursday and will be out of action for at least six weeks. Pence, a valuable member of the team's World Series defending roster, was hit in a Spring Training game by Chicago Cubs pitcher Corey Black. Pence's absence will break a streak of 383 consecutive games played, the longest active stretch in the Major Leagues. Pence played in the full 162 games the past two seasons and hit .277 with 20 home runs and 74 RBIs in 2014. (Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles. ...

American JB Holmes tied the tournament record with a sizzling 10-under 62 to surge into a four-shot lead over a world-class field in the opening round of the WGC-Cadillac Championship on Thursday. The 32-year-old from Kentucky tamed Doral's Blue Monster course by hitting 15 of 18 greens as he goes for his first title of the season.

Former Jacksonville Jaguars star running back Maurice Jones-Drew, who won the league rushing title in 2011, has decided to retire from the National Football League. The 29-year-old Jones-Drew carried the ball for a total of just 96 yards in 12 games last year with the Oakland Raiders. "The past nine years were absolutely amazing! I'll be forever grateful to the countless people who have assisted me throughout my NFL career," Jones-Drew wrote on his Twitter account. He spent the first eight seasons of his career with Jacksonville, totaling 1,804 rushing attempts for 8,071 yards and 68 touchdowns.

World Series champions San Francisco will likely start the baseball season without outfielder Hunter Pence, whose left arm was broken Thursday when he was hit by a pitch. Pence was plunked in the Giants 8-6 victory over the Chicago Cubs in a Spring Training game in Arizona. "It doesn't look good," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said as Pence headed off for the X-rays that would confirm the fracture.

(Reuters) - Peyton Manning ended speculation over his playing future when he signed a restructured contract with the Denver Broncos for the 2015 National Football League season, the team said on Thursday. The 38-year-old quarterback, who led Denver to a Super Bowl berth and three division titles since joining the team in 2012, had everyone waiting with bated breath about his plans since suffering a playoff loss in January. "Well, we're excited it's over," Broncos general manager John Elway said in a statement. "I've been working real hard and I'm excited to be back with the Denver Broncos," Manning told the Denver Post.

The Texas Rangers' Japanese ace Yu Darvish insisted his early exit from his first Spring Training game on Thursday was no cause for concern. Darvish was pulled from the exhibition game against Kansas City in Surprise, Arizona, after just 12 pitches because of tightness in his right triceps. "I just had some (normal) tightness in my triceps, so I was throwing without putting too much effort, I was only focusing on my command," Darvish said, adding that he felt the muscle tightening up in the bullpen. The 28-year-old hurler had his season cut short in August with what the Rangers first called inflammation in his right elbow.