SEATTLE -- Kelsey Plum scored 32 points, moving into third-place on the Pac-12s all-time scoring list, and No. 17 Washington advanced to the finals of the Preseason WNIT with a 79-66 win over No. 25 Missouri on Thursday night.Plum scored 18 points in the first half, but it was a decisive third quarter that allowed Washington (3-0) to pull away. The Huskies outscored Missouri 24-15 in the third quarter and led by as many as 22 in the fourth.Plum was 10-of-23 shooting and moved past former Stanford star Nnemkadi Ogwumike on the conferences scoring list.Chantel Osahor added 18 points, while Natalie Romeo and Heather Corral had 12 each. Washington will face to No. 1 Notre Dame on Sunday in South Bend in the championship game.Cierra Porter, the daughter of Washington mens assistant coach Michael Porter, led Missouri (2-1) with 16 points and Lindsey Cunningham added 14. Colorado Avalanche Shirts . -- The plastic that was taped across the lockers in Oaklands clubhouse came down and the champagne that was on ice went back into the cooler. Colorado Avalanche Gear . On Saturday night, the normally free throw-challenged centre did just that. Howard scored 18 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, including 13 of 19 free throws in a 2 1/2-minute stretch, and the Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets 122-111. https://www.cheapavalanche.com/ .J. Jefferson has been charged with assaulting his girlfriend. Stitched Avalanche Jerseys . -- Adam Snyder returned to the San Francisco 49ers this season because the offensive lineman thought it was his best opportunity to win a championship. Avalanche Jerseys 2020 . Ronaldo produced a spectacular individual performance on Tuesday, scoring all three goals and guiding Portugal into the next years World Cup in Brazil with a 3-2 victory in Sweden. The Real Madrid forward has scored 66 goals in 2013, but the last three may be the boost he needs to upstage Messi after FIFA unexpectedly extended the voting period for the Ballon dOr to Nov. TORONTO -- Canada, as expected, is in the World Cup of Hockey finals.Team Europe, an unexpected contender, also is in the best-of-three series.Nobody would guess we could be in the final, Marian Hossa said after helping Europe beat Sweden 3-2 Sunday in the semifinals. It was 33-to-1 odds against us.The host Canadians, heavy favorites, will play a team made up of eight European countries playing with a tremendous amount of collective pride and a unique sense of community in Game 1 on Tuesday night.Here are some things to watch when the puck drops:THEYRE STREAKING: Canada had won 14 straight games in best-on-best tournaments since losing to the U.S. in the preliminary round of the 2010 Olympics. With superstar Sidney Crosby, who has a World Cup-best seven points, it is difficult to envision any team beating them. Even if Europe can win a game to stop the impressive streak, which is like the Americans run in Olympic basketball, that wont be enough because the Canadians will have to be beaten twice to prevent them from winning the World Cup.BETWEEN THE PIPES: Both teams have a standout goaltender they can lean on in must-win situations. Canadas Carey Price has quieted questions about his health, overcoming a right knee injury that kept him of the Montreal Canadiens lineup for much of last season. He helped the Canadians win gold two years ago and is two wins away from adding to his legacy. Team Europe is among the last two playing in the eight-team field in large part because it has goalie Jaroslav HHalak.dddddddddddd The Slovak made 37 saves against Sweden.MIGHTY MARCHAND: Canadas Brad Marchand, taking advantage of playing on Sidney Crosbys line, has three goals and five points in four games. Crosby and teammate Jonathan Toews are the two players in the star-studded field with as many goals and only Crosby has more points.KOPITAR WATCH: Team Europes best skater, Slovenias Anze Kopitar, has not scored a goal in the tournament. He did, however, have two assists in the semifinals to increase his point total to three. If the Europeans are going to stun Canada with at least one win, the Los Angeles Kings star will likely have to score.COACHING CONNECTIONS: Europes coach, Ralph Krueger, got a much-needed call from Canada coach Mike Babcock shortly after being let go by the Edmonton Oilers after leading them to a 19-22-7 mark during the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season. When I was fired in Edmonton sitting on my daughters bed on Skype, Mike called me 12 hours later to ask me to come to the Olympic Games with Canada, so thats Mike Babcock, Krueger recalled.DEPTH OF FIELD: The one advantage Canada will have in the finals, without a doubt, is their depth. Canada can and will roll four lines of forwards and three pairs of defensemen without a discernible dropoff.---Follow Larry Lage at www.twitter.com/larrylage and follow his work at www.bigstory.ap.org/content/larry-lage . ' ' '