Lionel Messi checked into the match early in the second half, the score tied and Inter Miami’s chances at breaking a pair of Major League Soccer regular-season records very much uncertain.

In that instant, it all changed.

Messi had three goals — his first MLS hat trick — and an assist in the span of about 30 minutes, Luis Suarez scored twice and Inter Miami rolled past New England 6-2 on Saturday night in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to set MLS records for most points and best winning percentage. Inter Miami finished with 74 points, one more than New England had in its record-setting season in 2021.

Best player ever. Best MLS record ever. A perfect match.

“This night is yours,” Inter Miami primary owner Jorge Mas said after the match, as the team celebrated the Supporters’ Shield — which it won earlier this month at Columbus — in a ceremony for the home fans. “The best fans on the face of the Earth.”

The party was going to happen either way. Messi just made it even more special.

At 22-4-8 in league play, Inter Miami finished the season with a .765 winning percentage for another MLS record. Four teams — D.C. United (24-8) and the Galaxy (24-8) in 1998, LAFC (21-4-9) in 2019 and New England (22-5-7) in 2021 — had finished an MLS season with a .750 winning percentage, which was the best until Saturday night.

Now, the top spot is Inter Miami’s by any measure, both in terms of points and best won-lost-tied mark. Inter Miami also became the eighth team in MLS history to get through a regular season with only four losses, tying another record.

SAILING

New Zealand’s reign as the master of high-speed yachting remains intact. Britain’s long, long wait goes on.

Emirates Team New Zealand clinched match point in the 37th America’s Cup, beating INEOS Britannia 7-2 in the best-of-13 final off Barcelona’s beachfront.

The team led by Grant Dalton won its third consecutive cup, adding to wins in 2017 in Bermuda and 2021 in Auckland.

New Zealand’s eight-man crew embraced and cheered on the deck of the 75-foot Taihoro after holding Britannia off to win Race 9.

“It is just sinking in. What an amazing day, this team has been amazing, what an amazing feeling,” New Zealand skipper Peter Burling said after his third America’s Cup and his finals-record 22nd race win.

Britannia fell one step short of winning the Auld Mug for Britain for the first time in the competition’s 173-year history.

“We’ve got to give credit to Team New Zealand,” Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie said. “What an amazing performance to win three in a row. In my book that makes them the best team in the history of the cup.”

Burling and the New Zealand team posed behind a winner’s banner as a fleet of fan boats gathered around and sounded horns in celebration.

Many of the team’s fans back home had been disappointed when Dalton took the cup from Auckland to Spain in search of better financing. But thousands of fans wearing team shirts cheered the boat as it pulled into the team base, where it received a traditional Maori welcome.

After needing a repair following a crane mishap that damaged its hull at the start of the two-month competition, Taihoro raced aggressively in the final, winning the first four races. After Britannia capitalized on its mistakes to pull back two wins, Burling’s bunch shifted back into ruthless mode to finish them off with three more wins in a row.

“We had the pressure on us today,” said Dalton, the New Zealand team’s chief executive. “These guys on the boat had to deliver, but they have to have the tools to do it, so a great job by everyone.”

GOLF

Former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland finished 54 holes of the wind-delayed Shriners Children’s Open knowing he’ll have his best chance at winning since brain surgery more than a year ago.

Woodland had three birdies over his last six holes and extended his bogey-free streak to 28 holes in polishing off a 6-under 65 that gave him a share of the clubhouse lead with Las Vegas resident Kurt Kitayama, who also had a 65.

They trailed J.T. Poston and Doug Ghim by one shot when play was suspended by darkness. Thirty of the 66 players who made the cut earlier Saturday did not finish.

Poston had an eagle during his closing stretch of the second round for a 65, and his only sub-par hole in the third round was an eagle on the par-5 ninth. It put him at 15-under par through 13 holes. Also at 15 under was Ghim, who had four straight birdies and was facing a 5-foot par putt on the 17th hole when it was too dark to continue.

Woodland had surgery in September 2023 to remove a lesion on his brain, situated on a tract that caused fear and anxiety. It’s been a long road back of making progress with his health, getting dialed in on the right medication and trying to get his game in order.

Hannah Green of Australia shot a 2-under 70 on Saturday to hold a two-stroke lead after three rounds of the BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea.

Green has led outright or shared the lead at the end of each round. She is 18-under 198 overall.Yu Jin Sung of South Korea soared up the leaderboard with her 9-under 63, the best score of the round at the Seowon Valley Country Club, and was two shots back.

Jorge Campillo and Julien Guerrier shared a three-shot lead of the Andalucia Masters after the third round.

Campillo remained bogey-free through 54 rounds after carding a 4-under 68 to remain atop the leaderboard for a second day.

Guerrier, who led after round one, pulled level with Campillo after hitting two eagles while carding a 9-under 63 at the Real Club de Golf Sotogrande.

NBA

Cleveland Cavaliers small forward Max Strus will miss at least six weeks with a right ankle injury sustained during a recent workout, an early blow to a Cleveland team ravaged by injuries last season.

The Cavs said that Strus got hurt during an individual workout Thursday. He’ll be reassessed after six weeks.

Tennis

Jannik Sinner beat Carlos Alcaraz 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3 for the championship in the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, after Novak Djokovic topped Rafael Nadal 6-2, 7-6 (5) in the third-place match.

While Sinner and Alcaraz probably have plenty of future matchups in store, Djokovic and Nadal may have been playing for the final time in one of tennis’ great rivalries.

Djokovic won the match between rivals who have combined for 46 Grand Slam singles titles. Nadal, who won 22 Slam titles, is planning to retire after playing for Spain next month in the Davis Cup.

They shared a warm embrace at the net after Djokovic’s victory. He also beat Nadal in the Olympics and had a 31-29 lead in their head-to-head matchups.

“The last dance was an epic one,” Djokovic wrote on social media. “And of course emotional. I’ll cherish our rivalry forever, (at)rafaelnadal. Tennis will miss you.”

Sinner then emerged with a victory over Alcaraz in a matchup between the winners of all four major titles this season. The top-ranked Sinner, who had lost all three meetings this season, collected $6 million for the win.

“Until now, every match was very, very good, but we will always hope this rivalry will last as long as possible,” Sinner said.

Figure skating

Wakaba Higuchi won her first Grand Prix event after more than eight years of trying, putting together an error-free program at Skate America to edge Japanese teammate Rinka Watanabe and American Isabeau Levito.

Higuchi finished with 196.93 points in Allen, Texas, while Watanabe took the silver medal with 195.22 points. Levito was third with 194.83 points.

In pairs, Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara began the medal haul for Japan with a winning free skate. They scored 214.33 points to outdistance Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, the reigning U.S. champions, who took the silver medal with 201.73 points. American teammates Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov were third.

In the men’s event, which began with the short program, world champion Ilia Malinin of the U.S. took another step on his path toward the 2026 Winter Olympics by opening the slimmest of leads over Japanese rival Kao Miura.