Basketball

NBA changes finals format — NBA owners have unanimously voted to change the NBA Finals format from 2-3-2 to 2-2-1-1-1. The change was approved Wednesday during the preseason board of governors meetings. It will take effect with this season’s finals. The league will add an extra day between Games 6 and 7. The current format was instituted in 1985 in part to ease the amount of cross-country travel with the Celtics and Lakers frequently meeting for the championship. But critics felt it gave an edge to the lower-seeded team, which had home-court advantage in Game 5, often the pivotal game in a best-of-seven series.

Cavs pick up option on Irving — The Cleveland Cavaliers picked up the fourth-year contract options on All-Star guard Kyrie Irving and forward Tristan Thompson. The team also exercised the third-year options on guard Dion Waiters and forward Tyler Zeller on Wednesday. All of the moves were expected and came one week before Cleveland opens the 2013-14 season at home against Brooklyn. The options on Irving and Thompson are for the 2014-15 season. The Cavs can offer both players contract extensions starting next summer. Irving will make about $7.5 million next season and Thompson about $5.4 million.

Tennis

Li Na, Jankovic advance — Jelena Jankovic topped second-ranked Victoria Azarenka 6-4, 6-3 in her first match at the WTA Championships on Wednesday in Istanbul. Earlier, fifth-ranked Li Na edged Sara Errani 6-3, 7-6 (5). Errani also lost her opening group match on Tuesday to Azarenka and likely will be eliminated from the round-robin event featuring the top eight players in the world. Jankovic, who was ranked No. 1 in 2008 and returned in the top 10 for the first time since 2011, outplayed the erratic Azeranka to snap a four-match losing streak against her.

Football

Meriweather suspension cut down — Washington Redskins safety Brandon Meriweather has had his two-game suspension cut in half by an appeals officer. Meriweather was suspended on Monday by the NFL for repeat violations of player safety rules. But hearing officer Ted Cottrell reduced the fine to one game on Wednesday. Cottrell is jointly appointed to the position by the league and the players union.

College athletics

School vacates multiple victories — Eastern New Mexico University said Wednesday it is offering to erase several seasons’ worth of victories by nearly all of its sports programs because of violations involving athletes. Athletic director Jeff Geiser said that most of the violations are minor and stemmed from misinformed advising. The violations, which date back to the summer of 2012, include athletes failing to declare their amateur status. Another infraction the school came forward with was that numerous students had failed to fulfill the NCAA’s 7 5/25 rule, Geiser said. They were not earning the required hours for their degree plan.

Baseball

Indians ask opinion on logo — The Cleveland Indians are asking some fans for their opinions on the team’s “Chief Wahoo” logo. As part of their annual postseason survey to gauge fan satisfaction, the team is asking fans for feedback on a variety of topics including in-game experience, uniforms and Cleveland’s smiling Indians logo, a caricature some have labeled offensive. In the survey, fans are asked to give their stance on five statements regarding the logo. The survey asks for similar responses — on a standard, five-choice scale — on the team’s “Block C” and “Script Indians logo.”

— From wire reports