“THE SCOREBOARD”
INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
HOMESTEAD.COM
| BETHANY CHRISTIAN | 63 | CAREER ACADEMY | 37 | |
| BREMEN | 57 | ELKHART CHRISTIAN | 39 | |
| CHRISTEL HOUSE | 48 | HERITAGE CHRISTIAN | 37 | |
| COLUMBUS NORTH | 60 | HAUSER | 44 | |
| GARY WEST | 72 | BOWMAN ACADEMY | 55 | |
| GREENSBURG | 49 | BATESVILLE | 34 | |
| INDIANAPOLIS WASHINGTON | 75 | INDIANAPOLIS HERRON | 31 | |
| LIBERTY CHRISTIAN | 78 | INDIANAPOLIS TINDLEY | 60 | |
| MISHAWAKA MARIAN | 61 | ELKHART | 56 | |
| MUNSTER | 63 | HIGHLAND | 31 | |
| NORTHEASTERN | 71 | UNION CITY | 33 | |
| PENN | 73 | NEW PRAIRIE | 49 | |
| SOUTH BEND RILEY | 70 | SOUTH BEND ADAMS | 51 | |
| SOUTH BEND ST. JOSEPH | 96 | SOUTH BEND WASHINGTON | 53 | |
| TRINITY GREENLAWN | 59 | PORTAGE CHRISTIAN | 13 | |
| CLERC TOURNAMENT | ||||
| MODEL DEAF (D.C.) | 49 | INDIANA DEAF | 24 | |
| NECC TOURNAMENT | ||||
| LAKELAND | 65 | FREMONT | 26 | |
| ANGOLA | 78 | PRAIRIE HEIGHTS | 49 | |
| FAIRFIELD | 68 | EASTSIDE | 35 | |
INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
HOMESTEAD.COM
| AUSTIN | 46 | NORTH HARRISON | 41 | |
| BENTON CENTRAL | 52 | NORTH JUDSON | 38 | |
| BLOOMFIELD | 42 | CLAY CITY | 35 | |
| BLOOMINGTON SOUTH | 52 | MOORESVILLE | 34 | |
| BORDEN | 47 | ORLEANS | 34 | |
| CAMBRIDGE CITY LINCOLN | 51 | HAGERSTOWN | 48 | OT |
| CASTLE | 70 | EVANSVILLE MEMORIAL | 28 | |
| CENTER GROVE | 64 | COLUMBUS NORTH | 32 | |
| CHARLESTOWN | 35 | BROWNSTOWN CENTRAL | 18 | |
| CHESTERTON | 71 | LAPORTE | 23 | |
| CLOVERDALE | 29 | CRAWFORDSVILLE | 20 | |
| CRAWFORD COUNTY | 63 | WEST WASHINGTON | 32 | |
| CROWN POINT | 69 | SOUTH BEND ADAMS | 38 | |
| DEKALB | 66 | FORT WAYNE BLACKHAWK | 44 | |
| DEMOTTE CHRISTIAN | 44 | FAITH CHRISTIAN | 34 | |
| DUGGER UNION | 47 | RED HILL (ILL.) | 42 | |
| EDINBURGH | 42 | BROWN COUNTY | 29 | |
| FOREST PARK | 44 | EVANSVILLE CHRISTIAN | 37 | |
| FORT WAYNE CANTERBURY | 55 | HAMILTON | 36 | |
| FRANKTON | 49 | TIPTON | 24 | |
| GIBSON SOUTHERN | 72 | TECUMSEH | 28 | |
| HAMMOND MORTON | 85 | CALUMET CHRISTIAN | 40 | |
| HAMMOND NOLL | 54 | EAST CHICAGO CENTRAL | 46 | |
| HANOVER CENTRAL | 59 | WASHINGTON TWP. | 47 | |
| HENRYVILLE | 54 | CROTHERSVILLE | 20 | |
| HERITAGE HILLS | 51 | PERRY CENTRAL | 27 | |
| INDIANAPOLIS RITTER | 42 | INDIANAPOLIS TINDLEY | 31 | |
| INDIANAPOLIS RONCALLI | 59 | FRANKLIN | 55 | |
| JEFFERSONVILLE | 67 | NEW ALBANY | 48 | |
| JENNINGS COUNTY | 65 | BEDFORD NORTH LAWRENCE | 50 | |
| LAKE CENTRAL | 59 | PORTAGE | 5 | |
| LAPEL | 67 | SHENANDOAH | 45 | |
| LAWRENCE CENTRAL | 68 | LAWRENCE NORTH | 44 | |
| LOWELL | 37 | HOBART | 26 | |
| MACONAQUAH | 56 | WESTERN | 45 | |
| MARQUETTE CATHOLIC | 40 | JOHN GLENN | 23 | |
| MITCHELL | 35 | EASTERN GREENE | 22 | |
| MONROE CENTRAL | 50 | MUNCIE CENTRAL | 30 | |
| MORRISTOWN | 53 | BEECH GROVE | 47 | |
| NORTH DECATUR | 67 | SOUTHWESTERN (SHELBYVILLE) | 27 | |
| NORTH KNOX | 78 | SHOALS | 8 | |
| NORTH WHITE | 49 | TWIN LAKES | 42 | OT |
| NORTHEAST DUBOIS | 57 | BARR-REEVE | 33 | |
| OLDENBURG ACADEMY | 57 | SOUTH DEARBORN | 24 | |
| OREGON-DAVIS | 58 | ARGOS | 44 | |
| PARKE HERITAGE | 64 | COVINGTON | 26 | |
| PERU | 46 | SOUTHWOOD | 36 | |
| PIKE | 73 | DECATUR CENTRAL | 30 | |
| RENSSELAER CENTRAL | 70 | WEST LAFAYETTE | 31 | |
| RICHMOND | 46 | TRI | 44 | |
| SCOTTSBURG | 81 | SALEM | 11 | |
| SEVEN OAKS | 62 | SUBURBAN CHRISTIAN | 5 | |
| SHAKAMAK | 46 | NORTH VERMILLION | 39 | |
| SHAWE MEMORIAL | 56 | MILAN | 12 | |
| SHERIDAN | 48 | SPEEDWAY | 24 | |
| SILVER CREEK | 80 | CORYDON CENTRAL | 79 | |
| SOUTH DECATUR | 46 | WALDRON | 33 | |
| SOUTH KNOX | 85 | NORTH DAVIESS | 28 | |
| SOUTH RIPLEY | 79 | RISING SUN | 42 | |
| SOUTHPORT | 50 | WHITELAND | 26 | |
| SOUTHRIDGE | 40 | SOUTH SPENCER | 26 | |
| SOUTHWESTERN (HANOVER) | 56 | SWITZERLAND COUNTY | 28 | |
| SPRINGS VALLEY | 52 | PAOLI | 30 | |
| TELL CITY | 46 | BOONVILLE | 39 | |
| TRI-COUNTY | 45 | CASTON | 17 | |
| VINCENNES LINCOLN | 48 | LINTON | 45 | |
| VINCENNES RIVET | 61 | LOOGOOTEE | 26 | |
| WASHINGTON | 65 | EVANSVILLE NORTH | 38 | |
| WESTVILLE | 74 | WHITING | 14 | |
| WHEELER | 57 | BOONE GROVE | 36 | |
| WHITE RIVER VALLEY | 62 | PIKE CENTRAL | 33 | |
| WHITKO | 58 | LAKEWOOD PARK | 44 | |
| WINAMAC | 45 | TRITON | 28 | |
| WINCHESTER | 66 | CENTERVILLE | 40 | |
| WOOD MEMORIAL | 57 | PRINCETON | 46 | |
| CLERC TOURNAMENT | ||||
| RIVERSIDE DEAF (CALIF.) | 50 | INDIANA DEAF | 38 | |
| DELAWARE COUNTY TOURNAMENT | ||||
| DELTA | 53 | YORKTOWN | 50 | |
| WAPAHANI | 40 | DALEVILLE | 28 | |
| GIAC TOURNAMENT | ||||
| INDIANAPOLIS RIVERSIDE | 32 | IRVINGTON PREP | 18 | |
| MOORESVILLE CHRISTIAN | 50 | VICTORY COLLEGE PREP | 13 | |
| CENTRAL CHRISTIAN | 64 | INDIANAPOLIS METROPOLITAN | 3 | |
| INDIANAPOLIS CITY TOURNAMENT | ||||
| INDIANAPOLIS CATHEDRAL | 65 | PURDUE POLY ENGLEWOOD | 42 | |
| INDIANAPOLIS CHATARD | 58 | COVENANT CHRISTIAN | 45 | |
| NECC TOURNAMENT | ||||
| FREMONT | 68 | LAKELAND | 35 | |
| PRAIRIE HEIGHTS | 41 | GARRETT | 36 | |
| CHURUBUSCO | 42 | WEST NOBLE | 25 | |
INDIANA BOYS WRESTLING:
DUAL RESULTS: https://indianamat.com/index.php?/dualresults.html/boys-dual-results/
TOURNAMENT RESULTS: https://indianamat.com/index.php?/curtournamentresults.html/boys-tournament-results/
INDIANA MAT HOMEPAGE: https://indianamat.com/
INDIANA GIRLS WRESTLING:
STATE FINALS
JANUARY 17
@ CORTEVA COLISEUM
SCHEDULE
8:30 AM ET – GATES OPEN
9:30 AM ET – PARADE OF CHAMPIONS
10 AM ET – FIRST ROUND BEGINS*
* QUARTERFINALS AND SEMIFINALS WILL BE WRESTLED IMMEDIATELY AFTER FIRST ROUND
APPROX. 3:30 PM ET – INTERMISSION
4:15 PM ET – CONSOLATION ROUND BEGINS
7 PM ET – STATE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES BEGIN
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
TOP 25
MINNESOTA 84 #20 MICHIGAN 81 OT
TEMPLE 88 #18 MEMPHIS 81
OREGON STATE 97 #16 GONZAGA 89 OT
ELSEWHERE:
SOUTHERN INDIANA 80 LINDENWOOD 73
RUTGERS 85 NEBRASKA 82
NORTHWESTERN 76 MARYLAND 74 OT
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
#3 Notre Dame 81 #17 Georgia Tech 66
#13 Oklahoma 80 Missouri 63
#15 Tennessee 86 Mississippi State 73
#2 South Carolina 76 #19 Alabama 58
#7 Texas 74 Auburn 57
#21 North Carolina State 83 Pittsburgh 67
#11 Kansas State 62 Arizona 47
#14 North Carolina 64 SMU 33
#16 Duke 72 #18 California 38
#9 Ohio State 80 Wisconsin 69
ELSEWHERE:
SOUTHERN INDIANA 70 LINDENWOOD 66
ILLINOIS 68 INDIANA 54
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 63 INDIANA STATE 58
NEBRASKA 87 IOWA 84 OT
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
MONDAY, JAN. 20
NOTRE DAME VS. OHIO STATE (COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME — IN ATLANTA) | 7:30 P.M. | ESPN
NFL PLAYOFFS
DIVISIONAL PLAY-OFF SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, JAN. 18
AFC:
4:30 P.M.
HOUSTON AT KANSAS CITY (ESPN/ABC, ESPN+, ESPN DEPORTES)
NFC:
8:00 P.M.
WASHINGTON AT DETROIT (FOX, FOX DEPORTES)
SUNDAY, JAN. 19
NFC:
3:00 P.M.
LOS ANGELES RAMS AT PHILADELPHIA (NBC, PEACOCK, TELEMUNDO, UNIVERSO)
AFC:
6:30 P.M.
BALTIMORE AT BUFFALO (CBS, PARAMOUNT+)
SUNDAY, JAN. 26
NFC:
3:00 P.M.
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (FOX, FOX DEPORTES)
AFC:
6:30 P.M.
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (CBS, PARAMOUNT+)
NBA SCORES
INDIANA 111 DETROIT 100
PHOENIX 130 WASHINGTON 123
OKLAHOMA CITY 134 CLEVELAND 114
LA CLIPPERS 118 PORTLAND 89
SACRAMENTO 132 HOUSTON 127
NHL SCORES
DETROIT 5 FLORIDA 2
TORONTO 4 NEW JERSEY 3
COLUMBUS 4 SAN JOSE 1
WASHINGTON 1 OTTAWA 0
TAMPA BAY 4 ANAHEIM 3
PHILADELPHIA 5 NY ISLANDERS 3
ST. LOUIS 4 CALGARY 1
NASHVILLE 3 CHICAGO 2
MONTRÉAL 3 DALLAS 1
WINNIPEG 4 SEATTLE 1
NY RANGERS 5 UTAH 3
EDMONTON 4 COLORADO 3
LOS ANGELES 5 VANCOUVER 1
TOP NATIONAL RELEASES/HEADLINES
NFL PLAYOFF DIVISION CAPSULE: HOUSTON TEXANS (11-7 – NO. 4) AT KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (15-2 – NO. 1)
Saturday, January 18, 2025 | 4:30 PM ET | GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium | Referee: Clay Martin
All-Time Series History
Regular Season: KC leads series, 8-5 (won 4 of past 5)
Postseason: KC leads series, 2-0
The Last Time…
Regular Season: 12/21/24: HOU 19 at KC 27
Postseason: AFC-D 1/12/20: HOU 31 at KC 51
TEXANS NOTES:
TEXANS can advance to 1st Conf. Champ. Game in franchise history. • HC DEMECO RYANS is 5th HC since 2000 to win playoff game in each of 1st 2 seasons. • QB C.J. STROUD became 7th QB all-time with 3,500+ pass yards & 20+ TD passes in each of 1st 2 seasons. Is 6th starting QB in NFL history to win playoff game in each of 1st 2 seasons. Totaled 324 yards (282 pass, 42 rush) in AFC-WC & has 4 TDs vs. INT with 102.2 rating in 3 career playoff starts. Passed for 244 yards & 2 TDs in Week 16 meeting. • RB JOE MIXON was 1 of 4 AFC RBs with 1,000+ rush yards (1,016) & 10+ rush TDs (11) this season, 5th-career season with 1,000+ rush yards. Is only player in NFL with 1,250+ scrimmage yards in each of past 4 seasons. Rushed for 106 yards & TD in AFC-WC & has 701 scrimmage yards (87.6 per game) in 8 career playoff games. Had 71 scrimmage yards (57 rush, 14 rec.) in Week 16 meeting. • WR NICO COLLINS led team with 68 catches, 1,006 rec. yards & 7 rec. TDs in 2024 & selected to 1st-career Pro Bowl, 2nd-straight 1,000-yard season. Had 50+ rec. yards in 10 of his 12 games in 2024, ranking 4th in NFL with 83.8 rec. yards per game. Led team with 7 catches for 122 yards & TD in AFC-WC & has 5+ catches in each of 3 career playoff games, with rec. TD in 2 of 3. Had 7 catches for 60 yards in Week 16 meeting. • TE DALTON SCHULTZ is 1 of 2 TEs (Travis Kelce) with 50+ catches & 500+ rec. yards in each of past 5 seasons. Had TD catch in Week 16 meeting. • DE DANIELLE HUNTER ranked tied-5th in NFL with 12 sacks in 2024, 6thcareer season with 10+ sacks. Has sack in each of his 3 career road playoff games. Has 0.5+ sacks in 3 of 4 career games vs. KC. • DE WILL ANDERSON totaled career-high 11 sacks this season. Had 2 PD & 1.5 sacks in AFC-WC & has TFL in each of 3 career playoff games. • DT MARIO EDWARDS had 1.5 sacks in AFC-WC & aims for 3rd in row with sack. • CB DEREK STINGLEY ranked 2nd in NFL with career-high 18 PD in 2024. Had 5 PD & became 4th player since 2000 with 2 INTs & FF in a playoff game last week. • S ERIC MURRAY had 7 tackles & 38-yard INT-TD in AFC-WC, 1st-career TD.
CHIEFS NOTES:
CHIEFS can become 2nd team ever to reach 7 straight Conf. Champ Games (NE – 8 straight from 2011-18). Won franchise-record 15 games in reg. season. • HC ANDY REID ranks 2nd in NFL history with 26 career playoff wins. • QB PATRICK MAHOMES totaled 3,928 pass yards & 26 TD passes in 2024 & joined HOFer Peyton Manning (8 seasons) as only players ever with 3,500+ pass yards & 25+ TD passes in 7 of 1st 8 seasons. Has 0 INTs in 8 of his past 9, incl. each of his past 6. Is 1 of 6 QBs all-time with 5,000+ pass yards (5,135) & 40+ TD passes (41) in playoff career. Is 10-2 with 35 TDs (31 pass, 4 rush) vs. 3 INTs & 112.6 rating in 12 career home playoff starts. Is 4-1 in 5 career starts vs. Hou, with 16 TDs (14 pass, 2 rush) vs. INT & 115.8 rating, with 90+ rating in each game. • RB KAREEM HUNT led team with 728 rush yards & 7 rush TDs in 2024, 6th-career season with 5+ rush TDs. Aims for his 3rd in row with rush TD. Has 6 TDs (5 rush, 1 rec.) in 4 career playoff games & can become 3rd player ever with rush TD in each of 1st 5 career playoff games. Aims for his 4th in row vs. Hou. with rush TD. • RB ISIAH PACHECO has 75+ scrimmage yards in each of his 7 career playoff games & has rush TD in 4 of past 5. • TE TRAVIS KELCE ranked 3rd among TEs with 97 catches in 2024, becoming 1st player ever with 90+ catches in 7 straight seasons. Ranks 1st in NFL postseason history with 165 catches & 2nd with 1,903 rec. yards & 19 rec. TDs. Has 70+ rec. yards in each of past 13 playoff games, longest streak ever. Has 5+ catches in 8 of 9 career games vs. Hou., incl. 5 in Week 16 meeting. • WR XAVIER WORTHY ranked 6th among rookies with 6 rec. TDs & has rec. TD in 2 of past 3. • WR MARQUISE BROWN has 85+ rec. yards in each of 3 career playoff games. • DT CHRIS JONES is 1 of 4 in NFL with 5+ sacks in each of past 8 seasons. • DE GEORGE KARLAFTIS led team with 8 sacks this season. Has 0.5+ sacks in 3 of his past 4 in playoffs, with FR in each of his past 2. • LB NICK BOLTON led team with 106 tackles in 2024. Has TFL in 6 of his past 7 at home. Had TFL & FF in Week 16 meeting. • CB TRENT MCDUFFIE has PD in each of his past 4 & INT in 2 of past 3. Has 10 PD in 7 career playoff games, with 2+ PD in 3 of past 4. Had 2 TFL & INT in Week 16 meeting.
CHIEFS BEGIN QUEST FOR 3RD STRAIGHT LOMBARDI TROPHY AS HOUSTON ARRIVES FOR AFC DIVISIONAL ROUND GAME
Houston (11-7) at Kansas City (15-2)
Saturday, 4:30 p.m. EST, ESPN/ABC
BetMGM NFL odds: Chiefs by 8.
Against the spread: Texans 8-8-2; Chiefs 8-9.
Series record: Chiefs lead 10-5.
Last meeting: Chiefs beats Texans 27-19 on Dec. 21 in Kansas City, Mo.
Last week: Texans beat Chargers 32-12; Chiefs off.
Texans offense: overall (18), rush (14), pass (20), scoring (16).
Texans defense: overall (3), rush (11), pass (6), scoring (11).
Chiefs offense: overall (16), rush (5), pass (13), scoring (15).
Chiefs defense: overall (8), rush (22), pass (18), scoring (4).
Turnover differential: Texans plus-10; Chiefs plus-6.
Texans player to watch
Derek Stingley became the first cornerback in Texans history to earn first-team All-Pro honors last week and joined J.J. Watt as the only two defensive players to make the team. Stingley had two interceptions, five passes defensed and forced a fumble Saturday against the Chargers. The third overall pick in the 2022 draft led a dominant defensive performance that intercepted Justin Herbert a career-high four times, including one that was returned for a touchdown. Stingley’s big game came after he had five interceptions and ranked second in the NFL with a career-high 18 passes defensed in the regular season.
Chiefs player to watch
Everything the Chiefs do starts with Patrick Mahomes, who is 15-3 in the playoffs and is 6-0 in the divisional round. He was excellent in a win over Houston the week before Christmas, throwing for 260 yards and a touchdown while running for 33 yards and another score on a bad ankle. He also enters the playoffs on a tear, having thrown for 1,524 yards with 11 touchdowns and no picks over his final six regular-season games — all of them wins.
Key matchup
Houston defensive ends Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter against the Kansas City offensive tackles. Anderson had 12 1/2 sacks to tie for fourth most in the NFL in the regular season, and Hunter was right behind with 12. Meanwhile, the Chiefs have struggled all season at left tackle, and could opt to put left guard Joe Thuney there — as they did late in the regular season — or start D.J. Humphries, a former Pro Bowl tackle who has appeared in just two games this season and struggled mightily against Denver in Week 18. Right tackle has not been much better with Jawaan Taylor tied for the second-most penalties in the NFL this season.
Key injuries
Texans LB Azeez Al-Shaair (knee), guard Shaq Mason (knee), offensive lineman Juice Scruggs (ankle) and WR Robert Woods (hip) missed practice this week. DE Denico Autry (knee) and TE Dalton Schultz (shoulder) were limited.
The Chiefs are healthy after they were able to rest everybody of consequence in Week 18 with nothing to play for in Denver. They also could have DB Jaylen Watson back for the first time after he injured his left ankle against San Francisco on Oct. 20.
Series notes
The Chiefs have won four straight in the series beginning with a 51-31 win in Houston in the divisional round of the playoffs of the 2019 season, when they proceeded to win the first of their three Super Bowl titles under Andy Reid. They also won in Houston in the wild-card round in the 2015 season. The Texans have not beaten the Chiefs since a 31-24 victory at Arrowhead Stadium on Oct. 13, 2019. That is also their only win over the Chiefs since the 2016-17 season.
Stats and stuff
The Texans are in the divisional round for a second straight season and the sixth time overall while a win will put them in the AFC championship for the first time. … Texans coach DeMeco Ryans is the fifth coach since 2000 to win a playoff game in each of his first two seasons. … QB C.J. Stroud is the sixth quarterback in NFL history to win a playoff game in each of his first two seasons and the first QB in Texans history to win two playoff games. … Houston RB Joe Mixon had 106 yards and a TD last week and has 701 yards of offense in eight playoff games. … Texans WR Nico Collins had 1,006 yards receiving in the regular season and 122 with a TD against the Chargers to set the franchise record for most yards receiving in a playoff game. He has at least five catches in each of his three playoff games and a TD catch in two of three. … Texans TE Dalton Schultz had a TD reception in his previous meeting with Kansas City. … Houston DE Danielle Hunter has a sack in each of his three road playoff games. … Texans DE Will Anderson had two passes defensed and 1 1/2 sacks against the Chargers. He has a tackle for loss in each of his three playoff games. Houston S Eric Murray had seven tackles and returned an interception 38 yards for his first career TD last week. … CB Kamari Lassiter joined Watt as the only rookies in Texans history with an interception in a playoff game after he picked off Herbert in the second quarter last week. … Chiefs coach Andy Reid is one win away from 300. The only other coaches to reach that mark are Don Shula, George Halas and Bill Belichick. … Reid has 26 postseason wins, second only to Belichick with 31. … Mahomes has the fifth-most postseason TD passes with 41. He has the second-highest completion rate at 67.9 percent. … Chiefs TE Travis Kelce has an NFL-record 165 catches in the playoffs. He has 1,903 yards receiving and 19 touchdowns, both second to Jerry Rice (2,245 yards and 22 TDs). … Mahomes has a franchise-record 524 yards rushing in the postseason. RB Isiah Pacheco is second with 495.
NFL DIVISION PLAYOFF CAPSULE: WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (13-5 – NO. 6) AT DETROIT LIONS (15-2 – NO. 1)
Saturday, January 18, 2025 | 8:00 PM ET | Ford Field | Referee: Ron Torbert
All-Time Series History
Regular Season: WAS leads series, 28-16 (DET won 6 of past 7)
Postseason: WAS leads series, 3-0 (home team won past 3)
The Last Time…
Regular Season: 9/18/22: WAS 27 at DET 36
Postseason: NFC-WC 1/8/00: DET 13 at WAS 27
COMMANDERS NOTES:
COMMANDERS won 1st playoff game since 2005. Can advance to NFC-C for 1st time since 1991. • QB JAYDEN DANIELS became 4th rookie QB ever to win 1st career playoff start on road & 3rd rookie QB all-time with 2+ TD passes & 0 INTs in NFC-WC. In reg. season, had most rush yards (891), highest comp. pct (69 pct.), 3rdmost wins (12), 4th-highest passer rating (100.1), 4th-most pass & rush yards combined (4,459), 4th-most pass & rush TD combined (31) & 6th-most TD passes (25) by rookie QB all-time. • RB BRIAN ROBINSON had career-high 799 rush yards & 8 rush TDs in 2024. • RB AUSTIN EKELER had 733 scrimmage yards (367 rush, 366 rec.) in 12 reg. season games in 2024. Had 53 scrimmage yards (27 rush, 26 rec.) in NFC-WC. Has 115+ scrimmage yards & rush TD in each of his 2 career games vs. Det. • WR TERRY MCLAURIN had 82 catches for 1,096 yards & career-high & franchise record 13 rec. TDs in 2024 reg. season. Is 1 of 2 (Davante Adams) with 75+ catches & 1,000+ rec. yards in each of past 5 seasons. Had 7 catches for 89 yards & 1stcareer playoff rec. TD in NFC-WC. Aims for his 4th in row vs. Det. with 70+ rec. yards. • WR DYAMI BROWN had 5 catches for 89 yards & rec. TD in NFC-WC. • TE ZACH ERTZ had 7th-career reg. season with 60+ catches, 6th-most among TEs all-time. • LB BOBBY WAGNER led team with 132 tackles in 2024. Had 1st-career playoff FR last week. Has 161 tackles (9.5 per game) in 17 career playoff games. • LB FRANKIE LUVU became 2nd player since 2000 (James Harrison – 2010) with 95+ tackles (99), 10+ TFL (12), 8+ sacks (career-high 8) & 5+ PD (career high 7) in single season. • LB DANTE FOWLER led team with 10.5 sacks & 14 TFL in 2024. • DT DORANCE ARMSTRONG had 4th-straight season with 5+ sacks. • DT DARON PAYNE had sack in last reg. season meeting (9/28/22). • CB MARSHON LATTIMORE has 10 PD in 8 career playoff games. Had INT-TD in his only career game vs. Det. (10/15/17 w/ NO). • CB MIKE SAINRISTIL led all rookies with 14 PD & ranked 2nd with 90 tackles. • S JEREMY CHINN had 107 tackles, career-high 7 TFL & 5 PD in 2024.
LIONS NOTES:
LIONS had franchise-record 15 wins & led NFL in scoring offense (33.2 ppg). Had 564 points scored, 4th-most ever in reg. season. Became 4th team ever with 3 players each with 12+ scrimmage TDs in same season. • QB JARED GOFF ranked 2nd in rating (career-high 111.8), comp. pct. (careerhigh 72.4) & pass yards (4,629) & 4th in TD passes (career-high 37) during reg. season. Has 2+ TD passes & 100+ rating in 6 of his past 7 home starts. Has 837 pass yards (279 per game) & 4 TDs vs. 0 INTs for 103.3 rating in 3 career playoff starts with Det., incl. 270+ pass yards & TD pass in each game. • RB JAHMYR GIBBS led NFL in scrimmage TDs (career-high 20), tied-1st in rush TDs (16), ranked 3rd in scrimmage yards (1,929) & 5th in rush yards (1,412) in reg. season & became 1st player ever with 70+ scrimmage yards in 17 games in season. Aims for his 4th in row with 150+ scrimmage yards & 6th in row with TD. • RB DAVID MONTGOMERY had 1,116 scrimmage yards (775 rush, 341 rec.) & 12 rush TDs in reg. season. Gibbs & Montgomery became 1st RB duo in SB era each with 10+ scrimmage TDs in consecutive seasons. Incl. playoffs, has 27 rush TDs in 31 games with Det. since 2023. • WR AMON-RA ST. BROWN ranked 2nd in catches (115), 3rd in rec. TDs (career high 12) & 5th in rec. yards (1,263) in reg. season. Has 7+ catches & 75+ rec. yards in each of his 3 career playoff games. Had 9 catches, 184 scrimmage yards (116 rec., 68 rush) & 2 rec. TDs in his only career game vs. Was. (9/18/22). • WR JAMESON WILLIAMS had career highs in catches (58), rec. yards (1,001) & rec. TDs (7) in reg. season, incl. 5+ catches in 6 of his last 7 games. • TE SAM LAPORTA aims for his 3rd playoff game in row with 9+ catches. • LB ALEX ANZALONE had 63 tackles, 7 TFL & 5 PD in 10 games in reg. season. • LB JACK CAMPBELL led team with career-high 125 tackles in 2024. • DL ZA’DARIUS SMITH had 4 sacks in 5 home games with Det. in 2024. • DB BRIAN BRANCH was 1st DB with 100+ tackles (109) & 15+ PD (16) since 2020. • DB KERBY JOSEPH led NFL with career-high 9 INTs & set career highs in tackles (82) & PD (12) in reg. season.
LIONS HOST COMMANDERS ON SATURDAY NIGHT AS NFC’S TOP-SEEDED TEAM FOR 1ST TIME IN FRANCHISE HISTORY
Washington (13-5) at Detroit (15-2)
Saturday, 8 p.m. EST, Fox
BetMGM odds: Lions by 9 1/2
Series record: Washington leads 31-16, including a 3-0 record in playoff games at home.
Against the spread: Commanders 11-6-1, Lions 12-5
Last meeting: Lions beat the Commanders 36-27 on Sept. 18, 2022, at Detroit.
Last week: Commanders beat Buccaneers 23-20; Lions had a bye as NFC’s No. 1 seed.
Commanders offense: overall (7), rush (3), pass (17), scoring (5)
Commanders defense: overall (13), rush (30), pass (3), scoring (18)
Lions offense: overall (2), rush (6), pass (2), scoring (1)
Lions defense: overall (20), rush (5), pass (30), scoring (7)
Turnover differential: Commanders plus-1; Lions plus-9
Commanders player to watch
CB Marshon Lattimore. He allowed a handful of catches, including a TD to Mike Evans when matched up against his longtime rival in the wild-card round. The coaching staff eventually put rookie CB Mike Sainristil on Evans and opted to double-team the star WR. Coach Dan Quinn called that a matter of limiting Lattimore’s snaps coming off a hamstring injury. There’s no time to rest Lattimore when Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams are on the field, so the Commanders need Lattimore to play at an elite level.
Lions player to watch
RB Jahmyr Gibbs. He was perhaps one of the team’s best players over the past three games, averaging 162.3 yards from scrimmage and scoring six TDs while David Montgomery had a knee injury. Gibbs, who has been voted to the Pro Bowl in each of his two NFL seasons, has run for more than 100 yards in three straight games for the first time in his career. The speedy former Alabama star led the league with a franchise-record 20 touchdowns (16 rushing and four receiving) and ranked fifth in the league with 1,412 yards on the ground. He also had 517 yards receiving.
Key matchup
Detroit’s running game against Washington’s defense. Montgomery will play for the first time in a month, restoring one of the NFL’s best backfields. Gibbs and Montgomery averaged a combined 138.5 yards rushing during the regular season. The Commanders ranked among the league’s worst in run defense, allowing 137.5 yards rushing a game. They gave up 101 yards rushing in last week’s win at Tampa Bay.
Key injuries
Commanders LB Bobby Wagner is expected to play through an ankle injury and rookie LB Jordan Magee (hamstring) is likely out. … Lions rookie CB Terrion Arnold (foot) said he’s ready to play after leaving the regular-season finale with an injury while guard Kevin Zeitler (hamstring) was held out of practice Wednesday and Thursday after being hurt in the previous game. … CB Ennis Rakestraw was held out of multiple practices this week because of a hamstring injury and an illness.
Series notes
These franchises last met in the playoffs in the 1999 season. The previous times they played in the postseason (1982 and 1991), Washington went on to win the Super Bowl.
Stats and stuff
Washington is coming off its first playoff win in 19 years and is aiming for its first NFC championship game since 1991. … The Commanders have won five in a row, all on the final play from scrimmage in regulation or overtime. Jayden Daniels’ became the fourth rookie in NFL history to win his first career playoff start. Daniels was 24 of 35 for 268 yards passing and two TDs at Tampa Bay. He also ran 13 times for 36 yards to be the team’s leading rusher. … Commanders RBs Brian Robinson, Austin Ekeler, Jeremy McNichols and Chris Rodriguez have combined to run 85 times for 190 yards over the past five games, an average of 2.24 yards a carry. … WR Dyami Brown had five catches for 89 yards and a TD in the wild-card win. … Wagner led the team with 132 tackles and had eight at Tampa Bay. … The Commanders sacked Baker Mayfield only once. … Sainristil, a former Michigan star, led all rookie CBs with 14 pass breakups and was second with 90 tackles. … K Zane Gonzalez made the game-winning, 37-yard field goal as time expired last week by banking his kick off the right upright and in. … The Lions are the NFC’s No. 1 seed for the first time in franchise history and are the conference’s only team in the divisional round for a second straight year. … They have not won a playoff game in two straight years since 1952-53. … Detroit won a franchise-record 15 games and back-to-back division titles for the first time. … The Lions are 37-10, including a 2-1 mark in the playoffs, since Week 9 of the 2022 season and only two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City has more victories during that span. … The Lions have an NFL-high 151 fourth down attempts under coach Dan Campbell, the first coach to go for it that many times since at least 1991. … The Jared Goff-led offense scored an NFL-high 33.2 points per game. … Gibbs ran for a TD in all three playoff games last season and has 34 in 35 career games. … LB Jack Campbell had a team- and career-high 125 tackles. … In five home games, DE Za’Darius Smith had four sacks.
NFL DIVISIONAL CAPSULE: LOS ANGELES RAMS (11-7 – NO. 4) AT PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (15-3 – NO. 2)
Sunday, January 19, 2025 | 3:00 PM ET | Lincoln Financial Field | Referee: Shawn Smith
All-Time Series History
Regular Season: PHI leads series, 23-18-1 (won 8 of past 9)
Postseason: LAR leads series, 2-1 (won past 2)
The Last Time…
Regular Season: 11/24/24: PHI 37 at LAR 20
Postseason: NFC-C 1/27/02: PHI 24 at STL 29
RAMS NOTES:
RAMS tied postseason record with 9 sacks in NFC-WC. Can make NFC-C for 3rd time in 8 seasons under HC Sean McVay, who previously led team to SB LVI win (2021 season) & SB LIII appearance (2018 season). • QB MATTHEW STAFFORD had 12th-career season with 3,500+ pass yards & 20+ TD passes in 2024. Has 200+ pass yards & 2+ TD passes in 6 straight playoff games, tied-4th longest postseason streak ever. Has 13 TDs vs. 0 INTs for 111.3 rating in his past 5 vs. Phi., incl. 2 TDs & 104.3 rating in Week 12 meeting. • RB KYREN WILLIAMS had career-highs in scrimmage yards (1,481), rush yards (1,299) & TDs (16) & became 3rd player since 2000 (Shaun Alexander & HOFer LaDainian Tomlinson) with 1,300+ scrimmage yards & 15+ TDs in 2 of his 1st 3 career seasons. Had 92 scrimmage yards (76 rush, 16 rec.) & 1st career playoff rec. TD last week. Rushed for 72 yards & TD in Week 12 meeting. • WR PUKA NACUA had 79 catches for 990 yards & 3 TDs in 11 games in 2024 & was 1 of 3 (Ja’Marr Chase & Justin Jefferson) to average 90+ rec. yards per game this season. Had 9 catches for 117 yards in Week 12 meeting. Has 14 catches for 225 yards (112.5 per game) & rec. TD in 2 career playoff games. • WR COOPER KUPP has 681 rec. yards (85.1 per game) & 7 rec. TDs in 8 career playoff games. Has 26 catches (6.5 per game) for 377 yards (94.3 per game) & 2 rec. TDs in 4 career games vs. Phi., incl. 5+ catches in each game. • DE BRADEN FISKE (10 TFL & rookie-high 8.5 sacks) & LB JARED VERSE (11 TFL & 4.5 sacks) became 3rd pair of rookie teammates since 2000 each with 10+ TFL. Verse had 57-yard FR-TD in NFC-WC, longest FR-TD by rookie in postseason history & 1st rookie defensive TD since 2011 (J.J. Watt). Fiske had sack in Week 12 meeting. • DE KOBIE TURNER had 2 sacks in NFC-WC. Had career-high 10 TFL in reg. season. • LB BYRON YOUNG had 1.5 sacks & 2 TFL last week. Had career-high 12 TFL in reg. season. • LB CHRISTIAN ROZEBOOM led team with career-high 133 tackles in 2024. Had 12 tackles in Week 12 meeting. • CB COBIE DURANT became 1st DB since 2018 with sack & INT in playoff game. • CB AHKELLO WITHERSPOON had sack & FF last week. • S QUENTIN LAKE led team with 9 tackles last week.
EAGLES NOTES:
EAGLES won 14 reg. season games & NFC East for 2nd time in 3 seasons. Can win 16 games in season, incl. playoffs, for 3rd time ever (2017 & 2022). • QB JALEN HURTS passed for 2,903 yards & 18 TDs with career-high 103.7 rating & rushed for 630 yards & 14 TDs in 2024 reg. season, incl. 9 games with both pass TD & rush TD. Passed for 2 TDs vs. 0 INTs for 111.4 rating in NFC-WC vs. GB & has 12 TDs (7 pass, 5 rush) in 6 career postseason starts. Aims for his 4th in row in playoffs with 100+ rating. Had 108 rating in Week 12 meeting. • RB SAQUON BARKLEY led NFL with career highs in scrimmage yards (2,283) & rush yards (2,005), 8th-most rush yards in single reg. season in NFL history. Had 123 scrimmage yards (119 rush, 4 rec.) in NFC-WC vs. GB & has 314 scrimmage yards (104.7 per game) & 2 rush TDs in 3 career playoff games. Had 302 scrimmage yards (career-high & franchise record 255 rush, 47 rec) & 2 rush TDs in Week 12 meeting & became 6th player ever with 2 70+ yard rush TDs in single game. • WR A.J. BROWN had 67 catches for 1,079 yards & 7 rec. TDs in 2024 reg. season & became 5th player ever with 1,000+ rec. yards & 7+ rec. TDs in 5 of his 1st 6 career seasons. Aims for his 3rd in row vs. LAR with 6+ catches & 100+ rec. yards. • WR DEVONTA SMITH had career-high 8 rec. TDs in 2024 reg. season. Led team with 55 rec. yards in NFC-WC vs. GB & has 50+ rec. yards in 5 of his 6 career playoff games. • TE DALLAS GOEDERT had 4th-career playoff TD catch last week. Has 39 postseason receptions, most in franchise history. • LB ZACK BAUN set career highs in tackles (150), TFL (11), FFs (5, tied 2nd-most in NFL), PD (4) & sacks (3.5) in 2024 reg. season. Had 7 tackles & 1st-career playoff INT last week. • LB NOLAN SMITH had career-high 6.5 sacks in 2024 reg. season. Had 2 sacks in NFC-WC vs. GB & aims for his 3rd in row in playoffs with 0.5+ sacks. • DT JALEN CARTER led team with career-high 12 TFL this season. • DT MILTON WILLIAMS had 2 sacks & FF in Week 12 meeting. • CB DARIUS SLAY led team with 13 PD in 2024 reg. season. Had 1st-career playoff INT in NFC-WC vs. GB. • CB QUINYON MITCHELL had 1st-career INT last week. • S C.J. GARDNER-JOHNSON ranked tied-3rd with 6 INTs in 2024. • S REED BLANKENSHIP led team with 11 tackles & had FF last week.
RAMS HEAD TO PHILADELPHIA FOR NFC DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF MATCHUP LOOKING TO STOP BARKLEY THIS TIME
Los Angeles Rams (11-7) at Philadelphia (15-3)
Sunday, 3 p.m., NBC
BetMGM NFL Odds: Eagles by 6
Against the spread: Los Angeles 10-8; Philadelphia 12-6
Series record: The teams are meeting for the fourth time in the playoffs, with the Rams having won two of the previous three matchups.
Last meeting: Philadelphia defeated the Rams 37-20 at Los Angeles on Nov. 24. Saquon Barkley set a franchise record with 255 rushing yards, including touchdown runs of 70 and 72 yards, and A.J. Brown caught six passes for 109 yards and a TD. Barkley’s rushing total was the ninth most in an NFL game.
Last week: Rams defeated Vikings 27-9; Eagles beat Packers 22-10.
Rams offense: overall (15), rush (24), pass (10), scoring (20)
Rams defense: overall (26), rush (22), pass (20), scoring (17)
Eagles offense: overall (8), rush (2), pass (29), scoring (7)
Eagles defense: overall (1), rush (10), pass (1), scoring (2)
Turnover differential: Rams: plus-6; Eagles: plus-11
Eagles player to watch
Barkley finished the regular season with a club-record 2,005 rushing yards, 101 shy of breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record of 2,105, set in 1984. Philadelphia’s star running back was held out of the meaningless regular-season finale against the Giants as a precaution by coach Nick Sirianni, and Barkley ran for 119 yards in his return against the Packers last week.
Rams player to watch
WR Cooper Kupp. The MVP of the Super Bowl in the 2021 season, Cupp had just one catch for 29 yards on his only target in the Rams’ win over the Vikings on Monday night. Kupp has just five catches in the past four games he has played, including zero in a 12-6 Los Angeles win at the 49ers on Dec. 13.
Key matchup
The Rams defense against Barkley. The Rams couldn’t stop Barkley the first time, and there isn’t much statistically that says they’ll stop him this time. Los Angeles allowed 353.1 yards on defense this season, including 130.0 rushing. Barkley became the ninth player in league history to rush for 2,000-plus yards, helping the Eagles average 179.3 yards on the ground, good for second in the NFL.
Key injuries
Rams: TE Tyler Higbee (chest) left in the first quarter against the Vikings and didn’t return. He was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice. CB Ahkello Witherspoon (thigh) left in the third quarter and didn’t practice on Wednesday. Neither NT Bobby Brown III (shoulder) nor LT Alaric Jackson (chest) practiced on Wednesday.
Eagles: QB Jalen Hurts returned from being concussed in the first quarter Dec. 22 against Washington and threw for 131 yards and rushed for 36 against Green Bay. LB Nakobe Dean (left knee) was lost for the remainder of the playoffs after getting injured in the second quarter against the Packers. Dean made a career-high 128 tackles in the regular season.
Series notes
These teams last met in the playoffs in the 2001 season, when the Rams were in St. Louis. … On Dec. 31, 1989, Jim Everett threw a pair of TD passes and the Rams scored a 21-7 playoff upset of the Eagles in Philadelphia. … Philadelphia has won 13 of 14 overall and 24 of its past 29 at home, including the playoffs.
Stats and stuff
Rams QB Matthew Stafford, a 16-year veteran, completed his first 10 passes on his way to throwing for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns last week against Minnesota in a game moved to Arizona because of the wildfires in Southern California. … Los Angeles sacked the Vikings’ Sam Darnold nine times, tying an NFL playoff record, and held All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson without a second-half catch. … The Eagles intercepted Packers QB Jordan Love three times last week, one each by Zack Baun, Quinyon Mitchell and Darius Slay, and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff. Philadelphia ranked sixth in the NFL in the regular season in turnover margin. … K Jake Elliott missed an extra point against Green Bay. The normally reliable kicker went 28 of 36 in the regular season, missing six of seven from 50-plus yards. … Philadelphia finished with a single-season record of 3,048 rushing yards. … The Eagles fell 15 points shy of eclipsing the club record of 477, set in 2022. … DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson tied his career high with six interceptions. … Philadelphia’s defense, led by veteran coordinator Vic Fangio, finished the regular season ranked first overall (278.4 yards per game) and tops in passing defense (174.2 yards per game). It is the seventh time in club history the Eagles have led the league in total defense, also doing it in 1991, 1981, 1953, 1949, 1945 and 1944.
NFL DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF CAPSULE: BALTIMORE RAVENS (13-5 – NO. 3) AT BUFFALO BILLS (14-4 – NO. 2)
Sunday, January 19, 2025 | 6:30 PM ET | Highmark Stadium | Referee: Carl Cheffers
All-Time Series History
Regular Season: BAL leads series, 7-4 (won 4 of past 5)
Postseason: BUF leads series, 1-0
The Last Time…
Regular Season: 9/29/24: BUF 10 at BAL 35
Postseason: AFC-D 1/16/21: BAL 3 at BUF 17
RAVENS NOTES:
RAVENS seeking consecutive AFC Champ. Game appearances for 2nd time in franchise history (2011-12). Led NFL in total offense (424.9 yards per game) in 2024. • HC JOHN HARBAUGH has 13 playoff wins, tied with Mike Holmgren for 7th-most ever by HC. • QB LAMAR JACKSON became 1st player in NFL history with 4,000+ pass yards (4,172), 40+ TD passes (41) & fewer than 5 INTs (4) in a season. Had 125+ rating in 8 games, 125+ rating, 2nd-most in single-season all-time. Totaled 256 yards (175 pass, 81 rush) & 2 TDs vs. 0 INTs with 132 rating in AFC-WC, 7th-straight game with 2+ TD passes. Has 602 rush yards (86 per game) in 7 career playoff games, with 50+ rush yards in 6 of 7 games. Totaled 210 yards (156 pass, 54 rush) & 3 TDs (2 pass, 1 rush) vs. 0 INTs in Week 4 meeting. • RB DERRICK HENRY ranked 2nd in NFL with 2,114 scrimmage yards (1,921 rush, 193 rec.) & tied-2nd with 18 TDs (16 rush, 2 rec.) in 2024, becoming 1st player in NFL history with 1,500+ rush yards & 15+ rush TDs in 3 career seasons. Rushed for playoff franchise-record 186 yards & 2 TDs in AFC-WC, his 4th-straight game with 160+ scrimmage yards. Had season-high 209 scrimmage yards (199 rush, 10 rec.) & 2 TDs (1 rush, 1 rec.) in Week 4 meeting & has TD in each of his past 5 vs. Buf. Has 4 playoff games with 150+ rush yards, tied with HOFer Terrell Davis for most-ever & needs 82 rush yards to become 7th player ever with 1,000+ career postseason rush yards. • RB JUSTICE HILL had TD catch in AFC-WC & has rec. TD in 2 of past 3. • WR ZAY FLOWERS led team with career-high 1,059 rec. yards this season. • WR RASHOD BATEMAN had rec. TD in AFC-WC & has TD catch in 4 of past 5. • TE MARK ANDREWS led TEs with career-high 11 rec. TDs in 2024. Has rec. TD in 6 of past 7. • LB ROQUAN SMITH ranked tied-4th in NFL with 154 tackles in 2024, becoming 1st player since 2000 with 150+ tackles in 4 straight seasons. • LB KYLE VAN NOY ranked 4th in NFL with career-high 12.5 sacks this season. Has sack in 5 of past 6. Had 2 sacks & FF in Week 4 meeting. • LB ODAFE OWEH had career-high 10 sacks this season. Aims for 4th in row with sack. • DT NNAMDI MADUBUIKE had 2 sacks & PD in AFC-WC, 4th-straight game with TFL. • CB MARLON HUMPHREY had career-high 6 INTs with 15 PD in 2024. • S KYLE HAMILTON had 7 tackles & FR in Week 4 meeting.
BILLS NOTES:
BILLS seeking 1st Conf. Champ. Game appearance since 2020. Went 8-0 at home in reg. season for 3rd time ever. Can win 10 home games for 2nd time ever (1990). • HC SEAN MCDERMOTT has 6 career playoff wins, 2nd-most ever by Buf. HC. • QB JOSH ALLEN made 3rd-career Pro Bowl & had 40 combined pass & rush TDs in 2024 (28 pass, 12 rush), joining Aaron Rodgers as only players ever with 40+ combined TDs in 5+ seasons. Completed 20 of 26 atts. (76.9 pct.) for 272 yards & 2 TDs vs. 0 INTs with 135.4 rating & rushed for 46 yards in AFC-WC. Had 24 TDs (19 pass, 5 rush) vs. 3 INTs in 9 home starts this season. Is 6-2 with 22 TDs (17 pass, 5 rush) vs. 3 INTs & 107 rating in 8 career home playoff starts. • RB JAMES COOK tied for NFL lead with 16 rush TDs this season, tied with HOFer O.J. Simpson (1975) for most in a season in franchise history. Rushed for 120 yards & TD in AFC-WC. Has rush TD in 8 of past 9, incl. each of past 5. Aims for his 4th in row in postseason with 80+ scrimmage yards. • RB TY JOHNSON had 70 scrimmage yards (44 rush, 26 rec.) & TD catch in AFC-WC. Had rush TD in Week 4 meeting. • WR KHALIL SHAKIR led team with career highs in catches (76) & rec. yards (821) this season. Led team with 6 catches in AFC-WC. • WR CURTIS SAMUEL led team with season-high 68 rec. yards & had TD catch in AFC-WC, 1st-career playoff game. Aims for 3rd in row with 50+ rec. yards. • WR AMARI COOPER is 1 of 5 in NFL with 500+ rec. yards in each of past 10 seasons. Had 6 catches for 98 yards in his last game vs. Bal. (11/12/23 w/ Cle.). Has 55+ rec. yards in 4 of his past 5 in postseason. • TE DAWSON KNOX ranks tied-5th all-time among TEs with 6 career playoff rec. TDs. • DE GREG ROUSSEAU led team with career-high 16 TFL & 8 sacks this season. Had 2 TFL & sack in AFC-WC & has 0.5+ sacks in 3 of his past 4. • DT ED OLIVER led all DTs with career-high 3 FFs in 2024. • LB VON MILLER had 12th-career season with 5+ sacks (6). Has 10.5 career playoff sacks. • LB TERREL BERNARD has 6+ tackles in each of his 8 home games this season. • LB MATT MILANO had sack in AFC-WC, his 3rd-straight playoff game with sack. • CB CHRISTIAN BENFORD had team-high 10 PD this season. Had TFL in AFC-WC.
ALLEN, BILLS HOST JACKSON, RAVENS IN HIGHLY ANTICIPATED MATCHUP OF AFC DIVISION WINNERS
Baltimore (13-5) at Buffalo (14-4)
Sunday, 6:30 p.m. EST, CBS
BetMGM NFL odds: Ravens by 1.
Series record: Ravens lead 7-5.
Against the spread: Ravens 11-6-1, Bills 11-7.
Last meeting: Ravens beat Bills 35-10 on Sept. 29, at Baltimore.
Last week: Ravens beat Steelers 28-14; Bills beat Broncos 31-7.
Ravens offense: overall (1), rush (1), pass (7), scoring (3).
Ravens defense: overall (10), rush (1), pass (31), scoring (9).
Bills offense: overall (10), rush (9), pass (9), scoring (2).
Bills defense: overall (17), rush (12), pass (24), scoring (11t).
Turnover differential: Ravens plus-6; Bills plus-24.
Ravens player to watch
S Ar’Darius Washington. He’s been a big part of Baltimore’s defensive improvement down the stretch this season, but the secondary did allow a couple of lengthy touchdown throws by the Steelers last weekend and now faces an even bigger challenge against Buffalo’s passing game.
Bills player to watch
QB Josh Allen. Though the seventh-year starter is 1-3 in divisional playoff appearances, he’s combined for 975 yards passing and six touchdowns with one interception, and 159 yards rushing and three scores in those outings. With two TDs passing last weekend, Allen increased his postseason total to 23 to break Hall of Famer Jim Kelly’s franchise record (21). In the regular season, Allen topped the 40-TD total for a fifth straight year with 28 touchdowns passing, 12 rushing and one receiving, while throwing a career-low six interceptions.
Key matchup
Ravens running game vs. Bills run defense. The Ravens topped 200 yards rushing eight times this season, including 271 against Buffalo, the most the Bills allowed this season. Buffalo’s defense was missing three starters — linebackers Matt Milano and Terrel Bernard and cornerback Taron Johnson — while starting safety Taylor Rapp played just 16 snaps before being sidelined by a concussion. All four players are scheduled to play Sunday.
Key injuries
Ravens WR Zay Flowers hurt his knee in the regular-season finale, missed last weekend’s game against Pittsburgh and missed practice time this week. … Bills rookie RB Ray Davis (concussion protocol) practiced on a limited basis Wednesday, though it’s unclear if he’ll be cleared to play. Backup OT Alec Anderson is practicing after he hurt his ankle on Sunday.
Series notes
Ravens RB Derrick Henry had a season-best 199 yards rushing, including an 87 yard touchdown, and also scored a TD receiving in the win over Buffalo in Week 4. … The Bills are 3-1 at home against the Ravens, including a 17-3 win in a 2020 divisional playoff meeting, which was secured by Johnson returning Lamar Jackson’s interception for an NFL playoff record-tying 101 yards for a touchdown. … Allen and Jackson, both first-round picks in the 2018 draft, made their NFL debuts in mop-up roles in Baltimore’s 47-3 win over Buffalo to open that season.
Stats and stuff
Buffalo and Baltimore finished the regular season with an AFC-leading plus-157 point differential. … From Weeks 11-18, the Ravens allowed NFL lows in total yards per game (261.7), net yards passing per game (171.6), yards per play (4.4) and points per game (15.4). In the first round of the playoffs, they allowed 280 yards and 14 points. … Baltimore has 13 playoff wins in coach John Harbaugh’s 17 seasons at the helm. Only Kansas City and New England (16 each) have more in that time span. … The Ravens set an NFL record by averaging 5.76 yards per rush attempt this season — then averaged 6.0 last weekend against the Steelers. … Henry is averaging 114.8 yards rushing per game in his postseason career. Among players with at least 100 carries, only Terrell Davis (142.5) and Arian Foster (128.8) have had higher averages. … Henry’s four 150-yard rushing games in the playoffs are tied with Davis for the most in league history. … Baltimore had three touchdown drives of at least 85 yards last week, the most by an NFL team in a postseason game since at least 2000. In the regular season, the Ravens had 10 TD drives of at least 90 yards, also the most since at least 2000. … The Bills are making their fourth straight appearance in the divisional round after losing the past three — twice to Kansas City and once to Cincinnati — since losing to the Chiefs in the 2020 AFC championship game. Buffalo has a 6-8 record in the divisional round. … The Bills are 9-0 at home this season, including playoffs, and 41-10 since 2020. They’re 6-2 at home in the playoffs under coach Sean McDermott, and 16-5 overall. … The Bills, under McDermott, are 14-2 in games when temperatures dip below freezing. Early forecasts for Sunday project a high of 23 degrees Fahrenheit (minus-5 Celsius) and low of 9 (minus-13). … Not including a regular season-ending game at New England, in which Allen sat after taking the opening snap, the quarterback has combined for 12 touchdowns passing, seven rushing and one receiving in his past six outings. … With 46 yards rushing against Denver, Allen increased his playoff total to an NFL-record 609 among quarterbacks, 7 ahead of Jackson. … RB James Cook’s 120 yards rushing against Denver were the most by a Bills player in the postseason since Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas had 158 in a 1995 wild-card playoff win over Miami. … Buffalo controlled the ball for 41:43 against Denver, which ranks as the 10th most in playoff history. It’s the most since New England finished with 43:59 in a 37-31 OT win over Kansas City in the 2018 AFC championship game, and most in regulation since Baltimore finished with 41:44 in a 30-7 win over Kansas City in a 2010 wild-card playoff.
RAVENS QB LAMAR JACKSON FACES COLDEST GAME OF CAREER, CALLS ON STAFF X-FACTOR
Kenico Hines might be the key to making Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens comfortable in the hostile playoff environment of Western New York in Sunday’s divisional playoff game with the Buffalo Bills.
Hines is the head equipment manager for the Ravens, who are bracing for bitter cold in a rematch with Buffalo this weekend to decide which team advances to the AFC Championship game. At kickoff time Sunday night, the temperature is forecast to be 12 degrees with a “feels like” high of 4 degrees.
In a showdown between the top two candidates for MVP in the NFL this season, Lamar Jackson identified the 22-year veteran as priority personnel at Buffalo.
“Hopefully, we’ll have some heaters on the sideline. A bigger jacket probably. I have to talk to Kenico to see what he has going on,” Jackson said of Hines, who has been on Baltimore’s staff since 2012 and previously worked for the Chicago Bears. “The equipment guys – they pretty much do a great job, so we should be good.”
Jackson has never started a game in which the temperature at kickoff was below 27 degrees (twice). One of those games was a 35-10 win over the Houston Texans in 2023 and the other a 27-24 overtime loss to the Chiefs in 2018, his fourth career start. Jackson lost a fumble but had a passer rating of 100.0 with two TD passes, completing 13 of 24 passes for 147 yards.
But Jackson predetermined he’s passing on wearing gloves in the game. Tackified gloves have been worn in the coldest of environments by quarterbacks from Peyton Manning to Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger to Teddy Bridgewater. When temperatures are well below freezing, handling a football can quickly devolve into a slick operation of capture the pigskin.
“I tried that in practice,” Jackson said of wearing gloves in-game. “I was horrible. I’ll leave that up to ‘Teddy Two Gloves,’ Teddy Bridgewater. Shoutout to Teddy.”
Often discussed hand size measurements taken as prospects enter the NFL at the Scouting Combine could become a factor in wintry conditions. Jackson measured 9.5 inches. By comparison, Allen was 10.125 inches, Manning 10.13, Brady 9 3/8; Joe Burrow and Jared Goff measured 9 inches.
Bridgewater, who wore gloves on both hands, measured in the 25th percentile of all quarterbacks since 2000 with a hand size of 9 1/4.
The Ravens were unable to practice outdoors on Wednesday, but for good reason: the ground was frozen.
“Would love to be outside, but we just can’t. The fields are too hard and they’re too frozen,” head coach John Harbaugh said.
Harbaugh has the Ravens working in icebox conditions Thursday. He said it’s so cold in the Owings Mills, Md., facility that water was shut off to prevent frozen pipes.
Overall, Jackson is 3-1 as a starter in games with temperatures at or below 32 degrees. His most recent outing in such conditions was last week. He completed 16 of 21 passes in Baltimore’s 28-14 wild-card win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The gametime temp was 32 degrees.
The Bills are an NFL-best 14-2 under head coach Sean McDermott when the temperature is under 32 degrees, according to the team. Allen wore a glove and tape on his left hand earlier this season to protect an injury.
REPORTS: EAGLES OC KELLEN MOORE TO INTERVIEW WITH COWBOYS
The Dallas Cowboys requested permission to interview Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore for their vacant head coaching position, multiple media outlets reported Thursday.
Moore, 35, was the offensive coordinator for the Cowboys (2019-22) and Los Angeles Chargers (2023) before moving to the Eagles this season.
In his first season with Philadelphia, Moore helped the Eagles to a No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs behind a rushing attack that ranked second in the league with 179.3 yards per game.
Moore is expected to meet with Dallas this weekend, ahead of the Eagles’ divisional playoff game Sunday against the visiting Los Angeles Rams.
A former star quarterback at Boise State, Moore played three games (two starts) with Dallas in 2015.
The Cowboys parted ways with Mike McCarthy earlier this week after five seasons and a 49-35 record, including three 12-win seasons and two NFC East titles but also a 1-3 mark in the playoffs.
Dallas limped to a 7-10 record this season. The Cowboys have not been to the Super Bowl since beating the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX on Jan. 28, 1996.
Former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh also is expected to interview for the job with the Cowboys, NFL Network reported Wednesday.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF CHAMPIONSHIP CAPSULE: OHIO STATE VS. NOTRE DAME
BUCKEYES NOTES:
6 OHIO STATE (13-2, 7-2 Big Ten) vs. 5 NOTRE DAME (14-1)
Monday, Jan. 20, 2025 • 7:30 p.m. • Atlanta, Ga. • Mercades-Benz Stadium (71,000) • ESPN
Head Coach: Ryan Day
Record at Ohio St.: 69-10 (6th)
Career Record: Same
Record vs. Notre Dame: 2-0
Head Coach: Marcus Freeman
Record at Notre Dame: 33-9 (3rd)
Career Record: Same
Record vs. Ohio State: 0-2
FIRST AND TEN It. Is. Title time! Ohio State (13-2 overall; CFP No. 8 Seed) and Notre Dame (14-1; CFP No. 7 Seed) will meet at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (71,000) in Atlanta Monday, Jan. 20, in the championship game of the 2025 College Football Playoffs. The Buckeyes will be seeking their second CFP national championship after winning the inaugural title in 2015, and their ninth national championship overall. Both Ohio State and Notre Dame are Top 5 among FBS schools in national titles according to NCAA.com: Alabama leads with 16 and is followed by Notre Dame – 13, Michigan – 10, USC – 9 and Ohio State – 8. Ohio State has arrived in this title game by winning three big, big games and all by double digits: 42-17 over No. 7 (Associated Press) Tennessee in a first-round playoff game at Ohio Stadium, 41-21 over No. 1 Oregon at the Rose Bowl and 28-14 over No. 3 Texas at the Cotton Bowl. The victories 20 days apart over the SEC’s Tennessee and Texas marked the first time Ohio State has defeated two SEC teams in one season.
FIRST THINGS FIRST Ryan Day is first nationally among all FBS coaches with an .873 winning percentage (69-10). Day is the only active coach with four CFP appearances in the last six years. Ohio State will play 16 games this season for the first time in school history. Three post-season wins this season ties the 2014 team – wins in the Big Ten title game, CFP semifinals and CFP title game – for that top program honor. While it could never before happen, two bowl game wins this year – Rose and Cotton – is an historical achievement for this tradition-rich program. The Rose Bowl and Cotton Bowl wins moved Ohio State’s bowl game record to over .500 (27-26) for the first time since the 2022 win over Utah and for only the second time since the 1986 Cotton Bowl win over Texas A&M. Not including the disrupted, 2020 Covid-19 season, Ohio State has 12 consecutive seasons with at least 11 wins … the longest streak in the nation. Georgia is second with seven.
OHIO STATE vs. NOTRE DAME These teams know each other. This is the third consecutive season the teams will meet and the ninth meeting all-time between the programs. This is the sixth consecutive game – since 1996 – where both are in the Top 10 of the Associated Press poll. Notre Dame won the first two games of the series, in 1935 and 1936, and Ohio State has won the last six games, played in 1995, 1996, 2006, 2016, 2022 and 2023. The game will be the third on a neutral field between the teams. Ohio State won both of those prior games, at the Fiesta Bowl, in 2006 and in 2016. Just 14 points separated the two teams in the 2022 and 2023 home and home series with Ohio State winning both (17-14 in Columbus and 21-10 in South Bend).
HISTORY. TRADITION. EXCELLENCE. Ohio State (977 wins) and Notre Dame (962) rank second and fourth, respectively, in all-time college football wins. Their respective winning percentages of .7351 and .7330 are No. 1 and No. 4, respectively, all-time. Ohio State has won national championships in 1942 (Paul Brown) 1954-57-61-68-70 (Woody Hayes), 2002 (Jim Tressel) and 2014 (Urban Meyer). The Buckeyes and Fighting Irish are tied with Oklahoma for second-place with seven Heisman Trophy winners apiece; USC leads with eight. Notre Dame’s 110 all-time consensus All-Americans rank first; Ohio State’s 93 is second. Notre Dame’s 569 drafted players, per Pro Football Reference, ranks No. 1; Ohio State has had 512, which is third-most. Ohio State is No. 1 with 91 first-round NFL Draft picks; Notre Dame is No. 4 with 71. Ohio State has spent 998 weeks ranked in the Associated Press poll, which is No. 1 all-time; Notre Dame is fourth at 889 weeks.
OHIO STATE’s CFP OVERVIEW Ohio State, the 8th Seed in this CFP, has not trailed in its first three games, victories over Tennessee, Oregon and Texas, and has outscored its opponents, 69-25, in the first half and, even more impressively, 42-0 in the first quarter. Ohio State has amassed 560 offensive yards in the first quarter of the three games while allowing just 124. Ohio State has outscored its three opponents, 111-52. Overall, Ohio State is clicking to the tune of 447.6 yards of offense on average in the three games, including 308.3 yards passing. Ohio State’s defense, No. 1 nationally for the season in scoring, passing and total defense, and No. 3 vs. the run, has allowed 291.1 yards per game during this CFP run, a total bolstered by the passing of Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel (299 yards) and Texas’ Quinn Ewers (283).
BUCKEYE NOTES IN THIS CFP Will Howard has completed 73.8 pct. of his passes in the three games, for 919 yards (306.3 yards per game) with six TDs and two INTs. His favorite targets: Emeka Egbuka (15-204 with one TD), Jeremiah Smith (14-293 and four TDs), TreVeyon Henderson (10-99 with one TD), Gee Scott Jr. (10-99) and Carnell Tate (9-115). Both running backs – TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins – have scored four rushing TDs apiece. Henderson scored two vs. Tennessee and two vs. Oregon (plus a fifth vs. Texas on a 75-yard screen pass) and Judkins scored two vs. Tennessee and two vs. Texas. The two RBs have combined for 371 yards rushing for a combined average of 123.6 yards per game. Henderson is averaging 9.0 yards per rush and 11.4 yards per touch (32 for 365 yards), and he has recorded the longest rush in Ohio State Rose Bowl history (66 TD) and the longest reception in Ohio State Cotton Bowl history (75 TD). Cody Simon is out front in tackles with 30 with Sonny Styles and JT Tuimoloau (18 apiece) plus Lathan Ransom (16) and Caleb Downs (15) among the most active participants on defense. Double figure tacklers in the CFP also include Jordan Hancock (13), Ty Hamilton and Davison Igbinosun (11 apiece) and Jack Sawyer (10). Tuimoloau (5.5 for -40 yards) and Sawyer (4.5 for -40 yards) lead a defense that has 16 sacks in the post-season. Both players have recorded at least one sack in three consecutive games. Hamilton and Ransom each have a TFL in all three CFP games and in four consecutive games overall, while the unit has totaled 28 total TFLs. Sawyer has six PBUs – all at the line of scrimmage – in the three games and Downs has three plus a game-clinching interception vs. Texas. The defense, as a unit, has 25 PBUs.
SIXTH CFP FOR OHIO STATE Ohio State is playing in the College Football Playoffs for a sixth time since the start of the CFP era in 2014. Ohio State is the only school to appear in four of the last six CFPs. Ohio State is No. 3 all-time in CFP appearances, trailing only Alabama (eight appearances) and Clemson (seven). Ohio State won the inaugural College Football Playoffs in 2014 and is 6-4 all-time in CFP games. Ohio State CFP Results: 2014 Season – Defeated No. 1 Alabama, 42-35, in CFP semifinal at the Sugar Bowl; Defeated No. 2 Oregon, 42-20, in CFP National Championship game at Arlington, Texas 2016 Season – Lost to No. 2 Clemson, 31-0, in CFP semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl 2019 Season – Lost to No. 3 Clemson, 29- 23, in CFP semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl 2020 Season – Defeated No. ……………… 2 Clemson, 49-28, in CFP semifinal at the Sugar Bowl; Lost to No. 1 Alabama, 52-24, in CFP National Championship game at Miami, Fla. 2022 Season – Lost to No. 1 Georgia, 42- 41, in CFP Semifinals at the Peach Bowl 2024 Season – Defeated No. 7 Tennessee, 42-17, in the CFP 1st-round at Ohio Stadium; Defeated No. 1 Oregon, 41-21, in the CFP quarterfinals at the Rose Bowl; defeated No. 3 Texas, 28-14, in the CFP semifinals at the Cotton Bowl.
34-30 ALL-TIME IN POST-SEASON PLAY Ohio State’s all-time record in post-season games is 34-30, including a 7-4 record for head coach Ryan Day. The Buckeyes are: 5-1 in Big Ten championship games; 1-0 in CFP first-round games; 27-26 in bowl games; 0-2 in BCS championship games not played at a bowl game; and 1-1 in CFP championship games.
NOTRE DAME NOTES:
GAME AT A GLANCE • This is Notre Dame’s first trip to the CFP National Championship game. The Irish appeared in the BCS National Championship in the 2012 season. • Notre Dame owns 11 national championships, all consensus. • The Irish have national titles in six different decades: 1920s (1924, 1929), 1930s (1930), 1940s (1943, 1946, 1947, 1949), 1960s (1966), 1970s (1973, 1977) and 1980s (1988). Only Alabama has won national titles in more decades with seven: (20s, 60s, 70s, 90s, 00s, 10s, 20s). No other team has won in six different decades. • Notre Dame and Ohio State are meeting for the ninth time, with Ohio State owning a 2-6 series lead. The two teams have met in the postseason twice previously, both times in the Fiesta Bowl in 2005 and 2016. • Both teams have been ranked on six previous occasions in the series. • The Irish have faced three Big Ten opponents this season, defeating Purdue (66- 7), Indiana (27-17) and Penn State (27-24). • RB Jeremiyah Love and QB Riley Leonard have each had a rushing TD in the same game 11 times this season, becoming the most by any FBS duo in any season in the last 25 years (surpassing Nevada’s Colin Kaepernick and Vai Taua with 10 in 2010). • Notre Dame is now 14-1, the most wins in a season in program history. Playing in its 16th game this season in the National Championship, Notre Dame will extend the record for the most games it has played in a season ever. • The victory over Penn State was the 14th ranked win of the Marcus Freeman era at Notre Dame, more than any other Irish head coach in the first three years of his tenure, and tied for the most of any FBS program over the past three seasons (Georgia, 14).
IRISH ITEMS – BY THE NUMBERS 1 Notre Dame’s 2024 defense is dominant and one of the most complete defenses in the country, ranking among the FBS’ top teams. Through the season and the Semifinal round of the CFP, Notre Dame is first in pass efficiency defense (99.50), first in turnovers gained (32), first in defensive touchdowns (6), second in scoring defense (14.3), second in passing defense (165.3), third in fumbles recovered (13), fifth in interceptions (19), fifth in third down defense (0.298), eighth in red zone defense (0.718), ninth in total defense (298.3) and ninth in fourth down defense (0.366). 2 Senior quarterback Riley Leonard owns 35 rushing touchdowns for his career, including three in the first half at Purdue, and two vs. Miami (OH) and Georgia Tech. He ranks second among all active FBS quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns. 3-24 Notre Dame held two-straight opponents to 3-24 on third down (Miami 2-12, Purdue 1-12), the best back-to-back two-game total since 2021 (Cincinnati 2-12, Wisconsin 1-14). Those are the two best back-to-back two-game stretches since data is available starting in 1996. 4 Leonard is one of four FBS quarterbacks (and two Power 4 quarterbacks) this season to have passed for 2,600 yards and rushed for 700 yards. 4 Notre Dame is one of just four programs in the Power 4 with eight or more wins over each of the last five seasons (2020-24), joined by Alabama, Clemson and Georgia. 11 Love and Leonard have each had a rushing TD in the same game 11 times this season, becoming the most by any FBS duo in any season in the last 25 years (surpassing Nevada’s Colin Kaepernick and Vai Taua with 10 in 2010). 14 Notre Dame is now 14-1, the most wins in a season in program history. Playing in its 16th game this season in the National Championship, Notre Dame will extend the record for the most games it has played in a season ever. 14 The victory over Penn State was the 14th ranked win of the Marcus Freeman era at Notre Dame, more than any other Irish head coach in the first three years of his tenure, and tied for the most of any FBS program over the past three seasons (Georgia, 14). In 2023, the 40-8 Sun Bowl victory over No. 21 Oregon State not only earned Freeman his first campaign with 10 victories, it also was his team’s seventh victory over an Associated Press-ranked team in his first two years leading the program – breaking Terry Brennan’s previous program record of six in 1954 and 55. 13 Xavier Watts has made a statement as the best defensive player in college football. Watts has totaled 13 interceptions on his career. His 13 interceptions over the last two seasons are the most by any FBS player during that span; the next closest players have nine. He has averaged 0.5 interceptions per game over that span. He has the most career interceptions by an Irish player since 1996. He is the 19th Notre Dame player to intercept 10 or more passes in a career and is tied for third on the all-time list for career interceptions in program history. Watts is responsible for seven of Notre Dame’s 31 turnovers gained this season (six interceptions, one fumble recovery). 13 Jeremiyah Love scored a rushing touchdown in 13-straight games this season, a Notre Dame record for most consecutive game with a rushing TD, and a Notre Dame record for most consecutive games with a rushing TD to start a season. He was the only FBS running back to have scored a rushing touchdown in each regular season game this season. 130 Jeremiyah Love’s performance vs. Army was noteworthy, rushing seven times for 130 yards. He is one of just two Power 4 running backs this season to achieve 130 rushing yards on fewer than 10 carries, and one of just seven Irish running backs to achieve 100 or more yards on fewer than 10 carries since 1950. 99 + 100 The 49-35 victory at USC was sealed for the Irish on two pick-sixes on back-to-back drives to close the game, as CB Christian Gray took a 99-yard interception for a score, and S Xavier Watts followed it up with a 100-yard pick-six on the very next USC drive. Not only was it the first time this season that a team had two interception returns for 99 or more yards in a single game, but it marked the first time since at least 1996 that such a feat has occurred. Gray tied the Notre Dame record for longest interception return in program history (Luther Bradley, 1975 against Purdue), and Watts broke the record with his 100-yard return. 16 QB Riley Leonard broke the Notre Dame record for most rushing touchdowns in a single season by a quarterback with 16 (14, Brandon Wimbush, 2015). 1000 RB Jeremiyah Love has 1,122 rushing yards so far in 2024, the 21st time an Irish player has broken the 1,000-yard rushing mark in a season. He is averaging 7.1 yards per carry, which would rank second among all single-season 1,000-yard rushers in ND records (Reggie Brooks, 1992, 8.0 – 1,343).
TWO-DEEP TIDBITS – OFFENSE • Jayden Thomas entered 2023 season as Notre Dame’s leading returning receiver and served in that role in the first four games of the 2023 season, catching 12 passes for over 180 yards and a touchdown. • Beaux Collins is Notre Dame’s leading receiver in yards in 2024, with 37 receptions for 458 yards. He recorded 91 receptions for 1,290 yards and 11 touchdowns in 1,578 offensive snaps over 32 games (27 starts) at Clemson from 2021-23. He broke out late in his true freshman season with 31 catches for 407 yards and three touchdowns. • Jaden Greathouse was the first Irish true freshman wideout to catch two touchdown passes in his first-career game (against Navy in 2023). His five touchdown catches during a rookie campaign are the most for a Notre Dame true freshman since 2016. He notched a career-high 105 receiving yards in the win over Penn State. • Jayden Harrison was a first-team All-American as a kick returner at Marshall last season, tying for the FBS lead with two kick return touchdowns in 2023. He recorded his first touchdown catch for the Irish in the 35-14 win over Virginia. In 2023, Harrison played in all 13 games for Marshall (started four), totaling 28 receptions for 410 yards (14.6 yards per reception) and a touchdown. • Kris Mitchell, a transfer from FIU, led CUSA and ranked in the Top 20 nationally in receiving yards in 2023 (1,118 – 18th nationally) and receiving yads per game (93.2 – 13th nationally). Mitchell owns 118 career receptions for 1,853 yards and 13 touchdowns. • Jordan Faison joined the Notre Dame football team as a walk on and made his collegiate athletics debut at No. 25 Louisville in 2023, and was put on football scholarship. He would end the season with 19 catches for 322 yards and four touchdowns, capping the year by earning Sun Bowl MVP honors with five catches for 115 yards and a touchdown. • Notre Dame’s offensive line presents some new faces in 2024 with the departures of NFL Draftees Joe Alt and Blake Fisher. Pat Coogan, Ashton Craig, Billy Schrauth, Tosh Baker, Rocco Spindler and Charles Jagusah own starting experience. Irish linemen Aamil Wagner, Sam Pendleton and Anthonie Knapp all made their first-career starts at No. 20 Texas A&M. Even with injuries and young talent, the line was named a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award. • Mitchell Evans had a breakout season in 2023 before being sidelined with an injury. A 2024 semifinalist for the Mackey Award, he played in eight games as a junior in 2023, starting seven, and ended the season as the team’s top receiving target, averaging 52.8 yards per game. Through those eight games, Evans totaled 29 receptions for 422 yards and a touchdown during the season, averaging 14.6 yards per catch. • Riley Leonard owns 35 rushing touchdowns for his career, ranking second among all active FBS quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns. He entered his senior season and first with Notre Dame coming off a Duke career as one of the ACC’s premier quarterbacks. See page 23 for more on Leonard. • Steve Angeli made the most of his first-career start in the 2023 Sun Bowl completing 15 of 19 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns. Prior to that game, he went 19-for-25 passing with four touchdowns in seven relief appearances. • With the departure of NFL Draft pick Audric Estimé, Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price lead the Irish running backs in 2024. Love broke the 1,000-yard rushing plateau for the season in the Indiana game.
TWO-DEEP TIDBITS – DEFENSE • Joshua Burnham finished the 2023 season with 18 tackles, four tackles-forloss and a sack. Junior Tuihalamaka appeared in all 13 games in 2023 while posting 10 tackles. • Howard Cross III established himself as one of the top playmaking interior defensive lineman in the country during the 2023 season, and continued his dominance in 2024. See page 20 for more information on Cross. Donovan Hinish stepped up in relief of Cross when injured, and put together an impressive showing through three starts. He appeared in nine games in 2023 and posting a career-best four stops in the win over Central Michigan. • RJ Oben transferred from Duke in the offseason with 34 career starts and 50 games played. Entering Notre Dame, he had posted 67 tackles on his career, with 14.5 sacks (loss of 91 yards), five forced fumbles, two passes defended and an interception. Bryce Young is now seeing time in the regular defensive line rotation and has made a significant mark on special teams, ranking second in the nation in individual blocked kicks (3). See page 22 for more on Young. • Jack Kiser leads a linebacker room with young talent. A team captain and finalist for the 2024 William V. Campbell Trophy and the 2024 Wuerffel Trophy, Kiser holds the Notre Dame record for career games played. See page 21 for more information on Kiser. Jaiden Ausberry appeared in four regular-season games in 2023, preserving his eligibility. Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa is a highly touted five-star linebacker who was a finalist for the high school Butkus Award in 2023. He posted a career-high seven tackles vs. Northern Illinois. Drayk Bowen has posted 70 tackles this season, second behind Kiser’s 64. He appeared in 12 games in 2023 (missing one contest with an injury) and recorded 14 stops and a forced fumble. See page 22 for more on Bowen. Jaylen Sneed appeared in all 13 games in 2023, totaling 14 tackles, five QB hurries and two PBU. • Jordan Clark joined the Irish from Arizona State with 22 career starts and 39 games played entering 2024. Throughout his college career, he has snagged four interceptions (one for a touchdown) and 173 tackles (127 solo) with 8.5 TFL and 26 passes defended. • Adon Shuler has posted three interceptions this season, one each against Texas A&M, Georgia Tech and Virginia. Starting each game in 2024, he showed his playmaking ability late in the 2023 season, posting all six career tackles in the final three games of the year. See page 22 for more on Shuler. Luke Talich quickly established himself as a special teams mainstay during his freshman season in 2023, and posted his first-career pick six vs. Florida State. • True freshmen Karson Hobbs, Leonard Moore and Kennedy Urlacher have impressed in preseason camp. Moore and Urlacher both garnered one four-star ranking through recruitment. Moore made his college football debut at No. 20 Texas A&M, and his first-career start vs. No. 15 Louisville, leading the team with seven tackles. He also posted seven tackles in his second start, at Georgia Tech. See page 21 for more on Moore. Tae Johnson made his debut on the depth chart for Florida State week, and saw his first game action after coming back from injury. • Christian Gray started his first-career game in the 23-13 win at No. 20 Texas A&M. He saw action in 12 games and made 11 tackles in 2023. He intercepted his first career pass against Pittsburgh and finished the year with a career-best three tackles in the Sun Bowl victory over Oregon State. • Xavier Watts is a 2024 Consensus All-American and a semifinalist for the Walter Camp Player of the Year, Bednarik Award, Lott Trophy and Thorpe Award. Watts won the Nagurski Trophy in 2023 and was a Unanimous All-American. Rod Heard II spent his prior career at Northwestern, where he amassed 31 starts and 46 games played with 182 tackles, 11 for loss, two sacks and two interceptions, as well as 10 passes defended, five forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
REPORT: LSU QB COLIN HURLEY INJURED IN CAR CRASH
LSU quarterback Colin Hurley was injured in an on-campus car crash early Thursday morning, WBRZ News reported.
The 17-year-old freshman was found unresponsive but breathing after his vehicle struck a tree at about 2:45 a.m., per the report.
Emergency responders removed Hurley from the wreckage and transported him to a nearby hospital. There was no immediate word on his condition.
According to a crash report obtained by WBRZ, he had a large cut on his face and was in and out of consciousness.
The cause of the accident has not been released but officials said impairment was not suspected, per the report.
Hurley was a four-star recruit in the Class of 2024 out of Trinity Christian Academy in Jacksonville, Fla. He did not appear in a game for LSU in 2024.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
TOP 25 ROUNDUP: MINNESOTA EDGES NO. 20 MICHIGAN AT OT BUZZER
Dawson Garcia hit a game-winning 3-pointer from near half-court just before the buzzer sounded to end overtime, giving Minnesota an 84-81 win over No. 20 Michigan on Thursday in Minneapolis.
After Michigan’s Danny Wolf tied the game at 81-81 on a layup with seven seconds left in OT, Minnesota brought the ball upcourt and put it in the hands of Garcia, whose long shot gave the Golden Gophers (9-9, 1-6 Big Ten) their first win in conference play.
Garcia finished with a game-high 27 points to go along with 12 rebounds, Lu’Cye Patterson scored 22 points and Mike Mitchell Jr. had 20 points as Minnesota snapped a four-game losing streak.
Wolf finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds and Vladislav Goldin had 18 points and eight rebounds for Michigan (13-4, 5-1), which saw its five-game winning streak end.
Oregon State 97, No. 16 Gonzaga 89 (OT)
Michael Rataj scored Oregon State’s first eight points of overtime and finished with a career-high 29 as the Beavers upset the Bulldogs in West Coast Conference play in Corvallis, Ore.
Nate Kingz scored 20 points and Parsa Fallah had 16 before fouling out as Oregon State (14-5, 4-2 WCC) improved to 11-1 at home this season. Damarco Minor added 15 points and Josiah Lake II had 11.
Graham Ike recorded 26 points and nine rebounds before fouling out for Gonzaga (14-5, 5-1). Ben Gregg tallied 15 points and 13 rebounds and Khalif Battle also scored 15 points.
Temple 88, No. 18 Memphis 81
Jamal Mashburn Jr. scored 21 points to lead five players in double figures as the Owls upset the Tigers in Philadelphia.
Quante Berry added 19 for Temple (11-6, 3-1 American Athletic Conference), which canned 46.8 percent of its field-goal attempts and nearly doubled up the Tigers 49-25 on the boards. Shane Dezonie came off the bench to tally 15 points and grab a game-high 13 rebounds.
PJ Haggerty scored 21 points for Memphis (13-4, 3-1), which had a four-game winning streak end. The Tigers also got 16 points and six assists from Tyrese Hunter.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
WOMEN’S TOP 25 ROUNDUP: NO. 3 NOTRE DAME WINS WITHOUT HIDALGO AGAIN
Sonia Citron put up 21 points, six rebounds, six assists and three steals to propel No. 3 Notre Dame past No. 17 Georgia Tech 81-66 on Thursday in South Bend, Ind.
Maddy Westbeld added 20 points to help the Fighting Irish (15-2, 6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) notch their 10th consecutive victory while Player of the Year candidate Hannah Hidalgo missed her second straight contest with an ankle sprain.
Cassandre Prosper poured in 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds off the Notre Dame bench. Liatu King pulled in 12 rebounds as the Irish finished with a 50-25 rebounding advantage to overcome 21 turnovers.
Kara Dunn’s 21 points led Georgia Tech (15-3, 3-3), which was outshot 54.8 percent to 37.7 percent from the field. Tonie Morgan had 17 points and Chazadi Wright added 10 points, but the Yellow Jackets lost their third game in a row.
No. 2 South Carolina 76, No. 19 Alabama 58
Joyce Edwards provided key fourth-quarter offense and finished with 21 points as the Gamecocks thwarted an upset bid in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
MiLaysia Fulwiley had 16 points and Te-Hina Paopao provided 11 points for the Gamecocks (17-1, 6-0 Southeastern Conference), who were bolstered by a 51-34 rebounding edge. They were 3-for-20 on 3-pointers.
Essence Cody and Zaay Green each scored 15 points for Alabama, which was within 58-53 with seven minutes to play. The Crimson Tide scored only three points in the next five minutes as they fell into a 16-point hole. Edwards scored six points during that stretch.
No. 7 Texas 74, Auburn 57
Madison Booker’s 22 points and Rori Harmon’s 20 points keyed the Longhorns’ road victory.
Taylor Jones added 15 points for Texas (17-2, 4-1 SEC), which went 20-for-23 from the free-throw line.
DeYona Gaston and Mar’shaun Bostic racked up 18 points apiece for Auburn (9-9, 0-5), which had only 34 points through three quarters. The Tigers committed 19 turnovers.
No. 13 Oklahoma 80, Missouri 63
Payton Verhulst’s career-high 38 points came with six 3-point baskets and the Sooners eventually pulled away in Norman, Okla.
Verhulst, who had 31 points through three quarters, shot 13-for-19 from the field, including 6-for-9 on 3s. No other Sooner reached a double-figure point total, but Sahara Williams provided nine points and five assists. Oklahoma (15-3, 3-2 SEC) used a 24-15 third-quarter edge to stretch a seven-point halftime lead.
Laniah Randle and Grace Slaughter each scored 15 points for Missouri (11-9, 0-5). The Tigers tried to stay in it by snatching 11 offensive rebounds.
No. 15 Tennessee 86, Mississippi State 73
Ruby Whitehorn scored 20 points and Samara Spencer drilled four of the Volunteers’ 12 3-pointers in an 18-point outing in Knoxville, Tenn.
The Volunteers (15-2, 3-2 SEC) shot 12-for-26 on 3s. Talaysia Cooper supplied 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
Jerkaila Jordan had 17 points and Debreasha Powe posted 16 points for Mississippi State (15-4, 2-3). Tennessee held the Bulldogs, who ended up with 20 turnovers, to one field goal for nearly five minutes to begin the fourth quarter while stretching a 10-point edge to 18 points.
No. 21 North Carolina State 83, Pitt 67
Aziaha James pumped in 22 points for the Wolfpack, who’ve won nine of their last 10 games after beating the Panthers in Raleigh, N.C.
Saniya Rivers racked up 15 points and seven assists, Zoe Brooks had 14 points and Madison Hayes added 13 points and 10 boards for NC State (13-4, 5-1 ACC), which has scored more than 80 points in its last four victories. NC State connected on 13 of 25 shots from 3-point range, with James draining six long-range attempts.
Khadija Faye’s 28 points and Marley Washenitz’s 16 points led the Panthers (9-10, 1-5), who couldn’t duplicate another comeback after their amazing second-half rally Sunday against SMU. Pitt has dropped four of its last five games.
NBA NEWS
NBA ROUNDUP: THUNDER CLOBBER CAVS IN BATTLE OF NBA’S BEST
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 134-114 home win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday in a matchup between the two teams with the NBA’s best records.
The Cavs came in as the No. 1 offensive team in the league, while Oklahoma City ranked atop the NBA in defensive rating. The Thunder dominated, reeling off a 22-2 run over the final six minutes of the first quarter, then extending the run to 30-2 in the second quarter.
Luguentz Dort scored a season-high 22 points for the Thunder, going 6 of 9 from beyond the 3-point arc.
Dort also helped lock down Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell, helping the Thunder hold Mitchell to just eight points on 3-of-15 shooting. Darius Garland led the Cavs with 20 points while Jarrett Allen scored 13 on 6-of-6 shooting.
Suns 130, Wizards 123
Devin Booker scored 37 points and Washington, D.C., native Kevin Durant added 23, fueling visiting Phoenix in a wire-to-wire victory over Washington.
Booker scored at least 30 points for the fourth straight game after sinking four 3-pointers and 13 of 15 free throws. Grayson Allen scored 21 points off the bench and rookie Ryan Dunn collected career highs in points (18) and rebounds (11) for the Suns, who posted their fourth win in five games.
Washington rookie Kyshawn George sank six 3-pointers to highlight his season-high 24-point performance. Jordan Poole scored 18 points and rookie Alexandre Sarr added 16 for the Wizards, who erupted for 40 points in the fourth quarter before losing their eighth straight game.
Pacers 111, Pistons 100
Myles Turner poured in 28 points and Indiana won in Detroit, the Pacers’ seventh victory in eight games.
Pascal Siakam contributed 26 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals for Indiana. Tyrese Haliburton had 17 points and eight assists, and Andrew Nembhard added 12 points and six assists.
Tim Hardaway Jr. led the Pistons with 25 points. Cade Cunningham had 20 points and nine assists, and Jalen Duren racked up 17 points, 17 rebounds and two blocked shots.
NHL NEWS
NHL ROUNDUP: OILERS RALLY FROM 3-GOAL DEFICIT TO BEAT AVS
Evan Bouchard scored the winning goal late in the third period, capping the Edmonton Oilers’ rally from a three-goal deficit to beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 in Denver on Thursday night.
Bouchard also had an assist, Connor McDavid also had a goal and an assist, and Brett Kulak and Viktor Arvidsson added goals for Edmonton, which has won four straight games and eight of nine. Leon Draisaitl chipped in two assists, and Stuart Skinner made 22 saves.
The Oilers completed the comeback when Bouchard’s shot from the right circle beat Mackenzie Blackwood at 13:05 of the third.
The loss spoiled a two-goal night for Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon. Logan O’Connor also scored and Blackwood turned away 23 shots.
Defenseman Sam Girard returned to the Colorado lineup after missing three games with an upper-body injury.
Rangers 5, Utah Hockey Club 3
Chris Kreider scored the tiebreaking goal with 9:38 remaining in the third period as New York erased three one-goal deficits and defeated Utah in Salt Lake City.
The Rangers capped a 2-0-1 Western trip and extended their point streak to six games (4-0-2). Kreider scored for the third time in his past five games. Reilly Smith had tied the game with a short-handed goal 28 seconds into the third. Artemi Panarin scored New York’s first tying goal and capped the comeback with an empty-netter. Arthur Kaliyev also scored a tying goal as the Rangers earned their first win (1-17-1) when trailing through two periods.
Logan Cooley scored a power-play goal 57 seconds into the second period to give Utah a 3-2 lead. Matias Maccelli scored twice in the opening period and notched his third two-goal game of the season as Utah dropped to 2-8-2 in its past 12 contests.
Jets 2, Kraken 1
Dylan DeMelo scored with 27 seconds remaining as Winnipeg beat visiting Seattle to remain tied with Washington for first place in the NHL’s overall standings.
Mark Scheifele also scored for the Jets, who improved to 4-1-2 on their eight-game homestand, which concludes Saturday against Calgary. Connor Hellebuyck made 18 saves.
Matty Beniers scored for the Kraken, who completed a five-game trip with a 2-3-0 record. Joey Daccord stopped 34 of 36 shots.
Blues 4, Flames 1
Brayden Schenn scored twice as host St. Louis swept their three-game season series with the Flames for the second straight campaign.
Colton Parayko and Jordan Kyrou also scored for the Blues, who went 3-1 on their homestand. Dylan Holloway had two assists for St. Louis and Joel Hofer made 28 saves to improve to 7-1-1 in his last nine starts.
Yegor Sharangovich scored for the Flames and Dustin Wolf made 25 saves.
Lightning 4, Ducks 3 (SO)
Jake Guentzel scored the only shootout goal as host Tampa Bay earned a victory over Anaheim.
Guentzel, who had a goal in regulation, beat Anaheim goalie Lukas Dostal (32 saves) between the pads to open the shootout. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 34 saves for the Lightning, plus one more in the shootout, during which the Ducks twice missed the target. Tampa Bay improved to 4-1-1 in its past six games and 14-6-1 on home ice.
Anthony Cirelli and Brayden Point scored for Tampa Bay, while captain Victor Hedman became the first Lightning player ever to reach 600 assists. Anaheim’s Troy Terry notched his club-best 15th goal and tied Scott Niedermayer and Adam Henrique for 10th on the Ducks’ all-time points list (264).
Flyers 5, Islanders 3
Sean Couturier, Garnet Hathaway and Morgan Frost scored in the second period for Philadelphia, which beat New York in Elmont, N.Y.
Cam York scored what proved to be the game-winner early in the third, and Noah Cates added an empty-netter with 1:12 left for the Flyers, who have won three of four (3-0-1) to climb out of last place in the Metropolitan Division. Goalie Samuel Ersson made 26 saves.
Bo Horvat, Mathew Barzal and Anders Lee scored for the Islanders, who have lost the first two games of a season-long seven-game homestand to fall into last in the Metropolitan. The Islanders ended their franchise-record power-play goal drought at the 9:21 mark of the first period, when Horvat scored. New York was 0-for-25 on the power play dating back to its last man-advantage goal Dec. 8.
Red Wings 5, Panthers 2
Cam Talbot made 41 saves and Detroit scored three power-play goals to beat Florida in Sunrise, Fla.
Detroit’s Jonatan Berggren, Dylan Larkin and Patrick Kane each had a goal with the man advantage. Marco Kasper also scored, and Larkin added an assist and later an empty-net tally. Lucas Raymond notched two assists, and Kane and Kasper also had two points apiece. Talbot earned his fifth straight win as Detroit moved to 8-1-0 in its past nine games. During that span, the Red Wings have converted 16 of 31 power plays (47.1 percent).
Anton Lundell and Evan Rodrigues scored for the Panthers. However, goalie Sergei Bobrovsky (11 saves) was pulled in the second period after allowing four goals in his third straight start.
Capitals 1, Senators 0 (OT)
Alex Ovechkin scored at 3:07 of overtime to lift visiting Washington over Ottawa.
Ovechkin took a pass from Rasmus Sandin on the rush and beat Leevi Merilainen from the left circle for his 874th NHL goal. He is now 21 away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record of 894 goals. Ovechkin has 21 goals this season in 29 games.
The Capitals have won three straight games and extended their point streak to nine games (6-0-3). Logan Thompson stopped 24 shots for his second consecutive shutout and the sixth of his career. Thompson, making his third straight start with Charlie Lindgren on injured reserve, improved to 20-2-3 on the season.
Maple Leafs 4, Devils 3 (OT)
William Nylander scored his second goal of the game at 1:10 of overtime and Toronto defeated former Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe in his first appearance in Toronto as coach of New Jersey.
Nylander, who also had an assist, scored on a breakaway to end Toronto’s three-game losing streak. Auston Matthews tied the game at 15:47 of the third period on a 25-foot shot for his second goal of the game — the third time that Toronto overcame a one-goal deficit. Mitch Marner and Jake McCabe each added two assists for the Maple Leafs, and Joseph Woll made 21 saves.
Nico Hischier scored two goals and Jack Hughes had a goal and two assists for the Devils, who have played past regulation in four consecutive games, going 1-0-3. Jacob Markstrom stopped 37 shots.
Canadiens 3, Stars 1
Jakub Dobes made 32 saves and Alex Newhook scored a go-ahead goal midway through the third period to lead Montreal to a road win over Dallas.
Juraj Slafkovsky and Joel Armia scored for the Canadiens, Nick Suzuki had two assists. Montreal is on a six-game (5-0-1) points streak and is 11-2-1 in its past 14 games.
Jason Robertson scored the Stars’ only goal, and Jake Oettinger stopped 21 of 23 shots. Dallas lost for just the second time in the past 10 games.
Blue Jackets 4, Sharks 1
James van Riemsdyk scored twice, leading Columbus to a victory over visiting San Jose.
Kent Johnson scored and added an assist and Adam Fantilli netted the other goal for the Blue Jackets, who have won six straight and nine of 11. Elvis Merzlikins made 18 saves for the win.
Tyler Toffoli responded for the Sharks, who dropped to 6-13-5 on the road this season and have won just three of their last 15 games. Alexandar Georgiev stopped 30 shots.
Predators 3, Blackhawks 2 (SO)
Filip Forsberg’s 300th career goal tied the game late in regulation, and Nashville went on to beat visiting Chicago in a shootout for its fourth win in six games.
Gustav Nyquist, Ryan O’Reilly and Steven Stamkos, who also had a goal in regulation, each scored in the Predators’ first shootout of the season — against Arvid Soderblom, who was otherwise solid in stopping 39 shots.
Connor Bedard and Alec Martinez scored for the Blackhawks, who have lost four straight, 10 of their past 12 and seven in a row on the road. Tyler Bertuzzi assisted on both goals.
Kings 5, Canucks 1
Alex Turcotte had two goals and an assist while leading visiting Los Angeles to a win against Vancouver.
Adrian Kempe and Kevin Fiala each had a goal and an assist, Warren Foegele also scored and Darcy Kuemper made 20 saves for Los Angeles, which averted what would have been its first three-game losing streak since Oct. 12-16.
Quinn Hughes scored and Thatcher Demko made 16 saves for the Canucks, who have dropped six of their past seven (1-4-2) to fall out of a Western Conference wild-card spot.
BASEBALL NEWS
BELOVED BREWERS BROADCASTER BOB UECKER DIES AT 90
Hall of Fame broadcaster and beloved Milwaukee Brewers icon Bob Uecker died Thursday at the age of 90.
The Milwaukee native had been battling lung cancer since early 2023, his family revealed. He would have turned 91 on Jan. 26.
“It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the passing of Bob. To many, he was an announcer and entertainer whose humor and voice transcended the game, but to us he was so much more,” his family said in a statement.
“… He brought joy to countless listeners through his wit, charisma, and love for baseball, Milwaukee, and all of Wisconsin, creating a legacy that will forever be cherished. While his contributions to the game are noteworthy, it is his kindness, humility, and love for family and friends that we will hold closest to our hearts. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and support during this difficult time as we grieve and celebrate the man we were so lucky to call ours.”
Uecker spent six seasons as a catcher in the majors, debuting with the then-Milwaukee Braves in 1962 and winning a World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1964.
After Uecker’s retirement with a .200 career batting average, then-Brewers owner and future MLB commissioner Bud Selig hired him as a scout and he eventually transitioned to the radio booth. Uecker spent more than 50 years calling games for Milwaukee and was renowned for his self-deprecating humor.
Uecker once called his statue outside of Milwaukee’s ballpark “great for the fans and even better for the pigeons.”
He was inducted into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame, the Radio Hall of Fame, the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame, the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame and the National Baseball Hall of Fame as the 2003 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award.
Away from the game he loved, Uecker became a regular on late-night TV and was dubbed “Mr. Baseball” by Johnny Carson. He starred in a series of Miller Lite beer commercials, hosted “Saturday Night Live” and delivered classic one-liners in the 1989 comedy film “Major League.”
The Brewers remembered Uecker as “the soundtrack of our summers” in a statement released Thursday.
“Today we take on the heaviest of burdens. Today, we say goodbye to our beloved friend, Bob Uecker,” it read.
“Ueck was the light of the Brewers, the soundtrack of our summers, the laughter in our hearts, and his passing is a profound loss. He was the heart and soul of Wisconsin and a dear friend.
“… Saying goodbye to Bob shakes us all. He was so much more than a Milwaukee Brewers icon. He was a national treasure. Bob entertained us with his words and storytelling, so it is no surprise that his passing now leaves us at a loss for our own words.”
AUTO RACING NEWS
MARTIN TRUEX JR. TO MAKE DAYTONA 500 BID WITH TRICON GARAGE TEAM
Martin Truex Jr. will pause his retirement and attempt to qualify for next month’s Daytona 500 with Tricon Garage, the team announced Thursday.
Truex, 44, retired from full-time racing after the 2024 season. The 2017 Cup Series champion collected 34 wins and 291 top-10 finishes across 21 years on NASCAR’s top circuit.
Tricon Garage confirmed that Truex will be behind the wheel of the No. 56 Toyota sponsored by Bass Pro Shops, a longtime sponsor for the New Jersey-born driver.
“Having raced against Martin for many years, I can confidently say there’s no stronger competitor I’d want behind the wheel for our first Cup Series entry at the sport’s most prestigious race,” team owner and former driver David Gilliland said. “As an open entry, we know the road ahead will be challenging, but I have no doubt that Martin will put us in the best position to succeed. I’ve had the privilege of sitting on the pole at Daytona, but my next goal is to celebrate in Victory Lane.”
Truex has never won the Daytona 500 in 20 previous attempts, finishing runner-up to Denny Hamlin in 2016 by just 0.010 seconds.
In order to make the field for the Feb. 16 running of the “Great American Race,” Truex will have to qualify through the Daytona Duels on Feb. 13.
TOP INDIANA RELEASES/HEADLINES
INDIANA PACERS
GAME REWIND: PACERS 111, PISTONS 100
Indiana’s trip north to Detroit to face off with the Pistons on Thursday marked the third of four matchups between the two clubs this season. The surging Pistons sought to extend a 2-game winning streak in their home building against a Pacers team that is 4-1 in its last five road outings, but Indiana defeated the Pistons, 111-100, as the Pacers improved to 8-2 in their last 10 games.
Myles Turner opened the scoring for Indiana as his dunk and 3-pointer accounted for the contest’s first five points. After Indiana’s quick 5-0 run to open play, Tim Hardaway Jr. erased that deficit with three straight 3-point makes for the Pistons.
Hardaway’s offensive explosion continued as he poured in 12 points in the first frame for Detroit, but Turner’s rhythm carried on as well. He finished the first quarter shooting 66% and amassed 11 points for Indiana.
Tyrese Haliburton returned from his single-game absence after exiting a game in Cleveland at halftime due to a minor groin injury. After just six quarters of rest, Haliburton is back on the floor for the Blue and Gold. He recorded eight points and four assists through the first half for Indiana.
Aaron Nesmith returned from a lengthier hiatus – he hasn’t seen any game action since November 1st – and filled the roster hole left by Bennedict Mathurin, who is serving a one-game suspension. Nesmith’s first quarter was packed with action – he tallied eight points and a rebound in his six minutes before committing a foul that was upgraded to a flagrant I by game officials. He would finish his first game back from injury with nine points in nine minutes.
“I felt like I was able to find my rhythm on both ends pretty easily,” Nesmith said postgame. “So it was a good day.”
Indiana’s physicality didn’t drop after Nesmith’s flagrant foul. The Pacers forced Detroit into seven first quarter turnovers, and 13 total in the first half. Detroit averages nearly 16 turnovers per game, and is just three turnovers shy of that mark at halftime.
The sturdy defensive stand by the Pacers held Pistons’ star Cade Cunningham to just seven points and four assists through the first half of play.
Pascal Siakam ushered in 16 points in the second quarter on 85.7% shooting as he made six of his seven shots. The second quarter tsunami of scoring led Indiana to a 40-point quarter despite allowing 30 Pistons points in the same frame.
Turner opened the second half with his sixth 3-point make of the game, and dropped in his seventh shortly after. The Pacers led by as many as 20 points in the third quarter before Detroit surged with a 12-2 run to cut the lead to nine points following a converted Cunningham and-1 opportunity.
Cunningham would continue to plague the Pacers’ defense in the third quarter as he tallied nine points and four assists in the frame, but Indiana still led, 92-81, through three quarters.
Detroit cut the lead back to single digits after a costly Indiana turnover led to a Simone Fontecchio 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter. Cunningham made a layup on the following possession, forcing a Pacers timeout with the lead at six points and shrinking.
The defense of the Blue and Gold came out of the timeout reinvigorated. Indiana forced a turnover, created three stops, and rallied behind an emphatic block by Turner to push the lead back to 10 points with just under eight minutes remaining in the game.
Detroit persisted – Cunningham and Tobias Harris made baskets that cut the lead back down to six points before Jarace Walker came up with a steal that he took to the basket. Walker converted his layup through contact, but missed the free throw. He raced down the floor after Detroit rebounded his miss, and blocked a Hardaway jump shot to create another fastbreak opportunity for Indiana.
“I thought [Walker’s] steal in the end, the one in the fourth quarter, was another big momentum play,” Carlisle said postgame. “So he’s getting a lot of great experience and doing a lot of very good things.”
Turner tied his career-high for 3-pointers in a game as he dropped in his eighth deep-range shot of the contest with just over three minutes remaining. His season-best was five entering Thursday’s matchup. The Pacers would go on to defeat the Pistons, 111-100.
Turner finished with a game-high 28 points, followed closely by Siakam’s 26. Siakam led Indiana’s rebounding effort with seven, and added seven assists. Haliburton scored 17 points and recorded a team-high eight assists in a strong outing for Indiana.
The Pacers’ defense was the focal point of the evening as they held Detroit to just 100 points on 39% shooting. They forced 19 Pistons turnovers, and had seven different players record at least one steal.
Indiana will return to Indianapolis for its final game before heading to Paris for two games with the San Antonio Spurs. The Pacers will host the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday, Jan. 18th, at 7:00 PM ET at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Inside the Numbers
Indiana forced 19 Detroit turnovers. The Pacers converted those turnovers into 16 points.
The Pacers tallied 13 steals, and seven different players each recorded a steal. Siakam led with four.
Four players recorded both at least one block and one steal: Turner, Haliburton, Walker, and McConnell.
The Pacers shot 46% from the field, including 43% from 3-point range. They held the Pistons to 39% from the field and just 25% from deep.
You Can Quote Me on That
“He was in a groove, for sure. But more than the shot making, I loved his attitude, the way he played the game…He didn’t get too high or too low, and I thought his demeanor and his even emotions were a big factor for our team.” – Carlisle on Turner’s attitude
“Consistency is a big thing with a second year player. I personally think that the second year is the hardest year for young players, and it’s a constant learning situation…He’ll get it. But he’s doing, he’s doing a lot of good things. I thought his steal in the end, the one in the fourth quarter, was another big momentum play. So he’s getting a lot of great experience and doing a lot of very good things.” – Carlisle on Walker’s recent play
“Look at our defensive numbers without him and with him, and how he’s changed our season since he’s got back. Anybody that has eyes can tell he’s an all-league defender. Glad he’s on our side.” – Haliburton on Nembhard’s defense
“It’s good to get back playing, doing what I love, so it was definitely fun. It was good to be able to get a couple shots to fall down early and get my rhythm back quick…Going into the next game it’s just going to be even easier to kind of flow right into it.” – Nesmith on his return to play
Stat of the Night
Aaron Nesmith recorded nine points and a rebound in just nine minutes after returning from a 35-game absence due to injury.
Noteworthy
Myles Turner tied his career-high for 3-pointers in a single game with his eight makes on Thursday.
Aaron Nesmith saw his first game action since November 1st on Thursday as he returned from injury.
The Pacers lead the season series with the Pistons, 2-1, with one contest remaining. Both of Indiana’s wins have come at Little Caesars Arena.
Up Next
The Pacers travel back to Indianapolis to host the Philadelphia 76ers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday, Jan. 18 at 7:00 PM ET.
Broadcast Information (TV and Radio Listings >>)
TV: FanDuel Sports Network – Chris Denari (play-by-play), Quinn Buckner (analyst), Jeremiah Johnson (sideline reporter/host)
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan – Mark Boyle (play-by-play), Eddie Gill (analyst), Pat Boylan (sideline reporter/host)
INDIANA FEVER
PACERS SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT UNVEILS PLANS TO BUILD WORLD-CLASS, $78M INDIANA FEVER SPORTS PERFORMANCE CENTER
Pacers Sports & Entertainment today released plans to break ground this summer on a state-of-the-art, $78 million exclusive sports performance center for the Indiana Fever in the heart of downtown Indianapolis.
Construction of the three-story, 108,000-square-foot, world-class training complex is expected to begin in August 2025 and open before the 2027 WNBA season. The Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center will be part of the PS&E campus and connected by skybridge to the Virginia Avenue Parking Garage and Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
“We are excited to partner with Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett to identify the perfect location for the Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center,” PS&E Owner Herb Simon said. “The city of Indianapolis continues to be a tremendous partner as we elevate our team, players and community.”
While the project plans are being finalized, the center and amenities will be designed to address the specific needs of female athletes competing at the highest level, including performance and conditioning, recovery and rehabilitation, mental health and wellness, and lifestyle support.
Specifically, the facility will have best-in-class amenities including two regulation-sized courts with natural light, premier strength and conditioning equipment, yoga and Pilates area, hydration station and full-service kitchen. To help players recover and recharge, the facility will offer a spa-like retreat with massage, infrared light therapy, sauna, steam, heat studios, float tank and multiple hydrotherapy pools. The team will also have a private outdoor courtyard and mental performance spaces. The center will boast a hair and nail salon, childcare space, and podcast and content production studio to support player lifestyles.
“With the goal of Indianapolis becoming the epicenter of women’s sports, this world-class sports performance center will be the preeminent place for players to train, recover and push their boundaries,” PS&E CEO Mel Raines said. “It’s a game changer in terms of providing the ultimate player experience and we can’t wait for our team to reap the benefits of having an exclusive and unparalleled facility designed specifically for them.”
Raines said the center will offer exclusive fan experiences and a Fever team store with exciting and unique merchandise opportunities. The performance center will serve as a hub for the team to expand their community outreach and engagement efforts.
Currently, the team’s dedicated practice court and training area, which were renovated in 2020, are located within Gainbridge Fieldhouse and considered among the top facilities in the WNBA. Indiana Fever President of Basketball and Business Operations Kelly Krauskopf said having a stand-alone facility will elevate the team and fan experience.
“This elite training center is a reflection of our organization’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that our players have the highest level of resources to be successful,” Krauskopf said. “As we look to the future, the focus of creating a first-class player experience designed exclusively for women athletes will set us apart.”
An affiliate of PS&E will construct the facility on the west half of the former Marion County Jail site, located at the corner of Alabama and Maryland streets. The city of Indianapolis will make an intergovernmental land transfer to the Capitol Improvement Board of Marion County, which will enter into an operating agreement with the PS&E affiliate. The facility will be donated to the CIB at the conclusion of the term of the operating agreement. The Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Colts practice facilities are also located on land owned by the CIB.
“Last year, we experienced an unprecedented boom in interest and attention on women’s sports around the world, led in large part by our very own Indiana Fever,” Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said. “Indianapolis is proud to see this significant investment from Pacers Sports & Entertainment drive further momentum in women’s basketball in our community and continue to elevate our status as a major league sports city.”Construction will be led by Shiel Sexton and the architect of record is Populous, a global design firm known for being at the forefront of innovation and leading the charge in women’s professional sports.
“Our team at Populous is honored to collaborate with the Indiana Fever and Pacers Sports & Entertainment to develop a cutting-edge, best-in-class training facility for one of the premier teams in the WNBA,” said Adam Stover, senior principal at Populous. “Understanding and designing for the players, coaches and staff, this facility will help to lay the foundation for the future success of the team, attracting new talent to the organization and providing world-class amenities for the current roster.”
The Indiana Fever, led by coach Stephanie White, will tip-off their 2025 WNBA basketball season May 17 against the Chicago Sky. Fans should visit feverbasketball.com to learn about ticket options and secure their spots. Indianapolis will host AT&T WNBA All-Star 2025 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse for the first time on July 18 and July 19, and tickets are expected to go on sale this spring.
INDIANA FEVER
INDIANA FEVER SET TO OPEN UP NEW PRACTICE FACILITY BEFORE 2027 WNBA SEASON
The Indiana Fever have had a revival with the additions of Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston over the last two seasons.
Now the franchise, which made the playoffs last season for the first time since 2016, is building a new practice facility that’s set to open before the 2027 WNBA season, the Fever announced Thursday.
The $78 million performance center will be in downtown Indianapolis and connect to Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where the Fever play, via a skybridge.
“We are excited to partner with Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett to identify the perfect location for the Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center,” Pacers Sports and Entertainment owner Herb Simon said. “The city of Indianapolis continues to be a tremendous partner as we elevate our team, players and community.”
The Fever have had their own practice court and training area in Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where the Indiana Pacers also play. It was renovated in 2020.
The new facility will have best-in-class amenities, including two regulation-sized courts with natural light, premier strength and conditioning equipment, yoga and Pilates area, hydration station and full-service kitchen. To help players recover and recharge, the facility will offer a spa-like retreat with massage, infrared light therapy, sauna, steam, heat studios, float tank and multiple hydrotherapy pools.
“It’s exciting. I was just saying how it’s just a great opportunity,” Boston said. “You look at our owners and how much they pour into us, it’s super exciting to really have our own facility.”
The team will also have a private outdoor courtyard and mental performance spaces. The center will boast a hair and nail salon, childcare space, and podcast and content production studio to support player lifestyles.
Boston and Indiana teammate Lexie Hull said the Fever talked to the players early in the process to see what they wanted in a facility.
“It’s going to make it so as an athlete we can show up and every single thing we need is there,” Hull said. “It’s hard coming back on a long road trip and having to plan out, where can I get my hair done? Where can I go and get recovery? Where can I go and get a massage? It’s going to be right there for us and we’ll be the most recovered and be the most prepared for our games. I think that will help not only our team, but also attract some really good free agents.”
Las Vegas, Seattle and Phoenix have all opened new training facilities in the last few years while Chicago has one under construction.
“This elite training center is a reflection of our organization’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that our players have the highest level of resources to be successful,” Indiana Fever President of Basketball and Business Operations Kelly Krauskopf said. “As we look to the future, the focus of creating a first-class player experience designed exclusively for women athletes will set us apart.”
INDY IGNITE
IGNITE RISE TO OCCASION, SWEEP GRAND RAPIDS
FISHERS, Ind. (January 16, 2025) – The Indy Ignite showed their tenacious attitude again tonight, posting an impressive sweep of the Grand Rapids Rise, 25-18, 28-26 and 25-16.
In front of an excited Fishers Event Center crowd that included WNBA star Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever, the Ignite advanced to 2-0 on the 2025 Pro Volleyball Federation season.
For the second straight match, outside hitter Leketor Member-Meneh led the charge, this time with 17 kills. The reigning PVF Player of the Week also added two service aces to the cause. Indy’s attack was spread far and wide, with outside hitter Nina Cajic contributing 16 kills, two
aces and a block, opposite hitter Azhani Tealer chipping in 10 kills and a block, and setter Sydney Hilley providing 44 assists for the second straight match to go along with a perfect kill percentage (three kills in as many attempts).
“We’re kind of gritty, we’re ready to fight whenever it comes down to it, and we’re not going to be just walked on,” Tealer said.
After dropping the first set in their season-opening victory over Orlando on Saturday, the Ignite have now reeled off six straight set wins. Indy broke open the first set tonight by going on an 8-1 run that included two Member-Meneh kills and back-to-back service aces, two kills and a block from Cajic, and a service ace from middle hitter Blake Mohler.
“The last match, the first set was a little rough and I felt like we wanted to come out strong,” said middle blocker Caroline “CC” Crawford, who finished with two aces, two kills and a block. “I feel like we did that behind the service line and based on our defense and how gritty we were.”
Grand Rapids, which fell to 0-3, led most of the second set until the Ignite scored three straight points – two on Member-Meneh kills – to draw even at 22-22. The seesaw set battled back and forth from there until yet another Member-Meneh kill and a Tealer block sealed the 28-26 win.
“They were putting up a good fight, which they absolutely should, but we really trusted each other,” Member-Meneh said. “We are in these pressure moments all the time in practice, so we didn’t have to overdo anything; we just had to stick to what we knew and it ended up working
out.”
The Ignite took control of the final set with a seven-point run midway through sparked by a trio of Tealer kills.
“We’ve been working really hard and tonight it kind of felt more like a well-oiled machine than it has in all the practices leading up to this and last Saturday as well,” Tealer said. “We’re kind of trusting each other, learning how to play with each other and our big guns are showing out and
doing what they’re supposed to do.”
The Ignite take their 2-0 record into the first road match in the team’s PVF history, at Columbus on Saturday. The Fury are 0-2 after losing to Atlanta tonight. The match streams live on the PVF YouTube Channel at 7 p.m. ET, with a same-day, tape-delay telecast airing at 10:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
Clark’s Visit Ignites Indy Players
Clark enjoyed the match from her seat at the baseline adjacent to the Ignite bench. Following the match, she chatted with the Indy players and joined them for a group photo. The Ignite appreciated her support.
“It was pretty sick,” Tealer admitted. “She’s probably one of the most popular people in the world in the past year, so we’re glad she came. We’re thankful for that. She’s always welcome back.”
To which Member-Meneh added, “Women supporting women in women’s sports is very, very, very, very important.”
INDIANA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
IU CAN’T OVERCOME SLOW START IN LOSS TO ILLINOIS
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana couldn’t overcome a slow start as it fell to Illinois, 68-54, on Thursday night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
KEY MOMENTS
Despite a three-point jumper from junior guard Yarden Garzon to tip off scoring, the Fighting Illini went on a 13-0 run[RM1] to control the top of the first, taking a 25-14 lead.
Illinois (13-4, 3-3 B1G) continued to outscore the Hoosiers into the second frame as offense was hard to come by for either team. The Hoosiers (12-5, 4-2 B1G) couldn’t gain any ground, trailing by 13 at the break.
A fast break layup from Parrish helped Indiana find a rhythm offensively as it went 72.7% as a team in the third. It was the Hoosier veterans that would pave the way as the Hoosiers saw near perfect scoring in the last 6:46 of the third frame (9-for-10), as Parrish scored nine of her 13 total points and graduate guard Chloe Moore-McNeil followed with six of her 13.
Junior guard Lexus Bargesser finished through contact to make it a four-point deficit early in the fourth quarter. A six-point swing put Illinois back on top by ten with 6:13 left to play. The Hoosiers got within seven under the five-minute mark but would get no closer as it didn’t score within the final 2:08 left of play.
NOTABLE
Three players scored a team-high 13 points from Ciezki, Moore-McNeil and Parrish.
Parrish led from the glass with seven rebounds as Moore-McNeil pulled down five rebounds and added three assists.
The Hoosiers shot 45.7 percent on the night and a quarter best 72.7 in the third quarter.
Indiana has now lost to two-in-a-row in the series with the Illini.
UP NEXT
The Hoosiers hots No. 4/5 USC on Sunday afternoon. Tip time is set for 12 p.m. ET on NBC.
INDIANA WRESTLING
INDIANA WRESTLING TO FACE RIVAL PURDUE IN WEST LAFAYETTE
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. ––– The annual rivalry match with in-state foe Purdue is next up for the Hoosiers. The match will take place on Friday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. in Mackey Arena.
PURDUE PREVIEW:
-The Hoosiers have won the past two duals against the Boilers after Purdue had won 12 in a row in the series.
-Two out of the last three duals between the Indiana-based programs have been decided by one point.
-In 2022, Purdue edged Indiana, 17-16, in Bloomington. The next year, Indiana defeated Purdue by the same score in West Lafayette.
-Last year, Indiana took seven of the ten bouts to win in dominant fashion, 22-9.
-The match Friday should be a close battle as Indiana is ranked No. 25 in the NWCA Coaches Poll and Purdue is ranked No. 25 in InterMat’s Dual Rankings.
-The Boilers are 8-1 with their only loss being to Army on tiebreaker criteria.They opened the conference slate with a 31-13 dual victory at home over Northwestern last weekend.
-Purdue has seven wrestlers ranked across InterMat and FloWrestling’s polls. The Boilers are led by No. 1 Matt Ramos (125) and No. 7 Joey Blaze (157).
-No. 27 Greyson Clark (141), No. 33 Stoney Buell (165), No. 25 Brody Baumann (174), No. 21 James Rowley (184) and No. 29 Ben Vanadia (197) are all also ranked.
RUTGERS RECAP:
-Indiana dropped a tough dual to No. 16 Rutgers last Friday in Wilkinson Hall. The Scarlet Knights bested the Hoosiers, 28-6.
-Tyler Lillard (165) and Henry Porter (141) each picked up a win. No. 16 Lillard defeated No. 26 Anthony White in a 7-2 decision while Porter won over Max Hermes in an 11-4 decision.
-Outside of the matches at 149 and 174 lbs., each of Indiana’s lost bouts were decided by four points or less with some being particularly close.
-In a rematch from Midlands, No. 23 Jacob Bullock (285) lost in the tiebreakers to No. 8 Yaraslou Slavikouksi in tiebreakers, 2-2.
-No. 28 Angelo Rini (133) lost on a last second escape in a 6-5 decision to No. 17 Dylan Shawver and No. 32 DJ Washington (184) narrowly dropped a 3-2 decision on a late takedown to No. 27 Shane Cartagena-Walsh.
-Indiana’s record is now 4-2 overall and 0-2 in the Big Ten.
ON THE RISE:
-Indiana has seen a gradual progression in the national rankings throughout the season as the team has picked up some key wins.
-After beginning the season unranked, Indiana broke into the top-30 nationally on InterMat’s Dual Rankings and most recently got slated at No. 25 in the NWCA’s Coaches Poll.
-This is the third consecutive season that Indiana has been ranked in the top 25. In 2022-23 and 2023-24 the team got to be as high as No. 16 among different polls.
-The Hoosiers currently have six ranked wrestlers and have had as many as eight at once this season.
-Indiana started the season 4-0 in duals until dropping the last two. The 4-0 record marks the third consecutive year where the team got off to a 3-0 or better start.
INDIANA MEN’S BASKETBALL
INDIANA BASKETBALL GAME NOTES – GAME 19 AT OHIO STATE
Opening Tip
• Indiana University continues Big Ten Conference play in its 125th season of competition in men’s basketball at Ohio State at 8 p.m. ET on Friday, Jan. 17, at Value City Arena in Columbus. The game will carry a national broadcast on FOX with Gus Johnson (pxp) and Jim Jackson (analyst) on the call.
• The Buckeyes enter the game with a record of 10-7 (2-4 Big Ten) under second-year head coach John Diebler. Ohio State is led by 17.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game from junior guard Bruce Thornton. Sophomore forward Devin Royal adds 13.8 points and a team-best 7.4 rebounds per contest. Freshman guard John Mobley Jr. has averaged 11.9 points per night and made a team-high 37 3-pointers on 43.0% from behind the arc.
Game Information
Friday, Jan. 17, 2025 • 8 p.m. ET
Value City Arena (19,049) • Columbus, Ohio
TV: FOX (Gus Johnson, Jim Jackson)
Radio: IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Errek Suhr, John Herrick)
Series History: Indiana leads, 112-88
Last Meeting: IU 76, OSU 73 on Feb. 6, 2024, in Columbus
Series History
• The Hoosiers have squared off with the Buckeyes 200 times on the hardwood. Indiana has emerged victorious in 112 matchups, including a two-game sweep in 2024. In total, IU has won four of the last five games against OSU.
• The last time the sides met in Columbus, Indiana erased an 18-point lead to win 76-73 on Feb. 6, 2024, the largest comeback since Nov. 14, 1998, against Indiana State (19 points). Anthony Leal hit a corner 3-pointer with 22 seconds left to give IU the 74-73 lead. He later iced the game with a pair of free throws. Malik Reneau dominated with a 26-point, 14-rebound double-double and Trey Galloway charted 25 points and four assists.
Last Time Out
• The Hoosiers fell to No. 19/20 Illinois by a final tally of 94-69 on Tuesday, Jan. 14, at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The setback marked the second straight after winning three Big Ten games in a row to open the calendar year.
• Sixth-year senior center Oumar Ballo compiled his fourth double-double in five games with 16 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Since junior forward Malik Reneau’s injury (5 games), Ballo has averaged 18.2 points and 12.2 rebounds on 37-of-57 (64.9%) shooting from the floor.
• Senior forward Luke Goode (13 points), redshirt sophomore guard Myles Rice (12), and fifth-year senior guard Trey Galloway (10) all scored in double figures.
Going the Extra Myles
• Over his last eight games, redshirt sophomore guard Myles Rice has averaged 14.4 points and shot 89.7% (35-of-39) from the free throw line. He has added 3.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.6 steals per contest during the eight-game stretch.
• The Washington State transfer was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma on Sept. 12, 2022. After undergoing chemotherapy for five hours a session twice a month for six months, Rice learned his cancer was in remission on June 1, 2023.
Luke in the Starting Lineup
• Senior forward Luke Goode was inserted into the starting lineup against Winthrop on Dec. 29. He has averaged 10.2 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. He has knocked down 13-of-32 (40.6%) from behind the arc in his new role.
• Goode has posted at least eight points in five of his six appearances in the starting lineup. He has made at least one 3-point field goal as a starter.
• The Fort Wayne native has made 114 3-pointers in 94 career collegiate games.
Following the Gallo-Way
• Fifth-year senior guard Trey Galloway posted nine assists in 17 minutes off the bench in Indiana’s 80-61 season-opening win over SIUE in Bloomington.
• In the last 25 seasons of major conference basketball, Gallo is the 10th player to have at least nine assists in 17 minutes or less. He is the first player to achieve the feat since Vanderbilt guard Carter Josephs on Feb. 22, 2014.
• The Culver Academies alum has handed out at least five helpers in 29 career games, including eight contests this season.
• Galloway has made 19-of-51 shots (37.3%) from behind the 3-point line this season. He has made at least three triples in four games this season.
Winning Streak Ends in Iowa City
• The Hoosiers could not overcome slow starts to both halves in an 85-60 setback at Iowa on Saturday, Jan. 11. The loss snapped a five-game winning.
• Sixth-year senior center Oumar Ballo collected his third double-double in four games with 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Redshirt sophomore guard Myles Rice added a team-high 12 points to go along with five assists.
PURDUE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
PURDUE WRAPS WEST COAST TRIP AT WASHINGTON
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue women’s basketball team will wrap up its West Coast swing on Saturday with 5 p.m. ET tip at Washington. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network with A.J. Kanell and Elise Woodward on the call.
Tim Newton will be courtside at Alaska Airlines Arena calling the game on the Purdue Global Radio Network on 95.3 BOB FM and Purdue Stretch Internet.
GAMEINFORMATION
Purdue (7-10, 0-6) at Washington (12-6, 3-3)
Saturday, Jan. 18
Time: 5 PM ET
TV/Stream: BTN
Radio: 95.3 BOB FM
Audio: Purdue Stretch Internet
Live Stats: Purduestats.com
LAST TIME OUT
The Boilermakers could not overcome first half turnovers in a 69-53 loss to Oregon on Wednesday night. Rashunda Jones paced the Boilermakers with 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting. McKenna Layden finished with nine points and nine rebounds in her first career start at Purdue.
NOTES
• Purdue leads the all-time series 3-1. It will be the first meeting since the 2007-08 season.
• Head coach Katie Gearlds dropped 31 points on 11-of-18 shooting and 5-of-8 3-pointers in Purdue’s win at Mackey Arena on Nov. 17, 2006.
• The Boilermakers have the hardest NET strength of schedule in the nation.
• Destini Lombard and USC’s JuJu Watkins are the only players from the Big Ten averaging over 11 PPG, 3 RPG, 2 APG, 2 SPG and shooting 45% or better.
• McKenna Layden and Destini Lombard are tied for 11th in the Big Ten with 1.8 made 3-pointers per league contest.
• Purdue head coach Katie Gearlds returns to Seattle for the first time her three seasons as a member of the Seattle Storm. Gearlds was Purdue’s highest draft pick in program history, going seventh overall to the Storm in the 2007 WNBA Draft.
• The Boilermakers continue to own the hardest schedule in America and will face their first team outside the top 50 of the NET since Dec. 21 against Indiana State.
• On Wednesday at Oregon, Purdue faced its first unranked opponent of the Big Ten season, snapping the longest stretch of games against ranked league teams in conference history.
• McKenna Layden had a career day in her first career start with nine points on three 3-pointers with nine rebounds in 37 minutes of work at Oregon. Her older sister Madison made 93 starts over four years for the Boilermakers.
• Layden has stepped up over the last three games, averaging 7.7 points and a team-high 6.0 rebounds per game. She is one of six players from the Big Ten to connect on seven 3-pointers since Jan. 7.
• Reagan Bass ranks 12th in the Big Ten in blocks and blocks per game with 18 and 1.1, respectively.
• Rashunda Jones is the lone Boilermaker to average double figures since the start of the new year. Jones is averaging 10.8 points at a 56.5% shooting clip with a team-high 16 assists in her last four outings.
• For the season, Jones is third on the team in scoring with 8.1 points and has a team-high 54 assists.
• Destini Lombard enters the weekend third in conference in steals with 40 and fourth with 2.4 steals per game. She has posted two or more steals in a game 12 times this season, tied for the league lead with USC’s JuJu Watkins and Jaddan Simmons from Michigan State.
• After leading the Big Ten in scoring by a freshman class last season, Purdue’s sophomores are averaging a combined 17.1 points per game, including a season-high 33 points against Oregon on Wednesday night.
• Purdue has a 34.8% clip from distance The Boilermakers are one of five teams from the Big Ten shooting 33% or better from behind the arc since the return of the holiday break on Dec. 28. McKenna Layden has hit a team-high nine triples during that span.
• Lana McCarthy is one of 17 players from the Big Ten, and the only freshman, to average better than 7.0 points (7.3) and 5.0 rebounds (5.3) per game, while shooting 50% or better (51.3%).
PURDUE MEN’S BASKETBALL
#17 PURDUE CONTINUES WINNING STREAK AT WASHINGTON
[17] Purdue 69, Washington 58 (Postgame Notes)
No. 17-ranked Purdue improved to 14-4 overall and 6-1 in the Big Ten Conference with a 69-58 win over Washington in Seattle.
The win was Purdue’s sixth in a row overall and sixth in a row in Big Ten play. The Boilermakers have won at least six straight games in Big Ten play in four straight years.
Purdue is 6-1 in the Big Ten for the fifth time under Matt Painter (2025, 2023, 2018, 2011, 2008).
All six of Purdue’s wins during its current streak have come by double-digits, as well as five straight wins by double-digits in Big Ten play. The last time Purdue won five straight Big Ten games by 10 or more points came from Feb. 21 to March 5, 1988.
Purdue is now 21-2 in the month of January since the 2022-23 season, winning 11 straight games in the month.
Purdue has won 30 straight games when holding opponents to 59 or fewer points.
Over the last five games, opponent’s starting lineup is averaging just 37.2 points per game after the Huskies’ starting five scored just 43 points.
Purdue outscored Washington, 47-28, in the second half, shooting 15-of-25 from the field and 14-of-16 from the free throw line. Purdue trailed by 10 in the first half (30-20). After having seven turnovers in the first half, Purdue had just four turnovers in the second half.
Purdue made just three 3-pointers in the win over Washington. However, Purdue is 6-3 since the start of the 2022-23 season when making three or fewer 3-pointers.
In the last 20 years, just one Purdue player has had at least 15 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals in the same game – Braden Smith, who has done it twice this season (Yale, Washington). It has only happened 11 times in the last 20 years in Big Ten play.
Caleb Furst scored a career-high 15 points with six rebounds and four steals.
When Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer combine for 25 points during their careers, the Boilermakers are 31-2. The duo combined for 29 points in the win over Washington.
When the trio of Smith, Kaufman-Renn and Loyer combine to score at least 41 points, the Boilermakers are 13-0. The trio combined to score 48 points in the win,
SEATTLE — Trey Kaufman-Renn scored 19 points to help No. 17 Purdue dig itself out of a hole and come away with a 69-58 win over Washington on Wednesday night.
The Boilermakers (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) trailed by 10 late in the first half and were down by eight at the break, but opened the second period with an 11-2 surge to storm back in front.
Kaufman-Renn, who entered averaging 17.5 points per game, had a lot to do with the turnaround, scoring 13 points in the final 20 minutes.
Braden Smith added 17 points, six rebounds, five assists and five steals for Purdue. Caleb Furst had a career-high 15 points and Fletcher Loyer chipped in with 12.
The Boilermakers outscored the Huskies (10-8, 1-6) by 19 in the second half, and dominated them 40-22 in the paint.
Great Osobor led Washington with 28 points, finishing 8 of 9 from the field and a career-best 5 for 5 from beyond the arc. He also pulled down nine boards.
Takeaways
Purdue: The Boilermakers stretched their winning streak to six, and have won those games by an average of 20.3 points.
Washington: The Huskies, who have lost three straight, set a season worst with 17 turnovers.
Key moment
Purdue pulled away for good with a 13-0 run in just over three minutes, turning a 36-35 deficit into a 48-36 advantage with 10:11 remaining.
Key stat
Purdue went 2 of 6 from the free-throw line in the first half, but 14 for 16 after the break.
Up next
Purdue wraps up its trip to the Pacific Northwest at No. 13 Oregon on Saturday. Washington visits the Ducks on Tuesday.
NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
CITRON, WESTBELD POWER NO. 3 IRISH PAST NO. 17 YELLOW JACKETS, 81-66
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — For the fifth time this season, No. 3 Notre Dame toppled a ranked foe by double digits.
On Thursday, the Irish (15-2, 6-0) hosted 17th-ranked Georgia Tech (15-3, 3-3) and earned an 81-66 victory. Sonia Citron and Maddy Westbeld led the way with 21 and 20 points, respectively, and Cassandre Prosper added 15 to keep Notre Dame undefeated at home this season. With her points, Westbeld became the seventh Notre Dame player this year with a 20-point game.
“This group, really resilient, came out and completed this game,” Karen and Kevin Keyes Family Head Coach Niele Ivey said after the win. “I thought Soni played one of her best games, getting downhill, playing with force and pace, and Maddy continues to get more comfortable game after game.
“They did a great job of leading us.”
Notre Dame started the game on a 9-0 run, and Georgia Tech was 0-7 from the field before hitting a triple. Westbeld had a trey of her own off a dish from Liza Karlen and had 7 points at the end of the first period after making her first start of the season and 121st of her career. The Irish had a 20-16 lead after 10 minutes.
“It was incredible,” Westbeld said postgame. “I think it’s just a blessing to get out on the court again and play with my teammates, and to start the game was really special to me.”
The Yellow Jackets closed the gap to five at 2:07 left in the half, the closest they had been to catching the Irish since the start of the second period. While the Irish turned the ball over three times to end the half, Georgia Tech went 4-4 from the field, including a score with 10 seconds to go to make it 39-36 in favor of Notre Dame heading into halftime.
After an 11-point first quarter, Georgia Tech’s Tonie Morgan picked up her second foul with 5:14 to go in the half. She did not return before the break.
The third quarter was a back and forth affair — neither team scored more than a pair of baskets without a counter — but Citron started to take control. She was 4-6 in Q3 with 2 assists and 2 steals. Prosper and Westbeld also continued their fantastic nights with a triple each. Notre Dame had a 11-point lead with 10 to play.
A couple of Citron free throws and a Westbeld jumper gave Notre Dame a 65-50 lead with 8:39 to go, leading to a Yellow Jackets timeout. The Irish stretched the lead as large as 19 before surrendering an 8-0 run to Georgia Tech.
Notre Dame responded with jumpers from Olivia Miles and Liatu King, while the Yellow Jackets matched with two more buckets of their own, which would be their final baskets of the game as the Irish held them scoreless in the final 2:24 of play.
King and Miles closed it out with a jumper and layup to extend the Irish lead and secure the 15-point victory. Notre Dame out-rebounded Georgia Tech 50-25, and King had 12 of those boards.
The Irish continue the homestand with SMU on Sunday. The game will air on the ACC Network at 6 p.m.
BUTLER WOMEN’S TENNIS
BUTLER TRAVELS TO NORTHWESTERN AND PURDUE TO OPEN THE SPRING SEASON
This Saturday the Butler Women’s tennis team will travel to Evanston to take on the Northwestern Wildcats. The match will begin at 5 p.m. ET/ 4p.m. CT.
On Sunday the Dawgs will travel to Purdue to take on the Boilermakers. The match will start at 2 p.m. ET.
Head coach Cassie Shultz is in her first season as the coach of the Bulldogs. At various times since 2018 she served as an assistant coach for the Dawgs. Shultz will look to build off a solid first fall season with the Dawgs.
Key players Chase Metcalf, Katie Beavin, Emma Beavin, and Jordan Schildcrout will look to continue their momentum from the fall into the spring season.
The first home match for the Dawgs will be February 7th against Arkansas State. The Bulldogs will play their matches this season at the Indianapolis Racquet Club.
BUTLER MEN’S TENNIS
BULLDOGS SET TO HOST CLEVELAND STATE IN SPRING SEASON OPENER
This Sunday January 19th the Bulldogs Men’s Tennis team is back in action hosting the Cleveland State Vikings. The match will start at 12 p.m. ET. This season Butler will play home games at the Indianapolis Racquet Club.
Head coach Sam Miles is continuing to lead the Dawgs into the spring season. This is coach Milies’s six season coaching the Dawgs. Last year he led the Dawgs to the BIG EAST Tournament semifinals.
Key returning players from last season Patrick Joss, Nicolas Arts, Rahulniket Konakanchi, and Aidan William will look to continue their momentum from the fall into the spring season.
BUTLER WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
SATURDAY MATINEE SENDS BUTLER TO XAVIER
The Butler women’s basketball team will be in the Queen City this weekend to play the Xavier Musketeers. Winners of two-straight, the Bulldogs will face their rival at the Cintas Center for a 2 p.m. tip. Fans can stream the action on FloSports.com.
Game Day
Date: Saturday, January 18, 2025
Time: 2:00 PM ET
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio – Cintas Center
Live Stats: GoXavier.com
Watch: FloSports.com – BEDN
Bulldog Bits
– Butler used an 8-0 second quarter scoring run against Georgetown to help take control of the game.
– BU limited Georgetown to just 11 points in the second and fourth quarters on Tuesday night.
– Butler led Georgetown by six at halftime and are now 9-1 on the year when they lead after 20 minutes.
– BU opened the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run vs. GU.
– Kilyn McGuff led Butler to victory with a team-high 18 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
– McGuff tied career-high totals in made 3-pointers (4), assists (4) and blocks (2) in her last game.
– McGuff leads the BIG EAST and ranks 27th in the nation in double-doubles (7).
– McGuff leads the team and ranks fourth in the conference in rebounds per game (7.9).
– BU is third in the league in rebound margin (+3.7).
– Butler crushed Georgetown in rebounding 35-20.
– Sydney Jaynes scored six-straight points for BU in her last game, helping her end the game with 11.
– Jaynes is averaging 10.2 points per game since becoming a starter (12/29).
– Lily Zeinstra and Cristen Carter were each 3-for-3 from the field against the Hoyas.
– BU ranks third in the league in field goal percentage (43.1) and fourth in scoring offense (66.3).
– Butler made eight 3-pointers vs. GU, posting their highest total against a BIG EAST team this year.
– Karsyn Norman made multiple 3-pointers in a game for the third time this season vs. Georgetown.
– Butler leads the BIG EAST in bench points per game (24.3).
– Lily Carmody tied career-high totals with seven rebounds and two blocks vs. the Hoyas.
– Jocelyn Land logged 12 minutes of playing time vs. GU, her most against any BIG EAST foe this year.
BIG EAST Standings
UConn 7-0, 16-2
Creighton 6-0, 14-3
Seton Hall 5-1, 13-4
DePaul 4-2, 9-10
Marquette 3-3, 11-6
Villanova 3-3, 9-9
Butler 2-4, 12-7
Providence 2-5, 9-11
St. John’s 1-5, 11-6
Georgetown 1-5, 8-9
Xavier 0-6, 5-12
Scouting Xavier
The Musketeers are still searching for their first conference win of the season after taking a 51-45 loss at Providence on Wednesday. Xavier outscored PC 20-10 in the second quarter to earn a halftime lead, but the Friars won the second half 27-19. Aizhanique Mayo and Loren Christie combined to score 25 points for Xavier. Two other Musketeers to keep an eye on are Meri Kanerva and Tae’lor Purvis. Kanerva averages a team-best 10.2 points per game. Purvis joins her as the only other player to start in every game this year.
All-Time Series
Butler leads the all-time series against Xavier 33-21. The Bulldogs swept the Musketeers last year with a 90-57 win in Cincinnati followed by an 84-46 victory at Hinkle Fieldhouse. BU also swept Xavier in 2022-23.
Last Game vs. The Musketeers
Butler beat Xavier 84-46 on FS2 last year. The Bulldogs never trailed in the contest to collect their fourth-straight win. BU knocked down 15 3-pointers in the win, shooting 46 percent from behind the arc. A seven-point halftime lead expanded to double figures once BU outscored Xavier 26-7 in the third quarter. They kept their foot on the gas in the fourth to outscore Xavier 27-15. Five different Bulldogs hit at least two 3-pointers in the win. Caroline Strande led the team with 17 points and Riley Makalusky added 13. Ari Wiggins went 3-for-3 from 3-point range and dished out a team-high six assists.
Focused On Free Throws
The Bulldogs have made 42 of their last 49 free throw attempts, shooting 85.7 percent over their last four games. BU went 7-for-9 from the line in their last game against Georgetown setting season-low marks for both makes and attempts this year. The team still leads the league in free throw attempts per game (18.7) and free throws made per game (13.0).
A First for Butler Women’s Basketball
The Butler women’s basketball game against UConn set for Saturday, Feb. 22 is officially sold out! The final home game of the regular season will set a new program single-game attendance record with more than 9,000 fans expected to be at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Winner-Winner
The Bulldogs have won back-to-back games for the first time since early December when they defeated UT Martin (Dec. 5) and Ohio (Dec. 8). A win at Xavier would give them three-in-a-row, and would mark the third time this season BU has defeated three-straight opponents. It would also be their longest winning streak since last February when Butler won vs. St. John’s, at Providence, at Villanova and vs. Xavier (Feb. 9-21).
McGuff Minutes
Kilyn McGuff is closing in on 3,000 career minutes in her collegiate career. She heads into the weekend with 2,980 after playing 39 minutes against Georgetown. Those 39 minutes were her highest total of any game that didn’t include overtime. McGuff has logged 618 minutes of playing time this year, nearly 200 more minutes than the next highest Bulldog!
Milestone Markers
Karsyn Norman is six rebounds shy of 100 in her career and fellow point guard Ari Wiggins is five field goals away from 100 in her career. Wiggins has made 20 3-pointers during her time at Butler after not making one in 37 games at Michigan. Her next defensive rebound will also push her career total to 100.
‘Dawgs Playing D
The Bulldogs are now 8-1 when they keep their opponent under 60 points. They limited Indiana to 46 points, Santa Clara to 50, Providence to 47, and recently kept Georgetown to just 53. Butler’s 10-point win over the Hoyas made the team 7-1 in games decided by 6-10 points.
What’s Missing?
Caroline Strande and Jordan Meulemans are both out for the rest of the season. Meulemans was sidelined just days before Butler’s first game and Strande suffered a season-ending injury on Dec. 29 vs. Seton Hall. Strande was a Second Team All-BIG EAST selection last year and became the first Bulldog in program history to lead the team in points, rebounds and assists during the same season. Meulemans made 61 3-pointers last year, shooting 42 percent from behind the arc.
18 3-Pointers
The Bulldogs set a single-game program record against Saint Francis by hitting 18 3-pointers. Eight different players made at least one 3-pointer and no Bulldog made more than four. As a team, BU shot 56.3 percent from behind the arc, making 18 of their 32 attempts. The old record of 16 was reached two times previously. BU hit 16 3-pointers at Georgetown on Jan. 11, 2014 and the 2023-24 team matched that effort with 16 against St. Thomas in game two of the Tiger Turkey Tip-Off.
10 Wins
The Bulldogs reached 10 non-conference wins before the start of BIG EAST play for just the second time since joining conference. Butler went 6-2 in November and highlighted that stretch of action with a 56-46 home win over Indiana. The victory came in front of a record-setting crowd of 4,135 fans.
Up Next
Butler’s BIG EAST Road Trip game is upcoming with the Bulldogs hosting the Creighton Bluejays on Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. The BIG EAST Road Trip will feature two hours of pre-game entertainment and activities, including free throw challenges, spirit squad and mascot appearances, and photo opportunities with the BIG EAST championship trophy. All activities will be open to students, alumni, and fans, providing an inclusive and exciting gameday atmosphere.
BALL STATE MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
MVB FALLS TO BYU IN FIRST OF TWO MATCHES
MUNCIE, Ind. — The Cardinals fell in a five-set match against the Cougars Thursday night in Worthen Arena.
After a strong first two sets for the No. 6 Ball State team, No. 5 BYU battled back to take a reverse sweep from the Cardinals and win the match 3-2. The Cougars offense overpowered, hitting a .319 from the floor compared to the Cardinals .175 percentage.
Rajé Alleyne and Patrick Rogers each recorded 12 kills on the night, followed by Tinaishe Ndavazocheva and Braydon Savitskski-Lynde who both had eight. Savitski-Lynde also hit an impressive .500 clip and added five blocks at the net. He was joined by Lucas Machado who also recorded five blocks, as well as three aces.
The first match started close with both teams going point-for-point. After a Cougar kill evened the set 10-10, however, BYU began to build a lead. They went on a five-point run before Alleyne intervened with a kill. The Cardinals responded with their own five-point run with the help of back-to-back aces from Alleyne to tie the set at 16-16. In a come-back run, Ball State won the first set 25-23 on a kill from Ndavazocheva. The Cardinals finished the first match with a strong .333 hitting percentage.
Set two started similarly, with the Cougars maintaining a slight lead through the first few points. Ball State took their first lead of the match with a kill from Machado that put them up 15-14. The score remained close, but the Cardinals were able to secure the second set 27-25 on a Cougar error.
Down 2-0, BYU reset to flip the momentum of the game. They pulled ahead 18-12 in the third set and the Cardinals were never quite able to respond. The Cougars took their first set 25-15 and carried that energy into the fourth with a 25-19 finish. Ball State fought hard in the fifth set, but ultimately fell 15-12, giving BYU the win.
The Cardinals will return Friday (Jan. 17) night for another opportunity against the Cougars. The match will start at 7 p.m. in Worthen Arena.
INDIANA STATE TRACK
SYCAMORES, REDBIRDS RENEW RIVALRY FOR COUGHLAN-MALLOY CUP
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Longtime Missouri Valley Conference rivals Indiana State and Illinois State square off Friday for the 20th Annual Coughlan-Malloy Cup inside Horton Field House in Normal, Illinois.
Friday’s proceedings kick off with field events at 11 a.m., with the first events on the track starting at 12:40 p.m.
Last Time Out
Indiana State’s 2024-25 indoor track and field season got off to a strong start, with 10 different Sycamores putting up top-25 national marks at the Blue Demon Holiday Invite.
Included in the Sycamores’ season opener was a school record, as Tahj Johnson broke Indiana State’s program record in the 300m with a time of 33.85. The Trees set a trio of top-10 national marks Friday, with Casey Hood Jr. (60m, 6.67), Rachel Mehringer (60m hurdles, 8.34) and Noah Bolt (weight throw, 20.32m/66-8) all putting themselves among the nation’s best in the early stages of the season.
Indiana State racked up eight first-place finishes as a team, with the Sycamores recording 23 top-three finishes over the course of the day. The Sycamores’ depth was on full display, especially in the field events with multiple top-three finishes in nearly every field event contested.
About The Meet
Longtime Missouri Valley Conference rivals Indiana State and Illinois State meet Friday afternoon for the 19th Annual Coughlan/Malloy Cup. The dual meet event, which is named after longtime coaches John Coughlan (Illinois State) and Bill Malloy (Indiana State), has taken place every year since 2005, with the exception of the 2020-21 season.
The Sycamores won the Coughlan-Malloy Cup last season by a 178-118 margin, marking the first time since 2017 that the cup resided in Terre Haute. The 60-point margin was also the largest in the dual meet since 2015.
Weekly Winners
Indiana State sophomores Casey Hood Jr. and Rachel Mehringer earned their first conference honors of the season following the Blue Demon Holiday Invite, as the Sycamore duo swept the MVC’s weekly track awards. Hood Jr. was named the MVC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week, while Mehringer was tabbed the MVC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week.
Hood Jr. set a Blue Demon Holiday Invite record in his season debut, clocking a time of 6.67 in the 60m prelims to advance as the fastest time in the field. He followed that with a time of 6.71 in the finals to place second overall. Hood Jr. was two-hundredths of a second off his career-best time, which was set at the 2024 MVC Indoor Championships. He owns the two fastest 60m times in the MVC this season, and he also ranks second in the Great Lakes Region and sixth nationally in the event.
Mehringer started her 2024-25 season in style, posting 60m hurdles times of 8.36 in the prelims and 8.34 in the finals to place second in the event. Her time was just one-hundredth off her career-best time, which was set at the 2024 MVC Indoor Championships. Mehringer also ran the 200m for the first time in her indoor career, finishing with a time of 26.10. Her 60m hurdles time ranks first in the MVC, third in the Great Lakes Region and 10th nationally.
Trees At The Top
Indiana State enters Friday’s meet with the top athlete in the MVC in six different events. Not included in those six are either of the Sycamores’ returning All-Americans from last season, showcasing Indiana State’s depth throughout its roster.
The six Sycamores who currently hold top marks in the MVC are:
Casey Hood Jr. – 60m (6.67)
Rachel Mehringer – 60m hurdles (8.34)
Brooklyn Pfaff – pole vault (4.00m/13-1.5)
Janiya Bowman – long jump (5.79m/19-0)
Noah Bolt – weight throw (20.32m/66-8)
Niesha Anderson – weight throw (19.75m/64-9.75)
Top-Tier Trees
Indiana State currently features 10 athletes who rank in the top 50 in the NCAA in an event, with the wealth spread out across every event group which competed in the season opener. The Sycamores’ 10 top-50 national marks currently rank second in the MVC.
Indiana State’s nationally-ranked athletes through the opening meet of the season are:
Casey Hood Jr. – 60m (10th, 6.67)
Rachel Mehringer – 60m hurdles (17th, 8.34)
Noah Bolt – weight throw (20th, 20.32m/66-8)
Niesha Anderson – weight throw (20th, 19.75m/64-9.75)
Sloan Cox – shot put (31st, 17.92m/58-9.5)
Kevin Krutsch – high jump (32nd, 2.06m/6-9)
Will Staggs – pole vault (33rd, 5.15m/16-10.75)
Brookyln Pfaff – pole vault (34th, 4.00m/13-1.5)
Wyatt Puff – shot put (34th, 17.85m/58-6.75)
Jaden Smith – triple jump (45th, 14.88m/48-10)
Up Next
Indiana State makes the short trip east for the Crossroads of America Invitational January 24-25 at the Fall Creek Pavilion in Indianapolis.
INDIANA STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
SHOOTING STRUGGLES LOOM LARGE IN SYCAMORES’ SETBACK TO SALUKIS
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Keslyn Secrist notched her first career double-double with 20 points and a career-high 11 rebounds Thursday night, but a poor shooting performance proved costly for Indiana State in a 63-58 loss to Southern Illinois inside Hulman Center.
Secrist was the lone Sycamore in double-figures, with Bella Finnegan and Savannah White adding nine and eight, respectively. Deja Jones finished with seven points and a career-high 10 rebounds.
After a low-scoring opening quarter, Indiana State’s offense came alive in the second. Secrist led the charge with 10 points in the period, including a pair of threes, as the Trees built a double-digit lead and ended up taking a 36-29 at the half. Southern Illinois came out strong to start the third and took the lead midway through, but a Finnegan trey and a Jones basket just before the horn had the Sycamores up four heading to the fourth. Secrist kept the Sycamores ahead early in the fourth with five points, including a 3-pointer, but SIU hit three treys and took the lead for good with just over two minutes remaining.
First Half
Secrist and Mia Simpson opened the Sycamores’ scoring with midrange baskets, but Southern Illinois used a strong paint presence to build an early five-point lead. Simpson and Queen Ruffin hit layups late in the period, as Indiana State closed strong to cut SIU’s lead to 12-11 after the opening quarter.
Early baskets from Ruffin and White leveled the score at 15-all less than two minutes into the second, with White and Secrist quickly tacking on layups to put the Sycamores in front. Secrist connected on a pair of threes to increase the lead to 27-18, and later added a layup to extend Indiana State’s advantage to double-digits. Finnegan hit a three of her own with just over a minute remaining in the half, as the Sycamores took a 36-29 lead into the intermission.
Second Half
Southern Illinois started the third quarter with a 6-0 run before Secrist knocked down a three-ball to put the Trees ahead 39-35. White added a layup midway through, but the visitors continued their strong start to the quarter and took a 43-41 lead just past the midway point of the quarter. Finnegan connected on a trey to level the score at 45-apiece, and Jones scored four points in the last two minutes of the frame, as the Sycamores took a 49-45 lead to the fourth.
Southern Illinois reclaimed the lead with a pair of early threes in the fourth quarter, but Secrist hit a trey of her own to put Indiana State back in front 53-51. Secrist added a floater midway through to keep the Sycamores ahead, but Southern Illinois countered with a 9-1 run late in the game with a 3-pointer putting the Salukis ahead for good with just over two minutes to play. Indiana State couldn’t get off a good look from behind the arc in the late stages, as the Salukis eked out a 63-58 win over the Sycamores.
News and Notes
Keslyn Secrist’s 11 rebounds were a career-high and marked her first career game with double-digit rebounds.
Indiana State took care of the ball in Thursday’s game, with the Sycamores committing a season-low 10 turnovers.
Indiana State pulled down a season-high 22 offensive rebounds in Thursday’s game.
Indiana State limited Southern Illinois to 4-for-19 from behind the arc, but three of the Salukis’ four 3-pointers came in the fourth quarter as part of their comeback.
PURDUE FT. WAYNE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
‘DONS TAKE 8-0 LEAGUE MARK INTO HOME GAME WITH NORTHERN KENTUCKY
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Purdue Fort Wayne women’s basketball team will play host to the Northern Kentucky Norse on Saturday (Jan. 18) for a Horizon League contest at 2 p.m.
There will be a ball presentation to Sydney Freeman before the contest and a team-wide autograph session after.
Game Day Information
Who: Northern Kentucky Norse
When: Saturday, January 18 | 2 PM
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Gates Sports Center
Live Stats: Link
Watch: Link
Tickets:Link (Tickets start at $6)
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Northern Kentucky | Horizon League
Know Your Foe
Northern Kentucky is 6-13 and 3-5 in the Horizon League. Prior to a loss at Youngstown State, NKU had won its last three against Milwaukee, Robert Morris and IU Indy. The Norse are led by Halle Idowu and Macey Blevins, who both average just above 12 points per game. Kamora Morgan has won two Freshman of the Week awards this season, and is averaging 9.5 points per game.
The Series
One of the longest rivalries in Mastodon history, Northern Kentucky leads the series 34-11. The rivalry dates back to 1984, meeting every year until 2000. The series reignited in 2014 and has remained stable since 2020. The Mastodons have won the last three by an average of eight.
Streaky!
Purdue Fort Wayne has the eighth-longest active win streak in the country at 10 victories. All of the teams with longer streaks, other than Grand Canyon, are ranked in the AP Top 25. Grand Canyon is ranked No. 7 in the Mid-Major Top 25.
1. No. 5 LSU – 19
2. No. 1 UCLA – 16
2. No. 9 Ohio State – 16
4. Grand Canyon – 13
5. No. 4 Southern Cal – 12
5. No. 11 Kansas State – 12
7. No. 2 South Carolina – 11
8. Purdue Fort Wayne – 10
In The Polls…
Purdue Fort Wayne was ranked No. 18 in the most recent CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25. The Mastodons have received votes in every poll since November 12, but moved into the rankings for the first time in program history on January 14.
200 For the Boss
The Mastodons’ next victory will be Maria Marchesano’s 200th win as head coach. 59 of her wins have come as the head coach for the ‘Dons.
Can’t Lose if you Don’t Trail
Over the last 10 games (400 minutes), Purdue Fort Wayne has only trailed a total of 58:30, with 31:26 of that coming at IU Indy and 14:42 at Cleveland State. In the last seven games, Purdue Fort Wayne has only trailed for 16:00, with the Mastodons never trailing in four of those games.
Defense Rules!
According to Bart Torvik, Purdue Fort Wayne has the best defense in Horizon League action. The Mastodons have a rating of 89.9, the lowest in the league. Youngstown State is rated as the second-best with a mark of 91.9.
Offense Rules Too!
The Mastodons have the third-best offense in Horizon League play according to Torvik with a mark of 101.0. They are third behind Green Bay (104.7) and Cleveland State (102.3).
We Love Fort Wayne
Purdue Fort Wayne’s 7-0 start at home is the best as a Division I institution and the best overall since 1995-96, when the Mastodons went 13-0 at home.
Big Shot Ross
Lauren Ross has hit dagger 3-pointers in two Horizon League games this season. Against Green Bay, she drilled a triple with 1:02 left then made a free throw with 11 seconds left in the one-point win. At Cleveland State, she hit a logo 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left to secure the 78-75 victory.
Rankings Respect
Per Bart Torvik and the NET, Purdue Fort Wayne has a national ranking of 108 and 106, respectively. Both sets of rankings have Purdue Fort Wayne, Cleveland State and Green Bay in a cluster between 104 and 114, effectively rating potential games between the three as toss-ups.
A Deep Lineup
Eight different Mastodons have scored at least 18 points in a single game in their Division I careers: Amellia Bromenschenkel, Audra Emmerson, Sydney Freeman, Jazzlyn Linbo, Ella Riggs, Lauren Ross, Renna Schwieterman and Taeya Steinauer.
Home Sweet Gates
The Mastodons are 7-0 at home this season. In its home games this season, Purdue Fort Wayne is scoring 83.0 points per game and has an average margin of victory of 27.6 points per game. The Mastodons are shooting 47.9 percent from the floor and 37.7 percent from 3-point range in Fort Wayne.
Streak Tracker
The Mastodons are on a 10-game winning streak, which ties the third-best in program history and the longest of the Division I era (2001-present).
14 wins – 1995-96
11 wins – 1982-83
10 wins – 1990-91, 1993-94, 2024-25
A Perfect Start to League Play
Purdue Fort Wayne is 8-0 to start Horizon League play this season. That is the best start to a league season in program history. The previous best was when the Mastodons started 7-0 in the Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference in 1995-96.
Ross Has the Sauce
Through 18 games, Lauren Ross is shooting 48.4 percent from the floor, 50 percent from 3-point range and 94.2 percent from the line. With a slight uptick in field goal percentage, she would be the first women’s player and second player overall to ever shoot 50/50/90 since the 3-point line was added to college basketball. Salim Stoudamire (Arizona, 2004-05) is the only other college player to do hit all three marks for an entire season while meeting minimum requirements.
Points For Millie
Amellia Bromenschenkel needs five points to match Shayla Sellers and move into 10th place on the Mastodons’ all-time scoring list.
Career Points
9. 1386 – Haley Seibert (2011-15)
10. 1332 – Shayla Sellers (2019-24)
11. 1327 – Amellia Bromenschenkel (2020-present)
Boards for Millie
Amellia Bromenschenkel needs nine rebounds to match Robin Scott for third on the Mastodons’ all-time rebounding list.
Career Rebounds
2. 759 – Pam Edwards (1989-94)
3. 662 – Robin Scott (1987-91)
4. 653 – Amellia Bromenschenkel (2020-present)
Linbo Limbo
Jazzlyn Linbo is in the top-five in program history in single-season field goal percentage and career field goal percentage. She will qualify for the single-season list with 24 more made baskets.
Career Field Goal Percentage (200 min. attempts)
3. 53.1 – Rhonda Unverferth (1982-85)
4. 51.7 – Jazzlyn Linbo (2021-present)
5. 50.7 – Pam Edwards (1989-94)
Single-Season Field Goal Percentage (75 min. attempts)
1. 58.0 – Jazzlyn Linbo (2024-25)
2. 57.8 – Rhonda Unverferth (1984-85)
3. 56.3 – Verea Bibbs (2003-04)
Ross Mode
Lauren Ross owns the best 3-point and free throw percentages in program history with minimums of 30 and 60, respectively, for a season-long mark.
Single-Season 3-Point Percentage (30 min. attempts)
1. 50.0 – Lauren Ross (2024-25)
2. 46.1 – Trish Fleming (2000-01)
3. 44.0 – Lindy Jones (1989-90)
Single-Season Free Throw Percentage (60 min. attempts)
1. 94.2 – Lauren Ross (2024-25)
2. 91.4 – Haley Seibert (2014-15)
3. 89.9 – Jordan Zuppe (2010-11)
Last Time Out
Lauren Ross hit a 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds to go to beat Cleveland State on the road 78-75. This gave the ‘Dons their 10th win in a row and eighth in Horizon League play.
Coming Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will visit Detroit Mercy for a league game on Wednesday (Jan. 22) at 7 p.m. The Mastodons have only lost to Detroit Mercy once under head coach Maria Marchesano.
PURDUE FT. WAYNE TRACK
PURDUE FORT WAYNE HOSTS MASTODON INVITATIONAL AND MULTIS
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Purdue Fort Wayne track and field teams will host their second home meet of the season on January 17-18. The multis events will take place on Friday (Jan. 17) at 2 p.m. and complete prior to the start of the Mastodon Invitational on Saturday (Jan. 18) at 10 a.m.
Mastodon Invitational and Multi
When: Friday, January 17 – Saturday, January 18
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Lutheran Health Fieldhouse
Live Results: Link
Schedule: Link
Heat Sheets: Link
Participating Teams: Purdue Fort Wayne, Grace, Goshen, Indiana Wesleyan, Wright State, IU Indy, Milwaukee and Oakland.
Last Time Out for the Women
The Mastodon women collected 11 first-place finishes at the Mastodon Opener (Dec. 7). Louiza Kruiswijk highlighted the meet by breaking her own school record in the long jump (5.88 meters). Ali Sparks won both the weight throw and shot put, setting a personal record in the weight throw (17.51 meters). Marissa Van De Weg and Ellie Zagel both set personal records while wining their respective events, Van De Weg running 1:39.37 in the 600 meter and Zagel jumping 1.62 meters in the high jump. Freshman Lillian Hurd and Sanayah Ruffin each won their first collegiate events, Hurd finishing the 200 meter in 25.54 and Ruffin completing the 400 meter in 58.52. The 4×400 meter relay team of Van De Weg, Ruffin, Hurd and Amelie Mach took home the victory. Jordan Yanders, Riley Tate and Aniya Young all won events in the meet.
Last Time Out for the Men
The Mastodon men earned 10 first-place finishes in the season opener. Michael Drohosky and Owen Kaufman both set personal records to win their respective events. Drohosky cleared 1.95 meters in the high jump and Kaufman threw for 15.87 meters in the weight throw. Three Mastodon freshman won their first collegiate meet at the opener: Cainen Northington (200 meter), Damien Keys (long jump) and Josiah Bird (shot put). The 4×400 meter relay team of Troy Golden, Jonas Morris, Ambrose English and Northington took first. Andrew Roman, Austin Hall and Seth Mills all won events in the meet.
Eyes on the Prize
Purdue Fort Wayne will play host to the 2025 Horizon League Indoor Championships (March 1-2). The league championships will be held in the Lutheran Health Fieldhouse. In preparation of that event, four Horizon League schools are running in Saturday’s Mastodon Invitational.
Up Next
The ‘Dons will travel to Liberty to compete in the Brant Tolsma Invitational on January 24-25.
EVANSVILLE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
UE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HOSTS FIRST MVC GAMES IN MEEKS FAMILY FIELDHOUSE
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — The University of Evansville women’s basketball team returns to its home court for two weekend conference games.
The Purple Aces are still looking for their first win of Missouri Valley Conference play after three games on the road to begin 2025. Despite an early lead at Indiana State last week, UE didn’t hang on in the eventual 90-74 loss. Evansville did have its best offensive performance in Valley action on Sunday. The Aces crossed the 70 point threshold for the first time since their 84-51 win over IU Columbus. It was also UE’s first 70+ point performance against a Division I opponent since scoring 87 points against SIUE on December 8th.
Evansville returns to its regular home court for the first time in over a month. The Aces have been away from Meeks Family Fieldhouse since their 87-74 win over SIUE in early December. UE currently holds a perfect 3-0 record on the Lois D. Patton Court that will be put to the test on Friday evening against Missouri State and on Sunday afternoon when Southern Illinois comes to town.
The Missouri State Lady Bears come to Evansville for their final MVC series against the Aces as the school moves to Conference USA for the 2025-26 academic year. The Lady Bears are one of four programs with only a single loss in Valley play and have the second best overall record in the league at 11-4. Missouri State is led by reigning MVC Newcomer of the Year guard Lacy Stokes who leads the Lady Bears in scoring (13.1), assists (4.0), steals (2.3), and minutes played (34.1). On defense Missouri State is led by sophomore guard Kyrah Daniels with 5.5 rebounds, 0.9 blocks, and 28.3 minutes a game.
The Southern Illinois Salukis are another team looking for it’s first conference victory. Overall the Salukis are 2-11 on the season and currently are on a seven game losing streak. Southern Illinois’ last win came over NAIA Central Methodist for an Education Day game on December 2nd. The Salukis lone win against a Division I opponent was on the road at IU Indy in an 85-80 victory. Southern Illinois is led by the only player in the Valley averaging a double-double in newcomer forward Gift Uchenna. Uchenna averages 14.7 points and 12.7 rebounds a game and has been named the MVC Newcomer of the Week twice.
Against Indiana State Evansville had its best three point game of the season. The Aces made a season best 13 treys in the Hulman Center and was their best game in the category since 2022. With 39 points made from three point range treys made up over 50% of UE’s scoring on Sunday. Evansville had 33 attempts from behind the arc for 39.4% shooting, only the team’s fifth best three point percentage.
With the high offensive output on Sunday multiple Aces set new career highs as well. Offensive leader Camryn Runner set a new high in made threes (6), three point attempts (10), and assists (6) that earned her a program best sixth MVC Freshman of the Week honor. Freshman guard Avery Kelley, sophomore forward Claudia Clement, and freshman forward Elle Snyder set new career scoring highs against Indiana State. Kelley and Clement had their first double-digit performances with 10 points each. While Snyder had a nine-point game with a career high three made treys.
SOUTHERN INDIANA WOMEN’S TENNIS
WTEN SELECTED TO FINISH FOURTH IN OVC PRESEASON POLL
EVANSVILLE, Ind.- University of Southern Indiana Women’s Tennis was predicted to finish fourth in the Ohio Valley Conference according to the 2025 conference preseason poll, voted on by the head coaches.
After claiming the 2024 OVC tournament championship, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville received 36 total votes and six first-place votes to earn the top spot in the poll. The 2024 OVC regular season champions Southeast Missouri State University, received 28 total votes in second. Western Illinois University earned 26 total votes and the final first-place vote in third, while USI was slotted into fourth with 22 votes. Eastern Illinois University received 12 votes, while Tennessee State University took 10 votes.
The OVC recently added Bryant University to join the conference for women’s tennis, expanding the conference to an even eight teams. The expansion to eight allows all teams to attend the conference championship and compete in a single elimination tournament.
However, Bryant will not be competing in any conference regular season matches in 2025. Therefore, seeding for the tournament will be deciphered by top two teams in the OVC standings, as determined by conference match winning percentage, will earn the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds for the tournament. Seeds three through eight will be determined by ITA ranking.
All eight teams will travel to St. Louis, Missouri for the championships, competing at the Dwight Davis Tennis Center on April 17-19.
SOUTHERN INDIANA MEN’S TENNIS
MTEN PICKED FOURTH IN HORIZON LEAGUE SOUTH DIVISION PRESEASON POLL
EVANSVILLE, Ind.- University of Southern Indiana Men’s Tennis was predicted to finish fourth in the Horizon League South Division in the 2025 Under Armour #HLTennis Preseason Polls voted on by the head coaches.
Following Lindenwood University’s departure, the conference will consist of 10 teams and two divisions. The top three teams from the two divisions will earn a postseason spot and fight for the conference crown in Ann Arbor, Michigan on April 25-27.
The Screaming Eagles return to the Horizon League South Division after a fifth-place finish last season. USI is coming off a 5-14 record with a 0-5 conference campaign.
Belmont University was predicted to finish on top in the South Division, totaling 21 total votes. Tennessee State University came second with 19, only one ahead of Tennessee Tech University. USI and Eastern Illinois round out the final two spots in the division with USI receiving nine votes and EIU in last with eight.
In the north, Cleveland State University was voted into the top spot with 24 votes and the top overall spot with four first-place votes. Youngstown State University also broke the 20-vote mark finishing with 21 and one first-place vote. Third through fifth place were separated by only eight votes with Indiana University Indianapolis receiving 13, Northern Kentucky University with 12, and Chicago State University with five.
The Eagles kick off the 2025 season in Evansville against Butler University at the Evansville Tennis Center. USI’s spring schedule features a difficult slate with power conference matches against Vanderbilt University, University of Louisville, Indiana University, and University of Notre Dame. The sqaud starts Horizon play on March 22, battling Belmont University at the USI Tennis Courts.
For more information, visit our website at USIScreamingEagles.com or find us on social media at USIAthletics.
SOUTHERN INDIANA MEN’S BASKETBALL
SCREAMING EAGLES SNAP STREAK WITH 80-73 WIN
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball snapped a five-game losing streak with an 80-73 victory over Lindenwood University Thursday evening at Liberty Arena. The Screaming Eagles are 7-10 overall and 2-5 in OVC action, while the Lions are 8-10, 3-4 OVC.
USI and junior guard Damoni Harrison exploded out of the gate to a 12-0 lead before the first media timeout. Harrison led the way to the game-opening lead with six of the 12 points.
Defensively, USI held Lindenwood to below 10 percent (1-12) from the field and two points for the first 7:45. The Lion, however, got hot and erased the Eagles’ lead with a 13-0 run to lead 15-14 with 9:35 left before halftime.
The lead would swing back and forth for the next few minutes until Lindenwood used a 10-0 surge to take control at the 6:15 mark, 26-16. USI would rally to tie the contest at 38-38 after surging with a 22-12 dash to the intermission.
Harrison, who had a team-best 13 first-half points, and junior guard Jayland Randall had seven points each during the six-minute run to halftime. USI was six-of-seven as a team during the rush to tie, including a pair of three-pointers and eight-of-nine from the stripe.
The first 10 minutes of the second half saw both teams scramble to take command with 16 lead changes and three ties. USI attempted to take control with nine minutes to play, building a four-point lead, 59-55, on a pair of free throws by sophomore forward Stephen Olowoniyi.
The lead would grow back to eight points, 65-57, after a jumper by Harrison to cap off a 13-2 run. Harrison and Olowoniyi would lead the offensive swell with a combined 11 of the 13 points.
Lindenwood, however, was not done as the Lions cut the USI lead to one twice before a three-point bomb by graduate forward Jack Mielke gave the Eagles some breathing room, 75-71, with 1:20 to play. The Lion would get to within two points, 75-75, one more time before USI closed out the 80-73 win on a bucket by Harrison and free throws by junior guard Jack Campion and Randall.
For the game, Harrison would add 13 more points in the second half and ended with a game-high and season-high 26 points. The junior guard was eight-of-16 from the field, three-of-five from downtown, and seven-of-nine from the line. Harrison also had a team-high and season-high 10 rebounds for his first double-double as an Eagle.
Randall followed with 17 points in his first game back after missing the last two contests due to an injury, while Mielke closed out the double-digit scorers with 10 points.
Next Up For USI:
USI concludes the homestand Saturday when it hosts Western Illinois University for Military Appreciation Day. Tipoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. after the USI Women’s Basketball game at 1 p.m.
The Leathernecks of WIU are 8-9 overall, 2-4 in the conference, after losing at Morehead State University, 51-47, tonight in Morehead, Kentucky. WIU has lost five of its last six games after tonight’s action.
WIU leads the all-time series, 5-1, after taking both games from USI last season. The Leathernecks won at Liberty Arena, 73-68, and in Macomb, Illinois, 78-76.
Saturday’s USI-WIU matchup is Military Appreciation Day at Liberty Arena. Veterans and their guests will receive free tickets with proof of service (limit to five per veteran) on Military Appreciation Day, which is sponsored by the USI Student Veteran Association.
Tickets for the homestand and all USI home dates are on sale now at USIScreamingEagles.com.
Following Saturday’s action, the Eagles will be on the road for a pair of OVC contests. USI visits Southern Illinois University Edwardsville January 23 in Edwardsville, Illinois, and Eastern Illinois University January 25 in Charleston, Illinois.
SOUTHERN INDIANA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
USI FIGHTS BACK IN BIG OVC WIN AGAINST LINDENWOOD
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball returned home to Liberty Arena on Thursday and delivered a strong, gutsy win in front of the home crowd with a 70-66 victory against Lindenwood University.
The hearty fight and late-game execution helped Southern Indiana improve to 13-5 on the season and 5-2 in the Ohio Valley Conference. USI ended the night in a three-way tie for third in the conference standings. Lindenwood dropped to 9-7 overall and 5-2 in OVC play.
Lindenwood jumped out to a 7-2 lead, as it took nearly four minutes before Southern Indiana tallied its first bucket from the floor, courtesy of graduate forward Madi Webb. Webb wound up scoring USI’s first six points of the contest. Coming off her three-point record-setting day last Sunday, senior guard Vanessa Shafford canned her first three to tie the game at 13 with 2:37 left in the opening quarter. USI continued to attack the hoop to take a 19-17 lead to the second period.
A triple from sophomore guard Sophia Loden early in the second quarter pushed the Screaming Eagles ahead by five, 22-17. Lindenwood retook the lead with seven minutes remaining in the first half, 27-24, to force Southern Indiana into a timeout. Later in the frame, Webb continued her strong start to help propel USI back ahead, 30-29. Webb tallied 12 first-half points. However, the Lions finished the first half on an 11-3 run to take a 40-33 halftime lead.
After a couple of quick baskets from Southern Indiana to start the second half, Lindenwood pushed its advantage to its largest lead of nine, 46-37, two minutes into the third quarter. The combination of Webb and fellow graduate forward Meredith Raley got the Eagles going in the second half, helping cut into the deficit. Late in the third, Shafford converted a three-point play to bring USI back within one possession, 55-52, in the final 90 seconds of the quarter.
The back-and-forth battle continued in the first five minutes of the fourth stanza. Inside the five-minute mark, Shafford drew USI to within one before Webb put the Eagles in front, 62-61, seconds later. The game would even up three times over the next three minutes. Southern Indiana utilized a timeout in the final 40 seconds with the contest tied at 66. In the ensuing possession, Shafford splashed home the go-ahead triple with 18 seconds remaining to give the Screaming Eagles a three-point advantage. Shafford went on to hit a free throw and grab the final rebound to put the cherry on top of a big conference win for Southern Indiana.
USI shot for over 47 percent (26-55) in the game with four made threes. The Screaming Eagles were above 82 percent (14-17) at the free-throw stripe. The defense forced 20 turnovers, which led to 26 points for USI. Southern Indiana also had a 14-point advantage in the paint. Webb led all scorers with a season-high 18 points on 6-8 shooting and 6-6 at the foul line. Shafford posted 16 points with five boards and five assists. Raley recorded 15 points in the game.
Lindenwood shot 46 percent (23-50) from the floor and 44 percent (8-18) from beyond the arc. The Lions were over 85 percent (12-14) at the charity stripe. Lindenwood won the battle on the glass, 31-27. Four Lions finished in double figures, led by sophomore guard Gracy Wernli’s 14 points.
The Screaming Eagles are back at Liberty Arena Saturday at 1 p.m. against Western Illinois University. The game can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM and WREF 97.7 FM.
Saturday is Military Appreciation Day, and tickets are free for veterans and their guests (limit to five per veteran) with proof of service. Plus, there will be free t-shirts for USI students while supplies last. Military Appreciation Day is sponsored by the USI Student Veteran Association.
Tickets for all home games at Liberty Arena can be purchased online at usiscreamingeagles.com or the USI Ticket Office.
VALPO MEN’S BASKETBALL
MEN’S BASKETBALL SEEKS TO EXTEND HOME WINNING STREAK SATURDAY VS. UIC
UIC (11-6, 4-3 MVC)
at Valparaiso (10-8, 3-4 MVC)
Game No. 19 – Saturday, Jan. 18, 3 p.m. CT
Athletics-Recreation Center (5,000) – Chicago, Ill.
Next Up in Valpo Basketball: After spending six consecutive days on the road and playing each of its last two games away from home, the Valparaiso University men’s basketball team will be back in the confines of the Athletics-Recreation Center on Saturday as UIC comes to town for a midafternoon matchup. It’s Video Game Night at the ARC as one lucky fan will head home with a free PS5 and Valpo esports will be recognized. The Beacons will look to extend their home winning streak to five.
Last Time Out: Valpo faced an early 15-4 deficit and trailed by as many as 16 in the first half, but stormed all the way back to take its first lead of the game at 53-52 with just over nine minutes remaining on Tuesday night at Belmont. However, the host Bruins fended off the Beacons, pulled away with a late 7-0 run and held the guests to just two field goals in the final six minutes of a game Belmont won 71-64. A pair of Beacons hit career highs, with freshman Justus McNair tallying 19 points to lead the team and sophomore Cooper Schwieger pulling down a personal-best 15 rebounds.
Following the Beacons: Streaming – ESPN+ – Todd Ickow (play-by-play) and Jamie Stangel (analyst)
Radio – WVUR 95.1 FM Valparaiso, TuneIn Radio App, ValpoAthletics.com – Jack Hutter
X updates – @ValpoBasketball
Links for video, audio and live stats will be available at ValpoAthletics.com.
Head Coach Roger Powell Jr.: Roger Powell Jr. (17-33) is in his second season as the head coach of the Valpo men’s basketball program. After helping guide Gonzaga to a 121-13 record during his four seasons as an assistant coach, Powell returned to Valpo, where he was part of head coach Bryce Drew’s staff from 2011-2016 and led the team to 124 wins in five seasons, including a program-record 30 victories and a National Invitation Tournament (NIT) title game appearance in 2015-16. He was part of head coach Mark Few’s Gonzaga staff as the Bulldogs reached the 2021 national championship game after winning their first 31 games of the season. During Powell’s first season on staff in 2019-20, Gonzaga was 31-2 at the time the NCAA college basketball season was halted due to COVID-19. The Bulldogs reached the Sweet Sixteen in each of his final three seasons on staff, including two Elite Eight appearances and the aforementioned trip to the 2021 national title game. Prior to his arrival at Gonzaga, Powell served as the associate head coach at Vanderbilt University under Bryce Drew from 2016-2019. During his stint as an assistant at Valpo, he was part of four Horizon League regular-season championships in a five-year period while also leading the 2012-13 and 2014-15 squads to Horizon League tournament titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. A product of Joliet West High School and a native of Joliet, Ill., Powell capped a prolific collegiate playing career at Illinois with a national title game appearance in 2005 before going on to a successful professional playing career.
Series Notes: UIC leads 33-28 in an all-time series that dates back to 1979 as these two teams have shared conference affiliation in three different leagues – the AMCU/Mid-Continent Conference (1982-1994), the Horizon League (2008-2017) and now the Missouri Valley Conference (2022-pres.). UIC has won four of the last six matchups, but before that Valpo had won 17 straight. The two teams split a year ago, with each team defending its home court – UIC 70-64 on Jan. 6 in Chicago and Valpo 84-77 on Jan. 20 in Northwest Indiana. The series is deadlocked 2-2 since the Flames joined the MVC.
With a Win on Saturday vs. UIC, Valpo Would…
Surpass its Missouri Valley Conference win total from last season with 12 games remaining.
Hold a 4-4 record through eight Valley games, which would mark Valpo’s best record through eight league games since also starting 4-4 in 2019-20.
Own 11 wins in the first 19 games of a season for the first time since 2018-19, when the team also owned an 11-8 mark through 19 contests.
Extend its home winning streak against the Flames to three and move to 3-0 when hosting UIC since the Flames joined The Valley.
Allow the home team to move to 5-0 in the series since the Flames joined the MVC.
UINDY MEN’S BASKETBALL
ROCKHURST PULLS AWAY FROM UINDY IN SECOND HALF
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The UIndy men’s basketball team dropped its second straight game on Thursday, falling at Rockhurst by a score of 90-72. A layup from Brody Whitaker late in the first half inched the Greyhounds within a possession, but the Hawks pulled away after the break behind an efficient offense.
Grant Disken led the Hounds with 18 points, joined by three teammates in double figures, including Tucker Tornatta with 10 points and eight rebounds.
INS & OUTS
Each team started out hot offensively, trading 3-point buckets on six consecutive possessions midway through the first half. Dashawn Jackson accounted for two triples during that stretch, while Dylan Ingram and Tornatta bookended the period’s scoring from deep.
The Hawks could not miss out of the locker room, scoring six straight points to force a Greyhound timeout 90 seconds into the half. UIndy could not recover from the deficit, as Rockhurst shot 56.7 percent from the field to run away from its visitors.
Kelvin Amoako and Zac Szul combined for 14 points off the bench, including 11 in the second half.
INSIDE THE BOX
– Following back-to-back games with double-digit turnovers, the Hounds committed just eight miscues on Thursday.
– Ingram returned to double figures for the first time since the team’s win over Illinois Springfield on Jan. 5.
– Rockhurst dominated the paint, outscoring UIndy, 44-30, from short range.
– Jackson scored all 14 of his points in the first half, coming off the bench for the first time since Dec. 16.
MORE NOTES
UIndy now leads the all-time series, 15-7 … Rockhurst’s Daniel Carr recorded his fourth double-double of the season, finishing with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
The Greyhounds look to bounce back on Saturday at William Jewell for a 4:30 ET tip. The teams met four times a season ago, with UIndy ousting Jewell from the NCAA DII postseason at Nicoson Hall.
UINDY WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
HOUNDS TOP HAWKS WITH LATE COMEBACK
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The UIndy women’s basketball won its second straight game on Thursday night, picking up a comeback 63-60 victory at Rockhurst behind three double-digit scorers.
The Greyhounds outscored the Hawks, 25-17, in the fourth quarter to pull off the road triumph, thanks in large part to a 13-for-14 effort from the free throw line.
Elana Wells, who made all eight of her attempts from the charity stripe, scored a team-high 15 points, including 13 in the second half.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Fueling the comeback was Ruby Garner, who scored 10 of her 12 points in the final 3:46 of action, including a game-tying 3-pointer out of a timeout with just 41 seconds remaining. The defense stepped back up, forcing four Rockhurst turnovers in the fourth quarter, with the Greyhounds scoring their final three points off Hawks’ miscues.
Wells capped her perfect performance at the line with nine ticks left before Garner stretched the final lead to three. The Hawks managed a shot at the buzzer – albeit well inside the arc – before the horn signaled the Greyhound victory.
The Hounds led early, with buckets from Jaelynne Murray and Amyrah Sapenter setting the tone. Rockhurst drilled four triples in the first half to build a 28-22 lead before the break, however, the Greyhounds shutout their hosts from deep with an 0-14 effort in the final 20 minutes.
Autumn Rucker logged 26 minutes on Thursday, her most in more than two months, in absence of Patricia Chikamba, adding five rebounds and an assist.
INSIDE THE BOX
– Garner upped her team-high free-throw percentage to 82.6 percent with a 5-of-6 effort in the win.
– It was a balanced effort on the glass for the Hounds, with Murray securing a team-high six rebounds. Kylah Lawson, along with Rucker, finished with five apiece.
– Thursday marked just the second time this season UIndy has shot at least 20 free throws in a game; the Greyhounds attempted 22 against the Hawks, five shy of their season-high total against Governors State back in December.
– Halie Gilbert remained consistent across the stat sheet, recording six points and four rebounds, along with a team-high four assists.
HOUND BYTES
Head coach Jama Sharp on the victory…
“It wasn’t pretty, but they fought hard and found a way to win. They got stops down the stretch and finished at the free-throw line.”
MORE NOTES
The Greyhounds now lead the all-time series, 14-7, after their first win over the Hawks in more than two years.
UP NEXT
UIndy seeks to extend its winning streak to three on Saturday afternoon at William Jewell.
INDIANA SMALL COLLEGE WEB SITES
INDIANA WESLEYAN ATHLETICS: https://iwuwildcats.com/
EARLHAM ATHLETICS: https://goearlham.com/
WABASH ATHLETICS: https://sports.wabash.edu/
FRANKLIN ATHLETICS: https://franklingrizzlies.com/
ROSE-HULMAN ATHLETICS: https://athletics.rose-hulman.edu/
ANDERSON ATHLETICS: https://athletics.anderson.edu/landing/index
TRINE ATHLETICS: https://trinethunder.com/landing/index
BETHEL ATHLETICS: https://bupilots.com/
DEPAUW ATHLETICS: https://depauwtigers.com/
HANOVER ATHLETICS: https://athletics.hanover.edu/
MANCHESTER ATHLETICS: https://muspartans.com/
HUNTINGTON ATHLETICS: https://www.huathletics.com/
OAKLAND CITY ATHLETICS: https://gomightyoaks.com/index.aspx
ST. FRANCIS ATHLETICS: https://www.saintfranciscougars.com/landing/index
IU KOKOMO ATHLETICS: https://iukcougars.com/
IU EAST ATHLETICS: https://www.iueredwolves.com/
IU SOUTH BEND ATHLETICS: https://iusbtitans.com/
PURDUE NORTHWEST ATHLETICS: https://pnwathletics.com/
INDIANA TECH ATHLETICS: https://indianatechwarriors.com/index.aspx
GRACE COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://gclancers.com/
ST. MARY OF THE WOODS ATHLETICS: https://smwcathletics.com/
GOSHEN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://goleafs.net/
HOLY CROSS ATHLETICS: https://www.hcsaints.com/index.php
TAYLOR ATHLETICS: https://www.taylortrojans.com/
VINCENNES ATHLETICS: https://govutrailblazers.com/landing/index
“SPORTS EXTRA”
NUMBERS IN SPORTS
11 – -9 – 60 – 19 – 76 – 14 – 24 – 21 – 54 – 47 – 44 – 33 – 23 – 8
January 17, 1934 – Number 11, Carl Hubbell the New York Giants pitcher was awarded with an $18,000 contract, enormous at the time, shortly after winning the National League Most Valuable Player award for the 1933 season.
January 17, 1952 – At the 1952 NFL Draft: QB University of Vanderbilt, Number 9, Bill Wade was the number one overall pick by Los Angeles Rams
January 17, 1954 – 4th NFL Pro Bowl, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: Eastern Conference beats Western Conference, 20-9; MVP selected was Philadelphia Eagles, LB, Number 60, Chuck Bednarik.
January 17, 1960 – 10th NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: Western Conference beats Eastern Conference, 38-21; MVPs were on offense Number 19, Johnny Unitas, the QB of the Baltimore Colts while on defense was his Colts teammate DL, Number 76, Eugene Lipscomb
January 17, 1961 – Oscar Robertson scored 23 points and registered 14 assists in the NBA All-Star game to become the youngest talent ever to win the game’s MVP award. Oscar wore Number 14 as a member of the Cincinnati Royals
January 17, 1970 – Willie Mays was named by the Sporting News as the Player of the 1960s decade. The legendary baseball star wore Number 24 during the extent of the decade with the San Francisco Giants.
January 17, 1970 – 9th AFL All Star Game, Astrodome, Houston: Western Division beats Eastern Division, 26-3; MVP: selected was LA Chargers, QB , Number 21, John Hadl.
January 17, 1971 – Super Bowl V, Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, FL: Baltimore Colts beat Dallas Cowboys, 16-13; MVP was Dallas, LB, Number 54, Chuck Howley
January 17, 1977 – NFL Pro Bowl, Seattle Kingdome: AFC beats NFC, 24-14; MVP selected was none other than Pittsburgh Steelers, CB, Number 47, Mel Blount,
January 17, 1988 – AFC Championship, Mile High Stadium, Denver: Denver Broncos beat Cleveland Browns, 38-33; features infamous “The Fumble”, Browns’ Number 44, Earnest Byner at Denver 3-yard line with 1:12 remaining
January 17, 1994 – Patrick Ewing, Number 33, became the first New York Knicks player to reach the 15,000-point mark in his NBA career; scores a game-high 34 points in the Knicks’ 106-94 win over visiting Minnesota
January 17, 1996 – Detroit center Number 19, Steve Yzerman scores his 500th career NHL goal as the Red Wings beat Colorado, 3-2 at Joe Louis Arena and joins Number 9, Gordie Howe as the only players to score 500 goals for Detroit
January 17, 2012 – Miami’s Number 23, LeBron James became the youngest player in NBA history to record 20,000 career points during the Miami Heat’s 92-75 victory over Golden State; James, 28 years, 17 days, passes Number 8, Kobe Bryant, 29 years, 122 days
FOOTBALL HISTORY
January 17, 1952 – The 1952 NFL Draft took place and the top pick was Bill Wade from the University of Vanderbilt. The Pro-Football-Reference.com site says that after the Los Angeles Rams drafted Wade with the first pick there were two future Hall of Famers taken as the next selections. At number two the Dallas Texans took Linebacker Les Richter followed up by the Chicago Cardinals selecting receiver Ollie Matson with the third overall pick. Other players destined for the HOF in this draft were Hugh McElhenny going to the 49ers at number 9 and Frank Gifford hooking up with the Giants at 11. Gino Marchetti, Bobby Dillon and Yale Lary also were draft picks from this famous ‘52 draft that have bronze busts in Canton.
January 17, 1954 – Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum – The NFL Eastern Conference doubled up the Western Conference, 20-9 in the 4th NFL Pro Bowl. The game’s MVP was Chuck Bednarik, a linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles.
January 17, 1960 – The 10th NFL Pro Bowl was once again played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. In this edition the Western Conference pulled away from the Eastern Conference for a 38-21 final score. A pair of Baltimore Colts took home the MVP honors with Defensive lineman Eugene Lipscomb and QB Johnny Unitas being selected for their fine play.
January 17, 1970 – Astrodome, Houston – The 9th and final AFL All Star Game was played. The Western Division dominated the Eastern Division, 26-3. The game’s MVP was Los Angeles Charger quarterback John Hadl.
January 17, 1971 – Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida – Super Bowl V was a big one. It was also one of those big games that kept viewers on the edges of their seats right until the end per the NFL.com. The Baltimore Colts and the Dallas Cowboys rose above the rest of the League to have the honor of battling for the Lombardi. The game was knotted at 13 late in the fourth quarter. The Colts had the ball but starting signal caller Johnny Unitas had been knocked out of the game. A late push with backup quarterback Earl Morall at the helm took the Colts deep into Dallas territory. Blue Horseshoe kicker Jim O’Brien entered on to the field and with five ticks of the clock remaining booted the ball through the uprights! The Baltimore Colts beat the Dallas Cowboys, 16-13. FOr the only time in Super Bowl History a member of the losing team won the MVP award. Chuck Howley, the linebacker of Dallas, had little consolation in the trophy he took home compared to the large one that the Colts received.
January 17, 1977 – Seattle Kingdome – The NFL Pro Bowl saw Steelers legendary corner Mel Blount take home the MVP award as the AFC defeated the NFC, 24-14.
January 17, 1988 – Mile High Stadium, Denver – At the AFC Championship game that has gone down in history as the “The Fumble.”
The Following scoreboard posts are from Onthisday.com
January 17, 1988 – RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C. – The Nation’s Capitol hosted the NFC Championship game. Washington Redskins beat Minnesota Vikings, 17-10
January 17, 1993 – Joe Robbie Stadium, Miami – At the AFC Championship the Buffalo Bills got past the Miami Dolphins, 29-10.
January 17, 1993 – Candlestick Park, San Francisco – The NFC Championship game resulted in the Dallas Cowboys knocking off the San Francisco 49ers, 30-20.
January 17, 1995 – The Los Angeles Rams announced that they were moving to St Louis.
January 17, 1999 – Mile High Stadium, Denver – AFC Championship game Denver Broncos beat New York Jets, 23-10;
January 17, 1999 – Metrodome, Minneapolis – The Dirty Birds of the Atlanta Falcons traveled to play the high flying offense of the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game according to Twincities.com. The Vikings went 15-1 in the 1998 season, the best year in team history, and were 11-point favorites in the championship game against the Atlanta Falcons at home. But this is not a game that Vikings fans want to remember. With 2:18 left in the game Minnesota kicker Gary Anderson, who had not missed a field goal attempt or an extra point all season strolled onto the field with his team up 27-20 to possibly put the game out of reach for the Falcons. To really put it into perspective that is a remarkable streak of 35 field goals and 59 extra points without a miss on the season! It was a sure thing right? G.A. was going to put the Vikes up by 10 at the two minute warning. At the most inopportune time, probably in the history of football, the terrific season of Gary Anderson fell apart as he missed the kick. The Falcons had new life and drove the field to tie the game and send it into overtime! The Vikings were demoralized as they had let a 27-17 lead in the fourth quarter slip away. The Falcons with momentum eventually kicked the game winner in the extra session that sent them to the Super Bowl. The game has now been remembered as “The Miss.” The Final score was the Atlanta Falcons 30 and the Minnesota Vikings 27.
January 17, 2001 – The NFL owners met in Dallas and voted to increase the shared revenue across the League. The 32 teams agreed to pool the visiting team’s share of gate receipts for all games ( regular and pre-season) and divide the pool equally starting in the 2002 season. According to a 2004 paper titled “ Revenue and Wealth Maximization in the National Football League: The Impact of Stadia” found on repository.usfca.org by Matthew Brown, Mark Nagel, Chad McEvoy, and Daniel Rascher the revenue plan greatly aided in the construction of new stadiums and remodeling of old ones in the NFL. Some local governments had teamed up with franchises and used subsidies to aid in the construction costs shortly after the shared revenue plan was accepted and NFL cities like the Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Seattle Seahawks, and the Pittsburgh Steelers benefitted by this measure. Others like Dallas, New York, LA and Los Vegas have built super stadiums that really have revolutionized the game venue. Chicago’s Soldier Field and Green Bay’s Lambeau Field are examples of the funding to help with major facelift renovations of older stadiums to bring them up to speed with the NFL’s criteria of the 21st century.
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
Jan. 17
1961 — The Cincinnati Royals’ 22-year-old rookie sensation, Oscar Robertson, becomes the youngest player to receive NBA All-Star MVP honors. Robertson scores 23 points and hands out 14 assists in a 153-131 victory for the West at Syracuse.
1971 — The first Super Bowl under the NFL-AFL merger ends with Baltimore rookie Jim O’Brien kicking a 32-yard field goal for a 16-13 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.
1986 — Tim Witherspoon wins a majority decision over Tony Tubbs at the Omni in Atlanta to win the WBA heavyweight title.
1988 — The Denver Broncos beat the Cleveland Browns for the second straight year in the AFC championship game. Defensive back Jeremiah Castille strips running back Earnest Byner at the Denver 3-yard line with 65 seconds left in the game to preserve a 38-33 victory.
1995 — The NFL Rams announce they’re leaving Southern California after 49 years and moving to St. Louis.
1996 — Detroit’s Steve Yzerman becomes the 22nd player in NHL history to score 500 goals as the Red Wings beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2.
2003 — Joe Nieuwendyk scores his 500th career goal in New Jersey’s 2-1 victory over Carolina.
2004 — New Jersey’s Patrik Elias ties an NHL record by scoring his fourth overtime goal of the season in a 2-1 win over Washington.
2010 — Jeremy Abbott earns a trip to the Olympics by winning his second national men’s figuring skating title. Abbott’s wins in a landslide with a score of 263.66 points, 25 more than Evan Lysacek.
2011 — West Virginia of the Big East moves into the men’s poll for the first time this season to tie the record of nine teams from one conference in the Top 25. There were nine Big East teams ranked for one week in January 2009.
2011 — Fifth-ranked Pittsburgh scores the first 19 points only to lose the lead, then comes back behind Nasir Robinson’s 21 points to hand No. 3 Syracuse its first loss with a 74-66 victory.
2012 — LeBron James becomes youngest player in NBA history to record 20,000 career points during the Miami Heat’s 92-75 victory over Golden State; James, 28 years, 17 days, passes Kobe Bryant, 29 years, 122 days.
2014 — Five-time champion Serena Williams becomes the winningest woman at the Australian Open, notching career win No. 61 as she advanced to the fourth round with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Daniela Hantuchova.
2016 — The Carolina Panthers builds a 31-0 halftime lead before barely holding off Seattle’s relentless comeback, beating the Seahawks 31-24 to advance to the NFC championship game.
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Jan. 18
1938 — Grover Cleveland Alexander is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. His 90 shutouts is second on the all-time list to Walter Johnson and his 16 shutouts in 1916 is still the major league record.
1958 — Canadian born Willie O’Ree becomes the NHL’s first black player for the Boston Bruins.
1972 — The Lakers’ Jerry West, hits a last second, 20-foot jumper to lead the West team to a 112-110 NBA All-Star victory over the East, as he garners the MVP award.
1973 — Orlando Cepeda becomes the first player signed specifically to be a designated hitter. He signs with the Boston Red Sox one week after the designated hitter rule is approved.
1976 — Pittsburgh wins the Super Bowl for the second straight year. Terry Bradshaw’s 64-yard touchdown pass to Lynn Swann and Glen Edwards’ interception on the last play of the game gives the Steelers a 21-17 win over the Dallas Cowboys. Swann, with four receptions for 161 yards, is the game’s MVP.
1992 — Brett Hull scores two goals with the help of linemate Wayne Gretzky to lead the Campbell Conference to a 10-6 victory over the Wales Conference in the NHL All-Star game.
1996 — Baseball owners break with more than a century of tradition by unanimously approving interleague play in 1997.2003 — Michelle Kwan wins her sixth straight title, and seventh overall, at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Michael Weiss, despite splattering on his quad lutz, two-footing a quad toe and not doing a triple axel the entire competition, gets his third U.S. men’s title.
2004 — The New England Patriots earn their second trip to the Super Bowl in three seasons by defeating the Indianapolis Colts 24-14 in the AFC championship game. The Philadelphia Eagles fall one win short of the Super Bowl for the third straight year as the Carolina Panthers post a 14-3 win.
2005 — Earl Boykins breaks the NBA record for points in an overtime, scoring 15 of Denver’s 21 points in the extra period as the Nuggets beat the Seattle SuperSonics 116-110. The 5-foot-5 guard, the league’s smallest player, broke the record of 14 overtime points set by Butch Carter of Indiana against Boston on March 20, 1984.
2011 — Kim Clijsters starts her Australian Open run with a 6-0, 6-0 romp of three-time Grand Slam finalist and former No. 1-ranked player Dinara Safina. It’s the first time a woman who was once the top-ranked player in the world had ever lost by that score.
2014 — The NBA fines Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $100,000 for confronting referees and using inappropriate language toward them after the Mavericks blew a 17-point lead in the final 5 minutes of a 129-127 loss at the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 15.
2015 — Russell Wilson hits Jermaine Kearse for a 35-yard touchdown 3:19 into overtime to lift the Seattle Seahawks to an improbable 28-22 victory over Green Bay in the NFC championship game. Outplayed much of the game and plagued by five turnovers, the Seahawks trail 16-7 with 2:09 remaining.
2015 — Tom Brady throws for three touchdowns and LeGarrette Blount runs in three more to lead the New England Patriots into the Super Bowl with a 45-7 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.
2016 — Duke, after dropping three of its last five games, fall out of The Associated Press women’s basketball poll after 312 straight weeks. The Blue Devils entered on Nov. 29, 1999. It’s the third longest streak in the history of the poll since the rankings began in 1976.
2017 – Baseball Hall of Fame adds Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Ivan Rodriguez.
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Jan. 19
1937 — Nap Lajoie, Tris Speaker and Cy Young are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in the second year of voting.
1952 — The Professional Golfers Association approves the participation of blacks in golf tournaments.
1972 — Sandy Koufax of the Los Angeles Dodgers becomes the youngest player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame at 36. Yogi Berra and Early Wynn are also elected.
1974 — UCLA’s 88-game winning streak is snapped when Notre Dame overcomes an 11-point deficit in the final 3:32 to win 71-70. With 29 seconds remaining, Dwight Clay’s jump shot from the right corner gives the Irish the lead.
1992 — John Cook is the first golfer in PGA history to chip in on two consecutive holes to win a playoff after he edges Gene Sauers in the Bob Hope Classic.
2000 — Michael Jordan, who led the Chicago Bulls to 6 NBA championships as a player, returns to the NBA, joining the Washington Wizards as part owner and President of Basketball Operations.
2004 — Colorado’s Milan Hejduk scores on a penalty shot 59 seconds into overtime to give the Avalanche a 5-4 victory over Tampa Bay. It’s the third time an NHL game ended on a penalty shot in overtime.
2005 — LeBron James becomes the youngest player (20 years, 20 days) in NBA history to record a triple-double, with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in Cleveland’s 107-101 win over Portland.
2006 — Irina Slutskaya wins her seventh European figure skating title, breaking the record she shared with Katarina Witt and Sonja Henie.
2008 — Bode Miller wins the downhill at the traditional Hahnenkamm World Cup races to become the most successful American skier ever with 28 World Cup wins, overtaking Phil Mahre.
2012 — Serena Williams moves into the third round of the Australian Open with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Barbora Zahlavova Strycova for her 500th career match win.
2013 — Lance Armstrong admits to doping in all seven of his Tour de France victories.
2014 — Peyton Manning passes for 400 yards and two touchdowns to lead Denver to a 26-16 victory over New England and send the Broncos to their first trip to the Super Bowl in 15 years.
2014 — Russell Wilson throws a 35-yard touchdown pass on fourth down and Seattle’s top-ranked defense forces two late turnovers, lifting the Seahawks into their second Super Bowl with a 23-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.
2015 — Lindsey Vonn wins a super-G for her record 63rd World Cup victory. The American breaks Annemarie Moser-Proell’s 35-year-old record of 62 World Cup wins with a flawless run down the Olympia delle Tofane course at Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, finishing by a huge 0.85 ahead of Anna Fenninger of Austria.
2017 — Six-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic is beaten 7-6 (8), 5-7, 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 by wild-card entry Denis Istomin in a second-round match. No. 2-ranked Djokovic had won five of the six previous titles at Melbourne Park and six overall, and had never dropped a set in six previous meetings against Istomin.
2020 – AFC Championship, Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri: Kansas City Chiefs beat Tennessee Titans, 35-24.
2020 – NFC Championship, Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, California: San Francisco 49ers beat Green Bay Packers, 37-20.
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Jan. 20
1891 — The International YMCA in Springfield, Mass. is the site of the first official basketball game. Peach baskets were used, but it wasn’t until 1905 that someone removed the baskets’ bottoms.
1937 — Nels Stewart of the New York Americans becomes the NHL’s all-time scorer with his 270th goal in a 4-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
1952 — George Mikan scores 61 points, a career-high, to lead the Minneapolis Lakers to a 91-81 double-overtime victory over the Rochester Royals.
1966 — Ted Williams, longtime star of the Boston Red Sox, is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Williams was a two time triple crown winner, a two time MVP and the last player to hit over .400 — despite losing five prime years to service in the Marine Corps.
1968 — Elvin Hayes scores 39 points to lead Houston to a 71-69 victory and end UCLA’s 47-game winning streak. A regular-season record 52,693 fans attend the game at the Houston Astrodome.
1970 — Cincinnati’s Tom Van Arsdale and Phoenix’s Dick Van Arsdale are the first brothers to play in the same NBA All-Star game. Dick scores eight points for the West team, while Tom scores five for the East, which wins the game 142-135 at Philadelphia.
1980 — President Carter announces the U.S. Olympic team will not participate in the Summer Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan the previous month.
1980 — Terry Bradshaw passes for 309 yards and sets two passing records to help the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Los Angeles Rams 31-19 and become the first team to win four Super Bowls.
1985 — Joe Montana passes for a Super Bowl record 331 yards and three touchdowns to lead the San Francisco 49ers to a 38-16 victory over the Miami Dolphins. Roger Craig scores a record three touchdowns.
1996 — Rudy Galindo, in the biggest upset in decades, wins the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, earning two perfect marks along the way.
2001 — Alan Webb of South Lakes High School in Reston, Va., becomes the first American prep runner to break four minutes for the indoor mile, with a time of 3:59.86 at the New Balance Games in New York.
2002 — Steve Yzerman becomes the ninth player in NHL history to notch 1,000 assists, which he earns on Mathieu Dandenault’s game-winning goal when Detroit beats Ottawa 3-2 in overtime.
2007 — Utah coach Jerry Sloan passes Larry Brown for 4th on the NBA’s all-time win list (1,010) after the Jazz beat the Chicago Bulls, 95-85 at the United Center.
2008 — Despite a shaky Tom Brady, New England Patriots are too much for the banged-up San Diego Chargers in the AFC championship game, pulling out a 21-12 victory that sends them back to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in seven seasons.
2008 — Lawrence Tynes, who missed a 36-yard field goal at the end of regulation following a bad snap, nails a 47-yarder in overtime to give the New York Giants a 23-20 win over Green Bay in the NFC championship at Lambeau Field. The Giants win their 10th straight on the road in the third-coldest championship game ever.
2013 — San Francisco’s Frank Gore runs for a pair of second-half touchdowns and the 49ers rebounds from a 17-0 deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons 28-24 in the NFC championship game.
2013 — Joe Flacco outduels Tom Brady, throwing three touchdown passes in the second half and leading the Baltimore Ravens to their first Super Bowl in 12 years with a 28-13 victory over the New England Patriots for the AFC championship.
2016 — Kathryn Smith is promoted by the Buffalo Bills to take over as special teams quality control coach, making her the first full-time female coach in the NFL.
2017 — Henrik Sedin had a goal for his 1,000th career point before Luca Sbisa scored the winner early in the third period to help Vancouver beat Florida 2-1. Sedin converted a pass from twin brother Daniel on a 2-on-1 rush for his 11th goal of the season. Henrik Sedin became the 85th player in NHL history to reach 1,000 points, and the 38th to accomplish the feat with one franchise.
Jan. 21
1921 — Kenesaw Mountain Landis takes office as baseball’s commissioner.
1947 — Carl Hubbell, Frank Frisch, Mickey Cochrane, and Lefty Grove are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1953 — Dizzy Dean and Al Simmons are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The baseball writers pass over Joe DiMaggio in his first year of eligibility.
1954 — For the first time in NBA All-Star history, an overtime period is needed. Boston’s Bob Cousy scores 10 points in the overtime to give the East a 98-93 victory and Cousy the MVP honors.
1958 — Bob Pettit of St. Louis becomes the first member of the losing team to win the NBA All-Star MVP award, scoring 28 points and grabbing 26 rebounds, even though the East beats the West 130-118.
1969 — Roy Campanella and Stan Musial are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1979 — Terry Bradshaw throws four touchdown passes to lead the Pittsburgh Steelers to their third Super Bowl win, a 35-31 victory over the Dallas Cowboys. Bradshaw, the game’s MVP, completes 17 of 30 passes for 318 yards.
1990 — John McEnroe becomes the first player thrown out of the Australian Open. McEnroe’s tantrum comes while leading Mike Pernfors 6-1, 4-6, 7-5, 2-4.
1996 — Karrie Webb becomes the second quickest winner in LPGA Tour history winning the HealthSouth Inaugural at Walt Disney World. Webb, in her second LPGA start, beat Jane Geddes and Martha Nause on the fourth hole of a playoff. Webb finished second in her first LPGA start a week earlier in the Chrysler-Plymouth Tournament of Champions.
2005 — Four-time Olympic champion Ole Einar Bjoerndalen wins his 49th career World Cup biathlon, breaking the record for career victories. Bjoerndalen edges fellow Norwegian Frode Andresen in the 10-kilometer sprint event to pass former cross country great Bjorn Daehlie at 48 career wins.
2007 — Lovie Smith becomes the first black head coach to make it to the Super Bowl when his Chicago Bears win the NFC championship. Tony Dungy joins him when his Indianapolis Colts take the AFC title.
2009 — New Jersey Institute of Technology ends its 51-game losing streak, getting 26 points from Jheryl Wilson in a 61-51 victory over Bryant. NJIT had not won since it defeated Longwood on Feb. 19, 2007.
2010 — Los Angeles guard Kobe Bryant becomes the 15th player in NBA history to reach 25,000 career points and the youngest to hit the milestone. Bryant finishes with 31 points in the Lakers’ 93-87 loss at Cleveland.
2012 — Notre Dame upsets No. 1 Syracuse 67-58 and hands the Orange their first loss after 20 straight victories. It’s the eighth time Notre Dame has beaten a No. 1 team — that ties for fourth-most all-time.
2017 — Adam Hadwin shoots a 13-under 59 in the CareerBuilder Challenge for the ninth sub-60 round in PGA Tour history and the second in 10 days. The 29-year-old Canadian reaches 13 under with a 7-foot birdie putt on the par-4 17th and makes a 3-footer from just off the green for par on the 18th at La Quinta Country Club.
2019 – Golden State guard Klay Thompson sets an NBA record by making his first 10 attempts from 3-point range as the Warriors beat the LA Lakers, 130-111; Thompson scores 44 points.
2024 — Tara VanDerveer, Stanford, becomes winningest college basketball coach with 1,203rd victory.
_____
Jan. 22
1920 — The New York Yankees announce they will be the first team to wear uniform numbers, according to the player’s position in batting order.
1960 — Paul Pender beats Sugar Ray Robinson in a 15-round split decision to capture the world middleweight boxing title.
1962 — Bob Feller and Jackie Robinson are elected into baseball’s Hall of Fame. Robinson, the first black to play in the majors, is also the first to enter the Hall.
1968 — The NBA awards expansion franchises to Milwaukee and Phoenix.
1973 — George Foreman knocks out Joe Frazier in the second round in Kingston, Jamaica, to win the world heavyweight title.
1983 — Houston becomes the first NBA team not to score a point in overtime. The Portland Trail Blazers outscore the Rockets 17-0 for a 113-96 victory.
1988 — Mike Tyson knocks out Larry Holmes in the fourth round at Atlantic City to retain his world heavyweight title.
1998 — New York’s Pat LaFontaine reaches 1,000 career points, scoring his 19th goal in the Rangers’ 4-3 loss to Philadelphia.
2003 — Andy Roddick wins one of the longest matches of the Open era, beating Younes El Aynaoui in a fifth set that ended 21-19 to reach the Australian Open semifinals. The American won 4-6, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4, 21-19 in a match lasting 4 hours, 59 minutes — the longest men’s singles match at the Australian Open since tiebreaker sets were introduced into Grand Slam events in 1971.
2005 — Jockey Russell Baze passes Bill Shoemaker to take second place on the career win list. Russell gets his 8,834th victory aboard Hollow Memoires in the seventh race at Golden Gate Fields.
2006 — The Pittsburgh Steelers are the first team since the 1985 Patriots to win three postseason road games thanks to a 34-17 dismantling of the Denver Broncos in the AFC title game.
2006 — Kobe Bryant scores a staggering 81 points — the second-highest total in NBA history — and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Toronto Raptors 122-104.
2012 — The New England Patriots beat the Ravens 23-20 in the AFC championship game after Baltimore’s Billy Cundiff misses a 32-yard field goal attempt with 11 seconds remaining that would have tied the score.
2012 — New York’s Lawrence Tynes kicks a 31-yard field goal in sudden-death overtime and the Giants beat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in the NFC championship game.
2016 — David Blatt, the second-year coach who guided Cleveland to the NBA Finals in 2015, is fired despite the Cavaliers holding a 30-11 record. Blatt is the first coach since conferences began in 1970-71 to be fired when his team had the best record in its conference.
2018 – New Orleans Pelicans’ DeMarcus Cousins has 44 points, 24 rebounds & 10 assists in 132-128 double-OT win over Chicago Bulls; 1st player since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1972) with 40+ points, 20+ rebounds & 10+ assists.
_____
Jan. 23
1944 — The Detroit Red Wings defeat the New York Rangers 15-0 to set an NHL record for consecutive goals.
1959 — In the NBA All-Star game in Detroit, St. Louis’ Bob Pettit and Elgin Baylor of Minneapolis become the first co-winners of the MVP award, leading the West to a 124-108 victory.
1979 — Willie Mays is named on 409 of 432 ballots and elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
1980 — George Gervin of San Antonio scores 55 points in a 144-130 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
1987 — Hana Mandlikova upsets Martina Navratilova 7-5, 7-6 to win the Australian Open.
1988 — Steffi Graf wins the Australian Open with a 6-1, 7-6 victory over Chris Evert.
1993 — Mike Gartner of the New York Rangers sets an NHL record when he reaches 30 goals for the 14th consecutive season. Gartner, with three goals in the Rangers’ 8-3 victory over Los Angeles, surpasses Phil Esposito, Bobby Hull and Wayne Gretzky.
2001 — Sam Cassell scores 22 points and the Bucks hit a franchise record 14 3-pointers to beat the Knicks 105-91 and snap New York’s NBA-record 33-game streak of holding opponents to under 100 points.
2005 — Jennifer Rodriguez becomes the first American woman in nine years to win the World Sprint Speedskating Championship.
2008 — Baylor, which waited 39 years to get back into the Top 25, plays five overtimes in its first win as a ranked team. Curtis Jerrells scores a career-high 36 points, including 11 in the fifth overtime to lead No. 25 Baylor to a 116-110 win over No. 18 Texas A&M.
2010 — Lindsey Vonn makes it five wins in five downhills this season. Her 30th World Cup victory ties her with Croatia’s Janica Kostelic for eighth place on the career list and nearly halfway to Austrian leader Annemarie Moser-Proell’s 62 wins.
2011 — Francesca Schiavone wins the longest women’s match in Grand Slam history — a 6-4, 1-6, 16-14 victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova that takes 4 hours, 44 minutes at the Australian Open. Schiavone saves six match points, then converts on her third match point in the longest women’s match at a major in terms of time in the Open era.
2011 — Aaron Rodgers runs for a touchdown and makes a saving tackle, B.J. Raji returns an interception for a score and Sam Shields has two interceptions to lead the Green Bay Packers to a 21-14 win over the Chicago Bears in the NFC championship game. The Packers, with road wins in Philadelphia, Atlanta and Chicago, become the first NFC No. 6 seed to advance to the Super Bowl.
2011 — The Pittsburgh Steelers advance to their third Super Bowl in six years with a 24-19 victory over the New York Jets.
2012 — Skylar Diggins matches a season high with 27 points and No. 2 Notre Dame routs No. 7 Tennessee 72-44, holding the Lady Vols to their lowest scoring output in modern school history.
2015 — Klay Thompson sets an NBA record for the most points in a quarter, a 37-point third period that powers the Golden State Warriors to a 126-101 victory over the Sacramento Kings. Thompson makes all 13 shots and finishes with a career-high 52 points.
2022 – Buffalo wide receiver Gabriel Davis scores an NFL playoff record 4 TDs in the Bills’ epic 42-36 overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in their divisional-round playoff at Arrowhead Stadium.
TV SPORTS FRIDAY
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Orlando Magic vs Boston Celtics | 7:00 pm | ESPN FanDuel Sports FL NBCS-BOS |
| Minnesota Timberwolves vs New York Knicks | 7:30pm | FanDuel Sports North MSG |
| Denver Nuggets vs Miami Heat | 8:00pm | ALT FanDuel Sports Sun |
| Toronto Raptors vs Milwaukee Bucks | 8:00pm | FanDuel Sports WI Sportsnet |
| Utah Jazz vs New Orleans Pelicans | 8:00pm | KJZZ GCSN |
| Memphis Grizzlies vs San Antonio Spurs | 8:00pm | FanDuel Sports SE FanDuel Sports SW |
| Oklahoma City Thunder vs Dallas Mavericks | 8:30pm | FanDuel Sports OK KFAA |
| Charlotte Hornets vs Chicago Bulls | 9:30pm | ESPN FanDuel Sports SE CHSN |
| Brooklyn Nets vs Los Angeles Lakers | 10:30pm | YES Spectrum |
| NHL REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Vegas Golden Knights vs Carolina Hurricanes | 7:00pm | ESPN+ FanDuel Sports South Scripps |
| Pittsburgh Penguins vs Buffalo Sabres | 7:00pm | ESPN+ ATTSN-PIT MSG-BUF |
| MEN’S NCAA BASKETBALL | TIME ET | TV |
| Ohio at Akron | 6:00pm | CBSSN |
| Providence vs. Villanova | 7:00pm | FS1 |
| VCU at Saint Joseph’s | 7:00pm | ESPNU |
| Robert Morris at Green Bay | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Indiana at Ohio State | 8:00pm | FOX |
| DePaul at Georgetown | 8:00pm | CBSSN |
| Youngstown State at Milwaukee | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Iowa at UCLA | 9:00pm | FS1 |
| Air Force at Fresno State | 10:00pm | MWN |
| Boise State at New Mexico | 11:00pm | FS1 |
| GOLF | TIME ET | TV |
| PGA Tour: American Express | 4:00pm | GOLF |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| Ligue 1: Montpellier vs Monaco | 1:00pm | Fanatiz beIN Sports fuboTV |
| Bundesliga: Eintracht Frankfurt vs Borussia Dortmund | 2:30pm | ESPN2 ESPN+ fuboTV |
| Serie A: Roma vs Genoa | 2:45pm | ESPN2 ESPN+ fuboTV |
| La Liga: Espanyol vs Real Valladolid | 3:00pm | ESPN+ fuboTV |
| Ligue 1: Lille vs Nice | 3:00pm | Fanatiz beIN Sports fuboTV |
| Liga MX: Tigres UANL vs Mazatlán | 10:00pm | fuboTV |
| Liga MX: Necaxa vs Guadalajara | 10:05pm | VIX |
TV SPORTS SATURDAY
| NFL PLAYOFFS | TIME ET | TV |
| AFC Divisional Round: Houston at Kansas City | 4:00pm | ABC |
| NFC Divisional Round: Washington at Detroit | 8:00pm | FOX |
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Phoenix Suns vs Detroit Pistons | 5:00 pm | FanDuel Sports DET AFSN |
| Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports SE NBCS-BOS |
| Philadelphia 76ers vs Indiana Pacers | 7:00pm | NBCS-PHI FanDuel Sports IND |
| Washington Wizards vs Golden State Warriors | 8:30pm | MNMT2 NBCS-BAY |
| Cleveland Cavaliers vs Minnesota Timberwolves | 9:00pm | FanDuel Sports OH FanDuel Sports North |
| Houston Rockets vs Portland Trail Blazers | 10:00pm | Rip City SCHN |
| NHL REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Philadelphia Flyers vs New Jersey Devils | 12:30 pm | ESPN+ NBCS-PHI MSGSN |
| Boston Bruins vs Ottawa Senators | 3:00pm | ESPN+ NESN Sportsnet |
| Dallas Stars vs Colorado Avalanche | 4:00pm | ESPN+ Victory+ ALT |
| Anaheim Ducks vs Florida Panthers | 6:00pm | ESPN+ Victory+ |
| Detroit Red Wings vs Tampa Bay Lightning | 7:00pm | ESPN+ FanDuel Sports Sun FanDuel Sports DET |
| Toronto Maple Leafs vs Montreal Canadiens | 7:00pm | ESPN+ Sportsnet |
| Calgary Flames vs Winnipeg Jets | 7:00pm | ESPN+ Sportsnet |
| Columbus Blue Jackets vs New York Rangers | 7:00pm | ESPN+ FanDuel Sports OH MSG |
| Pittsburgh Penguins vs Washington Capitals | 7:00pm | ESPN+ ATTSN-PIT MNMT |
| San Jose Sharks vs New York Islanders | 7:30pm | ESPN+ NBCS-CA MSGSN |
| Vegas Golden Knights vs Chicago Blackhawks | 8:00pm | ESPN+ Scripps CHSN |
| Minnesota Wild vs Nashville Predators | 8:00pm | ESPN+ FanDuel Sports North FanDuel Sports South |
| St. Louis Blues vs Utah Hockey Club | 9:00pm | ESPN+ FanDuel Sports MW Utah16 |
| Los Angeles Kings vs Seattle Kraken | 10:00pm | ESPN+ KCAL KONG |
| Edmonton Oilers vs Vancouver Canucks | 10:00pm | ESPN+ Sportsnet |
| MEN’S NCAA BASKETBALL | TIME ET | TV |
| Creighton at UConn | 12:00pm | FOX |
| Alabama at Kentucky | 12:00pm | ESPN |
| Virginia at Louisville | 12:00pm | ESPN2 |
| Georgia Tech at Florida State | 12:00pm | ESPNU |
| Clemson at Pitt | 12:00pm | CW |
| Houston at UCF | 12:00pm | CBSSN |
| Boston University at Army West Point | 12:00pm | ESPN+ |
| George Washington at George Mason | 12:30pm | USA |
| Colgate at Lafayette | 1:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Kansas State at Kansas | 1:00pm | CBS |
| Auburn at Georgia | 1:00pm | SECN |
| Mercyhurst at Wagner | 1:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| VMI at The Citadel | 1:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Buffalo at Western Michigan | 1:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Oakland at Detroit Mercy | 1:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Maine at UMBC | 1:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Xavier at Marquette | 2:00pm | FOX FS1 |
| Arizona at Texas Tech | 2:00pm | ABC or ESPN2 |
| SMU at Miami (FL) | 2:00pm | ESPN2/U |
| Arizona State at Cincinnati | 2:00pm | CBSSN |
| Wake Forest at Virginia Tech | 2:00pm | ACCN |
| St. Bonaventure at Duquesne | 2:00pm | ATTSN-PIT |
| Stony Brook at Towson | 2:00pm | MNMT |
| Wright State at Northern Kentucky | 2:00pm | FanDuel Sports Ohio |
| Kansas City at North Dakota | 2:00pm | MidCo Sports |
| Le Moyne at Chicago State | 2:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Central Michigan at Northern Illinois | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Eastern Michigan at Bowling Green | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Toledo at Ball State | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Cornell at Penn | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Harvard at Brown | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Princeton at Dartmouth | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Yale at Columbia | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Niagara at Manhattan | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Canisius at Fairfield | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Saint Peter’s at Sacred Heart | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| American at Holy Cross | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Loyola Maryland at Lehigh | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Davidson at Rhode Island | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| North Alabama at North Florida | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Queens at FGCU | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UAlbany at Binghamton | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Winthrop at UNC Asheville | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Radford at Charleston Southern | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UTEP at FIU | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Virginia U. of Lynchburg at Delaware State | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Elon at Delaware | 2:00pm | FloSports |
| Monmouth at Campbell | 2:00pm | FloSports |
| Stanford at North Carolina | 2:15pm | CW |
| Saint Louis at Richmond | 2:30pm | USA |
| Purdue at Oregon | 3:00pm | NBC or Peacock |
| Wisconsin at USC | 3:00pm | BTN |
| Colorado at Oklahoma State | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Tulsa at South Florida | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Central Arkansas at Jacksonville | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| New Hampshire at NJIT | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Siena at Merrimack | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UNCG at Western Carolina | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Louisiana at ULM | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| North Dakota State at South Dakota | 3:00pm | Summit |
| New Orleans at East Texas A&M | 3:15pm | ESPN+ |
| Tennessee at Vanderbilt | 3:30pm | SECN |
| Lindenwood at Morehead State | 3:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Miami (OH) at Kent State | 3:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Georgia State at Arkansas State | 3:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Georgia Southern at Old Dominion | 3:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Marshall at Coastal Carolina | 3:30pm | ESPN+ |
| South Carolina at Oklahoma | 4:00pm | ESPN Networks |
| Notre Dame at Syracuse | 4:00pm | ACCN |
| Loyola Chicago at Dayton | 4:00pm | CBSSN |
| UC Davis at UC Santa Barbara | 4:00pm | Spectrum |
| Central Connecticut at Fairleigh Dickinson | 4:00pm | YES |
| Colorado State at Wyoming | 4:00pm | MWN |
| Quinnipiac at Mount St. Mary’s | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Stephen F. Austin at Nicholls | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Little Rock at Tennessee Tech | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Navy at Bucknell | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| USC Upstate at Gardner-Webb | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| West Georgia at Stetson | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UMass Lowell at Bryant | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| North Texas at UTSA | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Troy at South Alabama | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| App State at James Madison | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Utah Tech at Utah Valley | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Eastern Illinois at Tennessee State | 4:30pm | ESPN+ |
| SIUE at UT Martin | 4:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Western Illinois at Southern Indiana | 4:30pm | ESPN+ |
| UTRGV at Houston Christian | 4:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Southeastern Louisiana at Northwestern State | 4:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Chattanooga at Furman | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Northeastern at Charleston | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Alabama State at Alabama A&M | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Southern Miss at Texas State | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Portland at Washington State | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Lamar at McNeese | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Iowa State at West Virginia | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Sam Houston at Jacksonville State | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Louisiana Tech at Kennesaw State | 5:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Oral Roberts at South Dakota State | 5:15pm | MidCo Sports 2 |
| Jackson State at Prairie View A&M | 5:30pm | YouTube |
| Mississippi Valley State at Bethune-Cookman | 5:30pm | YouTube |
| Ole Miss at Mississippi State | 6:00pm | ESPN Networks |
| Arkansas at Missouri | 6:00pm | SECN |
| California at NC State | 6:00pm | ACCN |
| ETSU at Samford | 6:00pm | CBSSN |
| San Jose State at Nevada | 6:00pm | KNSN |
| Alcorn State at Texas Southern | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Mercer at Wofford | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| A&M-Corpus Christi at UIW | 6:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Saint Francis U at LIU | 7:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| WKU at Middle Tennessee | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Rider at Marist | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| East Carolina at Wichita State | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Austin Peay at Lipscomb | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Bellarmine at Eastern Kentucky | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| NM State at Liberty | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Cal State Fullerton at Long Beach State | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Presbyterian at High Point | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Eastern Washington at Idaho | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| California Baptist at Abilene Christian | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| St. John’s at Seton Hall | 8:00pm | FOX FS1 |
| UNLV at San Diego State | 8:00pm | CBSSN |
| Tarleton at Grand Canyon | 8:00pm | KUTP |
| Southern Utah at Seattle U | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Montana at Idaho State | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Portland State at Northern Arizona | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Sacramento State at Northern Colorado | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UC San Diego at UC Riverside | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Denver at St. Thomas | 8:00pm | Summit |
| LSU at Texas A&M | 8:30pm | SECN |
| Santa Clara at Gonzaga | 9:00pm | KHQ |
| San Diego at Loyola Marymount | 9:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Montana State at Weber State | 9:00pm | ESPN+ |
| BYU at Utah | 9:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Cal Poly at UC Irvine | 10:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Saint Mary’s at Pepperdine | 10:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Oregon State at San Francisco | 10:00pm | ESPN+ |
| CSU Bakersfield at Hawai’i | 11:59pm | ESPN+ |
| MOTORSPORTS | TIME ET | TV |
| AMA Supercross: San Diego | 8:30pm | Peacock |
| GOLF | TIME ET | TV |
| PGA Tour: American Express | 4:00pm | GOLF |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| EPL: Newcastle United vs AFC Bournemouth | 7:30am | USA Peacock fuboTV |
| La Liga: Girona vs Sevilla | 8:00am | ESPN+ fuboTV |
| Serie A: Bologna vs Monza | 9:00am | Paramount+ fuboTV |
| Bundesliga: Bayern München vs Wolfsburg | 9:30am | ESPN+ |
| Bundesliga: Bochum vs RB Leipzig | 9:30am | ESPN+ |
| Bundesliga: Heidenheim vs St. Pauli | 9:30am | ESPN+ |
| Bundesliga: Holstein Kiel vs Hoffenheim | 9:30am | ESPN+ |
| Bundesliga: Stuttgart vs Freiburg | 9:30am | ESPN+ |
| EPL: West Ham United vs Crystal Palace | 10:00am | USA Peacock fuboTV |
| EPL: Brentford vs Liverpool | 10:00am | Peacock fuboTV |
| EPL: Leicester City vs Fulham | 10:00am | Peacock fuboTV |
| La Liga: Leganés vs Atlético Madrid | 10:15am | ESPN+ fuboTV |
| Ligue 1: Lens vs PSG | 11:00am | Fanatiz beIN Sports |
| Serie A: Juventus vs Milan | 12:00pm | Paramount+ fuboTV |
| La Liga: Real Betis vs Deportivo Alavés | 12:30pm | ESPN+ fuboTV |
| Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen vs Borussia M’gladbach | 12:30pm | ESPN+ |
| EPL: Arsenal vs Aston Villa | 12:30pm | USA Peacock fuboTV |
| Ligue 1: Rennes vs Brest | 1:00pm | Fanatiz beIN Sports |
| Serie A: Atalanta vs Napoli | 2:45pm | Paramount+ fuboTV |
| Ligue 1: Olympique Lyonnais vs Toulouse | 3:05pm | Fanatiz beIN Sports |
| La Liga: Getafe vs Barcelona | 3:00pm | ESPN+ fuboTV |
| Liga MX: Toluca vs Monterrey | 8:00pm | VIX |
| Liga MX: Juárez vs Cruz Azul | 10:00pm | FS1 fuboTV |