THE INDIANA SRN “SPORTSPAGE” SATURDAY DECEMBER 10, 2022

INDIANA BOYS BASKETBALL SCORES-FRIDAY

Alexandria	57	Blackford	49
Anderson	70	Indianapolis Tech	59
Angola	48	Garrett	29
Barr-Reeve	53	Springs Valley	39
Batesville	50	Lawrenceburg	37
Bedford North Lawrence	59	Columbus East	48
Ben Davis	64	Franklin Central	47
Bethesda Christian	51	Indianapolis Ritter	50	OT
Bloomfield	69	Clay City	53
Bloomington North	65	Mooresville	44
Blue River	57	Cowan	44
Boonville	76	Tecumseh	67
Borden	49	South Central (Elizabeth)	47
Brebeuf Jesuit	58	Indianapolis Shortridge	28
Brownsburg	62	Pike	29
Brownstown Central	71	Scottsburg	48
Carroll (Flora)	68	Caston	43
Charlestown	61	Clarksville	59
Chicago Bloom (Ill.)	75	Hammond Noll	41
Christian Academy	53	Rock Creek Academy	52
Churubusco	52	South Adams	28
Clinton Prairie	64	Delphi	55	2OT
Covington	65	Attica	8
Culver Academy	58	Lafayette Central Catholic	25
Daleville	39	Centerville	36
Danville	71	Southmont	36
Decatur Central	58	Indianapolis Roncalli	51
Eastern (Greentown)	69	Tri-Central	60
Eastern (Pekin)	75	Crawford County	61
Eastern Hancock	55	Northeastern	45
Elkhart	52	South Bend Adams	50
Evansville Bosse	64	Princeton	51
Evansville Day	74	Tell City	38
Evansville Harrison	58	Castle	55
Evansville Memorial	57	Jasper	53
Evansville North	67	Gibson Southern	61
Evansville Reitz	64	Evansville Mater Dei	52
Fort Wayne Concordia	52	Carroll (Fort Wayne)	51
Fort Wayne Luers	66	Fort Wayne Northrop	54
Fort Wayne North	77	Fort Wayne South	63
Fort Wayne Wayne	62	Fort Wayne Snider	57
Fountain Central	69	Riverton Parke	19
Frankfort	66	Tri-West	43
Franklin County	34	Rushville	32
Franklin	43	Greenwood	40
Frankton	62	Eastbrook	39
Fremont	90	Hamilton	31
Hagerstown	69	Union County	66	3OT
Hamilton Southeastern	57	North Central (Indianapolis)	54
Hammond Central	50	Gary West	37
Hanover Central	54	River Forest	39
Harrison (West Lafayette)	45	Lafayette Jeff	42
Hebron	61	Tri-Twp.	35
Henryville	65	Austin	62
Heritage Hills	51	North Posey	46
Homestead	50	Fort Wayne Dwenger	48
Indian Creek	63	Cloverdale	18
Indianapolis Chatard	58	Heritage Christian	55
Indianapolis Lutheran	46	Cascade	35
Indianapolis Tindley	100	Eminence	44
Jac-Cen-Del	67	Shawe Memorial	38
Jeffersonville	53	Seymour	38
Jennings County	73	East Central	43
Knightstown	51	Cambridge City Lincoln	50
Kokomo	72	McCutcheon	38
Kouts	71	South Central (Union Mills)	41
LaVille	48	Winamac	42
Lake Station	75	Wheeler	31
Lakeland Christian	55	Bluffton	43
Lebanon	56	Western Boone	49
Lewis Cass	69	Hamilton Heights	64
Linton-Stockton	71	Mitchell	34
Loogootee	61	Forest Park	56
Madison-Grant	61	Elwood	45
Marion	63	Richmond	61
Medora	68	Martinsville Tabernacle	45
Mishawaka Marian	64	Plymouth	44
Mishawaka	62	South Bend Riley	57
Mount Vernon (Fortville)	53	Pendleton Heights	50
Muncie Central	55	Logansport	53
Munster	61	East Chicago Central	51
New Albany	44	Floyd Central	40
New Castle	50	Shelbyville	38
New Palestine	53	Greenfield-Central	46
New Prairie	42	Bremen	41
Noblesville	45	Carmel	42
North Daviess	65	North Central (Farmersburg)	41
North Decatur	79	Edinburgh	50
North Judson	65	Rochester	45
North Newton	49	Highland	48
Northview	67	West Vigo	45
Oak Hill	63	Mississinewa	39
Orleans	45	Northeast Dubois	42
Owen Valley	80	Brown County	37
Paoli	40	West Washington	33
Park Tudor	72	Parke Heritage	47
Penn	78	Concord	47
Perry Central	42	Wood Memorial	30
Perry Meridian	48	Whiteland	44
Peru	69	Southwood	64	OT
Plainfield	66	Martinsville	43
Providence	56	Lanesville	26
Purdue Poly Englewood	73	Indianapolis Herron	29
Rensselaer Central	69	North White	31
Rising Sun	66	Switzerland County	57
Rossville	61	Frontier	29
Seeger	64	North Montgomery	50
Shakamak	46	North Knox	43
Shenandoah	46	Tri	36
Sheridan	70	Clinton Central	36
Shoals	54	White River Valley	28
Silver Creek	47	North Harrison	37
South Bend Washington	79	South Bend Clay	39
South Dearborn	65	Madison	53
South Decatur	62	Milan	46
South Knox	41	Southridge	40	OT
South Putnam	38	Greencastle	37
South Ripley	56	Hauser	43
South Spencer	54	Washington	37
South Vermillion	45	Edgewood	37
Southport	51	Bloomington South	50
Southwestern (Hanover)	69	New Washington	42
Speedway	68	Monrovia	65
Sullivan	71	North Putnam	47
Taylor	59	Northwestern	51	OT
Thrival Indy Academy	86	Victory College Prep	42
Tipton	57	Western	42
Traders Point Christian	66	North Vermillion	34
Trinity Lutheran	59	Southwestern (Shelbyville)	42
Triton Central	54	Greensburg	51
Triton	63	Pioneer	31
Twin Lakes	50	Tri-County	42
University	73	Indianapolis Scecina	39
Valparaiso	76	Lowell	21
Vincennes Rivet	53	Washington Catholic	43
Wabash	77	Maconaquah	68
Waldron	46	Morristown	45
Wapahani	53	Lapel	32
Wes-Del	73	Union (Modoc)	15
West Central	49	South Newton	39
West Lafayette	74	Crawfordsville	46
Westville	51	Boone Grove	23
Winchester	64	Union City	32
Yorktown	49	Delta	39
Zionsville	43	Lawrence Central	39	OT

INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL SCORES-FRIDAY

Anderson	71	Indianapolis Tech	68
Bellmont	53	East Noble	22
Bethesda Christian	35	Indianapolis Ritter	25
Blackford	53	Alexandria	44
Blue River	68	Cowan	40
Bremen	63	New Prairie	54
Brown County	58	Owen Valley	52
Calumet	51	Gary 21st Century	32
Carroll (Fort Wayne)	68	Fort Wayne Concordia	41
Central Noble	65	Westview	30
Chesterton	38	Portage	35
Columbia City	82	Norwell	66
Connersville	51	Hagerstown	23
Corydon Central	55	Salem	21
Culver Academy	49	Argos	46
Danville	65	Southmont	18
Eastbrook	44	Frankton	43	OT
Eastside	50	Prairie Heights	17
Elkhart	63	South Bend Adams	33
Eminence	51	Indianapolis Tindley	42
Fairfield	59	Lakeland	33
Fishers	55	Noblesville	47
Fort Wayne North	55	Fort Wayne South	32
Fort Wayne Northrop	67	Fort Wayne Luers	18
Fort Wayne Snider	67	Fort Wayne Wayne	43
Franklin	59	Greenwood	28
Greencastle	56	South Putnam	39
Greenfield-Central	52	New Palestine	38
Hamilton Southeastern	73	Avon	42
Heritage Christian	62	Indianapolis Chatard	55
Heritage	51	Southern Wells	32
Homestead	57	Fort Wayne Dwenger	21
Huntington North	54	New Haven	18
Indian Creek	62	Cloverdale	15
Indiana Math & Science	50	Horizon Christian	18
Indianapolis Attucks	55	Christel House Manual	17
Jay County	62	Adams Central	44
Jimtown	52	South Bend St. Joseph	46
John Glenn	50	South Bend Riley	11
Kankakee Valley	53	Hobart	52
Knox	61	Oregon-Davis	48
LaVille	54	Winamac	27
Lake Central	61	Michigan City	27
Lebanon	49	Western Boone	33
Leo	37	DeKalb	31
Logansport	62	Muncie Central	42
Louisville Central (Ky.)	68	Silver Creek	35
Manchester	46	Whitko	30
McCutcheon	38	Kokomo	35
Merrillville	55	LaPorte	20
Mishawaka Marian	52	Penn	51
Morristown	62	Waldron	38
Munster	63	Lowell	35
NorthWood	45	Mishawaka	44
Northview	46	West Vigo	25
Northwestern	75	Taylor	14
Shelbyville	76	New Castle	41
Speedway	52	Monrovia	45	OT
Sullivan	66	North Putnam	23
Tippecanoe Valley	44	North Miami	38
Tri-Central	66	Eastern (Greentown)	28
Tri-Twp.	46	Hebron	23
Tri-West	58	Frankfort	33
University	46	Muncie Burris	17
Valparaiso	59	Crown Point	27
Wawasee	52	Goshen	41
West Noble	50	Churubusco	42
Westville	39	Boone Grove	34
Woodlan	42	Bluffton	34
Zionsville	43	Westfield	39

TOP 25 MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

#18 Gonzaga 77 Washington 60

ELSEWHERE: http://hosted.stats.com/cbk/scoreboard.asp?conf=-1&day=20221209

TOP 25 WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

No games scheduled

ELSEWHERE:

Western Illinois 83 Valparaiso 67

Xavier 48 Cincinnati 35

COMPLETE SCOREBOARD: http://hosted.stats.com/wcbk/scoreboard.asp?conf=-1&day=20221209

NBA SCOREBOARD

Indiana 121 Washington 111

Orlando 113 Toronto 109

New York 121 Charlotte 102

Sacramento 106 Cleveland 95

Brooklyn 120 Atlanta 116

Philadelphia 133 LA Lakers 122 OT

Memphis 114 Detroit 103

New Orleans 128 Phoenix 117

Minnesota 118 Utah 108

Milwaukee 106 Dallas 105

BOX SCORES: http://hosted.stats.com/nba/scoreboard.asp

NHL SCOREBOARD

Pittsburgh 4 Buffalo 3

NY Islanders 6 New Jersey 4

Washington 4 Seattle 1

Columbus 3 Calgary 1

Winnipeg 3 Chicago 1

NY Rangers 2 Colorado 1

Edmonton 5 Minnesota 2

Arizona 4 Boston 3

Vegas 2 Philadelphia 1

San Jose 6 Anaheim 1

BOX SCORES: http://hosted.stats.com/nhl/scoreboard.asp

COLLEGE BOWL SCHEDULE

College Football Playoff

DATE	BOWL	TIME (TV)	MATCHUP
Jan. 9	National Championship Inglewood, Calif.	TBD (ESPN)	Semifinal winners
Dec. 31	Peach semifinal Atlanta	8 p.m. (ESPN)	(1) Georgia vs. (4) Ohio State)
Dec. 31	Fiesta semifinal Glendale, Ariz.	4 p.m. (ESPN)	(2) Michigan vs. (3) TCU

Selection committee bowl games

DATE	BOWL	TIME (TV)	MATCHUP
Jan. 2	Rose Pasadena, Calif.	5 p.m. (ESPN)	(8) Utah vs. (11) Penn State
Jan. 2	Cotton Arlington, Texas	1 p.m. (ESPN)	(10) USC vs. (16) Tulane
Dec. 31	Sugar New Orleans	Noon (ESPN)	(5) Alabama vs. (9) Kansas State
Dec. 30	Orange Miami Gardens, Fla.	8 p.m. (ESPN)	(6) Tennessee vs. (7) Clemson

Other bowl games

DATE	BOWL	TIME (TV)	MATCHUP
Jan. 2	Citrus Orlando, Fla.	1 p.m. (ABC)	LSU vs. Purdue
Jan. 2	ReliaQuest Tampa, Fla.	Noon (ESPN2)	Mississippi State vs. Illinois
Dec. 31	Music City Nashville, Tenn.	Noon (ABC)	Iowa vs. Kentucky
Dec. 30	Arizona Tucson, Ariz.	4:30 p.m. (Barstool)	Ohio vs. Wyoming
Dec. 30	Gator Jacksonville, Fla.	3:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Notre Dame vs. South Carolina
Dec. 30	Sun El Paso, Texas	2 p.m. (CBS)	UCLA vs. Pitt
Dec. 30	Duke’s Mayo Charlotte, N.C.	Noon (ESPN)	Maryland vs. NC State
Dec. 29	Alamo San Antonio	9 p.m. (ESPN)	Texas vs. Washington
Dec. 29	Cheez-It Orlando, Fla.	5:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Oklahoma vs. Florida State
Dec. 29	Pinstripe New York	2 p.m. (ESPN)	Minnesota vs. Syracuse
Dec. 28	Texas Houston	9 p.m. (ESPN)	Ole Miss vs. Texas Tech
Dec. 28	Holiday San Diego	8 p.m. (Fox)	Oregon vs. North Carolina
Dec. 28	Liberty Memphis, Tenn.	5:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Arkansas vs. Kansas
Dec. 28	Military Annapolis, Md.	2 p.m. (ESPN)	Duke vs. UCF
Dec. 27	Guaranteed Rate Phoenix	10:15 p.m. (ESPN)	Wisconsin vs. Oklahoma State
Dec. 27	Birmingham Birmingham, Ala.	6:45 p.m. (ESPN)	Coastal Carolina vs. East Carolina
Dec. 27	First Responder University Park, Texas	3:15 p.m. (ESPN)	Memphis vs. Utah State
Dec. 27	Camellia Montgomery, Ala.	Noon (ESPN)	Buffalo vs. Georgia Southern
Dec. 26	Quick Lane Detroit	2:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Bowling Green vs. New Mexico State
Dec. 24	Hawai’i Honolulu	8 p.m. (ESPN)	San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee
Dec. 23	Gasparilla Tampa, Fla.	6:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Missouri vs. Wake Forest
Dec. 23	Independence Shreveport, La.	3 p.m. (ESPN)	Houston vs. Louisiana
Dec. 22	Armed Forces Fort Worth, Texas	7:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Baylor vs. Air Force
Dec. 21	New Orleans New Orleans	9 p.m. (ESPN)	Western Kentucky vs. South Alabama
Dec. 20	Boca Raton Boca Raton, Fla.	7:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Toledo vs. Liberty
Dec. 20	Potato Boise, Idaho	3:30 p.m. (ESPN)	San Jose State vs. Eastern Michigan
Dec. 19	Myrtle Beach Conway, S.C.	2:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Marshall vs. UConn
Dec. 17	Frisco Frisco, Texas	9:15 p.m. (ESPN)	North Texas vs. Boise State
Dec. 17	New Mexico Albuquerque, N.M.	7:30 p.m. (ESPN)	BYU vs. SMU
Dec. 17	LendingTree Mobile, Ala.	5:45 p.m. (ESPN)	Southern Miss vs. Rice
Dec. 17	Jimmy Kimmel L.A. Inglewood, Calif.	3:30 p.m. (ABC)	Washington State vs. Fresno State
Dec. 17	Las Vegas Las Vegas, Nev.	2:30 p.m. (ESPN)	Florida vs. Oregon State
Dec. 17	Fenway Boston	11 a.m. (ABC)	Louisville vs. Cincinnati
Dec. 16	Cure Orlando, Fla.	3 p.m. (ESPN)	Troy vs. UTSA
Dec. 16	Bahamas Nassau, Bahamas	11:30 a.m. (ESPN)	UAB vs. Miami (Ohio)

TOP HEADLINES

Croatia beats Brazil on penalties in World Cup quarterfinals

AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) Neymar is again going home without a World Cup title. Luka Modric’s quest continues unabated.

Modric converted one of the penalties as Croatia knocked Brazil out of the World Cup on Friday, beating the five-time champions 4-2 in a shootout to reach the semifinals for the second straight time.

Neymar tied Pele’s record for most goals for the national team, giving Brazil the lead in extra time. But he wasn’t among the four Brazilian players to take a penalty in the shootout, instead reduced to tears on the field at Education City Stadium while the red-and-white clad Croatians celebrated.

“It feels like a nightmare. It’s hard to believe this is happening,” said Neymar, who kept his future with the national team open after the defeat.

Brazil coach Tite said he had saved his best player to take the fifth penalty.

“That’s the one with the most pressure, and he would be the player with the most quality and mental preparedness to take the shot,” Tite said.

Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic saved the first penalty attempt by Rodrygo and Marquinhos later hit the post. Livakovic had already produced some key stops as the teams drew 0-0 in regulation and 1-1 in extra time.

“We are raised as fighters, giving our best,” Livakovic said. “And that’s the recipe for success.”

Five of Croatia’s last six matches at World Cups have gone to extra time, including its penalty shootout win over Japan in the round of 16 in Qatar. The team has been successful in eight of its last 10 knockout matches at the tournament.

Croatia came from behind in every game of the knockout stage in 2018, and again in the two elimination matches it has played in Qatar.

“We have a strong character and we do not give up,” Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic said. “We were prepared for everything today. We knew that as the game unfolded, our chances improved.”

Nikola Vlasic, Lovro Majer and Mislav Orsic also converted their penalties for Croatia, while Casemiro and Pedro scored for Brazil.

Both goals came in the additional 30 minutes, first with Neymar scoring late in the first half of extra time to give Brazil the lead, and then with Bruno Petkovic equalizing in the 117th.

Neymar’s goal moved him into a tie with Pele as Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 77 goals, but the forward again fell short of winning a major title with Brazil and had to be consoled by veteran defender Dani Alves as he cried after the match.

Croatia will next face Argentina on Tuesday to try to return to the World Cup final four years after losing the title to France. The Argentines beat the Netherlands in a shootout.

Brazil was looking to reach the semifinals for the first time since 2014. The team hadn’t made it that far since hosting the tournament eight years ago, when the Selecao was embarrassed by Germany 7-1.

Brazil was trying to defeat a European opponent in the knockout stage of the World Cup for the first time since the 2002 final against Germany, when the team won for the last time.

Neither Neymar nor Modric could do much to give their teams significant chances early on, as both teams played cautiously in attack and defense. Brazil was better after halftime and came closer to scoring.

Neymar, starting for the second game in a row after recovering from an ankle injury sustained in Brazil’s opening match, had some of his team’s best opportunities, including a couple close-range attempts saved by Livakovic.

“He was the difference on very crucial moments,” Dalic said of his goalkeeper. “He was there to save us.”

Neymar scored his milestone goal after dribbling past Livakovic inside the area and sending a shot into the top of the net. Brazil was a few minutes from victory when Petkovic scored with a left-footed shot that deflected off Marquinhos before getting past Brazil goalkeeper Alisson Becker. It was Croatia’s only attempt on target, against 11 by Brazil.

“It’s hard to find the words. We are upset,” Casemiro said. “Especially because of how it happened, we had it in our hands. It’s tough. We have to lift our heads and try to move on.”

TITE’S DEPARTURE

It was Brazil’s last match under Tite, who had said before the World Cup began that he was not going to stay with the national team.

“It’s the end of a cycle,” Tite said. “The loss hurts, but I’m at peace with myself right now.”

Messi, Argentina advance to semifinals at World Cup

LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) Lionel Messi started the match by delivering another soccer clinic. The Argentina superstar ended it sporting a bloodied top lip, shouting abuse to opponents and even blasting the referee.

And of course there were goals, too, for one of the greats of the game whose bid to win the World Cup for the first time is still on track.

Messi is heading to the semifinals with Argentina after a chaotic penalty-shootout victory over Netherlands that had just about everything on Friday.

Argentina took a 2-0 lead, conceded an equalizer in the 11th minute of second-half stoppage time to send the match to extra time at 2-2, and then won the shootout 4-3 amid a deafening noise inside Lusail Stadium.

Messi, who scored a penalty in regulation time, converted his penalty in the shootout while goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez made two saves to help Argentina secure a semifinal match against Croatia, which beat Brazil earlier Friday.

After Lautaro Martinez scored the clinching penalty, Messi – with his arms outstretched – sprinted toward the goalkeeper, who had fallen to the ground to the side of the goal, and lay on top of him.

“We had to suffer,” Messi said, “but we got through.”

Messi did, especially, in an often violent match that featured 17 yellow cards – a record for a World Cup match – two of which went to Netherlands defender Denzel Dumfries, leading to him getting sent off after the game.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni called the game “ugly” and Messi was critical of the Spanish referee, Antonio Mateu, saying: “I don’t think he was up to the standard. He was very harmful for us.”

In a side of Messi rarely seen, he also broke off from his post-match interview on the field to shout abuse at the scorer of the Netherlands’ two goals, Wout Weghorst.

“What are you looking at, stupid?” Messi was heard saying.

Messi and his teammates hung around on the field for 20 minutes at the end, taking turns dancing and jumping up and down in front of Argentina’s celebrating, scarf-waving fans.

Messi said the late Diego Maradona was looking over the team.

“Diego is watching us from heaven,” Messi said of the former Argentina captain and coach who died two years ago. “He is pushing us. I hope it stays like that until the end.”

It is only the second time Argentina has reached the last four since 1990. In 2014, Messi was part of the team that lost to Germany in the final and he looks in the mood to get there again in a tournament that he is turning into his own personal highlight reel.

Messi delivered a mesmerizing piece of skill and vision to set up the opening goal for Nahuel Molina in the 35th minute. He twisted free in central midfield and burst forward, unbalancing Netherlands defender Nathan Ake and then delivering a no-look reverse pass for Molina to finish for his first international goal.

His penalty in the 73rd minute, which came after Marcus Acuna was tripped by Dumfries, was his fourth goal of the tournament and took him to 10 overall in the World Cup – tied with Gabriel Batistuta for the most for Argentina. Messi now has 94 goals in his 169 international games.

His team trailing 2-0, Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal sent on two tall strikers – Weghorst and Luuk De Jong – and even told center back Virgil van Dijk to play up front. The game suddenly changed.

Weghorst glanced in a header from a right-wing cross in the 78th – five minutes after coming on – and then scored the latest second-half goal in a knockout-stage game at a World Cup.

Off a cleverly worked free-kick routine learned by Weghorst at his Turkish club, Besiktas, Teun Koopmeiners feigned to take a shot at goal from the edge of the area but instead played it short and low into the middle of the area. It deceived the Argentine defense as Weghorst took a touch, held off his marker and slotted home a finish on the stretch.

Enzo Fernandez hit the post near the end of extra time and was then the only Argentina player to fail to score in the shootout. Martinez’s saves were from attempts by Van Dijk and Steven Berghuis, after which he pulled his shorts high and danced a jig.

The loss ended the 71-year-old Van Gaal’s third stint in charge of the Netherlands. He was also the team’s coach at the World Cup in 2014 when Argentina beat the Dutch in a penalty shootout in the semifinals.

“Ever since we arrived here,” Van Gaal said, “we have been focused on penalties. We thought we were going to win the penalty shootout.”

SUSPENSIONS

Argentina defenders Marcus Acuna and Gonzalo Montiel will miss the semifinals after collecting second yellow cards of the tournament.

Soccer writer Grant Wahl dies at World Cup match in Qatar

LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) Grant Wahl, one of the most well-known soccer writers in the United States, died early Saturday while covering the World Cup match between Argentina and the Netherlands.

U.S. media seated near him said Wahl fell back in his seat in a section of Lusail Iconic Stadium reserved for journalists during extra time of the game, and reporters adjacent to him called for assistance. Emergency services workers responded very quickly, the reporters said, and the reporters later were told that Wahl had died.

“He received immediate emergency medical treatment on site, which continued as he was transferred by ambulance to Hamad General Hospital,” the World Cup organizing committee said in a statement, which did not list a cause of death. “We are in touch with the US Embassy and relevant local authorities to ensure the process of repatriating the body is in accordance with the family’s wishes.”

Wahl tweeted on Wednesday that he had celebrated his birthday that day. American reporters who knew Wahl said he was 49.

“We could always count on Grant to deliver insightful and entertaining stories about our game, and its major protagonists,” the U.S. Soccer Federation said in a statement. “Grant’s belief in the power of the game to advance human rights was, and will remain, an inspiration to all. Grant made soccer his life’s work, and we are devastated that he and his brilliant writing will no longer be with us.”

Wahl was covering his eighth World Cup. He wrote Monday on his website that he had visited a medical clinic while in Qatar.

“My body finally broke down on me. Three weeks of little sleep, high stress and lots of work can do that to you,” Wahl wrote. “What had been a cold over the last 10 days turned into something more severe on the night of the USA-Netherlands game, and I could feel my upper chest take on a new level of pressure and discomfort.”

Wahl wrote that he tested negative for COVID-19 and sought treatment for his symptoms.

“I went into the medical clinic at the main media center today, and they said I probably have bronchitis. They gave me a course of antibiotics and some heavy-duty cough syrup, and I’m already feeling a bit better just a few hours later. But still: No bueno,” he wrote.

Wahl wore a rainbow T-shirt in support of LGBTQ rights to the United States’ World Cup opener against Wales on Nov. 21 and wrote that security refused him entry and told him to remove the shirt. Gay and lesbian sex is criminalized in Qatar, a conservative Muslim emirate.

Wahl wrote he was detained for 25 minutes at Ahmed Bin Ali stadium in Al Rayyan, then was let go by a security commander. Wahl said FIFA apologized to him.

U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price tweeted late Friday: “We were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Grant Wahl and send our condolences to his family, with whom we have been in close communication. We are engaged with senior Qatari officials to see to it that his family’s wishes are fulfilled as expeditiously as possible.”

Wahl is survived by his wife, Dr. Celine Gounder, an associate professor at New York University School of Medicine, attending physician at Bellevue Hospital Center and CBS News contributor.

Gounder tweeted that she was thankful for the support of her husband’s “soccer family” and friends who had reached out.

“I’m in complete shock,” she wrote.

Among Wahl’s work before he began covering soccer exclusively was a Sports Illustrated cover story about LeBron James in 2002, when James was a junior at St. Vincent-St. Mary High in Akron, Ohio.

“He was always pretty cool to be around. He spent a lot of time in my hometown of Akron,” James said in Philadelphia after the Los Angeles Lakers lost in overtime to the 76ers. “Any time his name would come up, I’ll always think back to me as a teenager having Grant in our building down at St. V’s. It’s a tragic loss. It’s unfortunate to lose someone as great as he was. I wish his family the best. May he rest in paradise.”

A voter at times in FIFA’s annual awards, Wahl wrote this week that he had been among 82 journalists honored by FIFA and the international sports press association AIPS for attending eight or more World Cups.

Wahl graduated from Princeton in 1996 and worked for Sports Illustrated from 1996 to 2021, known primarily for his coverage of soccer and college basketball. He then launched his own website.

Wahl also worked for Fox Sports from 2012-19.

Williamson’s 35 points lift Pelicans past Suns, 128-117

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Zion Williamson apologized for his 360-degree, one-handed slam dunk that angered the Phoenix Suns at the end of a game that the New Orleans Pelicans were already going to win.

Still, the crowd-pleasing play symbolized Williamson’s potential to rise above the disappointments of previous seasons and live up to the extraordinary hype that followed him into the NBA.

The dunk contest-style jam capped a season-high 35-point performance for Williamson, and the Pelicans beat the Suns 128-117 on Friday night in a matchup of the top two teams in the Western Conference.

“That was a little out of character for me,” Williamson said of the game-ending dunk, after which players and coaches from both teams swarmed around one another angrily as officials frantically stepped in to separate them.

“I got carried away a little bit. I admit that,” Williamson said. “But I was in that locker room when my brothers were down because the Suns sent us home (from the playoffs) last year. That’s a tough moment to be a part of. So, in that moment got carried away. I admit that.”

Williamson missed all of last season – his third in the NBA – with a foot injury and came into this campaign having missed more games in his career than he’d played. Lately, he’s resembled a dynamo, averaging 29.5 points during a six-game Pelicans winning streak – all while New Orleans star forward Brandon Ingram has been out with a foot injury.

Jose Alvarado came off the bench to add 20 points for New Orleans, which had to hold on in the opener of a two-game series after the Suns hit 15 of their 22 made 3-pointers in the second half to erase a 16-point Pelicans lead.

CJ McCollum had 18 points for the Pelicans, who have won six straight and 11 of 13, and afterward questioned the Suns’ indignance over Williamson’s dunk.

“They got to get back on defense if they don’t want us to dunk the ball,” McCollum said.

Before Pelicans coach Willie Green took his first head coaching job in New Orleans, he was Suns coach Monty Williams’ assistant, and they remain close friends.

Both coaches downplayed the heated exchanges.

“That stuff doesn’t bother me at all, man,” Williams said. “It’s part of basketball. It wasn’t that big of a deal. It was a bunch of guys out there yelling and screaming and not even pushing. Just everybody trying to stand their ground.”

Green, who briefly had to be held back by assistant coaches, called it, “Just a little brush up. Nothing major.”

But Phoenix guard Cameron Payne explained why the Suns reacted angrily.

“There was just no sportsmanship and we don’t really like that,” Payne said. “We do the right thing. I felt like they should’ve done the right thing and they didn’t. We didn’t take it well.”

Larry Nance Jr. had 17 points and nine rebounds for New Orleans, while Jonas Valanciunas overcame a 4-of-16 shooting night to finish with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Deandre Ayton had 25 points and 14 rebounds, and Chris Paul added 24 points for the Suns (16-10), who lost for the fourth time in five games to fall 1 1/2 games behind New Orleans (17-8) atop the Western Conference.

“This is not us,” Williams said. “We’re just giving up way too many points in the paint and in general. … I’ve got to get the guys in the game that are going to be physical and smart enough to handle the pressure that they give you in the paint.”

New Orleans led 85-69 when Naji Marshall hit the first of his two 3s in the second half, but Devin Booker and Damion Lee responded with back-to-back 3s and the Suns kept chipping away with accurate perimeter shooting.

Torrey Craig’s 3 tied it at 105 and Payne’s deep 3 put Phoenix back in front 108-107.

But McCollum responded with a 3 and Williamson intercepted Booker’s pass and bolted the other way for a forceful one-handed dunk with 3:59 left. New Orleans did not trail again.

TIP-INS

Suns: Shot 50% overall (43 of 86) and 50% from 3-point range (22 of 44), with Paul going 6 of 9 from deep. … Craig and Booker had 14 points.

Pelicans: Marshall finished with 14 points. … Shot 51% (46 of 90) but just 8 of 27 from 3-point range. … Outscored the Suns 72-38 in the paint.

RIVALRY RENEWED

The game was a rematch of the first round of last season’s playoffs, which Phoenix won. Intensity was high and the crowd engaged from the outset, heartily booing Paul as he handled the ball on the opening possession.

“There’s tension there all the time,” Alvarado said. “Every game we play them is going to be physical, really locked in. . It’s always going to be a playoff game to us because we’re never going to let that go until we eliminate them.”

Alvarado scored 13 points in his first six minutes after coming off the bench, hitting three from deep in that stretch and also going 1-on-1 along the baseline against the 11-inch-taller Jock Landale and spun in a layup.

Randle stays hot, scores 33 as Knicks top Hornets 121-102

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Julius Randle scored 33 points, RJ Barrett added 26 and the New York Knicks beat the Charlotte Hornets 121-102 on Friday night for their third straight victory.

Jalen Brunson had 11 points and 11 assists for the Knicks, who evened their record at 13-13.

“I’m just being aggressive and taking what the defense is giving me,” said Randle, who has five 30-point games this season. “And, I’m playing with confidence.”

Said Barrett: “He’s cooking. We need him to keep doing that.”

Randle was more excited that seven Knicks players finished in double digits in scoring.

“It’s a lot of fun and everybody is in a rhythm,” Randle said. “The energy is contagious.”

Rhythm was the word Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau used to describe Randle’s play the last two games.

“He had a play that he was behind the play, beat everyone down the floor, pulled everyone in, and we ended up getting a 3 on it. And there’s no stat for that other than it helps you create rhythm for your team,” Thibodeau said. “And he’s made several plays like that when he’s getting double-teams, getting off the ball, moving without the ball, he’s screening off the ball. He’s playing a great all-around game. I think that helps set the tone for the team.”

Randle hurt the Hornets in every way imaginable on offense, scoring on four 3-pointers, mid-range jumpers and drives, while making 11 of 14 free throws.

Coming off a 34-point, 17-rebound performance in New York’s 113-89 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night, Randle scored 19 points in the first half as the Knicks built a 55-49 halftime lead.

New York closed the third quarter on an 18-5 run behind 10 points from Barrett to build an 89-71 lead. New York pushed the lead to 26 early in the fourth quarter after a 3-pointer by Randle, sending a good portion of the Hornets fans to the exits.

“I thought we played very unselfishly,” Thibodeau said.

Terry Rozier scored 24 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. added 22 on his 27th birthday, the seventh straight game both players have scored at least 20 points in a game for the short-handed Hornets, who currently lack scoring options.

Charlotte (7-19) was 6 of 26 from beyond the 3-point arc.

The Knicks dominated the offensive glass, scoring 28 second-chance points on 16 offensive rebounds to send the Hornets to their fourth straight loss. The lack of defensive rebounding has been an issue for the Hornets all season.

“They tattooed us on the glass,” Hornets coach Steve Clifford said. “How many rebounds you’re going to get speaks to the number of shots, too. … We were a minus-10 in second-chance points, and it’s crushing. I don’t know what to do about that one, to be honest with you. It’s the same thing. We’ve got to hit, we’ve got to have everybody in there. We’ve got to find a way to get more rebounds.”

PLAYING DEFENSE

Barrett said defense has been the difference in the Knicks’ three-game win streak.

“Every game the other team has been having a low-scoring game and that has been helping us a lot,” Barrett said.

TIP INS

Knicks: Derrick Rose and Cam Reddish did not play for the third straight game due to a coach’s decision. … Improved to 7-6 on the road.

Hornets: LaMelo Ball (ankle), Gordon Hayward (shoulder), Cody Martin (knee), Dennis Smith Jr. (ankle) and Mark Williams (ankle) remained out. … Were whistled for three moving screens in the first half.

UP NEXT

Knicks: Host Sacramento on Sunday night.

Hornets: At Philadelphia on Sunday night.

Barnes scores 20 points, Kings rally to beat Cavs 106-95

CLEVELAND (AP) Harrison Barnes scored 20 points and Domantas Sabonis had 18 points, 18 rebounds and six assists as the Sacramento Kings rallied for a 106-95 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night.

Kevin Huerter made two 3-pointers in 56 seconds late in the fourth quarter, fueling a 19-0 game-ending run by Sacramento. The Cavaliers took their largest lead at 95-87 on Cedi Osman’s layup with 4:50 left, but were held scoreless on their final 10 possessions.

“That was a big, big, big-time win for us,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “When you get a win like that on the road, that’s a sign you have a really good team. Now, I hope I’m not jumping the gun on that, but this was my favorite game of the season.”

Caris LeVert had 22 points, six rebounds and six assists for Cleveland, which had its seven-game home winning streak snapped. Darius Garland added 19 points, six assists and six turnovers as fellow All-Star Donovan Mitchell did not play because of a sore right leg.

Kings guard De’Aaron Fox, averaging 22.8 points and 5.6 assists, was held out because of a sore right foot. Brown said he sat Fox as a precaution and considers him day-to-day.

Huerter finished with 19 points and Keegan Murray had 18 on 6-of-8 shooting on 3-pointers. Sacramento is 1-1 on a six-game trip through the Eastern Conference and owns the fifth-best record in the West.

“To come here after losing to Milwaukee, we kind of wanted to make a statement and we did,” Barnes said. “It was just us getting stops and playing with poise. Late in the fourth, we did a good job getting good looks and were able to capitalize.”

Cleveland is 11-2 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, tying for the best home mark in the league, and leads the NBA in defense at 105.1 points per game. But the Cavs committed a season-high 20 turnovers as Sabonis, Huerter and Matthew Dellavedova each had three steals.

“We didn’t execute enough and we didn’t do a good job of closing,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Give Sacramento credit, but we also have to look in the mirror. It was a combination of things.”

Osman scored 17 points off the bench and Evan Mobley had 16 points and seven rebounds.

BROWN’S TOWN

Brown spent six seasons in charge of the Cavaliers, but hadn’t previously faced them as a head coach. The Columbus, Ohio, native went 305-187 over two stints with Cleveland, taking the franchise to its first NBA Finals in 2007.

“I had a fantastic time here and the people here are fantastic,” said Brown, initially hired by the Cavaliers at age 35 in 2005. “I’ll always be grateful to Dan (Gilbert) and his family for giving me my first opportunity at such a young age.”

Brown, who signed a four-year contract with Sacramento on May 9, said he misses the energy around the team in Cleveland.

“The fans and their passion for their sports, that’s definitely what makes it fun,” he said. “And it starts with Dan, who puts his money where his mouth is and tries to bring the right people in.”

TIP-INS

Kings: G Terence Davis (lower back soreness), a key reserve, missed his third game in a row. . F Chima Moneke and C Neemias Queta are on G League assignments with Stockton, but two-way G Keon Ellis is traveling with Sacramento.

Cavaliers: F Dean Wade (left shoulder sprain) could return before the end of the month after spraining his AC joint on Dec. 2 against Orlando. . G Ricky Rubio (left knee surgery) and G Dylan Windler (right ankle sprain) remain out.

UP NEXT

Kings: Visit New York on Sunday night.

Cavaliers: Host Oklahoma City on Saturday night.

Durant, Irving help Nets edge Hawks to end 6-1 homestand

NEW YORK (AP) Kevin Durant scored 34 points, Kyrie Irving had 33 points and 11 rebounds and the Brooklyn Nets finished a seven-game homestand at 6-1 by beating the Atlanta Hawks 120-116 on Friday night.

TJ Warren added 14 points and Ben Simmons returned from a four-game absence with a left calf strain with six points, seven rebounds and six assists as the Nets won for the ninth time in 12 games overall.

They hadn’t played seven straight home games since moving to Brooklyn a decade ago and they took advantage, losing only to the NBA-leading Boston Celtics while surging into fourth place in the Eastern Conference.

Simmons said the successful homestand meant a lot to the Nets, who improved to 15-12 after a 1-5 start.

“We know we’ve got a long way to go,” Simmons said. “A lot of guys have been in and out of the rotation obviously so it’s changing a lot, but we’re just staying focused and we’re building day by day.”

Brooklyn held on to pull this one out by twice getting offensive rebounds after Durant missed jumpers with a three-point lead, with Seth Curry making two free throws after the Hawks had to foul following the second one.

“Winning plays and that’s what it boiled down to,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said.

Trae Young had 33 points and nine assists for the Hawks, while Bogdan Bogdanovic rebounded from a miserable game at the Knicks two nights earlier with 31 points.

Clint Capela had 15 points and 11 rebounds, but the Hawks dropped their third straight while playing without injured starters John Collins, De’Andre Hunter and Dejounte Murray.

Those guys might have been useful when the Hawks couldn’t corral the rebounds of Durant’s two late misses.

“Those are plays that a good team like this, they make you pay,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said.

Durant scored 18 points in the first quarter, but the Nets had to rally after the Hawks came back to take the lead in the fourth. Durant’s 3-pointer with 3:17 to play gave Brooklyn back the lead for good and he finished the scoring with two free throws with 6.3 seconds remaining.

Durant was 9 for 11 in the first quarter as the Nets led 36-30. Bogdanovic had 13 points in the second as the Nets took a 68-64 edge to the break.

TIP-INS

Hawks: Bogdanovic was 3 for 16 overall and missed all 10 3-point attempts in the loss at Madison Square Garden. … Trent Forrest returned after missing three games while in concussion protocol.

Nets: Starting center Nic Claxton sat out with right hamstring tightness. … The Nets improved to 6-0 against Southeast Division teams. They are 14-4 record against Atlanta since the start of the 2017-18 season.

IN OR OUT

Vaughn said he expected Simmons to sit out Saturday in Indiana on the second night of back-to-back games but that Yuta Watanabe would return after a nine-game absence with a strained right hamstring. Neither Vaughn nor Durant was certain whether the superstar forward, who came into the game second in the league with nearly 37 minutes per game and logged 36 Friday, would play.

UP NEXT

Hawks: Host Chicago on Sunday

Nets: At Indiana on Saturday.

76ers recover in OT after blown lead to beat Lakers 133-122

PHILADELPHIA (AP) De’Anthony Melton was an LA kid who rooted hard for the Clippers and not that other team in town.

Melton sure had more fun beating the Lakers in Philly.

Joel Embiid had 38 points and 12 rebounds, Melton scored a career-high 33 points off the bench and the 76ers recovered after blowing a nine-point lead in the final 30 seconds of regulation to beat Los Angeles 133-122 in overtime on Friday night.

“We will take the win,” 76ers coach Doc Rivers said. “Usually when you give up a lead like that, to gather yourself and play well in overtime is rare.”

Anthony Davis had 21 of his 31 points in the fourth and finished with 12 rebounds, while LeBron James scored 23 points for the Lakers. James (sore left ankle) and Davis (illness) both missed a loss in Toronto on Tuesday.

James gutted out his injury but made only 9 of 22 shots and missed 7 of 8 3-pointers.

Russell Westbrook had 12 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, joining Magic Johnson as the only Laker with a triple-double off the bench.

The Lakers were down 12 with 2 1/2 minutes remaining in regulation but rallied on clutch buckets and costly fouls by the Sixers. James converted a three-point play with a minute left that pulled the Lakers to 115-110.

Austin Reaves buried a 3 with 12 seconds left that pulled the Lakers to 119-117 and got a tremendous rise out of the Lakers fans well represented in the crowd. Down 120-117, Reaves was fouled by Matisse Thybulle on a 3-point attempt. He made the first two free throws and missed the third.

“I don’t know anybody that makes two and misses one,” Reaves said. “It sucks to miss. I’m sure my mom will be frustrated with me for missing a free throw.”

Davis then was fouled by Tobias Harris with 3.7 seconds left. Davis missed one of two that made it 120-all and sent the game into OT.

“It hurts, for sure, especially when you make the first one,” Davis said. “I watched the tape trying to see what I did wrong. Obviously, I left it short.”

The Lakers made 16 of 20 free throws in the fourth.

“I felt like a football coach when the guy has a field goal,” at the end, Rivers said. “I hope he misses one of the field goals. He did. We got it to overtime, which is an amazing statement. Really. That should never happen.”

The Lakers then missed their first nine shots of OT and were outscored 13-2. James Harden scored nine points in overtime and finished with 28 points and 12 assists.

Melton had a career game in the third alone with three steals, hit four 3s and he made all six shots in a 16-point quarter. He made eight 3s overall and had seven steals.

Embiid highlighted a wild first half with a 20-point first quarter of 8-of-9 shooting overall and two 3-pointers. Embiid actually scored as many points as the Lakers in the quarter when he led the Sixers to a 31-20 lead. Embiid’s eight baskets also matched the Lakers’ total.

He closed the quarter with a powerful dunk over poor Thomas Bryant that rattled into the second level of suites.

Embiid briefly went to the locker room at the start of the second and that left an opening for the Lakers. The Sixers traditionally struggle when Embiid is off court, not terribly surprising since he is the reigning NBA scoring champion.

But this was outing was particularly abysmal.

The Lakers went on a 13-2 run with Embiid on the bench, a run that wasn’t steadied until, yes, Embiid returned and hit a 3 for a 36-34 lead. The game then morphed into a 3-point shootout. The Lakers hit four, the 76ers made six and Philly took a 61-59 lead into the break.

Who kept the Lakers close in the half? It sure wasn’t James and Davis. Try Reaves, who hit two 3s and scored 15 points that kept the Lakers within striking distance. He finished with 25.

TIP-INS

Lakers: Johnson had a triple-double off the bench on Feb. 14, 1996 against the Hawks. … James missed his first six shots and Davis was whistled for two fouls inside the first 4 minutes of the game and picked up his fourth early in the third.

76ers: Harden joined James, Westbrook and Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history with 23,000 career points and 6,500 career assists. … Melton is the first Sixer ever and only the second NBA player ever with 30 points, eight 3s and seven steals in a game.

UP NEXT

Lakers: Wrap a six-game road trip Sunday at Detroit.

76ers: Play the second game of a seven-game homestand Sunday against Charlotte.

Jackson has 20 points, Grizzlies beat Pistons 114-103

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) Jaren Jackson Jr. had 20 points and four blocks and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Detroit Pistons 114-103 on Friday night for their fifth straight victory.

Brandon Clarke added 17 points for Memphis, missing only one of his eight shots. Dillon Brooks had 16 points, and Ja Morant finished with 15 points and 12 assists.

Bojan Bogdanovic led the Pistons with 19 points, Marvin Bagley III scored 14 points, and Kevin Knox II and Isaiah Stewart finished with 13 points each.

Memphis pulled away in the third quarter as Morant scored early and the Grizzlies shooting was above 57% in the game. They stretched the lead to 21 and carried a 98-78 advantage into the fourth.

“I thought we were just going through the motions in the first half,” Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said. “We were just dragging in the second quarter. Just didn’t have our energy. “I thought our defense picked up in that third quarter, which really sparked us.”

Pistons coach Dwane Casey pointed to the start of the first and third quarters where the game got away, particularly after halftime. He noted the miscues that led to Memphis having a 37-25 advantage in the frame.

“We gave up a 37-point third quarter not coming out with the right disposition,” Casey said. “Eight turnovers in the third quarter. That’s the ballgame.”

Bagley and Knox came off the Detroit bench to give the Pistons a burst in the second quarter before Memphis carried a 61-53 lead into the break. For Bagley, it was a change in roles after starting most of the season.

“I’m just going to keep doing my job. Being ready,” Bagley said, later adding: “You have to be ready no matter what, and that’s what I’ve trained myself to do.”

Injuries to key players through the first 26 games hampered Memphis early in the season. Clarke said the team has its rhythm, and the winning streak seems to have come at a familiar time.

“We just know this is around the time where we start to win, and we win even if we’ve got guys out,” Clarke said.

TIP-INS:

Pistons: The game was rookie Jaden Ivey’s first appearance in Memphis, where his mother – Niele Ivey – served as an assistant coach before leading the Notre Dame program. . C Jalen Duren, the rookie who played one season at the University of Memphis, got his first professional start, finishing with 10 points and 12 rebounds. . Bogdanovic connected on a 3-pointer in the third quarter to give him 1,300 3-pointers in his career.

Grizzlies: Tied the series at 27 wins each. . Memphis, which entered the game last in the league shooting 70% from the free throw line, made 17 of 32. . .C Steven Adams limped to the locker room in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury and did not return. “He felt fine after the game, but we’ll see how it is (Saturday),” Jenkins said.

GRINER HOMECOMING

In their pregame remarks, both coaches mentioned the return of WNBA star Brittney Griner to the United States after her release from Russian custody. “I definitely wanted to say how happy myself and the organization is about Brittney Griner being free from her situation,” Casey said.

Jenkins said: “I know this was an extremely tough lesson we couldn’t even fathom, but to have our sister back whole with her family, the NBA community, the WNBA community is super important. Super special. But obviously, there’s more work to do to bring other Americans home.”

UP NEXT:

Pistons: Host the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.

Grizzlies: Host Atlanta on Monday night.

Williamson’s 35 points lift Pelicans past Suns, 128-117

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Zion Williamson apologized for his 360-degree, one-handed slam dunk that angered the Phoenix Suns at the end of a game that the New Orleans Pelicans were already going to win.

Still, the crowd-pleasing play symbolized Williamson’s potential to rise above the disappointments of previous seasons and live up to the extraordinary hype that followed him into the NBA.

CJ McCollum had 18 points for the Pelicans, who have won six straight and 11 of 13, and afterward questioned the Suns’ indignance over Williamson’s dunk.

“They got to get back on defense if they don’t want us to dunk the ball,” McCollum said.

Before Pelicans coach Willie Green took his first head coaching job in New Orleans, he was Suns coach Monty Williams’ assistant, and they remain close friends.

Both coaches downplayed the heated exchanges.

Green, who briefly had to be held back by assistant coaches, called it, “Just a little brush up. Nothing major.”

But Phoenix guard Cameron Payne explained why the Suns reacted angrily.

Larry Nance Jr. had 17 points and nine rebounds for New Orleans, while Jonas Valanciunas overcame a 4-of-16 shooting night to finish with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Torrey Craig’s 3 tied it at 105 and Payne’s deep 3 put Phoenix back in front 108-107.

But McCollum responded with a 3 and Williamson intercepted Booker’s pass and bolted the other way for a forceful one-handed dunk with 3:59 left. New Orleans did not trail again.

TIP-INS

Suns: Shot 50% overall (43 of 86) and 50% from 3-point range (22 of 44), with Paul going 6 of 9 from deep. … Craig and Booker had 14 points.

Pelicans: Marshall finished with 14 points. … Shot 51% (46 of 90) but just 8 of 27 from 3-point range. … Outscored the Suns 72-38 in the paint.

RIVALRY RENEWED

D’Angelo Russell powers Timberwolves past Jazz, 118-108

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) D’Angelo Russell scored 20 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, Rudy Gobert had 22 points and 13 rebounds in his return to Utah and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Jazz 118-108 on Friday night.

Gobert was traded to Minnesota over the summer. The French center spent his first nine NBA seasons with the Jazz.

“It was a little awkward walking in the arena with a visitor badge into the visitor locker rooms,” Gobert said. “But it was great. (I) was just trying to embrace the moment.”

The Timberwolves helped Gobert walk away with a victory after Russell took over in the fourth quarter. He went 7 of 7 from the field in the quarter, with six of his baskets coming from 3-point range.

“They were trying to zone us, and I was the guy kind of in the sweet spot to get that catch-and-shoot opportunity,” Russell said. “

Russell ended up going 12-of-16 from the field for the game and is averaging 27.5 points while shooting 56% in December so far.

“He’s really locked in on his shot right now,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “It looks clean and he’s letting it go.”

Malik Beasley scored 23 points to lead Utah. Jordan Clarkson added 21 points and Mike Conley had 17 points and six assists in his first game back after being sidelined for nine games by a left leg injury.

Conley’s return helped bolster the Jazz offense at key moments in the second half.

“He just moves the ball. Spacing is different,” Beasley. “He’s a great veteran. We love him on the team.”

Utah trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half before it erased a double-digit deficit in the third quarter, tying it at 79 on Conley’s 3-pointer. The Jazz were unable to reclaim the lead after missing five straight shots to end the quarter.

Minnesota finally created some breathing room again late in the fourth quarter when Russell made back-to-back 3s to put the Timberwolves up 112-104.

“If you’re down 15 in the NBA it takes a lot of energy to come back and so sometimes at the end of the game you just don’t quite have the juice to get over the top,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said.

TIP INS

Timberwolves: Kyle Anderson had a career-high 12 assists to go with 15 points. . Minnesota went 20 of 26 from the free-throw line.

Jazz: Lauri Markkanen (illness) and Collin Sexton (right hamstring strain) were both inactive. . Jarred Vanderbilt had 10 rebounds off the bench.

UP NEXT

Timberwolves: At Portland on Saturday night.

Jazz: At Denver on Saturday night.

Bucks top Mavs, Doncic 106-105 after Antetokounmpo fouls out

DALLAS (AP) Brook Lopez hit a wide-open layup off an inbounds play with seven seconds to go, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-105 on Friday night.

The Bucks held on despite Giannis Antetokounmpo fouling out with 2:55 remaining. The Greek Freak finished with 28 points to end an eight-game run with at least 30 points.

Luka Doncic had 33 points and 11 assists and put Dallas ahead on a layup with 29 seconds to go.

But the Mavericks couldn’t make their free throws late – they were a woeful 10 for 24 for the game – leaving the door open for the Bucks to win a fourth consecutive game while ending Dallas’ three-game winning streak.

Antetokounmpo’s sixth foul came when he tried to close out on a 3-pointer by Tim Hardaway Jr., who missed all three free throws to keep Milwaukee in front by one.

Dorian Finney-Smith missed two more free throws after Doncic had put Dallas in front 105-104. The Bucks inbounded from near their bench, and Lopez slipped behind a screen for the easy bucket on the throw-in from George Hill.

Khris Middleton scored 19 points and Jrue Holiday had 17 for the Bucks.

Spencer Dinwiddie scored 15 points, and Christian Wood had 14 points and nine rebounds for Dallas.

While missing the 30-point mark, Antetokounmpo, who had 10 rebounds, did make it a ninth straight game of shooting at least 50%, hitting his last eight shots after a 2-of-12 start to finish 10 of 20.

The Mavericks led by 12 in the third quarter, when Doncic had consecutive assists on behind-the-back passes to Maxi Kleber for 3-pointers.

After Doncic stole a pass and took it all the way to the other end for a one-handed dunk over Holiday, the three-time All-Star assisted on a 3-pointer by Wood that put Dallas up 78-66.

Antetokounmpo capped an 8-0 run with a three-point play for a 94-all tie, setting up the back-and-fourth finish that mostly played out without the two-time MVP.

TIP-INS

Bucks: Antetokounmpo was trying to become the first player in 12 years to score at least 30 points and shoot at least 50% from the field in nine consecutive games. Amar’e Stoudemire did it with New York in 2010-11. … Bobby Portis Jr. scored all 10 of his points in the first half.

Mavericks: Kemba Walker has been active but still hasn’t made his Dallas debut since signing Nov. 29. The four-time All-Star has been battling knee issues in recent years. … The five-game run of Hardaway and Doncic hitting at least four 3-pointers each ended.

UP NEXT

Bucks: Finish a two-game Texas swing in Houston on Sunday.

Mavericks: At Chicago on Saturday as the Mavs finish their third back-to-back in two weeks. Dallas lost both on the first back-to-back, then won both on the second.

Laine scores on first shot, Blue Jackets beat Flames 3-1

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) Patrik Laine scored on Columbus’ first shot and the Blue Jackets broke a three-game losing streak, beating the Calgary Flames 3-1 on Friday night.

Eric Robinson and Sean Kuraly also scored to help Columbus end a six-game home losing streak. Joonas Korpisalo stopped 12 shots in the first period before suffering a lower-body injury. He was replaced in the second by Elvis Merzlikins, who stopped 21 shots.

“We had a good start and that helped,” Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. “You get a goal early on, you get one there and take a breath. We had good energy. This was a heck of a game by a lot of guys – a really good effort all the way through.”

Michael Stone scored for Calgary and Jacob Markstrom stopped 23 shots in his first start after sitting out three games. The Flames had won three in a row.

Laine opened the scoring at 1:02 of the first period and Robinson made it 2-0 on a breakaway at 2:52 of the second.

“I could have had four or five tonight,” Laine said. “We were pretty happy with the way the offense was going. All four lines played good offense and defense.”

Playing with an extra skater, Stone cut the lead in half with 2:34 left in the third with a shot from the blue line. Kuraly sealed it, scoring an empty-netter with 24 seconds left.

“I think our defense struggled mightily with the puck and in coverage for the whole game,” Calgary coach Darryl Sutter said. “Some guys came for a visit, not to try and win the hockey game. Very disappointed.”

ON A STREAK

Laine’s goal extended his point streak to three games. With his assist on Kuraly’s goal, Boone Jenner has collected points in five of his last six games. Jack Roslovic’s assist on Laine’s goal was his fourth in five games.

FAMILIAR FACES

Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau played his first game as an opponent of the Calgary Flames. Gaudreau spent nine years with Calgary, skating in 602 games with 609 points (210-399). Defenseman Erik Gudbranson also came over from the Flames in the off-season, having skated in 78 games with 17 points including six goals and eleven assists, all of which were career bests.

NO POWER

Columbus and Calgary combined for 13 penalties, six for Columbus and seven for Calgary, but were both fruitless on the power play.

RECALL

The Flames recalled forwards Matthew Phillips and Radim Zohorna from the AHL and assigned Kevin Rooney.

UP NEXT

Flames: At Toronto on Saturday night.

Blue Jackets: Hosts Los Angeles Sunday night.

Wheeler, Rittich lead Jets past Blackhawks 3-1

CHICAGO (AP) Blake Wheeler scored early in the second period, David Rittich stopped 22 shots and the Winnipeg Jets beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-1 on Friday night for their fourth straight win.

Cole Perfetti and Adam Lowry also scored and defenseman Josh Morrissey had two assists to help the Jets win for the seventh time in eight games to move back into first place in the Central Division ahead of idle Dallas.

“`Ritter’ made some big saves when it was 2-0, 2-1,” Lowry said of the Jets’ backup goalie. “We’re going to look for that to continue.”

Morrissey regained the team scoring lead with 30 points as the Jets outskated the Blackhawks to a majority of loose pucks, contributing to their 32-23 advantage in shots.

“To put up the numbers he’s putting up is pretty impressive,” Perfetti said. “He makes it pretty easy out here.

“We played our game and it worked,” Perfetti added. “Playing the right way, we can’t be trading chances. What we did tonight worked to our advantage.”

Taylor Raddysh scored midway through the second period as the Blackhawks avoided a third straight shutout. Arvid Soderblom finished with 29 saves in Chicago’s 11th loss in 12 games.

“We just seemed not engaged in the first period, and if you do that, you’re going to be behind the 8-ball,” Chicago coach Luke Richardson said.

Perfetti took Morrissey’s feed and beat Soderblom from the slot after dancing past defenseman Ian Mitchell with 4:39 left in the first. It was Perfetti’s sixth of the season.

“We really liked our first period,” Winnipeg assistant coach Scott Arniel said, speaking instead of head coach Rick Bowness. “We didn’t spend a lot of time in our end.”

Early in the second period, Morrissey set up Wheeler, who slapped a puck between Soderblom’s legs for a 2-0 lead at 56 seconds. It was Wheeler’s ninth.

Raddysh scored his eighth to get the Blackhawks on the scoreboard with just under 9 minutes left in the second with a wrist shot Rittich couldn’t handle. It ended Chicago’s scoring drought of 169 minutes, 50 seconds.

Lowry capped the scoring with his sixth with 7:35 left in the third.

“We were able to create some good chances and lock it down,” Lowry said.

The Jets played the last 50 minutes without defenseman Logan Stanley, who fell awkwardly into the boards in the first period. He will be evaluated Saturday.

TINORDI RETURNS

Chicago D Jarred Tinordi came off the injured reserve list an hour before the game, playing a limited number of shifts in the early going after taking a skate blade to the face, but eventually seeing penalty-killing duty. Tinordi had missed the previous five games with a hip injury.

UP NEXT

Winnipeg: Hosts Washington on Sunday.

Chicago: Hosts Washington on Tuesday.

Nugent-Hopkins helps Oilers snap 7-game skid against Wild

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and two assists as the Edmonton Oilers beat Minnesota 5-2 Friday night to snap a seven-game skid against the Wild.

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl each had a goal and an assist. Derek Ryan and Kailer Yamamoto also scored for the Oilers, who have won six of their last eight. Stuart Skinner made 42 saves.

“Each night is a new game, but at the same time they’ve kind of had our number in recent games. We wanted to put our best foot forward,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “We needed a good start, they’re a good starting team. We did that and got better as the game went on.

“Overall, it was one of our best 60-minute performances.”

Joel Eriksson Ek and Mats Zuccarello scored for the Wild, who have lost two in a row. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 33 shots.

“We got enough pucks to the net but not enough quality,” Wild coach Dean Evason said. “I honestly don’t remember their goalie making too many outstanding saves, we were hitting him with a lot of pucks. Our willingness to get pucks there, it just wasn’t quality when we needed to score.”

Edmonton got a rare opening goal 2:45 into the first period as Devin Shore made a pass from behind the net to Ryan, who sent his own rebound in for his second goal in two games.

“When you’re getting contributions throughout the lineup it’s awesome,” Oilers forward Zach Hyman said. “It provided momentum for the team. You can get off to a quicker start. It gives confidence to everybody in the lineup. A lot of guys are playing more now than they did at the beginning of the year and they’re contributing.”

Just over six minutes later, McDavid extended his goal streak to seven games. Nugent-Hopkins sent the puck across to McDavid and he blasted home his 25th of the season. McDavid currently leads the league in goals, assists (29) and points (54).

Minnesota briefly appeared to get on the scoreboard just over a minute later when a puck hit the post and landed behind Skinner. He fell back and held it between his arm and pad, but the officials ruled that it crossed the line after a video review. However, a second review determined the Wild had committed interference during their attempts to poke Skinner and the puck into the net and the goal was disallowed.

Minnesota eventually got on the board at 11:24. Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse sent a puck behind his own net that was intercepted by Eriksson Ek, who was able to come out in front unhindered, make a move on Skinner and score his 10th. It was the fourth straight game against Edmonton that Eriksson Ek has scored.

The Wild tied it 2-2 at 6:22 of the second as Zuccarello picked the top corner just as a two-man advantage expired for his ninth. Kirill Kaprizov picked up an assist on the goal, extending his point streak to 14 games.

Edmonton regained the lead with seven minutes to play in the middle period as Yamamoto tipped Nurse’s shot past Fleury for his first of the season.

The Oilers made it 4-2 on the power play 3:43 into the third as Nugent-Hopkins got it across to Draisaitl who had a wide-open net for his 19th. It was also Draisaitl’s 12th power-play goal.

Nugent-Hopkins scored his 14th into an empty net with 9 seconds remaining.

NOTES

McDavid became the first Oilers player to score in seven straight games since Jimmy Carson in 1988. … Kaprizov ended his franchise-record goal streak at seven games. His point streak is the third longest in the NHL this season. … Minnesota D Jonas Brodin returned after missing four games with a lower-body injury. … The Wild recalled F Sammy Walker from Iowa of the AHL and reassigned F Joseph Cramarossa to the minor league club. … Edmonton F Tyler Benson cleared waivers and was assigned to Bakerfield of the AHL.

UP NEXT

Wild: At Vancouver on Saturday night to finish a four-game trip.

Oilers: At Minnesota on Monday night to open a two-game trip.

Huntley likely to start for injured Jackson, Harbaugh says

OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) Lamar Jackson missed a third straight day of practice for the Baltimore Ravens on Friday, and coach John Harbaugh conceded that backup quarterback Tyler Huntley would likely start Sunday at Pittsburgh.

Jackson is listed as doubtful on the injury report, but there’s been little indication that he’s recovering quickly enough to play this weekend after hurting his knee in last Sunday’s game against Denver.

“It looks like it’s going to be Tyler on Sunday, yes,” Harbaugh said.

Baltimore did rule out cornerback Daryl Worley with a hamstring injury. Offensive lineman Patrick Mekari (toe), linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips (quad), linebackers Patrick Queen (thigh) and Kristian Welch (concussion) and guard Kevin Zeitler (knee) are questionable.

TOP INDIANA PRESS RELEASES

Game Rewind: Pacers 121, Wizards 111

There’s no place like home.

The Indiana Pacers spent the last two weeks away from the friendly confines of Gainbridge Fieldhouse, dropping five of seven contests on a difficult Western Conference road trip — the franchise’s longest road trip since 1986.

The Pacers (14-12) landed back in Indianapolis early Thursday morning and got back to their winning ways on Friday night, tipping off a four-game homestand with a 121-111 victory over the Washington Wizards (11-15).

Fresh off scoring 26 in Wednesday’s game at Minnesota, Buddy Hield scored a season-high 28 points for Indiana in the victory, going 12-for-19 from the field and 4-for-10 from 3-point range. Hield also tallied four assists and three steals in the victory.

“He’s just had it going the last two games,” Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said. “He’s in a zone right now, shooting the ball well. You knew he was due for it considering how both of us have been shooting lately, especially the majority of that West Coast trip…He puts a lot of work in, so (he’s) just trusting what he’s doing every day.”

Haliburton was sharp himself, registering another double-double with 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting and 11 assists, and three other Pacers reached double figures in the victory.

It was the fifth win in their last six home contests for the Blue & Gold, who handled their business against a Wizards team with just nine available players on Friday.

Hield got the Pacers off to a fast start. The veteran bucket-getter scored on a layup off the opening tip, then added a transition three a minute later to trigger a 9-0 Indiana run to open the game.

Hield scored 10 points in the first 5:11, but shortly thereafter is when Kyle Kuzma and the Wizards started to get hot from beyond the arc. Washington made seven 3-pointers in the opening frame — four by Kuzma. That allowed the visitors to surge ahead and take a narrow 33-31 lead into the second quarter.

The ensuing frame was a back-and-forth affair, featuring four ties and nine lead changes. Rookie guard Bennedict Mathurin provided a major spark in the frame, tallying eight points, including a pair of threes.

Haliburton’s 3-pointer put Indiana in front with 1:58 remaining in the first half. Hield’s jumper on Indiana’s next possession padded the lead. Haliburton added a layup with 12.7 seconds remaining, but Monte Morris answered with a floater shortly before the buzzer that made the Pacers’ lead 69-65 at the break.

Washington made a charge out of the intermission. Kuzma scored six points as the visitors opened the second half with an 11-1 run. Indiana responded quickly with eight unanswered, taking back the lead on a trailing Myles Turner’s two-hand slam off a dish from Haliburton.

The Wizards tied the game twice, but the Pacers never relinquished the lead for the remainder of the frame. Indiana led by as many as eight in the period and took a 95-89 lead into the fourth quarter.

Aaron Nesmith opened the scoring in the final frame with a three that pushed the hosts’ lead to nine, but the Wizards reeled off the next six points to make it a one-possession game.

But the Pacers managed to hold on to the lead, pushing it to 108-99 following Haliburton’s layup with 4:20 to play. The Pacers held Washington at a comfortable distance the rest of the way, sealing the victory with back-to-back threes from the top of the key by Turner and Haliburton that extended the lead to 13 with 1:37 remaining.

Haliburton added one more trey at the 1:01 mark for good measure, capping a 10-point quarter for Indiana’s star point guard.

Hield and Haliburton combined for 51 points in the victory, with both players making concerted efforts to use their reputations as shooters to their advantage and get to the rim.

“I think my teammates and Ty just put me in the right spots where teams are forced to close out hard,” Hield said. “And I just use my shot as a weapon to get that lean and either I have a dump off or a lane to the rim.”

Mathurin finished with 18 points on 8-of-15 shooting and eight rebounds off the bench. Fellow reserve Oshae Brissett added 16 points and eight boards, going 3-for-6 from beyond the arc and 7-for-8 from the free throw line.

Turner tallied 14 points and six rebounds in the victory.

Kristaps Porzingis led all scorers with 29 points and nine rebounds, going 11-for-13 from the field. Kuzma added 27 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists, while two-way guard Jordan Goodwin scored 19 and had five steals off the bench for Washington.

“When you consider the difficulty of coming off a Western trip, coming back East and everything, it’s really a great win for us,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said. “Washington’s a desperate team. They were without guys, but the guys they have available are all really good players.”

The Pacers return to action on Saturday night against Brooklyn, then host Miami on Monday and Golden State on Wednesday to close out the homestand.

Inside the Numbers

Haliburton recorded his 16th double-double of the season, the most of any guard in the NBA. He is tied with Denver’s Nikola Jokic, Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis, and the Lakers’ Anthony Davis for the league lead.

Mathurin reached double figures for the seventh straight game and the 24th time in 26 games to begin his NBA career. His eight rebounds matched his career high.

Brissett reached double figures for the fifth time this season and the third time in the last five games. The fourth-year forward out of Syracuse surpassed 1,000 career points in the victory.

Indiana outscored Washington by 24 points from beyond the arc. The Pacers went 18-for-41 (43.9 percent) from 3-point range, while the Wizards were 10-for-29 (34.5 percent).

You Can Quote Me On That

“At the core, he’s a guy who is a scorer. That’s who he is. We need to understand that and celebrate it.” -Carlisle on Hield

“Everyone showed out today and gave us a big boost and a lot of love. We need that. The road is tough, but coming home, it feels great having everyone there and seeing how amped up and revved up they get.” -Brissett on being back home

“I really love the way Mathurin’s playing right now. I just think he’s playing with great poise. He’s aggressive, he’s moving the ball, he’s just really playing the right way. He had a terrific game.” -Carlisle on Mathurin

“Tyrese just has a great feel for what the team needs. I think he realizes that he can score when he needs to score, but that we need to have a lot of guys involved…There were times that we’d really need a basket and he’d find a way to get in there and kind of will the ball in, which was really needed.” -Carlisle on Haliburton attacking the basket

“Just trying to be aggressive. I really felt like last game I had success getting to the cup and I’ve been doing a better job finishing around there. So that’s just what I was trying to get to today, just getting to the cup more and creating offense more that way with paint touches.” -Haliburton on trying to get to the rim more often

“To start the year he wasn’t really getting minutes and that can be frustrating for any NBA player, but the thing is he’s just stayed true to his work and prepared. You see the fruits of his labor come true today.” -Haliburton on Brissett staying ready

“Just finding my spots. My teammates are really looking not only for me, but for everybody. I feel like I’m in the right spots and just being confident in myself…Just playing basketball, honestly. I feel like sometimes when you get out there you try to think too much. I feel like I’ve been doing a great job of just letting the game come to me.” -Brissett on scoring more in recent games

Stat of the Night

Hield followed up his 26-point outing on Wednesday in Minnesota with 28 points on Friday. It was his second-highest scoring game in a Pacers uniform, trailing only his 29-point outing in an overtime game against Oklahoma City on Feb. 25 last season.

Noteworthy

Indiana now holds a 2-1 lead over the Wizards in the season series. The two teams will meet once more in Washington on Feb. 11.

The Pacers are 3-3 on the season on the first night of a back-to-back.

Pacers second-year big man Isaiah Jackson sat out Friday’s game due to a sore right knee. It was just the second game Jackson has missed on the season.

Up Next

The Pacers return to Gainbridge Fieldhouse for the second night of a back-to-back, hosting Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday, Dec. 10 at 7:00 PM ET.

Indy Takes Down Visiting Fort Wayne Komets

INDIANAPOLIS– The Fuel hosted the Fort Wayne Komets on Friday night in an attempt to beat them for the second time this season and extend their win streak to six games in a row. With nine back and forth goals, they were able to take the win, 5-4.

At 3:20 in the first period, the Fuel opened the scoring with a goal from Cam Hillis. Just two minutes later, Fort Wayne answered back with an unassisted goal from Joshua Winquist.

Shane Kuzmeski put Indy up by one but it only took two and a half minutes for the Komets to tie the game again with a goal by Stefano Giliati. Both teams seemed to settle down after that and that is how the period ended.

The second period opened with some fireworks, earning the Fuel two quick penalties and over a minute trying to kill off a 5-on-3. In the midst of that, the Komets took a high-sticking penalty, leaving the Fuel with a power play once their penalties expired.

Neither team capitalized on their power plays and time ticked down until late in the second frame when Jan Mandat put the Fuel ahead again, 3-2 with his eleventh goal of the season. That is how the second period ended, with Indy up by one though getting outshot 24-17.

Because of two penalties that carried over from the second period, the Fuel started the third period with a 5-on-3 power play opportunity. It was the Komets who struck first though, halfway through the second period. Shawn Boudrias scored the equalizer to make it 3-3. Fort Wayne then took a delay of game penalty that was immediately matched by a hooking penalty to Mandat.

While playing 4-on-4, Cooper Zech gave the Fuel the lead once again. Just a few minutes later, after a series of saves by Zach Driscoll in net, Fort Wayne tied it up again.

With just two and a half minutes left in regulation, Kale Howarth broke the tie to put the Fuel ahead yet again, this time by a score of 5-4. Fort Wayne pulled their goaltender for the extra skater but were not able to make a comeback and the Fuel won their sixth in a row, 5-4.

IU Powers Past Pitt, Advances to College Cup Final

CARY, N.C. – In its 50th season, the Indiana men’s soccer program will play for a national championship.

The No. 13-seeded Hoosiers (14-4-6, 3-1-4 B1G) defeated Pittsburgh (12-5-5, 3-2-3 ACC), 2-0, on Friday night at WakeMed Soccer Park.

First-half goals from redshirt senior forward Ryan Wittenbrink and sophomore forward Tommy Mihalic were enough as the Hoosiers earned their fourth clean sheet in as many matches during their NCAA Tournament run.

The Hoosiers will face No. 3 Syracuse (18-2-4, 5-1-2 ACC) in the College Cup Final on Monday (Dec. 12) at 6 p.m. ET at WakeMed Soccer Park. The game will be televsied on ESPNU.

KEY MOMENTS

• 14′ – Wittenbrink took a pass on the left wing, dribbled into the box towards the end line and fired a shot that was deflected by Pitt senior goalkeeper Joe van der Sar into the path of senior forward Herbert Endeley around the six-yard box. Endeley approached to stuff it in but was taken down by a defender trying to clear, earning a penalty. Van der Sar guessed correctly with a diving stop to his right, but he deflected the ball in front of goal, and Wittenbrink got to it first to put it in the back of the net.

• 45′ – Mihalic gave IU a two-goal lead with about 20 seconds before the end of the first half. Endeley was in the middle of the action again as his shot deflected into the path of Mihalic going toward the end line. The sophomore caught everyone off guard with a shot across the end line that fizzled over the surprised van der Sar and into goal.

• 59′ – A pair of last-ditch plays in quick succession kept the shutout alive with a half-hour to play. Pitt junior forward Bertin Jacquesson got just in front of IU’s last defender, senior defender Nyk Sessock, headed towards goal. The veteran stayed with him, using his physicality to deflect his shot out for a corner at just the right time. The resulting corner produced a header on goal, which junior goalkeeper JT Harms pushed away after diving to his left.

• 75′ – IU’s keeper made another impressive stop late into the match as a header forced an acrobatic diving save to his left.

NOTABLES

• Indiana will play in the national title match for a 17th time, extending the NCAA record.

• The Hoosiers will make their second NCAA championship appearance in the past three seasons and their third in the last six seasons.

• IU is the first NCAA Division-I men’s soccer program to reach 100 victories in NCAA Tournament play.

• The Hoosiers have not allowed a goal through four matches, 360 minutes, in the NCAA Tournament.

• Indiana is the first team since Maryland (2018) to make a championship game without conceding a goal throughout the NCAA Tournament. The Hoosiers are the seventh team all-time to achieve that feat.

• This was Indiana’s eighth win over a ranked opponent this season. Pittsburgh was not a national seed in the NCAA Tournament but ranked No. 10 in the most recent Top Drawer Soccer poll.

• IU owns a 3-0 record over the Panthers in a series that goes back to 2019. The Hoosiers are 2-0 in NCAA Tournament Semifinals against Pitt, as their last two matches have come in the opening game of the NCAA College Cup.

• Wittenbrink’s goal was the tenth of the season for him and the 18th of his career. The redshirt senior earned his eighth goal contribution in his last nine matches.

• The opening score was also Wittnebrink’s sixth game-winning goal this season. He is one of five players nationally to have scored six game-winners.

• The 45th-minute score from Mihalic was his seventh of the season and the 12th of his career.

• Assisting Mihalic’s score, Endeley has totaled two goals and an assist in IU’s three matches against Pitt.

UP NEXT

The Hoosiers need one more win to earn their ninth star. Indiana will face No. 3-seeded Syracuse in the NCAA College Cup final on Monday at WakeMed Soccer Park. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. ET.

#4 Purdue Faces Big Ten Road Challenge at Nebraska

GAMEDAY INFO

[4] Purdue (9-0, 1-0) at Nebraska (6-4, 0-1)

Lincoln, Neb. | Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,500)

TELEVISION: BTN | RADIO: Purdue Sports Network

ANNOUNCERS: Jeff Levering, Stephen Bardo

THE NOTES TO KNOW

• Purdue ends its first swing in Big Ten play with a Saturday afternoon tilt at Pinnacle Bank Arena to face Nebraska. The Boilermakers will take to the road for the second time this season after beating Florida State in the ACC / Big Ten Challenge on Nov. 30. Purdue hasn’t started 2-0 on the road since the 2017-18 season (Marquette, Maryland), also the last time Purdue started 2-0 in Big Ten play.

• Purdue improved to 9-0 on Wednesday with an 85-66 win over Hofstra. The win was Purdue’s 21st straight against non-conference opponents in the regular season, the nation’s longest streak.

• Purdue enters the contest ranked No. 1 nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency while ranking 29th on the defensive end.

• Purdue can claim America’s best resume, owning a nation’s-best four top-50 KenPom wins, all of them against teams ranked in the top 40. In the NCAA NET rankings, Purdue comes in at No. 3, being one of two teams with three quad-1 victories (Duke – 3; 3-2 record).

• Appearing at No. 4 in the AP Top 25, Purdue has been ranked in the top 5 in consecutive years for the first time since 1986-87 and 1987-88. The Boilermakers have spent 14 of the past 24 AP polls ranked in the top 5. Only Gonzaga (22) has spent more time in the top 5 than Purdue.

• Purdue is 152-12 under Painter when scoring at least 80 points, including 66-2 since the start of the 2017-18 season. Purdue has won 44 straight games when scoring at least 80 points.

• Purdue has made 152 free throws this season, while opponents have shot just 95. Purdue has made 85 more free throws (152 to 67) this season, the second-highest discrepancy in the country (Denver — +92).

• Over the last five games, Purdue is shooting 47.7 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from 3-point range, while averaging just 9.2 turnovers. In the first four games, Purdue was shooting 45.7 percent and 32.0 percent from deep while averaging 12.3 turnovers per game.

• Zach Edey has scored at least 20 points in eight straight games, the longest streak of scoring 20 or more points during the Matt Painter era and the third-longest streak in the last 50 years for a Purdue player (Glenn Robinson – twice in 1993-94; 19 and 9 games).

• Through Monday, Zach Edey ranks No. 1 in the KenPom POY ratings by a significant margin and has been the game MVP in all nine Purdue contests (unprecedented to start a season in the KenPom era) so far this year. It’s the second-longest streak ever behind Ohio State’s Keita Bates-Diop in 2017-18 (11 games). Including this season with Edey, Purdue has had a top-10 KenPom player in 5 of the last 7 seasons. Edey ranks 4th in the country in scoring, 2nd in rebounding and 38th in field goal percentage.

• Perhaps our favorite Zach Edey stat: Through nine games this year, he has just one more foul (17) than blocked shots (16). He has also played 30 minutes seven times this season after not doing it once in his first two seasons.

• Edey and Fletcher Loyer became the first set of teammates to win consecutive Big Ten Player and Freshman of the Week awards. The duo was named after the Phil Knight Legacy championship and then again this week after wins over Florida State and Minnesota.

• Loyer was named the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Week after averaging 15.5 points and 6.0 assists per game in the two wins. He had 12 assists and zero turnovers while going 11-of-23 from the field and 4-of-10 from long range. Loyer is the first player in school history to win back-to-back Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors and he was the National Freshman of the Week by CBS Sports on Nov. 28.

• Purdue has won three straight Big Ten Freshman of the Week awards after Braden Smith won it on Nov. 21 (20 pts., 3 asts. vs Marquette).

• Over the last five games, Purdue’s two freshman guards (Loyer and Smith) are averaging a combined 23.4 points, 8.8 assists and 7.2 rebounds per game, are shooting 17-of-43 (.395) from 3-point range and have a combined assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.00 (44 / 11).

• Matt Painter needs seven overall victories to become the fifth coach in Big Ten history with 400 victories while at a conference school (Bob Knight, Tom Izzo, Gene Keady, Lou Henson). He needs five victories to become the seventh coach with 200 Big Ten Conference victories.

The Bulldogs Head West for a Saturday Tip at California

The Bulldogs take a three-game winning streak on the road, closing out the non-conference portion of the team’s schedule Saturday at Cal.

Butler (7-3) at California (0-10)

Saturday, Dec. 10; 5PM ET / 2PM PT

Haas Pavilion; Berkeley, Calif.

PDF Notes Available at https://bit.ly/3NGADRf

TV: Pac-12 Network – Roxy Bernstein & Mike Montgomery (Find the Pac-12 Network)

Radio: 1430AM – @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)

Varsity Network Radio App

SiriusXM 385, SXM App 975

THE SERIES: First Meeting

• While this is the first meeting between the two programs, it is also the front half of a home-and-home series that will bring Cal to Hinkle Fieldhouse Dec. 9, 2023.

• Butler is 15-11 all-time against current members of the Pac-12 Conference. The Bulldogs’ most recent Pac-12 opponent was Stanford in the championship game of the 2019 Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City; Butler won that match-up, 68-67.

• Butler Athletic Director Barry Collier posted a 4-2 record against Cal in his three seasons at Stanford as an assistant on Mike Montgomery’s staff; Collier left Stanford to take the Butler head coaching position in 1989.

• Over his last three games, Manny Bates is averaging 20.3 points per game and has made 13 of his 15 free throw attempts.

• Through 10 games, Butler has shot 50 percent or better from the field seven times; the Bulldogs hit the 50-percent mark six times all of last season (31 games). In a similar fashion, Butler already has six games this season shooting 40 percent or better from three-point range, which was only done four times during the 2021-22 season.

• Over the past three games, Butler’s starters have played 535 of a possible 600 minutes; Pierce Thomas has accounted for 60 of those 65 bench minutes.

• Butler is 7-0 this season when leading at halftime.

• For the season, Butler is shooting 49.7 percent from the field, which is 16th nationally.

• Butler is committing only 12.1 fouls per game, which is fifth nationally.

• Butler’s 5.4 blocks per game are 22nd nationally.

• Over the past seven games, Butler has limited its opponents to 26.9-percent shooting from three-point range (36-134); five of those seven opponents have hit five or less three-pointers.

• Butler is 70-2 over its last 72 non-conference home games.

• DJ Hughes and Myles Wilmoth have been cleared to return to action. Hughes suffered a concussion Nov. 24 vs. BYU, while Wilmoth has yet to play this season (arm). Butler has been without Ali Ali, John-Michael Mulloy, and Jalen Thomas due to injury for the entirety of the regular season thus far.

• Myles Tate (illness) missed Tuesday’s win over Yale.

• Chuck Harris posted career-highs of 32 points and six three-pointers in Saturday’s win over Tennessee Tech.

• Harris is the first Bulldog to score 30 points in a game since Kamar Baldwin had 36 at Xavier March 7, 2020, and the first Butler player to hit six three-pointers since Jair Bolden had six against Indiana Dec. 19, 2020.

• Butler put five players in double figures Nov. 30 against Kansas State, the second time this season doing so.

• Bates led the Bulldogs with 22 points and 10 rebounds against Kansas State, his third double-double of the young season.

• Bates is 12th nationally in blocks per game at 2.7 per game; his 62.6 field goal percentage is 28th in the NCAA.

• Simas Lukosius handed out a career-high seven assists against Kansas State, which also matched the most by a Butler player this season.

• Harris is now 24th in Butler history in career three-pointers (114).

• Jayden Taylor has scored in double figures in nine of the team’s 10 games.

• Harris and Taylor have combined to go 57-for-63 from the free throw line so far this season (90 percent).

• Butler posted a 47-point win over The Citadel Nov. 19, which is the largest margin of victory by the Bulldogs since defeating Western Illinois, 107-46, at Hinkle Fieldhouse Dec. 21, 2017.

• Butler shot 70.4 percent from the field in the 95-67 win over Saint Francis (Pa.) Nov. 17; it was the second-best field goal percentage in program history, trailing only the 71.9 clip from the Nov. 15, 2014 win over Maine.

• The Nov. 19 win over The Citadel included 17 three-pointers, which was just shy of the program-record of 20 and the most since hitting 17 vs. Northern Illinois Dec. 8, 2018.

Ball State Returns to Worthen for Saturday Matchup with Evansville

MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State men’s basketball team returns to the friendly confines of Worthen Arena on Saturday for a contest against Evansville. The Cardinals and Aces are scheduled for a 2 p.m. jump.

BSU students, be among the first 350 in The Nest and receive a free hot dog, a slice of pizza, a fountain drink, or a beer. Arrive early, cheer loud, and enjoy responsibly.

For your halftime entertainment, the Cardinals are proud to present an artist that has been featured internationally with his amazing display of acrobatics, balance & athleticism, Simon & Lyric Arestov’s Rolla Bolla.

Last Time Out

Ball State improved to 5-4 on the season behind a 76-59 victory over Eastern Illinois. For the second-straight game, the Cardinals finished the game with five players in double figures. Mickey Pearson Jr. led the way with 20 points and added a game-high nine boards. He collected one of the team’s five steals. Payton Sparks notched a 12-point game to go along with his four rebounds, one block, and one steal. Jarron Coleman has scored double figures in eight-consecutive games with his 11-point performance. He tied his career best with a game-high eight assists and tallied one steal. Demarius Jacobs recorded his eighth game of the season in double figures behind a 10-point effort. Jacobs collected five assists and brought down three rebounds. Jalen Windham finished with 10 points, his seventh game of the season in double figures.

Spark Plug

Sparks continues to lead the team in points per game and rebounds per game with 14.4 and 7.9, respectively. He leads the team shooting 61.2 percent from the field, which is 36th in the NCAA and best in the MAC. He is tied for 32nd in the nation with 3.44 offensive rebounds per game, which is third in the conference. His 7.9 boards per game is fourth in the MAC. Sparks has recorded three double-doubles on the season, which is tied for 36th in the country and second in the conference. Sparks is second on the team with eight blocks to go along with his 21 assists and six steals.

Spreading the Love

The Cardinals have four players averaging double-digit points after nine games of the season. Coleman is second on the squad in scoring and rebounding with 12.7 points per contest and 5.3 boards per game. He leads the squad with 32 assists and is second on the team with 13 steals. Coleman has added five blocks. Sellers is third on the team with 12.3 points per game. He is shooting 55.0 percent from 3-point range. Sellers has brought down 4.4 rebounds a game to go along with his five steals and four assists. Jacobs closes out the double-digit scorers with 12.2 points a contest. He is second on the team with 30 assists and has a team-high 15 steals. Jacobs is averaging 3.9 rebounds per game. Windham is just outside of double figures with 9.9 points a game and is shooting 41.5 percent from long range. He has added 13 assists, 12 steals, and one blocked shot. As a team, Ball State has an effective field percentage of 55.4 percent, which is 50th in the NCAA and best in the MAC.

Taking Advantage at the Free-Throw Line

As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 24.0 free throws per game, which is 19th in the NCAA and leads the MAC. Ball State is averaging 16.6 free-throws made per contest, which is 25th in the nation and leads the conference. Sparks is tied for 16th in the nation with 64 free-throw attempts, which leads the MAC.

Block Party

Ball State continues to be strong on the defensive end of the court. As a unit, the Cardinals lead the MAC with 3.8 blocks per game. Jacobs is tied for 83rd in the nation and leads the MAC with 13 blocks. His 1.44 blocks per game is tied for 93rd in the country and leads the conference.

Series History with Evansville

Saturday will be the 56th meeting between the Cardinals and Aces. Evansville has the series lead 40-15. The Aces have won four of the last five meetings, including the last meeting, 79-75, on November 9, 2019, in Evansville. Ball State is 12-17 against Evansville in Muncie and are 0-2 inside Worthen Arena.

Scouting the Aces

Evansville enters the game with a 3-8 record. Kenny Strawbridge Jr. has a team-best 15.8 points per game. He is sixth in the NCAA with 164 field-goal attempts. He is second on the team with 29 assists. Strawbridge is averaging 3.5 rebounds per game. He has notched nine steals and added one block. Yacine Toumi is second on the team with 10.8 points per contest and is second on the squad with 5.4 rebounds per contest. He has produced 13 assists, eight steals, and two blocks. Marvin Coleman leads the team with 6.2 rebounds per game, has a team-high 30 assists, and paces the team with 14 steals. He has added 6.5 points a game. Preston Phillips has a team-high six blocks.

Game 10 Preview: Old Foes Get Reacquainted

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – On Sunday inside Purcell Pavilion, old foes get reacquainted while one of Notre Dame’s old greats takes his place in the rafters. The Fighting Irish men’s basketball team (7-2) welcomes its old BIG EAST rival Marquette (7-3) in a 4 p.m. ET tip on Sunday on ESPN2. It’ll mark the 119th matchup between the two but the first since 2013. Meanwhile, at halftime, ND great John Shumate will get inducted into the prestigious Ring of Honor.

RING OF HONOR

Another banner will be hung in the rafters of Purcell Pavilion on Sunday with a special Ring of Honor ceremony dedicated to John Shumate. A 6-9 center hailing from Elizabeth, New Jersey, Shumate donned the Notre Dame Blue & Gold from 1971-74, and led as captain for his final two playing years. Shumate scored a total of 1,334 points and reeled in 684 rebounds over 59 collegiate games. A two-time All-American, and a First Team consensus choice in 1974, Shumate is one of the few ND greats to average a double-double over their respective career, averaging 22.6 ppg and 11.6 rpg.

During the 1972-73 season, Shumate led the Irish to an 18-12 record and the NIT championship game – a tournament in which he was named the MVP. A year later was a magical 26-3 season, which included a 15-0 record inside Purcell Pavilion. That year, Shumate and the Irish went 3-1 versus nationally ranked top-five teams, which included No. 3 Indiana, No. 5 Marquette and of course No. 1 UCLA, as the latter snapped the Bruins 88-game winning streak. In that game, Shumate tallied a 24-point, 11-rebound double-double, grabbing the final winning rebound to clinch it.

Shumate ultimately had the best scoring average in the 1974 NCAA Tournament, averaging 28.7 ppg over three games and was named to the All-Regional Team as a result.

When it comes to converting shots, no one in the history of the program did it better, as Shumate still ranks first all-time with his .610 career shooting percentage (min. 600 attempts).

Shumate still ranks eighth all-time in points scored in a single season, racking up 703 during the 1973-74 campaign. During the same year, Shumate converted 62.7 percent of his shots, which ranks fifth all-time. The New Jersey native collected 27 career double-doubles, including 15 in his final season.

Shumate will be the program’s 10th individual inducted into the Ring of Honor.

OLD RIVALS BACK TOGETHER ON SUNDAY

Sunday’s matchup will mark the 119th contest between Notre Dame and Marquette, but the first since the 2013 BIG EAST conference tournament. The Irish lead the all-time series, 81-37, with a strong 48-13 record at home.

Marquette has only faced DePaul (131) and Wisconsin (129) more times than ND.

ON FIRE

There’s not a hotter shooter in the country from three than Cormac Ryan righrt now. He’s 14-of-19 from three over the past 3 games. In fact, Ryan has made the most three’s in the country since Nov. 30 with 14. He’s averaging 19.3 ppg in those 3 games, shooting 19-of-29 from the floor.

If he scores 20 or more points on Sunday, it would mark the first time of his career he earned three 20-point performances in the same season. If he scores 23 or more on Sunday, it’ll mark the best four-game stretch of his career, topping a four-game spurt last March in which he scored 80 points – capped by NCAA Bama game.

HEATING UP

Freshman Ven-Allen Lubin is starting to come into his own — 3 double-digit scoring performances over the last 5 games – averaging 9.0 ppg and 6.8 rpg in that span. He’s 20-for-30 from the field in those 5 games.

Overall, he’s averaging 7.3 points and 5.2 rebounds off the bench. He’s shooting an impressive 73.7 percent from two, while knocking down 64.4 percent from the floor overall – which would lead the team if he had more attempts.

Lubin secured his first career double-double on Nov. 25 vs St. Bonaventure, posting 10 points and 13 rebounds. Later on Dec. 7 vs Boston, Lubin was subbed in for his defense with under a minute left and it paid off, earning a pivotal block and rebound, then converting a free throw on the other end. He finished with nine points, 5 rebounds and a career best 3 blocks.

NATE’S GREAT START

Nate is averaging career best numbers – 14.3 ppg and 8.4 rpg. He entered the year with six 20-point scoring games and already has two this season.

Laszewski ranks 7th in rebounds (8.4), 3rd in FT% (.875), 2nd in defensive rebounds (7.7). In fact his 7.7 defensive rebounds per game rank 12th in the country.

SCOREMAC RYAN

The Michigan State game on Nov. 30 saw the return of the Scoremac. He was a man possessed in the first half, scoring 20 of the team’s 42 points in which they boasted a 42-24 lead. Thus he nearly outscored the Spartans that half. He went 5-for-5 from deep and 7-of-8 overall. He ultimately finished the game with season high 23 points and a perfect 6-for-6 from three.

And Ryan is no stranger to that kind of performance. He went 7-for-9 from three in the big NCAA Tournament win over Alabama last March, scoring 29 points.

All-in-all, since joining the Irish starting lineup on Feb. 9, 2022, Ryan has averaged 13.2 ppg (carrying over into this season as well).

#PROTECTPURCELL

Notre Dame’s court may have gotten a facelift this offseason and sport a new look, but the same home court advantage still applies.

Last season, the Irish went 14-1 inside Purcell Pavilion, and this year they are off to a 7-1 start which includes a ranked win over No. 20 Michigan State. Thus, they are 21-2 at home over their last 23 home games.

With the win over Boston U on Dec. 7, the Irish have won 25 straight at home against mid-majors, with the last loss occurring against Radford back in 2018.

PEEP THESE TRENDING STATS

The Irish are currently leading the country in fouls per game, only committing an average of 11.1.

Next, they rank 2nd in the country in turnovers per game, only surrendering 8.8.

Lastly, if the Irish can get to the free-throw line in late-game situationsk, look out. They rank 5th in free-throw percentage, converting 81.6 percent from the stripe – leads the ACC as well.

CLOSERS

One of the biggest takeaways from early on this season is that the Irish have finished strong down the final stretch of a game.

Game 1 vs Radford – Irish make 6 of their last 9 from the field over the final 8:22

Game 2 vs YSU – Irish make its last six from the field over the final 4:29

Game 3 vs USI – Irish make its last 11-of-15 over the final 11:33.

Game 4 vs Lipscomb – Dane Goodwin converts a three with 14 seconds left for the go-ahead game-winner.

Game 5 vs Bowling Green – The Irish end the game on a 23-5 scoring run. ND made 9 of its last 12 from the field starting at the 10:25 mark.

Game 9 vs Boston – Up six with four minutes to play, Irish get it done from the free-throw line, making nine from the stripe to close out the 81-75 win.

Third Period Struggles Doom Irish

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame hockey fought to the final horn as they battled Penn State University to a 5-2 loss. Aside from two empty net goals late in the contest, the Irish and Nittany Lions skated even a majority of the contest, with the Irish firing several shots on net in the waning minutes, looking for the tying goal.

After allowing five of the first six shots on goal in the contest, the Irish dominated puck possession halfway through the opening period. With the top line back on the ice for their second shift of the night, the Irish peppered the Penn State net with shots but were unable to break the stalemate just six minutes into the game.

Just over halfway through the first period Ryan Bischel made an incredible toe save, denying the Nittany Lions’ wraparound look before Jesse Lansdell dove in front of the rebound to keep the two teams even at 0-0.

The Irish lit the lamp to snap the scoreless period and give ND the 1-0 lead at 13:28 of the first.

The Nittany Lions tied it up late in the period with a shot from the near circle trickling past Bischel’s left pad. On the next shift the visitors took the lead when a floater from the point beat Bischel, blocker side, and the two teams skated to the locker room after one period with the Irish down a goal.

Nearly halfway through the contest, the first penalty of the game was whistled and the Irish sat for tripping where the penalty kill unit cast aside all five shots faced.

With 17:54 elapsed in the second, the Nittany Lions were whistled for interference and the Irish saw their first powerplay opportunity of the night. It took the Blue and Gold just 14 seconds to find the equalizer on the man advantage as the team’s leading scorer Ryder Rolston took advantage of the open lane at 18:08 of the second.

Penn State retook the lead at 12:14 of the final period when a centering pass behind the net found an open Nittany Lion at the top of the crease.

A pair of empty net tallies late in the contest sealed Notre Dame’s fate as they fell 5-2 on night one of the weekend series.

GOALS

Jesse Lansdell opened the scoring Friday night with a shot top-shelf, over the glove of PSU’s netminder Liam Souliere. Trevor Janicke’s initial shot sailed wide of the net where Jake Boltmann gathered the rebound. Feeding the puck along the boards back to T. Janicke, the alternate captain found his fellow senior out front who lifted the puck into the back of the net.

The Irish evened it up with a powerplay goal at 18:08 of the second stanza, courtesy of Ryder Rolston. Notre Dame won the faceoff to start the man advantage and passed the puck along the blue line momentarily as the powerplay unit set up. Chase Blackmun found Nick Leivermann at the opposite end of the blue line who sent a pass over to Rolston atop the near circle who sent a sharp wrister into the back of the net.

KEY STATS

With his fifth goal of the season, Ryder Rolston now boasts a team-best 12 points this year and is tied for goals.

Six individuals highlighted the box score in Friday’s contest, including Rolston and Jesse Lansdell with the goals.

Ryan Bischel made 34 saves in the contest while the Irish sent 31 pucks on net, breaking the PSU netminder twice.

Notre Dame registered 19 blocked shots in the loss to the Nittany Lions, led by Nick Leivermann with three. On the opposite end of the ice, the Irish had 12 shots blocked in game one.

UP NEXT

The two teams meet again Saturday at 6 p.m. to close out the first half of the season. Following the tilt, fans are invited to skate with Santa and the team to celebrate the holiday season.

Sycamores look for sixth straight win Sunday at Southern Indiana

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State travels to Southern Indiana Sunday afternoon in its third game of a four-game road stint. It’s the first-ever meeting between the two teams, and tip-off is set for 4 p.m. ET at Screaming Eagles Arena in Evansville.

At 9-1, the Sycamores are off to their best start since 1978-79 when ISU went 33-0 before falling to Michigan State in the NCAA Championship.

The Sycamores are coming off another resilient Valley win, defeating Southern Illinois 74-71 Wednesday night on the road. ISU was up by 14 in the first half and wound up down by two late in the second half but was able to hold off the Salukis to improve to 2-0 in MVC play for the first time since 2014-15 when the team started off 5-0. ISU has now knocked off two of the top three teams in the MVC preseason poll in Drake and SIU.

Cameron Henry nearly notched a triple-double in Wednesday’s win, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since Jake Odum (10/10/12) against Fairfield Nov. 27, 2011. Henry posted 15 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists all while committing zero turnovers.

The Sycamores are 2-0 in true road games for the first time since 2005-06, and a win Sunday would continue their best overall start since 1978-79 and would be ISU’s sixth straight win. The Sycamores have won six or more straight games just 15 times since joining the Valley in 1976.

Entering Sunday’s game, the Sycamores are the only Valley team to not have trailed by double-digits this season. ISU trailed by a season-high eight points against Kansas City which turned out to be the lone loss of the season so far.

USI has some familiar faces on the bench as former Sycamores Sam Mervis and Nick Hittle now suit up for the Screaming Eagles. USI head coach Stan Gouard was an assistant coach at ISU for three seasons from 2005-2008.

SERIES HISTORY

Sunday will be the first-ever meeting between Indiana State and Southern Indiana.

USI AT A GLANCE

USI was picked to finish seventh in the OVC preseason poll and most recently snapped a two-game skid with a 78-47 victory over Anderson University (Indiana) at home Wednesday night.

USI is 3-0 at home this season and is led by senior guard

Jelani Simmons, who is posting a 20.7 points per contest. Junior guard Tyler Henry follows with 16.0 points per outing, while the double-figure scorers are rounded out by graduate forward Trevor Lakes and junior guard Gary Solomon with 11.7 points and 11.0 points, respectively.

USI is averaging 78.7 points per contest and shooting 54.8 percent from the field (86-157). As a team, USI leads the OVC in 3-point field goal percentage (.396; 84-212 ) rebounding defense (32.9 per game), and is tied for first in 3-point field goals made per game (9.3).

Overall this season, senior guard Jelani Simmons leads the Eagles with 15.7 points per game, followed by graduate forward Trevor Lakes with 11.2 points per outing. Senior forward Jacob Polakovich leads USI on the glass with 9.1 rebounds per contest.

LAST TIME OUT

The Indiana State Sycamores finished off a Valley thriller in front of a rowdy crowd at Banterra Center Wednesday night, outlasting the Southern Illinois Salukis for a 74-71 road win. The Sycamores (9-1, 2-0 MVC) led by 14 in the first half and wound up down by two late in the second half but held off the late push from the Salukis (5-4, 1-1 MVC) to take their fifth straight win.

Cameron Henry was two assists shy of a triple-double, tying his career-high of eight assists alongside 15 points and a season-high 12 rebounds. He also swiped three passes in the game. Courvoisier McCauley led the Sycamores with 16 points in the game, and Robbie Avila and Jayson Kent each shot over 66 percent from the field for 12 and 10 points, respectively.

In the last minute of the opening frame, Jayson Kent pulled down the offensive board and drew a shooting foul on the put back and knocked down both free throws to give the Sycamores their largest lead of the game at 39-25 with 57 seconds on the clock. The Salukis would answer with a buzzer-beating triple, and ISU led 36-28 at the break.

SIU opened the second half with five straight points and later went on a 17-3 run spanning over five minutes to take its first lead of the game at 58-56 with 8:54 to play. In that span, ISU shot 1-of-9 from the field with a lone triple from McCauley.

That lead did not last long as Robbie Avila laid in a basket and then set McCauley up for another triple at 6:22 that gave ISU a 61-58 lead. The Sycamores went on a 12-3 run in the last five minutes to get their lead back up to an eight-point cushion at 72-65 with 25 seconds remaining, which was enough to hold on for the win after two Saluki triples in the last nine seconds.

Sycamores head north for afternoon clash with Western Michigan

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State plays its final non-conference road game Saturday when it heads to Kalamazoo, Michigan, to square off with Western Michigan. Tipoff is set for noon, with the game set to be carried on ESPN3.

Last Time Out

Indiana State went on a 21-0 run across the second and third quarters, spearheading the Sycamores to a wire-to-wire 68-43 win over Chicago State inside Hulman Center.

Del’Janae Williams led all scorers with 14 points, while Chelsea Cain had 12 and Anna McKendree had 11. Cain had four assists and three rebounds, while McKendree led the Sycamores with six boards and Williams added five rebounds.

After a slow start, Indiana State broke open what was a three-point game with its 21-0 run and never looked back. The Sycamore defense stymied Chicago State into 28 turnovers and a 32.1 percent mark from the field. Indiana State outscored Chicago State 38-20 across the middle quarters to help snap a two-game skid.

Creating Havoc

Indiana State continues to be among the best in the MVC when it comes to generating turnovers. The Sycamores’ 20.7 turnovers forced per game are second in the conference, while their turnover margin of plus-4.3 per game is the best mark in the MVC.

Let it Fly

After ranking in the middle of the pack in the Missouri Valley Conference last season in 3-pointers, Indiana State found success from distance in the first two games of the 2022-23 season. As a team, the Sycamores knocked down 18 3-pointers across their opening two games against Saint Louis and Central Michigan, shooting the ball at a 47.4 percent clip from distance in those two wins.

Del’Janae Williams (nine), Anna McKendree (nine) and Natalia Lalic (eight) have all knocked down three or more 3-pointers in a game, with Williams accomplishing the feat against both Saint Louis and Purdue. Lalic was the first Sycamore with five 3-pointers in a game in nearly two seasons when she went 5-for-8 from distance against Central Michigan. The aforementioned trio has combined for 28 of Indiana State’s 35 3-pointers this season, with a pair of newcomers responsible for the remaining two. Bella Finnegan has five of the remaining seven 3-pointers, including two against Ohio, while Ella Sawyer has knocked down a pair of treys, including one to beat the first half buzzer against Central Michigan.

Proving that hitting 18 3-pointers against a pair of mid-majors was no fluke, the Sycamores went on the road and knocked down eight 3-pointers at Purdue. Williams was responsible for half of those eight treys, while Lalic also had a pair of three-balls against the Boilermakers. McKendree and Finnegan provided the two remaining 3-pointers in that game.

Thieves Avenue

Indiana State is averaging 11.8 steals per game, a mark that leads the MVC and ranks in the top 30 nationally, with the Sycamores recording at least 12 steals in four games this season. Anna McKendree (3.6) and Del’Janae Williams (2.0) are both averaging multiple steals per contest, with 10 different players on the Indiana State roster recording two or more steals this season.

The steals and turnovers forced have also translated on the other end, with Indiana State scoring 20-plus points off turnovers in each of the last four games.

Western Michigan at a Glance

Western Michigan enters the weekend at 3-5 overall following a 68-62 win over Valparaiso Wednesday night. WMU is coming off a 16-14 season in 2021-22, including a 10-10 mark in MAC play. The Broncos were knocked out in the quarterfinals of the MAC Tournament by eventual winner Buffalo.

Lauren Ross, a Third Team All-MAC selection last season, leads the Broncos in scoring at 18.3 points per game and is second on the team with 4.1 rebounds per game. Taylor Williams is nearly averaging a double-double for WMU, putting up 11.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game for the Broncos. Ross and Williams combined for 43 points and 15 rebounds in last season’s meeting, with the duo accounting for 63 percent of the scoring and 48 percent of the rebounds for WMU in their 68-67 win over Indiana State.

Now in his 11th season at the helm in Kalamazoo, head coach Shane Clipfell ranks third in program history with 151 wins at Western Michigan.

Saturday’s contest is the second straight game against a Missouri Valley Conference opponent for Western Michigan. The Broncos played Valparaiso Wednesday night.

Series History Against Western Michigan

Western Michigan has a 6-5 advantage in the all-time series after winning in Terre Haute last season. 10 of the 11 games in the all-time series between the Sycamores and Broncos have been decided by five points or less, including each of the last six games in the series.

Last Game Against Western Michigan (Dec. 4, 2021)

Indiana State nearly overturned a double-digit deficit in the second half but came up just short in a 68-67 setback to Western Michigan inside Hulman Center.

Mya Glanton posted her first collegiate double-double with 22 points and 16 rebounds to pace the Sycamores as Indiana State rallied back from a 15-point third-quarter deficit. Del’Janae Williams posted seven steals, three in the fourth quarter, to help provide a late spark in the Sycamores’ full-court defensive set and added 15 points in her third consecutive double-digit scoring effort.

Glanton’s 22-point performance gave the Sycamores three consecutive games with a player hitting the 20-point mark, while her 16-rebounds left her just shy of the top-10 mark in the ISU record book.

Up Next

Indiana State begins a five-game homestand Thursday morning at 11 a.m. against Western Kentucky. The Sycamores will welcome middle school students from across Vigo County for the game.

Men’s basketball heads to Ball State

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – On Saturday, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team travels to Muncie, Ind. for a non-conference game at Ball State. Tip is set for 1 p.m. CT with the Purple Aces Radio Network and ESPN+ having the coverage.

Last Time Out

– Down by six points with three minutes remaining, the Purple Aces outscored Campbell by a 16-4 margin to finish the game before earning a 72-66 win

– Wednesday’s game against the Camels featured a season-high 19 lead changes

– Marvin Coleman II and Yacine Toumi each set their career highs with 18 points and interestingly enough – both were 7-for-11 from the floor

– Antoine Smith Jr. scored a season-high 15 points while hitting the triple that gave UE the lead for good

– Freshmen Gabe Spinelli (9 points) and Chris Moncrief (4 points) also had the top scoring games of their young careers

Clutch Hits

– With one minute remaining in the Dec. 7 game against Campbell, Antoine Smith Jr. drained a 3-pointer that gave the Aces a 66-64 lead that they would hang onto in a 72-66 win

– Smith completed the game with a season-high 15 points while draining 3 of his 4 outside attempts

– It was his second start of the season with his first being a 10-point game at UNI

– He has been on a roll of the last three games, averaging 12.3 points per game after recording a mark of 5.9 PPG through the opening eight contests

Back in the Fold

– Yacine Toumi missed the UNI game due to health protocols but returned with a vengeance against Campbell as he posted a career-high 18 points

– Toumi was 7-for-11 from the field while hauling in six rebounds

– The effort was his seventh double digit scoring performance in his 10 games

Locked In

– Marvin Coleman II enjoyed one his top collegiate games against Campbell as he set career-highs in scoring (18 points), field goals (7), triples (4) and minutes (38:20)

– It was his first double digit scoring game since opening the season with 11 at Miami

– Coleman entered the game hitting just two of his first 22 3-point tries but rebounded to hit 4 out of 7 against the Camels

– Over the last three games, Coleman has converted 14 out of 30 attempts (46.7%)…he opened the season hitting just 13 out of his first 70 field goal tries (18.6%)

– He is tied for 12th in the MVC with 6.2 rebounds and is tied for 16th with 2.7 assists per contest

Making Some Noise

– Every time freshman Chris Moncrief has taken the floor, he has evolved his game

– He enjoyed his best performance against Campbell where he hit both field goal attempts (including a dunk) while being credited with a pair of assists

– Moncrief has played 9 or more minutes in four of the last five games

Evolving his Game

– Gabe Spinelli has turned his season around over the last five games

– The freshman registered a career-high 9 points on 4-for-6 shooting versus Campbell and has averaged 5.8 points over the last five contests while hitting 14 of his 25 attempts (56.0%)

– In his first six games, Spinelli scored a total of 7 points (1.2 PPG) and hit 2 of his first 11 attempts

– His previous high of six points came against Fairfield and Southern Illinois

Scouting the Opponent

– Ball State sits at 5-4 on the season following a 76-59 road victory over Eastern Illinois on Wednesday

– The Cardinals are 2-0 at home with wins over Earlham and Indiana South Bend

– Four players average in double figures with Payton Sparks leading the way with 14.4 points per game while hitting 61.3% of his attempts

– Sparks also leads the squad with 7.9 rebounds per game

– Jarron Coleman is averaging 12.7 PPG and has a team-high 32 assists

– Jaylin Sellers and Demarius Jacobs have scoring marks of 12.3 and 12.2 PPG, respectively

USI heads north to face Eastern Michigan on Saturday

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball travels north into Michigan Saturday when the Screaming Eagles square off against Eastern Michigan University at 12 p.m. CT. The matchup will be the third game of a season-long five-game road stretch for USI.

The game can be seen live on ESPN3 and heard on 95.7FM The Spin (http://957thespin.com).

For the third time already in the 2022-23 non-conference season, the Screaming Eagles are facing an opponent from the Mid-American Conference. Preceding the matchup against Eastern Michigan, USI previously played against Bowling Green State University and Northern Illinois University from the MAC. Northern Illinois won 61-53 on November 15, and Bowling Green won 100-74 on November 19 against USI. In recent weeks, both Northern Illinois and Bowling Green have moved up in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 poll. Saturday will be the first all-time meeting between Eastern Michigan and Southern Indiana.

Most recently, USI’s strong non-conference schedule included a contest at Butler University earlier in the week on Wednesday. Butler, out of the Big East Conference, came away with a 58-48 win against the Screaming Eagles, but it was a tight, gritty game for the entire 40 minutes. The largest lead in the game was 10 points by the Bulldogs with less than a minute remaining in the second quarter, which was quickly cut down to three before the intermission after a 7-0 run by USI. The game featured seven lead changes and was tied three times. The defensive battle at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse came down to the final minutes, where USI made it a four-point game with less than two minutes left. Butler made late free throws to close out the game.

The USI defense had a solid performance against the Bulldogs, who scored 11 points below their season average. The Screaming Eagles had 12 steals and forced 24 Butler turnovers. Sophomore guard Vanessa Shafford (Linton, Indiana) and senior guard Tori Handley (Jeffersonville, Indiana), who are first and second on the team this season in steals, had four and three steals, respectively. Additionally, USI’s defense also drew eight offensive fouls by the Bulldogs. Going into Wednesday’s game, Butler was shooting 47 percent from the floor this season, but USI held Butler to 39 percent on Wednesday night.

Individually, junior forward Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana) led USI with 11 points on the scoresheet. Raley extended her streak of scoring in double figures in every game this season for USI. The seven-game, double-digit scoring streak is the longest of Raley’s career. Raley’s best double-digit game this season was against Bethel University (Ind.) on November 23, scoring a career-best 23 points. On the season, Raley leads the team at 15.1 points per game and is also tied for a team-best 20 assists.

Shafford also pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds against Butler. The 5’9″ guard paces the Screaming Eagles this season at 8.1 boards per game. In her freshman season, Shafford averaged 3.5 rebounds a contest. Shafford already has three games this season with 10 or more rebounds. Against Bowling Green in November, Shafford had a career-high 11 rebounds to go along with a career-high 21 points, her first career double-double. The Linton, Indiana native followed that performance with 13 points and 10 rebounds against Bethel. Shafford is averaging 12.4 points per game this season, and she leads the squad with 19 steals and is second with 19 assists.

USI is averaging 70.6 points per game this season, which is second in the Ohio Valley Conference. Southern Indiana’s scoring output has been achieved by shooting 43.5 percent from the floor (second in the OVC), 39.6 percent from behind the arc (first in the OVC), and 76.8 percent at the free-throw line (second in the OVC). USI’s offensive effort has led to an OVC-best 17.7 assists per game. The Screaming Eagles have recorded an assist on over 68 percent of their total made baskets this season.

Eastern Michigan is off to a solid 5-1 start in 2022-23 after a 7-20 record last season. The Eagles started their season with two wins against Ohio Valley Conference teams, beating Lindenwood University 71-56 and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville 71-62. Eastern Michigan is coming off its first loss of the season on Sunday, falling 79-73 against the University of North Dakota. The Eagles were outshot by North Dakota and were -10 in rebounding for the game. Senior guard Natalia Pineda led Eastern Michigan with 19 points, burying five three-pointers in the game. Sophomore guard ZaNiya Nelson recorded 16 points and nine rebounds.

On the season, sophomore guard Lachelle Austin tops the squad at 13.6 points per game with Nelson right behind her at 13.2 points per contest. The Eagles present a balanced attack, as five players average 10 or more points per outing, and they had four players tally double digits against North Dakota. Eastern Michigan is shooting 44 percent overall this season.

After Saturday’s game at Eastern Michigan, USI will step away from game action next week for finals and conclude the fall semester. The Screaming Eagles will then resume their road swing next weekend on back-to-back days against Wright State University next Saturday and the University of Cincinnati on Sunday.

Eagles welcome Sycamores Sunday

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball hits the midway point of a three-game homestand Sunday at 3 p.m. when it welcomes Indiana State University to Screaming Eagles Arena. Tickets are available on-line at USIScreamingEagles.com or by visiting the Screaming Eagles Arena Ticket Office between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

The game will be streamed on ESPN+ in addition to being heard on ESPN 97.7FM (http://listentotheref.com) and 95.7FM The Spin (http://957thespin.com).

USI, which are 4-5 this season, looks to remain perfect at Screaming Eagles Arena in 2022-23 on Sunday. The Eagles opened the homestand by snapping a two-game skid from last week’s road swing with a victory over Anderson University (Indiana), 78-47, Wednesday. Graduate forward Trevor Lakes (Lebanon, Indiana) led the Eagles’ attack with a collegiate career-best 29 points, while senior guard Jelani Simmons (Columbus, Ohio) reached 23 points in a game for the third time this season to close out the double-digit scorers.

USI is 3-0 at home this season and is led by Simmons, who is posting a 20.7 points per contest at home and 15.7 points per contest overall. Lakes is posting 11.2 points per home outing and follows Simmons in the scoring column for the season with 11.7 points per game.

Indiana State is 9-1 overall in 2022-23 after posting a 74-71 victory at Southern Illinois University Wednesday in Missouri Valley Conference action. The Sycamores were led in the win by graduate guard Courvoisier McCauley, who had 16 points, and senior guard Cameron Henry, who had 15 points and 12 rebounds.

McCauley leads the Sycamores with 17.3 points per game this season, while Henry is posting 11.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.

The final game of the homestand is slated for December 15 when USI hosts St. Mary’s of the Woods College for a 7 p.m. contest. USI also is set to host Southeast Missouri State University December 29 at 7:30 p.m. to close out the 2022 calendar year and start Ohio Valley Conference action.

The USI-SEMO game will a part of a OVC men’s and women’s basketball double-header.

Between the USI home games with SMWC and SEMO, the Eagles play in the Indiana Classic that is hosted by Purdue University-Ft. Wayne. USI is slated to play a neutral-site game versus Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis December 19 and face off with host Ft. Wayne December 20.

Interrante, Johnston Post Career Highs Friday

Valpo women’s basketball juniors Jayda Johnston (Roseville, Minn./Roseville Area) and Ava Interrante (McHenry, Ill./McHenry) each smashed their career best in the scoring column Friday evening as the Beacons dropped an 83-67 decision at Western Illinois.

How It Happened

Valpo led a couple minutes into the game, 6-2, but WIU held the Beacons to just one field goal over the next six minutes during an 18-4 run which gave the Leathernecks a double-digit lead. Western Illinois led 27-16 at the end of the first quarter.

Johnston scored seven points in the second quarter alone as she surpassed her previous career best in scoring. The Leathernecks outscored Valpo in the period however, 23-12, to extend their lead to 50-28 at halftime.

WIU scored the first three points of the third quarter to extend their lead to 25 points before Interrante entered the game and immediately nailed a 3-pointer as part of a nine-point quarter.

All nine of Interrante’s points in the period came as part of a 15-4 run after she entered the game, a stretch which also included two 3-pointers from junior Leah Earnest (Stevens Point, Wis./SPASH). A layup by Interrante with 4:36 to play in the quarter brought Valpo back within 57-43.

The Beacons got no closer than 14 points the remainder of the period, but ended up trailing just 68-52 with 10 minutes to play.

Senior Olivia Brown (East Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids [St. Bonaventure]) finished at the rim on Valpo’s first possession of the fourth quarter, and after a miss by the Leathernecks, Interrante hit yet another 3-pointer to make it an 11-point game.

Valpo actually had a shot to cut the deficit to single digits on its next trip, as WIU failed to convert on its end of the court, but a Beacon 3-pointer was off the mark. Following Interrante’s triple, the Beacons went scoreless for a six-minute span as WIU closed out the win.

Inside the Game

Johnston surpassed her previous career high of six points early in the second quarter Friday and finished with a team-best 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting and four rebounds in 32 minutes of action off the bench.

Meanwhile, Interrante’s third-quarter output of nine points broke her previous career best by itself. All 15 of the junior’s points came in the second half, as she hit 5-of-8 from the field, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range.

Earnest registered her fourth double-double of the season on Friday, scoring 10 points and leading all players with 10 rebounds.

After shooting just 9-of-26 from the field in the first half, Valpo shot nearly 50% (13-of-27) in the second half. The Beacons also were 6-of-14 from 3-point range in the final 20 minutes after going without a triple in the opening 20 minutes.

Western Illinois took advantage of an edge at the charity stripe, going 28-of-37 from the foul line to Valpo’s 17-of-23. The Leathernecks also forced 22 Valpo turnovers and committed just 11 miscues, finishing with an 18-5 edge in points off turnovers.

Next Up

Valpo (2-6) has 13 days between games, as the Beacons won’t return to competition until Thursday, Dec. 22 with a game at Wisconsin at 4 p.m.

Men’s Hoops Battles Maryville in Sunday Matinee

The UIndy men’s basketball team travels to Maryville on Sunday afternoon in the team’s final GLVC bout of 2022. The Greyhounds lead the all-time series, 8-3, while the Saints have won three of the last four games.

The combination of Kendrick Tchoua and Julian Steinfeld helped put the Hounds back in the win column this past Tuesday, as the team downed Christian Brothers, 68-59, in Memphis, Tenn. Steinfeld recorded 13 rebounds to match a career-high, while Tchoua led the team with 16 points. Through nine games this winter, Jesse Bingham tops the Hounds with 15.4 points per game.

Both head coaches, Paul Corsaro and Jesse Shaw, are in their third season at UIndy and Maryville, respectively. The Saints have won two of the teams’ three contests since the start of the 2020-21 campaign.

NFL STANDINGS

American Football Conference
	W	L	T	Pct	GB	PF	PA	Home	Road	vs. Conf	vs. Div	Streak
Buffalo Bills	9	3	0	.750	0.0	333	209	4 – 1 – 0	5 – 2 – 0	6 – 2 – 0	1 – 2 – 0	3 W
Kansas City Chiefs	9	3	0	.750	0.0	350	270	5 – 1 – 0	4 – 2 – 0	5 – 3 – 0	3 – 0 – 0	1 L
Baltimore Ravens	8	4	0	.667	0.0	285	236	4 – 2 – 0	4 – 2 – 0	5 – 3 – 0	2 – 0 – 0	1 W
Tennessee Titans	7	5	0	.583	0.0	219	240	3 – 2 – 0	4 – 3 – 0	5 – 3 – 0	3 – 0 – 0	2 L
Cincinnati Bengals	8	4	0	.667	0.0	312	255	4 – 1 – 0	4 – 3 – 0	5 – 3 – 0	1 – 3 – 0	4 W
Miami Dolphins	8	4	0	.667	0.0	299	289	5 – 1 – 0	3 – 3 – 0	6 – 2 – 0	2 – 1 – 0	1 L
New York Jets	7	5	0	.583	0.0	252	223	3 – 3 – 0	4 – 2 – 0	5 – 4 – 0	2 – 2 – 0	1 L

New England Patriots	6	6	0	.500	2.0	249	226	3 – 3 – 0	3 – 3 – 0	5 – 3 – 0	2 – 2 – 0	2 L
Los Angeles Chargers	6	6	0	.500	2.0	272	309	2 – 3 – 0	4 – 3 – 0	4 – 4 – 0	2 – 3 – 0	1 L
Cleveland Browns	5	7	0	.417	3.0	290	300	3 – 3 – 0	2 – 4 – 0	3 – 6 – 0	2 – 1 – 0	2 W
Pittsburgh Steelers	5	7	0	.417	3.0	213	277	2 – 3 – 0	3 – 4 – 0	2 – 6 – 0	1 – 2 – 0	2 W
Las Vegas Raiders	5	8	0	.385	3.5	308	313	3 – 2 – 0	2 – 6 – 0	4 – 5 – 0	3 – 2 – 0	1 L
Indianapolis Colts	4	8	1	.346	4.0	209	298	2 – 4 – 0	2 – 4 – 1	4 – 5 – 1	1 – 3 – 1	3 L
Jacksonville Jaguars	4	8	0	.333	4.0	258	272	3 – 3 – 0	1 – 5 – 0	4 – 4 – 0	1 – 2 – 0	1 L
Denver Broncos	3	9	0	.250	5.0	166	204	2 – 3 – 0	1 – 6 – 0	2 – 7 – 0	0 – 3 – 0	4 L
Houston Texans	1	10	1	.125	6.5	188	287	0 – 5 – 1	1 – 5 – 0	1 – 6 – 1	1 – 1 – 1	7 L

National Football Conference
	W	L	T	Pct	GB	PF	PA	Home	Road	vs. Conf	vs. Div	Streak
Philadelphia Eagles	11	1	0	.917	0.0	338	226	6 – 1 – 0	5 – 0 – 0	6 – 1 – 0	2 – 1 – 0	3 W
Minnesota Vikings	10	2	0	.833	0.0	289	279	6 – 1 – 0	4 – 1 – 0	6 – 2 – 0	3 – 0 – 0	2 W
San Francisco 49ers	8	4	0	.667	0.0	282	190	5 – 1 – 0	3 – 3 – 0	6 – 2 – 0	4 – 0 – 0	5 W
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	6	6	0	.500	0.0	217	219	4 – 3 – 0	2 – 3 – 0	6 – 2 – 0	3 – 1 – 0	1 W
Dallas Cowboys	9	3	0	.750	0.0	333	206	6 – 1 – 0	3 – 2 – 0	7 – 3 – 0	3 – 1 – 0	3 W
New York Giants	7	4	1	.625	0.0	245	252	4 – 2 – 1	3 – 2 – 0	3 – 4 – 1	0 – 2 – 1	1 T
Seattle Seahawks	7	5	0	.583	0.0	318	304	3 – 2 – 0	4 – 3 – 0	5 – 4 – 0	3 – 1 – 0	1 W

Washington Commanders	7	5	1	.577	0.5	253	256	3 – 3 – 0	4 – 2 – 1	4 – 4 – 1	1 – 2 – 1	1 T
Detroit Lions	5	7	0	.417	2.5	315	324	3 – 4 – 0	2 – 3 – 0	4 – 4 – 0	2 – 1 – 0	1 W
Atlanta Falcons	5	8	0	.385	3.0	288	312	4 – 3 – 0	1 – 5 – 0	4 – 5 – 0	1 – 3 – 0	2 L
Green Bay Packers	5	8	0	.385	3.0	263	302	3 – 3 – 0	2 – 5 – 0	4 – 5 – 0	2 – 2 – 0	1 W
Arizona Cardinals	4	8	0	.333	3.5	264	321	1 – 6 – 0	3 – 2 – 0	3 – 6 – 0	1 – 4 – 0	2 L
Carolina Panthers	4	8	0	.333	3.5	230	266	4 – 3 – 0	0 – 5 – 0	3 – 5 – 0	3 – 1 – 0	1 W
New Orleans Saints	4	9	0	.308	4.0	265	297	3 – 4 – 0	1 – 5 – 0	3 – 6 – 0	1 – 3 – 0	2 L
Los Angeles Rams	4	9	0	.308	4.0	218	296	3 – 5 – 0	1 – 4 – 0	3 – 7 – 0	1 – 4 – 0	1 W
Chicago Bears	3	10	0	.231	5.0	270	333	2 – 4 – 0	1 – 6 – 0	1 – 8 – 0	0 – 4 – 0	6 L

NBA STANDINGS

Eastern Conference
	W	L	Pct	Conf GB	Home	Road	Div	Conf	Last 10	Streak
1 Boston	21	5	.808	—	11-2	10-3	4-0	14-5	8-2	3 W
2 Milwaukee	19	6	.760	1.5	12-3	7-3	4-1	11-4	8-2	4 W
3 Cleveland	16	10	.615	5.0	11-2	5-8	3-2	13-5	6-4	1 L
4 Brooklyn	15	12	.556	6.5	10-5	5-7	4-2	11-6	7-3	2 W
5 Indiana	14	12	.538	7.0	8-4	6-8	1-1	10-4	4-6	1 W
6 Philadelphia	13	12	.520	7.5	8-5	5-7	2-3	10-8	5-5	1 W
7 Atlanta	13	13	.500	8.0	8-5	5-8	2-2	9-10	3-7	3 L
8 New York	13	13	.500	8.0	6-7	7-6	1-2	9-6	5-5	3 W

9 Toronto	13	13	.500	8.0	10-3	3-10	1-5	9-10	4-6	1 L
10 Miami	12	14	.462	9.0	9-5	3-9	5-1	7-9	5-5	1 W
11 Washington	11	15	.423	10.0	8-5	3-10	3-3	7-12	2-8	5 L
12 Chicago	10	14	.417	10.0	6-5	4-9	2-1	9-6	4-6	1 W
13 Charlotte	7	19	.269	14.0	4-9	3-10	3-5	4-14	3-7	4 L
14 Orlando	7	20	.259	14.5	6-9	1-11	1-3	3-15	2-8	2 W
15 Detroit	7	21	.250	15.0	4-8	3-13	0-5	2-14	4-6	2 L

Western Conference
	W	L	Pct	Conf GB	Home	Road	Div	Conf	Last 10	Streak
1 New Orleans	17	8	.680	—	11-3	6-5	5-1	11-5	8-2	6 W
2 Memphis	17	9	.654	0.5	11-2	6-7	3-2	8-6	7-3	5 W
3 Phoenix	16	10	.615	1.5	12-3	4-7	5-0	13-6	6-4	3 L
4 Denver	15	10	.600	2.0	6-3	9-7	5-2	13-6	6-4	1 W
5 Sacramento	14	10	.583	2.5	8-4	6-6	3-4	5-6	6-4	1 W
6 Utah	15	13	.536	3.5	9-5	6-8	3-3	13-8	3-7	1 L
7 Dallas	13	12	.520	4.0	10-4	3-8	1-2	8-5	4-6	1 L
8 Minnesota	13	12	.520	4.0	7-7	6-5	3-2	7-8	6-4	2 W

9 Portland	13	12	.520	4.0	5-6	8-6	2-2	9-7	3-7	1 L
10 LA Clippers	14	13	.519	4.0	7-6	7-7	3-3	10-10	4-6	2 L
11 Golden State	13	13	.500	4.5	11-2	2-11	4-3	9-8	6-4	2 L
12 Oklahoma City	11	14	.440	6.0	6-5	5-9	1-5	5-9	4-6	1 L
13 LA Lakers	10	15	.400	7.0	6-6	4-9	0-5	6-10	5-5	3 L
14 San Antonio	7	18	.280	10.0	4-10	3-8	1-3	3-16	1-9	1 W
15 Houston	7	18	.280	10.0	4-5	3-13	1-3	4-14	4-6	1 L

NHL STANDINGS

Eastern Conference
	GP	W	L	OTL	Pts	ROW	GF	GA	Home	Road	L10
1 Boston Bruins	26	21	4	1	43	20	103	57	14-0-1	7-4-0	7-2-1
2 New Jersey Devils	27	21	5	1	43	21	100	63	10-4-1	11-1-0	7-2-1
3 Toronto Maple Leafs	28	17	5	6	40	17	88	66	9-2-3	8-3-3	8-0-2
4 Carolina Hurricanes	26	14	6	6	34	12	77	73	5-3-1	9-3-5	4-1-5
5 Pittsburgh Penguins	27	15	8	4	34	14	97	82	7-3-2	8-5-2	8-1-1
6 Tampa Bay Lightning	26	16	9	1	33	16	91	81	9-4-1	7-5-0	7-3-0
7 New York Islanders	28	17	11	0	34	17	92	77	9-5-0	8-6-0	6-4-0
8 New York Rangers	29	14	10	5	33	13	89	82	5-6-4	9-4-1	5-4-1

9 Detroit Red Wings	26	13	8	5	31	12	82	83	7-4-3	6-4-2	6-3-1
10 Florida Panthers	27	13	10	4	30	12	95	89	7-2-3	6-8-1	4-3-3
11 Washington Capitals	29	13	12	4	30	13	82	87	8-4-1	5-8-3	6-3-1
12 Montreal Canadiens	26	13	11	2	28	10	80	92	6-6-0	7-5-2	5-4-1
13 Buffalo Sabres	27	12	13	2	26	11	108	100	6-8-2	6-5-0	5-3-2
14 Philadelphia Flyers	28	9	13	6	24	9	66	91	6-8-1	3-5-5	2-6-2
15 Ottawa Senators	26	10	14	2	22	10	80	87	6-8-0	4-6-2	4-5-1
16 Columbus Blue Jackets	26	9	15	2	20	9	74	106	7-10-1	2-5-1	3-6-1

Western Conference
	GP	W	L	OTL	Pts	ROW	GF	GA	Home	Road	L10
1 Vegas Golden Knights	29	20	8	1	41	18	97	77	8-6-0	12-2-1	6-4-0
2 Winnipeg Jets	26	18	7	1	37	18	87	64	10-3-0	8-4-1	8-2-0
3 Dallas Stars	27	15	7	5	35	15	102	79	8-3-3	7-4-2	5-2-3
4 Seattle Kraken	26	15	8	3	33	15	91	83	7-6-2	8-2-1	7-3-0
5 Edmonton Oilers	28	16	12	0	32	16	102	97	9-7-0	7-5-0	6-4-0
6 Colorado Avalanche	25	13	10	2	28	11	79	72	5-4-2	8-6-0	4-5-1
7 Los Angeles Kings	29	14	11	4	32	13	97	104	7-5-2	7-6-2	3-4-3
8 Calgary Flames	27	13	11	3	29	12	82	82	10-5-1	3-6-2	5-4-1

9 Minnesota Wild	26	13	11	2	28	10	83	84	7-6-1	6-5-1	6-4-0
10 Vancouver Canucks	27	12	12	3	27	12	97	106	5-6-1	7-6-2	7-3-0
11 Nashville Predators	24	12	10	2	26	10	65	75	7-3-2	5-7-0	7-2-1
12 St. Louis Blues	27	12	15	0	24	11	82	105	5-7-0	7-8-0	3-7-0
13 San Jose Sharks	30	9	16	5	23	8	93	110	2-8-5	7-8-0	3-5-2
14 Arizona Coyotes	25	8	13	4	20	8	67	92	2-2-1	6-11-3	2-5-3
15 Chicago Blackhawks	26	7	15	4	18	7	62	94	4-8-2	3-7-2	1-8-1
16 Anaheim Ducks	28	7	18	3	17	5	70	120	5-7-0	2-11-3	2-6-2

FOOTBALL HISTORY

December 10, 1922 – Pete Henry didn’t look like the prototypical gridiron player, he was 5’-11” and 240 pounds according to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s website. His teammates called him “Fats” but opponents should have never doubted the threat he was on the football field. It was on this day, as a member of the Canton Bulldogs, that Fats Henry allegedly made the longest known NFL drop-kicked field goal when he nailed it from 45 yards as documented on the American Football Database against the Toledo Maroons in a 19-0 Bulldog victory that gave the undefeated Canton Bulldogs the title of the Leagues’ inaugural champions.

December 10, 1938 – At the Grey Cup it was a repeat of the previous season, as the Toronto Argonauts whallopped the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, 30-7 to keep the Canadian title.

December 10, 1939 – West Allis, Wisconsin – “The Dairy Bowl” – The National Football League’s Championship game in 1939 pitted the Green Bay Packers against the New York Football Giants. The Pack took home their fifth title as they blanked the Giants, 27-0 according to the packershistory.net site.

December 10, 1940 – The Chicago Bears used the number one pick in the 1941 NFL Draft to select Tom Harmon from the University of Michigan. Harmon had just won the Heisman Trophy as well as the Maxwell Award, according to IMDB.com. Harmon turned down George Halas and the Bears, though, and accepted an offer from the upstart American Football League’s New York Americans. After that version of the AFL folded the subsequent off-season, Tom became a fighter pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corp. and fought in WWII for four years. In 1946 he returned and played in the NFL for the LA Rams for three seasons.

December 10, 1961 – In the AFL the Houston Oilers great rusher, Billy Cannon set a single game all-purpose yards record of 373 yards against the New York Titans. The Houston Chronicle shares a great video of the event with more details.

December 10, 1983 – Shea Stadium the home of the New York Jets for 20 seasons had its last NFL game played at it as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Jets 34-7 according to a great News Day article with more details.

December 10, 1994 – The 60th Heisman Trophy Award went to Rashaan Salaam of the University of Colorado who played the position of running back. The Heisman’s official webpage tells us that Rashaan was the first player from Colorado to win the award as he became the third finalist in history of the Trophy to surpass 2000 yards rushing in a season for Division I. Salaam totaled 2055 yards on the season with 24 scores and a remarkable 7.61 rushing average to lead the Buffs to a 4th place ranking in the polls.

December 10, 2001 – Eric Crouch the option quarterback from Nebraska won the 67th Heisman Trophy Award. Eric was a dual threat in the 2001 season as he rushed for 1115 and 18 scores on the ground while passing for 1510 yards according to Heisman.com. In addition to the Heisman, Crouch also took home the Davey O’Brien quarterback Award and the Walter Camp player of the Year Award.

December 10, 2005 – The 71st Heisman Trophy Award was given to USC standout runner Reggie Bush. However if you look at the Heisman’s website you will not see an entry for a winner in 2005. That is because Bush later forfeit his trophy due to what ESPN.com describes as him and other Trojan athletes receiving improper benefits that violated NCAA rules.

December 10, 2012 – 78th Heisman Trophy went to the first freshman to ever win the award when Quarterback Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M was chosen to receive the coveted honor in his red shirt season with the Aggies. It is interesting to note that on Manziel’s bio on Heisman.com it states that he originally committed to play at Oregon out of High School signing about the same time as the 2014 Heisman winner Marcus Mariota. Johnny Football tossed 24 TD’s on 3419 yards passing while using his legs for another 1181 yards and 19 scores. The game that really set the table for Manziel’s Heisman votes was most likely when he led the A&M to a 29-24 upset of the top ranked Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, where he tallied 345 yards of total offense and performed some real dazzling plays.

December 10, 2016 – The youngest player to win a Heisman Trophy Award did it at the age of just 19 in the 82nd edition of the Trophy. Lamar Jackson, the uniquely talented option quarterback of the Louisville Cardinals was given the Trophy per Heisman.com. Jameis Winston of Florida State was 5 days older than Jackson when he took home the hardware in 2013. Lamar’s 4928 yards of total offense was second in Heisman history only to Ty Detmer’s 5022 yards in the 1990 season. Jackson was the first player from Louisville to receive the honor and he was only the fourth sophomore to win it in the Trophy’s history.

HALL OF FAME BIRTHDAYS FOR DECEMBER 10

December 10, 1916 – Tunica, Mississippi – Ole Miss Halfback Linus Parker Hall was born, but he may be better known as “Bullet” Hall. The NFF’s bio states that Hall had an incredible 1938 season where he led the nation in all purpose yards and scoring while being unnamed by the UPI and AP as an All-America player. His eleven TDs and 7 extra points chalked him up for a total of 73 points and his all purpose yards season total stood at 1558. Bullet was also the nation’s leader in rushing average, kick return average, had the most interceptions, and total touchdowns made with 11 rushing and 11 more passing the ball. The National Football Foundation selected Bullet Hall to enter into their College Football Hall of Fame in 1991.

December 10, 1933 – Decatur, Georgia – Larry Morris the great Georgia Tech center and linebacker was born. Larry excelled at more than just two positions on the gridiron. He not only lettered and captained the Ramblin Wreck football team but he also was the captain of the Yellow Jacket baseball team as well as lettering in that sport too. The footballfoundation.org website states that on the gridiron he was an All conference player as well as an All-America team member in 1953. The National Football Foundation selected Larry Morris to enter into their College Football Hall of Fame in 1992. Larry went into the NFL ranks after college as he played for the Rams, Bears and Falcons during his 12 year career.

NUMBERS IN SPORTS

18 – 98 – 20 – 21 – 19 – 7 – 2 – 8

December 10, 1922 – Canton Bulldogs player, Number 18, Pete Henry made the longest known NFL drop-kicked field goal of 45 yards

December 10, 1940 – 1941 NFL Draft: Tom Harmon, Number 98 from University of Michigan first pick by Chicago Bears

December 10, 1961 – Houston Oilers utility back Number 20, Billy Cannon gained an AFL record 373 yards combined rushing/receiving in 48-21 win over New York Titans at the Polo Grounds, NYC

December 10, 1986 – Atlanta Hawks Number 21, Dominique Wilkins dropped 57 points on the Chicago Bulls

December 10, 1992 – NHL awarded franchises to Miami and Anaheim for 1994-95

December 10, 1994 – 60th Heisman Trophy Award was won by Colorado running back, Number 19, Rashaan Salaam.

December 10, 2001 – 67th Heisman Trophy Award was won by Nebraska Quarterback, Number 7, Eric Crouch

December 10, 2005 – 71st Heisman Trophy Award was won by USC running back Number 5, Reggie Bush. Bush later forfeits trophy

December 10, 2012 – 78th Heisman Trophy Award was won by Texas A&M Quarterback, Number 2, Johnny Manziel. He was the first freshman to win the award December 10, 2016 – 82nd Heisman Trophy Award was won by Louisville Cardinals Quarterback, Number 8, Lamar Jackson, youngest player to win at 19