COLLEGE BASKETBALL:
Gonzaga and UCLA are 1-2 in The Associated Press men’s basketball poll, but the Bulldogs showed on Tuesday that there could be a wide difference between the two games.
Andrew Nembhard scored 24 points and the top-ranked Zags improved to 6-0 by whipping the second-ranked Bruins, 83-63 to win the Empire Classic. Freshman Chet Holmgren showed off his unique skill set with an array of blocks and dunks, finishing with 15 points, six rebounds and four rejections. Drew Timme was just as effective inside, scoring 18 points.
Jaime Jaquez Jr. tried to keep the Bruins in it, finishing with 19 points before UCLA fell to 5-1.
It was the first meeting between the two teams since their epic battle in the Final Four last spring.
In other top-25 action on Tuesday:
Wisconsin blew most of a 20-point, halftime lead before eking out a 65-63 upset over 12th-ranked Houston. Johnny Davis scored a career-high 30 points on 10 of 18 from the floor, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range. Tyler Wahl chipped in with nine points and seven rebounds, while Brad Davison also had nine points for the Badgers.
Au’Diese Toney scored 19 points, including the go-ahead free throws with just over a minute left to send No. 13 Arkansas past Cincinnati, 73-67 in the Hall of Fame Classic title game. Chris Lykes was perfect at the foul line down the stretch to finish with 15 points. Arkansas grabbed three consecutive offensive rebounds before Lykes was fouled and made two free throws with 21.8 seconds to play.
Kofi Cockburn had a double-double and 14th-ranked Illinois bounced back from consecutive losses to hold off Kansas State, 72-64 in the consolation game of the Hall of Fame Classic. Cockburn provided 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Illini, who were coming off a 20-point loss to Cincinnati in the semifinals. Illinois shot 12 of 26 from 3-point range, with Alfonso Plummer going 7-for-9 while scoring 21 points.
NBA:
The New York Knicks were able to regroup after squandering a 25-point lead against the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers.
Immanuel Quickley nailed four 3-pointers in the final period to bail out the Knicks in a 106-100 victory over the Lakers. Quickly scored 12 of his 14 points in the fourth, helping New York stretch a three-point lead to 12 with 4:58 remaining.
Julius Randle added 20 points, 16 rebounds and five assists for the Knicks, but sat for eight minutes of the fourth quarter after picking up his fifth foul. Evan Fournier scored 26 points to lead the Knickerbockers.
Russell Westbrook had 31 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists for LA, which played while LeBron James served a one-game suspension for his altercation in Sunday’s win over the Pistons.
Checking out Tuesday’s other NBA action:
Tyler Herro had 31 points and eight rebounds in the Heat’s 100-92 comeback win over the Pistons. Miami trailed by nine before opening the fourth quarter on a 27-6 run. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each provided 15 points and nine boards in the Heat’s fifth win in six games.
Luka Dončić had 26 points in his return to the Dallas lineup as the Mavericks defeated the Clippers, 112-104 in overtime. The Mavericks were up 102-92 late in the fourth quarter before the Clippers scored 11 of the final 12 points to force overtime, including a 3-pointer by Paul George at the buzzer. Kristaps Porzingis scored six of his team-high 30 points in the extra session.
CJ McCollum poured in 32 points and the Trail Blazers handed the depleted Nuggets their fifth straight loss, 119-100. Damian Lillard had 25 points and five assists to help Portland earn its fourth straight win overall and ninth in a row at home. The Trail Blazers unleashed an 18-3 spurt to close the first half, sparked by four 3-pointers from Lillard and capped by a buzzer-beating layup by McCollum, giving them a 64-52 lead at halftime.
Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson practiced at full speed on Tuesday after resuming five-on-five, full-court scrimmaging. Thompson is making a comeback from surgery last November for a torn right Achilles tendon. He missed the previous season due to a torn ACL in his left knee.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL:
Georgia continues to top the latest CFP rankings, but there’s a new No. 2 and No. 4.
Ohio State has moved ahead of Alabama for second, with Cincinnati holding the other semifinal slot. The Bulldogs and Bearcats are the only unbeaten teams in the rankings.
Cincinnati plays at East Carolina on Friday and then meets Houston, ranked 24th by the committee, in the American Athletic Conference championship game on Dec. 4.
Michigan is fifth, followed by Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Mississippi and Oklahoma.
The final CFP rankings will be revealed Dec. 5 and the top four teams will play in the semifinals on Dec. 31 in the Orange and Cotton bowls. The national championship game is scheduled for Jan. 10 in Indianapolis.
Penn State football coach James Franklin has agreed to a new 10-year contract that will guarantee him at least $75 million through 2031.
Franklin and Penn State’s Board of Trustees agreed to the terms, which include a yearly base salary of $7 million, retention bonuses of $500,000 each year and a $1 million annual loan for life insurance.
Franklin is 67-32 at Penn State with seven bowl appearances and one Big Ten championship in his eight seasons.
NFL:
Adrian Peterson didn’t last very long with the Tennessee Titans, waived after just three games and replaced by the signing of running back Dontrell Hilliard from the practice squad. Peterson started two games and had 27 carries for 82 yards and a 3.0-yard average per rushing attempt and one touchdown run.
The Titans also signed defensive back Buster Skrine and outside linebacker John Simon while placing defensive back Chris Jackson and wide receiver Marcus Johnson on injured reserve.
Also around the NFL:
Bears head coach Mike Nagy spent half of his press conference on Tuesday dealing with a report saying he has been told he will no longer coach the team after Thursday’s game in Detroit. The report about the firing was published by Patch.com and was described by Nagy as “not accurate.” The Bears go into Thanksgiving on a five-game losing streak that leaves them 3-7.
The Giants have fired offensive coordinator Jason Garrett after a dreadful performance in a nationally televised game against the Buccaneers. There was no immediate word on who would replace Garrett for the game Sunday at MetLife Stadium against the Eagles. Former Cleveland Browns coach Freddie Kitchens is on the staff and could take over.
A person with direct knowledge of the decision says Zach Wilson will return as the Jets’ starting quarterback Sunday against the Texans in Houston. The No. 2 overall pick in April missed the past four games with a sprained posterior collateral ligament in his right knee.
The Vikings have placed defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson on the COVID-19 reserve list.
NHL:
The Tampa Bay Lightning have points in 11 of their last 12 games by blanking the Philadelphia Flyers.
Andrei Vasilevskiy turned back 34 shots and a pair of Lightning players ended lengthy goal droughts in a 4-0 shutout of the Flyers. Vasilevskiy posted his first shutout of the season and 27th of his career.
Zach Bogosian scored for the first time in 63 games, ending a drought that began after a goal against the Red Wings in January 2020. Corey Perry had gone 37 games without a goal before finally netting his 387th.
Steven Stamkos had a goal and two assists for the Lightning.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
Red-hot Roope Hintz scored the first of two Dallas power-play goals in the first period of a 4-1 verdict over the Oilers. Hintz has scored all six of his goals this season in the last six games, including a pair of short-handed tallies on Saturday. The Oilers were held to a season-low 21 shots in losing for just the fifth time in 18 games.
The Flames picked up their fourth straight win as Matthew Tkachuk produced the tiebreaking goal with 5:35 remaining in their 5-2 win against the Blackhawks. Dillon Dube and Milan Lucic also scored for Calgary before Trevor Lewis and Johnny Gaudreau each added empty-netters. Jacob Markstrom made 19 saves for the Flames, who lead the Western Conference with 30 points.
A former player who sued the Chicago Blackhawks has agreed to mediation in hopes of settling the case.
Kyle Beach says the team did nothing when he raised allegations of sexual assault against assistant coach Bradley Aldrich in 2010. An investigation commissioned by the team largely found that to be true. The fallout included top executives losing their jobs and an NHL fine of $2 million.
Mediation is set to begin in December.
In other NHL news:
Lightning star center Brayden Point is expected to miss four to six weeks because of an upper-body injury suffered in Saturday’s loss to New Jersey. Point appeared to favor his left shoulder or arm after crashing hard into the end boards after being tripped in the third period. Point had an NHL-best 14 goals in last season’s playoffs.
MLB:
Former major league outfielder and manager Bill Virdon has died in a Missouri medical center at age 90.
Virdon was a career .267 hitter in 12 seasons with St. Louis and Pittsburgh, winning a World Series in 1960 with the Pirates and a Gold Glove in 1962. He was 995-921 during a 13-year managerial career that featured stints with Pittsburgh, the New York Yankees, Houston and Montreal.
No cause of death was given.
Elsewhere in the majors:
Outfielder Clint Frazier and infielder Rougned Odor have been released by the Yankees after clearing waivers, four days after they were designated for assignment. Frazier hit .186 with five homers and 15 RBIs this year. Odor batted .202 with 15 homers and 39 RBIs in 322 at-bats.
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