NFL
Josh Allen threw three touchdown passes, and the sluggish Buffalo Bills offense responded to a change in coordinators by scoring points on six of its first eight possessions in routing the AFC East rival New York Jets 32-6. The Bills snapped a two-game skid and topped 25 points for the first time in seven weeks to end the team’s worst drought since a six-game run during Allen’s rookie season in 2018. The Jets dropped their third straight and coach Robert Saleh potentially opened the door for a quarterback switch. Starter Zach Wilson was benched with 2:17 remaining in the third quarter, and replaced by Tim Boyle.
The New York Giants beat the Washington Commanders 31-19 to snap a three-game losing streak. The Commanders lost for the seventh time in nine games after opening the season with back-to-back victories. Sam Howell threw three interceptions among six Commanders turnovers. Undrafted rookie quarterback Tommy DeVito threw three touchdown passes to pick up his first NFL victory in his second start. The defeat marks one of the low points of Ron Rivera's four-year tenure with Washington.
Dustin Hopkins kicked a 34-yard field goal with 2 seconds left after Cleveland rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson completed four straight clutch passes, giving the Browns a 13-10 win over the rival Pittsburgh Steelers. Thompson-Robinson made just his second NFL start and rallied the Browns just days after Deshaun Watson was lost for the season with a shoulder injury. Last week, Hopkins kicked a 40-yard field goal as timed expired to beat Baltimore 33-31. The Browns have now beaten the Ravens and Steelers in consecutive weeks for the first time in 15 tries. Pittsburgh's Jaylen Warren rushed for 129 yards and had a 74-yard TD run.
Dak Prescott threw for 189 yards and two touchdowns, DaRon Bland tied an NFL record with his fourth pick-6 of the season and the Dallas Cowboys trounced the Carolina Panthers 33-10 Sunday for their fourth win in five games. Bland made a diving interception of Bryce Young near the sideline early in the fourth quarter, got up and raced 30 yards for a touchdown for a 30-10 lead. Bland tied a record shared by Philadelphia’s Eric Allen in 1993, Kansas City’s Jim Kearney in 1972 and Houston’s Ken Houston in 1971.
David Montgomery's go-ahead 1-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left against his former team lifted the Detroit Lions to a 31-26 comeback victory over Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears. The NFC North-leading Lions overcame four turnovers, including Jared Goff’s season-high three interceptions. Detroit rallied from a 12-point deficit over the last 3:06 to rally for the win. The Lions are 8-2 for the first time since 1962, giving the franchise a shot to win a division title for the first time in three decades. Chicago blew chances to win consecutive games for the first time in nearly two years.
The Los Angeles Chargers and Green Bay Packers are both attempting to recover from close losses as they face off Sunday at Lambeau Field. The Chargers lost 41-38 at home to the Detroit Lions last week while the Packers fell 23-19 at Pittsburgh. The Chargers haven’t won at Lambeau Field since 1984 but have only played there three times since. This represents the Chargers’ first visit to Lambeau Field since a 27-20 loss to the Packers in 2015.
Standout rookie C.J. Stroud threw for 336 yards with two touchdowns, and the Houston Texans overcame his season-high three interceptions to beat the Arizona Cardinals 21-16. At 6-4, the Texans have doubled their win total from last season. They've won three games in a row for the first time since a nine-game streak in 2018. The Cardinals had a chance to win late. Kyler Murray threw a deep pass on fourth-and-8 that was intended for Marquise Brown, but Steven Nelson batted it down with 35 seconds left. Houston rookie Tank Dell had a season-high 149 yards receiving and set a franchise rookie record with his sixth touchdown catch.
Trevor Lawrence accounted for four touchdowns, including two perfectly thrown passes to Calvin Ridley, and the Jacksonville Jaguars followed their worst loss of the season with a 34-14 drubbing of the Tennessee Titans. Ridley finished with seven catches for 103 yards. He found the end zone twice for the first time with the Jaguars. Lawrence also ran for two scores for the first time in his three NFL seasons and became the first player in franchise history with two TD passes and two rushing scores in the same game. Will Levis had two TD passes for the Titans, who fell to 0-6 on the road.
Jalen Ramsey made a game-sealing interception to help stifle Las Vegas’ fourth-quarter comeback, and the Miami Dolphins overcame three turnovers to hold off the Raiders 20-13. Ramsey, who also intercepted Aidan O’Connell earlier in the game, caught a pass in the end zone intended for Tre Tucker with 22 seconds left, ending a rare game in which Miami’s defense outshined its offense. Tua Tagovailoa was 28 of 39 with 325 yards, two touchdowns and an interception for Miami. He also lost his third fumble of the season on a scramble on the Dolphins’ opening drive. Tyreek Hill caught his league-leading eighth touchdown of the season and had 146 yards on 10 catches.
Brock Purdy threw a 76-yard strike to Brandon Aiyuk for one of his three touchdown passes, and the San Francisco 49ers beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-14. Purdy also threw a 4-yard TD pass to Christian McCaffrey and a 3-yarder to George Kittle to help the 49ers post a second straight lopsided win following a three-game losing streak. Baker Mayfield threw a TD pass for Tampa Bay, but the Bucs had no answers defensively against Purdy and the 49ers and lost for the fifth time in six games. Purdy became the first Niners quarterback to post a perfect passer rating in a game with at least 20 attempts.
Lucas Havrisik made a 22-yard field goal for the Rams with 1:31 to play, and Jason Myers missed a 55-yard attempt for the Seahawks with three seconds left in Los Angeles’ 17-16 victory over Seattle. Matthew Stafford passed for 190 yards in his return from injury and led two scoring drives in the fourth quarter for the Rams, who snapped their three-game losing streak with their second win over the Seahawks this season. Los Angeles hung on only after Geno Smith returned from a late injury of his own and led a frantic last-minute drive into field goal range.
Russell Wilson's 15-yard touchdown throw to Courtland Sutton with 1:03 remaining propelled the Denver Broncos past the Minnesota Vikings 21-20. The Broncos ended the Vikings' five-game winning streak that was the longest in the NFL. Now, Denver owns the league's longest winning streak at our four games. The Broncos are 5-5 as they try to make a push to end their seven-year playoff drought. Joshua Dobbs ran for a TD and threw for a TD for the Vikings. Denver's defense had three takeaways and forced Dobbs and the Vikings to go backwards on their final possession when a field goal could have won the game.
Lucas Havrisik made a 22-yard field goal for the Rams with 1:31 to play, and Jason Myers missed a 55-yard attempt for the Seahawks with three seconds left in Los Angeles’ 17-16 victory over Seattle. Matthew Stafford passed for 190 yards in his return from injury and led two scoring drives in the fourth quarter for the Rams, who snapped their three-game losing streak with their second win over the Seahawks this season. Los Angeles hung on only after Geno Smith returned from a late injury of his own and led a frantic last-minute drive into field goal range.
You can’t go anywhere these days without hearing or seeing something that has to do with Eagles center Travis Kelce and his younger brother and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Big brother was dubbed one of the “Sexiest Men Alive” by the magazine “People.” Travis Kelce is dating pop superstar Taylor Swift. Both are part of one of the hottest podcasts anywhere, and together they have transcended the NFL to become bona fide stars in their own right. Oh, and they meet again on Monday night when the Eagles visit the Chiefs in a rematch of the Super Bowl. The Eagles are 8-1 leading the NFC while the Chiefs are 7-2 and atop the AFC heading into the biggest game of the weekend at Arrowhead Stadium.
The Cleveland Browns are signing former Super Bowl MVP quarterback Joe Flacco to their practice squad. That's according to a person familiar with the decision who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the Browns hadn't announced the imminent move. The person says Flacco will finalize a contract on Monday. Bringing him in bolsters Cleveland's quarterback depth after Deshaun Watson was lost for the season with a shoulder fracture. Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s started Sunday’s 13-10 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 38-year-old Flacco led a comeback by the Jets to beat the Browns last season.
Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland knew coming into Sunday’s game he needed one more pick-6 to etch his name into the NFL record books. Now he wants the record all to himself. Bland intercepted No. 1 pick Bryce Young in the fourth quarter and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown, tying an NFL record with his fourth pick-6 of the season. Only three others — Philadelphia’s Eric Allen in 1993, Kansas City’s Jim Kearney in 1972 and Houston’s Ken Houston in 1971 — have accomplished that feat. Bland has seven games remaining to break the record, beginning on Thanksgiving when the Cowboys host the Washington Commanders.
NBA
Joel Embiid had 32 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists as the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Brooklyn Nets 121-99. Tyrese Maxey finished with 25 points and 10 assists, and De’Anthony Melton scored 21 points on 8-for-10 shooting. The 76ers shot 16 for 35 from 3-point range in their ninth straight victory over the Brooklyn, including a four-game sweep in last season’s Eastern Conference quarterfinals. Philadelphia also won its fifth straight in Brooklyn. Lonnie Walker IV came off the bench to lead Brooklyn with 26 points and six rebounds. Mikal Bridges scored 18 points and Nic Claxton added 10 points and nine rebounds as Brooklyn lost its second straight and had its three-game home win streak halted.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 26 points, including the winning dunk with 1:01 left as the Boston Celtics held on for a 102-100 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. Porzingis’ dunk was followed by a flurry of missed shots including a missed 3-pointer by Santi Aldama with 4 seconds left as Boston held on to win its sixth straight. Jayson Tatum finished with 20 points and Sam Hauser added 15 for Boston. Desmond Bane led Memphis with 30 points, while Aldama added a career-high 28 and Jaren Jackson Jr. finished with 17 points.
Pascal Siakam scored 23 points, Scottie Barnes and Dennis Schroder each had 17 and the Toronto Raptors never trailed in beating Detroit 142-113, handing the struggling Pistons their 11th consecutive loss. Barnes led Toronto with nine assists as the Raptors recorded a franchise-record 44. Toronto finished with more assists than Detroit had made baskets (39). Toronto’s previous record for assists in a game was 40, set Nov. 18, 2019 against Charlotte. Stanley Umude scored 19 points and Cade Cunningham had 18 for the Pistons. Detroit has the worst record in the NBA at 2-12 and has not won since beating Chicago on Oct. 28.
Paolo Banchero scored 24 points, Franz Wagner added 19, and the visiting Orlando Magic routed the Indiana Pacers 128-116. The Magic, who improved to 6-3 on the road, scored the game’s first 11 points. They had a 42-21 lead after the first quarter and were ahead by as much as 38 in the second quarter. The margin reached 40 in the second half before the Pacers rallied in the final minutes. Point guard Jalen Suggs, who sat out Friday’s win at Chicago with a knee injury, scored nine of his 18 in the opening quarter. Moritz Wagner scored 16 and Cole Anthony 15. Jordan Nwora led the Pacers with 19.
Darius Garland had 26 points and six assists, and rookie Craig Porter Jr. scored a career-high 21, powering the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 121-109 victory over the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets. Evan Mobley had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Jarrett Allen added 15 points for Cleveland, which built a season-high 26-point lead in the fourth quarter en route to winning its third in a row. Nuggets center Nikola Jokic battled foul trouble and collected 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in 28 minutes. The two-time MVP had been the first player to start a season with 12 games of at least 20 points and 10 rebounds since Elgin Baylor in 1967.
Domantas Sabonis had 32 points and 13 rebounds, De’Aaron Fox scored 30 and the Sacramento Kings beat the Dallas Mavericks 129-113 for their sixth consecutive victory. Keegan Murray added 17 points as all five starters scored in double figures for the Kings. Sacramento improved to 3-0 on a six-game road trip. Luka Doncic scored 25 for the Mavericks, who faded in the fourth quarter on the second night of a back-to-back. Dallas has lost three of four since an 8-2 start and allowed at least 125 points in all three losses.
Kevin Durant totaled 39 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 140-137 double overtime win over the Utah Jazz on Sunday night. Devin Booker scored 22 of his 26 points after halftime and tallied eight assists for the Suns. Eric Gordon added 20 points and six assists. Jusuf Nurkic chipped in 18 points and 12 rebounds. Grayson Allen finished with 14 points, including the game-winning basket. Lauri Markkanen finished with 38 points and 17 rebounds to lead Utah. Talen Horton-Tucker chipped in 25 points, Jordan Clarkson added 22, Collin Sexton had 18 and John Collins had 15.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 28 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder won their fifth straight game with a 134-91 rout of the Portland Trail Blazers. Rookie Chet Holmgren added 16 points and six rebounds for the Thunder, who led by as many as 47 points. Isaiah Joe had 15 points off the bench, all on 3-pointers. Jerami Grant had 14 points to lead the short-handed Blazers, who have lost seven straight games.
LeBron James scored a season-high 37 points, including the go-ahead free throw with 1.9 seconds remaining, and the Los Angeles Lakers held off the Houston Rockets 105-104. It was James’ fifth 30-point game this season and his fourth in his last seven. Alperen Sengun’s layup tied it with 4 seconds remaining when the Lakers called timeout. Austin Reaves passed it into James, who was fouled by Tari Eason as he drove inside. James missed the first free throw, but made the second. Houston, which did not have a timeout left, got the ball to midcourt, but Dillon Brooks’ 3-point attempt was offline.
NHL
Rasmus Dahlin had a goal and two assists, and the Buffalo Sabres stopped a three-game slide by topping the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2. Erik Johnson snapped a third-period tie and Jeff Skinner also scored for Buffalo, which dropped four of five overall. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 24 saves. Chicago dropped its fourth consecutive game. Philipp Kurashev had a goal and an assist, and Taylor Raddysh also scored for Chicago. Petr Mrazek made 17 saves.
Ryan Poehling had a goal and two assists, Joel Farabee added a goal and an assist and the Philadelphia Flyers won their fifth straight game, beating the slumping Columbus Blue Jackets 5-2. Bobby Brink and Travis Konecny also scored for Philadelphia. Cam York scored an empty-netter. Samuel Ersson made 20 saves. Boone Jenner and Alexandre Texier scored for the Blue Jackets, who have lost nine in a row. Spencer Martin had 21 saves.
Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 38 shots in his return from injury and the Pittsburgh Penguins shut out the Vegas Golden Knights 3-0. Nedeljkovic recorded his first shutout of the season and the eighth of his career. It was his first shutout since April 24, 2022, when he was a member of the Detroit Red Wings. Ryan Graves and Noel Acciari both scored their first of the season and first goal with Pittsburgh. Evgeni Malkin added a late empty-net goal to seal the win. Adin Hill made 30 saves for the Golden Knights.
Pascal Siakam scored 23 points, Scottie Barnes and Dennis Schroder each had 17 and the Toronto Raptors never trailed in beating Detroit 142-113, handing the struggling Pistons their 11th consecutive loss. Barnes led Toronto with nine assists as the Raptors recorded a franchise-record 44. Toronto finished with more assists than Detroit had made baskets (39). Toronto’s previous record for assists in a game was 40, set Nov. 18, 2019 against Charlotte. Stanley Umude scored 19 points and Cade Cunningham had 18 for the Pistons. Detroit has the worst record in the NBA at 2-12 and has not won since beating Chicago on Oct. 28.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist, and the Los Angeles Kings defeated the St. Louis Blues 5-1. Quinton Byfield, Blake Lizotte, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Kevin Fiala also scored for the Kings, who have won consecutive home games after winning just one of their first seven. Cam Talbot made 29 saves. Jake Neighbours scored late for St. Louis, but Jordan Binnington allowed five goals on 30 shots. The Blues were rocked for the second straight game, following a 5-1 pasting by the San Jose Sharks on Thursday.
The Boston Bruins say Milan Lucic is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the team after an incident Friday night. The Bruins in a statement released Saturday did not provide any details about the incident other than to say the organization takes matters such as these very seriously. The team said it would work with Lucic's family to provide any support and assistance needed. Boston Police said it could neither confirm nor deny arresting Lucic early Saturday morning. Lucic is a 35-year-old veteran of over 1,300 NHL games. He won the Stanley Cup with Boston in 2011 and is back with the team after signing a one-year free agent contract last summer.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (3)Arizona 101 Texas-Arlington 56
Final (6)Houston 69 Dayton 55
Final (12)Miami 91 Kansas St. 83
Final (16)Southern Cal 81 Brown 70
Final (18)Michigan St. 81 Alcorn St. 49
Final (19)Texas 81 Louisville 80
Final (23)Illinois 88 Southern U. 60
Quinnipiac 85 UAlbany Men 82
Penn Quakers 85 Siena Women 79
Liberty University Men 71 UVM 61
UVM Women 60 St. Rose 44
Monmouth 74 UMass Women 62
(5) UConn men 77 Indiana 57
UConn women 62 Minnesota 44
AP Top 25: Ohio State jumps Michigan, moves to No. 2. Washington, FSU flip-flop at Nos. 4-5
Ohio State passed Michigan and moved up to No. 2 in The Associated Press college football poll a week before the Big Ten rivals play another top-five matchup. No. 4 Washington flip-flopped with No. 5 Florida State. Georgia remained No. 1 and received a season-high 61 first-place votes. The Bulldogs have been atop the rankings for 23 straight weeks, the second-best streak in the history of the poll. The top five teams, all unbeaten, had held their places for five straight weeks. All improved to 11-0 on Saturday.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Syracuse has fired coach Dino Babers after eight years with the Orange that included just two bowl appearances. Babers was 41-55 and 20-45 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, including a breakout season in 2018 when the Orange went 10-3 and finished No. 15 in the AP Top 25. The 62-year-old Babers had only one season left on his contract. The Orange dropped to 5-6 on Saturday when they lost 31-22 at Georgia Tech.
MLB
Aaron Nola is staying in Philadelphia, after all. The right-hander signed a seven-year contract to remain with the Phillies after testing the free-agent market, the team said Sunday. ESPN and others reported the 30-year-old’s contract is worth $172 million. Nola is the first big-name starting pitcher to come off the board among this year’s free agents, a group including Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Sonny Gray, Jordan Montgomery and Eduardo Rodriguez.
F1
The CEO of the Las Vegas Grand Prix was thrilled with Formula One’s first race on the famed Strip, but acknowledged Sunday there were missteps in the $500 million showcase event of the season. Renee Wilm told The Associated Press first-time organizers F1 and owner Liberty Media worked tirelessly on a tight timeline of less than two years to prepare for Saturday night’s race. The weeklong event drew 315,000 spectators over four nights and brought in an estimated $1.2 billion in economic impact. She said moving forward LVGP will have to look at better local community outreach, transportation issues, track session times and adding more general admission seating.
There were missteps and mistakes, and a master class in how not to handle customer relations. But by the time Justin Bieber waved the checkered flag on Formula One’s return to Las Vegas, the $500 million Sin City gamble had hit the jackpot. F1 and owner Liberty Media hosted an electrifying F1 event Saturday night that turned out to be both one of the best races of the season and a glitzy international spectacle that can only be pulled off in Las Vegas. It was like a show with poor reviews that suddenly becomes an overnight hit.
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