NBA
Ben Simmons had 10 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in his return from a 38-game absence, Mikal Bridges added 33 points and the Brooklyn Nets routed the Utah Jazz 147-114. Simmons hadn’t played since Nov. 6 because of a pinched nerve in his lower back. The No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft played 18 minutes off the bench, made all five shots and likely would have had a triple-double if not for a minute’s restriction. Cam Thomas added 25 points for the Nets, who rolled to their highest point total of the season, had 41 assists on their 54 field goals and made 21 3-pointers.
Jalen Brunson scored 32 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 28 and the New York Knicks kept rolling even without the injured Julius Randle, defeating the Charlotte Hornets 113-92 for their seventh straight victory. Josh Hart chipped in with 12 rebounds, eight points and seven assists for the Knicks, who entered with the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference. Brandon Miller scored 29 points and Miles Bridges had 21 points and 10 rebounds as the Hornets fell to 0-4 since trading Terry Rozier to Miami for Kyle Lowry and a first-round draft pick. Randle missed his first game since dislocating his right shoulder on Saturday night.
Jayson Tatum scored 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and the Boston Celtics rallied past the New Orleans Pelicans 118-112. The victory snapped a two-game skid at home for Boston, which started the season 20-0 at TD Garden. Jaylen Brown added 22 points and 11 rebounds. Jrue Holiday had 20 points and Derrick White finished with 17. The Pelicans led by 17 in the first half but were outscored 68-52 over the final two quarters to drop their third straight game. Brandon Ingram led New Orleans with 28 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Zion Williamson finished with 26 points. The Pelicans outscored the Celtics 58-44 in the paint but committed six of their 12 turnovers in the fourth quarter.
Jerami Grant scored 27 points and the Portland took advantage of reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid’s absence to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 130-104 on Monday night. Malcolm Brogdon added 24 points and nine assists for the Blazers, who had lost four of their previous five games. Deandre Ayton finished with 18 points. Kelly Oubre Jr. had 25 points for the 76ers, who were also without Tyrese Maxey for the game. It was Philadelphia’s third straight loss.
Donovan Mitchell had 28 points and 12 assists and Jarrett Allen extended his double-double streak to 15 straight games, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 118-108 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Isaac Okoro added 17 points — all in the first half — as the Cavs held off a Clippers' comeback and ended L.A.’s winning streak at five. Kawhi Leonard scored 30 and Norman Powell 18 for the Clippers, who got within four in the final two minutes but fell to 2-1 on a season-long seven-game road trip. Paul George scored 13 before fouling out with 3:07 left.
Eric Gordon scored 23 points off the bench, Devin Booker scored 22 and the Phoenix Suns added to Miami’s woes with a 118-105 win. It was the Heat's seventh consecutive loss. Kevin Durant scored 20 points and Bradley Beal had 19 for the Suns. They're 8-2 in their last 10 games and swept the Heat for just the second time in the last 17 seasons. Jimmy Butler scored a game-high 26 points for Miami. The Heat were 24-16 and fifth in the Eastern Conference just two weeks ago. They are now 24-23 and three games behind Indiana in the loss column for the sixth and final guaranteed playoff berth.
Domantas Sabonis had a career-high 26 rebounds along with 20 points, De’Aaron Fox scored 23 points and the Sacramento Kings rallied past the injury-plagued Memphis Grizzlies 103-94. Sabonis' previous career high was 25 rebounds for Indiana in 2021, and he surpassed it with 27.5 seconds left. That was part of a stout defensive performance by the Kings to close out the game. Sacramento held Memphis scoreless over the final three minutes. Jaren Jackson Jr. led the Grizzlies with 22 points and Santi Aldama scored 16.
Anthony Edwards scored 27 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 107-101 in a matchup of teams that entered the night tied atop the Western Conference standings. Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Rudy Gobert added 12 points and 17 rebounds for Minnesota, which had lost three of five. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 37 points and Jalen Williams added 20 for the Thunder, who lost their second straight after a five-game win streak. The teams split their four meetings this season.
Kyle Kuzma had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Daniel Gafford had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and the Washington Wizards rallied in the final six minutes to beat the San Antonio Spurs 118-113 on Monday night. Devin Vassell had 24 points and Victor Wembanyama had 22 points and 11 rebounds as San Antonio’s two-game winning streak was snapped. The Spurs have not won three straight this season.
Jalen Green scored 34 points and Alperen Sengun added 31 to help the Houston Rockets to a 135-119 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. Houston led by as many as 30 points in the second half, but the Lakers used a 20-5 run to get within 10 with four minutes left. The Rockets scored the next six points, with three from Green, to make it 127-111 with about three minutes left and the Lakers removed all their starters.
Luka Doncic had 45 points and 15 assists and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 36 points as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Orlando Magic 131-129. The duo accounted for 54 of Dallas’ 70 points in the second half, including 27 of 35 points in the fourth quarter. Dereck Lively II had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and Jalen Hardy scored 18 of his season-high 20 points in the first half for the Mavericks. Paolo Banchero scored 36 points to lead the Magic. Franz Wagner scored 21 points and rookie Anthony Black scored 20 off the bench for the Magic.
Nikola Jokic spoiled Doc Rivers' debut as Milwaukee coach by recording his 14th triple-double of the season in the Denver Nuggets' 113-107 victory over the Bucks. Jokic finished with 25 points, 16 rebounds and 12 assists. Jamal Murray scored 35 for the Nuggets, who gained separation with a late 8-0 run. The game was a chance for Rivers to size up his built-to-win-now squad. Rivers was lured out of his role as an analyst to take over for first-year Bucks coach Adrian Griffin, who was fired after 43 games and a 30-13 record. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 29 points and 12 rebounds as the Bucks began a five-game trip.
NHL
Claude Giroux scored 3:36 into overtime, and the Ottawa Senators rallied from three goals down to beat the Nashville Predators 4-3. Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle each had a goal and an assist, and Drake Batherson also scored for the Senators, who won for the fourth time in seven games (4-1-2). Mads Sogaard allowed three goals on 11 shots in the first period. Joonas Korpisalo stopped all 17 shots he faced the rest of the way to get the win. Philip Tomasino had a goal and an assist, Michael McCarron and Yakov Trenin also scored, and Roman Josi had two assists for the Predators. Juuse Saros made 31 saves in Nashville’s fourth loss in five games (1-3-1). In the extra period, scored from the left circle off a pass from Stutzle.
OLYMPICS
International Olympic officials have told counterparts in the United States that their figure skating team will receive gold medals now that Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva has been disqualified for doping. The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee received word Monday night that the IOC received word from skating’s international federation that the U.S. team will be declared the winners. The Associated Press saw an email sent from the IOC to the USOPC saying it “is now in position to award the medals in accordance with the ranking, which has to be established by the International Skating Union.”
The highest court in sports sanctioned Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva for doping violations at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. The ruling means U.S. skaters will receive gold medals after they finished second behind Valieva and her teammates in the team competition. The case rocked the Olympics when, about 24 hours after she led Russia to the victory in the team event, details about a sample taken six weeks earlier at Russia’s national championships revealed there was a banned heart medication in her system. More than a half-dozen proceedings and appeals have taken place over the ensuing 23 months, culminating in the decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sports.
NFL
Tickets on at least one secondary-market site are the most expensive in Super Bowl history. The prices underscore the anticipation of the game’s Las Vegas debut between the defending champion and what likely is the most popular team in the West, as well as the possibility Taylor Swift will be on hand when the Kansas City Chiefs play the San Francisco 49ers on Feb. 11. The average purchase price on TickPick was $9,815 on Monday morning. That is nearly double the final average price of $5,795 for last year’s game between the Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles in Glendale, Arizona. Current prices could decline before the game.
The Baltimore Ravens head into the offseason lamenting an opportunity that got away. Baltimore finished with the best record and best point differential in the NFL and beat other top teams in surprisingly convincing fashion down the stretch. But in their most important test last weekend, the Ravens still couldn’t completely break through against the team that’s dominated the AFC of late. Baltimore didn’t seem outclassed in its 17-10 loss to Kansas City, but the Ravens were way too mistake-prone after falling behind early.
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Jimy Williams, the 1999 American League Manager of the Year for Boston who won 910 games over a dozen seasons that included stints with Toronto and Houston, has died. He was 80. The Red Sox said he died Friday at AdventHealth North Pinellas Hospital in Tarpon Springs, Florida, after a brief illness. Williams lived in nearby Palm Harbor. Williams was voted AL Manager of the Year in 1999 after leading the Red Sox to their second straight playoff appearance. His managing record was 910-790. He spent 2005 and ’06 as a Tampa Bay roving instructor and was Charlie Manuel’s bench coach for Philadelphia in 2007 and ’08.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
UConn remained No. 1 in the AP Top 25 men's college basketball poll as the top five stayed the same from last week. The Huskies did pick up four more first-place votes and had 48 of the 63 from the national media panel. Purdue stayed at No. 2. North Carolina is No. 3, Houston is fourth and Tennessee is fifth. Wisconsin moved up seven spots to sixth and Duke climbed five to No. 7, while Iowa State made the biggest jump from No. 23 to No. 12. Alabama and TCU are back in the poll. Memphis and Colorado State dropped out.
South Carolina remains the clear No. 1 team in the country and No. Kansas State matched its best ranking ever after a chaotic week that saw nearly half of the AP Top 25 lose at least one game. Five of last week's top 10 teams lost. Overall, a dozen ranked teams had at least one defeat. Kansas State has its highest ranking since 2002. Iowa is back up to third as Caitlin Clark nears the all-time scoring record in women's basketball. Stanford and North Carolina State round out the top five.
© 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved.
