Tyrese Haliburton scores 23 points to help Pacers beat Nets 113-99
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Tyrese Haliburton scored 23 points, Bennedict Mathurin added 20 and the Indiana Pacers beat the Brooklyn Nets 113-99. Pascal Siakam contributed 19 points and Obi Toppin scored 11 for the Pacers, who have won three straight and nine of 12. Day’Ron Sharpe had 16 points and 13 rebounds, Tyrese Martin added 15 points and Noah Clowney scored 14 for the Nets, who have lost 10 of 13. The Pacers held the Nets to a season-worst 39 points in the first half.
Cole Anthony scored 24 points, Wendell Carter Jr. had a season-high 19 off the bench and the Orlando Magic shut down a New York Knicks team missing Karl-Anthony Towns for a 103-94 victory. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 15 points for the Magic, who are missing their top four scorers because of injuries but didn’t need too much offense the way they defended at Madison Square Garden. They limited the Knicks to 4-for-22 shooting from 3-point range. Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges each scored 24 points for the Knicks, who were held to their lowest point total of the season in their season-high third straight loss.
Bradley Beal came off the bench for the first time in nine years and scored 25 points as the Phoenix Suns ended a four-game skid with a 109-99 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Beal was shifted to a reserve role before the game and scored 20 points in the second half as the Suns overcame an early 12-point deficit and won for the second time in nine games. Kevin Durant scored 23 points and Ryan Dunn 15 for the Suns. Tyrese Maxey had 31 points and 10 assists for the Sixers.
Cade Cunningham had 32 points and nine assists as the Detroit Pistons reached .500 for the first time after New Year’s Day since 2019 with a 118-115 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. Tim Hardaway Jr. added 26 points for Detroit and Jalen Duren had 14 points and 12 rebounds. The Pistons, who were 3-33 after 36 games a season ago, have won seven of eight to improve to 18-18. Anfernee Simons had 36 points and nine assists for Portland, while Shaedon Sharpe had 20 points, eight assists and eight rebounds. The Trail Blazers led by 22 points in the first half.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 11 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds for his fourth triple-double of the season, Damian Lillard scored 25 points and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the struggling Toronto Raptors 128-104. Antetokounmpo needed three stitches to close a cut near the base of his right pinkie but returned to finish his third career triple double against the Raptors. Bobby Portis scored 20 points, Gary Trent Jr. had 17 against his former team and Brook Lopez added 16 for Milwaukee, which outscored the Raptors 63-24 in bench points and handed Toronto its 13th loss in 14 games. RJ Barrett scored 25 points and Scottie Barnes had 21 for the Raptors.
Jaren Jackson Jr. had 35 points, 13 rebounds and five assists to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a 119-104 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night. Scotty Pippen Jr. finished with 18 points, while Jaylen Wells added 17 points and 11 rebounds as Memphis won for the 10th time in the last 11 home games. P.J. Washington led the Mavericks with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Naji Marshall finished with 16 points, while Klay Thompson and Jaden Hardy added 15 points each. Dallas has lost five straight.
Coby White made a go-ahead layup with 47 seconds left, and the Chicago Bulls topped Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs 114-110. Zach LaVine had 35 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for Chicago, which trailed by 19 before rallying in the fourth quarter. Nikola Vucevic had 24 points and 11 boards, and White finished with 23 points. Wembanyama had 23 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocks for San Antonio, which carried a 95-82 lead into the final period.
Anthony Edwards scored 28 of his 37 points in the second half and the Minnesota Timberwolves overcame a 19-point first-half deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 108-106. Edwards, who had a career-high 53 points in Saturday’s loss at Detroit, finished 14 of 29 from the field, including a pair of late 3-pointers for his eighth game this season of 30-plus points. Naz Reid scored 18 off the bench and Donte DiVincenzo added 15 for Minnesota, which ended a three-game slide. Rudy Gobert had eight points and a game-high 18 rebounds. Norman Powell led Los Angeles with 25 points, James Harden added 22 and Ivica Zubac had 17 points and 16 rebounds. The Clippers have lost three of four.
DeMar DeRozan scored nine of Sacramento’s 11 points in the second overtime, and the Kings beat the Miami Heat 123-118 to extend their winning streak to a season-high five games under interim coach Doug Christie. DeRozan finished with 30 points on 12-of-26 shooting. Domantas Sabonis had 21 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists as the Kings won their second straight without injured point guard De’Aaron Fox.
Bradley Beal made the most of the unfamiliar role of substitute for the Phoenix Suns. That doesn’t mean he had to like it. Beal came off the bench for the first time in nine years on Monday night and scored a team-high 25 points as the Suns snapped a four-game losing streak with a 109-99 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. After the game, the 31-year-old Beal said he accepted coach Mike Budenholzer’s lineup change, but made it clear he considers himself a starter in the NBA.
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Alex Tuch scored twice, JJ Peterka had the deciding goal in the shootout and the Buffalo Sabres defeated the Washington Capitals 4-3 on Monday night. Tage Thompson also scored for the Sabres. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 25 saves and stopped three of four shooters in the shootout to end their three-game losing skid. Tuch also scored during the shootout. Tom Wilson scored twice, Aliaksei Protas added a goal and an assist, and Charlie Lindgren made 24 saves for the Capitals.
Ondrej Palat scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period, and the New Jersey Devils beat the Seattle Kraken 3-2. Dawson Mercer had a goal and an assist, and Paul Cotter also scored to help New Jersey snap a four-game losing streak. Jacob Markstrom had 21 saves. Adam Larsson and Shane Wright scored for Seattle, and Philipp Grubauer stopped 26 shots. The Kraken have lost three straight (0-2-1) and eight of 10 (2-7-1). Wright tied the score 2-2 with a power-play goal at 1:24 of the third period, and Palat put New Jersey back ahead just 37 seconds later.
Nick Suzuki scored a power-play goal 48 seconds into overtime and also had two assists as the Montreal Canadiens beat the Vancouver Canucks 5-4. Lane Hutson also had a goal and two assists, Cole Caufield had a goal and an assist, and Kaiden Guhle and Kirby Dach also scored for Montreal. Sam Montembeault stopped 16 shots to help the Canadiens win for the fifth time in six games and eighth in their last 10. J.T. Miller had two goals and two assists, and Jake DeBrusk and Jonathan Lekkerimaki also scored for Vancouver, which has lost seven of its last nine. Kevin Lankinen made 19 saves.
Devon Toews scored twice, including the go-ahead goal with 11:06 remaining, and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Florida Panthers 3-1. Mikko Rantanen added a late empty-net goal to help the Avalanche wrap up a four-game homestand at 3-0-1. Rantanen’s score allowed him to extend his points streak to 14 games. Mackenzie Blackwood finished with 26 saves. Carter Verhaeghe staked the Panthers to a 1-0 lead in the first period, and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 31 shots.
NFL
When Robert Kraft hired Jerod Mayo a year ago, he felt he’d identified the right person to follow Bill Belichick. In hindsight, Kraft now believes Mayo wasn’t quite ready to be an NFL head coach. The Patriots team owner said that his abrupt firing of Mayo just minutes after he completed his first season in the job is an effort to correct that mistake. And after watching back-to-back dismal seasons for a franchise that won six Lombardi trophies over the past two-plus decades, the 83-year-old owner vowed to do what he can to see it return to a championship level. That will include a fast coaching search, but not changes in the front office, with Kraft confirming executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf will return.
New England’s Jerod Mayo and Jacksonville’s Doug Pederson are two NFL coaches out of a job while New York Giants coach Brian Daboll is among those who look like they will be back next fall. It’s the day after the NFL’s regular season, which usually means a tough day for coaches as underachieving teams move quickly to make changes. Mayo was fired on Sunday after the team’s win over the Buffalo Bills, ending his tenure after just one season and a 4-13 record. The move means the Patriots will embark on another rebuild as the team tries to build an identity following the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era. Pederson is out as Jacksonville’s head coach after the franchise won just four games.
The Los Angeles Chargers are planning to sign running back Ezekiel Elliott to their practice squad pending a physical. That's according to two people familiar with the situation who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the move had not been completed. The Chargers are the No. 5 seed in the AFC and open the playoffs at Houston on Saturday in a wild-card round game. Elliott was released by the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 31 so that he could possibly sign with a playoff team seeking a veteran running back
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Cam Miller ran for two touchdowns and threw for two more to lead North Dakota State to its record 10th Football Championship Subdivision title. The Bison beat top-seeded and previously undefeated Montana State 35-32 on Monday night. Miller was making his 54th consecutive start for North Dakota State. The Bison played in the title game for the 11th time in 14 seasons, and have lost only one in Frisco, Texas. They last won the championship three years ago, in a game that also had Miller and Montana State’s Tommy Mellott as the starting quarterbacks. Montana State's last title came 40 years ago.
Smothering defenses have carried the last four teams still in the hunt for the national championship. If you want offense, look elsewhere this weekend. The defenses, with All-Americans spread throughout the lineups, are the story of the semifinals. Ohio State, Texas Penn State and Notre Dame all rank in top eight nationally in total defense. The Buckeyes and Longhorns meet in the Cotton Bowl on Friday. The Nittany Lions and Fighting Irish play in the Orange Bowl on Saturday.
GOLF
Scottie Scheffler will be skipping another tournament to let his injured right hand heal. Scheffler punctured his hand with broken glass while preparing Christmas dinner. That forced the world's No. 1 player to sit out the season opener at Kapalua in The Sentry. Now he says he has withdrawn from The American Express in the California desert that starts next week. Scheffler says his hand needs more time to heal from minor surgery. He says he hopes to be able to start his season at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am that starts on Jan. 30.
NASCAR
Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves will attempt to make his NASCAR debut in next month’s Daytona 500 with Trackhouse Racing. Castroneves is one of the most popular drivers in IndyCar history. He has been trying for two years to get a Daytona 500 seat and finally landed one Monday as part of Trackhouse’s “Project 91” designed to give renowned racers from outside of NASCAR a shot in a stock car. Castroneves will need to qualify for the Feb. 16 race with either a fast time in time trials, or, race his way in via a qualifying race. If Castroneves won the Daytona 500, he would join Foyt and Mario Andretti as the only drivers to win both the Daytona 500 and Indianapolis 500.
MLB
Sheel Seidler, the wife of late San Diego Padres owner Peter Seidler, has sued two of her brothers-in-law in an attempt to prevent a third Seidler brother from taking control of the team rather than her. The suit comes Monday at a time when the Padres are among the teams recruiting Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki. In a petition filed in Travis County Probate Court in Austin, Texas, Sheel Seidler sued Matthew, who became executor of Peter Seidler’s estate last year, and Robert, the prior executor. She claimed fiduciary breaches of trust, fraud, conversion and egregious acts of self-dealing.
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