NBA:
In the NBA, New York beat Oklahoma City 100-92, Minnesota topped Boston 110-98, Atlanta bested Brooklyn 113-102, Houston won against Dallas 99-94, Toronto defeated Sacramento 119-102, the Clippers beat Utah 94-89, Phoenix trumped Washington 106-98, Cleveland bested Portland 99-94, San Antonio topped Charlotte 95-86, and it was Philadelphia over Detroit 89-69.
NHL:
Over on the ice, New Jersey edged Toronto in a shootout 2-1, Washington blanked Pittsburgh 4-0, and it was Los Angeles over Chicago 4-3.
NFL:
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is dealing with a cold four days before the Super Bowl, but says he will be OK. Brady sounded under the weather during his session with the media yesterday. He rubbed the back of his right hand under his nose at one point.
Prosecutors in Massachusetts are expected to lay out their case against former New England Patriots star player Aaron Hernandez, as they deliver opening statements in his murder trial.
The openings Thursday come just days before Hernandez's old team is due to play in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Hernandez has pleaded not guilty to killing semiprofessional football player Odin Lloyd in 2013. Lloyd was dating the sister of Hernandez's fiancée. He was found shot to death in an industrial park near Hernandez's home, not far from Gillette Stadium.
Bristol County Superior Court Judge Susan Garsh must still swear in 18 jurors before the openings begin. She has called a pool of backup jurors to come to the courthouse in case any jurors she seated last week are unable to serve.
NCAA:
In top 25 women’s college basketball No. 2 UConn blasted East Carolina 87-32.
In men's college basketball, Stony Brook beat Hartford 72-66 last night. Roland Nyama scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half for the Seawolves. Taylor Dyson led the Hawks with 15 points. Corban Wroe added 13 points and Mark Nwakamma scored 10. UAlbany beat Vermont 47-44.
Australian Open:
Top seed Serena Williams and No. 2 Maria Sharapova will compete in another grand slam final, this time at the Australian Open in a rematch of their 2007 championship match.
Williams weathered a barrage of big serves and heavy groundstrokes in the first set before beating 19-year-old Madison Keys 7-6, 6-2. Williams broke Keys twice in the second set, but Keys saved seven match points on serve in the penultimate game before Williams closed with an ace on her ninth match point.
Williams is seeking her 19th major championship and carries a 16-2 lifetime record against Sharapova, including a victory in the 2007 final.
Sharapova has reached the Australian Open final for the fourth time after cruising to a 6-3, 6-2 triumph over No. 10 Ekatarina Makarova. Sharapova had her service broken in the first set before winning the next six games to take control of the match. The five-time major champion has been in command since fighting off a pair of match points in her second-round match against qualifier Alexandra Panova.
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