NBA:
In the NBA, Cleveland beat Boston 124-118, Memphis bested Oklahoma City 114-80, Phoenix defeated Toronto 99-91, Utah topped Philadelphia 100-83, Dallas beat the Lakers 101-89, and it was Charlotte over Miami 91-82.
NHL:
In the NHL, Boston doubled up Buffalo 4-2, New Jersey beat Washington in a shootout 2-1, Minnesota beat the Islanders 6-4, the Rangers topped Arizona 6-3, Anaheim beat Calgary 3-1, Edmonton won against Los Angeles 3-1, Columbus defeated Winnipeg 5-3, Chicago topped Nashville 3-2, Detroit bested Ottawa in overtime 3-2, Toronto beat Tampa Bay in overtime 3-2, and it was Montreal over Florida in overtime 3-2.
Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Matt Murray is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. Coach Mike Sullivan says that Murray is "week to week" after leaving Wednesday night's comeback victory over Carolina after the second period. The 22-year-old is 13-3-1 with a 2.18 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage this season.
NCAA:
In men’s college basketball, Vermont won against Siena 76-60.
In women’s college basketball, Dartmouth beat UAlbany in overtime 69-61 and Louisville beat Syracuse 91-76.
The College Football Playoffs start tomorrow. The Playstation Fiesta Bowl features No. 2 Clemson and No. 3 Ohio State. The winner will face the winner of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl which features No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 Washington.
Longtime BYU football coach LaVell Edwards has died at the age of 86. Edwards coached the Cougars for 29 seasons before retiring in 2000, winning 257 games and leading the program to 22 bowl games. His 1984 team was voted national champion, and he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
LSU basketball coach Johnny Jones says junior forward Craig Victor II has been dismissed from the team for an unspecified violation of team rules. Victor started five of the eight games in which he appeared this season, averaging 10.5 points and 7.6 rebounds. He averaged 11.5 points and 5.6 boards a game last season after transferring from Arizona.
An autopsy report shows that former Heisman Trophy winner Rashaan Salaam killed himself after struggling with depression. The 42-year old was found dead Dec. 5 in a park near the University of Colorado, where he played from 1992-1994. The autopsy by the Boulder County Coroner's Office confirmed that Salaam died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
NFL:
It’s the last of regular season games for many teams in the NFL. On Sunday at 1 p.m., Buffalo is in the Meadowlands to take on the Jets, New England is in Miami at 1 p.m., and the Giants are in Washington for a game at 4:25 p.m.
Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill has returned to the practice field yesterday but did not partake in team drills. Tannehill threw passes on the side in his first team workout since straining the MCL and ACL in his left knee during a Week 14 win over the Cardinals. The Dolphins have gone 2-0 with Matt Moore filling in for Tannehill.
The Cleveland Browns say Robert Griffin III has been cleared from concussion protocol and will practice for the game, raising the likelihood that he'll start Sunday against Pittsburgh. Coach Hue Jackson says he has been pleased with Griffin's progress and would like to see more before deciding if the 26-year-old can be Cleveland's starter going forward.
Soccer:
Cristiano Ronaldo's agent says the Real Madrid star has been offered "more than 100 million" euros per season to move to the Chinese Super League. But Ronaldo isn't going anywhere. Asked by Italy's Sky Sport about reports of a 300 million euro ($315 million) transfer offer to Madrid and a 100 million euro ($105 million) per season contract offer from an unspecified club, Jorge Mendes replied, "It's normal. He's the best player in the world and the best of all time. More than 100."
Indoor Arena:
Rochester officials have committed to a multistage renovation of the western New York City’s fading 61-year-old indoor arena over the construction of a new facility. Mayor Lovely Warren said the cost of a new stadium is too much for the city during the unveiling of a new marquee at Blue Cross Arena on Wednesday. Instead, Rochester is moving forward with a plan to renovate the 1955 arena backed by $10.5 million in state funding. The state has not yet released the money to the city. Warren said she's optimistic that additional funds will be secured within the next couple of weeks or months and work can begin this summer. The NHL's Buffalo Sabres declined to host a preseason game at the arena earlier this year after deeming it inadequate.
OBIT:
Former Virginia Tech star and NFL player Keion Carpenter has died at the age of 39. The cause of death is currently unknown. Carpenter was a defensive back and special teams standout who tied a school record by blocking six kicks. He intercepted 14 passes during his NFL career with the Buffalo Bills and Atlanta Falcons.
World Junior Hockey Championships:
The United States is 3-0 at the world junior hockey championship following Thursday's 3-2 win over Russia. Calgary Flames prospect Tyler Parsons capped his 25-save performance with a huge stop in the closing seconds after the Russians had pulled their goaltender. Clayton Keller, Colin White and Troy Terry did the scoring while the Americans built a 3-1 lead.
Skiing:
For the third straight day Olympic slalom champion Mikaela Shiffrin of the U.S. has won a World Cup race. Shiffrin won back to back giant slalom races on Tuesday and Wednesday before Thursday's slalom victory in Austria. The victory is her 23rd in World Cup slalom racing. She also extended her lead in the overall World Cup standings to 215 points over defending champion Lara Gut of Switzerland.
Tennis:
Serena Williams is tying the knot. The tennis great announced her engagement to Alexis Ohanian co-founder of the social news website, Reddit.
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