NBA:
The Milwaukee Bucks picked up a victory just hours after firing head coach Jason Kidd. Assistant Joe Prunty coached the team as Khris Middleton scored 35 points and hit two long jumpers in the final minute of a 109-105 victory over the Phoenix Suns. Malcolm Brogdon added 32 points, provided a big steal with 40 seconds left and later threw a pass to Middleton for a jumper that put Milwaukee ahead by five.
The Houston Rockets earned their third straight win, and their first in seven games this season when scoring under 105 points. James Harden scored 28 points and Chris Paul added 16 in a 99-90 victory over the Miami Heat. The game was tied at 88 until Harden drained a 3-pointer just before the shot clock expired, starting a 7-2 run that put Houston ahead 95-90 with 38 seconds remaining.
NCAA:
Jehyve Floyd had career highs with 22 points and six blocks and Jacob Grandison hit two free throws with 13.4 seconds left to help Holy Cross beat American 60-57. Floyd shot 10 of 13 from the field.
A pair of top-10 men's basketball teams were beaten on Monday. Justin Robinson scored 19 points and Ahmed Hill added 18 as Virginia Tech surprised 10th-ranked North Carolina, 80-69 in Blacksburg. Alex Robinson contributed 17 points, nine assists and seven rebounds to carry TCU past No. 7 West Virginia 82-73.
NHL:
Petr Mrazek had 37 saves in posting his second straight shutout and third of the season as the Detroit Red Wings beat the slumping New Jersey Devils 3-0. Tyler Bertuzzi, David Booth and Dylan Larkin scored for the Red Wings, who snapped a two-game losing streak and won for the second time in six games.
Tanner Pearson, Michael Amadio and Jake Muzzin each scored on the power play and the Los Angeles Kings snapped their six-game skid with a 4-2 win over the New York Rangers. Jonathan Quick made 21 saves for the Kings while ending his personal five-game losing skid. Trevor Lewis added an empty-net goal with 17.8 seconds remaining.
Nick Cousins scored his second goal of the game 2:21 into overtime to lift the Arizona Coyotes to a 3-2 win over the New York Islanders. Cousins added an assist and the Coyotes ran their points streak to five games, a season high. Arizona has points from seven of eight games, with six of those going to overtime. Brendan Perlini scored for the third time in three games and Antti Raanta stopped 32 shots.
Blake Comeau snapped a 2-2 tie with 7:43 remaining to send the Colorado Avalanche to their 10th consecutive victory, 4-2 at Toronto. The Maple Leafs led 2-1 until Nail Yakupov scored midway through the second period. Gabriel Bourque also tallied and Gabriel Landeskog added an empty-netter to back Jonathan Bernier, who turned back 29 shots against his former team.
Boston Bruins rookie defenseman Charlie McAvoy has been treated for an abnormal heart rhythm and is expected to need about two weeks to recover. The team's internist says the condition is not considered dangerous but is likely to recur. McAvoy is a 2016 first-round draft pick. He has five goals and 20 assists in 45 games this season.
Jack Eichel scored 1:30 into overtime to give the Buffalo Sabres their first win at Calgary in more than 14 years, 2-1 over the Flames. Eichel one-timed a pass from Rasmus Ristolainen for his 19th of the season, putting it past Mike Smith to extend his point streak to six games (four goals, six assists). Scott Wilson also scored and Chad Johnson stopped 32 shots to help Buffalo snap a four-game road losing streak and get its first victory on the Flames' home ice since Oct. 18, 2003.
NFL:
Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur has been hired as the New York Giants head coach. The Giants announced the hiring less than 24 hours after Shurmur and the Vikings were beaten by the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC title game.
The Patriots hope the Super Bowl bye week will give Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski time to heal. Brady played effectively in the AFC championship game with stitches in his right hand, and he expects they will be removed this week. Gronkowski was knocked out of the game with a head injury, and he's likely to spend at least part of this week in the concussion protocol. New England is thin at tight end behind Gronk.
Philadelphia Eagles fans threw unopened beers cans at Vikings fans in the NFC title game. Patriots fans love to brag about their Super Bowl successes. It's battle of the boorish fans when the Eagles play the Patriots in the Super Bowl.
Tennessee general manager Jon Robinson got his NFL start as a scout with the New England Patriots. His new head coach Mike Vrabel won three Super Bowl rings as a linebacker with New England. The Titans seem to be trying to implement the Patriot Way in Music City. Vrabel says that's what it looks like _ until the Titans win big themselves. Vrabel says nobody's ever really ready to be a head coach for the first time in the NFL, but he feels as ready as possible.
Olympics:
It has not always been an easy ride for U.S. bobsledder Elana Meyers Taylor since the last Olympics. She fought her way back from a concussion, lost her close friend Steven Holcomb and had only one World Cup win this season. But her goal for Pyeongchang remains the same: She's going for the gold that slipped away in Sochi four years ago.
Meanwhile in Gymnastics:
The chairman, vice chairman and treasurer of USA Gymnastics have resigned. Paul Parilla, Jay Binder and Bitsy Kelly announced they were stepping down Monday after calls for their ouster by gymnasts who have testified they were abused by ex USAG sports doctor Larry Nassar, whose sentencing hearing continues this week in Michigan. Former Olympians and dozens of others have testified at the hearing.
A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that U.S. Olympic Committee CEO Scott Blackmun met with Parilla earlier this month and asked for his resignation. Meanwhile, a 15-year-old girl says Michigan State University is still billing her for medical appointments during which she says a sports doctor sexually assaulted her. Emma Ann Miller made the allegation in her statement to a Michigan judge Monday.
NASCAR:
Danica Patrick is teaming with Premium Motorsports for next month's Daytona 500, the final race of her NASCAR career. The one-race deal will put Patrick in the seat of the No. 7 GoDaddy Chevrolet, the same number she drove when she entered stock-car racing in 2010. Her former crew chief, Tony Eury Jr., will return to Patrick's pit box for her finale.
Tennis:
Unseeded Elise Mertens has worked herself into the Australian Open semifinals. She upset fourth-seeded Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-0 to extend her winning streak to 10 matches. Mertens is the first Belgian since Kim Clijsters in 2012 to reach the semifinals in Australia, doing it in her debut at the season-opening Grand Slam. Next up for Mertens is the winner of Tuesday's other quarterfinal match between second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki or Carla Suarez Navarro. In other quarterfinals, top seed Rafael Nadal will take on No. 6 Marin Cilic after No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov faces Kyle Edmund. Also at Melbourne, No 32 seed Mischa Zverev was fined $45,000 for a poor performance in his first-round match, the largest penalty ever assessed to an individual during a major. Zverev was punished under a new rule implemented by the Grand Slam Board intended to deter players with pre-existing injuries from starting a tournament and retiring from their first-round matches.
MLB:
Austin Jackson appears to have found a new team. Two people with knowledge of the contract say the Giants have worked out a two-year, $6 million deal with the center fielder. The move fills San Francisco's top remaining void just a few weeks before pitchers and catchers report to spring training. The 31-year-old Jackson batted .318 with seven homers and 35 RBIs in 85 games for the Indians last year.
Arena Football:
The name of the new Albany arena football team will be announced today. It’s a closed event for season ticket holders, sponsors, and media.
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