NFL
Deshaun Watson threw for 210 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a third as the Houston Texans set a franchise record with their eighth straight win, 34-17 over the Tennessee Titans on Monday night.
Demaryius Thomas scored his first two touchdowns as a Texan and Lamar Miller ran for 162 yards, including a 97-yard TD.
In the first game since founder and owner Robert "Bob" McNair died on Friday, the Texans honored him by wearing decals on the back of their helmets in the shape of a football with white block letters bearing his initials of "RCM."
With that reminder on their helmets, they became the first team in NFL history to win eight games in a row after opening a season 0-3.
The Texans trailed by 10 early before reeling off 27 straight points. Tennessee (5-6) finally scored again on a 48-yard reception by Corey Davis late in the third quarter, but the second TD by Thomas — this one for 10 yards — made it 34-17 with just more than eight minutes left.
Jaguars fire offensive coordinator after 7th straight loss:
The Jacksonville Jaguars have fired offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett after the team's seventh consecutive loss.
Coach Doug Marrone made the decision one day after a 24-21 loss at Buffalo in which Blake Bortles finished with 127 yards passing. The Jaguars (3-8) had a season-low 107 yards through the air the previous week against Pittsburgh.
Hackett has failed to get Bortles and the offense to play anywhere close to the way they did early in the season. Injuries have been a major issue, but not enough to save Hackett's job.
It was clear Hackett's job was in jeopardy when Marrone moved him from the sideline to the coaches' booth for the game against the Bills, an indication Marrone felt Hackett needed a new vantage point to call games better.
In other NFL news:
San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan says the team was unaware that police were called for another possible incident of domestic violence involving linebacker Reuben Foster. The 49ers released Foster on Sunday morning after he was arrested for domestic violence. The team learned later Sunday that police were called for an incident involving the same alleged victim on Oct. 12.
Hall of Fame tight end and former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka has been released from a hospital after being treated for a mild heart attack last week. Steve Mandell, Ditka's agent, confirmed a report by the Chicago Sun-Times that the former coach was sent home.
The NFL has suspended Jacksonville Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette one game without pay for leaving the sideline, running across the field and throwing punches at Buffalo Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson. NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan handed down the punishment.
Heuerman is done for the season:
Jeff Heuerman's breakout season with the Broncos has come to a premature end with word that he sustained broken ribs and a bruised lung in Denver's 24-17 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Coach Vance Joseph said on his weekly radio show that Heuerman has three broken ribs and will miss the rest of the season. Heuerman had two receptions for 44 yards before getting hurt Sunday. For the season, he has 33 receptions for 281 yards, both career highs, and two touchdowns, tying his career best.
In other injury news:
Los Angeles Chargers running back Melvin Gordon is week to week after he sprained the medial collateral ligament in his right knee during Sunday's 45-10 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
The Detroit Lions have put wide receiver Marvin Jones on injured reserve. Jones has missed the past two games with a knee injury.
Jets quarterback Josh McCown has a sore right thumb that Coach Todd Bowles thinks won't keep him out of practice. McCown banged his hand on a helmet, causing a cut during New York's 27-13 loss to New England on Sunday.
NBA
Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb each had 21 points, and the Charlotte Hornets held on to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 110-107 on Monday night after nearly squandering a 25-point, third-quarter lead.
Marvin Williams added 16 points and eight rebounds, and Tony Parker had 15 points off the bench for the Hornets, who bounced back from a loss at Atlanta on Sunday night and ended a two-game skid.
The Bucks nearly came all the way back, cutting the lead to one with 17 seconds left on a layup by Giannis Antetokounmpo. He had 20 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists. Bledsoe scored 17 points.
In other action:
Kyrie Irving closed out a 26-point performance with a 3-pointer and a tough baseline fade over Anthony Davis to help the Boston Celtics pulled away late for a 124-107 victory over New Orleans. Jayson Tatum and Al Horford each scored 20 for Boston. Davis finished with 27 points and 16 rebounds.
Doug McDermott scored a season-high 21 points to lead the Indiana Pacers to a 121-88 rout of the Utah Jazz on Monday night. Victor Oladipo, the Pacers leading scorer at 21.4 per game, missed his fourth game with a sore right knee so his teammates turned up their defensive intensity and spread the ball.
Robert Covington scored 24 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 21 and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 102-95. Minnesota is 6-2 since trading disgruntled star Jimmy Butler to Philadelphia two weeks ago and 10-11 overall.
John Wall scored a season-high 36 points, including six in overtime, and the Washington Wizards overcame James Harden's season-best 54 points to outlast the Houston Rockets 135-131. Wall had two baskets in the extra period and finished with 11 assists.
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, and the San Antonio Spurs held off the Chicago Bulls for a 108-107 victory. DeMar DeRozan had 21 points and Patty Mills finished with 17 as San Antonio improved to 2-1 on a four-game trip.
Kevin Durant scored a season-high 49 points, giving Golden State the lead on three-point play with 1:19 left before hitting a 3-pointer with 22 seconds remaining to send the Warriors past the Orlando Magic 116-110. Durant topped his 44-point performance two nights earlier with another brilliant outing on both ends. Injured All-Stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green missed the game.
Tuesday on the court:
The New York Knicks take on Detroit at 7 p.m.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Brandon Clarke and Rui Hachimura each scored 18 points as top-ranked Gonzaga beat North Dakota State 102-60 on Monday night to remain undefeated.
Corey Kispert added 17 points and Zach Norvell Jr. 15 for Gonzaga, which reached No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 earlier in the day by virtue of beating former No. 1 Duke at the Maui Invitational.
Vinnie Shahid scored 16 points for North Dakota State.
Gonzaga has beaten four teams from Power Five conferences already this season, and came in averaging 97 points per game to 71 for the Bison.
In other Top 25 games:
Trayvon Reed scored 23 points and John Jones added 20 to help Texas Southern shock No. 18 Oregon with an 89-84 victory Monday night. Reed, a 7-foot-2 senior, made all nine of his shots and also was 5-for-5 from the foul line for the Tigers (2-4), who were 24-point underdogs.
Nick Weatherspoon and Lamar Peters both scored 17 points, Reggie Perry added 16 points and 11 rebounds and No. 25 Mississippi State beat Alcorn State 88-65.
America East:
Hartford goes against Sacred Heart at 6 p.m.
UConn takes on UMass Lowell at 7 p.m.
MAAC:
Iona faces off against Ohio at 7 p.m.
NHL
Tom Wilson scored twice, Braden Holtby stopped 32 shots and the Washington Capitals beat the New York Islanders and former coach Barry Trotz 4-1 Monday night for their season-high sixth straight win.
Nic Dowd and Alex Ovechkin also scored for Washington, which won after giving up the first goal for the fifth time during its win streak that has catapulted the defending champions to first place in the Metropolitan Division.
Valtteri Filppula scored and Thomas Greiss finished with 20 saves for the Islanders, who lost for the third time in five games.
In other action on the ice:
Marc Staal, Lias Andersson, Chris Kreider, and Mika Zibanejad scored, and Henrik Lundqivst made 29 saves as the New York Rangers defeated the Ottawa Senators 4-2 Monday night. The Rangers extended their dominance at Madison Square Garden, improving to 8-1-0 at home in their last nine games.
Mike Hoffman scored the game-winning goal in overtime to lift the Florida Panthers over the New Jersey Devils 4-3 on Monday night. Aleksander Barkov had a goal and an assist, Jonathan Huberdeau recorded a goal and a pair of assists, and Jared McCann also scored a goal for the Panthers. James Reimer stopped 29 shots.
Mitch Marner had three assists and Patrick Marleau celebrated his 1,600th NHL game as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 on Monday night. Each teams scored twice in a frenetic second period that saw Boston outshoot Toronto 18-9.
Pierre-Luc Dubois scored two goals to help the Columbus Blue Jackets hold on for a 7-5 win over the Detroit Red Wings. The Blue Jackets led 3-0 after the first period and led by four goals in the second. Detroit rallied with three straight goals and pulled within one twice in the third period.
Tuesday on the Ice:
The Flyers host Ottawa at 7 p.m.
The Buffalo Sabres take on San Jose at 7 p.m.
Struggling Flyers fire GM:
The Philadelphia Flyers have fired general manager Ron Hextall.
Hextall was fired Monday after 4 ½ seasons on the job and the Flyers struggling with a 10-11-2 record under Coach Dave Hakstol. The Flyers are coming off a 6-0 loss at Toronto and already have used five goalies this season.
Flyers President Paul Holmgren thanked Hextall for his "many significant contributions, but it has become clear that we no longer share the same philosophical approach concerning the direction of the team."
Hextall played 13 seasons in the NHL and had two stints covering 11 years with the Flyers. He also spent seven seasons as assistant GM with the Los Angeles Kings.
MLB
Right-hander Parker Bridwell was claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels by the New York Yankees, who opened a roster spot by designating infielder Ronald Torreyes for assignment.
Bridwell was 10-3 with a 3.64 ERA in 20 starts and one relief appearance for the Angels in 2017, then missed much of this year because of right elbow inflammation. He was designated for assignment last week by the Angels.
Torreyes was among the most popular players in the Yankees clubhouse, a 5-foot-8 backup often hoisted into the air by teammates to high-five 6-foot-7 Aaron Judge.
In other MLB news:
Jim Riggleman, a 66-year-old veteran of 13 seasons as a major league manager, has been hired by the New York Mets as bench coach for Mickey Callaway. Riggleman was Cincinnati's bench coach from 2016 under he became interim manager for 5½ months last season, and he led the Reds to a 64-80 record after the team's 3-15 start under Bryan Price.
Reds closer Raisel Iglesias will get $6 million in the first year of his three-year contract with Cincinnati that guarantees $24,125,000. Iglesias will receive $9 million in 2020 and $9,125,000 in 2021.
The Royals claimed Conner Greene off waivers from the St. Louis Cardinals and designated fellow right-hander Burch Smith for assignment. Greene spent last season at Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis, going 4-5 with a 4.09 ERA in 40 appearances.
The Atlanta Braves have added a pair of free agents following their first division title in five years, agreeing to one-year contracts with third baseman Josh Donaldson and catcher Brian McCann. A person familiar with the deal says Donaldson agreed to a $23 million, one-year contract. McCann got a $2 million, one-year contract to play near his home.
The Minnesota Twins have claimed first baseman C.J. Cron off waivers from Tampa Bay, adding an accomplished replacement for the retired Joe Mauer. Cron batted .253 with 28 doubles, 30 home runs, 74 RBIs and an .816 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in a career-best 2018 season for the Rays.
© 2018 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
