The UConn women's basketball team suffered its first regular-season loss in more than four years last night. The Huskies had won 126 straight regular-season games before Kalani Brown had 20 points and 17 rebounds to lead eighth-ranked Baylor past No. 1 Connecticut, 68-57. Chloe Jackson added 13 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for the Bears.
Elsewhere in women's college basketball, Syracuse took down Clemson, 84-75, while Marist outshot Niagara, 87-58. In men's college basketball, St. Peter's defeated Siena, 65-60, Canisius topped Marist, 75-72, and Iona beat Monmouth, 103-84.
In other college basketball news, a New York judge has upheld criminal charges alleging ex-Auburn associate coach Chuck Person accepted bribes from a financial adviser to steer athletes his way. U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska said there was enough evidence to let the case against Person and Atlanta clothier Rashan Michel proceed to trial. She said federal bribery, honest services wire fraud, wire fraud and Travel Act conspiracy charges against Person were supported by detailed descriptions of the crimes.
NHL
Boston earned a 6-4 win over Calgary as Jake DeBrusk and Brad Marchand each had two goals in the Bruins' third straight win. John Moore and David Pastrnak also scored to back Jaroslav Halak, who handled 33 shots and improved to 13-6-2.
Jeff Skinner scored twice and the Sabres ended a seven-game skid against Florida by defeating the Panthers, 4-3. Sam Reinhart had a goal and an assist, and Linus Ullmark stopped 35 shots in Buffalo's first victory in four games overall. Ahead of the game, Sabres Coach Phil Housley listed team captain Jack Eichel as day-to-day with an upper body injury. He didn't reveal the nature of the injury, but Eichel will miss at least two games.
Red-hot Mathew Barzal had two goals and Devon Toews notched his first NHL tally by scoring 1:48 into overtime to push the Islanders to their fifth straight win, 3-2 over the Blackhawks. Barzal has seven goals in his last four games after the reigning Calder Trophy winner netted just five in his first 35 contests.
Teuvo Teravainen scored twice and had an assist as the Hurricanes topped the sputtering Flyers, 5-3. Dougie Hamilton and Justin Williams scored 1:08 apart early in the second period before Carolina sent Philadelphia to its fifth consecutive loss.
Elswhere on NHL ice, the Minnesota Wild were able to break out of a lengthy offensive slump on Thursday. The Wild erased deficits of 2-0 and 3-2 before Zach Parise scored 4:21 into the third period to send Minnesota to a 4-3 victory at Toronto. Jared Spurgeon had a goal and two assists to support Devan Dubnyk, who made 19 of his 38 saves in the final period. The Wild won for just the second time in eight games after scoring just 10 times in their previous seven contests. Mitch Marner tallied twice in the Maple Leafs' second straight loss.
The Lightning rolled to their seventh straight victory and improved to 15-0-1 in their last 16 by blasting the Kings, 6-2. Nikita Kucherov had a goal and three assists, while linemate Steven Stamkos scored once and collected three points. Kucherov has eight goals and 19 assists during an 11-game point streak.
Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin scored his 30th goal of the season, but Alex Pietrangelo scored once and had an assist in the Blues' 5-2 win against Washington. Ovechkin ended a six-game scoring drought and joined former Capital Mike Gartner as the only players with 14 straight 30-goal seasons.
Carey Price notched his second shutout of the season and 42nd of his career by handling 33 shots to lift the Canadiens past the Canucks, 2-0. Jordie Benn scored 11:50 into the first period and Jonathan Drouin added his 13th goal of the season to help Montreal win for the fifth time in six games.
In NHL news, the New Jersey Devils have given coach John Hynes a multiyear contract extension. The team announced the deal Thursday, saying Hynes' leadership has been instrumental in building a culture and systems for the development of the players. Hynes is in his fourth season with the Devils, who made the playoffs last season for the first time since going to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2012.
Coyotes center Nick Schmaltz is week to week after being placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. Schmaltz has given Arizona an offensive spark since being acquired in a trade with Chicago on Nov. 25, scoring five goals with adding nine assists in 17 games.
NFL
First-time eligibles Tony Gonzalez, Ed Reed and Champ Bailey are among 15 modern-era finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's class of 2019. They will be joined in the Feb. 2 balloting by Steve Atwater, Tony Boselli, Isaac Bruce, Don Coryell, Alan Faneca and Tom Flores, along with Steve Hutchinson, Edgerrin James, Ty Law, John Lynch, Kevin Mawae and Richard Seymour. Also being considered for induction are senior committee nominee former safety Johnny Robinson , ex-Cowboys GM Gil Brandt and Broncos owner Pat Bowlen. A maximum of eight new members can be elected, five from the modern-era group.
In other NFL news, the Seahawks expect to have starting cornerback Shaquill Griffin available for Saturday's NFC wild-card game against Dallas. Griffin had missed two days of practice due to an ankle injury suffered in last weekend's win over the Cardinals, but he was a full participant in the team's final full practice before facing the Cowboys. Starting guard J.R. Sweezy will be a game-time decision.
President Donald Trump has signed legislation awarding former New Orleans Saints and Washington State football player Steve Gleason the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor awarded by Congress. The 41-year-old Gleason has ALS, and Congress sought to honor him for his work as an advocate for people with the paralyzing neuromuscular disease. Gleason is the first NFL player to receive a Congressional Gold Medal.
Prosecutors in Florida have decided not to pursue a domestic violence charge against NFL player Reuben Foster more than a month after he was released from the 49ers following his arrest. Foster was arrested at the team hotel in Tampa in November and jailed overnight following an incident involving the second-year linebacker and a companion police identified as the same woman who accused Foster of hitting her in February. The woman later recanted the earlier allegations.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Army's Jeff Monken has had been selected as the George Munger coach of the year by the Maxwell Football Club after guiding the Black Knights to an 11-2 record. Army ended the season on a nine-game winning streak capped by a 70-14 victory over Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl, tying a Bowl Subdivision record for points. Monken took over the program in 2014 and has led the No. 22 Black Knights to three straight winning seasons.
In other college gridiron news, Johns Hopkins head coach Jim Margraff has died at age 58, less than a month after guiding the Blue Jays to the NCAA Division III semifinals for the first time. The former Hopkins quarterback was 221-89-3 in 29 years as head coach of his alma mater. University officials didn't release a cause of death.
NBA
Kawhi Leonard had a strong shooting performance in his first game against his former team. Unfortunately for Leonard and the Toronto Raptors, DeMar DeRozan was outstanding versus his ex-team. DeRozan had his first career triple-double with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists in the Spurs' 125-107 win over the Raptors. The All-Star guard shot 7-for-15 and paced San Antonio in boards and assists.
Meanwhile, Leonard scored 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting amid thunderous jeers from fans who also cried chants of "Traitor! Traitor!" and "Quitter! Quitter!" Leonard forced his way out of San Antonio in a trade that yielded DeRozan and Jakob Poeltl from Toronto for Leonard and Danny Green. LaMarcus Aldridge scored a team-high 23 points and Bryn Forbes shot 6-for-7 from beyond the arc in scoring 20 points.
The Spurs led by as many as 28 and won for the 11th time in 14 games.
In Thursday's other NBA action, James Harden recorded his fifth straight 40-point game and second triple-double of the week while leading the Rockets to a 135-134 overtime triumph at Golden State. Harden nailed a contested 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds left and finished with 44 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds in Houston's 11th win in 12 games.
Jamal Murray scored 17 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter of the Nuggets' fourth consecutive win, 117-113 at Sacramento. Nikola Jokic had 26 points and 13 rebounds for Denver, which leads the Western Conference at 25-11 following its eighth win in 10 games.
In NBA news, Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star forward Kevin Love has been cleared to begin "select basketball activities" following left foot surgery. Love played in just four games this season before having surgery on Nov. 2 to repair an injury sustained during Cleveland's exhibition opener. However, there is still no clear timeline on when Love will play again.
The Wizards say forward Markieff Morris will miss at least six weeks with a neck injury. Morris has been dealing with neck and upper back stiffness since getting hit on the chin during a game on Dec. 16. He will be limited to non-contact basketball activities for the next 1½ months, costing him at least 20 games.
A person familiar with the situation says the struggling Grizzlies have acquired guard Justin Holiday from the Bulls for guards MarShon Brooks and Wayne Selden Jr. Chicago also received second-round picks in 2019 and 2020 in the deal that was first reported by ESPN. Holiday is averaging 11.6 points this season and joins a team that has lost 10 of 13. Memphis has fallen from first to 10th in the Western Conference after a 12-5 start.
T25 BASKETBALL
It wasn't pretty, but second-ranked Michigan improved to 14-0 by pulling away in the second half of a 68-55 win over Penn State. Iggy Brazdeikis had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Wolverines, who led just 25-22 before going on a 13-3 run early in the second half. Jordan Poole finished with 17 points and Charles Matthews added 14 as Michigan moved to 3-0 in the Big Ten.
Penn State coach Patrick Chambers apologized following the game after he appeared to shove one of his players during a timeout.
Midway through the second half, the television broadcast showed footage of a fired-up Chambers in a huddle, reaching out with one arm and appearing to push freshman guard Myles Dread in the chest. Chambers said in his postgame news conference that he apologized to Dread, adding that he was trying to challenge.
In other top-25 finals, No. 18 North Carolina State earned its seventh straight win as backup Markell Johnson scored 20 points in 23 minutes of the Wolfpack's 87-82 victory at Miami. Devon Daniels finished with 19 points for the Wolfpack, who trailed by 10 midway through the second half before going on a 13-0 run.
Romeo Langford scored a career-high 28 points on 8-for-13 from the field to guide No. 21 Indiana to a 73-65 win against Illinois. Juwan Morgan added 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Hoosiers moved to 12-2 overall and 3-0 in the Big Ten.
Amir Coffey scored 21 points and Minnesota put No. 22 Wisconsin in an early hole before holding off a furious late rally to win 59-52. The Badgers went 3 of 10 from the line at one point, including Ethan Happ missing the front end on back-to-back 1-and-1 situations after Wisconsin pulled within seven with just over eight minutes to go.
Carsen Edwards scored 16 of his 21 points in the first half of Purdue's 86-70 win against No. 25 Iowa. Matt Haarms had 14 points and Aaron Wheeler added 10 as the Boilermakers dropped the Hawkeyes to 0-3 in the Big Ten.
MLB
The Philadelphia Phillies and reliever David Robertson have agreed to a two-year contract that includes a club option for 2021. The 33-year-old Robertson went 8-3 with a 3.23 ERA and five saves in 69 games for the Yankees last year. The right-hander could compete for the closer's role with the Phillies, who haven't made the playoffs since their five-year run from 2007-2011.
In other baseball news, the Indians signed free agent right-hander Justin Grimm to a minor-league contract as they look to rebuild their bullpen after losing Andrew Miller to free agency. The 30-year-old Grimm has a 20-23 record and a 4.98 ERA in 306 major league games.
SOCCER
Christian Pulisic became the most expensive American soccer player in history after completing a transfer to English club Chelsea from Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday. Chelsea paid 64 million euros ($73 million) for the 20-year-old United States winger, who will be loaned back to Dortmund for the rest of this season. The German club won't have to pay Chelsea for the loan. The fee is easily the biggest paid for an American player, surpassing the reported 20 million euros ($22.5 million) spent by German team Wolfsburg for John Brooks in 2017.
CROSS COUNTRY SKIING
Some of the country's best cross country skiers, including members of the U.S. national team and Olympians, are competing at the national championships in Craftsbury. The U.S. Cross Country Championships event presented by L.L. Bean is being held at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center from Thursday through Tuesday. The outdoor center says around 700 athletes are racing over five days.
PGA
Kevin Tway made his Sentry Tournament of Champions debut with a 7-under 66 for a one-stroke lead after the first round of the new year.Tway qualified for this winners-only field at Kapalua by capturing the Safeway Open for his first PGA Tour victory. Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas and Gary Woodland share second. Johnson and Thomas are the last two winners at Kapalua.
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