NFL-SCHEDULE
Great day for Falcons, Titans and Bills, while Saints take division title
UNDATED (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons claimed an NFC playoff berth while allowing the New Orleans Saints to win the NFC South, capping a wild division race in which the top two teams lost their regular-season finale. Meanwhile, the Titans and Bills ended lengthy postseason droughts by capturing AFC wild-card berths.
Matt Bryant drilled five field goals in the second half as the Falcons topped the Carolina Panthers 22-10. The teams were tied 7-7 at halftime before Bryant hit five field goals, the longest from 56 yards out.
Matt Ryan completed 28 of 45 passes for 317 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown pass to Devonta (deh-VAHN'-tay) Freeman on Atlanta's opening drive.
Panthers QB Cam Newton completed just 14 of 34 passes for 180 yards, one touchdown and three second-half interceptions.
Atlanta's win gave the Saints a division crown despite New Orleans' 31-24 loss to the Buccaneers. Jameis (JAY'-mihs) Winston threw for 363 yards, including a 39-yard scoring pass to Chris Godwin with nine seconds remaining to end Tampa Bay's five-game skid.
Alvin Kamara scored on a 106-yard kickoff return and had a second touchdown rushing for the Saints
New Orleans took a 24-20 lead midway through the fourth quarter when Zach Line caught a 3-yard TD pass from Drew Brees (breez)
Tennessee's eight-season playoff drought is over after Marcus Mariota (mar-ee-OH'-tah) threw for a touchdown and ran for 60 yards in the Titans' 15-10 victory over Jacksonville. Derrick Henry turned a 66-yard screen pass from Mariota into a 66-yard TD in the second quarter, and Ryan Succop kicked three field goals. The Titans also sacked Blake Bortles twice and forced four turnovers, including two interceptions by Kevin Byard.
Buffalo sneaked into the postseason with a lot of help from the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bills had gone 17 years without a postseason appearance until they built a 19-0 lead by the third quarter of a 22-16 triumph over the Dolphins.
Tyrod Taylor threw for 204 yards and put Buffalo ahead to stay with a 26-yard pass to Nick O'Leary on the Bills' first drive. Defensive tackle Kyle Williams scored on a one-yard run to put the Bills in control late in the third quarter.
But the Bills were in danger of missing the postseason until the Ravens dropped a stunning 31-27 decision to the Bengals. Baltimore wiped out a 17-3 deficit and took a three-point lead midway through the fourth quarter before losing on Andy Dalton's 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd with 44 seconds left. Dalton also threw a pair of touchdown passes to Tyler Kroft.
Joe Flacco's 6-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace made it 27-24 Baltimore with 8:48 remaining.
Elsewhere on the final Sunday of the 2017 NFL season:
— The Patriots will be home for the AFC playoffs as they finished a 13-3 regular season by silencing the Jets 26-6. Tom Brady tuned up for the postseason by completing 18 of 37 passes for 190 yards, including second-quarter TDs to Dion Lewis and Brandin Cooks. Lewis also ran for 93 yards and a touchdown to help Bill Belichick become the fourth NFL coach with 250 wins, joining Don Shula, George Halas and Tom Landry.
— The Vikings wrapped up a first-round bye in the NFC playoffs. Latavius Murray rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns in a 23-10 victory over the Bears. Stefon Diggs caught six passes for 65 yards and a touchdown as the 13-3 Vikings dropped the Bears to 5-11. Rookie Mitchell Trubisky was 20 of 36 for 178 yards and no turnovers, but he failed to get Chicago into the end zone during a fourth quarter that included 11 plays from the Minnesota 10 or closer.
— The Cleveland Browns were 28-24 losers at Pittsburgh to join the 2008 Lions as the only NFL teams to finish 0-16. Cleveland had a chance late in the fourth quarter until quarterback DeShone Kizer's fourth-down pass to Corey Coleman bounced off the receiver's hands and fell incomplete, allowing the Steelers to end up 13-3. Kizer finished with 314 yards passing and two touchdowns to Rashard Higgins, but Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown and grabbed nine passes for 143 yards and a score.
— Phil Dawson's fourth field goal of the day was the difference as the Cardinals topped the Seahawks 26-24. Dawson was good from 42 yards out with 2:21 remaining, but Seattle had a chance to win until Blair Walsh missed a 48-yard attempt with 32 seconds to play. Drew Stanton finished 15 of 34 for 145 yards, one touchdown and one interception against the Seahawks, who needed a victory and an Atlanta loss to make the playoffs.
— The 9-7 Chargers missed the playoffs despite a 30-10 win over the Raiders. Philip Rivers passed for 387 yards and three touchdowns for Los Angeles, which was eliminated when the Titans beat the Jaguars. Keenan Allen scored on a 27-yard fumble recovery and a six-yard TD catch to help the Chargers win for the sixth time in seven games. The Raiders announced after the game that coach Jack Del Rio was fired after a 6-10 season, one year after reaching the playoffs with 12 victories.
— The 49ers ended the year on a five-game winning streak as Jimmy Garappolo (gah-RA'-poh-loh) threw for 292 yards and a pair of TDs in a 34-13 romp over the playoff-bound Rams. Carlos Hyde ran 15 times for 90 yards, scoring on runs of eight and five yards to help San Francisco finish 6-10. Running back Todd Gurley was held out of the game by the 11-5 Rams, costing him the NFL rushing title to Kansas City's Kareem Hunt.
— Patrick Mahomes II won his first NFL start as the Chiefs downed the Broncos 27-24 on Harrison Butker's 30-yard field goal as time expired. Mahomes was actually pulled midway through the fourth quarter, but he returned to engineer a 67-yard drive that allowed the AFC West champs to finish 10-6. He threw for 284 yards on 24-of-35 passing with no touchdowns and an interception.
— Dak Prescott hit Brice Butler for a 20-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter before the Dallas defense completed a 6-0 shutout of the Eagles in Philadelphia. The 9-7 Cowboys drove 99 yards for the game's only score and held on to win by stopping backup quarterback Nate Sudfeld on a lateral inside the Dallas 5 on the game's final play. Nick Foles was 4 of 11 for 39 yards and one interception in just one quarter of play as the 13-3 Eagles rested several starters.
— Matthew Stafford threw for three touchdowns and the Lions completed a 9-7 season by drubbing the Packers 35-11. Stafford was 20 of 29 for 323 yards without a turnover to help Detroit complete its second consecutive winning season, something the Lions hadn't done in 22 years. Brett Hundley was 14 of 24 for 172 yards with two interceptions and a fumble for the 7-9 Packers.
— Eli Manning threw a first-quarter touchdown pass while the Giants were reaching the end zone twice in the first 2:18 of an 18-10 victory over the 7-9 Redskins. Fans chanted "Eli Manning!" as the 14-year veteran finished 10 of 28 for 132 yards, one interception and several dropped passes. Orleans Darkwa (DAHR'-kwah) ran for a 75-yard TD on the game's second play from scrimmage and finished with a career-high 154 yards rushing as the Giants ended a 3-13 season.
— Jacoby Brissett threw for one touchdown and Marlon Mack ran for another as the Colts beat Houston 22-13, leaving both teams 4-12. Brissett threw a 6-yard TD pass to Jack Doyle on the first play of the second quarter for Indy's first score, and the Colts took the lead for good when Mack scored on a 2-yard plunge midway through the third quarter. After the game the Colts announced that Chuck Pagano would not return as head coach.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Celtics top Nets
UNDATED (AP) — The Boston Celtics are closing out the year atop the NBA's Eastern Conference standings at 30-10, three games ahead of the Toronto Raptors.
The Celtics struggled for their third straight win as Kyrie (KY'-ree) Irving scored 28 points and hit a pair of big free throws with 7.7 seconds left in a 108-105 downing of the Nets. Al Horford finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Marcus Morris contributed 15 points to the victory.
Boston went the final 4:27 without a field goal and shot just 13 of 21 from the line in the second half before beating Brooklyn for the seventh straight time.
Meanwhile, the Rockets put an end to their five-game losing streak despite surrendering over 140 points.
James Harden scored 40 points and Chris Paul added 15 of his 28 points in overtime as Houston downed the Lakers 148-142 in double-OT.
But the Rockets finished the game without Harden because of a hamstring injury.
In Sunday's other NBA action:
— Bradley Beal scored 17 of his 39 points in the fourth quarter and finished with nine rebounds and nine assists as the Wizards held off the Bulls 114-110. Beal scored 15 straight Washington points after Chicago took an eight-point lead early in the final period.
— The Timberwolves made it nine wins in their last 12 games as Jimmy Butler delivered 26 points, six rebounds and five assists in a 107-90 decision over the Pacers. Karl-Anthony Towns had 18 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks, while teammate Taj Gibson added 17 points and nine boards to the victory.
— The Clippers were 106-98 winners over the Hornets behind Lou Williams' 40 points. Blake Griffin delivered 25 points and DeAndre Jordan hauled down 15 rebounds as Los Angeles won for the fifth time in six games.
— Dario Saric scored a season-high 27 points and the 76ers blew an 18-point lead before winning for the third time in four games, 123-110 at Phoenix. Joel Embiid (joh-EHL' ehm-BEED') provided 22 points and nine rebounds, while Ben Simmons had 21 points.
— Dennis Smith Jr. scored 11 of his 19 points in the final 99 seconds to send the Mavericks to their season-high fourth consecutive win, 116-113 against Oklahoma City. Harrison Barnes had a team-high 24 points against the Thunder, who lost despite Russell Westbrook's triple-double of 38 points, 15 boards and 11 assists.
— Tyreke (TY'-reek) Evans had 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists against his former team to push the Grizzlies past the Kings 114-96. Evans shot 10 of 16 and had five 3-pointers.
TOP-25 MEN'S BASKETBALL
Spartans roll
UNDATED (AP) — Michigan State has given itself a chance to move to the top of Monday's Associated Press men's basketball poll.
Nick Ward scored 21 points and the second-ranked Spartans improved to 14-1 with their 13th consecutive victory, a 108-52 blowout win over Savannah State. The Spartans had six players score in double figures, with Miles Bridges providing 19 points and 21 rebounds.
Michigan State is in line to climb to No. 1 following Villanova's eight-point loss to Butler on Saturday.
In other top-25 men's finals:
— Shai Gilgeous (shay GIHL-juhs)-Alexander hit two big baskets over the final 4:39 and finished with 21 points to send No. 16 Kentucky past Georgia 66-61. Quade Green added 15 points and helped the Wildcats win despite shooting a season-low 32 percent.
— Jarron Cumberland scored 15 points and Gary Clark had 13 with 10 rebounds as the duo led No. 21 Cincinnati's 82-48 pounding of Memphis.
— Khadeen Carrington scored 24 points and Desi Rodriguez added 23 with nine rebounds as No. 23 Seton Hall got past St. John's 75-70.
— Marcus Foster scored 18 points and Toby Hegner matched his season high with 15 to lead five Creighton players in double figures as the 25th-ranked Bluejays hammered Providence 83-64.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Knights keep on winning
UNDATED (AP) — The Vegas Golden Knights continue to shatter NHL records for an expansion team.
William Karlsson had the first hat trick in team history and added an assist as the Golden Knights thumped the Maple Leafs 6-3. Karlsson ran his team-leading goal total to 20 and sent the Western Conference leaders to their league record-breaking seventh straight win and 12th consecutive game with at least one point.
Malcolm Subban (SOO'-ban) stopped 20 shots for the Knights, who went an NHL-best 11-1-1 this month and improved to 16-2-1 at home.
Vegas paces the West with 54 points, three more than Nashville and Los Angeles.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
— Tyler Johnson scored twice and Andre Vasilevskiy (va-sih-LEHV'-skee) picked up his ninth career shutout by stopping 21 shots in the Lightning's 5-0 rout of the Blue Jackets. Johnson has eight goals and 10 assists during a 12-game point streak that ties the longest in the league this season.
— The Jets are back atop the Central Division after Connor Hellebuyck (HEH'-leh-buhk) and Bryan Little led them to a 5-0 romp at Edmonton. Little had a goal and an assist to support Hellebuyck, who stopped 35 shots in his third shutout of the season and Winnipeg's third consecutive win.
— The Red Wings beat the Penguins 4-1 as Gustav Nyquist delivered a pair of goals and Jimmy Howard made 37 saves. Dylan Larkin notched the eventual game-winner, putting Detroit ahead 2-0 just 59 seconds into the second period.
— The Avalanche blew out the Islanders 6-1 as Gabriel Landeskog (LAN'-dehs-kahg) scored two power-play goals in a 1:49 span of the second period. Carl Soderberg and Erik Johnson each had a goal and an assist to help Colorado deal New York its sixth consecutive road loss.
— Ben Bishop sticked aside 26 shots in his fourth shutout of the season as the Stars crushed the Sharks 6-0. Tyler Pitlick scored twice in support of Bishop's 23rd career whitewash.
— Calgary coughed up a 3-0 lead before Mark Giordano scored 52 seconds into overtime to conclude the Flames' 4-3 win over the Blackhawks. Matthew Tkachuk scored twice for the Flames, whose postgame celebration was delayed when Brandon Saad (sahd) tied it with 1:46 left in regulation.
— Rickard Rakell (rah-KEHL') scored twice in the first period and the Ducks tallied three times in the final 8:09 to beat the Coyotes 5-2. Cam Fowler broke a 2-2 deadlock and assisted on Jakob Silfverberg's (SIHL'-vur-begrz) insurance goal to secure Anaheim's fourth win in five games.
HOCKEY-WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP
Americans beat Finland
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The United States finished 3-1 in preliminary play at the world junior hockey championship in Buffalo.
Adam Fox had two assists and scored with 1:20 left to give the Americans a 5-4 victory over Finland. Joey Anderson scored twice for the U.S., which finished second to Canada in Group B.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-DODD AWARD
Shaw takes Bobby Dodd Trophy
ATLANTA (AP) — Stanford's David Shaw has won the Dodd Trophy as football coach of the year, an award that honors scholarship, leadership, integrity and success on the field.
The 15th-ranked Cardinal just completed a 9-5 season with a 37-35 loss to No. 13 TCU in the Alamo Bowl last week. The program has earned an Academic Progress Rating score of 985 and a graduation success rate of 96 percent under Shaw.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-NORTH CAROLINA
Smith leaving early for NFL
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina has announced that junior linebacker Andre Smith is entering the NFL draft.
Smith recorded 21 tackles in just two games this year before suffering a season-ending injury in September. He averaged 8.7 tackles as a sophomore in 2016 to rank seventh in the ACC.
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