December 24, 2020 7:38 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Rockets and Thunder were scheduled to play their NBA season opener Wednesday in Houston. But the game was postponed following coronavirus cases and James Harden’s violation of the NBA COVID-19 protocols, leaving the Rockets without the league-mandated eight players available. The NBA said three Rockets players had returned tests that were either positive or inconclusive and that four other players were quarantined because of contact tracing. The league also said that Harden was unavailable for the game because of a violation of health and safety protocols. Video surfaced on social media showing that Harden was without a mask at a crowded party in a private event space on Tuesday night. The league has fined the former MVP $50,000.
December 24, 2020 3:49 am
UNDATED (AP) – Georgia Southern and Memphis have ended their college football seasons with a bowl game victory. Shai Werts had three touchdown runs and threw a 65-yard scoring pass to help Georgia Southern beat Louisiana Tech 38-3 in the New Orleans Bowl. The Eagles came up with four interceptions, including two near its own goal line in the first quarter. Georgia Southern finished with 322 yards rushing against the Bulldogs after entering the game averaging 262. In the Montgomery Bowl, Brady White passed for 284 yards and three touchdowns to lead Memphis to a 25-10 victory over Florida Atlantic.
December 24, 2020 3:53 am
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) – Ayo Dosunmu scored 21 of his 30 points in the second half to lead No. 18 Illinois past Penn State 98-81. Kofi Cockburn added 23 points and Andre Curbelo had 15 points and eight assists for the Illini, who won their second straight at the Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State opened up a 19-4 lead over the first five minutes. The Illini used the remainder of the half to claw back, tying the game at 43 at halftime. Illinois took over midway through the second half. Myreon Jones and Izaiah Brockington scored 21 points apiece for Penn State.
December 24, 2020 3:50 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Tampa Bay Lightning could be without one of their top snipers until next fall. Winger Nikita Kucherov is expected to miss the entire regular season because of a hip injury that requires surgery. Losing the 2019 NHL MVP and leading scorer from the 2020 playoffs is a major blow to the defending Stanley Cup champions.
December 23, 2020 3:54 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers are reeling. The AFC North leaders have dropped three straight games following an 11-0 start. The latest setback came in a 27-17 loss to Cincinnati in which the Steelers never led. Coach Mike Tomlin says he still believes his team can turn it around. Time is running out. The Steelers finish the regular season with games against surging Indianapolis and Cleveland. One victory would wrap up the division title.
December 23, 2020 3:53 am
BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Carson Strong threw for 271 yards and five touchdowns, Devonte Lee and Toa Taua each rushed for over 100 yards, and Nevada beat Tulane 38-27 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Tuesday. Nevada finished 2020 the same way it started the year – by playing in the same bowl game, which the Wolfpack lost 30-21 to Ohio on Jan. 3. This year’s Potato Bowl allowed Nevada to end with a win after losing its regular-season finale to San Jose State, which cost the Wolfpack a spot in the Mountain West title game. Tulane failed in its bid to win three consecutive bowl games for the first time in program history.
December 23, 2020 3:52 am
Christian Braun hit six 3-pointers and had 22 points, Jalen Wilson made four 3s and scored 17, and No. 3 Kansas shrugged off a mid-game malaise before cruising past seventh-ranked West Virginia 79-65 on Tuesday night. Marcus Garrett finished with 15 points, Ochai Agbaji had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and David McCormack added 10 points and 11 boards as the Jayhawks won their fifth straight against the Mountaineers.
December 23, 2020 3:51 am
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) – Florida forward Keyontae Johnson is being released from the hospital. It comes 10 days after he collapsed on the court at Florida State and needed emergency medical attention. The school released a statement from his family saying, “We continue to be amazed at the pace of his recovery and look forward to spending Christmas together as a family.” The family added that it will share “any information we think could help others” regarding the cause and extent of Johnson’s illness. Johnson tested positive for COVID-19 over the summer and it’s unclear if his collapse was related to that.
December 22, 2020 3:45 am
CINCINNATI (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers look nothing like the team that opened the NFL season with 11 straight wins. The Steelers wasted a chance to clinch the AFC North title by falling to the struggling Bengals, 27-17. Giovani Bernard scored two touchdowns while Cincinnati was building a 17-0 halftime lead. Quarterback Ryan Finley completed seven passes for 89 yards, but his 23-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter all but sealed it as the Bengals handed the Steelers their third straight loss. The Steelers got within 17-10 before Finley ran untouched around the left side with 11:21 left. Ben Roethlisberger completed 20 of his 38 passes for 170 yards, one touchdown and an interception
December 22, 2020 3:52 am
Kevin Greene, one of the more recognizable and popular players of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ renaissance in the 1990s, has died at age 58. The Pro Football Hall of Fame was among those announcing the death of the Hall of Fame outside linebacker who spent three of his 15 NFL seasons as part of a feared Steelers defense from 1993-95. “We lost an amazing player and person this morning with the passing of Kevin Greene,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a statement released by the team. “His sudden death is a shock to us all as he was a close friend and teammate to so many people in the Steelers family.” A cause of death was not immediately reported.
