December 15, 2020 2:47 am
CLEVELAND (AP) – Lamar Jackson came back in the nick of time to possibly save the Baltimore Ravens’ season. Jackson led two scoring drives after the two-minute warning and Justin Tucker nailed a 55-yard field goal with two seconds left as the Ravens survived a 47-42 win over the Browns at Cleveland. Jackson had to go to the locker room in the fourth quarter due to cramping. He returned to the field just as backup Trace McSorley was being taken off the field with a left knee injury. One play later, Jackson hit Marquise Brown for a 44-yard TD on 4th-and-5 with 1:51 remaining to put the Ravens on top. But the Browns weren’t done, tying it on Baker Mayfield’s 22-yards scoring strike to Kareem Hunt just 47 seconds late. Tucker’s long kick put Baltimore ahead for good before Cleveland lateraled the ensuing kickoff into a game-ending safety. Jackson finished with 162 yards passing and carried nine times for 124 yards and two touchdowns. The outcome keeps the 9-4 Browns two games behind first-place Pittsburgh in the AFC North. The Ravens are another game back at 8-5.
December 15, 2020 2:49 am
UNDATED (AP) – Gonzaga and Baylor top the latest AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll. Iowa, Michigan State and Kansas round out the top five. West Virginia and Tennessee climbed into the top 10. No. 16 Missouri, No. 24 Clemson and No. 25 Michigan were new additions to the poll. No. 21 Duke took the biggest tumble by falling 11 spots. No. 13 Illinois also slid seven spots to fall out of the top 10. The Big Ten has a national-best seven teams in the poll. Virginia Tech, Richmond and Arizona State fell out of the Top 25. Meanwhile, DePaul has called off two more men’s basketball games because of positive COVID-19 tests, pushing back the start of the season until at least next week. DePaul has canceled or postponed 10 games. The Blue Demons were scheduled to open Nov. 25 against Western Illinois at home.
December 14, 2020 3:53 am
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) – Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes and safety Taron Johnson returned an interception 51 yards for a score in the Buffalo Bills’ 26-15 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Bills won for the sixth time in seven outings, and inched closer to claiming their first AFC East title since 1995 and third playoff berth in four seasons. Buffalo can clinch both as early as Monday night if Baltimore loses to Cleveland. The AFC North-leading Steelers dropped to 11-2 and have lost consecutive games in six days following a 23-17 loss to Washington, and dropped a game behind the AFC-leading Kansas City Chiefs. Pittsburgh was still able to clinch its first playoff berth in three years before kickoff by virtue of the Miami Dolphins’ 33-27 loss to Kansas City earlier in the day.
December 14, 2020 3:55 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs turned the ball over four times, fell into an early 10-point hole and watched Patrick Mahomes taken down for a 30-yard sack. None of that stopped the Chiefs from clinching their fifth consecutive AFC West title. Mahomes threw for 393 yards and two scores to help the 12-1 Chiefs earn their eighth consecutive victory, 33-27 at Miami. He shook off three interceptions and led Kansas City to its team-record 10th consecutive road win. Travis Kelce had eight catches for 136 yards and a touchdown, and Mecole Hardman scored untouched on a 67-yard punt return.
December 14, 2020 3:57 am
UNDATED (AP) – Alabama remains the unanimous No. 1 team in The Associated Press college football poll as the Crimson Tide prepare for Florida in the SEC title game. The rest of the top-5 remain the same, with Notre Dame followed by Ohio State, Clemson and Texas A&M. Cincinnati, Indiana, Iowa State, Coastal Carolina and Georgia round out the top-10. Florida fell from sixth to 11th with Saturday’s loss to LSU.
December 14, 2020 3:58 am
CLEVELAND (AP) – The Cleveland Indians reportedly are changing their nickname after 105 years. The New York Times cites three sources that say the team is moving away from a name considered racist for decades. The Indians have been internally discussing a potential name change for months. A team spokesman told The Associated Press the franchise has no immediate comment on the report.
December 13, 2020 2:35 am
Governor Tom Wolf on Thursday, announced a new round of statewide restrictions to curb the surge of COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania. They went into effect at 12:01 a.m. on December 12th and will remain in effect until 8 a.m. on January 4th, 2021. The new restrictions include the shutdown of all school and recreational sports for the three-week period. All sports at K-12 public schools, nonpublic schools, private schools and club, travel and recreational activities are paused. Professional or collegiate sports activities may continue in accordance with guidance from the CDC and the Department of Health, but without spectators.
December 13, 2020 4:01 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers will be limited at inside linebacker when they face the Buffalo Bills after placing Vince Williams on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Avery Williamson will likely make his first start for Pittsburgh in place of Williams. The Steelers acquired Williamson from the New York Jets in November. While Williams is out, center Maurkice Pouncey will return to action after being activated off the reserve/COVID-19 list. Pittsburgh will also be without injured inside linebacker Robert Spillane and cornerback Joe Haden. The Steelers are trying to bounce back from a loss to Washington.
December 13, 2020 7:38 am
PITTSBURGH — — Justin Champagnie scored 24 points and set career highs with 21 rebounds and five assists to help Pittsburgh win its fourth straight with a 67-50 win over Gardner-Webb on Saturday. Champagnie is the 11th player in program history to have at least 20 points and 20 rebounds in a game for the Panthers (4-1) and the first to do it in back-to-back games. He had 20 points and 20 rebounds in a 71-70 win over Northwestern on Wednesday. Gardner-Webb missed its first 18 shots from the field and was scoreless until Anthony Selden’s 3-pointer with 7:43 left in the half cut the Panthers’ lead to 14-3. The Bulldogs (0-2) closed within 25-18 before the end of the period but got no closer in the second half. Xavier Johnson added 12 points for Pitt, including the Panthers’ only 3-pointer. Pitt finished 1 of 18 from 3-point range.
December 13, 2020 7:37 am
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Little by little over the last three games, Penn State has come closer to being the team coach James Franklin thought he’d have before the season began. A come-from-behind, 39-24 win over Michigan State on Saturday is evidence enough for Franklin to know the Nittany Lions have put their early-season struggles behind them. Quarterback Sean Clifford completed 17 of 27 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns and added 48 yards and another touchdown on the ground. Parker Washington hauled in a pair of touchdown passes for the Nittany Lions (3-5) who trailed 21-10 at halftime. Backup quarterback Will Levis added a rushing touchdown and receiver Jahan Dotson returned a punt 81 yards for a score for the Nittany Lions who won their third straight.
