January 15, 2020 3:43 am
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) – Derek Culver scored 17 points, West Virginia’s bench provided a huge lift on the offensive end and the 12th-ranked Mountaineers stomped TCU 81-49. The Mountaineers are unbeaten in eight home games and have held 10 opponents this season to 60 points or less, including five straight. TCU remains winless in Morgantown since joining the Big 12 in the 2012-13 season. The Horned Frogs missed a chance to take over sole possession of first place in the league and had their four-game winning streak snapped. RJ Nembhard led TCU with 14 points and Desmond Bane scored 13.
January 14, 2020 3:43 am
Golf is taking another swing at cracking down on slow play. The European Tour and PGA Tour have new policies that allow for swifter penalty shots and increased fines. The PGA Tour is developing what it calls an “observation list” that targets slow players. Those players are identified by data that shows they take an average of 45 seconds a shot based on their last 10 tournaments. The list is updated weekly, and the tour is not making it public. Europe’s policy is effective this week in Abu Dhabi. The PGA Tour’s policy starts a week after the Masters.
January 14, 2020 2:11 am
HOUSTON (AP) –The Houston Astros fired manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow after the pair were suspended by Major League Baseball for the team’s use of electronics for sign stealing during the Astros’ run to the 2017 World Series title. Commissioner Rob Manfred strongly hinted that current Boston manager Alex Cora will face equal or more severe punishment. Cora was the Astros bench coach in 2017 and Manfred said he developed the sign-stealing system used by the team. The Red Sox are under investigation for sign stealing in Cora’s first season as manager in 2018, when Boston won the title.
January 12, 2020 7:45 am
NEW YORK (AP) — The Chin is in. Former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in a surprise announcement Saturday night before the Tennessee Titans-Baltimore Ravens AFC divisional round playoff game. Hall President and CEO David Baker delivered the news live in studio to Cowher, an analyst for CBS, during the network’s “The NFL Today” pregame show broadcast. An emotional Cowher, now 62, hugged Baker and then his wife Veronica and daughter Meagan, who were standing off to the side of the set during the announcement. The rest of Cowher’s CBS broadcast team, including James Brown, Boomer Esiason, Phil Simms and Nate Burleson also gave him congratulatory hugs. Cowher was the coach of the Steelers for 15 seasons from 1992 to 2006, and led them to 10 playoff appearances including two Super Bowls and winning one — beating Seattle in 2006. His Pittsburgh teams won nine division titles. Cowher had an overall career record of 161-99-1 with a .619 winning percentage.
January 11, 2020 4:01 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell turned his breakout 2019 season into a hefty raise for 2020. Bell will make $4.8 million in 2020 after avoiding arbitration and agreeing to a one-year deal with the club. Bell’s signing was the most significant on a busy day for new Pirates general manager Ben Cherington. Pittsburgh reached agreements for 2020 with all eight arbitration eligible players, including reliever Keone Kela, starting pitchers Trevor Williams and Joe Musgrove and second baseman Adam Frazier.
January 10, 2020 3:54 am
The Pirates have signed outfielder Guillermo Heredia to a one-year contract for the 2020 season. Heredia, who will turn 29 on January 31, hit .225 (46-for-204) with 13 doubles, five home runs and 20 RBI in 89 games with Tampa Bay in 2019. He made 41 appearances in center field, 28 in right field and 14 in left field. Prior to joining Tampa Bay, Heredia spent the previous three seasons with Seattle after being signed by the Mariners as an international free agent out of Cuba. In his Major League career, Heredia has made 194 appearances (158 starts) in center field, 142 appearances (91 starts) in left field and 46 appearances (16 starts) in right field. To make room for Heredia on the 40-man roster, Pablo Reyes , has been designated for assignment.
January 9, 2020 3:36 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh basketball coach Jeff Capel has agreed to a two-year contract extension that could keep him with the Panthers through the 2026-27 season. The deal gives Capel more time to continue the rebuilding project he took on when he arrived at Pitt in the spring of 2018. Capel is 24-23 with the Panthers including a 10-4 mark so far this season. Interest in the program has spiked since he came on board. Average attendance at the Petersen Events Center has doubled under his tenure compared with the final season of predecessor Kevin Stallings.
January 8, 2020 3:51 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) – Dominik Kahun had a goal and an assist, Tristan Jarry made 32 saves and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 on Tuesday night. The Penguins have won three straight and six of seven on the road (6-1-0). Vegas had its season-long four-game win streak snapped. Evgeni Malkin, Patric Hornqvist and Brandon Tanev also scored for the Penguins, who had 16 shots on goal. Max Pacioretty and Paul Stastny scored for Vegas. Marc-Andre Fleury made 12 saves against his former team. Malkin got the Penguins on the board early. He gathered a loose rebound in the slot and backhanded it past Fleury for his 12th goal of the season. Hornqvist extended Pittsburgh’s lead when he collected a rebound from Jack Johnson’s slap shot from the top, swept around and tucked it between Fleury’s skate and the post. Vegas fell behind 3-0 in its second straight game when Dominik Kahun finessed a backhand from the slot through Fleury’s pads. And just as they did Saturday after falling behind by three goals to St. Louis, the Golden Knights began mounting their comeback midway through the second period. Pacioretty scored his team-high 19th goal when he scored on a wrist shot from between the circles and past Jarry. Stastny – who scored Vegas’ second goal in Saturday’s comeback – made it a one-goal game with his 12th of the season. With Vegas on a power play, he tipped Shea Theodore’s shot from the blue line for a goal. The Golden Knights couldn’t carry the momentum in the third period, however. Tanev beat Vegas defender Nic Hague wide, swooped across the crease and wrapped it around Fleury’s right pad to extend the Penguins lead to two goals, 4-2. Smith made things interesting with a late goal in the third, bringing the Golden Knights within one, but they couldn’t capitalize on a late power play and 6-on-4 man advantage with Fleury pulled.
January 6, 2020 3:49 am
FRISCO, Texas (AP) – The Jason Garrett era is over in Dallas. The Cowboys have announced that Garrett is out as head coach after missing the playoffs with an underachieving team. The Cowboys finished 8-8 in the final year of Garrett’s contract, missing the playoffs by one game. It’s the fourth time Dallas finished 8-8 and missed the postseason under the 53-year-old coach, who was 85-67 at the helm. Garrett had the second-longest tenure with the franchise at 9 1/2 seasons behind Tom Landry’s 29 years. Garrett took over when Wade Phillips was fired halfway through the 2010 season.
January 6, 2020 3:48 am
UNDATED (AP) – The road team went 2-0 in the NFC wild-card playoffs on Sunday. The Seattle Seahawks shut down the Philadelphia Eagles’ short-handed passing attack and the Minnesota Vikings extended their season by defeating the New Orleans Saints in overtime. Russell Wilson threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf and Marshawn Lynch had a rushing score as the Seahawks beat the Eagles, 17-9 in Philadelphia. Wilson threw for 325 yards and led the team with 45 yards rushing. Metcalf had seven catches for 160 yards. The Seahawks had a season-high seven sacks from six players, but the biggest hit was provided by Jadeveon Clowney. He knocked out quarterback Carson Wentz with a helmet-to-helmet hit in Philadelphia’s second series. Josh McCown replaced Wentz and was 18 of 24 for 174 yards, but he couldn’t get the Eagles into the end zone. The Seahawks now prepare to play the Packers in Green Bay. In New Orleans, the Vikings blew a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter before Kirk Cousins hit tight end Kyle Rudolph for a four-yard touchdown on the first possession of overtime to give Minnesota a 26-20 victory against the Saints. Dalvin Cook gained 130 yards from scrimmage and scored a pair of touchdowns that put the Vikings ahead, 20-10. Cousins finished with 242 yards, highlighted by his 43-yard completion to Adam Thielen that put the ball on the Saints 2-yard line. Cousins furnished his lone scoring pass of the game three plays later to send the Minnesota to the NFC divisional round against the 49ers in San Francisco. Drew Brees was 26 of 33 for 208 yards, including a 20-yard scoring strike to Taysom Hill that got the Saints within 20-17 with 10:31 left in the fourth quarter. Will Lutz forced OT by nailing a 49-yard field goal with two seconds remaining in regulation.
