February 17, 2021 3:52 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers have hired Grady Brown as their new secondary coach. Brown replaces Tom Bradley, whose contract was not renewed at the end of last season. This is the first NFL job for Brown. He takes over a veteran unit that includes cornerbacks Joe Haden and Steven Nelson along with All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and Terrell Edmunds. Brown’s decision to join the Steelers came less than a week after the University of Houston hired Brown to serve as the program’s cornerbacks coach.
February 16, 2021 3:27 am
UNDATED (AP) – M.J. Walker scored 17 points and No. 16 Florida State built a big first-half lead, beating No. 7 Virginia 81-60 in a showdown between the top two teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference. RaiQuan Gray had 15 points as the Seminoles handed 2019 national champion Virginia its worst ACC loss in four years. Walker made five of Florida State’s season-high 13 3-pointers – on 24 attempts. Gray scored in double figures for the seventh straight game. Florida State has won 24 consecutive ACC home games dating to a victory over Clemson on Jan. 22, 2019. Trey Murphy III had 13 points for Virginia, which had won four in a row.
February 16, 2021 3:29 am
MIAMI (AP) – Small crowds at Marlins Park will be back this season. The attendance-challenged Marlins plan to allow fans at home games, although crowds will initially be limited to about 25% of capacity. That would mean a maximum of about 9,300 spectators in the 37,446-seat ballpark. The Marlins, like the rest of MLB, didn’t allow fans during the 2020 regular season because of the coronavirus pandemic. Limited crowds were permitted for the postseason. In Derek Jeter’s first two years as CEO, the Marlins averaged about 10,000 fans in 2018 and 2019, worst in the majors.
February 16, 2021 3:28 am
BRANDON, Fla. (AP)- Former NFL wide receiver Vincent Jackson has been found dead at a Florida hotel room, days after authorities spoke with him as part of a welfare check. There were no signs of trauma and the medical examiner’s office was looking into a cause of death. Sheriff’s officials said his family initially reported Jackson missing on Wednesday. Deputies tracked him down to a hotel in Brandon two days later, spoke with him and canceled the missing persons case. Jackson was then found dead Monday morning in his hotel room by a housekeeper. Jackson played for the San Diego Chargers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was selected to the Pro Bowl three times.
February 15, 2021 3:57 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Bryan Rust scored two goals and added an assist as the Pittsburgh Penguins remained unbeaten at home with a 6-3 victory over the Washington Capitals. Brandon Tanev, Jake Guentzel, Zach Aston-Reese and Sidney Crosby also scored for Pittsburgh. Nicklas Backstrom collected his 250th career goal for Washington. Jakub Vrana and Evgeny Kuznetsov also scored, but the Capitals couldn’t rally back while playing for the first time in a week following a series of COVID-19 related postponements.
February 15, 2021 4:00 am
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) – Michael McDowell couldn’t have picked a better time, place or venue in which to get his first victory in 358 career Cup Series starts. McDowell pulled ahead and won the Daytona 500 after Penske Racing teammates Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski wrecked on the final lap. McDowell was running third when Keselowski got a huge run on Logano. Keselowski tried to pass Logano on the low side, but Logano tried to block him and ended up crashing both of them. That gave McDowell the lead for the only time in the season-opening NASCAR race. Chase Elliott was second, followed by Austin Dillon, Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin. Hamlin was trying to become the first in NASCAR history to win three consecutive Daytona 500s. A major pileup and a thunderstorm put the race on hold for nearly six hours and led some drivers to head across the street for some food while the event remained red-flagged with just 15 laps completed. The big wreck occurred 14 laps into NASCAR’s marquee event, triggered when Aric Almirola turned into pole-winner Alex Bowman and started a 16-car pileup. Christopher Bell started the melee when he pushed Almirola too hard near the front of the field and forced the Stewart-Haas Racing driver to bobble as he tried to avoid a slide.
February 15, 2021 3:58 am
UNIVERSITY PARK, Penn. (AP) – Teddy Allen raced for a fastbreak layup off a steal with 12 seconds left, lifting Nebraska into a 62-61 win over Penn State, ending the Cornhuskers string of 25 Big Ten losses that stretched back for more than a year. After a quick timeout to set up a final play, Penn State turned it over again, this time with Trey McGowens making the steal for Nebraska as time expired. The Huskers had not won in conference since edging Iowa 76-70 on Jan. 7, 2020. Allen led Nebraska with 14 points. McGowens added 10 with four assists a block and three steals. Myreon Jones led Penn State with 18 points, Myles Dread added 14, tying his season best.
February 15, 2021 4:01 am
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) – Jordan Spieth (speeth) was unable to complete a quest for his first tour victory since the 2017 British Open. Daniel Berger closed with a 7-under 65 that gave him a two-shot win at the PGA’s Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Berger got into the mix quickly with an eagle and finished it off with one even better, holing a 30-foot putt on the par-5 18th for an 18-under total. Spieth went from a two-shot lead to a three-stroke deficit through six holes before completing a 70. He needed to birdie the last two holes to tie for third with Patrick Cantlay, who shot a 68. Maverick McNealy finished second with his fourth straight round under 70, firing a 6-under 66.
February 14, 2021 7:32 am
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Austin Reaves helped No. 12 Oklahoma pull off an impressive win on the road. Reaves scored four of his 28 points in the final minute of the second overtime and the Sooners held off No. 14 West Virginia 91-90 on Saturday. Oklahoma (13-5, 8-4 Big 12) squeaked out a win 1,000 miles from home after losing three of its last four games on the road. The Sooners couldn’t hold on to a 66-57 lead with six minutes left in regulation and had to depend on Reaves to pull this one out. Reaves went 10 of 20 from the floor in his second game back since missing two games while in COVID-19 protocols. He also had nine rebounds and seven assists. Derek Culver had his 10th double-double of the season with a career-high 29 points and 14 rebounds for the Mountaineers (14-6, 7-4). He had averaged 6.5 points in six previous games against the Sooners.
February 14, 2021 7:33 am
MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. — — Rashad Williams had 23 points as Oakland narrowly beat Robert Morris 86-81 on Saturday. Daniel Oladapo had 19 points and seven rebounds for Oakland (9-16, 9-9 Horizon League). Micah Parrish added 18 points and seven rebounds. Jalen Moore had eight assists and six rebounds. Jon Williams scored a career-high 22 points and had six assists for the Colonials (4-12, 3-10). Dante Treacy added 16 points and seven assists. Charles Bain had 12 points and seven rebounds. The Golden Grizzlies leveled the season series against the Colonials with the win. Robert Morris defeated Oakland 88-82 on Friday.
