December 30, 2019 3:46 am
BEREA, Ohio (AP) – The Cleveland Browns have fired coach Freddie Kitchens after a season that didn’t come close to meeting expectations. Kitchens was let go just hours after the Browns were beaten by the two-win Cincinnati Bengals to finish 6-10 and miss the playoffs for the 17th straight year. Kitchens was a surprising hire a year ago because he lacked head coaching experience. He failed to lead a talented roster to the postseason and paid the price. Owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam will look for a new coach, the sixth since they took control of the team in 2012.
December 30, 2019 3:46 am
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) – Mike Watkins scored 16 of his 19 points in the first half and No. 20 Penn State beat Cornell 90-59. Lamar Stevens added 19 points, Myreon Jones scored 18, Izaiah Brockington had 11 and Watkins added 10 rebounds for the Nittany Lions. They won their 13th straight home game. Penn State led for all but 2:01 after Stevens took over midway through the first half. The big forward broke a 9-all tie with three-straight baskets that made it 16-9. Jimmy Boeheim scored 17 points for the Big Red.
December 29, 2019 7:59 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — For the second straight night, the Pittsburgh Penguins scored three first-period goals against the Nashville Predators. This time, Pittsburgh had to gut it out after the Predators rallied to tie the score. Jake Guentzel’s power-play goal with 1:03 remaining put Pittsburgh ahead for good as the Penguins beat the Predators 6-4 on Saturday night. On the winning goal, Bryan Rust’s initial point shot missed the net. Evgeni Malkin gathered the puck behind the net and gave it to Guentzel, who tucked it inside the left post for Pittsburgh’s third power-play score. Rust scored twice, including an empty-netter, and added two assists as Pittsburgh won for the ninth time in 11 games. Alex Galchenyuk and Kris Letang scored power-play goals, while Dominik Kahun also scored for Pittsburgh, which has points in 13 of its last 16 against Nashville dating back to Oct. 21, 2010. Evgeni Malkin extended his point streak to five games with three assists and Matt Murray stopped 44 shots to win for the second time in nine starts. It was his first win since Dec. 7 at Detroit and his first home win since Nov. 9 against Chicago. Pittsburgh and Nashville played the second straight of a home-and-home, back-to-back. The Penguins chased a Predators goaltender in the first period for the second straight night, this time with three goals in the first 10 minutes of the game. A day earlier, Pekka Rinne was pulled after allowing three goals on six shots. On Saturday, Juuse Saros gave up three goals on eight shots. Rinne stopped 25 of 27 shots in relief. Pittsburgh scored twice in the first 1:05 of the game. Rust opened the scoring 32 seconds in with his 15th of the season and sixth goal in his last seven games. Kahun scored his ninth of the season just 33 seconds later on a behind-the-net feed from Galchenyuk. Letang scored a power-play goal, a slap shot from the right point at 9:04 of the first to give Pittsburgh a 3-0 lead. Arvidsson got Nashville on the board with his ninth of the year, a power-play goal at 4:07 of the second period. But Galchenyuk answered with his second goal in two games, a power-play score at 8:02, as Pittsburgh regained its three-goal lead. The Penguins’ three-goal lead didn’t last. Nashville scored twice in the final 3:57 of the second period and again in the third, but Pittsburgh’s late power-play goal was the difference.
December 28, 2019 4:16 am
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Alex Galchenyuk scored his third goal of the season, Tristan Jarry made 30 saves and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Nashville Predators 5-2. Dominik Simon, Teddy Blueger, Bryan Rust and Juuso Riikola also scored for the Penguins, who have won five of six. Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne was pulled after allowing three goals on six shots. Juuse Saros stopped 17 of 19 shots in relief. Nashville defenseman Dan Hamhuis left in the first period after Galchenyuk’s wrist shot hit him in the face. Hamhuis hurried off the ice and down the tunnel, and the game was delayed while his blood was cleaned off the ice.
December 27, 2019 3:48 am
SHREVEPORT, La. (AP) – Louisiana Tech has pulled off the first shutout in the 44-game history of the Independence Bowl . J.Mar Smith threw for a second-quarter touchdown and added an eight-yard scoring run with 1:15 left to help the Bulldogs beat Miami, 14-0 in Shreveport, La. Bulldogs running back Justin Henderson was selected the Most Outstanding Offensive Player after rushing for 95 yards on 22 carries. Louisiana Tech hit double-digit victories for the first time since 1984 and ran its postseason winning streak to six. Miami completed its second losing season in 12 years.
December 27, 2019 3:44 am
DETROIT (AP) – Kenny Pickett threw 25-yard touchdown pass to Taysir Mack with 47 seconds left and Pittsburgh held on to beat Eastern Michigan 34-30 in the Quick Lane Bowl. The Panthers forced Eastern Michigan to turn it over on downs after taking their first lead of the game. That sealed Pitt’s first bowl victory under coach Pat Narduzzi. The Eagles came up just short just as they did in three previous bowls under coach Chris Creighton. Eastern Michigan quarterback Mike Glass was ejected with 10 seconds left after throwing punches at two players, the second Eagles player to be tossed.
December 26, 2019 3:51 am
UNDATED (AP) – Tiger Woods’ victory at the Masters might not have been the most important sports story of 2019. It was certainly one of the most uplifting. Voters chose Woods’ dramatic comeback at Augusta National as The Associated Press sports story of the year. Coming in second was the U.S. women’s soccer team’s victory at the World Cup. The monthlong competition combined a stirring victory with captain Megan Rapinoe’s outspoken push for her team to earn as much as the less successful American men’s team. It was a year filled with outside-the-lines tensions in sports. But Woods winning the Masters after years of injury and personal problems was a crowd pleaser and took the top honor.
December 26, 2019 3:50 am
CHICAGO (AP) – The Chicago White Sox have continued their somewhat pricey makeover. A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that veteran slugger Edwin Encarnacion has accepted a one-year, $12 million contract with the White Sox. Encarnacion is due $11 million in salary next season and a $1 million signing bonus, with the White Sox holding an option for the 2021 season. Encarnacion hit 34 home runs in 109 games for Seattle and the Yankees last season. Encarnacion joins former AL Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel and catcher Yasmani Grandal as big-money additions this offseason.
December 23, 2019 3:54 am
TORONTO (AP) – The Toronto Blue Jays have landed the National League’s reigning ERA champion. A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press the Jays have worked out a four-year, $80 million package with Hyun-Jin Ryu. The South Korean native compiled a 2.32 earned run average and tied his career high for victories, going 14-5 with 163 strikeouts in 182 2/3 innings. Ryu was named to the 2019 NL All-Star team and finished second in the league’s Cy Young balloting. He is 54-33 with a 2.98 ERA in 126 big league games since 2013, all with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
December 22, 2019 8:07 am
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – Marcus Weathers scored 14 of his career-high 22 points in the second half and Duke improved to 10-0 with an 86-77 win over Austin Peay in the St. Pete Shootout. Sincere Carry added 16 points for the Dukes, who are off to the best start since the 1953-54 team went 22-0. That team reached No. 1 in February of 1954 and featured Sid Dambrot, father of current head coach Keith Dambrot, as a guard. Tavian Dunn-Martin scored 13 points, Maceo Austin had 12 and Baylee Steele 11 of the bench for the Dukes, who shot 51% and made 30 of 24 from the foul line.
