Jan 2, 2021

Update on the latest sports NBA-OBIT-WESTPHAL Paul Westphal, Hall of Fame basketball player, dies at 70 UNDATED (AP) — Hall of Fame basketball player Paul Westphal has died. The Phoenix Suns confirmed his death Saturday. No cause was given, although he had been diagnosed with brain cancer last August. Westphal was 70. Westphal won a championship with the Boston Celtics in 1974 and later coached in the league and in college. A five-time All-Star guard, Westphal played in the NBA from 1972-84. After winning a championship with the Celtics, he made the finals in 1976 with Phoenix. He also played for Seattle and the New York Knicks. NFL-OBIT-FLOYD LITTLE UNDATED (AP) — Hall of Fame running back Floyd Little has died. Little was a three-time All-American at Syracuse before starring for the Denver Broncos from 1967 to 1975. At Syracuse he wore No. 44 like Jim Brown and Ernie Davis before him. He played nine seasons in Denver, where he earned the nickname “The Franchise” because his signing was credited with keeping the team from relocating. He was made it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010 after a 30-year wait. The Hall of Fame said he died Friday night at his home in Nevada. No cause was given. He was 78. NFL-NEWS 2 more Browns coaches out against Steelers UNDATED (AP) — The Cleveland Browns will be down at least five players and three assistant coaches Sunday as they try to make the playoffs for the first time since 2002. After numerous issues with COVID-19 upended their practice schedule this week, the Browns said Saturday that offensive line coach Bill Callahan and assistant line coach Scott Peters will both miss the season finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Also absent will be wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea and some key players, including top cornerback Denzel Ward and linebacker B.J. Goodson, the defense’s signal caller. The Browns will return to the playoffs for just their second time in their expansion era with a win over their hated rivals. Pittsburgh plans to rest quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, defensive stars T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward and other starters. The Steelers also put Joe Haden, tight end Eric Ebron and linebacker Cassius March on the COVID-19 reserve list Saturday. In other NFL news: — The New Orleans Saints have placed running back Alvin Kamara on their COVID-19 reserve list. The move means the Saints’ leader this season in yards rushing and receiving is unavailable for Sunday’s regular-season finale at Carolina. He also could miss the Saints’ first playoff game if New Orleans is unable to capture the NFC’s top seed. Kamara has 932 yards and 16 TDs rushing to go with 756 yards and five TDs receiving this season. His touchdowns rushing and 21 total touchdowns from scrimmage are Saints single-season records. He tied an NFL record with six TDs last weekend. — The Los Angeles Chargers will be without six starters, including both of their Pro Bowl selections for Sunday’s season finale at Kansas City. Wide receiver Keenan Allen has been placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Defensive end Joey Bosa is out for the second straight week due to a concussion and shin injury. Tight end Hunter Henry will miss his second straight game as he remains on the COVID-19 list. Offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga, cornerback Casey Hayward Jr. and safety Rayshawn Jenkins have also been ruled out along with reserve linebacker Malik Jefferson. — The Tennessee Titans are getting at least one of their kickers back for the regular season finale at Houston. The Titans activated three-time Pro Bowl punter Brett Kern from the Reserve/COVID-19 list Saturday. Four-time Pro Bowl kicker Stephen Gostkowski has been on the list since Monday. Tennessee can clinch its first AFC South title since 2008 with a win or a Colts loss. T25 FOOTBALL-BOWL SCHEDULE Kentucky runs for 281, beats NC State 23-21 in chippy Gator Bowl UNDATED (AP) — A.J. Rose ran for a career-high 148 yards, Chris Rodriguez added 84 yards and two scores, and Kentucky held off No. 24 North Carolina State 23-21 in a chippy TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. Christopher Dunn missed two field goals for the Wolfpack, who trailed 16-14 late when Bailey Hockman threw his third interception of the game. Rodriguez scored on the ensuing play. He went nearly untouched for 26 yards. NC State got a final chance after Jordan Houston scored with 1:10 remaining. But Allen Dailey recovered Dunn’s onside kick, and the Wildcats ran out the clock. COLLEGE FOOTBALL-NEWS Texas fires football coach Tom Herman after 4 seasons UNDATED (AP) — Texas has fired football coach Tom Herman after four seasons of failing to win a Big 12 championship and only one league title game appearance. Herman still had three seasons left on a guaranteed contract that was due to pay him more than $6 million per year, and the move means Texas will soon be on its fourth head coach since its last Big 12 title in 2009 under Mack Brown. Herman was supposed to end that drought. He was college football’s hottest young coach when Texas brought him from Houston to replace Charlie Strong in 2016. But Herman’s results never matched his swagger: He never had a losing season and won four bowl games at Texas, including last week’s Alamo Bowl. But he couldn’t return the Longhorns to consistent league or national title contenders. He was just 1-4 against the archrival Oklahoma. The school said Saturday that while the program has made “measured progress,” it is time to change. The decision came just a few weeks after athletic director Chris Del Conte said Herman would be the coach moving forward. Herman’s best season was 2018, the only time the Longhorns made the Big 12 title game while he was there. They finished that season with a dominating win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. In other college football news: — Mississippi says it has reached agreement in principle with coach Lane Kiffin on a new contract. The school made the announcement hours before the Rebels faced Indiana in the Outback Bowl, their first bowl appearance in five seasons. In Kiffin’s first season as coach, Ole Miss broke the Southeastern Conference record for total offense in conference games, averaging 562.4 yards, and ranks among the top 20 nationally among Bowl Subdivision teams in 10 categories. Kiffin has a record of 65-39 in a career that has included stops at Florida Atlantic, USC and Tennessee. — Receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown is headed to the NFL draft after three seasons at Southern California. He is the fifth key underclassman in the past week from the 21st-ranked Trojans to declare their intention to enter the draft. St. Brown had 41 catches for 478 yards and seven touchdowns this season. St. Brown had the greatest moment of his junior season last month against Washington State when he caught four touchdown passes in the first quarter from Kedon Slovis. He racked up 178 receptions for 2,270 yards and 16 touchdowns in his career with the Trojans. T25 MEN’S BASKETBALL-SCHEDULE No. 8 Texas tops No. 3 KU 84-59 to tie record margin at Phog UNDATED (AP) — Courtney Ramey scored 18 points to lead five Texas players in double-figures scoring, and No. 8 Longhorns routed third-ranked Kansas 84-59 to match the most lopsided win by an opponent in the history of Allen Fieldhouse. Andrew Jones added 14 points, Matt Coleman III had 13 and Jericho Sims had 11 points and 12 rebounds for the Longhorns, who turned an eight-point halftime lead into a blowout in startling fashion. The margin of victory was the most by an opponent in the Phog since Missouri’s 91-66 victory on Feb. 1, 1989. In other top-25 games Saturday: — Christian Bishop had a go-ahead dunk with 0.8 seconds left and the 11th-ranked Creighton Bluejays held off a late rally to beat the Providence Friars 67-65. Marcus Zegarowski, who had the assist on Bishop’s dunk, hit six 3-pointers and had 20 points to help the Bluejays to their fourth straight victory. Damien Jefferson added a season-high 18 points, his eighth consecutive game in double-figures. Creighton led by as many as 13 with about seven minutes left in the second half. Providence tied the score on a layup by Noah Horchler with 7 seconds left. Creighton inbounded quickly, and Zegarowski pushed the ball up the floor and found Bishop for the dunk. — Jeremiah Tilmon scored 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for No. 12 Missouri, and the Tigers handed Arkansas its first loss of the season, 81-68. Tilmon eclipsed his season high in points during the first half and finished with a career high. He was joined in double figures by Xavier Pinson with 23 and Mark Smith with 11. JD Notae and Moses Moody led Arkansas in scoring with 19 and 18 points, but needed a combined 33 field-goal attempts to reach those marks. Missouri allowed Arkansas to stay close for most of the game as the Tigers committed 21 turnovers. VIRUS OUTBREAK-COLLEGE BASKETBALL More postponements due to COVID-19 UNDATED (AP) — Saturday’s game between No. 18 Florida State and No. 20 Duke has been postponed. The Atlantic Coast Conference said the game was called off because of a positive test within the Florida State program that triggered quarantining and contact tracing. The announcement came hours after Duke said coach Mike Krzyzewski (shuh-SHEF’-skee) wouldn’t travel with the team to Tallahassee because he had come into close contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19. Duke said the positive person was not in the Blue Devils’ travel party. In other virus-related developments: — Saturday’s scheduled men’s basketball game between No. 23 Virginia and No. 24 Virginia Tech has been postponed because a Virginia staffer has tested positive for COVID-19. The Atlantic Coast Conference said the positive test led to quarantining and contact tracing within the Virginia program. This is the second time COVID-19 has led to a disruption in Virginia’s schedule. The most recent national champions halted activities for 10 days last month, leading to three games being postponed and one being canceled. — Virginia Commonwealth postponed its men’s basketball game Saturday against Davidson because of COVID-19 protocols. The school said it is pausing all team activities, which will resume once all personnel clear coronavirus protocols. No decisions have been made on further Rams games. The school says it is following guidelines from the Atlantic 10 Conference, the university and Virginia Department of Health to protect the safety of players, coaches, staff and the VCU community. — Saturday’s men’s basketball game between DePaul and St. John’s has been postponed due to a COVID-19 issue within the Red Storm program.