Great Plains News Digest
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SPORTS
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IOWA
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BKC–T25-Stonehill-Iowa St
Jefferson and Lipsey lead No. 16 Iowa State to 96-57 win over Stonehill
SUMMARY: Joshua Jefferson and Tamin Lipsey scored 23 points apiece and No. 16 Iowa State pulled away late in the first half of a 96-57 win over Stonehill. Jefferson added nine rebounds, seven assists and four steals in a terrific all-around performance that helped the Cyclones to another lopsided victory. Their average winning margin is 33.3 points per game. Iowa State missed all seven of its 3-point attempts in the first half but went 5 of 8 to start the second and put away the game. Koffi Hermann made four 3-pointers and led the Skyhawks with 16 points.
WORDS: 319 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 9:22 p.m. CST
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BKW–Player of the Week
AP women’s basketball player of the week is No. 12 Iowa State’s Audi Crooks
SUMMARY: The Associated Press national player of the week in women’s basketball for Week 2 of the season is Iowa State’s Audi Crooks. She broke the school’s single-game scoring record with 43 points against Valparaiso. Crooks did it while playing just 19 minutes. Crooks became the first player in the past 25 years to score 40 or more in 20 minutes or less. No. 1 UConn’s Sarah Strong was the runner-up.
WORDS: 314 – MOVED: 11/18/2025 11:20 a.m. CST
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KANSAS
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FBN–Staggering Chiefs
Forget winning the AFC West. Mahomes and Chiefs in danger of missing playoffs after loss to Broncos
SUMMARY: A 10th straight AFC West title is looking out of reach for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. At this point, the Chiefs aren’t even in position to make the playoffs. They fell to 5-5 with Sunday’s 22-19 loss to the Denver Broncos. Kansas City went 12-0 in one-score games last season. This year, they’re 0-5 in those games. The Chiefs hope to rely on their experience of going to five of the last six Super Bowls to spark a late-season surge. But they’ll need to go 5-2 over their final seven games just to reach double-digit wins.
WORDS: 835 – MOVED: 11/16/2025 9:51 p.m. CST
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FBN–Chiefs Analysis
Chiefs’ playoff hopes in jeopardy after another last-minute loss, this time to AFC West rival Denver
SUMMARY: The Kansas City Chiefs are struggling this season, sitting at 5-5 after a loss to the Denver Broncos. This puts them 3 1/2 games behind in the AFC West and jeopardizes their decade-long playoff streak. Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are both taking responsibility for the team’s issues, including red zone inefficiencies and costly mistakes, but there is plenty of blame to go around. The Chiefs have lost five one-score games this season, a stark contrast to their previous close-game success. Now, they have the AFC South-leading Colts coming to Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday in a game they are desperate to win.
WORDS: 828 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 3:36 p.m. CST
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BKC–T25-Top 25 This Week
Champions Classic: No. 17 Michigan State vs. No. 12 Kentucky, No. 5 Duke vs. No. 24 Kansas
SUMMARY: The Champions Classic continues to showcase top college basketball programs. On Tuesday night, No. 17 Michigan State faces No. 12 Kentucky, and No. 5 Duke takes on No. 24 Kansas at Madison Square Garden. Duke’s star freshman, Cameron Boozer, has impressed this season. Kansas might miss their own freshman standout, Darryn Peterson, due to a hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Arizona and UConn, both top-five teams, are set to clash on Wednesday. Other notable matchups include Alabama versus Illinois and Wisconsin against BYU. These games set the stage for next week’s “Feast Week,” featuring top teams in Las Vegas.
WORDS: 796 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 11:10 p.m. CST
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MINNESOTA
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FBN–Vikings Analysis
McCarthy’s growing pains aren’t going to suddenly vanish anytime soon for frustrated Vikings
SUMMARY: J.J. McCarthy and the Minnesota Vikings fell too far behind on his development during his injury absences to warrant another pause. They realize how vital it is for McCarthy to continue to build his catalog of meaningful snaps no matter how erratic as his performance has been recently for a team fading fast from the NFC playoff race. The Vikings also don’t have any viable alternatives at this point even if they were tempted to prioritize their record over his progress down the stretch of this dual-goal season built around the belief they could contend while conducting on-the-job-training for McCarthy.
WORDS: 935 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 5:40 p.m. CST
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BKN–Mavericks-Timberwolves
Timberwolves win for the 5th time in 6 games, beating the short-handed Mavericks 120-96
SUMMARY: Naz Reid scored a season-high 22 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the short-handed Dallas Mavericks 120-96. Six Timberwolves scored in double figures, including all five starters. Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert scored 15 points apiece and star Anthony Edwards had a relatively quiet night with 13 points on 5-for-14 shooting. Top draft pick Cooper Flagg and Brandon Williams each had 15 points for Dallas.
WORDS: 343 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 9:46 p.m. CST
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MISSOURI
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FBN–Staggering Chiefs
Forget winning the AFC West. Mahomes and Chiefs in danger of missing playoffs after loss to Broncos
SUMMARY: A 10th straight AFC West title is looking out of reach for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. At this point, the Chiefs aren’t even in position to make the playoffs. They fell to 5-5 with Sunday’s 22-19 loss to the Denver Broncos. Kansas City went 12-0 in one-score games last season. This year, they’re 0-5 in those games. The Chiefs hope to rely on their experience of going to five of the last six Super Bowls to spark a late-season surge. But they’ll need to go 5-2 over their final seven games just to reach double-digit wins.
WORDS: 835 – MOVED: 11/16/2025 9:51 p.m. CST
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FBN–Chiefs Analysis
Chiefs’ playoff hopes in jeopardy after another last-minute loss, this time to AFC West rival Denver
SUMMARY: The Kansas City Chiefs are struggling this season, sitting at 5-5 after a loss to the Denver Broncos. This puts them 3 1/2 games behind in the AFC West and jeopardizes their decade-long playoff streak. Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are both taking responsibility for the team’s issues, including red zone inefficiencies and costly mistakes, but there is plenty of blame to go around. The Chiefs have lost five one-score games this season, a stark contrast to their previous close-game success. Now, they have the AFC South-leading Colts coming to Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday in a game they are desperate to win.
WORDS: 828 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 3:36 p.m. CST
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OKLAHOMA
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BKN–Thunder-Pelicans
Holmgren scores 26 as the Thunder roll to a 126-109 win over the reeling Pelicans
SUMMARY: Chet Holmgren scored 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder raced to an early double-digit lead they maintained throughout in a 126-109 victory over the reeling New Orleans Pelicans. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 points and Lu Dort 17 for the Thunder, who set a franchise record for points in a quarter with 49 in the first. Isaiah Hartenstein added 16 points for Oklahoma City, which won its sixth straight for a 14th victory in 15 games to open the season. Rookie guard Jeremiah Fears scored a season-high 24 points for the Pelicans, who’ve lost six straight for the second time in their first 14 games, and two straight under newly named interim coach James Borrego.
WORDS: 345 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 9:52 p.m. CST
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FBN–Colts-Diaz
The Colts’ Isabel Diaz rose quickly to become 1 of 11 women with full-time coaching jobs in the NFL
SUMMARY: A craving for doughnuts helped introduce Isabel Diaz to football as a kid in kindergarten. Quickly, she was hooked on the NFL, not the sugary treat. Diaz is in her third season with the Indianapolis Colts as the Harriet P. Irsay Fellow. She assists special teams coordinator Brian Mason and senior assistant special teams coach Joe Hastings with practice and game planning. Diaz is one of 11 female full-time coaches in the NFL. The Colts are 8-2 and lead the AFC South going into an important matchup against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs this week.
WORDS: 914 – MOVED: 11/17/2025 11:42 p.m. CST
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GLF–Golf Notes
Max McGreevy gives up title defense in Japan to make sure he gets PGA Tour card
SUMMARY: Max McGreevy is the defending champion on the Japan Golf Tour. But he’s at Sea Island for the PGA Tour finale. McGreevy won the prestigious Dunlop Phoenix last year after he had secured a PGA Tour card through the Korn Ferry Tour. This year he spent his fall trying to make sure he finished in the top 100 in the FedEx Cup. It was cutting it too close, so he had to decline going back to Japan to defend. He tied for third in Bermuda to lock up his card. Johnny Keefer is at Sea Island with the Masters on his mind.
WORDS: 1335 – MOVED: 11/18/2025 10:08 a.m. CST
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