National Sports

By NOAH TRISTER – AP Sports Writer OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — John Harbaugh wasn’t going to wade into the debate over whether Lamar Jackson should win a third NFL MVP award this season. Instead, he stuck to the obvious. “He’s my MVP. He’ll always be my MVP — I promise you that,” the Baltimore

By PHILLIP B. WILSON – Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo shook off a four-point first half and finished with 30 points and 12 rebounds as the Milwaukee Bucks rallied from a 19-point deficit and beat the Indiana Pacers 120-112 on Tuesday. Antetokounmpo, a two-time MVP who missed the previous three games with a

By AP MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Despite his team entering 2025 in 14th place in the Premier League, Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim is “very excited” about the year ahead. United’s 2-0 home defeat to Newcastle on Monday saw it suffer five league losses in the same calendar month for the first time since

By FRED GOODALL – AP Sports Writer TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A year removed from winning the national championship, Michigan finished its first season under Sherrone Moore with a victory setting the tone for a bright future. Moore replaced Jim Harbaugh after the former Wolverines coach left for the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers last winter.

By AP TORONTO (AP) — David Kampf, Steven Lorentz and John Tavares scored as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the New York Islanders 3-1 on Tuesday to move into a tie with idle Florida for the top spot in the Atlantic Division. Joseph Woll made 30 saves for Toronto (23-13-2). Jean-Gabriel Pageau score for the

By WILL GRAVES – AP Sports Writer PITTSBURGH (AP) — Zach Frazier began his first season with the Pittsburgh Steelers with a problem he’d rarely encountered on the football field up to that point. The rookie center found himself stuck inside his head a little too much. “At first I had to kind of really

By DOUG ALDEN – Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 18 of his 23 points in Boston’s dominant third quarter, and the Celtics routed Toronto 125-71 on Tuesday, extending the Raptors’ losing streak to 11 games. The Celtics outscored the Raptors 45-18 in the third, using an onslaught of 3-pointers to pull away

By AP LONGVIEW, Texas (AP) — The Blue Bell/Texas Sports Writers Association Class 2A and 1A all-state volleyball teams, distributed by The Associated Press: CLASS 2A FIRST TEAM Middle blockers: Kellen Weaver, Beckville, jr.; Cassyn Aguirre, Crawford, sr.; Emery Bryan, Poolville, sr. Outside hitters: Bre Featherston, Crawford, sr.; Emmrie Marx, Schulenburg, sr.; Shaylee McKown, Iola,

By TOM WITHERS – AP Sports Writer CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Browns’ push to move out of the city and play in a proposed domed stadium has encountered a new road block. Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb sent a letter to owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam, saying the city intends to invoke the “Modell Law”

By DAVE SKRETTA – AP Basketball Writer LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — West Virginia coach Darian DeVries walked into the interview room at Allen Fieldhouse on Tuesday wearing a shirt that read “No Excuses,” even though he would have had plenty of them had seventh-ranked Kansas completed a frantic second-half rally. Instead, the Mountaineers took down

By AP FRISCO, Texas (AP) — The Cowboys released running back Ezekiel Elliott on Tuesday, a quiet end to a Dallas career that started with two rushing titles in three seasons but faded quickly from there. The move was the end of Elliott’s second stint with the team that drafted him fourth overall in 2016.

By AP ATLANTA (AP) — Duncan Powell and Javian McCollum each set a season-high with 21 points and they combined for five of Georgia Tech’s eight 3-pointers in an 86-75 victory over Notre Dame on Tuesday. Georgia Tech shot 61% from the field in the first half to build a 43-24 lead as Notre Dame

By AL LESAR – Associated Press KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Chaz Lanier scored 24 points to lead No. 1 Tennessee to a 67-52 victory over stubborn Norfolk State on Tuesday. The Volunteers (13-0), off to the second best start in program history, got 10 points from Zakai Zeigler, Cade Phillips and Jordan Gainey. Igor Milicik

By AP BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The Spanish league said Tuesday that Barcelona has failed to meet Financial Fair Play rules in the latest blow to the club’s hopes of keeping playmaker Dani Olmo. The league said Barcelona “did not present any alternative” on adhering to the regulations, which was required for the club to

By ERIC OLSON – AP College Football Writer College sports fans hoping a particular athlete comes to their favorite school, or stays, now can help influence the athlete’s decision by opening their wallets. What once was taboo has gone mainstream with the recent launch of a crowdfunding platform called Fanstake. “What we’re trying to do

By AP LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Darius Johnson had 24 points, Keyshawn Hall scored 22 and UCF upped its win streak to six after holding on for an 87-83 victory over Texas Tech on Tuesday in a Big 12 Conference opener. Johnson made 3 of 4 free throws in the final 19 seconds after the

By AP SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Hunter Sallis scored 23 points, Tre’Von Spillers had 11 points and 10 rebounds and Wake Forest beat Syracuse 81-71 on Tuesday. Wake Forest started the game on a 17-2 run before having its lead trimmed to 36-34 at halftime. Syracuse started the second half on an 11-3 run to

By AP WACO, Texas (AP) — V.J. Edgecombe scored 19 points, three other Baylor players had 15 and the 25th-ranked Bears led throughout in an 81-56 win over Utah on Tuesday in the Big 12 opener for both teams. Baylor (9-3) scored the game’s first 11 points in just over five minutes, including two layups

By STEVE McCLAIN – Associated Press LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Andrew Carr scored all of his 14 points in the first half, Otega Oweh added 13 and No. 10 Kentucky handled Brown 88-54 Tuesday. Oweh had 11 points after halftime, including seven in the first five minutes of the second half to put the Wildcats

By DAVE SKRETTA – AP Basketball Writer LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Javon Small hit the go-ahead free throw with 1.8 seconds remaining, and short-handed West Virginia held on after blowing an 18-point second-half lead to beat seventh-ranked Kansas 62-61 in an intense Big 12 opener for both teams Tuesday. Eduardo Andre had 15 points and

By BRETT MARTEL – AP Sports Writer NEW ORLEANS (AP) — If Georgia playing Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl has a classic ring to it, it should. Fighting Irish linebacker Jack Kiser and Bulldogs tight end Oscar Delp know all about the first time their storied programs met in the Superdome at the end

By JOSH DUBOW – AP Pro Football Writer SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Brock Purdy’s second full season as an NFL starting quarterback came to a disappointing finish for the San Francisco 49ers. Purdy threw two interceptions in the second half of a 40-34 loss to Detroit on Monday night before leaving the game with

By TIM REYNOLDS – AP Basketball Writer MIAMI (AP) — The NBA has suspended Houston’s Amen Thompson for two games and Miami’s Terry Rozier for one game over their roles in a skirmish in the final moments of the Rockets-Heat game on Sunday night. The league also handed out $145,000 in fines from that game.

By STEPHEN WHYNO – AP Hockey Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Jakob Chychrun scored his 11th goal of the season to tie for the most among NHL defensemen, and the Washington Capitals beat the Boston Bruins 3-1 on Tuesday. Chychrun matched Colorado’s Cale Makar and Columbus’ Zach Werenski. The pending unrestricted free agent is off to

By AP CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs have agreed to a one-year contract with left-hander Caleb Thielbar. The team announced the deal on Tuesday. Thielbar, 37, spent his first eight seasons with the Minnesota Twins. He went 2-4 with a 5.32 ERA and three saves in 59 games this year. The Minnesota native was

By GREG BEACHAM – AP Sports Writer PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Not even the Granddaddy of Them All can remain unchanged by the 12-team College Football Playoff. No. 1 Oregon and No. 6 Ohio State arrived in Southern California only three days before their showdown Wednesday in the 111th edition of the Rose Bowl Game

By AP RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — N.C. State’s offseason began with an overhaul of the coaching staff. The school said Tuesday that D.J. Eliot will take over as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Eliot had worked as an analyst at Baylor last season and coached linebackers with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles in 2023. He replaces

By PAUL NEWBERRY – AP National Writer ATLANTA (AP) — The Texas Longhorns were in Atlanta less than a month ago, playing for a championship. That one didn’t go as planned. Now, the Longhorns get an A-T-L do-over when they face Arizona State at the Peach Bowl in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal game on

By ROB MAADDI – AP Pro Football Writer Travis Kelce led all players in fan balloting for the 2025 Pro Bowl Games. The Kansas City Chiefs’ star tight end finished with 252,200 votes. Kelce’s relationship with Taylor Swift has significantly increased his popularity. Kelce, a four-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowl pick, has 97 catches

By AP CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Elijah Saunders scored 22 points, Isaac McKneely had 15 points and four 3-pointers, and Virginia rallied in the second half to beat NC State 70-67 on Tuesday. Blake Buchanan gave Virginia a 67-55 lead with 5:02 remaining but the Cavaliers did not make another field goal the rest of