Update on the latest sports
NBA-SCHEDULE
Bucks fly high in Cleveland after being grounded in Milwaukee
UNDATED (AP) — The start of the Milwaukee Bucks’ six-game road trip got off to a rocky start when mechanical issues prevented them from getting to Cleveland until Friday morning. The travel issues didn’t stop the Bucks from opening the road swing with a 122-105 win over the Cavaliers.
Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH’-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON’-poh) scored 22 of his 33 points in the second half after picking up two quick fouls in the first quarter. The two-time reigning MVP also had 12 rebounds.
Jrue Holiday chipped in 17 points and Dante DiVincenzo had 11 points, 11 boards and six assists for the Bucks.
Collin Sexton provided 19 points and Andre Drummond 18 for the Cavaliers, who were outscored 29-16 in the final period.
Checking out Friday’s other NBA action:
— The Jazz made it 14 wins in their last 15 games as Bojan (BOY’-ahn) Bogdanovic nailed seven 3-pointers while delivering 31 points in a 138-121 downing of the Hornets. Donovan Mitchell added 30 points and Utah erased a 12-point deficit by outscoring Charlotte, 39-22 in the second quarter.
— Pascal Siakam (see-AH’-kam) dropped in 33 points and the Raptors blew a 17-point lead before downing the Nets, 123-117. Kevin Durant couldn’t start the game and was forced out of the game in the third quarter because of the NBA’s health and safety protocols.
— Jayson Tatum led a 3-point shooting spree and scored 34 points in helping the Celtics earn a 119-115 win over the Clippers, who were without Paul George because of a sore foot. Kemba Walker scored 24 points and Tatum hit five of Boston’s 16 3-pointers.
— Brandon Ingram scored 30 points and the Pelicans won for the fourth time in six games by nipping the Pacers, 114-113. Lonzo Ball added 20 points and nine rebounds for New Orleans, which squandered an 18-point lead and didn’t seal the win until a loose ball scrum gave the ball to the Pelicans with 0.5 seconds left.
— The Timberwolves pulled out a 106-103 win over the Thunder on D’Angelo Russell’s 3-pointer with 3.7 seconds left. Malik Beasley furnished 24 points and Russell added 21 in Minnesota’s third win in 12 games.
— Devin Booker dropped in 23 points and Chris Paul added 20 with nine assists for the Suns in a 109-92 win over the Pistons. Frank Kaminsky added 15 points and five rebounds in his first start of the season as Phoenix improved to 12-9.
— Orlando’s four-game skid is over after Nikola Vucevic (VOO’-cheh-vihch) poured in a career-best with 43 points and grabbed 19 rebounds in a 123-119 win over the Bulls. Evan Fournier scored 14 of his 20 points in a seven-minute burst of the second quarter. Rookie point guard Cole Anthony added 17 points and nine assists and hit two clutch free throws with 16.4 seconds left.
— NBA scoring leader Bradley Beal missed his first 13 shots in the Wizards’ 122-95 loss to the Heat. Kendrick Nunn had 25 points and eight assists off the bench for Miami, which held Bearl to seven points.
MLB-NEWS
NL Cy Young winner Bauer joins World Series champion Dodgers
UNDATED (AP) — The defending World Series champs just got better.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have won the bidding war for Trevor Bauer, the most coveted pitching in this winter’s free agent market. The reigning NL Cy Young Award winner announced his decision on Friday in a two-minute video posted to his Twitter account.
Multiple news reports have the deal worth $102 over three years.
Bauer was 5-4 in his second season with Cincinnati and his 1.73 ERA was second in the major leagues among qualified pitchers. He is 75-64 with a 3.90 ERA in nine major league seasons that included a career-best 17-9 with a 4.19 ERA for Cleveland in 2017.
Bauer joins a Dodgers rotation that had a major league-best 3.02 ERA during the abbreviated 60-game season last year, when the franchise won its first championship since 1988.
In other baseball news:
— The Braves are bringing back Marcell Ozuna (oh-ZOO’-nah), signing the slugger to a four-year, $65 million contract. Ozuna inked a one-year deal with Atlanta before last season and batted .338 with league highs of 18 homers and 56 RBIs. He started all 60 games, posting a career-best 1.067 OPS and finishing sixth in NL MVP voting.
— Second baseman Jonathan Schoop (skohp) is staying with the Tigers after agreeing to a one-year contract. The 29-year-old hit .278 with eight home runs in the abbreviated 2020 season. He hit at least 21 home runs each of the previous four years.
— Kolton Wong and the Brewers have finalized their two-year, $18 million contract, a deal that includes a 2023 club option for the Gold Glove second baseman. Wong has earned Gold Glove honors each of the last two years and hit .265 with a .350 on-base percentage, one homer and 16 RBIs in 53 games for St. Louis last season. The Cardinals had declined a $12.5 million 2021 option for Wong in December, making him eligible for free agency.
— Owners went 2-1 in arbitration Friday as the Mets and Orioles won their cases, while the Rays lost. Mets utilityman J.D. Davis and Orioles outfielder Anthony Santander will make $2.1 million apiece this year instead of the $2.475 million they requested. Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi came away with a $2.45 million contract for the upcoming season, $600,000 more than the team’s offer.
— The Cubs have finalized their one-year contract with Joc Pederson, giving the team another outfielder after Kyle Schwarber left via free agency. Pederson hit .190 with seven homers and 16 RBIs last season for the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cubs also announced one-year deals for pitchers Trevor Williams and Andrew Chafin, and claimed infielder Sergio Alcántara off waivers from the Detroit Tigers.
— The Baseball Writers’ Association of America has voted to remove the name of J.G. Taylor Spink from the award given annually by baseball’s Hall of Fame for meritorious contributions to baseball writing. The BBWAA said Friday that 325 of 334 voters, 97%, had voted to remove the name following research into racism by the former publisher of The Sporting News. The award voted on annually by BBWAA members will now be known as the BBWAA Career Excellence Award.
NFL-NEWS
Chiefs, Bucs relatively healthy heading into Super Bowl
UNDATED (AP) — The Chiefs and Buccaneers will head into the Super Bowl on Sunday relatively healthy.
The Chiefs have ruled out left tackle Eric Fisher because of a torn Achilles tendon and linebacker Willie Gay Jr. due to knee and ankle injuries. Neither of them was expected to play.
Tampa Bay did not list anybody as out on the final injury report. Chiefs wide receiver Sammy Watkins was questionable along with Tampa Bay wide receiver Antonio Brown and tight end Cameron Brate. Tampa Bay linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (ehn-DAHM’-uh-kehn soo) also did not practice Friday, though both are expected to play.
In other NFL news:
— The NFL is telling the federal government it will make the remaining of the league’s 30 stadiums available as COVID-19 vaccination sites. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is making the offer to President Joe Biden in a letter obtained by The Associated Press. There are already seven NFL stadiums serving as vaccine sites.
— Former NFL player Josh Evans has died at 48, about one year after he was diagnosed with kidney cancer. Evans was a defensive tackle who started for the Tennessee Titans in the 2000 Super Bowl. He retired in 2005 following a nine-year career, including six seasons with the Houston Oilers and Tennessee Titans.
NHL-SCHEDULE
B’s rally past Flyers
UNDATED (AP) — The Boston Bruins continue to make a habit out of rallying from third-period deficits.
Sean Kuraly and Brad Marchand scored 27 seconds apart in the third period to send the Bruins past the Flyers, 2-1. Marchand tied it 1-1, giving him six goals and six assists during an eight-game point streak. Kuraly netted the game-winner with 7:32 remaining.
Boston has 19 third-period goals this season compared to 15 in the first, second and overtime combined. It’s also the fourth straight game in which the Bruins have come away with a point despite trailing in the third period.
Tuukka (TOO’-kuh) Rask stopped 23 shots and was perfect until James van Riemsdyk (REEMZ’-dyk) beat him in the third period.
The Bruins have won seven of eight overall and all four matchups against the Flyers this season.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
— Barclay Goodrow scored a pair of goals and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 27 saves as the Lightning defeated the Red Wings, 3-1. Vasilevskiy improved to 10-0-0 lifetime against Detroit, which is 0-6-2 in its last eight games.
— The Panthers are 6-0-2 after Carter Verhaeghe (vur-HAY’-gee) furnished the go-ahead goal and an assist in a 2-1 victory over the Predators. Aleksander Barkov also scored and Chris Drieger (DREE’-gur) turned back 24 shots for Florida.
— Nic Hague and William Karlsson each had a goal and two assists in a 5-2 victory for the Golden Knights over the Kings. Vegas was playing for the first time since Jan. 26 after being shut down due to the NHL’s virus protocols.
— Kevin Labanc and Ryan Donato scored shootout goals on similar moves to send the Sharks past the Ducks, 5-4. Brian Burns and Evander Kane each had a goal and an assist for San Jose.
NHL-HURRICANES-WILLIAMS
Hurricanes add retired Williams as special adviser to GM
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes have hired retired captain and three-time Stanley Cup winner Justin Williams as special adviser to the general manager.
The 39-year-old forward retired in October after 19 NHL seasons and a second stint with Carolina. Williams won his first Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006. He later won the Cup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2012 and 2014.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-COLLEGE SPORTS
Saturday’s Florida-LSU game postponed
UNDATED (AP) — The Southeastern Conference says Saturday’s Florida-LSU men’s basketball game has been postponed.
The league sited a combination of positive virus tests, contact tracing and subsequent quarantining of individuals within the Florida basketball program, consistent with SEC COVID-19 management requirements.
No makeup date was immediately determined.
In other virus-related college sports news:
— The San Antonio region will host the entire NCAA women’s basketball tournament. The move was made to help mitigate the risks of COVID-19. The decision matches that of the men’s tournament, which the NCAA said last month will be played in the Indianapolis area. The tournament will still feature 64 teams and will run from March 21 through April 4. The NCAA will use five sites for the opening round, including the University of Texas, which is 80 miles away from San Antonio, as a venue.
PGA-PHOENIX OPEN
Stricker lurking as Schauffele leads
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Steve Stricker is threatening to become the oldest player to win a PGA Tour event.
Less than three weeks from his 54th birthday, Stricker fired a 5-under 66 to get within a stroke of leader Xander Schauffele (SHOW’-flee) entering the weekend of the Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale. The U.S. Ryder Cup captain bogeyed his final hole to prevent him from catching Schauffele.
Sam Snead is the oldest winner of a PGA event, taking the 1965 Greater Greensboro Open at 52 years, 10 months and eight days. Davis Love is the last 50-something to win on the tour, doing it at 51 in the 2015 Wyndham Championship.
The fourth-ranked Schauffele is coming off a second-place tie last weekend at Torrey Pines. He played the back nine Friday in 6-under 30 in the afternoon for a 64 that leaves him minus-12.
TENNIS-AUSTRALIAN OPEN-TUNEUP TOURNAMENTS
Williams withdraws from semifinals in Australian Open tuneup
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Serena Williams has withdrawn from a semifinal match against top-ranked Ash Barty in an Australian Open tuneup event. Williams beat Danielle Collins 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 in the quarterfinals and later said she was looking forward to a test against the current No. 1. She later pulled out citing a right shoulder injury. The Australian Open starts Monday.
