CS&T/AllsportsAmerica Monday Sports News Update, 12/12/2016.

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"Sports Quote of the Day"

“Winning and losing are both very temporary things. Having done one or the other, you move ahead. Gloating over a victory or sulking over a loss is a good way to stand still.” ~ Chuck Knox, Former NFL, Collegiate and High School Football Coach

Trending: Blackhawks close out homestand with win over struggling Stars. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates and NHL news). 

Trending: Bears fall short (again) in “learning process” loss to Lions. (See the football section for Bears News an NFL updates).

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

Trending: Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade lift Bulls to win over pesky Heat. (Saturday night's game, 12/10/2016). (See the basketball section for Bulls news and NBA updates).

Trending: With Dexter Fowler in St. Louis, Cubs see Kyle Schwarber as a potential leadoff answer. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).

Trending: Rick Hahn, White Sox prepared to make more 'painful decisions' if the price is right. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).

Trending: Frei leads Sounders to first MLS Cup title in penalty kicks. (See the soccer section for soccer news and worldwide league updates).

NFL SCORES, Sunday 12/11/2016.

Oakland Raiders 13

Kansas City Chiefs 21

Pittsburgh Steelers 27

Buffalo Bills 20

Denver Broncos 10

Tennessee Titans 13

Washington Redskins 27

Philadelphia Eagles 22

Arizona Cardinals 23

Miami Dolphins 26

San Diego Chargers 16

Carolina Panthers 28

Cincinnati Bengals 23

Cleveland Browns 10

Chicago Bears 17

Detroit Lions 20

Houston Texans 22

Indianapolis Colts 17

Minnesota Vikings 25

Jacksonville Jaguars 16

New York Jets 23

San Francisco 49ers 17

New Orleans Saints 11

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 16

Atlanta Falcons 42

Los Angeles Rams 14

Seattle Seahawks 10

Green Bay Packers 38

Dallas Cowboys 7

New York Giants 10

Baltimore Ravens            Monday night's game

New England Patriots     12/12/2016

How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Blackhawks close out homestand with win over struggling Stars.

By Tracey Myers

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

When you’re missing key guys from your lineup, sometimes you have to simplify.

You have to be smart. You have to take advantage of what opportunities you do get and you have to quell your opponent’s chances as much as possible. The Blackhawks did a pretty good job in all of those categories on Sunday night.

Marian Hossa scored his 15th goal of the season and Scott Darling stopped 23 of 24 as the Blackhawks beat the Dallas Stars 3-1. The Blackhawks now have 40 points, which keeps them atop the Western Conference standings.

Artem Anisimov scored his 12th goal of the season and Artemi Panarin added his 11th, a power-play goal in the third. Ryan Hartman had an assist – he probably should have had a second – and played a strong all-around game.

The Blackhawks played their ninth game without captain Jonathan Toews, who skated on Sunday and hopes to be on the team’s upcoming trip to New York. They’re now 5-2-2 in his absence. Brent Seabrook missed his second consecutive game and Corey Crawford has now missed five in a row.

With that many top guys out, the Blackhawks have needed everyone to do a little more. On Sunday, everyone did.

“Overall our whole team game, I really liked tonight,” coach Joel Quenneville said. “We did some good things technically and defensively. We managed the puck a little better and scored some timely goals as well. We talk about everybody and everybody contributed in a lot of ways. Hoss continues to score some big and timely goals for us. But I don’t think we gave up much tonight and that’s why we’ve been having some success here.”

No, the Blackhawks didn’t give up much quality to the Stars, whose lone goal came from Devin Shore in the second period. Sure, the Stars have been decimated by injuries but they still have their threats, from Jamie Benn to Jason Spezza to Tyler Seguin. The Blackhawks held them in check, however, and Darling stopped whatever did get through.

“That's a good, high-powered hockey team over there and we did a really good job defensively tonight,” Darling said. “[They] helped me out big time.”

The Blackhawks got the necessary offense, too. Hossa came through once again, tying the game just 52 seconds after Shore had given the Stars the lead in the second period.

“Well, what can I say? I tried to shoot when I had a good opportunity,” said Hossa, who was denied his 15th due to an offside call on Friday. “Tonight, out of nothing, I tried to release it and I got one of those lucky ones.”

Panarin’s was a big one, a scorcher that gave the Blackhawks a two-goal cushion in the third period. After that the defense kept the Stars from making any serious threats.

The Blackhawks may be on the mend, as Toews and Seabrook could be heading to New York. But in their absence the Blackhawks have still kept gaining points. They’re also gaining confidence in their team game, which is a good sign no matter who’s in or out of the lineup.

“Well, this was definitely a good test of what the team can do without key players,” Hossa said “It’s hard to replace guys like that, all three of them, but I think with the little things, guys doing baby steps, those guys get opportunities to play more and they’re taking advantage of it. That’s good for the future, when everybody’s going to be back.”

Five Things from Blackhawks-Stars: Marian Hossa gets goal No. 15.

By Tracey Myers

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

It’s easy to look at a struggling, injury-riddled opponent and think the Blackhawks should be able to get two points out of that particular game.

But the Blackhawks have had their own injury issues. Even when they didn’t, they’ve relied on goaltending a lot and have struggled with starts and consistent scoring. They’ve played better as of late, however, and did get those two points over the Dallas Stars on Sunday night.

As you can tell, we’re rambling. And considering the weather, that’s just a waste of time. So before we drag out our snowshoes for the trip home, let’s look at Five Things to take from the Blackhawks’ 3-1 victory over the Dallas Stars.

1. Marian Hossa gets No. 15 for sure. Hossa thought he had his 15th of the season on Friday but it was nullified by a challenge (offside). There was no such worry on Sunday, when Hossa’s shot trickled through Kari Lehtonen. The goal was a big one; after a back-and-forth first period the Stars took the lead in the second. Hossa’s goal erased that lead just 52 seconds later. Said Scott Darling, “He just knows how to do it. He's got the magic touch right now.”

2. Ryan Hartman with a strong game. Hartman seems to just have good games against the Stars. He was noticeable in this matchup earlier this season and had a great outing again on Sunday night. Hartman had an assist (on Hossa’s goal) and a team-leading four shots on goal in this one. Coach Joel Quenneville said Hartman, “was very noticeable, had some physical hits in all zones and had a good purpose to his game and was dangerous.”

3. Tyler Motte looks more like himself. Motte has been quiet since coming off his lower-body injury – he had six points before getting hurt, zero since. But on Sunday, perhaps very motivated by that lack of scoring, Motte was all over the place. The rookie finished with three shots on goal and was once again showing the drive to the net that was so prevalent in his first few NHL games.

4. The rare power-play goal. The Blackhawks scored just one power-play goal on their previous 17 opportunities entering Sunday night’s game. They went 0-for on their first two chances against the Stars but didn’t miss on the third, when Artemi Panarin scored on a scorcher. That goal gave the Blackhawks some breathing room down the stretch.

5. Playing the great team game. This is critical to the Blackhawks’ season no matter who’s in the lineup. But with Jonathan Toews, Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford still out, it’s even more important. The Blackhawks haven’t had many strong, all-around games this season. There have been pockets, but not much consistency. Young guys have taken on more responsibility in the wake of injuries. Top guys have continued to do their part. Even when healthy again, the Blackhawks are trending in the right direction with games like this.

Jonathan Toews cautiously optimistic he’ll return soon.

By Tracey Myers

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

Jonathan Toews talked with some optimism but not certainty.

He hopes that his back injury is improving for good this time. He hopes he’ll be with the Blackhawks when they head to New York this week.

“The frustrating thing is you keep getting asked the question and you feel like the next game is going to be the game you’re getting back and there’s only so many times you can keep giving yourself and others bad news,” said Toews.

You can understand Toews’ frustration. After suffering his injury on Nov. 23 in San Jose, Toews skated on Dec. 2 and thought he was going to return soon. Then he was kept off the ice when the injury wasn’t getting any better; Sunday marked the first time in more than a week that Toews has skated.

Again, it’s all about being careful. Toews is encouraged by his latest go-around, at least immediately following it. “It’s almost just putting pressure and just trying anything that I could out there to do those uncomfortable movements, and I’m feeling pretty good right now,” he said.

Coach Joel Quenneville reiterated the proceed-with-caution mantra.

“It’s certainly good to get him on the ice. We feel he can be close but we want to make sure there’s some certainty that he’s going to be fine and we’re not going to go backward on this one,” he said. “So let’s make sure we’re all clear going forward.”

The Blackhawks have done all right in the meantime, going 4-2-2 in Toews’ absence. They’ve also been without Corey Crawford for four of those games and Brent Seabrook for one. All three are out tonight against the Dallas Stars.

It’s been frustrating for Toews to sit and just watch these last few weeks. He’s hopeful that he’s finally turning the corner but until that’s for certain, he’s going to concentrate on what he can do to get better.

“I guess that’s always a tough thing when you feel like you’re getting close and all of a sudden you get back on the ice and you realize you’re still a ways off from being ready to play in a game,” Toews said. “[You know] that you need to get back to doing what you were doing to try and recover and make sure you are making progress and you’re not digressing on the ice.”

Rangers win riveting goaltending duel over Blackhawks in overtime. (Friday night's game, 12/09/2016).

By Tracey Myers

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

When Scott Darling and Antti Raanta vied for the Blackhawks’ backup goaltending job two seasons ago, there was definitely a strong competition. But it was still one built on respect.

“We had no bad blood in that situation,” Darling said on Friday. “We’ve remained friends. He’s having a great season and I’m happy for him.”

On this night, Raanta may have been just a bit happier.

Raanta stopped all 26 shots he saw against his former team, notching his first shutout of this season, and Nick Holden gave the New York Rangers a 1-0 overtime victory over the Blackhawks on Friday night. The Blackhawks are 1-2-1 in their last four games but remain atop the Western Conference with 38 points.

The Blackhawks were missing Jonathan Toews, Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford in this one. Nevertheless, it was a tight game, one in which both goaltenders were stellar. Darling stopped 36 of 37 shots – Holden’s overtime winner was the first goaltender allowed to New York in two games against them.

Considering the players missing, the Blackhawks will take the point.

“With or without Toews, you’re always thinking when it’s in the third period and it’s close and getting inside 10 minutes, let’s get it to overtime,” coach Joel Quenneville said. "We've seen a ton of overtimes in the league. You gotta get the one point. We’ve had some success trying to get the extra one. Tonight, not, but that’s got to be the mindset.”

The Blackhawks were close to taking the 1-0 lead six minutes into the third period, when Marian Hossa thought he scored his 15th goal of the season. But the Rangers challenged for offside. Upon further review, the goal was nullified.

“Well, obviously that’s a tough one,” Hossa said. “I mean, I didn’t notice it was close to offside but obviously with today’s technology, with this new rule, it’s a game of inches. It’s slowing the game down, I think. You’re getting confused, what exactly the coaches are looking for. They created this new rule and we just have to deal with it. But sometimes it’s more frustrating because the league wants to increase the scoring and right now, I think more goals are disallowed because of this.”

Hartman, who had the pass to Hossa, was also disappointed but agreed with the review’s ruling.

“You get your excitement up a little bit and you try not to get too ahead of yourself when you know they are reviewing it. You just try to see it as both ways, if they do call it a goal, if they call it back,” Hartman said. “Obviously it was the right call. It was just a tough one.”

The Blackhawks will take the point out of this one. Despite the players they were without they played a solid game. They had good, quality scoring chances. Their current backup was just slightly bested by their previous one.

“Both [goalies] were great, both [teams] had excellent looks at the net,” Quenneville said. “We missed some good opportunities on 2-on-1s and they had some good looks around Darling as well. Both guys got their teams to overtime, got a point. It’s a good point if you want to look at it like that. I didn’t mind the way we played but Darls was excellent.”

Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Matthew Stafford runs for go-ahead TD in Lions' win over Bears.

By Associated Press

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

Matthew Stafford ran for a go-ahead, 7-yard touchdown with 3:17 left after throwing two interceptions in the fourth quarter, one that was returned for a score, and the Detroit Lions held on for a 20-17 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

"It's fourth quarter, go time, you've got to make a play," Stafford recalled thinking when he ran up the middle on the play designed for him to run. "I surely wasn't going to slide on the 2."

Matt Barkley completed two passes that put the Bears in a position to at least attempt a tying field goal in the final minute, but both were negated by flags, before turning the ball over on downs from the Detroit 44.

"You can't really recover from two holding penalties back to back," said Bears guard Ted Larsen, who was called for holding as was left tackle Charles Leno.

Chicago's chances of pulling off an upset were also hurt by three penalties for pass interference for a total of 74 yards, helping Detroit score both of its TDs.

The NFC North-leading Lions (9-4) have won five straight and eight of nine, moving them a step closer to winning a division title for the first time in 23 years.

"Our goals are much bigger than winning this game," receiver Anquan Boldin said.

Chicago (3-10) has lost four of five, playing a lot of young players in place of banged-up veterans.

"Eventually, this is going to help us," Bears coach John Fox said. "And this experience will help those individual players."

UNDER CENTER

Barkley , in the first road start of his career, perfectly led Cameron Meredith on a 31-yard TD to pull the Bears within three late in the third quarter. He completed 20 of 32 passes for 212 yards.

Stafford, who put a white glove on his right hand during the game to protect his injured middle finger in the first quarter, was picked off twice after he threw only one interception the previous eight games. Demontre Hurst intercepted Stafford's pass in Chicago's end zone after it ricocheted off teammate Bryce Callahan and receiver Golden Tate early in the fourth quarter. Cre'Von LeBlanc returned an interception 24 yards midway through the fourth to put Chicago up 17-13.

Stafford finished 21 of 35 for 223 yards with a TD.

STREAKING

Detroit has matched its longest winning streak since starting 5-0 in 2011, and its best nine-game stretch since winning eight of the last nine games in 1995. The Lions have given up 20 or fewer points in seven straight games in one season for the first time since 1961.

MILESTONE

Stafford threw a tiebreaking, 16-yard TD pass to Boldin with 19 seconds left in the first half. It was the 1,063 reception of Boldin's career, moving him past Andre Johnson for 10th place on the NFL's all-time list. The 14-year veteran has helped Detroit overcome the retirement of star receiver Calvin Johnson.

INJURIES

Bears: Receivers Eddie Royal (toe) and Marquess Wilson (groin) were inactive due to injuries and defensive lineman Eddie Goldman injured an ankle during the game.

Lions: Running back Theo Riddick was inactive with a wrist injury and was replaced in the starting lineup by rookie Dwayne Washington, who had season highs with 16 carries and 64 yards rushing. Linebacker DeAndre Levy was active for the first time since Week 1, returning from a knee injury. Defensive end Ezekiel Ansah left the game in the second quarter with an injured right shoulder, but returned to play in the second half.

Follow-up: Bears fall short (again) in “learning process” loss to Lions.

By John Mullin

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

In the aftermath of Sunday’s 20-17 loss to the Detroit Lions, Bears coach John Fox made his way through a crowded locker room to seek out offensive linemen Ted Larsen and Charles Leno Jr., whose holding penalties on consecutive plays had nullified long pass completions that had put the Bears within scoring range in the final minute of this game.

What was said between coach and players remained private, but it was perhaps a snapshot of the inner workings of a team that fell to 3-10 and officially out of the playoffs, but has almost mysteriously held together week after frustrating week.

“We were trying to go down and either tie or win the game,” Fox said. “Those are parts of the game, things we have to clean up, get better and learn from hopefully. You don’t see those types of things until you look at the tape, but we’ll evaluate that, correct it and move forward.”

“Things” obviously extended beyond just some issues on an offensive line that had taken generally excellent care of quarterback Matt Barkley through three starts, and of running back Jordan Howard, on track for a 1,200-yard rookie season.

Maybe it means something that the winner were the Lions (9-4), the team that perennially squandered talent and opportunities but now hasn’t given up more than 20 points in seven straight games and has come from behind in eight of their nine victories. They’ve been where the Bears are. Where once they privately expected something to go wrong, now “when we’re in those situations,” said linebacker DeAndre Levy, “we expect to win. It’s not as much hesitation as it once was.”

Maybe this is just what happens to a team beset by youth as much as anything else. In the critical red-zone possession by the Lions just before halftime, the Bears were facing Matthew Stafford with six rookies on the field (linebacker Leonard Floyd, defensive end Jonathan Bullard, linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski, cornerbacks Deiondre Hall and Cre’Von LeBlanc and safety Deon Bush) plus cornerback Bryce Callahan and safety Harold Jones-Quartey, in their second years, and not including second-year nose tackle Eddie Goldman, not in when the Bears go nickel personnel.

The Lions did score a go-ahead touchdown on a throw from Stafford to ageless (36) Anquan Boldin when Jones-Quartey fell down in coverage. But the Bears also recovered to be in position to win in the fourth quarter behind a quarterback (Matt Barkley) making his third NFL snap, throwing to a second-year undrafted receiver (Cam Meredith) after taking the snap from a rookie center (Cody Whitehair).

“There’s always going to be a learning process,” said defensive end Akiem Hicks, “whether you’re going from scheme to scheme, or whether you have young guys that haven’t had a lot of snaps in the league.”

This time the loss came less because they weren’t good enough, but because they had again beaten themselves. For the fourth time this season, the Bears had a fourth-quarter lead and lost.

Which is part of how teams produce 3-10 records, and frustration. Frustration because for a brief time Sunday afternoon in Ford Field, the Bears played like a good football team. Trailing 13-3 with 6 minutes to play in the third quarter, they responded, on successive possessions, by:

- Scoring on a 31-yard pass from Barkley to Meredith late in the third quarter. 13-10, Lions.

- Intercepting Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford in the end zone;

- Driving before punting and putting the Lions at the Detroit 9;

- Intercepting Stafford again, this time scoring on the Cre’Von LeBlanc interception and 24-yard return; 17-13 Bears, 7 minutes to play.

From that point on, the blizzard outside Ford Field was matched by one of Bears gaffes inside. The Lions drove down the field, aided by a 15-yard facemask penalty on defensive end Cornelius Washington and a 13-yard pass-interference flag on cornerback Bryce Callahan, scoring on a 9-yard run by Stafford through the middle of missed tackles and bad angles for the clinching score.

“This one hurts,” said linebacker Pernell McPhee. “The offense gave us a good chance to win. [We] just didn’t finish it.”

The offense self-destructed on its own, with the holding penalties that negated a total of 50 passing yards and had taken the Bears to the Detroit 16 and then the 30, only to have it moved farther back. When the final pass bounced off the shoulder pads of receiver Josh Bellamy, with a timeout and time for a tying field goal, little was left to be said.

The Bears indeed had no one, certainly not the officials, to blame for this one but themselves. With a first down at the Detroit 11 on their opening drive, the Bears took consecutive pre-snap penalties, on Larsen for a false start and Barkley for delay of game, and were forced to settle for 3 points instead of 7 in a game that was lost by… 3 points.

The Bears were penalized a total of 139 yards, nearly all with direct impact on the outcome. The Lions on their first touchdown drive picked up 43 yards on two coverage infractions by cornerback Tracy Porter. The Callahan and Washingon flags came on the second Detroit scoring drive.

“I think our margin for error right now is very minimal,” Fox said in something of an understatement.

Bears Grades: Defense finally gets takeaways, but not enough key stops in loss.

By John Mullin

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

Matthew Stafford has not been giving the football away much this season. His five interceptions before Sunday were a big part of why the Lions win close games, and win them late.

So it was particularly frustrating for the Bears, among the NFL’s poorest at catching opponents’ passes, who intercepted Stafford twice in the second half, once in their own end zone, the second returned all the way into the Lions’, and still lost despite leading in the fourth quarter.

The reason was defensive failures to end Detroit drives sooner rather than later. The Lions converted 50 percent (6 of 12) on third downs and had 34 minutes time of possession, to 26 for the Bears.

“We had an opportunity defensively to close it out,” said linebacker Willie Young said. “We have to close it out.”

Five of Detroit’s first six possessions went nine plays or longer, plus one of seven plays that covered 76 yards for the Lions’ final and winning touchdown, a seven-yard scramble by Stafford picking his way through a broken-down Bears defense that missed tackles and could not react decisively enough.

“I just was trying to stay on my feet and find that goal line,” Stafford said, “and it worked.”

The defense looked to wear down in the third quarter as the offense, which had stayed on the field for more than seven minutes on its first-quarter scoring drive, increasingly failed to sustain much behind inexperienced Matt Barkley against a road crowd and division leader.

The defense put San Francisco quarterbacks down six times last Sunday and shut off the first Detroit drive with a third-down swarm that got to Stafford three times. The aggressive mindset was evident early as the front seven drew five flags (three holding, one intentional grounding and one hands-to-the-face) in just the first three Detroit possessions.

But mistakes, including penalties totaling 28 yards on Detroit’s winning drive, were too frequent even in a game holding Stafford and the Lions to 20 points.

“Something that we struggle with, something that every week we go in and we say, ‘This is what we’re going to do better, and this is how we’re going to prepare in order to capitalize on those moments,’” said defensive end Akiem Hicks. “We had a great play by our defense, Cre’Von [LeBlanc] snagged that ball, took it back to the house. It’s in our hands at that point, you know what I mean?

“We have to finish together, and this is not a pointing finger of blame. This is both sides of the ball, special teams, we all need to put it in the pot and finish these games out. That’s what makes a difference between the team that’s three and whatever, and guys going to the playoffs.”

Defensive line: C

Pressure from Akiem Hicks produced the third-down sack of Stafford that ended Detroit’s first possession. Hicks broke up a third-down pass attempt in the third quarter, although Matt Prater was then able to convert a 54-yard field goal.

Mitch Unrein forced Stafford out of bounds with pursuit for a first-quarter sack. Losing nose tackle Eddie Goldman to an ankle injury was a setback in the second half, and the Lions did rush for 115 total yards.

Linebacker: B

Leonard Floyd continued his upward development, with repeated pressures on Stafford as well as solid recoveries against Lions rushing attempts. Floyd did allow Stafford to break contain for a long completion in the second quarter but he was utilized in multiple packages and roles, and disguised one rush showing pass coverage, then blitzing but adjusting to make the tackle on a Detroit run. Floyd had a hand in the first Bears sack, with pressure that sealed Stafford in the pocket and pushed him toward Akiem Hicks.

Floyd’s run defense was solid as well as his general discipline, with some exceptions in losing contain on pass rushes. Floyd did deflect one pass and was credited with 3 tackles.

Nick Kwiatkoski was solid starting again inside, netting a sack with a pursuit of Stafford in the second quarter and adding a second quarterback hit to go with a team-high8 tackles.

John Timu, filling in at the other inside linebacker spot, had 6 tackles, one for loss, but missed a tackle of Stafford on the quarterback’s winning scramble.

Pernell McPhee was an occasional factor in pass rush, getting some penetration although without credit for a hit or sack of Stafford. Willie Young was credited with 1 tackle and did not collect a hit on Stafford.

“It wasn’t a difficult task, it was just a matter of us closing it out,” Young said.

“[Stafford] obviously beat us with his feet in that one particular play, but other than that that’s a great team.”

Secondary: A-

The Bears still only have 7 interceptions on the season but two on consecutive Detroit possessions were nearly enough to take the game from the Lions. Cre’Von LeBlanc’s interception and 24-yard return for the Bears’ final points provided a lead, with LeBlanc getting the better of veteran wideout Anquan Boldin and breaking perfectly on Matthew Stafford’s pass.

“Being that I’m smaller than he is, I knew he would try to get into me to try to get separation,” LeBlanc said. “But I was firm with my coverage.”

Bryce Callahan deflected and Demontre Hurst intercepted a Stafford pass in the end zone to save a possible touchdown that would have put the Lions up by two scores early in the fourth quarter.

Callahan delivered a crucial pass breakup on third down in single coverage vs. Golden Tate to force the Lions to settle for a second-quarter field goal. LeBlanc timed his break perfectly to deflect a third-quarter slant to Tate.

Tracy Porter was flagged for a pass-interference infraction and holding penalty in the second quarter that advanced Detroit’s second scoring drive. Porter was forced out of the game with an undisclosed illness late in the half.

Adrian Amos’ lack of impact plays over the last season-plus got him out of the starting lineup in favor of rookie Deon Bush (third straight start) and Harold Jones-Quartey back in the lineup. Amos started the second half after HJQ slipped down covering Anquan Boldin on Detroit’s touchdown pass at the end of the first half.

Stafford was able to elude the Bears’ pass rush on multiple occasions and found receivers open with the help of his self-generated extra time. “I think he did a great job of keeping plays alive,” said linebacker Pernell McPhee. “We knew that coming in, but I think our DB’s played a great game.”

Special teams: C     

Connor Barth was able to salvage a penalty shortened opening drive with a 38-yard field goal. Pat O’Donnell and the punt team put two of four punts inside the Detroit 20
Punt coverage was undisciplined in allowing a long return in the second quarter that was nullified by block in the back but missed tackles and lanes lost could have been disastrous. Punter Pat O’Donnell showed his athleticism running down returner Andre Roberts.

Coverage failed to get to O’Donnell’s first punt of the second half, resulting in a touchback. Kickoff return started the offense at the Chicago 18 from Detroit’s third-quarter kickoff.

Bears Grades: Offense has chances, self-destructs in loss to Lions.

By John Mullin 

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

The NFL does not grade on a curve, counting only final scores, not how they came to be. So in the Bears’ 20-17 loss Sunday to the Detroit Lions, the record will show only the “L” and not how close the Bears offense was to bringing about a second comeback win in as many weeks.

The record also won’t show how many mistakes the Bears committed to sabotage themselves. And they committed them in bunches. The offense was guilty of a total self-destruct on a promising opening drive, with consecutive pre-snap penalties on first down at the Detroit 11-yard line. Guard Ted Larsen false-start’ed, followed by a delay of game, forcing the Bears to settle for a field goal.

Holding calls on Larsen and left tackle Charles Leno on consecutive plays with the Bears driving deep into the Lions’ end. From a first-and-10 at the Detroit 43, quarterback Matt Barkley’s 27-yard completion to Cameron Meredith was nullified by Leno’s hold. At first-and-20, rookie Daniel Braverman’s first NFL catch, for 23 yards and what would again have been a first down, was called back for Larsen’s indiscretion.

Ironically, it was close to the kind of offensive game the Bears absolutely seek in John Fox’s concept of “complimentary football.” Barkley threw no interceptions, the Bears lost no fumbles and the team was in position to win with either a late scoring drive or defensive stop. Neither happened.

“I’ve said this kind of over the last three games and I think it still stands,” Barkley said. “Just the resilience that these guys have and the fight. There’s no issue of effort or wanting to win. You can really see the fire and the drive is there. I’ve seen progression in our offense and just moving the ball and putting points on the board, but still got to hone in on the little things that can cost you games in the NFL.”

Quarterback: A-

For the third straight game (since the early interception problems vs. Tennessee), Barkley was efficient and ran the offense under control, without turnovers. He had a couple of near-miss throws that could have been picked off but the overall was workmanlike.

Barkley finished with 212 yards on 20-for-32 passing and had more than 50 yards of completions called back because of penalties. His 31-yard throw to Cam Meredith for a third-quarter touchdown was arguably his finest throw as a Bear and netted the Bears a score desperately needed by both offense and defense, as well as special teams.

“He throws the ball with a lot of confidence, a lot of touch, you know, so they’re easy, catchable balls,” Meredith said. “We’ve just got to do a good job of getting open and being in the right place.”

Barkley had to work through problems with his helmet headset in the first quarter but still managed to complete 4 of 6 passes on the Bears opening drive when momentum was needed.

Barkley was late recognizing wideout Josh Bellamy breaking open on a third-down in the second quarter, put too much loft on the throw and cost the Bears a significant first-down pickup.

But in general, “he’s doing pretty well,” said running back Jordan Howard. “We definitely have faith in him. He stands in the pocket. He keeps his composure. He doesn’t let anything get him rattled.”

Running back: B+

Against a stout Detroit front clearly geared to stop a Bears run game early, Jordan Howard was again the workhorse of the offense. He finished with 86 yards on 13 carries (6.6 ypc) and caught 2 passes for an additional 24.

Howard broke a 28-yard run in the first quarter to help set up the Bears’ first points on a Connor Barth field goal. His 31-yard run on the opening possession of the third quarter restored some juice to a flagging offense, which was able to sustain the drive for a much-needed touchdown.

Jeremy Langford carried three times and Ka’Deem Carey once in spot duty, for just 6 total yards.

Howard was generally workmanlike in pass protection against a Detroit front that brought frequent blitz pressure on Barkley.

Receivers: B

Cam Meredith caught a team-high 6 passes for 72 yards, including a 31-yard TD grab in the third quarter. Meredith also made difficult and crucial catches in the Bears’ final drive, the best being a 27-yard catch-and-run that was called back for a holding penalty.

“Anytime you get momentum and you get a flag it’s disappointing,” Meredith said. “But you know, we were able to still get something going after we came back, but those are things that win or lose games. Today’s an example of that, so we’ve got to do a better job of technique and fundamentals and stuff like that.”

Tight end Daniel Brown was a factor, catching all six of the passes thrown to him by Matt Barkley for 42 yards, including solid yards after the catch as well as yards after contact.

Josh Bellamy continued his streaky ways, juggling a third-down conversion pass and then failing to ensure he got his feet together in bounds. Bellamy, whose habit of jumping unnecessarily for balls has needed curbing, was able to make to leaping catches on third-quarter catches. His failure to come up with the Bears’ final throw on fourth down in the fourth quarter was debatable, with tight coverage but on a ball that ultimately went off his shoulder pads.

“I think again, until you look at it slowed down and what not, there’s drops in every game,” said coach John Fox. “There’s good throws in every game and of course some poor throws sometimes. We’ll evaluate that, but all in all I think the guy gave us a chance to win.”

Offensive line: D

A difficult critique because of some very good and some very bad. The overall was solid – protection for Matt Barkley (one sack, 3 hits) and run blocking for Jordan Howard (6.6 yards per carry). “[The run] was there and we hit it when we could and we left some meat on the bone,” said guard Ted Larsen. “Kind of like always, you know, you’re always close to breaking a few big ones and that’s kind of been the theme. Just maintaining a block and maintaining a little longer and making sure everybody’s on the same page.”

But the penalties were catastrophic, with three of the five linemen drawing walk-off’s, and maybe somewhat ironic because of ones on Larsen, who was selected as a co-captain this week. The holds consecutive holds by Larsen and Leno were death-blows to the final push.

“It didn’t feel a grab or a hold or a restriction,” Larsen said. “I mean, they called it, so there’s nothing you can do about that. But you can’t really recover from two holding penalties back-to-back.”

Coaching: A-

The Bears took the game to the Lions early with aggressive game plans on both offense and defense. The defense forced the Lions offense into six penalty flags in the first half, and while the offense stayed generally balanced until Barkley was forced to throw on 11 of the last 12 plays.

“We’re always going to be confident in our game plan,” said running back Jordan Howard. “The [opposing] defense, they might know what’s coming, but they still have to stop it. So we’re always going to be confident in whatever we do.”

Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade lift Bulls to win over pesky Heat. (Saturday night's game, 12/10/2016).

By Vincent Goodwill

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

The emotion of playing in Miami may have been missing for Dwyane Wade but it was still the Miami Heat on the other side, the franchise he put it all on the line for before the two sides couldn’t agree on a contract last summer.

So he still had some extra juice on a snowy Saturday night that probably made him yearn for the breeze of South Beach, giving the pesky Heat some of his wrath and little flash in a 105-100 win at the United Center.

Wade scored 28 points on 11 of 24 shooting in 35 minutes to go along with three rebounds, three assists and two blocks against his former team.

Wade got the Bulls off to a better second half start while Jimmy Butler, all too happy to lurk in the wings while Wade got his shots up, had his say late in the fourth when the Heat hung around longer than expected.

Butler and Wade combined to strip Goran Dragic on a weave play that could’ve tied the game for the Heat with seven seconds left and the Bulls leading by three, as Butler sealed the game with two free throws, finishing his 31-point, seven-rebound and five-assist night.

“We got a win. We found a way to win,” Wade said. “We lost a game like this earlier this year (Lakers). We weren’t playing great and they found a way to beat us. In this league, there’s gonna be some nights where you play amazing and some where you play just well enough to get a win. Never begrudge a win.”

Saying that in the aftermath of a win came because the Bulls’ fourth-quarter offense again came to a crawl, a deal one would have to negotiate when having players like Wade and Butler on the floor who can dominate the ball for stretches to make plays.

But the Bulls shot just 40 percent on six of 15 shooting as Wade and Butler combined to score 16 of their 22 points.

“That will be the big emphasis and focus in practice on Monday, we’ll really work on our fourth-quarter execution,” said Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg.

Butler was bullying the smaller and slightly-built Heat defenders, he got to the basket at will and kept the pressure on the interior defense of Hassan Whiteside. Most of his production came from the midrange or the paint, as the Bulls took just eight 3-pointers and committed just 11 turnovers—making for a clean if not old-fashioned game.

“I’m confident we’ll hit double digit 3-pointers again,” said Hoiberg in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. “You shoot eight of them, you take what the defense gives you. I thought the rhythm and flow was good for three quarters.”

They seemed to follow Wade’s lead, at least in style, as he probed and spun and danced his way to the rim for as many shots in the paint as he’s taken all season despite leaving more than a few on the lip of the rim or giving the officials sideways looks after not getting what he felt were rightful foul calls.

Wade scored 11 third after the Bulls were sleepwalking on one end of the floor for the first half, leading to a 55-all game, the type of performance that Gregg Popovich would’ve given a media lashing to afterwards.

“I thought we were going through the motions a little bit, picked it up in the second half,” Hoiberg said.

Dragic owned his matchup against Rajon Rondo, getting to the paint at will, forcing switches and attacking the rim relentlessly whenever the Bulls left a sliver of an opening, scoring 21 with 11 assists before his unfortunate turnover.

One can say Dragic essentially kept the Heat in it for the first half as the Bulls’ defense hadn’t received its wake-up call, but it came in the form of Wade’s aggressiveness to start the half.

“He was pretty much going where he wanted in that first half and we struggled with it,” Hoiberg said.

A sweeping hook shot was followed by the 34-year old splitting the defense on a fast break for a dunk and 3-point play, and he finished the spurt with a baseline spin and layup to put the Bulls up double-digits.

“I thought he had a lot of pop and good legs, and one dunk he looked like a young 22-year old Dwyane Wade,” Hoiberg said. “They had good matchups, Dwyane obviously had it going tonight.”

But the Heat wouldn’t go away—or the Bulls wouldn’t put a team playing its fourth game in five nights away—as the energetic Tyler Johnson and Josh Richardson came off the bench to give an ailing team a boost, combining for 26 points.

Whiteside was swatting away more than his share of shots and changing a few others, as he scored 18 with eight rebounds and three blocks but went scoreless in the fourth until his basket that brought the Bulls’ lead to one with a little over 10 seconds left.

It wasn’t pretty but it was effective enough for the Bulls to settle themselves and reverse a too-common trend of a big letdown after a big win.

UP NEXT FOR THE BULLS: Minnesota Timberwolves at Chicago Bulls, United Center, 12/12/2016 at 7:00 PM (CT)

The consummate pro: How Taj Gibson has become the Bulls' version of Udonis Haslem.

By Mark Strotman

(Photo/USA TODAY)

The 2011 Eastern Conference Finals between the Bulls and Miami Heat featured three future Hall of Famers in LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Derrick Rose had been named the youngest league MVP in league history weeks earlier. Luol Deng was blossoming and would earn All-Star nods in each of the following two seasons. $82 million man Carlos Boozer had averaged 17.5 points and 9.6 rebounds in his first season with the Bulls. The series was loaded with star power.

But buried deep in that series was a matchup of unsung reserves that influenced the series far greater than their numbers in the box score indicated. Udonis Haslem averaged just 4.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in 22 minutes in the series – the Heat won in five games – but his impact was felt nonetheless, in part because of the physicality he brought against an energetic second-year forward named Taj Gibson.

“When we played them in the Eastern Conference Finals, Gibson had an incredible impact on that series, and (Haslem) was just coming back from an injury,” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said before Saturday’s tilt between the Bulls and Heat. “And we thought that was probably the missing component in that series early on, was having a player like UD to match up against (Gibson). And that really helped us close that series.”

Five years later Haslem is on the final leg of his NBA career. He’s only appeared sparingly in seven games for the Heat in this his 14th NBA season. But the three-time NBA champion has had a lasting impact on the Heat organization – so much so that they allowed him to miss Friday’s game to attend his son’s state-title football game in Florida – and has etched himself in Heat lore, despite never averaging more than 12 points or nine rebounds in a season.

It’s not unlike the career path Gibson has taken in his eight seasons in Chicago. The now-31-year-old Gibson has spent the majority of his career playing behind the likes of Carlos Boozer, Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah. And while he’s been an integral part of the Bulls’ rotation since joining the team in 2009, his role has never matched his ability or production. It’s why Haslem said he sees so much of himself in Gibson, an unselfish, care-free teammate, yet also someone who is willing to work every day despite the lack of accolades.

“Taj plays hard, man. He’s a guy that gets all the dirty work done. The banging down in the paint, he knocks down that 15-footer, (he) rebounds,” Haslem told CSNChicago.com. “A lot of similarities to myself when I was a little younger. Like you said, unsung. Doesn’t look for any attention, doesn’t look for any glory. Just goes out there, is professional, and does his job every night.”

And in his eighth NBA season, Gibson has done his job every night incredibly well. Through 23 games he’s posted career-best numbers in field goal percentage, rebounds, assists and steals, and isn’t far off in points and blocks per game. His 16.9 PER would be a career-high.

He’s done all this with little real estate in the spotlight. Jimmy Butler has cemented himself as a legitimate MVP candidate, and free-agent acquisitions Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo have earned headlines.

But Gibson has been as reliable and consistent a frontcourt player as the Bulls have – he’s one of three players to have appeared in all 23 games this season – and he’s playing some of his best basketball while the Bulls are mired in a mini-slump.

“He’s a rock for us on this team,” Fred Hoiberg said. “He’s going to go out and do his job. He’s never going to complain about his role. He’s going to put on his hard hat and make the little plays that may not show up in the box score, but help you win.”

Including Gibson’s 13-point, seven-rebound effort in Saturday’s win over the Heat, he’s averaging 12.6 points on 58 percent shooting and 7.3 rebounds in the Bulls’ last 11 games. He’s corralled 16 offensive rebounds in that span – including two on Saturday that he put back for layups – and is the main reason the Bulls entered as the league’s top offensive rebounding team in the league (and second in total rebound percentage). The Bulls are also nearly six points per 100 possessions better defensively with Gibson on the floor.

Gibson’s and Haslem’s career numbers are eerily similar – Gibson has averaged 9.3 points on 49 percent shooting and 6.4 rebounds, compared to Haslem’s 7.9 points on 49 percent shooting and 7.0 rebounds, with this year excluded. And both players accomplished their numbers while acting as the third scoring option, at best, on their respective teams. Wade, who spent 13 seasons with Haslem, also sees similarities in the two forward’s games and personalities.

“Taj does his job. He doesn’t try to do too much. Some nights he’s featured a lot. Some nights he’s not. He’s out there to do his job, wants to win,” he said. “(Haslem and Gibson) are very similar. He has that mentality where he’s a workhorse and he’s going to do whatever it takes.”

Added Spoelstra: “Incredible amount of similar qualities. In my mind both those guys are winning players and have all the intangibles and toughness. Doing the little things, the dirty work, both those guys embody all those qualities. We’ve always respected Gibson because of that.”

Gibson is third on the Bulls in field goal attempts per game, the first time in his career he’s been higher than fifth in that category. The Bulls are using him more than ever before, and it’s paying off. He's in the final year of his four-year contract with the Bulls, and is looking at a significant pay raise in free agency this coming summer. Whether his future is in Chicago or elsewhere, don’t expect him to change his persona or mentality anytime soon. Much like Haslem did for years in Miami, Gibson has defined being a consummate professional, teammate and player.

“When you’re on championship teams, competing for a championship, trying to go deep in the playoffs, trying to do special things, guys are doing to have to sacrifice their game. Everybody can’t play big minutes; everybody can’t take the shots,” he said after the Bulls’ win over the Cavs on Thursday. “I’m one of the guys that sacrificed my game for the good of the team. Whatever the coach wants me to do, I’m going to go out and do (it).

“If a coach wants me to set 100 screens and not take a shot, I’m gonna do that because I’m about helping the team. And that’s what I’ve been doing all these years. As long as I’m out there enjoying myself, having fun and playing with great teammates, I’m blessed.”

CUBS: With Dexter Fowler in St. Louis, Cubs see Kyle Schwarber as a potential leadoff answer.

By Patrick Mooney

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

Dexter Fowler buttoned up a white No. 25 Cardinals jersey and put on a red St. Louis hat, posing for the cameras during Friday morning’s press conference at Busch Stadium.

Fowler stood in between Mike Matheny, the St. Louis manager who now has a new leadoff guy at the top of his lineup card, and John Mozeliak, the general manager who helped structure a five-year, $82.5 million contract that goes against The Cardinal Way.

That visual might be disorienting for Cubs fans who just watched what will probably be the best two seasons of Fowler’s career. But Theo Epstein’s front office understandably wanted to get younger, upgrade defensively and preserve some financial flexibility for the future, planning to go with Albert Almora Jr. and ex-Cardinal Jon Jay in a center-field timeshare.

“I’ll be forever grateful that I was a Cub,” Fowler said. “We made history, won a World Series. But I guess that door is closed, and, you know, I’m a Cardinal now. And we’re trying to make history over here as well.”

Let’s not get carried away with all the talk about Fowler being such a great leader and magnetic clubhouse personality. There were enough questions about him that the draft-pick compensation dragged down his market to the point where he accepted a $13 million guarantee in spring training. But he is a switch-hitter who sees pitches and works at-bats (.366 career on-base percentage) and can ignite an offense when healthy.

Cubs manager Joe Maddon might not go with a traditional leadoff hitter in 2017. But this lineup should still score 800-plus runs again, factoring in a full season of Kyle Schwarber, projected growth from MVP Kris Bryant and All Stars Anthony Rizzo and Addison Russell and an anticipated bounce-back year from Jason Heyward after the $184 million outfielder had been one of the least productive hitters in the majors.

 “Schwarber is not a bad name, Kyle is not a bad name at all,” Maddon said when asked about his leadoff hitter during this week’s winter meetings at National Harbor in Maryland. “(Ben) Zobrist isn’t a bad name. There are different guys to consider right there.

“Actually, a couple years ago, (when) Kyle came up and Dexter was still there, I considered leading Kyle off and putting Dexter second. But I had all the dudes do all the work — all our nerds did all the work — and they really liked Fowler 1 and they liked Schwarber 2, just based on our data.

“So I went with that, and it worked out really, really well. So now all of a sudden, Dexter is not there anymore. It’s not impossible to consider Kyle in that spot, Zobrist in that spot.

“I don’t know if we’re going to do anything differently during the course of this offseason that might cause me to think differently, but there’s not a whole lot of other candidates.”

Fowler bet on himself after the Baltimore Orioles dragged out negotiations over a reported three-year deal in the $30 million range, shocking the baseball world when he showed up in Arizona in late February. It paid off with a staggering contract that will add another level of intrigue to a rivalry that has already seen Heyward and pitcher John Lackey switch sides.

Fowler will be in Cardinal red on Opening Night 2017 when the Cubs begin their World Series title defense at Busch Stadium.

“It’s bittersweet,” Fowler said. “Now they’re the rival. But you still got some boys over there. We’ll always be boys. We won a championship together. But when you get on the field, it’s ‘go time.’ Now we’re playing against each other.”

Tyson Ross could be one of the final pieces for Cubs’ offseason puzzle.

By Patrick Mooney

(Photo/AP)

Tyson Ross could be one of the final pieces of the offseason puzzle as the Cubs try to defend their World Series title while still planning for the future.

The Cubs left this week’s winter meetings in Maryland still involved in the Ross talks, sources said, monitoring an intriguing pitcher they had targeted before the 2015 trade deadline.

The San Diego Padres didn’t really buy or sell during that pennant race and made another curious decision last week when they didn’t offer Ross a contract for 2017. MLB Trade Rumors projected Ross would have made $9.6 million during his final year in the arbitration system.

After issues involving his right shoulder wiped out almost his entire season, Ross underwent surgery in October to address thoracic outlet syndrome.

Ross was San Diego’s Opening Day starter during a 15-0 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but didn’t pitch again, clouding a future that once had him looking like a trade-deadline chip and one of the best pitchers in the free-agent class after the 2017 season.

That’s when Jake Arrieta will be looking for his megadeal and John Lackey might be in retirement and Jon Lester will be turning 34. That’s why the Cubs are so focused on pitching this winter and trying to balance out an organization tilted toward hitters.

Kyle Hendricks proved he will be a pitcher to build around – and the Cubs believe Mike Montgomery can evolve from a swingman into a fifth starter and maybe something far more valuable – but depth is a real issue.

Ross made 30-plus starts in 2014 and 2015, when he earned an All-Star selection and accounted for almost 400 innings combined. He will turn 30 in April and is seen as a positive force within the clubhouse. He has a 6-foot-6 frame, a second-round-pick pedigree and a Cal-Berkeley education.

Reports have already linked the Texas Rangers and Pittsburgh Pirates to Ross and not completely ruled out a return to San Diego. During an offseason where the free-agent market is essentially devoid of reliable frontline starters, there could be sticker shock, even with a rehabbing pitcher.

Trading for Wade Davis meant the Cubs were out of the bidding for Greg Holland, another All-Star closer who helped turn the Kansas City Royals into World Series champions. Holland spent this year recovering from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, but he will still be in position to capitalize after Mark Melancon, Aroldis Chapman and eventually Kenley Jansen reset the market for closers.

With Ross, the Cubs will have to get a better sense of the medical picture and the price for all that upside.

Beyond a winning culture, the Cubs can sell the pitching infrastructure that helped turn Arrieta into a Cy Young Award winner and transform Hendricks into an ERA leader and keep the rotation remarkably healthy.

“Those really talented pitchers are going to be in demand, even those that are coming off an injury,” Cubs president Theo Epstein said this week at National Harbor. “We’ll stay engaged on some of those guys, but they’ll have to be just the right talent.

“We’ll have to feel good about the medical and the return to play. And the fit on the club would have to be right, too. But the true elite guys have a real market, even if they’re coming off down seasons.”

Dexter Fowler: Cubs-Cardinals rivalry 'almost even'.

CSN Staff

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

The Cubs have the World Series trophy, and that's the ultimate in bragging rights.

But new Cardinals outfielder Dexter Fowler — who helped the Cubs win that first championship since 1908 — thinks there's not too much separating the Central Division rivals.

Fowler officially switched sides in the rivalry Friday, signing a five-year deal with the Cardinals and getting an introduction in St. Louis.

"Playing over there and playing against the Cardinals, you see them and they weren't that far away," Fowler said at his introductory press conference Friday morning. "Obviously they beat up on us, we beat up on them. It was almost even. It was one day or another. I can't put my finger on one thing or another, but we're definitely close."

Even though the Cubs are on top of the baseball world right now — and the Cardinals missed out on the playoffs last season — the numbers back up Fowler's claim.

Only one game separated the two in their regular-season series in 2016, the Cubs taking 10 games and the Cardinals winning nine. The year prior, both teams won more than 97 games and reached the postseason, with the Cubs eliminating the Cardinals in the NLDS. During the regular season, though, the Cardinals won 11 of the 19 matchups and the Cubs won eight.

The two teams have indirectly swapped All-Star outfielders in each of the last two offseasons. Jason Heyward signed a huge deal with the Cubs prior to the 2016 season. And now Fowler will be in the Cardinals' Opening Day lineup in 2017.

That ought to add even more fuel to the fire in this epic rivalry.

But the rings are the thing, of course, so can the Cardinals challenge the Cubs as the North Siders attempt to make it back-to-back championships in 2017?

"I can't tell what the future has in mind, but I feel like this team has a chance to win a World Series," Fowler said.

WHITE SOX: Rick Hahn, White Sox prepared to make more 'painful decisions' if the price is right.

By Dan Hayes

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

That Jose Abreu and Yoan Moncada have reunited is a nice story, but it won't dramatically change the mindset of the rebuilding White Sox, who earlier this week demonstrated they aren't messing around.

Abreu said in a statement issued by the White Sox on Friday that he's "very happy" about the prospect of again playing alongside Moncada, who played 12 games with the star slugger in 2012 for Cienfuegos in the Cuban National Series. Moncada, 21, is the centerpiece of a four-player package acquired from the Boston Red Sox for Chris Sale on Tuesday, a toolsy infielder who MLB.com has rated as the No. 1 prospect in baseball.

While the concept of Abreu mentoring Moncada has plenty of merit — the first baseman's work ethic is outstanding, and he's beloved by coaches and teammates — don't think the White Sox would hesitate to trade him if someone paid the right price. White Sox general manager Rick Hahn just spent four days at the Winter Meetings discussing how a team that just traded away its best pitcher and position player remains open to listening to all offers and is prepared to do what is must to get the franchise healthy again. 

"We're extremely open-minded on ways to continue the process that we started," Hahn said earlier this week, adding that the White Sox "have to make some painful decisions."

The White Sox have grown tired of never having all the pieces — or even more than a few — to fill the holes created by injury, poor performance, etc. They want to be flush with young talent and essentially have said anything that isn't nailed down at Guaranteed Rate Field is available with the exceptions of Tim Anderson and Carlos Rodon.

The team wants to cash in on the chips it possesses.

While they don't have a ton, the few the White Sox have could help expedite a rebuild process as the Sale and Eaton trades have shown. Those deals brought back seven players, including three who played at the big league level last season (Moncada, Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez). Some of those players potentially would start 2017 in the big leagues, and that possibility increases the internal value of Abreu and starting pitcher Jose Quintana, who is equally revered among teammates and coaches for his dedication and team-first mentality. 

Having those young players see firsthand what it takes to excel in the majors from veteran teammates is invaluable. Abreu, who arrived in the United States from Cuba in late 2013, addressed that point in his statement about Moncada, who signed with Boston in 2015.

"Moncada is a five-tool player," Abreu said. "He really has everything needed to succeed, and I know that with the proper guidance of veteran players and coaches with experience he can become an All-Star caliber player."

"He is going to make a huge impact in the White Sox organization, and both the fans and the team will be thankful.

"I already spoke with him to welcome him to the team. I told him that I'm going to be there for him for everything that he needs on and off the field."

In a conference call Wednesday, Moncada said he's "thrilled" to once again play with Abreu. Whether they will hasn't yet been determined.

When asked about Moncada's 2017 starting point earlier in the week, Hahn said the 21-year still needs to develop. Moncada appeared in eight big league games last season for Boston and struggled with contact, striking out 12 times in 20 plate appearances. But that promotion came after a meteoric rise through Boston's farm system, an aggressive path that included only 45 games played above High-A. Nothing has been announced, but it appears Moncada will receive an invite to big league camp next spring and be seated near Abreu in the clubhouse. 

Still, Hahn sounds like he intends for Moncada to spend much of 2017 refining his approach in the minors. He also has demonstrated he is willing to dig deep and make more painful moves if it betters the team in the long run, all of which means the White Sox wouldn't hesitate to trade Abreu or Quintana if they get what they want.

Lucas Giolito striving to contribute to White Sox 'as soon as possible'.

By Paul Roumeliotis

(Photo/csnchicago.com)

At one point, it was looking like Lucas Giolito could be headed to the White Sox in exchange for Chris Sale.

But when Sale was dealt to the Boston Red Sox, Giolito's name was in the clear of rumors — until 29 hours later, when the Nationals' top prospect would be headed to Chicago in a different trade, which sent outfielder Adam Eaton to Washington.

“It’s kind of like the world we live in now. Social media is always out there and everything is on Twitter,” Giolito said in a conference call Friday. “I saw my name being mentioned on Twitter for Chris Sale. I know with the winter meetings all sorts of stuff being thrown around. I was just trying to focus on what I’m doing in this offseason which is lifting and all my workouts. Kind of just whatever happens, happens. 

“It’s funny that Sale ended up going to the Red Sox and something else happens that I’m going to the White Sox now with a couple teammates. It’s really interesting stuff but I’m super excited.”

The move for Rick Hahn & Co. to acquire Giolito was the second major trade to begin the White Sox rebuilding process. But Giolito didn't come alone.

In addition, the White Sox received Reynaldo Lopez — who Giolito has played with since 2014 — and the Nationals' 2016 first-round pick Dane Dunning.

"I definitely think it’s amazing to be coming over to the White Sox with a bunch of young talent," Giolito said. "I think it’s a great opportunity for us to all develop and get better and hopefully put a really good team together in Chicago. Definitely excited to be coming over with a couple guys from my previous organization."

Giolito went 6-5 with a 2.97 ERA and 1.28 WHIP across three minor-league levels this past season. He admitted his mechanics weren't quite in sync and is looking to improve on that.

"Sometimes things get out of whack. I believe I let too much get out of whack last year," Giolito said. "So this year with my training program I have in this offseason — lifting and Pilates and everything — I’m just trying to make sure that I can stay as athletic as possible so I’m able to repeat the right delivery more often. Once I start playing catch and doing bullpens and everything these next few weeks, right before spring training, I’m going to make sure I put that all together so I can repeat my delivery as best as possible."

His struggles continued when he got to The Show.

In his major-league debut on June 28, Giolito held the New York Mets to just one hit over four scoreless innings before a rain delay cut his night short. That turned out to be his most effective outing of the season as he finished the year with an 0-1 record, 6.75 ERA and 1.78 WHIP in six games with the Nationals, four of them being starts.

"(My MLB debut) didn’t go as well as I would’ve liked it to go, obviously, as you look at the numbers and everything," he said, "but I feel that with the White Sox now (and) getting traded and everything, it’s kind of like a fresh opportunity and a new start to get up to the big leagues again and contribute and do everything I can to stay there as well."

Golf: I got a club for that..... David Duval, stepson Karavites team for Father/Son Challenge win.

By Ryan Ballengee

David Duval is a winner again as a professional. (Photo/Getty Images)

David Duval hadn’t won a televised professional golf tournament since he hoisted the Claret Jug at the 2001 British Open. That skid came to an end on Sunday.

Duval and his stepson Nick Karavites shot a 10-under 62 in the final round at Grande Lakes in Florida to win the PNC Father/Son Challenge by a stroke. Their 21-under 123 total in the 36-hole event beat 2013 winners Stewart and Connor Cink, newcomers Retief and Leo Goosen, and Fred and Taylor Funk.

The pair birdied six of the first seven holes on Sunday, turning in 7 under par before making three birdies on the back nine. Turned out, that was good enough to hang on for the win.

“This is as good as anything,” Duval said. “It truly is. I know it’s not winning The Players or something like that, but this is what the progression of life is. To be able to come out in a professional event and win and have the whole family here, I’ll never forget it.”

The Funks shot 62, while the Goosens and Cinks shot 61 in the final round.

The Duval duo won $200,000 with the victory, but that wasn’t what made the victory special for Karavites.

“Being here with my mom, my brothers and my stepdad, it was amazing,” Karavites said. “We were playing so good and it didn’t seem like too much pressure. Just being with David out here, I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time.”

John Daly and his son, little John, were big hits over the weekend, with son like dad in terms of look and grip-it-and-rip-it approach. They finished tied for ninth with a final round of 63.

English, Kuchar win Shootout.

By Associated Press

(By Golf Channel Digital)

Harris English and Matt Kuchar won the Franklin Templeton Shootout on Saturday, holding off Wisconsin friends Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly by a stroke at Tiburon.

English and Kuchar also won in 2013 in their first start together and finished second the last two years.

"It's a thrilling event to come out with a win, amazing feeling," Kuchar said. "I think it's just such a fun partnership we've had. We've had such a good run. To have our last four events together, to have our track record be first, second, second, first is quite amazing."

English eagled the par-5 17th and they closed with a 7-under 65 in better-ball play to finish at 28 under.

"We had some good action there and it kind of came down to the last couple holes and kind of set up perfect on 17 for me," English said. "Really reachable par 5 and hit a really good drive off the tee and knew Kuch was in really good position so I could play really aggressive. Hit a really good 8-iron right where I wanted to and made about a 12-footer."

"That's the difference in these events," Kuchar said. "Pulling out some shots like that, getting an eagle, getting that two-shot swing, that's a big deal. This event comes down to you need to make birdies, you need to make some scores under par, and to do it on the 17th hole today and the position and the situation we were in, it was a battle. We weren't making a huge number of birdies. It's not like we were just battling with birdies, it was a fairly challenging day. But for Harris to come through and eagle 17 and give us that one-shot lead."

Stricker and Kelly also shot 65.

"We just couldn't get that momentum," Stricker said. "A shot here or there. Jerry played great. Wish I could have helped him out a couple more times. I had some putts at it I didn't make, but it was fun. Harris made an eagle. I knew somebody was going to do something there. It was just playing too short. He hit two great shots there at 17 and that was the difference really."

English and Kuchar each earned $385,000. They opened with a 57 on Thursday in the scramble round and had a 66 on Friday in modified alternate shot.

Charley Hoffman and Billy Horschel were third at 26 under after a 61.

Lexi Thompson and Bryson DeChambeau tied for last at 16 under after a 67. Thompson became the second woman to compete in the event, following Annika Sorenstam with Fred Couples in 2006.

Palmer Masters trophy goes for $444K at auction.

By Will Gray

(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)

A trophy awarded to Arnold Palmer for one of his four Masters victories was sold at auction Sunday to an anonymous bidder for $444,012.

The trophy was sold by Green Jacket Auctions. It is believed to be the second-highest price paid for a piece of golf memorabilia behind only the green jacket Horton Smith received for his 1936 Masters win, which sold in 2013 for $682,229.

Palmer, who won the Masters in 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1964, passed away in September at age 87.

Augusta National Golf Club presents a trophy in addition to the green jacket to each tournament winner, and the club began offering the hardware in 1993. At that point, past champions were allowed to purchase one for each of their wins. According to an ESPN report, Palmer purchased three trophies and authorized the fourth purchase to be made by Bay Creek Resort in Virginia, where Palmer opened a course in 2001.

The trophy cost about $17,000 in 2005, and the club reportedly planned to feature it in an on-property museum. Instead, the club sold it to a foreign collector in 2013 without notifying the Palmer family, a decision the family termed "disappointing."

"It was always Arnold's intention that this trophy would be placed in an appropriate museum or institution with which he was personally associated," the family said in a statement. "We hope that the winning bidder in this auction will allow the trophy to be publicly displayed so that it can be appreciated by fans of Arnold Palmer for years to come."

NASCAR: Jimmie Johnson finds himself with a very telling and spot-on fortune.

By Jerry Bonkowski

(Photo/Getty Images)

As the old saying goes, “When you’re hot, you’re hot.”

And oftentimes with being hot, so too comes good fortune.

Such is the case for 2016 and seven-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson.

Less than a month after tying NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt for most championships earned in a career, Johnson took to Twitter Saturday and posted a photo of what appears to be a rather telling fortune from a fortune cookie.

Johnson did not post any words with the tweet — just a check mark — letting the photo tell the story for him.

It’s true — a picture really does tell 1,000 words:

Greg Biffle has ‘several offers’ for rides next season.

By Daniel McFadin

(Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images)

Greg Biffle says he has “several offers” on the table when it comes to potential places for him to race in 2017.

Biffle mutually split with Roush Fenway Racing the day after NASCAR’s premiere series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The driver gave an update on Twitter after being asked by a fan what his plans were for next season.

Biffle had been with Roush since 1998 and competed in the premiere series since 2002. He was the longest tenured driver with Roush, earning 19 premiere series wins, the last coming in 2013. At 46, Biffle was the oldest full-time driver in the premiere series in 2016.

With Biffle’s departure, Roush announced it would only run two cars in the premier series next season.

Oh, Canada: NASCAR reveals 2017 Pinty’s Series schedule.

By Jerry Bonkowski

NASCAR’s Home Tracks division has announced the schedule for the 2017 NASCAR Pinty’s Series in Canada.

It will be the second season with Pinty’s as entitlement sponsor for the series.

The 13-race series will be contested over a four-month period, starting with the season-opening race on May 21 at Canada’s Victoria Day weekend on the road course at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ont.

The suburban Toronto track will also host the series on Sept. 3 as part of a weekend that features a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race there.

The Pinty’s Series will also serve as an undercard for the Toronto Honda Indy Exhibition Place street course race along Toronto’s Lake Ontario waterfront on July 15.

“From Cayden Lapcevich’s (the former youngest champion in NASCAR history at 16 years old) memorable championship campaign, to the thrilling battles between Quebec’s favorites Andrew Ranger, Alex Tagliani, Kevin Lacroix and Alex Labbe, the 2016 NASCAR Pinty’s Series was one for the record books,” George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president of weekly & touring series, said in a media release. “With the newly released schedule, the 2017 season is shaping to take that excitement to the next level. The mix of world-class road courses and challenging ovals will provide a great test for drivers and teams, and excite fans across Canada.”

The series’ annual West Coast swing will have a new look, visiting Wyant Group Raceway in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan for a pair of races on July 25, which will mark the halfway part of the season, followed by a race July 29 at Edmonton International Raceway in Alberta.

In another unique twist, the seventh annual visit to the Circuit ICAR roadcourse on Montreal’s Mirabel International Airport will be contested under the lights on July 8.

The series also returns to Delaware Speedway in Ontario.

The season ends Sept. 16 at Kawartha Speedway in Fraserville, Ontario, which will mark the 11th consecutive year the track has hosted the season finale.

2017 NASCAR PINTY’S SERIES SCHEDULE

Date	Track	Location
21-May	Canadian Tire Motorsport Park	Bowmanville, Ont.
3-Jun	Delaware Speedway	Delaware, Ont.
17-Jun	Autodrome Chaudiere	Chaudiere, Que.
8-Jul	Circuit ICAR	Mirabel, Que.
15-Jul	Exhibition Place	Toronto, Ont.
25-Jul	Wyant Group Raceway*	Saskatoon, Sask.
25-Jul	Wyant Group Raceway*	Saskatoon, Sask.
29-Jul	Edmonton International Raceway	Wetaskiwin, Alb.
13-Aug	Circuit Trois-Rivières	Trois-Rivières, Que.
19-Aug	Riverside International Speedway	Antigonish, N.S.
3-Sep	Canadian Tire Motorsport Park	Bowmanville, Ont.
9-Sep	Autodrome St-Eustache	St. Eustache, Que.
16-Sep	Kawartha Speedway	Fraserville, Ont.

*100-lap twin features

SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

SOCCER: It's official: Fire trade Sean Johnson.

By Dan Santaromita

(Photo/USA TODAY)

It wasn’t a well kept secret that Sean Johnson was being traded by the Chicago Fire in advance of Tuesday’s expansion draft, but the twist is that Johnson isn’t landing in Atlanta as originally expected.

Days after word of the Johnson trade to Atlanta broke, ESPN’s Taylor Twellman reported that American national team goalkeeper Brad Guzan would be signing for the expansion club for the 2017 season. That made Atlanta’s acquisition of Johnson, an Atlanta area native, somewhat unnecessary.

Suddenly, instead of leaving Chicago to become the starting goalkeeper at his hometown club, Johnson was looking at being a backup to a national teamer.

Johnson's move became official on Sunday during the league's three-hour trading window before the expansion draft. The Fire traded Johnson to Atlanta United FC for general allocation money. Johnson was then immediately shipped to New York City FC for both general and targeted allocation money.

Johnson, 27, had been with the Fire his entire pro career since being drafted in 2010. Johnson was by far the longest tenured player on the Fire’s roster. His departure, along with Razvan Cocis not having his option picked up in November, means Collin Fernandez now takes over that title. Fernandez signed with the Fire as a homegrown player in August of 2014, but wasn’t eligible to play with the first team until 2015.

Johnson penned a thank you letter to Fire fans upon his exit, which was posted on the Fire's official website.

"This is by far one of the toughest things I’ve ever had to put in words," Johnson said. "The past seven years has been an incredible journey starting with a dream turned into an opportunity, eventually becoming a place that I am proud to call home. I never thought this day would come, but unfortunately this chapter of my life is coming to a close."

Johnson totaled 176 regular season appearances with the Fire in seven seasons. He also started the Fire’s only playoff match in those seven years. Johnson leaves the Fire with the ninth most appearances in club history, second among goalkeepers behind Zach Thornton.

This past season Johnson made 22 starts in goal after sitting the first nine matches of the season while Matt Lampson began the season as the apparent No. 1. Johnson figures to contend with NYCFC's returning goalkeeper Josh Saunders, who has started 66 of the club's 68 matches.

The move means the Fire have an opening at goalkeeper. Whether or not Matt Lampson becomes the No. 1, as he was for the start of 2016, the Fire only have one goalkeeper under contract after declining Patrick McLain’s option.

The trade also marks the second offseason in a row that one of the most popular players on the club was traded away. In February, homegrown player and former Rookie of the Year finalist Harry Shipp was traded to Montreal.

In addition, the Fire could have as few as one player unprotected ahead of the expansion draft. The Fire can protect 11 players and homegrowns aren’t eligible to be selected. The Fire currently have 16 players under contract and four of those are homegrowns, meaning only 12 players are eligible for the expansion draft and would need to be protected. The list of protected players comes out tomorrow.

Frei leads Sounders to first MLS Cup title in penalty kicks.

By Nicholas Mendola

(Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP)

With tackles that matched the bitter temperature, Toronto FC and Seattle Sounders had little trouble providing intensity.

Goals were another story.

In a game only its champion could love, the Sounders defeated TFC in penalty kicks at BMO Field on Saturday after 120 minutes of 0-0 play with precious few threats on goal.

After the teams traded goals to start PKs, Michael Bradley flubbed his shot right to Stefan Frei. But Clint Irwin stopped Alvaro Fernandez’s shot, Seattle’s third attempt, to keep things 2-2.

It went to bonus kicks, and Justin Morrow hit the bar to set the table for Roman Torres. Yes, the big man, and he nailed it.

The first chance belonged to Altidore, who took a classy ball from Giovinco and had his far post shot deflected off Roman Torres for a corner.

Giovinco had trouble with his service in the cold, and a fifth minute offering was returned by Joevin Jones on a long counter which finished in the hands of Clint Irwin.

Seattle gained its footing and held the ball deep in Toronto’s end, but wasn’t able to trouble Irwin. Jonathan Osorio was next to trouble a keeper, though ex-Reds backstop Frei collected his effort.

A scary moment arrived in the 27th minute, as Giovinco ripped a left-footed effort into Roman Torres’ face just inside the 18. The Sounders defender fell hard (and surely the 25 degree weather didn’t help the impact).

Justin Morrow then supplied a lofted cross from the left fringe that Altidore headed down to a sliding Frei. Still 0-0, 30′

Service left a lot to be desired on set pieces, and Giovinco earned a free kick before firing it off the wall in the 39th minute.

Giovinco teed one up right after the break, but hit it off the outside of the net with the outside of his boot and it remained scoreless.

Though the chances remained scarce, the hosts had a few. Bradley picked out Giovinco with a diagonal ball that the Italian slid square for Altidore. The striker was held from getting to the ball, but no call came and Toronto won a corner that came to nothing.

The chippy play continued, and the chances remained few. Seattle called upon Andreas Ivanschitz  and Toronto turned to Will Johnson and ECF hero Benoit Cheyrou. Extra time seemed predestined, and so it came to pass.

Cheyrou won a corner with a left-footed shot just after play resumed. Giovinco teed him up for a similar chance three minutes later, but Frei collected the low offering. That was about it for the first 15 of ET.

Toronto’s third sub was Tosaint Ricketts, and he took a ball out of the air from 15 yards only to miss wide of the right post. Kicks were looming. Ricketts then picked out Altidore in the center of the box, but Frei flew to palm the headed ball off the line (WATCH HERE).

Seattle nearly went on top via a deep throw-in, as Lodeiro spied Torres at the back post and Beitashour whiffed on his attempted clearance. Irwin grabbed the loose ball first.

La Liga & Serie A: Sevilla win big in race for 3rd; Juve go 7 points clear.

By Andy Edwards

(Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

A roundup of Sunday’s action in Spain and Italy’s top flights…

Celta Vigo 0-3 Sevilla

Sevilla’s 3-0 victory away to Celta sent Jorge Sampaoli’s side six points clear of Atletico Madrid, who play on Monday, in the race for Spain’s third and final automatic spot in the UEFA Champions League group stage.

The goals came from an unlikely source, Vicente Iborra, a defensive midfielder who entered Sunday’s game without a single goal scored in any competition for Sevilla this season. At the end of 90 minutes at Balaidos Municipal Stadium, the Spaniard had three goals to his name, all of which were scored in the second half.

Elsewhere in La Liga

Espanyol 2-1 Sporting Gijon

Real Betis 1-0 Athletic Bilbao

Eibar 0-0 Alaves

Monday’s La Liga schedule

Villarreal vs. Atletico Madrid — 2:45 p.m. ET

Torino 1-3 Juventus

Juventus fell behind early, to Andrea Belotti’s opener in the 16th minute (his 11th league goal of the season), but Gonzalo Higuain celebrated his 29th birthday with a pair of goals (nos. 8 and 9 in his first season in Turin) before Miralem Pjanic added the third in second-half stoppage time, as Juve prevailed in the Turin derby and went seven points clear of joint-second-place title chasers Roma and AC Milan, who will square off on Monday.

Cagliari 0-5 Napoli

Dries Mertens bagged a hat trick of his own as Napoli steamrolled 14th-place Cagliari away from home, moving to within a single point of Roma and Milan in the chase for Champions League qualification. Marek Hamsik and Piotr Zielinski also tallied on the day in extending a suddenly resurgent Napoli side’s unbeaten run to five games.

Elsewhere in Serie A

Inter Milan 2-0 Genoa

Atalanta 1-3 Udinese

Palermo 0-2 Chievo

Bologna 0-0 Empoli

Monday’s Serie A schedule

Fiorentina vs. Sassuolo — 1 p.m. ET

Roma vs. AC Milan — 3 p.m. ET

PL roundup: Leicester shock Man City; Arsenal go top (for now).

By Andy Edwards

(Photo by Christopher Lee/Getty Images)

A roundup of Saturday’s action in the Premier League…

Leicester City 4-2 Manchester City — FULL RECAP

Here’s one from the way-back (to last year) machine: Jamie Vardy‘s hat trick propelled Leicester to a surprise win over Manchester City at the King Power Stadium. The Foxes were 3-0 up after 20 minutes — two of the three goals Vardy’s handiwork; Andy King tallied Leicester’s second — and 4-0 up after 78 minutes, thanks to the completion of Vardy’s hat trick. Aleksandar Kolarov and Nolito grabbed consolation goals for City inside the final 10 minutes. With the defeat, City fail to move to within a point of league-leading Arsenal and Chelsea, and will finish the weekend in fifth if Tottenham Hotspur can knock off Manchester United on Sunday. Leicester, meanwhile, have risen to 14th place.

Arsenal 3-1 Stoke City — FULL RECAP

Arsenal found themselves a goal down, at home to Stoke, before the Gunners awoke to secure a 3-1 victory and overtake Chelsea for the PL’s top spot (Chelsea host West Bromwich Albion on Sunday). Theo Walcott brought Arsenal level just before halftime, Mesut Ozil made it 2-1 not long into the second half, and Alex Iwobi put the game away with Arsenal’s third in the 75th minute. The win moves Arsenal to 14 league games without a loss, having tasted defeat just once all season, on the opening day in August.

Hull City 3-3 Crystal Palace — FULL RECAP

Hull and Palace went back and forth, from the Tigers’ 1-0 lead after 27 minutes (Robert Snodgrass), to Palace’s 2-1 lead in the 70th minute (Christian Benteke and Wilfried Zaha), to Hull’s 3-2 lead just eight minutes later (Adama Diamonde and Jake Livermore), before finally settling on a 3-3 draw (Frazier Campbell) at the KCOM Stadium. Hull remain 19th in the league table, now level on points with 17th-place Swansea City.

Swansea City 3-0 Sunderland — FULL RECAP

Swansea find themselves outside the relegation zone for the first time since Oct. 1, thanks to a resounding triumph over Sunderland at the Liberty Stadium. Gylfi Sigurdsson put Bob Bradley‘s Swans ahead with a penalty kick in the 51st minute, quickly followed by Fernando Llorente to make it 2-0, and the Spaniard once more in the 80th minute to round out the scoring. Swansea go from 20th to 17th with the result, while David Moyes and Sunderland now find themselves bottom of the league.

Watford 3-2 Everton — FULL RECAP

Everton are winless in their last five league games (one win in their last 10) after coughing up an early lead and losing away to Watford. Romelu Lukaku fired Ronald Koeman‘s Toffees ahead in the 17th minute, but a brace from Stefano Okaka and Sebastian Prodl‘s first goal of the season made it 3-1 before the big Belgian could bag his second of the game. The win sees Watford climb all the way up to seventh in the league, leapfrogging five sides in doing so; one of the five, Everton, falls to ninth.

Burnley 3-2 Bournemouth — FULL RECAP

Jeff Hendrick scored himself a goal of the season candidate (WATCH HERE) and Stephen Ward scored his first goal of the season for Burnley, all before the clock told 16 minutes gone. Benik Afobe pulled Bournemouth back to 2-1 in first-half stoppage time, but George Boyd restored the two-goal lead in the 75th minute, which turned out to be the game-winner after Charlie Daniels made it 3-2 in second-half stoppage time. Burnley are 13th, five points clear of relegation, with Bournemouth now 11th, one point ahead.

Stanford tops Wake Forest in PKs, wins 2nd straight NCAA title.

Associated Press

(AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)

Andrew Epstein made two diving saves and Corey Baird and Sam Werner scored Stanford’s final shootout goals to give the Cardinal their second straight College Cup title Sunday, 5-4 over Wake Forest after the teams played 110 scoreless minutes.

Stanford didn’t allow a goal in the tournament, becoming the first team since Wisconsin in 1995 to accomplish the feat and win the national championship.

The game was the sixth national championship to go to penalty kicks, and the first since Virginia beat UCLA in 2014. Stanford beat Wake Forest 2-1 in overtime in the quarterfinals last season on the way to its first national championship.

Cardinal coach Jeremy Gunn improved to 4-1-1 in the College Cup. Prior to leading Stanford to the national championship last season, Gunn guided Charlotte to the 2011 College Cup as well.

Wake Forest came out firing in the second half, recording three shots and a corner in seven minutes.

Stanford answered with its attack and Wake Forest goalkeeper Andreu Cases Mundet was solid. In the 71st minute, Mundet saved a goal laying on his back and somehow keeping the ball from crossing the line fully. Seven minutes later, he dove left to deflect away Adrian Alabi’s header.

The opening 30 minutes belonged to Stanford, with the Cardinal outshooting Wake Forest 4-1 and holding a 3-1 edge in corner opportunities. Two of the corner attempts came in the opening five minutes.

Wake Forest ended up outshooting Stanford 10-9, and leading 5-4 in corners.

Demon Deacons made a push toward the end of the first half, firing a pair of shots toward goal.

NCAAFB: Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson wins the 2016 Heisman Trophy.

By Bryan Fischer

(Photo/Getty Images)

It was his in September and it was his in December.

Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson completed a storybook season on Saturday night in New York City to become the winner of the 82nd Heisman Trophy as college football’s most outstanding player.

Jackson’s numbers were simply overwhelming in 2016 and put him in a class of his own even if the Cardinals faltered a bit down the stretch in losing their final two games. The quarterback accounted for an ACC-record 51 touchdowns on the year and joined fellow Heisman winners Cam Newton and Tim Tebow as only the third player to throw for over 30 scores and run for another 20. In total, he found the end zone more than all but 38 FBS teams this season.

In addition to becoming the first Louisville player ever to win the award (and first finalist, period), Jackson is just the fourth sophomore to capture the honor and the 10th ACC player overall to win the Heisman. The signal-caller also becomes the youngest Heisman Trophy winner ever at 19 years and 337 days old, beating Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston by five days at the time of his win.

All told, he led the Cardinals to a 9-3 record and finished the season with 3,390 passing yards, 30 touchdowns and nine interceptions to go along with 1,538 yards and 21 touchdowns on the ground.

Jackson finished with 2,144 points and was the overwhelming choice in the Heisman race, winning every single region of the country and finishing with the sixth-biggest win. Clemson’s Deshaun Watson, making the trip to the ceremony for the second straight season, finished as the runner-up with 1,524 points. Voters were only allowed three choices on their ballot.

Oklahoma teammates Baker Mayfield (third, 361 points) and Dede Westbrook (fourth, 209 points) finished back-to-back behind the two ACC quarterbacks. Fellow finalist Jabrill Peppers of Michigan wound up fifth with 208 points.

Washington quarterback Jake Browning (sixth), Alabama defensive lineman Jonathan Allen (seventh), Texas tailback D'Onta Foreman (eighth) and Stanford all-purpose star Christian McCaffrey (ninth) rounded out the voting while Florida State’s Dalvin Cook and San Diego State Donnel Pumphrey both tied for 10th.

All had incredible seasons but none could come close to the eventual winner in Jackson, who threw, hurdled and stiff-armed his way to the trophy and into college football history.

Army ends 14 game losing streak with turnover-filled victory over No. 25 Navy.

By Bryan Fischer

(Photo/Getty Images)

The streak is over.

After 14 consecutive losses, countless heartbreaks and some of the most amazing moments in college football on either side, Army finally chased away their demons and beat rival Navy 21-17 on Saturday night in Baltimore.

Turnovers were the hallmark in the game for both sides: a whopping seven combined, along with a handful of other close calls that nearly added to that total. Three of the first four drives in the game ended with a giveaway and a pair of fumbles in the third quarter by Army allowed their rivals to quickly get back into a game they had nearly given away early on.

It was still a rough first half for Navy starting quarterback Zach Abey, who was in the stands at this game last year and was the team’s third-stringer most of the season under center. However the signal-caller pressed into starting duty because of injuries picked things up after halftime and helped the Midshipmen storm back to take the lead in the fourth quarter with a 41 yard touchdown to cap a run of 17 straight points.

But Army would not be denied a victory, which included an appearance by President-elect Donald Trump in the stands and in the CBS broadcast booth. The team put together an 80 yard drive over 12 plays that featured a key 4th down conversion before Ahmad Bradshaw (51 yards rushing, one touchdown) plowed through the defense to find the end zone from nine yards out. That helped the Black Knights re-take the lead with just six minutes remaining.

Navy would go three-and-out on the next drive thanks to a big defensive stand and Army milked away the rest of the clock to secure a win that was their first in the series since 2001.

That set off a raucous celebration that included a field storming by hundreds of cadets and, no doubt, plenty of cheers from the armed forces around the world looking on.

South Florida hires Charlie Strong.

By Nick Bromberg

Charlie Strong spent three years as Texas’ head coach after four at Louisville. (Photo/Getty)

Charlie Strong didn’t have to wait long to find another head coaching job.

South Florida announced Sunday the hiring of the former Texas coach to replace Willie Taggart, who left to become the head coach at Oregon last week.

“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Charlie, his wife, Vicki, and their children Tory, Hailee and Hope, back to the state of Florida and to our Bulls family,” USF director of athletics Mark Harlan said. “Charlie is a tremendous leader and mentor for our student-athletes and a widely-respected coach with a resume full of achievements at the highest levels of college football. He combines a drive to win with great integrity and deep, long-standing connections in the state of Florida. The future of USF football is very bright under his direction.”

Texas fired Strong at the conclusion of the season. The Longhorns finished the year 5-7 and were 16-21 in Strong’s three years with the school. He was hired to replace Mack Brown after Brown stepped down following the 2014 season.

USF enjoyed a resurgence under Taggart. The Bulls’ record improved in each of Taggart’s four seasons with the school and USF finished 10-2 in 2016. USF will play South Carolina in the Birmingham Bowl.

Before he was hired at Texas, Strong was 37-15 in four seasons at Louisville. The Cardinals went 23-3 in Strong’s final two seasons and won the Sugar Bowl (2012) and Russell Athletic Bowl (2013).

Strong came to Louisville after spending seven years as Florida’s defensive coordinator under Ron Zook and Urban Meyer. Those Florida ties will prove valuable in recruiting as USF tries to keep its place in a suddenly-crowded state landscape. Central Florida rebounded to make a bowl game in 2016 after a winless 2015 and Miami went 8-4 under new coach Mark Richt.

NCAABKB: Eight snap judgments from an eventful college basketball weekend.

By Jeff Eisenberg

Bryce Alford helped UCLA torch Michigan for 102 points Saturday night (Photo/AP)

Three Big East teams won marquee games. UCLA and Michigan put on a first-half shooting display for the ages. Shorthanded North Carolina survived a scare.

It was an eventful weekend in college basketball. Here are eight snap judgments:

1. UCLA’s offense is the nation’s most lethal

How demoralizing must the halftime score have been for Michigan on Saturday night? The Wolverines shot 65.5 percent from the field, buried 12 of 16 attempts from behind the arc and jogged to the locker room tied with UCLA after Lonzo Ball knocked down a long 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer.

While Michigan’s torrid shooting slowed down in the second half, UCLA maintained its pace. The second-ranked Bruins scored an astonishing 1.59 points per possession over the course of the game and pulled away for a 102-84 victory.

Saturday’s performance against a Michigan team that had been solid defensively cemented UCLA as the nation’s most efficient offense. The freewheeling, hot-shooting Bruins are bringing “Showtime” basketball back to Los Angeles by averaging 97.5 points per game and a national-best 1.25 points per possession.

In addition to his contagious eagerness to push the pace and make the extra pass, Ball’s presence at point guard has allowed Bryce Alford and Isaac Hamilton to do what they do best — play off ball, run off screens and look to score. Fellow freshman T.J. Leaf has also emerged as multifaceted scorer capable of knocking down pick-and-pop mid-range jumpers or baby hooks from the low block.

2. Josh Hart isn’t just a player of the year candidate — he’s the early favorite.  

In a season in which nobody had emerged as a clear-cut early frontrunner in the national player of the year race, Villanova’s Josh Hart may have just changed that. The best player on the nation’s top-ranked team kept the Wildcats undefeated on Saturday with a one-man tour de force against Notre Dame.

With Villanova trailing by nine midway through the second half and in desperate need of a spark, Hart hoisted his team onto his back. Eighteen of the senior guard’s career-high 37 points came during the final 13 minutes of the game, rallying the Wildcats to a 74-66 victory in a battle of two of college basketball’s final eight unbeaten teams.

Hart had a hand in almost every key basket of Villanova’s comeback, from a steal and layup to cut the deficit to five, to a deep 3-pointer that sliced it to three, to a driving layup that pulled the Wildcats within one. His 37 points on 14 shots matched the scoring output the rest of the Wildcats managed on 36 field goal attempts. Eleven rebounds and four assists from Hart were also both team highs.

There are still plenty of other national player of the year contenders around the country, from Kansas’ Frank Mason, to UCLA’s Lonzo Ball, to Duke’s Luke Kennard. But for now, they’re all chasing Hart, who so far is college basketball’s best all-around player.

3. Duke is still the team to beat 

The window for opposing teams to catch Duke at less than full strength may soon slam shut. The preseason No. 1 Blue Devils looked worthy of that honor Saturday night when they rolled to a 94-45 rout of overmatched UNLV.

Grayson Allen, the preseason All-American who had been hampered by a toe injury for the past few weeks, regained the explosiveness he had been lacking. He scored a career high 34 points, sank 12 of 16 shots and threw down a soaring one-handed dunk that was among the most impressive of the season so far.

Jayson Tatum and Marques Bolden, two of Duke’s three heralded freshmen sidelined by injuries to start the season, continued to shake off the rust by combining for 19 points off the bench. Once projected lottery pick Harry Giles returns from his latest knee injury later this month, the Blue Devils will be able to unleash their entire freshman class.

A healthy Duke could be even scarier than anticipated before the season because projected role players Luke Kennard and Amile Jefferson have exceeded expectations. With their teammates sidelined or hurting, Kennard has averaged 20 points and risen to the forefront of the player of the year race, while Jefferson has chipped in 15.1 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.

4. North Carolina needs Joel Berry back in time for Kentucky

While North Carolina rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to survive Tennessee’s upset bid on Sunday night, the Tar Heels’ uneven performance made one thing abundantly clear. They could be in trouble next Saturday against Kentucky if star point guard Joel Berry’s ankle injury hasn’t yet fully healed.

Berry, North Carolina’s second-leading scorer and best playmaker, is averaging 14.8 points and 4.7 assists and shooting 41.9 percent from behind the arc. Backup Nate Britt is a capable distributor and pesky defender, however, he is less of a threat either scoring off the dribble or as a jump shooter.

In two starts in Berry’s absence, Britt is just 4 of 22 from the field. Opposing defenders are able to sag off Britt and clog the middle of the floor because they don’t respect his ability to sink spot-up jumpers.

Credit North Carolina for finding a way to overcome Berry’s absence and Isaiah Hicks’ foul trouble on Sunday, but this came at home against rebuilding Tennessee, a program expected to finish in the bottom half of the SEC. The Tar Heels will need Berry’s scoring and playmaking against Kentucky and its latest stable of talented freshmen.

5. The Mountain West’s fate may be sealed

No longer is a second straight one-bid season just a chilling possibility for the beleaguered Mountain West. It’s now a near certainty after a weekend in which preseason Mountain West favorites San Diego State and New Mexico both suffered dismal losses.

The Aztecs (4-4) lost at home to Pac-12 bottom feeder Arizona State on Saturday, the maraschino cherry on top of a crushing eight-day stretch that also included road losses to Loyola (Chicago) and Grand Canyon. The Lobos (6-4) fell Saturday at in-state rival New Mexico State and are still in search of their first victory over an opponent in the top 125 of Ken Pomeroy’s ratings.

Poor starts aren’t catastrophic for power-conference programs with ample opportunities for quality wins in league play, but the Mountain West affords no such chances. The Mountain West collectively owns just two victories over top 50 opponents, San Diego State’s neutral-court win over No. 50 Cal and Boise State’s upset of No. 44 SMU.

A year ago, San Diego State went 16-2 in league play, reached the title game of the Mountain West tournament and still landed in the NIT. Whoever wins the league this season will likely face a similar fate if they don’t win the Mountain West tournament.

6. Notre Dame’s strong start is no mirage 

The lingering question about Notre Dame’s 8-0 start was whether it was more a result of the Irish’s schedule or talent. The only credible opponents they had beaten were Colorado, Iowa and Northwestern, none of whom are surefire NCAA tournament teams.

Although Notre Dame suffered its first loss at the hands of Villanova on Saturday afternoon, the Irish validated their early success more than they had in any of their previous victories. They led the top-ranked team in the nation for 31 minutes before Josh Hart’s 34-point onslaught enabled Villanova to overtake them and finally put them away in the final minute.

Notre Dame’s success is especially impressive considering all the talent the Irish have lost from back-to-back Elite Eight teams. They’ve said goodbye to Jerian Grant, Pat Connaughton, Demetrius Jackson and Zach Auguste the past two years, yet they appear poised to finish in the upper half of the loaded ACC and return to the NCAA tournament once more.

What was most impressive about Notre Dame was the performance of point guard Matt Farrell, a backup on the fringes of the rotation the past two seasons. Farrell scored 18 points, dished out six assists and continued to perform like one of the nation’s most improved players.

7. The state of Florida’s best team might be Florida State

Florida State swept longtime rivals Florida and Miami in football this season to solidify itself as the state’s best team. The Seminoles may claim that title in basketball too if the outcome of Sunday’s matchup with Florida is any indication.

An 83-78 victory over the 21st-ranked Gators improved Florida State to an 10-1 to start the season. The Seminoles also have top 100 victories over Illinois and Minnesota to go with a three-point loss to Temple.

Attacking the rim has been Florida State’s greatest strength all season, and Sunday’s victory was no exception. The Seminoles scored 83 points against a formidable Florida defense despite only sinking four threes the entire game.

Six-foot-7 sophomore Dwayne Bacon was Florida State’s best player on Sunday because the Gators could not keep him out of the lane. Sixteen of Bacon’s game-high 24 points came in the second half as the Seminoles built a 13-point lead and then held off a furious Florida rally in the final minutes.

8. Wichita State will remain a factor nationally without Baker and VanVleet

Even in its first season without graduated stars Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet, Wichita State won’t fade from national relevance. The Shockers proved that Saturday by notching their most impressive win of the season on Saturday, a 76-73 victory over Oklahoma in pro-Sooners Oklahoma City.

Balanced offense, physical defense and superior depth carried Wichita State against the Sooners just like it has all season so far.

Wichita State limited the Sooners to 30.8 percent shooting by packing in its defense, walling off driving lanes and trying to force Lon Kruger’s team into taking mostly contested jump shots. The Shockers took control of the game with a methodical 14-4 run over a nine-minute stretch midway through the second half, building the nine-point cushion they needed to close out a big win.

Beating Oklahoma was the strongest sign yet that Wichita State can absorb the loss of Baker and VanVleet without too much slippage. The Shockers miss Baker’s multifaceted scoring and VanVleet’s pick-and-roll mastery, yet they’re 9-2 with victories over the Sooners and LSU and a pair of near misses against Michigan State and Louisville.

SATURDAY’S SNACKS: Villanova, Wisconsin earn good wins, UNI’s Jeremy Morgan explodes.

By Scott Phillips

(Photo/Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

GAME OF THE NIGHT: No. 1 Villanova 74, No. 23 Notre Dame 66

Josh Hart put together one of the best games we’ll see all season as he put up a career-high 37 points and 11 rebounds to will Villanova to the win. Here are the four things we learned from the game.

IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

No. 17 Wisconsin 93, Marquette 84: The Badgers avenged last season’s loss to in-state rival Marquette with a solid road win. Putting up 58 points in the second half, Wisconsin had six players finish with at least 11 players as Bronson Koenig led with 18 points. Another solid outing from Nigel Hayes as he ended up with 17 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

No. 16 Butler 75, No. 22 Cincinnati 65: The Bulldogs bounced back from a loss to Indiana State earlier in the week with a win over Cincinnati in Hinkle Fieldhouse. But the real story of this game was the continued struggles of the AAC. How close is this to being a one-bid league?

No. 2 UCLA 102, Michigan 84: The Bruins put five players in double-figures and shot 15-for-24 from three, using a late-surge to pull away from Michigan. The Wolverines finished the night shooting 50 percent from the floor, shooting 14-for-26 from three and committing just eight turnovers … and still lost by 18 points. UCLA is lethal.

Wichita State 76, Oklahoma 73: The Shockers got 17 points from Zach Brown and 13 points and six assists from Daishon Smith as they beat Oklahoma in Oklahoma City. This is a nice win for the Shockers, who should once against be the favorite to win the Missouri Valley.

STARRED

Jeremy Morgan, Northern Iowa: We saw the most impressive half of basketball of the season – and maybe the most impressive half ever – on Saturday. Morgan finished with 38 points for the Panthers in a come-from-behind win over North Dakota, and he was scoreless heading into halftime. He had two points with 16 minutes left in the game. As a team, UNI scored 49 second half points.

The craziest part? Morgan missed six second half free throws. He easily could have scored 40 points in a single half.



Preseason All-Americans: Josh Hart set his career-high with 37 points while Grayson Allen set his career-high with 34 points.

Rodney Bullock, Providence: The Friars earned another solid win over UMass as Bullock finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Bullock was 7-for-14 from the field and he went 10-for-12 from the free-throw line.

Dedric Lawson, Memphis: The sophomore just missed a triple-double as he finished with 24 points, 10 rebounds, eight blocks and three assists in a Memphis win over UAB. Lawson played all 40 minutes.

Marquise Moore, George Mason: Moore had 17 points, 16 boards and 10 assists. No one has posted a line like that since 2013 and it’s only happened twice since 2010.

Derrick Griffin, Texas Southern: Griffin’s Jaguars lost at Louisville, but he finished with 26 rebounds, 15 on the offensive end of the floor.

Tracy Abrams, Illinois: Abrams had a career-high 31 points as the Illini landed a win over Central Michigan.

STRUGGLED

Demontrae Jefferson, Texas Southern: Making his college debut against Louisville, the exciting 5-foot-7 guard showed his talent but was also very inefficient. Jefferson finished with 27 points but was 10-for-30 from the field with 11 turnovers. Watching Jefferson’s run-and-gun style is going to be fascinating this season.

San Diego State: The Aztecs lost their third in a row, this time a home game to an Arizona State team that was humiliated by their coach after a 33-point whopping against Purdue.

TOP 25

• Nebraska dug themselves a huge first half whole that they couldn’t overcome, losing to No. 3 Kansas, 89-72.
• No. 5 Duke blew out UNLV in Vegas, and Grayson Allen may not be allowed to leave the state after this act of felonious assault.
• Przemek Karnowski had 14 points and eight boards to lead No. 8 Gonzaga past Akron.
• O.G. Anunoby warmed up but he didn’t play. He wasn’t needed, either, as No. 9 Indiana smoked Houston Baptist.
• No. 11 Louisville cruised to an easy win over Texas Southern as Quentin Snider led the Cardinals with 13 points.
• J.P. Macura busted out of his shooting slump with five threes as No. 13 Xavier survived Utah at home.
• Easy win for No. 15 West Virginia as they beat VMI for a home win. Daxter Miles Jr. finished with 20 points and was 5-for-6 from three-point range.
• No. 18 Purdue raced past Cleveland State as Isaac Haas had 14 points and Caleb Swanigan had 13 points and 10 rebounds.
• The freshman duo of Rawle Alkins and Kobi Simmons each had 19 points to pace No. 20 Arizona to a win over Missouri. The Wildcats overcame foul trouble from freshman big man Lauri Markkanen as they shot 54 percent from three-point range.

NOTABLE

• Syracuse had a big win over Boston to snap a recent cold stretch. John Gillon led the Orange with 23 points while Taurean Thompson had 22 points.
• Nice home win for Houston over Rhode Island as Rob Gray scored 30 points and Danrad “Chicken” Knowles added 25 points. The Rams are 0-3 on the road and have lost four of their last six games.
• Michigan State picked up a home win over Tennessee Tech as Eron Harris led with 20 points. The Spartans struggled from the free-throw line in this one — at one point head coach Tom Izzo sat at the end of the bench in frustration.
• Pitt was able to outlast Penn State as Michael Young finished with 29 points and nine rebounds.

On This Date in Sports History: Today is Monday, December 12, 2016.

Memoriesofhistory.com

1899 - George Grant patented the wooden golf tee.

1968 - Arthur Ashe became the first black man to be ranked #1 in tennis.

1971 - Bobby Hull (Chicago Black Hawks) scored his 1000th point.

1976 - Joe Namath played his last game with the New York Jets.

1981 - Wayne Gretzky became the quickest to reach 50 goals in a season. It was in the 39th game.

1988 - Sandra Miller sued Mike Tyson for sexual harassment.

1998 - Mark Recchi (Montreal Canadiens) ended his consecutive game streak. He had played in 569 straight games. 2000 - The Texas Rangers signed Alex Rodriguez to a record breaking 10-year, $252 million contract. The contract amount broke all Major League Baseball records and all professional sports records. 

2001 - Jere Lehtinen (Dallas Stars) scored his 100th NHL goal in a game against the Buffalo Sabres.

2001 - Denver Nuggets coach Dan Issel was suspended for four games by his team for shouting a profanity and an ethnic remark at a fan.

2001 - Former Dallas Cowboy Nate Newton, and two others, were arrested on charges of carrying at least 175 pounds of marijuana. It was his second arrest in six weeks.

2010 - The collapse of the inflatable roof at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Mall of America Stadium caused the cancellation of a game between the New York Giants and the Minnesota Vikings. The teams played the next day at Detroit's Ford Field.

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