CS&T/AllsportsAmerica Monday Sports News Update, 01/26/2015.

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"My grandfather once told me there were two kinds of people: those who do the work and those that take the credit. He told me to try and be the first group; there was much less competition." ~ Indira Gandhi, The Third Prime Minister of India

How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? NHL All-Star Game scoring record set in Columbus with 29 goals.

By Greg Wyshynski

Jan 25, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Team Toews before the 2015 NHL All Star Game at Nationwide Arena. (Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports)

The 60th NHL All-Star Game was an offensive affair. 

Take that any way you’d like.

The teams captained by Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks and Nick Foligno of the Columbus Blue Jackets set a new League record for most combined goals in an All-Star Game, in a 17-12 victory for Team Toews on Sunday at Nationwide Arena in Columbus.

Patrick Kane’s (Foligno) goal at 13:09 of the third period was No. 27 for the night, breaking the 26-goal record set in 2001 during the North America vs. The World format.

We don’t want to say the 29-goal night was overwhelming, but at one point the Civil War-dressed workers that fire a cannon after every home-team goal seemed to simply forget to do so. Maybe they ran out of ammo; the teams certainly didn't. 

John Tavares of Team Toews became the sixth player in history to score four goals in the NHL All-Star Game. Tavares scored once in the first period, twice in the second and another in the third period.

He joins some elite goal-scoring company: Wayne Gretzky, Campbell, 1983; Mario Lemieux, Wales, 1990; Vincent Damphousse, Campbell, 1991; Mike Gartner, Wales, 1993, and Dany Heatley, East, 2003.

After two days of goofy fun at the NHL Fantasy Draft and the skills competition, the Sunday was a bit of a snoozer. The goals were plentiful, the skating was casual and the crowd only popped for the hometown heroes.

So basically it was the NHL All-Star Game.

The first period saw a combined eight goals, four by each team. Ryan Johansen (Foligno) had two of them, while Roberto Luongo (Toews) made a few quality glove saves. Radim Vrbata (Foligno) opened the scoring at 3:09 of the first period with his first all-star goal.

The second period featured 11 goals, an All-Star Game record and a metric ton of sarcasm.

Team Foligno goalie Marc-Andre Fleury of the Pittsburgh Penguins tied an ignominious record in giving up seven goals in a period. That tied Mike Vernon’s 1990 record for the Campbell Conference. The partisan Columbus crowd, which considers the Penguins arch rivals, began mockingly cheering his routine saves.

Team Toews received goals from Ryan Suter, Tyler Seguin, Rick Nash, Filip Forsberg, two from Tavares and one from Jakub Voracek.

The third period was just as porous, as the goals kept piling up at a record pace.

Here’s the full scoring sheet for the game. Try not to strain your eyes:

A few call-outs:

- Philadelphia Flyers forward Jakub Voracek, the NHL's leading scorer, had a hat-trick and a six-point night. 

- Jonathan Toews and Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins) had 5-point nights. 

- Mark Giordano of the Calgary Flames led all skaters with a plus-5.

- Tough minus-5's for Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Dustin Byfuglien.

With two goals and two assists, Team Foligno and Blue Jackets center Ryan Johansen was voted by fans as the game’s MVP. He won a Honda. So now we can drive far, far away from this game.

What latest salary cap projection could mean for Blackhawks.

By Tracey Myers

The Blackhawks are going to be juggling numbers with next season’s salary cap again. That much is inevitable.

The question is, where will that number fall and how much will it affect the Blackhawks? On Saturday, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman shed some light on where the cap will likely settle.

Despite a Canadian dollar that’s weak and not expected to get much better, Bettman said, “we’re still looking at a cap of almost $72 million.” That’s about three million more than the cap for 2014-15, which is $69 million and about a million less than what was projected in December.

Bettman laid out the numbers as part of his state of the NHL address on Saturday afternoon. If the Canadian dollar is at 82 cents, he said the cap will be $72.2 million. If the Canadian dollar is at 80 cents, the cap would settle at $71.7 million. Either way, Bettman said, “you are not going to see a dramatic difference.”

Still, for a team like the Blackhawks, it’s still going to be tricky math. Going off the last Capgeek list — the site shut down several weeks ago — the Blackhawks have nearly $65 million committed to 14 players. Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane’s new deals kick in next season.

Brandon Saad, who is a restricted free agent this summer, is likely high on the list of players to re-sign. Marcus Kruger will also be an RFA, as will Joakim Nordstrom among others. Some won’t be re-signed. Someone will probably be traded again.

The Blackhawks have fought this salary-cap battle before. In the summer of 2010 they had to jettison half of their team to get under it for the 2010-11 season. They took less drastic steps entering 2014-15 but still had to part ways with defenseman Nick Leddy. Stan Bowman talked of the cap in late November, saying he wasn’t concerned at the time about it.

“If it doesn’t go up a lot or stays the same, we’ll find a way to make it work,” he said. “There’s no secret: the more it goes up the better it is for all the teams. It’s not just us. There are a number of teams right at it. So I think we’ll deal with that.”

World Cup of Hockey tournament set for 2016.

By JOHN WAWROW (AP Hockey Writer)

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announces the return of the World Cup of Hockey in 2016 during an hockey press conference at Nationwide Arena Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015, in Columbus, Ohio. The World Cup tournament will include eight teams and will be played in Toronto next September, before the beginning of NHL training camps. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

The World Cup of Hockey is making a long-awaited return in 2016.

And the NHL intends to host it every four years.

''We decided that bringing back the World Cup was vitally important,'' NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced Saturday during the league's All-Star game weekend festivities.

''We're going to let this evolve. We believe after giving the event such a good start that we're going to build off it.''

To begin with, the 2016 tournament will feature eight teams with all games played in Toronto.

The tournament will start Sept. 17 and end with a best-of-three final series, with the last possible date set for Oct. 1.

The World Cup will overlap training camps, and push back the start of the regular season to the second week of October.

The players' union is on board as a full partner.

    

''We have an opportunity here to build this game, and build this culture and create something that everybody on both sides can be immensely proud of,'' NHLPA Executive Director Donald Fehr said. ''We view this is a first step, although a very important one.''

The league also announced the Bruins and Canadiens will play in the Winter Classic next year on Jan. 1 at Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL's New England Patriots.

The return of the World Cup was the highlight announcement. 

It will feature a new wrinkle, with two of the teams made up of multinational players. One team will consist of North American-born players 23 and younger. Another will consist of European-born players whose countries aren't represented.

 

The other six teams will be Canada, the United States, Russia, Sweden, Czech Republic and Finland. Teams will be split in two divisions. 

The World Cup and its predecessor, the Canada Cup, have been held seven times since 1976 through 2004. 

Bettman foresees holding the World Cup every four years and adding more countries.

The timing of the 2016 World Cup comes two years before the Winter Olympics will be held in South Korea. The NHL has not yet determined whether it will allow its players to compete in the Pyeongchang Games because of concerns over travel and time differences.

Bettman said the World Cup announcement ''has no bearing on whether we will return to the next Olympics.''

Players are excited about the return of the World Cup.

Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane recalled watching the U.S. winning the tournament in 1996.

''We have a lot of pride in playing for our country,'' Kane said. ''Being able to be part of something special as this, especially in a hockey hotbed like Toronto, I think it'll all come together and be a great tournament.''

Canada has won five of the seven tournaments, with Russia winning in 1981.

The one caveat players had is they don't want the World Cup to be held at the expense of competing at the Olympics, which NHL players have done since the Nagano Games in 1998.

''Olympics are Olympics,'' Slovenian-born Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar said. ''I don't know if that would be a good trade off.''

The inclusion of two mixed national teams intrigued players. 

Some wondered how Canadians and Americans can set aside their longstanding cross-border rivalry. 

''It definitely would be a little bit uncomfortable,'' said Calgary Flames rookie Johnny Gaudreau, who is from New Jersey. ''But at the same time, it would be a great experience getting to play against guys who have been playing in the NHL for a long time.'' 

There would be an even larger mix of nationalities on the European All-Star team, which has the potential to feature players from as many as nine countries. 

Buffalo Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons - the only Latvian currently in the NHL - was stumped by the question of which nation's anthem would be played before games. 

''That is a good question. I didn't even think that far,'' Girgensons said. ''Maybe flip a coin.''

Each team will play three pre-tournament games, including the potential of some being played in Europe. There has also been discussion of having all eight teams play their final pre-tournament games in Buffalo, New York, a two-hour drive from Toronto.

Bettman provided updates on other topics:

- The NHL expects billionaire businessman Bill Foley to launch a season-ticket drive next month to determine whether there is enough interest to establish a franchise in Las Vegas.

- Seattle Mayor Ed Murray met with Bettman last week to discuss the possibility of establishing a team there. Bettman called it ''a nice chat,'' but noted Seattle lacks a feasible facility for an NHL team.

- The falling Canadian dollar could put a dent into the NHL's salary cap projection of $73 million for next season. Should the loonie stay at its current level of about 80-cents U.S., the cap could drop to $71.7 million.

- The NHL's other outdoor games next year will feature Minnesota hosting Chicago at TCF Bank Stadium at the University of Minnesota on Feb. 21, and Colorado hosting Detroit at Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies, in Denver on Feb. 27.

Just Another Chicago Bulls Session… Bulls come up flat against a struggling Heat team (Lose 96-84).  

By Mark Strotman

Just when it appeared the Bulls had turned the corner on an ugly stretch of play, Sunday afternoon happened.

Riding some momentum into the United Center after a pair of victories over Western Conference contenders, Tom Thibodeau’s group came out flat against a struggling Miami Heat team and suffered a 96-84 loss, their fifth home loss in their last seven games.

A season-worst stretch of play, in which they lost six of eight games, erased itself on Thursday when the Bulls blew out the defending champion Spurs. And they built on that victory by upending the Dallas Mavericks on the road 24 hours later. It marked the first time since Jan. 5 the Bulls had won back-to-back games, and a date with 19-24 Miami seemed to be the perfect jumping-off point before the Bulls hit the road for six games out West.

Instead, the Bulls were a step behind the entire afternoon, turning in yet another puzzling performance against a lackluster opponent at home. The Heat entered Sunday playing at the NBA’s slowest pace, averaging fewer than 92 possessions per game. But in the first half alone they nearly doubled their average fast break points per game, totaling 12 transition points to take a double-digit lead into halftime.

Led by an aggressive Mario Chalmers and Dwyane Wade the Heat set the pace early offensively, while reserve center Hassan Whiteside paced it defensively. Whiteside blocked five shots in seven first-half minutes, setting the tone as the Bulls went 8-for-26 on shots inside the paint; the Heat, meanwhile, scored 24 points on 12-for-22 shooting in the paint, with Chalmers’ 11 pacing the way to give the Heat a 48-38 lead at the break.

Whereas the Heat used a balance scoring attack — five different players scored at least 13 points — the Bulls tried to ride East All-Star starter Pau Gasol and Derrick Rose as long as they could. Rose came out hot attacking the rim, but wasn’t able to get much going from the perimeter. He finished with Gasol tallied his NBA-best 27th double-double with 13 points and 17 rebounds but had difficulty staying with Bosh, who did most of his damage from the perimeter as both Gasol and Joakim Noah failed to stay with the Heat forward.

Luol Deng, making his first trip to the United Center as a visitor, scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while also playing stifling defense on his mentee Jimmy Butler. The Bulls honored Deng, who played his first 10 seasons with the Bulls beginning in 2004, with a video tribute midway through the first quarter.

Starting slow hadn’t been new to the Bulls, but finishing the same way was. Bosh continued to work inside and Wade found success with his midrange game as the Heat pushed the lead to 14 in the third quarter. The Bulls were able to cut the deficit to seven in the final stanza before Wade went to work. The Chicago native tallied eight points in the fourth quarter as the Heat picked up the road victory.

The Bulls were again without Mike Dunleavy, who Thibodaeu said before the game has become frustrated with how long his ankle injury is taking to recover. Butler’s January slide continued with the five points, while Taj Gibson (11 points, 8 rebounds) was frustrated all afternoon against Whiteside, who cemented the victory with his 10th block of the afternoon, giving him a triple-double with 13 points, 12 rebounds and 12 blocks. Wade finished with a game-high 26 points and Chalmers added 15.

Rose, Butler score 20 points each in Bulls win vs. Mavs 102-98. (Friday night's game, 01/23/2015).

By Michael Florek

Dallas Mavericks guard Rajon Rondo (9) shoots against Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose (1) and forward Pau Gasol (16) during the first half of a basketball game, Friday, January 23, 2015, at the American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas. (Photo/Jim Cowsert; Special to the Star-Telegram)

One day after leading the Bulls to a dominant win over the Spurs, Derrick Rose looked to be at it again on Friday night against the Mavericks in scoring 13 first-quarter points. Then he cooled off in the second half.

But this time, the Bulls didn’t go exactly how Rose went. Rose’s teammates, especially Jimmy Butler, filled the second-half scoring void as the Bulls beat the Mavericks, 102-98.

Chicago (29-16) is now 2-0 after its closed-door meeting following their loss to Cleveland on Monday and has road victories over San Antonio and Dallas, teams holding a combined 58-31 record.

“When go through adversity like that you go one of two ways,” Bulls forward Joakim Noah said. “You either come together or you start point fingers and that’s not who we are. At the end of the day everybody wants to win here so that was a definitely a humbling couple of weeks. We’ve just got to regroup. We still have work to do.”

The Bulls jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the first quarter thanks to 3-pointers from Rose and Tony Snell, but Rose didn’t really take over until Dallas pulled back within four.

First he hit a contested 3-pointer from the left wing. Then he took a pass and hit a pull-up three-pointer from the right wing. A 16-12 score became 22-12. Rose finished the first quarter 5-of-6 from the field.

“I though Derrick set the tone at the start of the game,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I like the way he got us going to start the game not only on the break but once we got into the half court. That was a big plus.”

Two free throws late in the second quarter gave Rose 18 points in the half and the Bulls a 54-51 lead going into the locker room. But Rose missed three consecutive shots coming out of halftime and turned the ball over once as the Mavericks closed the gap in the third quarter, tying the game twice.

But as Rose stepped back, Butler stepped forward.

Butler scored four consecutive points to break a 62-62 tie in the third, giving Chicago a lead it would never relinquish. Those were part of a nine-point third-quarter and 14-point second-half.  Both Butler and Rose finished with a team-high 20 points. 

“That’s the greatness or the luxury of our team,” Bulls center Pau Gasol said. “We have so many weapons that if one goes cold, another one gets hot.”

In the fourth quarter, the Mavericks pulled within two points with 28 seconds left. Rose missed a game-clinching layup on the other end, but chased down the offensive rebound clinching Chicago’s second straight victory anyway.

It was the type of play he thought was missing when he railed against the team’s effort on Monday while the team was in the midst of six losses in its past eight games.

“He’s big in every quarter,” Butler said. “He’s always going to be aggressive and make the right plays. That’s what a star point guard does.”

Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Fox coaching staff dramatic departure from Trestman, Smith.

By John Mullin

When the Bears hired John Fox as head coach, the fact that he had been a successful head coach at the NFL level was noteworthy. That was, however, only a sign of things to come.

 

The pace of hirings by coach Fox for his Bears staff has proceeded almost on a daily basis since the two-time Super Bowl coach was himself hired 10 days ago. But perhaps even more striking have been the NFL credentials of Fox’s staffers, in stark contrast to the group of assistants brought in under Marc Trestman and even over the first batch of coaches installed by Lovie Smith — both of whom were in their first NFL jobs as head coaches.

 

In multiple positions, the new Bears staff members not only have been successful in those jobs already in their careers. They in fact have more years coaching those positions at the NFL level than their players have playing them, unlike the Trestman staff and even the Smith group.

 

Trestman, Smith 'rookies'

 

One rationale frequently offered for a staff full of college coaches moving to the NFL is that they are “teachers.” Which is no doubt true, though teaching the college game has significant differences from the one at the NFL level, as previous staffs revealed.
 

Under Trestman, tight ends coach Andy Bischoff, receivers coach Mike Groh, assistant offensive line coach Pat Meyer, assistant defensive line coach Michael Sinclair and linebackers coach Tim Tibesar all were coming into their first jobs as NFL position coaches. Defensive quality control assistant Sean Desai and offensive quality control assistants Brendan Nugent and Carson Walch had only short stints with Trestman in the CFL as their pro experience.

 

Aaron Kromer had never been an offensive coordinator in his NFL posts before Chicago.

 

On Smith’s first staff, Terry Shea (offense) and Ron Rivera (defense) and Dave Toub (special teams) had never been NFL coordinators previously. Vance Bedford (defensive backs), Rob Boras (tight ends), Darryl Drake (receivers), Karl Dunbar (defensive line) and Tim Spencer (running backs) were all NFL first-timers when they joined Smith. 

Fox amassing 'vets'

 

The current Bears coaching moves involving proven candidates began under general manager Ryan Pace with Fox and special-teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers, who’d coached “teams” for Fox in both Denver and Carolina. Vic Fangio had interviews for head-coaching jobs before leaving the San Francisco 49ers, where he had been defensive coordinator. Offensive coordinator Adam Gase was Fox’s offensive coordinator in Denver.

 

The latest Fox move came Sunday with the addition of Jay Rodgers as defensive line coach. Rodgers coached the Broncos’ defensive line for the past three seasons, during which time the Broncos ranked No. 2 vs. the run (2014) and tied for No. 1 in sacks (2012). On Saturday the Bears announced the hiring of Bo Hardegree as offensive assistant, coming to Chicago off a year as Fox’s offensive quality control assistant in 2014.

 

Friday was marked by the signing of Dowell Loggains as quarterbacks coach.

Loggains dealt with (“coached” would be too narrow a term) Cleveland Browns quarterbacks and Brian Hoyer and Johnny Manziel last season, and he was with the Tennessee Titans as offensive coordinator in 2013 after coaching Titans quarterbacks from 2010 to 2012. After the quarterback events of Cleveland, working with Jay Cutler (if he is in the new staff/GM plans) might pass for comic relief. 

Glenn Pires also was hired on Friday as linebackers coach, which he’d done for the Atlanta Falcons for seven years and the Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions and Arizona Cardinals prior to that. He will be the Bears’ fourth linebackers coach in the last four years but has 14 years coaching NFL linebackers, more than his three predecessors combined — Reggie Herring, Tibesar, Bob Babich — when they arrived to coach Bears linebackers.

 

Hired on Wednesday, Ed Donatell worked under Fangio for the past four years with the 49ers, leaving the Broncos when Fox was hired in 2011 but having 24 combined years of NFL experience. The Bears’ defensive backs active for game 16 in Minnesota had a total of 29 NFL seasons.

 

Tuesday hire offensive line coach Dave Magazu was in charge of the offensive lines at Carolina (2007-10) and Denver (2011-14). Only center Roberto Garza (14 seasons) and left tackle Jermon Bushrod (eight) among Bears offensive lineman have as much NFL time as their new position coach.

 

Tight ends coach Frank Smith is a first-timer in his role but was with the New Orleans Saints the last five years as an offensive assistant.

A summary of the wild 2014 NFL season.

By JOHN MARSHALL (AP Sports Writer)

The NFL has reached the pinnacle of its season with the Super Bowl just around the corner. Although it's the most popular sport in the U.S., for many Americans and millions around the world, the Super Bowl is the only football game they will watch all year.

Some people know more about the NFL's domestic violence policy or the way the league inflates footballs than about the actual teams - the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots - playing in the big game on Feb. 1.

A look back at an NFL season that will be long remembered more for things that happened off the field:

 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was suspended for the season and released by the team after video surfaced of him punching his fiancé in an elevator.

Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson missed every game but one after being arrested on charges of child abuse for striking his son with a wooden switch.

The San Francisco 49ers also released defensive end Ray McDonald after a series of missteps, including a domestic violence accusation, and Carolina defensive end Greg Hardy was placed on the league's exempt list stemming from a domestic violence conviction.

NFL owners approved changes to the league's personal conduct policy in December, though the players union has yet to respond.

RECORDS/STELLAR PERFORMANCES

Denver's Peyton Manning broke Brett Favre's career record of 508 touchdown passes.

Atlanta's Devin Hester broke Deion Sanders' all-time record of 20 total returns for touchdowns.

New England's Jonas Gray became the first player since 1921 to rush for four touchdowns in a game - his first career touchdowns - against Indianapolis on Nov. 16. The next week, he was benched after he overslept and was late for practice.

The Cleveland Browns rallied from a 28-3 deficit to beat Tennessee 29-28 on Oct. 5, the largest comeback by a road team in NFL history.

New York Giants receiver Odell Beckham pulled down what has been called one of the greatest catches in NFL history against Dallas on Nov. 24, somehow snaring the ball with just three fingers.

Houston defensive lineman J.J. Watt, a favorite to win league MVP, had three of his five tackles for a loss, forced a fumble, recovered a fumble and caught a touchdown pass against Cleveland on Nov. 16.

PLAYER EXPRESSION

Numerous players made headlines for political expressions.

Five St. Louis players raised their hands in the ''Hands Up, Don't Shoot'' gesture before a game against Oakland in a show of solidarity with protesters in Ferguson, Missouri, where unarmed Michael Brown was fatally shot by a police officer.

A week later, several players across the league wrote the message ''I Can't Breathe'' on their equipment, after a grand jury did not charge a New York police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner.

Browns receiver Andrew Hawkins wore a T-shirt during warm-ups before a game against Cincinnati to protest police shootings in Ohio.

Jets center Nick Mangold wore an NYPD hat before a game against New England in honor of two New York police officers who were shot and killed in Brooklyn.

INJURIES

The Arizona Cardinals lost their top two quarterbacks and had a string of other key players go down. The best team in the league in the first half of the season, they limped into the playoffs and lost in the first round.

Receiver Victor Cruz, one of the New York Giants' most popular players, had one of the season's more heartbreaking moments, sobbing into his hands after tearing his patellar tendon in a loss to Philadelphia in October.

Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry was diagnosed in December with Hodgkin's lymphoma after doctors discovered a mass in his chest.

Many starting quarterbacks missed games, including Washington's Robert Griffin III, Philadelphia's Nick Foles and Sam Bradford of the Rams.

ADJUDICATION

The NFL was involved in two large lawsuits during the season.

After years of facing individual lawsuits over its handling of concussions, the league reached a class-action settlement of at least $765 million in 2014 that could affect more than 20,000 former players. Fewer than 1 percent of the retirees covered in the deal opted out and still have the option of suing the league. 

In December, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by 1,300 former players who had claimed NFL teams acted without regard to players' injuries and doled out painkillers without prescriptions to mask pain and minimize loss of playing time.  

COACHES FIRED  

NFL coaches went on a wild ride of firings and hirings in 2014.  

John Fox and Denver parted ways after the Broncos playoff loss, and he had a job two days later with Chicago, which fired head coach Marc Trestman after a 5-11 season. Fox was replaced by Gary Kubiak, a former Broncos player and assistant coach.

 

Jim Harbaugh led San Francisco to the Super Bowl two seasons ago, but he and the team made a 'mutual decision' to split. Harbaugh became the coach at the University of Michigan and was replaced by 49ers assistant Jim Tomsula.  

The New York Jets fired entertaining coach Rex Ryan after the season and he simply moved across the state to coach in Buffalo, where Doug Marone unexpectedly opted out of his contract. Arizona defensive coordinator Todd Bowles became the Jets' new coach.  

In Oakland, Dennis Allen was fired four games into his third season, and Denver assistant Jack Del Rio took over after the season was over.  

Atlanta also fired Mike Smith after seven seasons. The job is open and will likely be offered to Seahawks assistant Dan Quinn after the Super Bowl. 

RELOCATION?

 

Los Angeles, the second-largest media market in the U.S. may finally get an NFL team again.

Rams owner Stan Kroenke joined a development group that's planning an 80,000-seat stadium in the Los Angeles suburbs, sparking speculation that he will return the team two decades after it left for St. Louis.

Not satisfied with the team's dilapidated stadium in Oakland, Raiders owner Mark Davis began talks with officials in San Antonio and has monitored the situation in Los Angeles. The Raiders are close to signing a deal to stay in Oakland, but it's only for one year.

The Buffalo Bills also were rumored to be moving Toronto when the team went up for sale, but new owner Terrence Pegula said he intends to keep the franchise in Western New York.

DEFLATION

Just as the league was preparing for a Super Bowl between the league's top two teams, another controversy exploded.

The NFL is investigating how footballs used by the New England Patriots lost significant air pressure during their AFC Championship game win over the Indianapolis Colts. Some players think a flatter ball is easier to catch or throw.

The Patriots said they didn't manipulate the footballs, and the investigation continued as the NFL prepared for the Super Bowl.

Rob Manfred is open to eliminating defensive shifts in MLB.

By Brandon Schlager

 

New MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is making it clear that he intends to re-evaluate how the game of baseball is played.

His review is on display with the league's recent experimentation with pitch clocks. Once those are installed in the major league, Manfred's next order of business will be finding ways to infuse more offense into the game. That could include eliminating defensive shifts, Manfred said during an interview with ESPN.

"I think the second set of changes that I would look at is related (to the pitch clock), and that relates to injecting additional offense into the game," Manfred said. "For example, eliminating shifts. I would be open to those sorts of ideas."

Of course, those changes would not be likely to come without pushback. Defensive shifts have been as much a part of baseball as the cutoff man for years, especially of late. Teams have spent a lot of money employing sabermetricians to analyze, among other things, the precise defensive positioning needed to best combat an opposing batter.

Manfred said those people would just have to adjust accordingly.

"Look, we have really smart people working in the game," he said. "And they're going to figure out ways to get a competitive advantage. I think it's incumbent upon us in the commissioner's office to look at the advantages that are produced and say, Is this what we want to happen in the game?"

14 remarkable facts from Ernie Banks' Hall of Fame career.

By Mark Townsend

Ernie Banks in his playing days. (Photo/AP)

The legacy left behind by Chicago Cubs legend and baseball Hall of Famer Ernie Banks goes well beyond his accomplishments on the playing field. Sure, the game of baseball was his passion and his driving force, but it wasn't what defined him. When you think of Ernie Banks, you think of the person he was, the energy and enthusiasm he possessed and the kindness and loyalty he showed every day of his life.

With news of his death on Friday evening, you can't help but feel like some of the world's optimism and happiness died along with him. He was so filled with both that it always rubbed off on those who met him. That's the man we'll remember and honor, and that's exactly how it should be.

However, we'd be doing his legacy a disservice if we didn't take a step back and marvel at all that he did accomplish while carving out a Hall of Fame career on the diamond. 

With that being said, here's a look at 14 remarkable facts about No. 14 in your Wrigley Field program, Mr. Cub himself, Ernie Banks:

1. Banks played in 1,285 regular-season games over 19 seasons at Wrigley Field. That makes up 16.48 percent of the 7,797 games that have been played at Chicago's baseball landmark.

2. Unfortunately, Banks never played in a single postseason game and holds the record for most career games without a playoff appearance.  

3. Mr. Cub's rare national showcases were reserved for All-Star games. Selected to 14 All-Star games, he hit .303 with one homer, three doubles and three RBIs. The home run came at Municipal Stadium in 1960. 

4. Banks' high school, Booker T. Washington in Dallas, did not have a baseball team while he attended. Instead, Banks played summer softball in a local church league, and later played for the Amarillo Colts. He was eventually spotted and recruited by a Negro League scout named Bill Blair.  

5. As a 19-year-old, Banks signed with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues in 1950. After serving two years in the U.S. Army and spending time with the Harlem Globetrotters, Banks would come back to baseball. When he debuted with the Cubs in 1953, he was the first black player in franchise history. 
 

6. Banks had five seasons of 40 or more homers from 1955-60, all of which came as a shortstop. No other National League shortstop has had one season of 40-plus homers.  

7. Banks is also the first shortstop to reach 250 career homers. Cal Ripken Jr. (346), Alex Rodriguez (344),  Miguel Tejada (292) and Derek Jeter (255) have all followed suit, but it was Banks who revolutionized the position and changed the way it was viewed by players and scouts.  

8. Continuing the home run theme, Banks had four consecutive 40 or more home run seasons from 1957-60. As Aceball Stats notes, neither Hank Aaron nor Willie Mays ever had three straight seasons with 40 homers.   

 9. In 1962, Banks made the full-time move to first base. He went on to hit another 215 home runs, becoming one of only four major leaguers with 200 or more home runs at two different defensive positions.

10. Oh, and Banks could pick it in the field, too. In 1960, he topped three-time defending Gold Glove shortstop Roy McMillan to win that award for the only time in his career. Maury Wills took over the following season, winning two in a row.

11. Banks won back-to-back MVPs in 1958 and 1959 despite the Cubs finishing a combined 64 games out of first place. A feat made even more impressive by the presence of Aaron, Mays, Eddie Mathews and even Warren Spahn in the NL. 

12. Speaking of Spahn, Banks is the only player to have a multi-HR game against both Spahn and Sandy Koufax. Seriously, if he could square up those two Hall of Famers, it's no wonder he never wanted to leave the field.

13. Ernie Banks is the Cubs all-time leader in games played (2,528) and extra-base hits (1,009), and ranks second in HRs (512), RBIs (1,636) and hits (2,583).

14. Banks was a first ballot Hall of Famer and the only BBWAA inductee in 1977. He earned 83.8 of the vote, but never once had to ponder which cap to wear.

Hahn senses optimism around White Sox.

By ANDREW SELIGMAN (AP Sports Writer)

Chicago White Sox general manager Rick Hahn speaks during the baseball team's SoxFest annual fan convention, Friday, Jan. 23, 2015, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Andrew A. Nelles)

Whether he's out on the town or simply checking messages, general manager Rick Hahn can sense the excitement and optimism surrounding the Chicago White Sox.

''The voice mails in the middle of the night have changed in tenor, which is nice,'' he joked Saturday at the team's fan convention. ''Thank you.''

It's been a big offseason on both sides of the town with the Cubs and White Sox making a series of moves that have their fans believing years of losing are just about over.

The White Sox think they're in position to compete for the AL Central championship after a dizzying offseason in which they made key additions to their lineup, rotation and bullpen.

Now, there is a decidedly different vibe. While Hahn insisted the work is not finished, what was done is extensive.

Chicago added some left-handed pop by signing Adam LaRoche and bolstered its rotation by trading for right-hander Jeff Samardzija with one year left on his contract.

The White Sox also signed closer David Robertson and outfielder Melky Cabrera, along with reliever Zach Duke. With ace Chris Sale and AL Rookie of the Year Jose Abreu back, hopes suddenly are soaring around a team that finished fourth in the division at 73-89 last season after winning just 63 games in 2013.

''Everybody can't have a $200 million payroll,'' manager Robin Ventura said. ''You have to be able to be in that transition. You know you're going to take your lumps. We also knew there would be a point in time where we're going to be aggressive and go out and fill some needs. The last couple years were tough. However, that has gotten us to this point.''

Where they go from here still remains to be seen. But the White Sox at least made their intentions clear this offseason. And the questions from fans were nowhere near as testy as they were during last year's session with Hahn and Ventura.

They were lighter. They were specific about the roster.

One fan asked if the White Sox were ''maxed out'' payroll-wise and if they might try to sign James Shields, a 14-game winner for World Series runner-up Kansas City last season.

''Vince Coleman is your only news right now,'' Hahn said, referring to his announcement moments earlier that the White Sox hired the six-time NL stolen base champ as base-running instructor. ''Are we maxed out? Let's put it this way: I've gone back to that well a few times and I've gotten yeses each time.''

''This is my 15th season with the club. Every time we've been in position to contend and missing a piece come June or July and we've gone with a sensible acquisition, the expenditure's been improved. I've been told a target. I know where we are vis-a-vis that target. I (should say it's) the third target since I've moved past the first two.''

Hahn recalled chairman Jerry Reinsdorf giving the green light to kick the reconstruction into a higher gear during three days of meetings with team executives, the manager and pitching coach Don Cooper. Shortly after that, Hahn said he contacted Oakland about Samardzija - a White Sox fan growing up near Chicago in Indiana who later played football at Notre Dame and pitched for the Cubs.

He thought that trade would be completed during the general managers meetings. It wasn't finalized until the winter meetings. Hahn said he ''hated'' to give up infielder Marcus Semien in that deal, but it was a price he had to play to add an All-Star between Sale and Jose Quintana in the rotation.

About the same time that trade went down, the White Sox agreed to a $46 million, four-year contract with Robertson. Hahn said they were not the highest bidder for him.

He also said Abreu was onboard with the LaRoche signing right from the start even though it meant bringing in another first baseman, a Gold Glove winner with Washington in 2012. Hahn said he discussed the possibility with Abreu before that deal was finalized.

''Within 45 seconds of me laying it out, he's like 'I got it, I got it. Yeah, absolutely. Makes us better, do it, makes us better. What are we gonna do about the pitching?''' Hahn said.

Golf: I got a club for that; Bill Haas pulls away to win Humana Challenge.

By JOHN NICHOLSON (AP Sports Writer)

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, right, hands Bill Haas the trophy after Haas won the Humana Challenge golf tournament on the Palmer Private course at PGA West on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015 in La Quinta, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Bill Haas pulled ahead with a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-4 16th and parred the final two holes for a one-stroke victory Sunday in the Humana Challenge.  

Haas closed with a 5-under 67 for his sixth PGA Tour title and first since the 2013 AT&T National. He won the 2010 event for his first tour victory.

 

''Honestly, if you would have told me I would have done this last week, I would have laughed at you,'' Haas said. ''To be here is an unbelievable feeling.''

His father, Jay, won the 1998 tournament. Haas' great uncle, 85-year-old Bob Goalby, was in the gallery at PGA West's Arnold Palmer Private Course. Goalby won the 1968 Masters.

Haas was making his first start since November. He took the break to rest his left wrist, fractured in April when he fell down stairs.

 

''I played a little bit,'' Haas said. ''I didn't just put the clubs up.'' 

Part of a six-man tie for the lead after a par save on the par-3 15th, Haas got to 22 under with the birdie on 16. He two-putted for par from 20 feet on the par-5 18th after pulling off an awkward layup with his ball perched on top of the front lip of a right fairway bunker.

''I've been in a tournament where I've been maybe one ahead or tied, but not with five or six guys right behind me knowing that if I dump one in the water, I go from winning to finishing 10th,'' Haas said.

Matt Kuchar, Charley Hoffman, Brendan Steele, Steve Wheatcroft and Sung Joon Park tied for second. Hoffman and Steele shot 64, Park had a 65, and Kuchar and Wheatcroft 67.

Kuchar bogeyed three of the last four holes Saturday in the third round to fall a stroke back. He birdied No. 17 on Sunday and closed with a par.

''It was pretty disappointing to be that close and not at least birdie the 18th to make Bill try to make birdie to win,'' Kuchar said.

Haas kept a share of the lead with the par save on the 131-yard 15th. Short-sided in the left bunker, he blasted to 6 feet.

''That was one of the moments where I knew if I missed that I was going from leading to maybe not even top 10,'' Haas said.
 

After breaking the tie on 16, he missed a 10-foot birdie try on the par-3 17th with a bighorn sheep grazing nearby at the foot of the Santa Rosa Mountains.
 

On 18, with water on the left, his drive went right and stopped on top of the bunker. Standing in the sand with the ball in dormant grass at nearly waist level, he choked up on an 8-iron and slashed 80 yards down the fairway. That left him 170 yards to the green and he hit safely to the middle.
 

''I was doing everything I could to not go left. So, what do you do? You go right,'' Haas said. ''That second shot became pretty key, because I easily could have whiffed it, could have chunked it and moved it 5 yards.''
 

Haas eagled the par-5 sixth for a share of the lead, setting up his 15-foot putt with a 260-yard, 5-wood from the dormant left rough with the ball below his feet.

''That was huge,'' Haas said. ''Just fortunate that 5-wood came out like it did, because out of that Bermuda rough, anything can happen.''

The 32-year-old former Wake Forest player birdied the par-4 eighth, punching a low, spinning wedge from 70 yards to 8 feet, and got to 21 under with a 7-foot birdie putt on the par-5 11th.

Justin Thomas, Webb Simpson and Boo Weekley tied for seventh, two strokes back.

Thomas, playing alongside Haas and two-time heart transplant recipient Erik Compton, dropped out of the lead on 16 with a double bogey after into the All-American Canal from a fairway bunker.

''I didn't put it far enough back in my stance,'' Thomas said. ''I needed to make sure I hit ball first there. ... Hit fractionally behind it and in the water she went.''

The 21-year-old former Alabama player birdied 18 for a 69.

Compton shot 70 to tie for 10th, three strokes back at 19 under.

''I wasn't pleased with the way I started the round,'' Compton said. ''You got to put your foot down.''

Phil Mickelson had a 68 to tie for 24th at 15 under in his first start since the Ryder Cup.

''It was a good week to get the year started,'' Mickelson said. ''Now we'll see the next two weeks if I can get that fine-tuning done.''

DIVOTS: Colt Knost had a 63 - the best round of the day - to tie for 10th at 19 under. He was in the first group off the 10th tee and played his final nine holes behind Haas' group. ... Patrick Reed, the winner last year, shot 71 to finish at 15 under. He started the year with a playoff victory in the Tournament of Champions.

Grace claims second title of season at Qatar Masters.

Reuters

Branden Grace of South Africa hits his tee-shot on the first hole during the third round of the Qatar Masters at Doha Golf Club in Doha, January 23, 2015. (Photo/REUTERS/Fadi Al-Assaad)

South African Branden Grace became the first player to win multiple events in the 2015 Race to Dubai after he held his nerve to win the Qatar Masters in Doha on Saturday.

Grace fired a bogey-free, six-under-par 66 to finish the tournament on 19-under, one shot clear of Scotland's Marc Warren (67) and two ahead of Austrian Bernd Wiesberger (68).

Tied at 18-under-par as they approached the 18th tee, Grace held his nerve with a birdie while Warren could only salvage par after his wayward tee-shot failed to find the fairway.

"It was a great day, a great week, and it's another trophy to put in the cupboard," Grace told the europeantour.com.

"The form has been there, I played great and I managed to get in on top."

Grace, who claimed his sixth career title and second in four starts this season, followed up a first-hole birdie with 10 successive pars before going five-under through the final seven holes.

Having shot birdies on the 12th and 14th, the 26-year-old carded a superb eagle on the 16th after a crushing tee-shot.

A second eagle nearly followed on the 18th but his sublime pitch shot tricked agonizingly wide.

Grace holed the three-foot putt for birdie while Warren failed with his 20-foot effort to force a playoff.

Warren's superb five-under-par back nine had helped him back into contention after an inconsistent front nine which yielded a bogey and double-bogey alongside three birdies. 

  

World number two Henrik Stenson finished on 10-under-par while defending champion Sergio Garcia was well off the pace a further six shots adrift on four-under.

The Race to Dubai is the European Tour's season-long competition spanning 47 tournaments and was won by Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy in 2014.

Next in line? Chase Elliott poised to succeed legendary Jeff Gordon.

By Tom Jensen

Chase Elliott (right) is under contract with team owner Rick Hendrick (left). (Photo/ Todd Warshaw / Getty Images North America)

When Kasey Kahne signed a three-year contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports last November, it immediately raised eyebrows because it meant the team had five drivers under contract for 2016 -- Kahne, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Chase Elliott -- but only four available NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars, the maximum allowed by the sanctioning body.

After Gordon's announcement Thursday that 2015 will be his last full Sprint Cup season, the numbers for 2016 suddenly make much more sense.

During Gordon's teleconference Thursday afternoon, team owner Rick Hendrick stopped short of saying Elliott would replace Gordon next year, but that's certainly the conventional wisdom.

"Oh, we're just kind of looking at what's down the road a little bit later," said Hendrick. "We're going to kind of focus on Jeff and what he's accomplished, and then at a later time we'll kind of focus on who is going to be in the car."

Despite what he said publicly, you can bet Hendrick has the succession plan for Gordon firmly in place.

Elliott last year became the youngest champion in any of NASCAR's three national touring series when he won the Xfinity Series title as an 18-year-old rookie driving for the Hendrick-affiliated JR Motorsports team owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller.

"I can't tell you how proud I am of these guys here sitting beside me (Earnhardt and Earnhardt Miller) and Chase Elliott because he is so much better than I even dreamed he could be, his maturity, and what his mom and dad have done to prepare him," Hendrick said at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the season finale. "He is wise way beyond his years. I'm super-thrilled about that."

Elliott is already scheduled to run a handful of Sprint Cup races this year with Kenny Francis, Kahne's former crew chief, on top of the pit box. Hendrick general manager Doug Duchardt said after the Kahne announcement that the team will use this year to evaluate Elliott's progress.

"We'll take a look and see how things are going in '15 and see what are the right steps in the future," Duchardt said.

By all indications, the "right steps in the future" will see Elliott as the fourth Hendrick Sprint Cup driver in 2016, but until it becomes official, the future remains to be seen.

Ganassi's No. 02 Riley-Ford Scores Rolex 24 Victory.

By Tony DiZinno

(Photo/AP)

The all-NASCAR/IndyCar lineup of Jamie McMurray, Kyle Larson, Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan have emerged victorious at the end of the 53rd Rolex 24 at Daytona, all co-driving the No. 02 Chip Ganassi Racing Riley-Ford.

Dixon turned in an incredible performance from start to finish, either going longer on fuel stints or holding off the advances of the team car from CGR, Jordan or Ricky Taylor in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing and the defending champion No. 5 Action Express Racing Corvette DP.

“It’s such a team effort,” Dixon told Fox Sports in Victory Lane. “We kept the car clean and tried to look after it as much as possible. Such a big thank you to my teammates. It was awesome. It’s great to be back in [Victory Lane] with Team Target and Ford Ecoboost.

“We just had the speed. It was a lot of pit work to get the transition and jump ‘em in the pits there at one point. I’m just so happy for the team.”

Meanwhile, Larson, McMurray and Kanaan raised their respective games across the board with Larson in particular providing a star turn in his second Rolex 24 start.

“It’s crazy how much a year can do,” said Larson. “I hated this race after last year. I was terrible! But this year, coming back, I felt comfortable right off the bat and had a lot of fun…I’m just a dirt, oval guy, and to come here and race a sports car at Daytona on the road course is pretty awesome.”

As for Kanaan, he dedicated the win to his wife, Lauren, and newest son, Deco, who was born just a few weeks ago.

He was also glad to add another timepiece to his collection – in this case, a Rolex Daytona – without having to pay up.

“I love watches,” Kanaan said. “I’ve always bought them, so I finally got one for free today!”

Ganassi has won in three of the last five years, having also won in 2011 and 2013. Dixon’s win is his first since the last “star car” win with Casey Mears and the late Dan Wheldon in 2006; for the other three, its’ their first overall Rolex 24 triumph.

McMurray joins legends Mario Andretti and A.J. Foyt as the only drivers to have won both the Daytona 500 and Rolex 24. However, he made sure to especially thank Dixon for the No. 02’s success.

“Really, it’s about Scott Dixon to me, today,” McMurray said. “He got in with three and a half hours to go and he really did an amazing job. I’m just so proud of him.

“Scott’s become a good friend of mine, and I’m honored to get to call him a friend.”

The Taylor’s hopes of winning 10 years after father Wayne did so in 2005 came undone in the final hour courtesy of a drive time miscalculation. Jordan was forced to get out of the car and Ricky brought the car home to the finish in an unrepresentative third, behind Action Express.

Corvette Racing (GTLM) and Riley Motorsports (GTD) were the GT class winners to make for an all-American triumph for Corvette’s C7.R and the Dodge Viper GT3-R.

The Corvette crew included Jan Magnussen, Antonio Garcia and Ryan Briscoe behind the wheel, with the GTD winners Kuno Wittmer, Dominik Farnbacher, Cameron Lawrence, Al Carter and Ben Keating.

Meanwhile PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports (Mike Guasch, Andrew Palmer, Andrew Novich, Tom Kimber-Smith) scored a shock, last-minute win in PC after CORE autosport went off course, then had a fire inside the last 25 minutes. Colin Braun was evaluated and released from the infield care center. The late-race incident cost the No. 54 Oreca FLM09 its second straight Rolex 24 win after a flawless drive.

Mark Martin among inductees into Motorsports Hall of Fame.

AP - Sports

Retired NASCAR driver Mark Martin and former motocross star Ricky Carmichael are among the 2015 inductees into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.

The seven-member class also includes off-road racer Walker Evans, six-time NHRA champion Warren Johnson and four-time Trans-Am Series champion Tommy Kendall. It also includes two deceased drivers, Duke Nalon (sprint and midget cars) and Lloyd Ruby (USAC).

''This year's class truly reflects the wide range of American motorsports, which has always been the foundation for our facility,'' said Ron Watson, president of the Hall of Fame. ''These gentlemen achieved success on two wheels and four, on dirt and pavement, on every kind of track - plus off the road entirely.''

Kendall and Carmichael were present for Friday's announcement.

''A lot of the names on this year's Hall of Fame are heroes of mine,'' Kendall said. ''It doesn't really compute. I've been lucky to have good things happen during my career. To be mentioned with names like that ... at the end of the day it's nice to be recognized for the work you did.''

Added Carmichael: ''As a kid growing up racing dirt bikes, I never would have thought something like this was possible for me. To be in the company of some of the greatest names in motorsports is surreal.''

The 27th class will be inducted June 18 at Detroit's Fillmore Theater. The hall, currently in Novi, Michigan, is moving to Daytona International Speedway in January 2016. The move coincides with the scheduled completion of the track's $400 million renovation.

Jurgen Klinsmann names USMNT roster for friendlies vs. Chile, Panama.

By Ryan Rosenblatt

The Americans will be a mix of established stars and youngsters trying to make a name.

The United States has their 23-man team for their friendlies against Chile and Panama. Jurgen Klinsmann has some of the teams bigger stars, but has mixed that with some kids as he continues to emphasize youth development and the U-23 Olympic team.

Because the match does not fall on a FIFA international date, Klinsmann couldn't pick any American he wanted. Clubs did not have to release players so Klinsmann was limited to out-of-season players, like those who play in MLS, and youngsters who do not play big roles for their clubs.

 

Klinsmann has had 29 players in training camp in California for the last two weeks, but he was never going to take them all into the friendlies. The U.S. manager said when he picked his camp roster that he wanted it to be at a high level, which is why the likes of Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley and Jermaine Jones were involved, but that he also wanted to give some emerging talents a look, as well as bring in a slew of players that would be part of the Olympic team. That is reflected in the roster for the friendlies as well.

 

The big names will lead the team, while Perry Kitchen, Gyasi Zardes and Steve Birnbaum have been excellent in MLS and could become part of the first choice senior team before long.

 

Then there is Jon Kempin, Shane O'Neill, DeAndre Yedlin, Luis Gil, Dillon Serna and Wil Trapp, who are all young enough to be U-23s at the Olympics next year. Yedlin is already established first teamer, but the rest are fringe players getting their first extended exposure to the senior team and had to impress to make the friendly roster. They did that, and now they've been earmarked not just to be part of the Olympic core, but also as promising youngsters who could force their way into the senior team over the next year or two.

 

Alex Bono, Christian Dean, Oscar Sorto, Dennis Flores, Tesho Akindele and Julio Morales are the training camp players who were left off of the friendly roster. All of them are youngsters who were called in more to get experience than to make an impact right away and now they will return to their clubs. Marc Pelosi also missed out on the friendly roster, but he will stay with the team and train.

 

The U.S. will play Chile on January 28 in Rancagua. Then they will return to the U.S. for a February 8 contest against Panama at the StubHub Center in Carson, CA.

Roster

Goalkeepers: Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire), Jon Kempin (Sporting Kansas City), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)

 

Defenders: Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution), Perry Kitchen (D.C. United), Shane O'Neill (Colorado Rapids), DeAndre Yedlin (Tottenham Hotspur)

 

Midfielders: Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Mix Diskerud (New York City FC), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake), Miguel Ibarra (Minnesota United FC), Lee Nguyen (New England Revolution), Dillon Serna (Colorado Rapids), Brek Shea (Orlando City), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC)

 

Forwards: Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Bobby Wood (1860 Munich), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)

 FA Cup Roundup: Upsets halted with West Ham, Villa, Arsenal wins.

By Kyle Bonn

Yesterday’s myriad of upset wins in FA Cup fourth round play (the magic!) were cancelled out – sort of – with today’s play as favorites West Ham, Aston Villa, and Arsenal all progressed past lower division foes.

West Ham got the morning started with a tight 1-0 victory over Bristol City thanks to Andy Carroll clearing the ball off the line in the first half, and the big striker also assisted the game-winner in the 81st minute with a cross that met the head of Diafra Sakho on its way into the back of the net.

The game was quite even most of the way through, and West Ham were troubled by Bristol City striker Matt Smith who had headers cleared off the line not once but twice in the opening 45 minutes. It’s the first time since 2011 that West Ham has made it through to the fifth round of the competition.

Aston Villa marked a pregame announcement of a new Fabian Delph contract by defeating Championship leaders Bournemouth 2-1. Carles Gil stamped his full Villa debut with the opening goal, and Andreas Weimann added a second that proved important, since Bournemouth picked up a consolation in stoppage time.

Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe made a whopping eight changes from their last league game, which made things difficult on the visitors to Villa Park.

Finally, Arsenal avoided a near-slip with a 3-2 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, but the Gunners never seem to make things easy, do they? After going up 2-0 on goals from Theo Walcott (his first since January 1, 2014) and Mesut Ozil, the Seagulls roared back in the second half with a pair of goals. Only thanks to Tomas Rosicky’s 59th minute winner did the Gunners go through, a deserved goal for the Czech midfielder who had a wonderful game. The goal was a beauty too.

Arsenal saw out the final 15 minutes with a one-goal lead, although Alexis Sanchez nearly gave them the 2-goal cushion back as he hit the crossbar with five minutes to go. Mathieu Flamini had one to forget, with some awful defending on the Brighton goals, and he looked poor on the ball.

Stoke City still has its road draw with Rochdale tomorrow, as the final first game of the fourth round takes place. A pair of Premier League teams still have replays to contend with, as Manchester United looks to put away fourth-tier Cambridge United, and Sunderland has to travel to Craven Cottage after a goalless first match with Fulham.

Coach K. earns career win No. 1,000 in No. 5 Duke's win over St. John's.

By Scott Phillips

Duke's Coach Mike Krzyzewski. (Photo/AP) 

Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski reached a milestone by winning game No. 1,000 as the No. 5 Blue Devils bested St. John’s 77-68 on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. 

The legendary head coach already owns four national championships and two Olympic gold medals but now Coach K is the first men’s Division I basketball coach to reach the 1,000 win mark. 

The Blue Devils (17-2) led by as many as 11 points in the first half, but trailed 43-39 at the half. Trailing 61-51 with 8:35 remaining, Duke mounted a furious rally as Quinn Cook, Tyus Jones and Jahlil Okafor all made consecutive three-point plays to fuel a 15-1 Blue Devil run.

 

Jones led Duke by scoring 22 points and dishing out six assists while Okafor (17 points and 10 rebounds) and Cook (17 points) each had good second-half efforts. Junior forward Amile Jefferson chipped in 11 points while junior reserve big man Marshall Plumlee gave valuable minutes off the bench, contributing two points and five rebounds.

 

St. John’s (13-6) had four players in double figures, led by Sir’Dominic Pointer (21 points) and Rysheed Jordan (18 points), but ultimately ran out of gas in the last 10 minutes as the Red Storm’s lack of depth came back to haunt them.

 

This wasn’t Coach K’s first milestone win at Madison Square Garden. The Duke head coach passed former mentor Bob Knight on the men’s Division I basketball all-time wins list with victory No. 903 on Nov. 15, 2011 in a game against Michigan State. Krzyzewski is actually the third men’s college basketball head coach at a four-year school to reach 1,000 wins after McKendree University head coach Harry Statham and Oregon Tech head coach Danny Miles.

 

Former Tennessee women’s head coach Pat Summit still has the most Division I wins of any basketball coach as she registered 1,098 career wins before retiring after the 2011-12 season.

 

The next Division I men’s basketball coach expected to reach 1,000 wins is Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim. Boeheim currently sits at 962 career wins.

 

No. 2 UConn women win 17th straight, 96-31 over Cincinnati.

 

By JOE KAY (AP Sports Writer)

 

Connecticut forward Morgan Tuck, right, drives to the basket against Cincinnati forward Marley Hill (35) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game held Sunday Jan. 25, 2015, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Gary Landers)
 

Connecticut's offense just keeps rolling up big numbers.

 

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scored 12 of her 19 points in the first half, missing only one shot all game, and No. 2 Connecticut picked up its 17th straight victory on Sunday, 96-31 over Cincinnati and former Huskies star Jamelle Elliott.
 

The Huskies (18-1, 8-0 American Athletic) haven't loss since falling at Stanford 88-86 in overtime on Nov. 17. UConn's seven wins in January have come by 36, 38, 59, 34, 42, 55 and 65 points.
 

UConn has scored at least 92 points in five of the last six games despite resting its starters a lot because the Huskies were so far ahead.
 

''We're just in a place right now where, especially with our starters, the points just come so easily and come so quickly when we're making shots like that,'' coach Geno Auriemma said. ''We're in that mode right now where we're just making a lot of shots.''

 

Mosqueda-Lewis went 7 of 8 from the field, playing only 16 minutes. Breanna Stewart also had 19 points in 16 minutes. Once again, the starters rested as UConn pulled away.

 

''Our starters don't pay much attention to it, that we're only getting that many minutes,'' Mosqueda-Lewis said. ''We want to make sure that we're productive during that time. We want to set the tempo for the team and an example for the people coming off the bench.''

The Bearcats (5-14, 2-6) fell behind 22-0 and went more than 6 minutes before getting their first basket on a put-back. Cincinnati is 0-12 all-time against UConn, with this one the most lopsided outcome.
 

''What can you say?'' Elliott said. ''Same UConn result, different year. Every year they get really good players. You know, the good keep getting good.
 

''They came in here - I don't know what word you use - they were generous to us going to zone early and we still weren't able to make shots.''
 

Auriemma is a close friend of Elliott, who is in her sixth season as Cincinnati's coach. As a player, Elliott helped UConn win its first national title in 1995. She was Auriemma's assistant for a dozen years before getting the job at Cincinnati. The two of them went out to dinner on Saturday night.

 

UConn scored the first 22 points and held the Bearcats without a field goal until Marley Hill grabbed a teammate's short 3-point shot and scored with 13:53 left the half. Cincinnati opened the game by missing its first eight shots and turning it over four times.

Auriemma started wholesale substitutions midway through the first half, easing up with a 33-2 lead.

LIMITED MINUTES

 

Auriemma struggles with finding the balance between playing his starters enough and resting them in lopsided games.
 

''It's not ideal,'' he said. ''It's not easy on them. I don't know. We just keep going and do what we do and see what happens down the road.''

 

SWAT 'EM AWAY

Kiah Stokes blocked three shots, and UConn swatted away six overall. The Huskies lead the nation in blocked shots.

TIP-INS

Connecticut: Mosqueda-Lewis moved into UConn's top 10 in career scoring. She now has 1,874 points.

Cincinnati: The Bearcats scored a season-low 13 points in the first half, going 6 for 28 from the field - and missing all 12 3-point shots - while turning it over nine times.

UP NEXT

 

Connecticut hosts East Carolina on Wednesday, and then plays at Temple. The Huskies host Cincinnati on Feb. 3, when Auriemma would have a chance to get his 900th career win.

Cincinnati hosts Memphis on Wednesday and Houston on Saturday.

 

NCAAFB: Huskers' Ameer Abdullah leads North.

Associated Press

Alabama native Ameer Abdullah rushed for 73 yards and added 40 receiving in the North's win in the Senior Bowl. (Photo/AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah wanted to leave an impression on more than just the NFL watchers at the Senior Bowl.

Abdullah rushed for 73 yards and added 40 receiving while leading the North to a 34-13 victory over the South on Saturday in the Senior Bowl, punctuating his college career in his home state.

"Being down here was much more than putting on a good performance for me," said Abdullah, a Homewood, Alabama, native who had a large group of family and friends on hand. "Leaving this state was something that was hard for me to do. You could write a movie about it, really, just coming back and playing on Alabama soil for my last time as a collegiate athlete. I couldn't paint a better picture.

"It was emotional for me. I grew up watching this game. This was a monumental day for me."

The Cornhuskers' No. 2 career rusher won MVP honors in a game that showcases senior NFL prospects.

Abdullah made the most of his 11 touches, including four catches. He said being ready for quarterbacks to check down to the backs was emphasized.

"Obviously I'm a running back so I'm going to run the football but I wanted just to show that I had more than one dynamic to my game," Abdullah said.

Minnesota running back David Cobb gained 69 yards on 11 carries, including a 4-yard touchdown late in the third quarter.

The top passers were Baylor's Bryce Petty of the North and Colorado State's Garrett Grayson on the South. Petty was 9 of 13 for 123 yards with an interception. Grayson completed 8 of 15 passes for 118 yards.

Petty came in trying to demonstrate he could run a pro-style offense after operating a no-huddle attack in college. He is hoping his willingness to play in the game after just training since Jan. 6 made an impression.

"I took my lumps and bruises, which I knew was going to happen," Petty said. "I've still got a lot to prove. But experience-wise, this was great for me."

Utah's Nate Orchard, playing outside linebacker, was chosen as the North's most outstanding player. The Ted Hendricks Award winner as the nation's top defensive end had 1½ tackles for loss.

"I had a chance to show my versatility throughout the week and it showed up on game day," Orchard said. "It was fun."

Florida State guard Tre' Jackson received the outstanding player honor for the South.

Two big defensive plays helped give the North a double-digit lead going into the fourth quarter.

Texas cornerback Quandre Diggs picked off a pass from Southeastern Louisiana's Bryan Bennett, Marcus Mariota's one-time backup at Oregon, and raced 41 yards. Two plays later, Cobb scored for a 20-10 advantage.

Miami-Ohio's Quinten Rollins then intercepted another Bennett pass on the next drive. Division II Concordia-Saint Paul's Tom Obarski missed a field goal on the final play of the third quarter after hitting a 49-yarder earlier.

The game was played with two-minute warnings in each quarter, with a kickoff opening all four.

The rule gave the North the ball to start the fourth, and Yale's Tyler Varga ran for a 13-yard touchdown to put the game away. Varga added a 7-yard scoring run.

Auburn's Cameron Artis-Payne and Northern Iowa's David Johnson tied for the South rushing lead with 43 yards. Artis-Payne also had 35 yards on three catches.

Miami cornerback Ladarius Gunter made a big defensive play to end the first half, one play after his pass interference penalty kept the North's drive alive. He stopped Abdullah near the goal line on a catch from Oregon State's Sean Mannion and the clock ran out.

Mannion had ended his first drive with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Notre Dame tight end Ben Koyack. He also fumbled twice.

Alabama quarterback Blake Sims nearly completed a touchdown pass to Sammie Coates of rival Auburn. Coates only managed to get one foot down and the game was played under NFL rules, which require two feet to touch in bounds. It left the two rivals at first celebrating and then arguing their case together with the official.

Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall, who converted to cornerback after arriving in Mobile, had five tackles for the South, equaling the game high.

Watt gets 2 turnovers, dances in friendly Pro Bowl.

By BOB BAUM (AP Sports Writer)

Few moved very fast, no one flattened a quarterback and there were no bone-jarring hits in the gentle, friendly version of football played at the Pro Bowl Sunday.

Even in a game dominated by offense, J.J. Watt was the star.

The Texans defensive end intercepted pass, recovered a fumble and led the crowd in dances during commercial breaks.

Team Irvin defeated 32-28 Watt's Team Carter, but the score is never important in the NFL's all-star game. Everyone seemed to have a good time, particularly Watt, the game's defensive MVP.

Other memorable moments came from Saints tight end Jimmy Graham, who dunked over the crossbar twice after TD catches - this time with no penalty, and Giants rookie Odell Beckham Jr. who made a diving grab at midfield.

Graham's second touchdown, on a 1-yard, fourth-down pass from Matt Ryan, was the winning TD with 3:10 to play.

Greg Olsen and Emmanuel Sanders also caught a pair of touchdown passes apiece. Andrew Luck was nearly perfect in his short time on the field, completing 9 of 10 for 119 yards and two scores. Matthew Stafford threw for 316 yards and two TDs and was the offensive MVP.

The Pro Bowl took a one-year hiatus from Hawaii to be played in the desert to coincide with the big game. A sellout crowd of 63,225 watched at University of Phoenix Stadium as the teams moved up and down the field, often without much resistance.

If the players missed the beach, they wouldn't let on.

''It's been fantastic,'' Dallas quarterback Tony Romo said. ''The turnout here at the stadium is just like an NFL game.''

Romo knew this wasn't a real NFL game.

  

''It's a blast,'' Stafford said. ''To able to play with the best in the world is a whole lot of fun, and everybody is such good people, too. I am out here having a good time.''

The NFL scrapped the AFC vs. NFC format last year in favor of having two big-name former players draft players four days before the game. This year, the honor went to Michael Irvin and Cris Carter.

There were teammates playing against teammates.
 

When Green Bay's Jordy Nelson made a pretty fingertip touchdown catch from Drew Brees for Team Carter. He celebrated with his Packers teammate Clay Matthews, who was playing for the other team.
 

Beckham dove to the ground and gathered in Stafford's long pass just as the ball was about to hit the ground. When Graham caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Stafford, he soared to dunk the ball over crossbar. The New Orleans tight end was fined $30,000 when he did that twice, and was penalized both times, in a preseason game. There was no penalty on Sunday. 

''I really wanted to catch one here because this is I guess the only place I can dunk without a flag,'' Graham said. ''But you know, the league called down and told me not to hang on it, so I didn't.''

The goal posts were narrowed to from 18.6 feet to 14 feet on all kicks, not just PATs as had been previously announced. The PATs also were moved back to make it a 33-yard kick.

The skinny posts claimed an unlikely victim when Adam Vinatieri missed two PATs. The 42-year-old Colts kicker hasn't missed an extra point in real games in five years. He also missed a 38-yard field goal.

Another rule was no blitzing. Denver's Von Miller violated that one and, on the next play after the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Luck threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to his Indianapolis teammate T.Y. Hilton.

''It's very special, the chemistry that we have,'' Hilton said.

Winners got what amounts to pocket change for them - $55,000 apiece, losers $28,000.

On This Date in Sports History: Today is Monday, January 26, 2015.

Memoriesofhistory.com

1924 - Charles Jewtraw of the United States won the 500-meter speed skating. He was the first Gold Medalist at the Winter Olympics.

1985 - Wayne Gretzky (Edmonton Oilers) became the first NHL player to score 50 goals in 49 games.

1990 - Steffi Graf won her 48th consecutive match.

1997 - ZZ Top, James Brown and the Blues Brothers performed at the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show. The Green Bay Packers won 35-21 over the New England Patriots. It was the third Super Bowl win for the Packers.

2002 - Jennifer Capriati won Australian Open Tennis Championships in Melbourne.

2003 - The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Oakland Raiders 48-21 in Super Bowl XXXVII. Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden became the youngest coach to ever win a Super Bowl. It was the first Super Bowl appearance for the Buccaneers.

2003 - In Berlin, Lindsay Benko broke the 400 freestyle world record. She became the first to go under the four-minute mark (3 minutes, 59.53 seconds).

2003 - In Berlin, Thomas Rupprath set a new world record in the men's 100 medley. He came in at 52.58.

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