WNBA – Griner freed: WNBA star swapped for Russian, heads home
American basketball star Brittney Griner is heading home, freed from Russian prison in exchange for the U.S. releasing notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. Thursday’s dramatic action was the culmination of an eight-month saga of high diplomacy and dashed hopes. But the U.S. failed to win freedom for another American, Paul Whelan, jailed in Russia for nearly four years on espionage charges that his family and the U.S. government say are baseless. The swap comes at a time of heightened tensions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. And it has brought unprecedented attention to the number of what the U.S. considers wrongful detainees.
NCAAMBKB – Men’s College Basketball
Last Night
Michigan 90, Minnesota 75
Michigan 90, Minnesota 75 – McDaniel shines in first start, Michigan eases by Minnesota
Hunter Dickinson scored 19 points, freshman Dug McDaniel had 15 points and seven assists in his first start of the season and Michigan routed Minnesota 90-75. Michigan made its first five 3-pointers, led 24-9 after the opening eight minutes and extended it to 37-13. Minnesota used a 15-3 run to pull within 40-28 with 3:15 left in the first half but McDaniel ended Michigan’s nearly four minute scoring drought with a long 3-pointer and the Wolverines led 47-31 at the break. McDaniel scored nine of Michigan’s 17 points to start the second half for a 21-point lead. And Jett Howard scored five straight Michigan points during a 12-2 run for a 76-47 advantage. McDaniel shined in Michigan’s first game without guard Jaelin Llewellyn, who suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Saturday
UIC at Western Michigan, 2:30 p.m.
Central Michigan at Tulsa, 3:00 p.m.
Brown vs. Michigan State, 4:30 p.m. COSY-FM 3:30
Sunday
Eastern Michigan at Niagara, 1:00 p.m.
NFL – National Football League – Week 14
Last Night
Los Angeles Rams 17, Las Vegas Raiders 16
Rams 17, Raiders 16 – Baker cooks: Newcomer Mayfield rallies Rams past Vegas 17-16
Baker Mayfield threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Van Jefferson with 10 seconds to play to cap a 98-yard drive, and the Los Angeles Rams’ brand-new quarterback led two TD drives late in the fourth quarter of a shocking 17-16 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. Just two days after the Rams claimed Mayfield off waivers from Carolina, the former No. 1 pick went 22 of 35 for 230 yards and snapped the defending Super Bowl champions’ six-game losing streak in dramatic fashion. Josh Jacobs rushed for 99 yards and the only touchdown for the Raiders, whose three-game winning streak ended in humiliating fashion.
Sunday
Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions, 1:00 p.m. Rock 107 WIRX 12:00
Bears, Packers, and Colts are off this week
NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Florida Panthers 5, Detroit Red Wings 1
Panthers 5, Red Wings 1 – Tierney gets 1st goal for Panthers in 5-1 win over Red Wings
Veteran Chris Tierney scored his first goal of the season in his second game with Florida, and the Panthers scored four times in the second period to beat the Detroit Red Wings 5-1. Rookie Matt Kiersted also scored his first goal for the Panthers, who have won seven straight against the Red Wings and 17 of the last 19 meetings. Tierney and Kiersted were recalled this week from Charlotte of the AHL. Eetu Luostarinen, Josh Mahura and Matthew Tkachuk had Florida’s other goals, and Sergei Bobrovsky made 19 saves. Jonatan Berggren scored for the Red Wings, and Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 36 shots.
Tonight
Winnipeg at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.
Saturday
Detroit at Dallas, 2:00 p.m.
NBA – National Basketball Association
Tonight
Washington at Indiana, 7:00 p.m.
Detroit at Memphis, 8:00 p.m.
Saturday
Brooklyn at Indiana, 7:00 p.m.
Dallas at Chicago, 8:00 p.m.
Sunday
LA Lakers at Detroit, 6:00 p.m.
Chicago at Atlanta, 6:30 p.m.
NCAAWBKB – Women’s College Basketball
Last Night
Toledo 71, (14) Michigan 68
Cleveland State 86, Central Michigan 55
(5) Notre Dame at Lafayette, Postponed
Toledo 71, (14) Michigan 68 – Mikonowicz, Toledo women upend No. 14 Michigan 71-68
Sammi Mikonowicz made a layup with 13.6 seconds left and then added two free throws at 3.1 seconds as Toledo beat No. 14 Michigan 71-68 for its first win over a ranked team in 12 years and first on the road since March of 1996. The Rockets extended their nation’s best road winning streak to 14 and ended the Wolverines’ home winning streak at 21, which was the third-longest in the nation. Leigha Brown put the Wolverines on top 68-67 win a shot from the elbow with 20.3 seconds to play. After a timeout, Mikonowicz got the ball at the right elbow and drove to the basket for the winner. She padded that with foul shots after grabbing the rebound on a Brown miss.
Saturday
Merrimack at (5) Notre Dame, 12:00 p.m.
Indiana State at Western Michigan, 12:00 p.m.
Southern Indiana at Eastern Michigan, 1:00 p.m.
Sunday
Central Michigan at Georgia Tech, 1:00 p.m.
Michigan State at (3) Ohio State, 4:00 p.m.
NCAAFB – College Football – Week 15
Saturday
Navy at Army, 3:00 p.m. at Philadelphia
NCAAFB – College Football – Division II Semifinals
Saturday
West Florida at Ferris State, 12:00 p.m.
NCAAFB – Western Michigan hires Lance Taylor to lead football program
Western Michigan has hired Louisville offensive coordinator Lance Taylor to lead its football program. Athletic director Dan Bartholomae made the announcement Thursday. The 41-year-old Taylor previously coached running backs for three seasons at Notre Dame and Stanford. He was also an assistant at Appalachian State and with the Carolina Panthers and New York Jets. Alabama coach Nick Saban gave him his start in coaching as a graduate assistant in 2007. Taylor walked on the Crimson Tide’s team in 1999 and later earned a scholarship as a receiver and special team’s captain for former coach Mike Shula.
NCAAFB – USC QB Caleb Williams voted AP Player of the Year
Southern California quarterback Caleb Williams is The Associated Press college football player of the year. The sophomore Heisman Trophy favorite is the school’s first winner of the award since 2005 with his stellar debut season for the Trojans. Williams received 32 of the 46 first-place votes and 117 total points from AP Top 25 poll voters. TCU quarterback Max Duggan came in second with six first-place votes and 64 points. Williams has passed for 4,075 yards with an FBS-leading 37 touchdowns and just four interceptions this season.
NCAAFB – Michigan lineman Mazi Smith takes plea deal in gun case
Michigan defensive lineman Mazi Smith has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. The deal comes a week after Smith was charged with a felony for having a gun in his pickup truck without a concealed-weapon permit. Smith’s record will be scrubbed clean if he stays out of trouble for a certain length of time. Police say Smith was stopped for speeding on Oct. 7 and found to have a handgun and ammunition but not a concealed-pistol permit. He was arrested, taken to the police station and released to play the next day in Michigan’s game against Indiana. Washtenaw County prosecutor Eli Savit was criticized for waiting nearly two months to file a charge.
MLB – Dodgers sign OF Jason Heyward to minor league deal
The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed outfielder Jason Heyward to a minor league deal and invited him to spring training. The 33-year-old was released by the Chicago Cubs earlier this offseason. Heyward put up the worst offensive numbers of his career last season and battled injuries. He batted .204 and had 10 RBI and one home run in 137 plate appearances. He’s a valuable defender in the outfield. He’s also friends with Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. Heyward helped the Cubs win the 2016 World Series.
AHL – American Hockey League
Tonight
Grand Rapids at Springfield, 7:05 p.m. (1st ever meeting)
ECHL – ECHL Hockey League
Yesterday
Toledo Walleye at Kalamazoo Wings, 7:00 p.m.
MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Girls Basketball
Battle Creek Central 48, St. Joseph 37
Portage Central 42, Lakeshore 38 – OT
Michigan Lutheran 36, Our Lady of the Lake 29
Bridgman 28, Coloma 22
Mattawan 56, Portage Northern 50
Gull Lake 48, Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 39
Kalamazoo Central 55, Battle Creek Lakeview 48 – OT
Boys Basketball
Countryside Academy 53, Bloomingdale 45
Dowagiac 63, Comstock 42
Bangor 41, Wyoming West Michigan Lutheran 28
Boys Swimming and Diving
St. Joseph 130, Kalamazoo Central 46
Yesterday
Boys Basketball
SMAC
Portage Central at Lakeshore, 7:00 p.m. WSJM
St. Joseph at Battle Creek Central, 7:00 p.m.
Gull Lake at Kalamazoo Loy Norrix, 7:00 p.m
Mattawan at Portage Northern, 7:00 p.m.
Kal. Central at Battle Creek Lakeview, 7:00 p.m.
Wolverine
Three Rivers at Edwardsburg, 7:15 p.m.
Otsego at Niles, 7:15 p.m.
Plainwell at Sturgis, 7:15 p.m.
Paw Paw at Vicksburg, 7:15 p.m.
Lakeland
Buchanan at Benton Harbor, 7:00 p.m.
Berrien Springs at Brandywine, 7:00 p.m.
BCS
Our Lady of the Lake at Michigan Lutheran, 7:30 p.m.
Allegan at South Haven, 7:30 p.m.
Covert at Eau Claire, 7:00 p.m.
Countryside Academy at New Buffalo, 7:00 p.m.
Howardsville Christian at River Valley, 7:30 p.m.
SAC
Watervliet at Fennville, 7:30 p.m.
Martin at Holland Black River, 7:30 p.m.
Kalamazoo Christian at Lawton, 7:30 p.m.
Kalamazoo Hackett at Parchment, 7:30 p.m.
Gobles at Saugatuck, 7:30 p.m.
Constantine at Schoolcraft, 7:30 p.m.
Delton-Kellogg at Galesburg-Augusta, 7:30 p.m.
Non-Conference
Decatur at Dowagiac, 7:00 p.m.
Union City at Mendon, 7:30 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Wolverine
Three Rivers at Edwardsburg, 6:00 p.m.
Otsego at Niles, 6:00 p.m.
Plainwell at Sturgis, 6:00 p.m.
Paw Paw at Vicksburg, 6:00 p.m.
Lakeland
Buchanan at Benton Harbor, 5:30 p.m.
Berrien Springs at Brandywine, 5:30 p.m.
BCS
Countryside Academy at New Buffalo, 7:00 p.m.
Howardsville Christian at River Valley, 7:30 p.m.
SAC
Watervliet at Fennville, 6:00 p.m.
Martin at Holland Black River, 6:00 p.m.
Kalamazoo Christian at Lawton, 6:00 p.m.
Kalamazoo Hackett at Parchment, 6:00 p.m.
Gobles at Saugatuck, 6:00 p.m.
Constantine at Schoolcraft, 6:00 p.m.
Delton-Kellogg at Galesburg-Augusta, 6:00 p.m.
Southwest 10
Bloomingdale at Bangor, 6:00 p.m.
Centreville at Cassopolis, 7:30 p.m.
Comstock at Decatur, 7:00 p.m.
Hartford at Lawrence, 7:00 p.m.
White Pigeon at Marcellus, 7:00 p.m.
Saturday
Boys Basketball
Coloma at Buchanan, 5:30 p.m.
Battle Creek Central at Holt, 7:00 p.m.
Vicksburg at Charlotte, 7:00 p.m.
GR Forest Hills Northern at Otsego, 2:30 p.m.
Quincy at White Pigeon, 7:30 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Michigan Lutheran at Potterville, 4:00 p.m.
Jackson at Kalamazoo Central, 4:00 p.m.
Quincy at White Pigeon, 7:30 p.m.
FIFA – 2022 FIFA World Cup – Qatar
Friday
Quarterfinals
Croatia vs. Brazil, 10:00 a.m.
Netherlands vs. Argentina, 2:00 p.m.
