NFL – National Football League – Week 18
Yesterday
Detroit Lions 20, Green Bay Packers 16
Minnesota Vikings 29, Chicago Bears 13
Houston Texans 32, Indianapolis Colts 31
Lions 20, Packers 16 – Rodgers, Packers lose 20-16 to Lions, miss playoffs
Aaron Rodgers threw a late interception on the final pass of what might be his last game, and the Green Bay Packers lost 20-16 to the Detroit Lions to miss the playoffs. After winning four straight games and receiving plenty of help from other teams, the Packers had control of their postseason fate heading into the final game of the NFL regular season. But they fell short against the Lions, who had been eliminated from the playoffs earlier Sunday. Jamaal Williams’ second 1-yard touchdown run of the night against his former team put the Lions (9-8) ahead with 5:55 remaining. Williams had 17 touchdown runs to break the Lions’ single-season record that Barry Sanders had set in 1991. Green Bay only got as far as its own 33 on its next series before Kerby Joseph picked off Rodgers’ deep throw on third-and-10 with 3 1/2 minutes left. Seattle instead earned the NFC’s final playoff spot and will play at San Francisco in the opening round. The Packers missed the playoffs for the first time in Matt LaFleur’s four seasons as coach. In the two games against Detroit this season, Rodgers was intercepted four times, three of them by Joseph of the Lions.
Vikings 29, Bears 13 – Cousins dominates first half as Vikings beat Bears 29-13
Kirk Cousins threw for 225 yards and a touchdown in the first half and watched the rest of the way as the NFC North champion Minnesota Vikings tuned up for the playoffs by beating the Chicago Bears 29-13. Cousins led three scoring drives as the Vikings grabbed a 16-6 halftime lead. They remained in control the rest of the way after getting blown out at Green Bay the previous week. The Bears, who held out star Justin Fields, set a franchise record with their 14th loss and extended one by dropping their 10th game in a row. With Houston winning 32-31 at Indianapolis, Chicago gets the No. 1 pick in the draft for the first time since 1947.
Texas 32, Colts 31 – Texans rally for 32-31 win at Indy but lose top draft pick
Davis Mills threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Akins with 50 seconds left then connected with Akins on the 2-point conversion to give Houston a 32-31 victory at Indianapolis. The victory cost the Texans the No. 1 overall draft pick. They’ll select second, behind the Chicago Bears. Indy, meanwhile, lost its seventh straight under interim coach Jeff Saturday while solidifying a top-five draft selection. The final chapter was a surprise twist after Indy rallied from a 10-point third-quarter deficit to take a 31-24 lead with 3:33 to go. But Mills converted two fourth down plays, including the fourth-and-20 pass to Akins to win it.
Other Week 18 Scores
Kansas City 31, Las Vegas 13
Jacksonville 20, Tennessee 16
Atlanta 30, Tampa Bay 17
Buffalo 35, New England 23
Carolina 10, New Orleans 7
Cincinnati 27, Baltimore 16
Miami 11, N.Y. Jets 6
Pittsburgh 28, Cleveland 14
Denver 31, L.A. Chargers 28
Philadelphia 22, N.Y. Giants 16
San Francisco 38, Arizona 13
Seattle 19, L.A. Rams 16, OT
Washington 26, Dallas 6
NFL – Lions miss playoffs, but head into offseason with optimism
Getting eliminated from playoff contention about an hour before their season finale didn’t alter the Detroit Lions’ approach. The Lions delivered a performance that enables them to go into the offseason believing their playoff drought will end very soon. Jamaal Williams rushed for two touchdowns against his former team as the Lions capped their late-season surge with a 20-16 victory at Green Bay, eliminating the Packers from playoff contention. The Lions’ win sent Seattle to the playoffs. Detroit needed the Seahawks to lose and then beat the Packers to make the postseason for the first time since 2016.
NFL – Bears get No. 1 pick after Texans rally for win at Indy
Thanks to an old friend, the Chicago Bears are on the clock for the NFL draft. Chicago will pick No. 1 for the first time since 1947 after it lost 29-13 to the Minnesota Vikings in its season finale. It was the 10th straight loss for the Bears, extending a franchise record. Even with all that misery, the Bears were headed for the No. 2 selection before Lovie Smith coached Houston to a wild 32-31 victory at Indianapolis. The 64-year-old Smith coached the Bears from 2004-12, going 81-63 and making the playoffs three times.
NFL – Hamlin in their hearts, the NFL pays tribute to No. 3
and fans across the NFL paid tribute to Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin on Sunday, the first time most across the league resumed playing since his terrifying cardiac arrest during a game last week. Hamlin’s number “3” was on display everywhere across the league, outlined on 30-yard lines on fields, worn on special patches on the Bills uniforms and featured on jackets and sweatshirts and even on red hearts dangling from the tailgate tents outside the Bills home stadium.
NCAAFB – College Football – CFP National Championship
Tonight
(3) TCU vs. (1) Georgia, 7:30 p.m. SoFi Stadium – Inglewood, CA,
NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Chicago Blackhawks 4, Calgary Flames 3 – OT
Blackhawks 4, Flames 3 – OT – Domi scores in OT to lift Blackhawks over Flames 4-3
Maxi Domi scored at 1:04 of overtime and had an assist as the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Calgary Flames 4-3 for their second straight win. Lukas Reichel batted in his his first NHL goal and had two assists for Chicago. Philipp Kurashev and Colin Blackwell also scored for the last-place Blackhawks, who are 3-13-0 in their last 16 games. Alex Stalock made 44 saves in third straight start. Elias Lindholm had a power play goal and an assist, and Nazem Kadri and Jonathan Huberdeau also scored for Calgary. Tyler Toffoli added two assists as the Flames came back from a two-goal deficit to tie it after coach Darryl Sutter replaced starting goalie Jacob Markstrom with Dan Vladar just 35 seconds into the second period.
NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Philadelphia 76ers 123, Detroit Pistons 111
Indiana Pacers 116, Charlotte Hornets 111
Sixers 123, Pistons 111 – Harden’s triple-double leads 76ers to easy win over Pistons
James Harden had 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a comfortable 123-111 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Tyrese Maxey added 23 points and Montrez Harrell scored 20 for the Sixers, who have won four of five. Killian Hayes scored 25 points for Detroit, which has alternated wins and losses in its last seven games after a six-game losing streak. Isaiah Stewart finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds, while Bojan Bogdanovic had 20 points. The Sixers led 71-54 at halftime, thanks to Harrell’s 16 points and Harden’s 13 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.
Pacers 116, Hornets 111 – Turner, Haliburton key Pacers’ 116-111 victory over Hornets
Myles Turner scored 29 points, Buddy Hield had 21 and the Indiana Pacers capped the first half of their regular-season schedule with a 116-111 comeback victory over the Charlotte Hornets. Tyrese Haliburton finished with 16 points, 13 assists and five rebounds for the Pacers, who trailed by nine early in the fourth quarter and needed a series of clutch plays in the final minutes to improve their record to 23-18 at the midpoint. P.J. Washington had 22 points and five rebounds for the Hornets, Terry Rozier chipped in 19 points, six assists and six boards, and Mason Plumlee wound up with 18 points and 13 boards.
Tonight
Chicago Bulls at New York Knicks 7:30 p.m.
MLB – White Sox closer Hendriks says he has non-Hodgkin lymphoma
Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks says he has non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Hendriks announced Sunday on Instagram that he was diagnosed in recent days. The three-time All-Star was scheduled to begin treatment on Monday. Hendriks says he is “confident” he will “make a full recovery and be back on the mound as soon as possible.” The five-year survival rate for non-Hodgkin lymphoma is 73.8%, according to the National Cancer Institute. Some forms are aggressive while others are slow growing. General manager Rick Hahn says in a statement the White Sox don’t expect to have an update on Hendriks’ status prior to opening day.
NCAAMBKB – Women’s College Basketball
Yesterday
(22) North Carolina 60, (4) Notre Dame 50
(22) UNC 60, (4) ND 50 – Paris’ surge helps No. 22 UNC beat No. 4 Notre Dame 60-50
First-year guard Paulina Paris scored 11 of her season-high 16 points in the fourth quarter to help No. 22 North Carolina push past No. 4 Notre Dame 60-50 on Sunday. Deja Kelly added 14 points for the Tar Heels. UNC snapped a four-game skid that had drained some of their early-season buzz. But they responded with a tough-minded performance on a day when nothing came easily for either offense. Olivia Miles had 15 points and seven rebounds to lead Notre Dame, which had entered Sunday as one of two unbeaten teams in ACC play.
MHSAA – High School Sports
Tonight
Boys Basketball
St. Joseph at Benton Harbor, 7:00 p.m. WSJM
Delton-Kellogg at Bloomingdale, 7:00 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Benton Harbor at St. Joseph, 7:00 p.m.
Constantine at Bronson, 5:30 p.m.
Homer at Centreville, 7:30 p.m.
Kentwood Grand River at Holland Black River, 7:00 p.m.
