Thursday Morning Sports Update-01/28/2021

andre-drummond-mason-plumlee
andre-drummond-mason-plumlee

NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Cleveland Cavaliers 122, Detroit Pistons 107
Indiana Pacers 116, Charlotte Hornets 106
Chicago Bulls at Memphis Grizzlies, PPD

Cavaliers 122, Pistons 107 – Sexton scores 29 points, Cavaliers beat Pistons 122-107
Collin Sexton scored 29 points and Andre Drummond  had 23 points, 16 rebounds and five steals against his former team, powering the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 122-107 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night. Taurean Prince added 16 points and rookie Isaac Okoro had 10 points and a season-high six assists to help the Cavaliers snap a two-game losing streak and improve to 9-9. Jerami Grant scored 26 points and Mason Plumlee had 15 points, 12 rebounds and a career-high eight turnovers for Detroit. The Pistons are 1-7 road.

Pacers 116, Hornets 106 – Pacers’ Sabonis has triple-double to sink Hornets 116-106
Doug McDermott had 28 points, Domantas Sabonis had 22 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and the Indiana Pacers beat the Charlotte Hornets 116-106. Sabonis, who was questionable coming into the game with a bruised knee, started and finished 9 of 10 from the field. Malcom Brogdon had 25 points and Justin Holiday chipped in 19 points for the Pacers, who have won three of their last four games. Terry Rozier had 20 points for the Hornets, who have dropped six of seven.

Bulls at Grizzlies, PPD – Bulls at Grizzlies game postponed
The game between the Chicago Bulls and Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum has been postponed in accordance with the NBA’s Health and Safety Protocols.

Tonight
Los Angeles Lakers at Detroit Pistons, 8:00 p.m.

NBA – Game or no game, NBA All-Star voting starts Thursday
NBA All-Star voting opens Thursday, without any final determination yet if there will be an actual All-Star Game this season. The league said Wednesday that “discussions surrounding a potential NBA All-Star Game are ongoing.” The Associated Press reported Monday that there have been talks about having an All-Star Game that would benefit historically Black institutions and COVID-19 relief, though no plan has been finalized. But the league also wants players worthy of being named All-Stars this season to get their due, whether the game is played or not. Voting opens at noon Eastern on Thursday and will run through 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Feb. 16.

NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Nashville Predators 2, Chicago Blackhawks 1 – Shootout

Predators 2, Blackhawks 1 – SO – d
Jason Dickinson scored 1:32 into overtime and the Dallas Stars won a third straight home game to start their delayed season, beating the Detroit Red Wings 2-1. John Klingberg had a goal and assisted on Dickinson’s winner. The former longtime Central Division rivals played as division foes for the first time since 1997-98 because of realignment in the pandemic. Dallas trailed for the first time this season when Vladislav Namestnikov scored in the first period.

Tonight
Detroit Red Wings at Dallas Stars, 8:30 p.m.

NCAAFB – Big Ten – Northwestern, Fitzgerald agree to new contract through 2030
Northwestern and coach Pat Fitzgerald have agreed to a new contract that runs through the 2030 season. The 46-year-old Fitzgerald is by far the program’s winningest coach with a 106-81 record since he took over at his alma mater in 2006. The Wildcats have played in 10 bowl games during his tenure and won five. Northwestern captured its second Big Ten West championship in three years and beat Auburn in the Citrus Bowl last season. Fitzgerald was under contract through 2026.


NCAAMBB – Men’s College Basketball
Last Night
(20) Virginia Tech 62, Notre Dame 51

(20) Virginia Tech 62, Notre Dame 51 – No. 20 Hokies rebound from road loss to top Notre Dame 62-51
Nahiem Alleyne led four Virginia Tech players in double figures with 15 points and the No. 20 Hokies rebounded from their previous road loss to control cold-shooting Notre Dame 62-51. Keve Aluma and Justyn Mutts had 14 points each and reserve Hunter Cattoor scored 13 for coach Mike Young’s Hokies, who were coming off a 78-60 loss last Saturday at Syracuse. Prentiss Hubb scored 22 points to lead the Fighting Irish, who saw their two-game winning streak end. The guard scored just five points after intermission as the Irish, who shot 32% in the first half, finished at 36% for the game.

Tonight
Michigan State at Rutgers, 7:00 p.m.             Superhits 103.7 Cosy-FM 6:00

NCAAWBB – Women’s College Basketball
Last Night
Central Michigan 83, Toledo 74
Bowling Green 77, Western Michigan 53
Eastern Michigan 69, Ohio 66

Tonight
Michigan State at (12) Michigan, PPD

NFL – Lions hire ex-Chargers coach Lynn as offensive coordinator
The Detroit Lions have hired offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn, who led the Los Angeles Chargers for four seasons before being fired earlier this month. Detroit added Lynn to first-year coach Dan Campbell’s staff on Wednesday, days after hiring Aaron Glenn to be their defensive coordinator. Lynn had a 33-31 record in the regular season and was 1-1 in the playoffs with the Chargers from 2017 to 2020. The Lions also announced they hired assistant general manager Ray Agnew and senior personnel executive John Dorsey, a former general manager for the Kansas City Chiefs and Cleveland Browns.

NFL – Michael Strahan tests positive for COVID-19
Pro Football Hall of Famer and “Good Morning America” host Michael Strahan has tested positive for COVID-19 and is self-quarantining according to people familiar with the situation. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday because of medical restriction issues. He is currently not experiencing any severe symptoms from COVID-19. TMZ was the first to report about Strahan testing positive. Strahan also works on the “Fox NFL Sunday” pregame show and appeared remotely during last Sunday’s NFC championship game.

WNBA – Candace Parker to sign with Chicago Sky
Former WNBA MVP Candace Parker has decided to play for the Chicago Sky according to a person familiar with the decision. Parker played her entire 13-year career with the Los Angeles Sparks and is an unrestricted free agent so she can’t officially sign with Chicago until Monday. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity on Wednesday because no official announcement is allowed until Feb. 1.

MLB – Lefty Jon Lester finalizes $5M, 1-year deal with Nationals
Left-handed starter Jon Lester and the Washington Nationals have finalized a $5 million, one-year contract. He gives the team a fourth member of a rotation led by Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin. Lester and the team had an agreement in principle in place last week, but it was pending the successful completion of a physical exam. The five-time All-Star and Nationals manager, Dave Martinez know each other well: Martinez was the bench coach for the Chicago Cubs when Lester helped that club win the 2016 World Series for its first title in 108 years.