COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF
Field is set
UNDATED (AP) β The College Football Playoff selection committee has made its final decision: Ohio State is in. TCU is out.
Alabama, Oregon, Florida State and Ohio State will participate in the first playoff in major college football history. Alabama and Oregon were shoo-ins following lopsided wins in their respective conference title games, but the last two spots were up for grabs until late Saturday night.
The Buckeyes grabbed the final CFP semifinal berth following Saturday’s 59-0 dismantling of Wisconsin in the Big Ten title game. The Seminoles secured a berth with a tight 37-35 triumph over Georgia Tech that capped Florida State’s second consecutive undefeated regular season.
The committee didn’t think much of TCU’s season-ending 55-3 pounding of Iowa State. The Horned Frogs dropped from third to sixth in the final CFP ranking, passed by the Buckeyes, Seminoles and Big 12 rival Baylor.
Committee chairman Jeff Long said the top three were clear and the final spot came down to a debate between the Buckeyes and Big 12 co-champs Baylor and TCU. Among those three, Long said: “It was decisive for Ohio State.”
Ohio State will take on Alabama in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s night, right after Oregon plays Florida State at the Rose Bowl. The national championship game is slated for Jan. 12 in Arlington, Texas.
In other major bowl game matchups, TCU will play Mississippi in the Peach Bowl, Mississippi State will tangle with Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl, the Cotton Bowl will have Baylor against Michigan State, and Arizona will face facing Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl.
T25 FOOTBALL-POLL
Final AP poll of the season
UNDATED (AP) β The top three teams in last week’s Associated Press football poll remain 1-2-3 in the final media poll of the regular season. Alabama is No. 1 followed by Florida State and then Oregon. TCU dropped out of the top five to sixth place with Baylor and Ohio State moving into the fourth and fifth spots.
TCU fell after defeating lowly Iowa State while Baylor and Ohio State moved up with wins over ranked schools.
The rest of the top 10 features Michigan State at seven, followed by Mississippi State, Mississippi and Georgia Tech.
NFL-SCHEDULE
Teams continue their push to the playoffs
UNDATED (AP) β The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles are back in a virtual tie for first place in the NFC East.
The Seattle Seahawks did the Cowboys a favor by holding the Eagles to just 139 total yards in a 24-14 victory in Philadelphia. Russell Wilson tied the game with a 26-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter before tossing second-half TD passes to Marshawn Lynch and Doug Baldwin. Wilson ran for 48 yards and was 22 of 37 for 263 yards and no interceptions.
Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez completed 10 of 20 passes for just 96 yards and one interception. Most of his yardage came on a 35-yard TD pass to Zach Ertz in the third period.
The win keeps the Seahawks one game out of first place in the NFC West at 9-4. The Eagles also are 9-4.
Also in the NFL:
β Arizona kept its one-game lead over Seattle in the NFC West by rallying for a 17-14 win over Kansas City. Drew Stanton, 26-yard pass to Jaron Brown with 3:26 left to give the Cards a 10-3 record. Kerwynn Williams rushed for 100 yards two days after being elevated from the Cardinals’ practice squad. The 7-6 Chiefs were shut out in the second half after Jamaal Charles scored two first-half touchdowns on a 63-yard run and 18-yard pass from Alex Smith.
β Oakland damaged San Francisco’s playoff chances and improved to 2-11 as Derek Carr tossed three scoring passes in the Raiders’ 24-13 win over the 49ers. Carr completed 22 of 28 passes for 254 yards and completely outplayed counterpart Colin Kaepernick (KAP’-ur-nik), who threw a TD pass but was just 18 of 33 for 174 yards and two interceptions. The Niners are two games out of the second wild-card spot with three games remaining.
β Buffalo ended Peyton Manning’s streak of 51 games with at least one touchdown pass, but the Bills allowed C.J. Anderson to reach the end zone three times in Denver’s 24-17 victory. Anderson’s final TD put Denver ahead 21-3 in the third quarter. The Broncos improved to 10-3 despite three turnovers that included two interceptions by Manning, who was just 14 of 20 for 173 yards. Kyle Orton threw for a TD and ran for another, but he was picked off twice as the Bills dropped to 7-6.
β New England clinched its 12th straight 10-win season by scoring 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to beat San Diego 23-14. Stephen Gostkowski hit 38-yard field goal with 10:34 left to put the Patriots ahead to stay before Tom Brady threw a 69-yard touchdown pass to Julian Edelman. Brady threw for 317 yards and two TDs in the Patriots’ eighth victory in nine games. The 8-5 Chargers had just 53 rushing yards while Philip Rivers threw for another 189.
β Ben Roethlisberger (RAWTH’-lihs-bur-gur) threw three touchdown passes, including a 94-yarder in the fourth quarter, as the Steelers manhandled the Bengals in Cincinnati 42-21. The outcome gives the Steelers an 8-5 record and drops the AFC North-leading Bengals to 8-4-1. The key to the game was the last quarter as Pittsburgh scored 25 points in the final 15 minutes of play. Pittsburgh running back Le’Veon Bell scored three second-half touchdowns, ran for 185 yards and caught six passes for 50 yards.
βWhile the Steelers were beating up on the Bengals, the Ravens were defeating the Dolphins in Miami 28-13. Like Pittsburgh, Baltimore is now 8-5 on the season after overcoming a 10-point deficit with consecutive touchdown drives of 97 and 75 yards. Joe Flacco threw for two touchdowns and ran for another while completing 25 of his 33 passes for 269 yards. The victory leaves the 8-5 Ravens in a virtual tie with the Steelers and others in the AFC wild-card race and drops the Dolphins to 7-6.
β Cleveland was less than a minute away from improving to 8-5 in the AFC Central, but a 1-yard touchdown pass by Andrew Luck with 32 seconds left gave the Colts a 25-24 win over the Browns. The 9-4 Colts trailed 21-7 in the third quarter and stormed back behind Luck, who finished 24 of 53 for 294 yards. The loss dropped the Browns to 7-6 and significantly hurt their playoff chances.
βMatthew Stafford threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns as Detroit hammered Tampa Bay 34-17 to keep the pressure on Green Bay in the NFC North. Calvin Johnson had eight catches for 158 yards and a touchdown for the Lions, who snapped a nine-game losing streak in December and improved to 9-4. The Lions will own a share of the division lead if the Packers lose to Atlanta.
β Cam Newton passed for three touchdowns and the Panthers ended a six-game losing streak with a 41-10 rout of the Saints. The game was marred by a scrum after the Saints didn’t like Newton’s celebration after he rushed for a 2-yard touchdown. Jonathan Stewart added a 69-yard touchdown as the Panthers improved to 4-8-1.The 5-8 Saints have lost four straight home games and will lose their share of first place in the weak NFC South if the Falcons beat Green Bay on Monday.
β Arian Foster ran for 127 yards as the Houston Texans stopped Jacksonville 27-13 and improved to 7-6 to keep their playoff hopes alive. J.J. Watt finished with three sacks, recorded five quarterback hits and helped the Texans hold the Jaguars to just 76 total yards in the second half.
β The Rams have back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 1945 following a 24-0 rout of Washington. Jared Cook caught two touchdown passes, Tavon Austin returned a punt 78 yards for a score and the defense allowed 206 total yards as the Rams improved to 5-7. Redskins quarterback Colt McCoy suffered a neck injury on his sixth sack, forcing Robert Griffin III to finish the game in his first appearance since getting benched two weeks ago.
β The Giants snapped a seven game losing skid as Eli Manning threw for 260 yards and a touchdown in a 36-7 rout of Tennessee. New York’s Odell Beckham Jr. set a team rookie record with his fourth game with 100 yards receiving this season. Andre Williams ran for a season-high 131 yards, including a 50-yard TD. The Titans have lost seven straight and are 2-11 on the year.
β Jarius Wright took a screen pass from Teddy Bridgewater and turned it into an 87-yard touchdown in overtime to give the Minnesota Vikings a 30-24 victory over the Jets. Bridgewater finished 19 of 27 for 309 yards and two touchdowns to help the Vikings keep their playoff hopes alive.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Hawks win, tie Wizards
UNDATED (AP) β The Atlanta Hawks have a six-game winning streak and a share of the NBA’s Southeast Division lead after a 96-84 win over Denver.
Paul Millsap scored 23 points and Kyle Korver added 15 as the Hawks improved to 13-6, tying them with the Washington Wizards. Al Horford and DeMarre Carroll each had 11 points and combined for 17 Atlanta rebounds.
The Nuggets never recovered from a slow start. They missed 23 of their first 32 field-goal attempts and trailed 45-26 midway through the second.
The Wizards were 101-93 losers to Boston as Jeff Green scored 25 points and Marcus Thornton came off the bench to add 21. Rajon Rondo (RAH’-zhahn RAHN’-doh) had a triple-double with 13 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists for the Celtics, who won their third straight after a season-high five-game skid.
Also in the NBA:
β Jon Leuer scored a season-high 20 points and matched his career best with 12 rebounds to lead Memphis past Miami 103-87. Mike Conley added 18 points on 8-for-8 shooting for the Grizzlies, while Zach Randolph and Courtney Lee finished with 17 points apiece.
β Chandler Parsons poured in 28 points and Dallas bounced back from Friday’s loss to Phoenix by pounding Milwaukee 125-102. Dirk Nowitzki finished with 21 points and Monta (MAHN’-tay) Ellis added 19 in the Mavericks’ 12th victory in 15 games.
β LaMarcus Aldridge delivered 24 points and Wesley Matthews had 17 in Portland’s 103-99 triumph at New York. The Trail Blazers blew a 10-point, fourth-quarter lead before earning their fourth straight win and sending the Knicks to their eighth consecutive loss.
β Kevin Durant scored 28 points, while Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka (ih-BAH’-kah) each added double-doubles as Oklahoma City handed Detroit its 12th consecutive loss, 96-94. Westbrook finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Ibaka added 13 points and 13 rebounds to the Thunder’s second straight win.
β Anthony Davis shot 11-for-15 while scoring a game-high 23 points as New Orleans beat the Los Angeles Lakers 104-87 to end a two-game skid. Jrue (juh-ROO’) Holiday chipped in 22 points while helping the Pelicans hold Kobe Bryant to 13 points on 6 of 18 from the field.
T25 MEN’S BASKETBALL-SCHEDULE
Tar Heels win No. 6
UNDATED (AP) β The top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats are 9-0 after clobbering a neighbor.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored a career-high 19 points and the Wildcats shot 57 percent in an 82-49 rout of Eastern Kentucky. Willie Cauley-Stein added 11 points and Trey Lyles chipped in 10 points with 10 rebounds in the lopsided win.
The Wildcats held the Colonels to 26 percent shooting, two days after Kentucky’s hard-fought victory over No. 6 Texas.
In other top-25 men’s basketball:
β No. 12 North Carolina got 19 points and a career-high 17 rebounds from Brice Johnson in a 108-64 laugher against East Carolina.
β Nigel Williams-Goss scored 15 points and Washington held San Diego State to a school record for fewest points in the Huskies’ 49-36 win over the 13th-ranked Aztecs.
β No. 16 West Virginia was a 67-42 winner against Northern Kentucky as Juwan Staten and Devin Williams each provided 12 points for the 8-1 Mountaineers.
β Rod Hall scored 11 of his 19 points in the final minute of regulation and overtime to rally Clemson to a 68-65 victory over No. 18 Arkansas.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Oilers finally get a win
UNDATED (AP) β The Edmonton Oilers were able to derail a pair of miserable streaks on Sunday.
The Oilers have lost 11 straight and were tied 1-1 until David Perron scored midway through the third period of a 2-1 triumph over San Jose. Nail Yakupov (NYL YAH’-kah-pahv) also scored and Ben Scrivens stopped 20 shots for the Oilers, who had been 0-12-4 against Western Conference opponents.
The Sharks had won four straight.
Elsewhere on ice:
β Anaheim improved to a league-best 14-0-5 in one goal games this season as Kyle Palmieri scored 53 seconds into overtime to lift the Ducks past Winnipeg 4-3. Ryan Getzlaf (GETS’-laf) set up three goals, including the primary assist on the game-winner.
β Tomas Tatar (tah-TAHR’) scored twice and Pavel Datsyuk (DAHT’-sook) added a goal and two assists to lead Detroit’s 3-1 verdict over Carolina. Petr Mrazek (mur-AH’-zehk) made 34 saves for the Red Wings, who have won three in a row and seven of eight.
β Ottawa fought back from a 3-0 deficit before beating Vancouver 4-3 on Erik Karlsson’s goal 1:21 into overtime. Mike Zibanejad (MEE’-kah zih-BAH’-neh-zhahd) had two goals and two assists as the Senators ended a five-game losing streak.
GOLF-HERO WORLD CHALLENGE
Spieth gets the win as Woods ties for last
WINDERMERE, Fla. (AP) β Justin Spieth (speeth) dominated the Hero World Challenge by finishing 26 shots under par, 10 in front of Henrik Stenson. Spieth closed out the tournament with a final round 6-under-66.
Tiger Woods wound up tied for last place at even par after a final round even-par 72. He shared the bottom spot with Hunter Mahan (MAY’-han) who finished with a last round 3-over-75.
