AP Sports Summary for Friday Morning, September 8th, 2023.
Lions spoil Chiefs' celebration of Super Bowl title by rallying for a 21-20 win in the NFL's opener
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Detroit Lions rallied for a 21-20 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs to ruin the Super Bowl champions' celebration on the NFL's opening night. Jared Goff threw for 253 yards and a touchdown while new Lions running back David Montgomery reached the end zone for the go-ahead score late in the game. Detroit then held the Chiefs on the next possession to put it away. Kansas City had won eight straight openers while the Lions had lost their last five. The Chiefs played without injured All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce and All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones, who is in a holdout.
Bengals QB Joe Burrow becomes NFL's highest-paid player with $275 million deal, AP source says
CINCINNATI (AP) — Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow became the highest-paid player in the NFL when he agreed to a five-year, $275 million contract extension on Thursday. That's according to a person familiar with the deal who spoke on condition of anonymity because it hadn't been announced. The person says the contract includes more than $219 million guaranteed. Burrow will be paid an average of $55 million per year. The deal was finalized three days before the Bengals' season opener at Cleveland. Burrow has led the Bengals to two straight AFC North titles and a Super Bowl two seasons ago. He set franchise single-season records for completions, pass attempts and passing touchdowns last year.
Coco Gauff wins a US Open semifinal delayed by a climate protest. Will face Sabalenka in the final
NEW YORK (AP) — Coco Gauff has reached her first U.S. Open final by defeating Karolina Muchova 6-4, 7-5 in a match interrupted for 50 minutes by environmental activists. One of the protesters glued his bare feet to the concrete in the Arthur Ashe Stadium stands Thursday night. Aryna Sabalenka beat Madison Keys in a third-set tiebreaker in the other semifinal. Gauff is a 19-year-old from Florida who is the youngest American to make it to the title match in New York since Serena Williams. Gauff was up by a set and 1-0 in the second when protesters disrupted play. The victory was the 11th in a row for Gauff and the 17th in her past 18 matches.
Climate protester glues feet to floor at US Open, interrupts Coco Gauff's semifinal win over Muchova
NEW YORK (AP) — Coco Gauff's victory over Karolina Muchova in the U.S. Open semifinals was delayed for 50 minutes early in the second set because of a disruption by four environmental activists in the Arthur Ashe Stadium stands. One protester glued his feet to the concrete floor Thursday night. Three protesters were quickly escorted out. They were wearing shirts that read, "End Fossil Fuels." All four were taken into police custody. The players returned to the court after waiting out the delay in the locker room and the match resumed. Gauff won 6-4, 7-5.
Ben Shelton joins past champs Djokovic, Alcaraz and Medvedev in the US Open men's semifinals
NEW YORK (AP) — It's obvious when it comes to Ben Shelton and the rest of the men playing in the U.S. Open semifinals that one of these is not like the others. Shelton is unseeded and ranked 47th. Carlos Alcaraz is seeded No. 1, Novak Djokovic is No. 2 and Daniil Medvedev is No. 3, the first time since 2011 that the top three players in the men's bracket made it to the final four in Flushing Meadows. Shelton faces Djokovic on Friday and Alcaraz plays Medvedev. Shelton is a 20-year-old who was born in Georgia and won an NCAA singles title for the University of Florida in 2022. He is the only semifinalist who hasn't won the U.S. Open previously. He's also the only one without any major title.
Aryna Sabalenka edges Madison Keys in US Open semifinals, will play Coco Gauff on Saturday
NEW YORK (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka reached her first U.S. Open final by edging Madison Keys 0-6, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (10-5). The second-seeded Sabalenka will face No. 6-seeded Coco Gauff on Saturday. The Australian Open champion had been just 1-5 in Grand Slam semifinals, including losses the last two years in that round in New York. But she won this one by taking the two tiebreakers by a combined 17-6. She had to regroup in the second one after mistakenly thinking she had won it after her seventh point, momentarily forgetting the tiebreakers in decisive sets go to 10. Sabalenka was already assured of rising to the top of the women's rankings even if she lost.
Jets' Aaron Rodgers shows support for unvaccinated tennis star Novak Djokovic
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers crossed an item off his sports bucket list and then made a statement with a more visible crossout. The New York Jets quarterback attended the U.S. Open on Sunday and posted a picture on a since-expired Instagram story of No. 2 seed Novak Djokovic from his seat. In the post, Rodgers used a red line to cross out a Moderna logo on an ad on a side panel. He also posted a goat emoji with the hashtag: "novaxdjokovic." The 36-year-old Djokovic reached his record 47th Grand Slam semifinal after not being able to play in the U.S. Open last year because he wasn't vaccinated against COVID-19.
Pro Picks: Mahomes, Chiefs up for a tough task vs. Lions
The Kansas City Chiefs will have Patrick Mahomes under center after they raise their championship banner and embark on a quest to become the first team to repeat in nearly two decades. Travis Kelce and Chris Jones may not be there. Kelce, the All-Pro tight end, is dealing with a knee injury. Jones, the All-Pro edge rusher, has been holding out for a new contract. Mahomes should be enough to squeak past the upstart Detroit Lions. Jared Goff is coming off a Pro Bowl season with the Lions, who have plenty of playmakers around him on offense. Stopping opponents from scoring was Detroit's problem last season and a revamped defense has to deal with Mahomes right away.
Shohei Ohtani nears return to Angels' lineup, takes swings before game against Guardians
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani appears to be nearing a return to the Los Angeles Angels' lineup after injuring his right oblique muscles in batting practice early in the week. Ohtani wasn't in the Angels' starting lineup for the fourth straight game Thursday night when they hosted the Cleveland Guardians, but Los Angeles manager Phil Nevin said the two-way superstar might be available to pinch-hit. The Angels were waiting to see how Ohtani felt after he took swings in the batting cage and did other baseball activities before Thursday's game.
LSU, Kim Mulkey agree on 10-year, $32M contract, AP source says
A person familiar with the situation says LSU women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey has agreed to a 10-year contract worth about $32 million. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because contract details haven't been released by LSU. The deal sets a record for the richest coaching contract in women's college basketball and comes after Mulkey coached LSU to its first women's basketball national title last season. Contract details were first reported by The Advocate of Baton Rouge. The contract still requires approval from the LSU Board of Supervisors. They are scheduled to vote on it Friday.
AP-Scorecard
Here are the scores from yesterday's sports events:
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Seattle 1 Tampa Bay 0
Final Detroit 10 N.Y. Yankees 3
Final L.A. Angels 3 Cleveland 2
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final L.A. Dodgers 10 Miami 0
Final Atlanta 8 St. Louis 5
Final Arizona 6 Chicago Cubs 2
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NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Final Detroit 21 Kansas City 20
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WOMEN'S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final New York 96 Los Angeles 89
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TODAY'S SPORTS SCHEDULE
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INTERLEAGUE
Milwaukee at N-Y Yankees 7:05 p.m.
N-Y Mets at Minnesota 8:10 p.m.
San Diego at Houston 8:10 p.m.
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
Chi White Sox at Detroit 6:40 p.m.
Seattle at Tampa Bay 6:40 p.m.
Kansas City at Toronto 7:07 p.m.
Baltimore at Boston 7:10 p.m.
Oakland at Texas 8:05 p.m.
Cleveland at L-A Angels 9:38 p.m.
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
Arizona at Chi Cubs 2:20 p.m.
St. Louis at Cincinnati 6:40 p.m.
L-A Dodgers at Washington 7:05 p.m.
Miami at Philadelphia 7:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Atlanta 7:20 p.m.
Colorado at San Francisco 10:15 p.m.
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WOMEN'S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Atlanta at Washington 7 p.m.
Indiana at Connecticut 7 p.m.
Minnesota at Chicago 8 p.m.
Seattle at Dallas 8 p.m.
Las Vegas at Phoenix 10 p.m.
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