AP Sports Summary for January 10th, 2025:
Notre Dame gets late pick and field goal to make title game with 27-24 win over Penn State
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — A diving interception off an ill-advised pass set up Notre Dame's trip to play for the program's 12th national title after a thrill-a-minute 27-24 victory over Penn State on Thursday night in the semifinal at the Orange Bowl. Fighting Irish defensive back Christian Gray snared Drew Allar's pass across the middle at the Nittany Lions 42 with 33 seconds left, then the Irish moved 19 yards to set up Mitch Jeter's 41-yard winner with 7 seconds left. Notre Dame (14-1), seeded seventh in this, the first 12-team college playoff, will have a chance to bring its first title since 1988 back under the Golden Dome with a game Jan. 20 against the winner of Friday night's Texas-Ohio State semifinal.
Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard gets injury scare, returns to rally Irish into CFP championship game
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard briefly went out of the game, then returned to find the end zone in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Penn State on Thursday night at the Orange Bowl. Leonard missed much of Notre Dame's final drive of the first half while being evaluated for a concussion, Irish coach Marcus Freeman told ESPN. Leonard was "asymptomatic," ESPN quoted Leonard as saying, and he started the second half. He led an eight-play, 75-yard drive and capped it with a 3-yard touchdown run that pulled Notre Dame into a 10-10 tie. Leonard went into the medical tent with about two minutes left in the half after a play where he was hit by Penn State's Zane Durant and Dvon J-Thomas.
Penn State QB Drew Allar's late interception helps seal Notre Dame's win in Orange Bowl
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Drew Allar's critical interception sealed Penn State's loss to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals at the Orange Bowl. Allar entered with just seven interceptions this season but he threw an off-target pass over the middle toward receiver Omari Evans with 33 seconds remaining. It ended up in the hands of Notre Dame cornerback Christian Gray. The Irish, not needing many yards to get in kicker Mitch Jeter's range, moved inside the 25. Jeter's 41-yarder sealed a 27-24 win for Notre Dame that sent the Irish to the national title game.
NFL moves Vikings-Rams playoff game to Arizona after days of devastating wildfires in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NFL has moved the Rams' wild-card playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings to Arizona after days of devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area. The playoff game will be played Monday night at State Farm Stadium, the home of the Arizona Cardinals, in suburban Glendale, Arizona. The league announced the decision Thursday, a few hours after yet another fire broke out in an area several miles from the Rams' training complex in the Woodland Hills neighborhood. Los Angeles has been besieged by multiple wildfires all week following two days of extraordinary wind across the vast metropolitan area.
Los Angeles Rams' playoff game moved to Arizona as wildfires disrupt sports in Southern California
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NFL moved the Los Angeles Rams' playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings out of Southern California on Thursday, the biggest of several changes to the sports calendar after days of devastating wildfires in the area. The wild-card game will be played Monday night at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The home of the Arizona Cardinals is nearly 400 miles east of the Rams' home, SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. Elsewhere, the NBA postponed the Los Angeles Lakers' home game against the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday. A Los Angeles Kings home game was postponed a day earlier.
Ohio State and Texas enter CFP semifinal at Cotton Bowl seeking a chance to end title droughts
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Ohio State and Texas are both seeking a chance to end national title droughts. The powerhouse programs meet in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Cotton Bowl. The winner advances to the national title game to play Notre Dame on January 20. Ohio State is the only team to appear in four of the last six CFPs, but its last national title was 10 years ago. That was the first season of the four-team College Football Playoff, when the Buckeyes won the title at AT&T Stadium. That is where they play the in-state Longhorns on Friday night. Texas' last national title was 19 years ago.
Las Vegas Raiders fire general manager Tom Telesco after just one year
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Las Vegas Raiders have fired general manager Tom Telesco. They made the move on Thursday, just a year after he was hired. It's part of a housecleaning following a 4-13 season that also included the dismissal of coach Antonio Pierce on Tuesday. The Raiders will become just the second franchise in the Super Bowl era to enter a season three years in a row with a new GM and coach. Coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler were in charge to open the 2023 season. The Cleveland Browns in 2012-14 are the other club to hold such a distinction.
Bettors don't believe in massive underdog Steelers against the Ravens to open NFL playoffs
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Ravens opened as substantial favorites over the Steelers in the wild-card round playoffs. It was a little surprising given postseason point spreads tend be tighter and these AFC North rivals usually play intense games that go down to the final minutes. Then the Pittsburgh-Baltimore point spreads actually went up. Bettors were not impressed with the Steelers' season-ending four-game losing streak that included a 34-17 loss at Baltimore on Dec. 21. The Ravens closed with a four-game winning streak to snatch the division. So the line at BetMGM Sportsbook went from 9 to 10 points for Saturday's game.
Paul Peterson makes PGA Tour debut at age 36 and leaves an impression
HONOLULU (AP) — Paul Peterson has a share of the lead in the Sony Open. Some introductions may be in order for the 36-year-old PGA Tour rookie. Peterson is a lefty from Oregon State who took his talents pretty much everywhere but America. He went to Canada, Asia, Europe, Japan and eventually got his card last year through the Korn Ferry Tour. Peterson played the par 5s at Waialae in 3 under and shot a 64. That left him tied with Tom Hoge, Harry Hall, Adam Schenk, Eric Cole and Denny McCarthy. Kapalua winner Hideki Matsuyama was three back after a 67.
Doping clouds tennis talk at the Australian Open with Sinner and Swiatek facing scrutiny
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Doping is a topic that shadowed tennis in 2024 and is sure to be a talking point as the 2025 Grand Slam season gets going at the Australian Open. Play starts at Melbourne Park on Sunday, which is Saturday in the United States. Defending men's champion Jannik Sinner and No. 2 women's seed Iga Swiatek both failed drug tests last season. Sinner was exonerated although the World Anti-Doping Agency has appealed that ruling and a final decision is not expected before next month. Swiatek accepted a one-month ban that was partly served in the offseason.
AP-Scorecard
Here are the scores from yesterday's sports events:
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Charlotte at L.A. Lakers 10:30 p.m. (Postponed)
Final Cleveland 132 Toronto 126
Final Minnesota 104 Orlando 89
Final Golden State 107 Detroit 104
Final Dallas 117 Portland 111
Final Houston 119 Memphis 115
Final Miami 97 Utah 92
Final Phoenix 123 Atlanta 115
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Columbus 6 Seattle 2
Final Dallas 4 Philadelphia 1
Final OT N-Y Rangers 3 New Jersey 2
Final Pittsburgh 5 Edmonton 3
Final Buffalo 4 Ottawa 0
Final Tampa Bay 4 Boston 1
Final Carolina 6 Toronto 3
Final Colorado 6 Minnesota 1
Final St. Louis 6 Anaheim 2
Final N-Y Islanders 4 Vegas 0
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TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Final (3)Notre Dame 27 (5)Penn St. 24
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TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (15)Oregon 73 Ohio St. 71
Final (16)Michigan St. 88 Washington 54
Final (20)Purdue 68 Rutgers 50
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TODAY'S SPORTS SCHEDULE
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Golden State at Indiana 7 p.m.
Milwaukee at Orlando 7 p.m.
New Orleans at Philadelphia 7 p.m.
Oklahoma City at New York 7:30 p.m.
Sacramento at Boston 7:30 p.m.
Washington at Chicago 8 p.m.
Brooklyn at Denver 9 p.m.
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Chicago at Detroit 7 p.m.
Montreal at Washington 7 p.m.
Vancouver at Carolina 7 p.m.
Los Angeles at Winnipeg 8 p.m.
San Jose at Utah 9 p.m.
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TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
(6)Ohio St. at (4)Texas 7:30 p.m.
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TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
(22)UCLA at Maryland 8 p.m.
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