GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs awoke Monday still reveling in the glow of their second Super Bowl title in a four-year span, while the Philadelphia Eagles were left to lament how close they came to winning another Lombardi Trophy of their own. The rest of the league? Well, they’ve been looking toward the future for a while now. The day after the Super Bowl represents the first day of the offseason, though that’s a bit of a misnomer — nobody around the NFL takes any time off. There are some hard business decisions to be made with current players, scouting that needs to be wrapped up and a game plan to formulate before the league holds its annual draft at the end of April.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Sunday’s Super Bowl was the third most-watched television show in history, with an estimated 113 million people watching the Kansas City Chiefs rally to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles. Fox said Monday that the preliminary numbers include the broadcasts on Fox and Fox Deportes as well as streaming on Fox and the NFL’s digital sites. The figures are via Nielsen’s Fast National data and Adobe Analytics. Final Nielsen data will be available on Tuesday. Rihanna’s halftime show averaged 118.7 million viewers, making it the second-most watched in Super Bowl history behind Katy Perry's 2015 performance.
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — De’vion Harmon scored 25 points and Kevin Obanor added 19 as Texas Tech defeated its second ranked opponent in three days, upending No. 6 Texas 74-67. Fardaws Aimaq had a season-high 12 points for the Red Raiders, who led by 13 in the second half before fending off the Longhorns down the stretch. Texas Tech also topped No. 12 Kansas State on Saturday. Texas tied the game at 64 on a 3-pointer by Dylan Disu, but Tech responded by scoring the next six points as Obanor had two dunks and Aimaq converted a tip-in. Harmon added a driving basket with 35.1 seconds remaining, and the Red Raiders held on. Marcus Carr led the Longhorns with 23 points, and Disu scored 11.
WACO, Texas (AP) — LJ Cryer scored 26 points to lead four players in double figures, and ninth-ranked Baylor beat West Virginia 79-65. Cryer was 8 for 11 from 3-point range as the Bears won their fourth consecutive game. Baylor has won 10 of 11 since an 0-3 start in conference. Emmitt Matthews Jr. scored 17 points to lead West Virginia. Adam Flagler added 13 points and Jalen Bridges had 12 for Baylor.
UNDATED (AP) — Alabama is the new No. 1, rising to the top spot in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll for the first time in 20 years. Purdue’s loss to Northwestern last week caused a jumble at the top of the AP Top 25 and the Crimson Tide were the biggest beneficiaries. Alabama received 38 first-place votes from a 62-person media panel, moving up two spots to leapfrog No. 2 Houston. The Cougars had 22 first-place votes to remain at No. 2 and Purdue, down to No. 3, still had two votes at No. 1. UCLA and Kansas rounded out the top five.
PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Spring training opens Monday in Florida and Arizona. And there'll be lots of new changes, like pitch clocks, limits on defensive shifts and larger bases. Players are reporting early ahead of the World Baseball Classic. Opening day is March 30. This season will see some star players in new places: Jacob deGrom, Justin Verlander, Trea Turner and Xander Bogaerts. There also are four new managers: Bruce Bochy, Matt Quatraro, Pedro Grifol and Skip Schumaker.
NEW YORK (AP) — Starting extra innings with a runner on second base during the regular season was made a permanent rules change by Major League Baseball after three seasons of use during the coronavirus pandemic. Use of position players as pitchers also was tightened by the joint competition committee. They will be limited to extra innings, when a player’s team is losing by eight or more runs or is winning by 10 or more runs in the ninth inning. Last year, a position player could pitch only in extra innings or if his team was losing or winning by six or more runs.
MONDAY SCORES
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final Texas Tech 74 (6)Texas 67
Final (9)Baylor 79 West Virginia 67
Final (15)Miami 80 North Carolina 72
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Philadelphia 123 Houston 104
Final Cleveland 117 San Antonio 109
Final Charlotte 144 Atlanta 138
Final Utah 123 Indiana 117
Final Denver 112 Miami 108
Final New York 124 Brooklyn 106
Final Orlando 100 Chicago 91
Final New Orleans 103 Oklahoma City 100
Final Minnesota 124 Dallas 121
Final Portland 127 L.A. Lakers 115
Final Golden State 135 Washington 126
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final OT Ottawa 4 Calgary 3
Final Arizona 4 Nashville 2
Final SO Florida 2 Minnesota 1
Final Detroit 6 Vancouver 1
Final Los Angeles 5 Buffalo 2