KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was missing his top three wide receivers in practice Wednesday because of injuries and illness, and the situation might not be a whole lot better when Kansas City visits the Chargers this weekend. JuJu Smith-Schuster remained in the concussion protocol after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit from Jacksonville safety Andre Cisco in last Sunday’s win over the Jaguars. Mecole Hardman is out with an abdominal injury and Marquez Valdes-Scantling with an illness. That left Mahomes with backup Justin Watson, rookie Skyy Moore, newcomer Kadarius Toney and special teams standout Marcus Kemp to catch passes as the Chiefs prepared for their visit to Los Angeles on Sunday night.
COSTA MESA, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles Chargers wide receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams were back on the practice field as the Bolts ramped up preparations for Sunday night’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Allen and Williams participated in individual drills and could progress to team drills on Thursday. Allen has missed six games because of a hamstring injury while Williams has been out the past two after spraining his ankle in an Oct. 23 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Deshaun Watson is practicing with the Cleveland Browns for the first time since his 11-game NFL suspension started in August. Watson was accused of sexual misconduct by more than two dozen women in Texas and reached a settlement with the league this summer. The three-time Pro Bowl quarterback returned to the field with his teammates on Wednesday. Despite temperatures hovering around freezing, Watson had on short sleeves during the portion of practice open to reporters. He fired passes to Cleveland’s wide receivers while periodically tucking his hands into a warmer around his waist. As long as he meets the league’s requirements, Watson can play on Dec. 4 when the Browns visit Houston, which drafted him in 2017.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Tyrese Hunter scored 26 points and a led a 3-point shooting spree for No. 11 Texas that carried the Longhorns to a 93-74 win over No. 2 Gonzaga. Last season’s Big 12 freshman of the year at Iowa State was 9-of-14 shooting and made five of Texas’ 13 3-pointers. Hunter made three from long range in the opening minutes of the second half as the Longhorns seized control and pushed their lead to 20 points. Gonzaga All-American forward Drew Timme scored 18 points but was mostly held in check when the game was still close.
HOUSTON (AP) — Houston’s Justin Verlander in the American League and Miami’s Sandy Alcantara in the National League are both unanimous selections for the Cy Young Award. It’s the second time the winners in both leagues were unanimous since the award began in 1956. The 39-year-old Verlander won the award for the first time, having previously won in 2011 with Detroit and 2019 with Houston. He's the 11th player to win it three times. Verlander missed almost all of the previous two seasons while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He led the AL in ERA. Alcantara led the majors in complete games with six.
NEW YORK (AP) — A host of Hollywood and sports celebrities including Larry David and Tom Brady were named as defendants in a class-action lawsuit against cryptocurrency exchange FTX, arguing that their celebrity status made them culpable for promoting the firm’s failed business model. FTX has been in the public eye for more than a week, after the third-largest cryptocurrency exchange ended up with billions of dollars worth of losses and had to seek bankruptcy protection. The lawsuit names “Seinfeld” creator David, as well as star quarterback Brady, basketball players Shaquille O’Neal and Stephen Curry, and tennis star Naomi Osaka, among several others.
WEDNESDAY SCORES
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (11)Texas 93 (2)Gonzaga 74
Final (3)Houston 83 Texas Southern 48
Final (9)Arkansas 71 S. Dakota St. 56
Final (20)Michigan 91 Pittsburgh 60
Final (22)Tennessee 81 Florida Gulf Coast 50
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Minnesota 126 Orlando 108
Final Indiana 125 Charlotte 113
Final Oklahoma City 121 Washington 120
Final Boston 126 Atlanta 101
Final Toronto 112 Miami 104
Final Milwaukee 113 Cleveland 98
Final New Orleans 124 Chicago 110
Final Houston 101 Dallas 92
Final New York 106 Denver 103
Final Phoenix 130 Golden State 119
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Ottawa 4 Buffalo 1
Final St. Louis 5 Chicago 2
Final Los Angeles 3 Edmonton 1