AP Sports Headlines for Monday Morning
Steelers still alive after last-minute 16-13 win over Ravens
BALTIMORE (AP) — Kenny Pickett threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Najee Harris with 56 seconds remaining, giving the Pittsburgh Steelers a 16-13 victory over the Baltimore Ravens and improbably keeping their playoff hopes alive for another week. It was the first touchdown allowed by Baltimore at home in four games, and the Steelers needed it to avoid elimination. Just like they needed Miami to lose to New England earlier in the day, which also happened. Pittsburgh can now make the playoffs by beating Cleveland next weekend — if Miami and New England both lose. The Ravens' chances of winning the AFC North took a hit.
Rodgers, Packers rout Vikings 41-17, control playoff fate
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score, and the Green Bay Packers continued their improbable playoff push by shutting down Justin Jefferson and the Minnesota Vikings in a 41-17 blowout. Keisean Nixon scored on a 105-yard kickoff return and Darnell Savage had a 75-yard pick-6 of Kirk Cousins to help Green Bay build a 27-3 halftime lead. Aaron Jones rushed for 111 yards on 14 carries and A.J. Dillon had a 2-yard touchdown run as the Packers won their fourth straight. Green Bay would make the playoffs with a win over Detroit in its regular-season finale.
Brady, Bucs rally to beat Panthers 30-24, clinch NFC South
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tom Brady threw for 432 yards and three long touchdowns to Mike Evans, helping the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clinch their second straight NFC South championship with a 30-24 come-from-behind win over the Carolina Panthers. Evans finished with 10 catches for 207 yards while scoring on receptions of 63, 57, and 30 yards and becoming the first player in NFL history to begin a career with nine consecutive seasons with 1,000-plus yards receiving. The Panthers led 14-0 early and 21-10 after Sam Darnold's third TD pass of the day, 10 seconds into the fourth quarter. It was all Bucs from there.
Giants rout Colts, reach playoffs for 1st time since 2016
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Daniel Jones threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more and the New York Giants routed the Indianapolis Colts 38-10 to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Landon Collins, one of two players from the '16 team, broke the game open late in the second quarter with a 52-yard pick-6 as the Giants put a final stamp on a surprising playoff run. The Giants are the third team from the NFC East to make the playoffs, joining the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.
Jokic has triple-double, Nuggets top Celtics after rim delay
DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 30 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists, and the hot-shooting Denver Nuggets beat the Boston Celtics 123-111 in a matchup of NBA conference leaders that was delayed about 35 minutes because a powerful dunk bent one of the rims. Denver won for the 10th time in 12 games, snapped a six-game skid against Boston and opened a one-game lead in the Western Conference. Jaylen Brown scored 30 points and Jayson Tatum added 25 for the Celtics, who had their four-game winning streak snapped. The Nuggets led by as many as 18 and waited out a long delay with 6:43 left as a crew struggled to re-level the rim after a dunk by Boston's Robert Williams III.
Big dunk leaves rim crooked, delays Celtics-Nuggets game
DENVER (AP) — The rim was bent, nobody seemed to know how to fix it and for 35 minutes Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets players struggled to stay warm in a bizarre scene that left Celtics star Jaylen Brown fuming. Boston's Robert Williams III seemed to be the culprit, after he hung on the rim following a thunderous dunk with 8:06 left in the fourth quarter in Denver. Soon after, that rim was leaning a bit to the left. Finally, after a long delay, a worker put the rim back up and it appeared it was level. The crowd roared as the teams ran through layup lines to get loose again in the middle of the fourth quarter. Soon play resumed and the Nuggets won 123-111.
Analysis: NFC is wide open heading into final weekend
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tom Brady again was at his best when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers needed him most. The 45-year-old, seven-time Super Bowl champion had one of the best statistical games of his legendary 23-year career in a 30-24 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday that clinched Tampa's second straight NFC South title. Another old quarterback who also wears No. 12 is one way win away from joining Brady in the playoffs. Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay Packers routed Minnesota 41-17 for their fourth straight win. One more next week at home against Detroit secures a wild-card spot that seemed improbable when the Packers were 4-8. On a day where the NFC's top teams struggled, the Buccaneers and Packers proved they can't be counted out despite mediocre records.
Duggan vs. Bennett: 2 onetime underdogs fight for CFP title
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — TCU thought so much of Max Duggan at the beginning of the season that he lost his job. Georgia seemed like it spent years trying to give its starting quarterback job to anyone not named Stetson Bennett. If they gave out five stars for resiliency, these two guys would have been some of the highest-rated recruits in the country. Now the underdogs-turned-legends at their respective schools will fight it out for the national championship on Jan. 9 in Inglewood, California. No. 3 TCU upset No. 2 Michigan 51-45 and No. 1 Georgia rallied to beat No. 4 Ohio State 42-41 in a pair of semifinal games that were among the best the College Football Playoff ever has produced.
Bills, Bengals AFC showdown highlighted by Allen vs. Burrow
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Bills showdown at the Bengals on Monday night features the first of what's expected to be many more quarterback matchups between Buffalo's Josh Allen and Cincinnati's Joe Burrow. The two have established themselves as being among the NFL's top young stars and transformed their respective teams into contenders. The matchup alone is must-watch TV for many, with the outcome playing a big role in determining who finishes first in the AFC.
Defending champion Georgia vs. Cinderella TCU for CFP title
After the best semifinal day in the nine-year history of the College Football Playoff, the title game will match the defending national champion against the closest thing the sport has had in years to a Cinderella team. It will be No. 1 Georgia, looking for its second straight championship, against upstart and No. 3 TCU on Jan. 9 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The four-team playoff has been littered with lopsided semifinal games, but these were both thrillers. The Bulldogs came from 14 points down to beat No. 4 Ohio State 42-41 in the Peach Bowl. TCU upset No. 2 Michigan 51-45 in the Fiesta Bowl.
AP-Scorecard
Here are the scores from yesterday's sports events:
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Washington 118 Milwaukee 95
Final Memphis 118 Sacramento 108
Final Denver 123 Boston 111
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final SO Carolina 5 New Jersey 4
Final N-Y Rangers 5 Florida 3
Final San Jose 5 Chicago 2
Final Ottawa 3 Buffalo 1
Final Seattle 4 N-Y Islanders 1
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NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Final Atlanta 20 Arizona 19
Final Cleveland 24 Washington 10
Final Detroit 41 Chicago 10
Final Jacksonville 31 Houston 3
Final Kansas City 27 Denver 24
Final N-Y Giants 38 Indianapolis 10
Final New England 23 Miami 21
Final New Orleans 20 Philadelphia 10
Final Tampa Bay 30 Carolina 24
Final OT San Francisco 37 Las Vegas 34
Final Seattle 23 N-Y Jets 6
Final Green Bay 41 Minnesota 17
Final L.A. Chargers 31 L.A. Rams 10
Final Pittsburgh 16 Baltimore 13
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TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (11)UCLA 74 Washington 49
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TODAY'S SPORTS SCHEDULE
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Phoenix at New York 3 p.m.
Chicago at Cleveland 7 p.m.
L.A. Lakers at Charlotte 7 p.m.
New Orleans at Philadelphia 7 p.m.
Toronto at Indiana 7 p.m.
San Antonio at Brooklyn 7:30 p.m.
Dallas at Houston 8 p.m.
Denver at Minnesota 8 p.m.
Atlanta at Golden State 10 p.m.
Detroit at Portland 10 p.m.
Miami at L.A. Clippers 10:30 p.m.
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Pittsburgh at Boston 2 p.m.
Vegas at Colorado 9 p.m.
Philadelphia at Anaheim 10 p.m.
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NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Buffalo at Cincinnati 8:30 p.m.
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TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
(9)Penn St. at (7)Utah 5 p.m.
(14)Tulane at (8)Southern Cal 1 p.m.
(24)Mississippi St. at Illinois 12 p.m.
(16)LSU at Purdue 1 p.m.
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TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Rutgers at (1)Purdue 7 p.m.
(24)West Virginia at Oklahoma St. 7 p.m.
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