AP Sports Summary for December 24th, 2023
Josh Allen accounts for 3 touchdowns as Bills escape with 24-22 victory over Chargers
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Josh Allen accounted for three touchdowns, Tyler Bass made a 29-yard field goal with 28 seconds remaining, and the Buffalo Bills escaped with a 24-22 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers to improve their playoff chances. Allen ran for two TDs and threw for one, becoming the first player in NFL history with four consecutive seasons with 40 combined touchdowns. Bass' go-ahead kick capped a 13-play, 64-yard drive that included Allen's 15-yard completion to Khalil Shakir on third down. The Bills have won four of five to improve to 9-6. Buffalo turned the ball over three times to keep the short-handed Chargers in the game in their first outing under interim coach Giff Smith.
Rudolph hits Pickens for 2 long touchdowns, Steelers end 3-game skid with 34-11 win over Bengals
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mason Rudolph and George Pickens connected for two long touchdowns, and the Pittsburgh Steelers kept their playoff hopes alive with a 34-11 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Rudolph threw for 290 yards while starting in place of the injured Kenny Pickett and the ineffective Mitch Trubisky. Pickens finished with four receptions for 195 yards as the Steelers snapped a three-game losing streak to improve to 8-7. Jake Browning passed for 335 yards and a touchdown but was intercepted three times as the Bengals fell to 8-7.
Pistons match NBA single-season record with 26th straight loss, fall 126-115 to the Nets
NEW YORK (AP) — The Detroit Pistons have matched the NBA record for the longest losing streak within one season, falling 126-115 to the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night for their 26th straight loss. The Pistons joined the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers and 2013-14 Philadelphia 76ers, dropping to 2-27 in their first season under Monty Williams. The Nets put them away with a 15-0 run to open a 21-point lead and ensure that Detroit would remain winless since Oct. 28. The teams will meet again Tuesday in Detroit, with the Pistons nearing the overall longest skid in league history. The 76ers lost 28 consecutive games from late in the 2014-15 season through early 2015-16.
LeBron James scores season-high 40 points, Lakers beat Thunder to end 4-game skid
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — LeBron James scored a season-high 40 points and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 129-120 on Saturday night to snap a four-game losing streak. Anthony Davis, who had called this a must-win game, added 26 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Lakers. Rui Hachimura scored 21 points and Austin Reaves chipped in 11 points and 10 assists for Los Angeles, which had gone 1-5 since winning the In-Season Tournament. The 38-year-old James was 13 of 20 from the field, hitting five 3-pointers without a miss, and made all nine of his free throws. He also had seven rebounds, seven assists and two blocks. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points for Oklahoma City.
The NBA's annual Christmas slate awaits. Teams insist it's special to be picked
MIAMI (AP) — Erik Spoelstra was part of 12 Christmas games as a staff member, assistant coach or head coach in his first 20 seasons with the Miami Heat. And in the eight seasons that followed, the Heat played on Christmas only once. He says playing on Christmas beats not playing on Christmas. The Heat return to the league's holiday slate for the first time since 2020 on Monday, when they meet the Philadelphia 76ers as part of the NBA's traditional Christmas quintuple header. The other games are Milwaukee at New York, Golden State at Denver, Boston at the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas at Phoenix.
Connor Bedard and Trevor Zegras score lacrosse-style goals on NHL's final night before break
On the NHL's final night before its holiday break, Chicago Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard and Anaheim Ducks center Trevor Zegras combined for a stylish celebration of lacrosse. Bedard and Zegras each scored a lacrosse-style — or "Michigan" — goal in a pair of highlights that likely will be watched repeatedly before the league returns to action on Wednesday night. The 18-year-old Bedard pulled off the feat for the first time since he was selected by Chicago with the No. 1 overall pick in this year's NHL draft.
Spurs rookie star Victor Wembanyama sprains ankle during warmups, misses game in Dallas
DALLAS (AP) — San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama is a late scratch against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks because of a sprained right ankle after stepping on a ball boy's foot during warmups. The 19-year-old sensation from France returned to the locker room to get the ankle taped and wanted to play. The Spurs held him out for precautionary reasons. It was the second time in three games Wembanyama was inactive. The reason was right ankle soreness four nights earlier at Milwaukee.
New York Mets hit with record luxury tax of nearly $101 million for season of fourth-place finish
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Mets must pay a record luxury tax of nearly $101 million after a fourth-place finish in their division, among an unprecedented eight teams that owe the penalty for the 2023 season. Owner Steve Cohen's Mets finished with a tax payroll of $374.7 million, according to figures finalized by Major League Baseball on Thursday and obtained by The Associated Press. Other teams owing tax money are San Diego, the New York Yankees, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia, Toronto, Atlanta and World Series champion Texas. The Blue Jays, Braves and Rangers are paying tax for the first time.
Plans abounding for new sports stadiums across the US, carrying hefty public costs
Proposals for new and improved sports stadiums are proliferating across the U.S. and could come with a hefty price tag for taxpayers. This past year alone, roughly a dozen Major League Baseball and National Football League franchises took steps toward building new stadiums or making major renovations to their current ones. In some cases, sports teams are seeking a new jolt of public funding for state-of-the-art stadiums even as public entities are still paying off debt from the last round of renovations conducted a couple decades ago. Cities and states are offering hundreds of millions of dollars in public financing. But many economists doubt whether it is a worthwhile investment.
Key takeaways from AP's look at the emerging wave of sports construction in the US
The list of sports teams seeking new or improved stadiums is getting longer and longer. In the past year alone, about a dozen Major League Baseball and National Football League franchises tooks steps toward new stadiums or major renovations. The most recent was the Baltimore Ravens, who unveiled plans for a publicly funded $430 million renovation. That followed similar announcements by the Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Rays, Kansas City Royals and Jacksonville Jaguars. New stadiums also are underway for the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans. Many are looking for the public to help pay the bill, and some are making that ask before they've paid off their existing public debts.
AP-Scorecard
Here are the scores from yesterday's sports events:
___
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Milwaukee 130 New York 111
Final Boston 145 L.A. Clippers 108
Final Denver 102 Charlotte 95
Final Orlando 117 Indiana 110
Final Houston 106 New Orleans 104
Final Utah 126 Toronto 119
Final Memphis 125 Atlanta 119
Final Brooklyn 126 Detroit 115
Final Cleveland 109 Chicago 95
Final L.A. Lakers 129 Oklahoma City 120
Final Dallas 144 San Antonio 119
Final Golden State 126 Portland 106
Final Minnesota 110 Sacramento 98
___
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final Dallas 3 Nashville 2
Final Florida 4 Vegas 2
Final Toronto 4 Columbus 1
Final New Jersey 3 Detroit 2
Final Minnesota 3 Boston 2
Final SO Tampa Bay 2 Washington 1
Final OT Ottawa 5 Pittsburgh 4
Final N-Y Islanders 5 Carolina 4
Final OT N-Y Rangers 4 Buffalo 3
Final St. Louis 7 Chicago 5
Final Seattle 3 Anaheim 2
Final Colorado 4 Arizona 1
Final Vancouver 7 San Jose 4
Final Los Angeles 5 Calgary 3
___
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Final Pittsburgh 34 Cincinnati 11
Final Buffalo 24 L.A. Chargers 22
___
TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Final Air Force 31 (24)James Madison 21
___
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (14)FAU 96 (4)Arizona 95
Final (5)UConn 69 St. John's 65
Final (23)Memphis 77 Vanderbilt 75
Final (25)Mississippi 89 Southern Miss. 72
___
TODAY'S SPORTS SCHEDULE
___
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Cleveland at Houston 1 p.m.
Detroit at Minnesota 1 p.m.
Green Bay at Carolina 1 p.m.
Indianapolis at Atlanta 1 p.m.
Seattle at Tennessee 1 p.m.
Washington at N-Y Jets 1 p.m.
Jacksonville at Tampa Bay 4:05 p.m.
Arizona at Chicago 4:25 p.m.
Dallas at Miami 4:25 p.m.
New England at Denver 8:15 p.m.
___