Tom Hicks, the Texas businessman who owned Stars, Rangers and Liverpool teams, dies at 79
DALLAS — Tom Hicks, the Texas businessman and philanthropist who owned two Dallas-area professional sports franchises and an English Premier League soccer team, has died. He was 79. Spokesperson Lisa LeMaster said in statement that Hicks died peacefully Saturday in Dallas surrounded by family. Hicks owned the NHL’s Dallas Stars...
St. Joseph grad Julie Spinelli ramps up her game in 2nd season with Frostburg State women’s basketball
For the past couple of seasons, Frostburg State’s Emilee Weakley was one of the top Division II players in the country. Named a two-time All-American by several outlets, Weakley averaged 26.1 points per game for her career and finished as the women’s basketball team’s all-time leading scorer (2,243 points). But...
After injury-plagued freshman season, Yough grad Austin Matthews proving valuable to Geneva men’s basketball
During his basketball playing days at Yough, Austin Matthews didn’t always have a lot of opportunities to demonstrate is offensive ability. With the dynamic Terek Crosby leading the way for the Cougars, Matthews didn’t have to be a double-digit scorer every night. There were never any hard feelings. Matthews called...
No. 2 Indiana caps Curt Cignetti’s incredible turnaround by beating No. 1 Ohio State for Big Ten title
INDIANAPOLIS — From the moment Curt Cignetti took Indiana’s head coaching job, he made it clear this would be a different program. He refused to tolerate any moral victories or close calls and instead expected to win, to win big and win immediately. In just 737 days, he turned what...
Alabama, Miami in, Notre Dame out and Indiana No. 1 in College Football Playoff rankings
Nobody paying attention for the past 24 months would be surprised to see Indiana — yes, Indiana — leading the way into this year’s College Football Playoff. But anyone paying attention over the last 24 hours knew the only sure thing beyond that was that the selection committee was destined...
Roman Wilson inactive; veterans Adam Thielen, Marquez Valdes-Scantling make Steelers debut
BALTIMORE — Roman Wilson was the odd man out in the late-season makeover of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ secondary wide receivers corps. On a day when veteran wideouts Adam Thielen and Marquez Valdes-Scantling were in uniform to make their debut with the team, Wilson was designated as a surprising healthy inactive...
Steelers at Ravens: Get ready for 2025 Week 14 matchup
First place in the AFC North is up for grabs when the Pittsburgh Steelers visit the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on CBS, with Jim Nantz on play-by-play alongside analyst Tony Romo and sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson. The Steelers Audio...
Minor league report: Valtteri Puustinen scores twice in Penguins winVideo
A pair of goals by forward Valtteri Puustinen led the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a 4-1 win against the rival Hershey Bears at the Giant Center in Hershey on Saturday. Linemates Danton Heinen and Philip Tomasino each recorded two assists for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (17-5-1-0) while forwards Gabe Klassen and Aidan McDonough each...
Longshot Duke beats Virginia in OT to claim 1st outright ACC championship since ’62
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Duke won its first outright Atlantic Coast Conference title since 1962 and threw the College Football Playoff into chaos Saturday night when Darian Mensah connected with Pine-Richland graduate Jeremiah Hasley for a 1-yard touchdown on a fourth-down play in overtime, and the unranked Blue Devils held on...
Indiana stuns Ohio State to end Big Ten title drought, stake claim to top playoff seed
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza made all the big plays Saturday night. Then his Hoosiers teammates and their fans celebrated like it was 1967. Mendoza’s neatly tucked 17-yard pass to Elijah Sarratt gave the No. 2 Hoosiers the lead they needed and the defense shut down No. 1 Ohio...
Robert Morris loses at Milwaukee on last-second tip-in
Another close outcome didn’t go Robert Morris’ way Saturday night and the Colonials settled for a two-game split of their Horizon League season-opening road trip. Milwaukee’s Seth Hubbard followed up on teammate Isaiah Dorceus’ desperation 3-point shot with a high-arcing tap-in just before the final buzzer to lift the Panthers...
Pitt volleyball wins hard-fought match against Michigan to advance to NCAA regional semifinal
Pitt women’s volleyball coach Dan Fisher would love more preparation between the first and second round of the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament. All 32 coaches who advanced to the second round felt like that to some degree about the 24-hour or so turnaround they face. The Panthers found ways to...
No. 10 Iowa State ‘steals spirit’ of No. 1 Purdue in dominant upsetVideo
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Milan Momcilovic scored 20 points, and Iowa State sank 11 3-pointers to propel No. 10 Iowa State to a dominant 81-58 win over No. 1 Purdue on Saturday. Momcilovic, Killyan Toure and Joshua Jefferson all hit three 3-pointers. Toure scored 13, Blake Buchanan 12 and Jefferson...
West Virginia can’t stop Juke Harris, loses to Wake Forest at Holiday HoopfestVideo
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Juke Harris hit seven 3-pointers and finished with 28 points, Tre’von Spillers scored 16 points on 8-of-13 shooting, and Wake Forest beat West Virginia, 75-66, on Saturday night at Holiday Hoopfest. Omaha Biliew hit a 3-pointer that gave the Demon Deacons a one-point lead 24 seconds into...
Cameron Boozer scores 18 in No. 4 Duke’s win over No. 7 Michigan State
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Cameron Boozer scored 18 points, including 16 in the second half, and Caleb Foster added 12 points Saturday to help No. 4 Duke hold on for a 66-60 victory over No. 7 Michigan State in a game that had the intensity of an NCAA Regional Final....
Georgia ends Alabama’s hold on rivalry, beats Crimson Tide to win SEC championship
ATLANTA — Gunner Stockton threw three touchdown passes as No. 3 Georgia solidified its position for a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff and beat Alabama in the SEC championship game for the first time, pounding the 10th-ranked Crimson Tide, 28-7, on Saturday. Georgia (12-1, No. 3 CFP), had...
Messi and Inter Miami win MLS Cup, topping Vancouver, 3-1
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Lionel Messi ‘s legacy was long secured when he came to Inter Miami and joined Major League Soccer. He’d won a World Cup, won dozens of trophies, was generally considered the greatest player in the sport’s history. He didn’t need an MLS Cup. But he wanted...
Jalen Buckley’s two long touchdown runs lead Western Michigan to MAC Championship
DETROIT — Jalen Buckley had touchdown runs of 67 and 64 yards, and Western Michigan won the MAC Championship, defeating Miami of Ohio, 23-13, on Saturday. Buckley’s 67-yard touchdown burst on the third play of the game gave the Broncos the early lead. Palmer Domschke added three field goals in...
Texas Tech wins Big 12 title with 34-7 win over BYU
ARLINGTON, Texas — Cameron Dickey scored right after the first of linebacker Ben Roberts’ two interceptions in the second half as No. 5 Texas Tech won the Big 12 championship game and almost certainly locked up a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff with a 34-7 victory over 11th-ranked...
Duquesne men down Stony Brook behind John Hugley IV’s 25 points
At 6-foot-10 and 265 pounds, Duquesne’s John Hugley IV was making his presence felt, first outside the arc and then down low. Simply put, “Big John” was having another big game. “Just grateful that I can put this uniform on and share it with my teammates,” Hugley said Saturday after...
Penguins assign forward Joona Koppanen to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
The Pittsburgh Penguins assigned forward Joona Koppanen to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Saturday after he cleared waivers. A left-handed shot, Koppanen was recalled to the NHL roster Nov. 6. Exclusively deployed on the left wing of the third and fourth lines, Koppanen has appeared in 10...
Veteran WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling in line to make Steelers debut vs. Ravens
After spending four seasons with the Green Bay Packers earlier in his career, Marquez Valdes-Scantling knows what an intense, old-school division rivalry is all about. Packers-Chicago Bears is not a bad equivalent to Steelers-Ravens. And Valdes-Scantling is set to make his Steelers debut amidst that rivalry. He was another practice-squad...
Michael Annett, who made 436 combined starts in NASCAR’s 3 national touring series, dies at 39
MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Michael Annett, a former racecar driver who made 436 combined starts in NASCAR’s three national touring series, has died. He was 39. JR Motorsports, one of Annett’s former teams, posted the news on social media on Friday. No cause of death was announced. “Our thoughts and prayers...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Penguins can’t sacrifice development
The Pittsburgh Penguins’ place in the standings, perhaps unfortunately, dictates that a tightrope be walked between developmental (the primary goal) and contending for a playoff spot (the showbiz goal). But some decisions serve both masters. When Rickard Rakell returns from hand surgery in 3-4 weeks, he can’t resume his old...
Analysis: Penn State salvages chaotic coaching search with hire of Matt Campbell
Just a few days ago, Pat Kraft was public enemy No. 1. Now, Penn State’s athletic director can breathe a sigh of relief, and so can Nittany Lion fans. Penn State’s frustrating, antsy and, at times, embarrassing coaching search has been salvaged. Iowa State’s Matt Campbell, one of the most...