WSJM Sports

NHL – National Hockey League

Last Night

Winnipeg Jets 3, Detroit Red Wings 0

Chicago Blackhawks 3, Montreal Canadiens 2 – OT

Jets 3, Red Wings 0 – Connor Hellebuyck stops 33 shots, Jets beat Red Wings 3-0

Connor Hellebuyck made 33 saves for his second shutout of the season and Andrew Copp scored twice in the Winnipeg Jets’ 3-0 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night. Kyle Connor added an empty-net goal in Winnipeg’s first game since a 7-1 loss in Colorado a week ago and just its fourth since Dec. 19. The Jets, who dressed six players on emergency recall, had seven postponements during that stretch. Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 29 shots for Detroit. The Red Wings were shut out for the fifth time this season.

Blackhawks 3, Canadiens 2 – OT – Kurashev, Blackhawks sink NHL-worst Canadiens in OT

Philipp Kurashev scored 2:24 into overtime and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Montreal Canadiens 3-2. Montreal, a defending Stanley Cup finalist, has dropped five straight and is 1-9-3 in its past 13 games. The Canadiens are 7-24-5 overall and fell behind Arizona for the worst record in hockey when the Coyotes beat Toronto on Wednesday. Dominik Kubalik and Patrick Kane also scored for Chicago, which won its third in a row. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 27 shots. Jeff Petry and Mike Hoffman scored for Montreal, and Sam Montembeault stopped 28 shots.

Saturday

Buffalo Sabres at Detroit Red Wings, 7:00 p.m.

Anaheim Ducks at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m.

NHL – Ovechkin, McDavid, Draisaitl headline NHL All-Star roster

Washington star Alexander Ovechkin and high-scoring Edmonton teammates Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl headline the rosters for the NHL All-Star Weekend announced Thursday. Selected for the eighth time, Ovechkin led voting in the Metropolitan Division to earn the captaincy for the Feb. 4-5 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The event features a three-game tournament played in a 3-on-3 format, with 11-man teams from each of the league’s four divisions. A player will be added to each team through Last Men In voting that ends Monday night.

NFL – National Football League – Super Wild Card Weekend

Saturday

Las Vegas Raiders at Cincinnati Bengals, 4:30 p.m.

New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills, 8:15 p.m.

Sunday

Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1:00 p.m.

San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys, 4:30 p.m.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City Chiefs, 8:15 p.m.

Monday

Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams, 8:15 p.m.

NFL – Bears interview Kelly, Browns exec Adofo-Mensah for GM job

The Chicago Bears interviewed front-office executive Champ Kelly and Cleveland Browns vice president of football operations Kwesi Adofo-Mensah for their general manager job. Kelly has worked for the Bears the past seven years, as director of pro scouting from  2015 to 2016 and director of player personnel since 2017. He was with Denver from 2007 to 2014, rising from college scout to assistant coordinator of college and pro scouting. Kelly was a receiver and defensive back at Kentucky from 1998 to 2001. Adofo-Mensah comes with an analytics background over nine years in the NFL. He spent the past two seasons under Browns GM Andrew Berry after working in San Francisco’s research and development department from 2013 to 2019. Adofo-Mensah played basketball at Princeton.

NBA – National Basketball Association

Tonight

Toronto Raptors at Detroit Pistons, 7:00 p.m.

Phoenix Suns at Indiana Pacers, 7:00 p.m.

Golden State Warriors at Chicago Bulls, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday

Chicago at Boston, 8:30 p.m.

Sunday

Golden State at Detroit, 1:00 p.m.

NBA – Bol fails physical, trade between Pistons and Nuggets halted

NCAAMBKB – Men’s College Basketball

Last Night

(10) Michigan State 71, Minnesota 69

Notre Dame 72, Clemson 56

(10) Michigan State 71, Minnesota 69 – No. 10 Michigan State beats Minnesota 71-69 on Hauser's shot

Joey Hauser made a low-post shot with a tenth of a second left, lifting No. 10 Michigan State to a 71-69 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday night for a ninth straight win. The Spartans had the ball with 18.1 seconds left, and A.J. Hoggard drove into the lane in the final seconds and set up Hauser for the final basket. Michigan State freshman Max Christie had 16 points, Gabe Brown scored 13 points and Tyson Walker added 10 points. The Golden Gophers were very competitive throughout the game and had opportunities to pull off the upset.

Notre Dame 72, Clemson 56 – Goodwin, Notre Dame beat Clemson 72-56 for 6th straight win

Dane Goodwin had 21 points and seven rebounds, freshman Blake Wesley scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half and Notre Dame won its sixth straight game, 72-56 over Clemson. Notre Dame made its first six shots of the game, capped by back-to-back 3-pointers by Nate Laszewski and Goodwin, for a 15-6 lead. The Irish missed their seventh shot, but Goodwin grabbed the offensive rebound and put it back for an 11-point lead. Notre Dame held at least a 14-point advantage in the second half and led by as many as 23 to easily top Clemson’s previous season high of an 11-point deficit.

NBA – National Basketball Association

Last Night

Boston Celtics 119, Indiana Pacers 100

Brooklyn Nets 138, Chicago Bulls 112

Nets 138, Bulls 112 – Durant, Harden lead Nets to 138-112 romp over Bulls

Kevin Durant scored 27 points, James Harden added 25 points and season-high 16 assists, and the Brooklyn Nets rolled to an easy win over Chicago, beating the Bulls 138-112 in a matchup between the Eastern Conference’s top two teams. Durant had 17 points in the third. The second-place Nets outscored East-leading Chicago by 20 in the quarter to silence a raucous crowd and came away with the win with all three superstars in the lineup for just the second time. Kyrie Irving scored nine in his third game. The seven-time All-Star has refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine and is barred from suiting up in New York due to the city’s mandate. Zach LaVine scored 20 for Chicago. DeMar DeRozan added 19 points.

Celtics 119, Pacers 100 – Celtics take control early, pull away from Pacers 119-100

Jaylen Brown scored 34 points, Jayson Tatum added 33 and the Boston Celtics beat the Indiana Pacers 119-100. Boston snapped a six-game road losing streak while beating Indiana for the second time in three days and the fourth straight time. Myles Turner had 18 points and Domantas Sabonis added 17 points, six rebounds and six assists as the Pacers lost their second straight and eighth in nine games. After the opening minutes, the Celtics never really gave the Pacers a chance.

NBA - Hall of Famer Grant Hill's memoir 'Game' coming out in June

Grant Hill’s path to the NBA Hall of Fame had plenty of pain along with all the highlights. Hill has a deal with Penguin Press for the memoir “Game,” scheduled for June 7. It's billed by the publishers as a full, frank story that covers both the pinnacle of success and the depths of personal trauma. Hill will tell about helping Duke University win back-to-back NCAA titles and his achievements with professional teams like the Detroit Pistons. He will also discuss the ankle problems that plagued him for years and the health struggles of his wife, Tamia Hill.

NHL – National Hockey League

Tonight

Winnipeg Jets at Detroit Red Wings, 7:30 p.m.

Montreal Canadiens at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m.

NHL – Lukas Reichel set for NHL debut with Chicago Blackhawks

Top prospect Lukas Reichel is slated for his NH...

NBA – National Basketball Association

Last Night

Chicago Bulls 133, Detroit Pistons 87

Bulls 133, Pistons 87 – Vucevic, DeRozan lift Bulls over Pistons 133-87

Nikola Vucevic scored 22 points, DeMar DeRozan had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the Chicago Bulls routed the Detroit Pistons 133-87. DeRozan sat for most of the final 16 minutes but still added seven assists. Eastern Conference-leading Chicago won after its season-best nine-game winning streak ended Sunday in Dallas. Josh Jackson scored 16 points and Saddiq Bey added 14 for the Pistons, who had won two straight. The Bulls led 61-52 at intermission and quickly turned it into a blowout by starting the second half on a 17-0 run that included four straight 3-pointers; two each from Derrick Jones Jr. and Vucevic.

Tonight

Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers, 7:00 p.m.

Brooklyn Nets at Chicago Bulls, 10:00 p.m.

NHL – National Hockey League

Tonight

Chicago Blackhawks 4, Columbus Blue Jackets 2

San Jose Sharks 3, Detroit Red Wings 2 – OT

Blackhawks 4, Blue Jackets 2 – DeBrincat scores twice as Blackhawks top Blue Jackets 4-2

Alex DeBrincat scored twice and Calvin de Haan netted his first goal in nearly a year to lift the Chicago Blackhawks to their second straight road win, 4-2 over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Columbus has dropped four of five and lost at home to the Blackhawks for the seventh consecutive time. Connor Murphy also scored for Chicago, and Marc-Andre Fleury made 24 saves for his 11th win. Boone Jenner scored for Columbus, and Gus Nyquist had a short-handed goal and an assist. Joonas Korpisalo stopped 16 shots in his third loss in four games.

Sharks 3, Red Wings 2 – OT – Couture, Sharks dodge fake octopus for OT win vs Detroit

Logan Couture scored in overtime moments after a fan threw a fake octopus on the ice and the San Jose Sharks beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2. The octopus — a longstanding fan tradition in Detroit — hit the ice less than a minute into overtime with play in San Jose’s end. Couture directed the linesman to grab it, and play continued, with the Sharks pushing the puck to the other end. Brent Burns sent the puck toward the net and Alex Nedeljkovic stopped it but couldn’t control it. As the puck sat near the goal line, Couture knocked it in.

NHL – Red Wings hire Nicklas Lidstrom as VP of hockey operations

The Detroit Red Wings have hired Nicklas Lidstrom as vice president of hockey operations. Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman says his former teammate will be based in his native Sweden and involved in every aspect of helping him run the organization. Lidstrom’s job duties will include evaluating professional and amateur players. Detroit drafted Lidstrom with the No. 53 pick overall in 1989 and he spent 20 seasons with the franchise, becoming one of the best defensemen of all time. He won seven Norris trophies and helped the Red Wings win four Stanley Cup titles.

MLB – AP source: MLB labor talks to resume after 42-day break

Major League Baseball and the players’ association are scheduled to meet Thursday in the first negotiations between the parties since labor talks broke off Dec. 1. The planning of the meeting was disclosed to The Associated Press by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made. MLB has been preparing a new proposal for the union. Management locked out the union on Dec. 2 following the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement, the sport’s ninth work stoppage but first since a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95. The dispute threatens spring training, which is scheduled to start Feb. 16 in Florida and Arizona.

NCAAMBKB – Men’s College Basketball

Tonight

Buffalo 78, Western Michigan 64

Eastern Michigan 99,

NCAAFB – College Football

Last Night

College Football Championship Game presented by AT&T – Lucas Oil Stadium – Indianapolis, IN

(3) Georgia 33, (1) Alabama 18

(3) Georgia 33, (1) Alabama 18 – Georgia snaps 41-year title drought with 33-18 win over Bama

Stetson Bennett delivered the biggest throws of his storybook career and Georgia’s defense sealed the sweetest victory in program history, vanquishing rival Alabama 33-18 to win the College Football Playoff title game. The Bulldogs won their first national championship in 41 years. Bennett connected with Adonai Mitchell on a 40-yard touchdown to give Georgia  a 19-18 lead with 8:09 left. He then hooked up with Brock Bowers for a 15-yard TD on a screen to put the Bulldogs up with with 3:33 left. The final blow came from the defense. Kelee Ringo intercepted an underthrown deep ball down the sideline by Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young and returned 79 yards for a touchdown.

NCAAFB – CFP talks stall, dimming hopes of expansion before 2026

College Football Playoff expansion talks remain stalled and the possibility of implementing a new format by the 2024 season dimmed after three days of meetings failed to produce an agreement. Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby says there are ‘entrenched issues that are no closer to be resolved.’ While Bowlsby says it is looking unlikely that expansion would come before the end of the current CFP contract that expires in 2026, it was not ruled out altogether. Executive Director Bill Hancock says the talks are going into overtime and the conference commissioners are expected to meet again the coming week.

NBA – National Basketball Association

Last Night

Detroit Pistons 126, Utah Jazz 116

Boston Celtics 101, Indiana Pacers 98 – OT

Pistons 126, Jazz 116 – Cunningham's career-high 29 leads Pistons over Jazz 126-116

Cade Cunningham scored 18 of his career-high 29 points in the third quarter to help the Detroit Pistons erase a 22-point deficit and beat the Utah Jazz 126-116 on Monday night. Saddiq Bey added 29 points for Detroit, which is 4-2 in 2022 after finishing 2021 with 18 losses in 19 games. Lead assistant coach Rex Kalamian took charge with coach Dwane Casey having entered COVID-19 protocol. Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points for Utah, and Hassan Whiteside had a season-high 21 points as well as 14 rebounds.

Celtics 101, Pacers 98 – Brown, Tatum carry Celtics over Pacers 101-98 in OT

Jaylen Brown scored 26 points and Jayson Tatum had 24, carrying the Boston Celtics to a 101-98 overtime victory over the Indiana Pacers in the first of a home-and-home series between the teams. Robert Williams III had 14 points and 12 rebounds for Boston, including a key block in OT. The Celtics won for the fourth time in six games. Torrey Craig led the Pacers with 19 points and Lance Stephenson scored 14 but missed a potential tying 3-pointer late in OT. Indiana has lost 7 of 8.

Tonight

Detroit Pistons at Chicago Bulls, 8:00 p.m.

NBA – Nuggets trade Bol Bol to Pistons for McGruder, draft pick

The Denver Nuggets finalized a trade with Detroit that will send big man Bol Bol to the Pistons. The Nuggets acquired guard Rodney McGruder along with a 2022 second-round pick via Brooklyn in exchange. The 7-foot-2 Bol is the son of the late Manute Bol, who played 10 years in the NBA. Bol Bol was the 44th overall pick by Miami in the 2019 NBA draft and was acquired by Denver in a draft-night trade. He played in 53 games over three seasons with the Nuggets and averaged 2.7 points. McGruder saw action in 17 games for the Pistons this season. He averaged 2.5 points and 1.6 rebounds.

NHL – National Hockey League

Tonight

Chicago Blackhawks at Columbus Blue Jackets, 7:00 p.m.

Detroit Red Wings at San Jose Sharks, 10:30 p.m.

NFL – National Football League – Week 18 (Regular Season Finale)

Yesterday

Detroit Lions 37, Green Bay Packers 30

Minnesota Vikings 31, Chicago Bears 17

Jacksonville Jaguars 26, Indianapolis Colts 11

Lions 37, Packers 30 – Rodgers fine, sits 2nd half, top seed Packers lose to Lions

Aaron Rodgers threw two touchdown passes in the first half and sat out the second half with nothing at stake as the Detroit Lions beat the Green Bay Packers 37-30. Jordan Love threw two interceptions late in the game, sealing a defeat that doesn’t affect Green Bay’s playoff positioning. The NFC North champion Packers rolled into the Motor City after already clinching the conference’s No. 1 seed and its only first-round bye. Rodgers was 14 of 18 for 138 yards. The Lions closed coach Dan Campbell’s first season with plenty of pride and trick plays.

Vikings 31, Bears 17 – Vikings beat Bears 31-17; futures uncertain for Nagy, Zimmer

Kirk Cousins passed for 172 yards and three touchdowns in the second half to lead a Minnesota Vikings comeback to beat the Chicago Bears 31-17. The matchup of two eliminated teams with a head coach in danger of being fired saw the Vikings outscore the Bears 28-3 in the second half. Justin Jefferson caught the tying score and K.J. Osborn had the go-ahead touchdown for the Vikings. Darnell Mooney had 12 catches for 126 yards to pass the 1,000-yard receiving mark for the Bears. The Vikings finished 8-9. The Bears went 6-11.

Jaguars 26, Colts 11 – Jaguars clown Colts 26-11, prevent Indy from making playoffs

The Indianapolis Colts got clowned in Jacksonville. This one was more embarrassing than any other loss to the Jaguars, too. Indy badly botched a chance to secure an AFC wild-card spot with a 26-11 loss to Jacksonville on Sunday in the “clown game." It was the team’s seventh consecutive road loss to the Jaguars. The Colts (9-8) still had an outside shot at making the playoffs, but those slim hopes ended when Pittsburgh beat Baltimore. Now, Indy returns home with a two-game skid and facing a long offseason that doesn’t even include a first-round draft pick. The Jaguars (3-14), meanwhile, got a much-needed celebration that ended an eight-game losing streak.

Other NFL Scores

Kansas City 28, Denver 24

Dallas 51, Philadelphia 26

Cleveland 21, Cincinnati 16

Pittsburgh 16, Baltimore 13, OT

Tennessee 28, Houston 25

Washington 22, N.Y. Giants 7

Buffalo 27, N.Y. Jets 10

Miami 33, New England 24

New Orleans 30, Atlanta 20

San Francisco 27, L.A. Rams 24, OT

Seattle 38, Arizona 30

Tampa Bay 41, Carolina 17

Las Vegas 35, L.A. Chargers 32, OT

Super Wild Card Weekend

Saturday

Las Vegas Raiders at Cincinnati Bengals, 4:30 p.m.            NBC

New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills, 8:15 p.m.              CBS     

Sunday

Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1:00 p.m.     FOX

San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys, 4:30 p.m.            CBS

Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City Chiefs, 8:15 p.m.         NBC

Monday

Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams, 8:15 p.m.             ESPN/ABC

NCAAFB – College Football

Tonight

College Football Championship Game presented by AT&T – Lucas Oil Stadium – Indianapolis, IN

(1) Alabama vs. (3) Georgia, 8:00 p.m.

NCAAFB – Commissioners to report on CFP expansion talks to presidents

The administrators who manage the College Football Playoff will report on the progress of expansion talks to a presidential oversight committee on Monday. The CFP management committee wrapped up about seven hours of meetings over two days in Indianapolis. Executive Director Bill Hancock says the group made progress,

 

 

We talk St. Joe, Lakeshore, Michigan Lutheran, and Benton Harbor boys basketball this week on The Coaches...

 

Lakeshore vs Battle Creek Central as heard Friday, Jan. 7 on WSJM-FM

Academic Challenge Match II between St. Joseph and South Haven Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022

Academic Challenge Match between Michigan Lutheran vs Bridgman from Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022

NHL – National Hockey League

Last Night

Arizona Coyotes 6, Chicago Blackhawks 4

Detroit Red Wings at Anaheim Ducks, PPD to 1/9.

Coyotes 6, Blackhawks 4 – Larsson's 1st hat trick powers Coyotes past Blackhawks 6-4

Johan Larsson scored his first three goals of the season and the Arizona Coyotes dealt the Chicago Blackhawks their sixth straight loss, 6-4 on Thursday night. Dysin Mayo, Travis Boyd and Clayton Keller also scored for Arizona, which won for just the seventh time this season. Karel Vejmelka stopped 32 shots for his first home victory of the season. The Coyotes have a league-low 17 points. Kirby Dach, MacKenzie Entwhistle, Jonathan Toews and Alex DeBrincat scored for Chicago. DeBrincat scored his 21st of the season and third in two games.

Red Wings at Ducks – PPD – Red Wings-Ducks postponed hours before schedule game

The scheduled game Thursday night between Anaheim and the Detroit Red Wings has been postponed to Sunday because of COVID-19-related issues affecting the Ducks. Anaheim placed center Sam Carrick, goaltender John Gibson, defenseman Hampus Lindholm and right wing Vinni Lettieri into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols. The Red Wings also are set to play Saturday night at the Los Angeles Kings and end the trip Tuesday night at San Jose.

Saturday

Chicago Blackhawks at Vegas Golden Knights, 10:00 p.m.

Detroit Red Wings at Los Angeles Kings 10:30 p.m.

Sunday

Detroit Red Wings at Anaheim Ducks, 8:00 p.m.

NCAAMBKB – Men’s College Basketball

Saturday

(10) Michigan State at Michigan, 2:30 p.m. MSU: Cosy-FM 1:30, UofM: WSJM 2:00

Ball State at Eastern Michigan, 3:30 p.m.

Notre Dame at Georgia Tech, 6:00 p.m.

Western Michigan at Central Michigan, 7:00 p.m.

NBA – National Basketball Association

Yesterday

Memphis Grizzlies 118, Detroit Pistons 88

Grizzlies 118, Pistons 88 – Morant, Grizzlies rout lowly Pistons for 7th straight win

Ja Morant had 22 points, nine rebounds and six assists as Memphis built an early lead and coasted to a 118-88 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night, the Grizzlies seventh straight win. Dillon Brooks finished with 18 points, while Tyus Jones and rookie Ziaire Williams added 14 points apiece for Memphis, a season-high for Williams. Saben Lee led the Pistons with 14 points, while Hamidou Diallo and rookie Cade Cunningham had 12 apiece. Trey Lyles finished with 10 points.

Tonight

Washington Wizards at Chicago Bulls, 8:00 p.m.

Saturday

Orlando Magic at Detroit Pistons, 7:00 p.m.

Utah Jazz at Indiana Pacers, 7:00 p.m.

Sunday

Chicago Bulls at Dallas Mavericks, 8:00 p.m.

Tennis – Australian Open – Djokovic in limbo as he fights deportation from Australia

Locked in a dispute over his COVID-19 vaccination status, Novak Djokovic is confined to an immigration detention hotel in Australia as he awaits a ruling on whether can compete in the Australian Open later this month. Djokovic, the No. 1 men's tennis player in the world, is a vocal skeptic of vaccines. He obtained a medical exemption to Australia's strict vaccination rules before setting out for Australia. But when he arrived, border authorities rejected it. He is awaiting a court hearing on Monday in his bid to stave off deportation.

NFL – National Football League – Week 18 (Regular Season Finale)

Sunday

Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions, 1:00 p.m.                   Rock 107 WIRX 12:00

Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings, 1:00 p.m.

Indianapolis Colts at Jacksonville Jaguars, 1:00 p.m.

NFL – Bears place quarterback Fields on reserve/COVID-19 list

The Chicago Bears have placed quarterback Justin Fields on the reserve/COVID-19 list, likely sidelining him for the finale and ending his...