Weekday Morning Sports – Thursday 1/5/18

sportsreport-345
sportsreport-345

95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports     @wsjmsports     wsjmsports.com     Wednesday, January 03, 2018

NCAAMBB – Men’s College Basketball
Last Night
Notre Dame 88, NC State 58

Notre Dame 88, NC State 58 – Brey sets victory mark as Notre Dame routs NC State, 88-58
T.J. Gibbs scored a game-high 22 points to lead four players in double figures as Notre Dame gave coach Mike Brey his school-record 394th victory, an 88-58 Atlantic Coast Conference triumph Wednesday night over North Carolina State. The Irish (12-3, 2-0 ACC) played without senior All-American Bonzie Colson, who is scheduled for Thursday surgery on a broken left foot, and for more than 25 minutes without senior point guard Matt Farrell, who sat next to him after suffering his own left foot injury after a hard fall in the first half. D.J. Harvey, who started in Colson’s place, had a career-high 17 points, Rex Pflueger had 16 and Martinas Geben 10 points as Brey passed former Irish coach Digger Phelps, who was courtside, to become Notre Dame’s all-time leader in men’s basketball victories.

Tonight
Maryland at (1) Michigan State, 8:00 p.m.                Superhits 103.7 Cosy-FM 7:00

NCAAWBB – Women’s College Basketball
Last Night
Michigan State 81, Northwestern 51
Buffalo 71, Western Michigan 49
Central Michigan 82, Ohio 58
Eastern Michigan 54, Bowling Green 52

Tonight
(23) Michigan at Wisconsin, 7:00 p.m.
Miami at (2) Notre Dame, 7:00 p.m.

NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Detroit Red Wings 2, Ottawa Senators 1 – OT
Chicago Blackhawks 5, New York Rangers 2

Red Wings 2, Senators 1 – OT – Athanasiou scores 6 seconds into OT, Detroit tops Ottawa 2-1
Andreas Athanasiou scored 6 seconds into overtime to give the Detroit Red Wings a 2-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday night. It was the second goal of the night for Athanasiou, who also had a penalty shot stopped in the third period. Dylan Larkin took the opening faceoff in overtime and, after the puck went forward a bit, both Athanasiou and Ottawa standout Erik Karlsson reached for it. Athanasiou was able to control it and skated in behind Karlsson on a breakaway.  He beat goalie Craig Anderson with a backhander high to the glove side. Ryan Dzingel scored for the Senators. Detroit has won three in a row for the first time this season. The Red Wings improved to 1-6 in games decided in overtime, although they have won three shootouts.

Blackhawks 5, Rangers 2 – Sharp breaks tie in third, Blackhawks beat Rangers 5-2
Patrick Sharp broke a tie early in the third period and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the New York Rangers 5-2 on Wednesday night. Nick Schmaltz, Vinnie Hinostroza, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane also scored, and Jeff Glass made 23 saves. The 32-year-old Glass made his third straight start with Corey Crawford on injured reserved.  Nick Holden and Mika Zibanejad scored for New York in the Rangers’ second regulation loss at home since Nov. 28. Sharp, a three-time Cup winner with Chicago who returned this season after spending the previous two years in Dallas, scored at 2:24 of the third when his wrist shot sailed past goalie Henrik Lundqvist’s glove. Toews and Kane had empty-net goals in the final minute.

NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Miami Heat 111, Detroit Pistons 104
Milwaukee Bucks 122, Indiana Pacers 101
Toronto Raptors 124, Chicago Bulls 115

Heat 111, Pistons 104 – Olynyk, Dragic lift Heat past Pistons, 111-104
Kelly Olynyk scored 25 points, including a big layup with 39 seconds left, and Goran Dragic added 24 as the Miami Heat held off the Detroit Pistons 111-104 on Wednesday night. Olynyk finished with 13 rebounds and Dragic had 13 assists for the Heat, who are three games over .500 for the first time since April 2016. Josh Richardson scored 22 for Miami, which shot 51 percent and outscored the Pistons 51-27 from 3-point range. James Johnson scored 16, Wayne Ellington had 12 and Hassan Whiteside added 10 for the Heat. Tobias Harris led a balanced Detroit effort with 19. Reggie Bullock scored 17, Avery Bradley and Boban Marjanovic had 15 apiece, Dwight Buycks scored 14 and Luke Kennard added 13 on 6-for-7 shooting for the Pistons. The Pistons were without center Andre Drummond, sidelined by a rib injury. That meant Marjanovic made his first start since the end of the 2015-16 season, when he was with San Antonio.

Bucks 122, Pacers 101 – Giannis gets double-double in Bucks’ 122-101 win over Pacers
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 31 points and 10 rebounds, Khris Middleton added 27 points and the Milwaukee Bucks pulled away for a 122-101 win over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night. Antetokounmpo had his way around the rim with his usual array of dunks and layups, shooting 12 of 18. He secured his 18th double-double of the year with 1:01 left in the third quarter.  The 6-foot-11 star passed to Thon Maker, who hit an open 3 from the corner to extend what had been a 10-point halftime lead to a 93-74 edge. Maker made one of the Bucks’ five 3s in the third quarter to put the game out of reach. The lead was so safe that coach Jason Kidd rested Antetokounmpo for the entire fourth quarter.  Minus leading scorer Victor Oladipo (24.9 points per game) for a fourth straight game because of a knee injury, the Pacers couldn’t keep up with Antetokounmpo’s athleticism on both ends of the floor.  Domantas Sabonis had a career-high 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting for Indiana, which lost its season-high fifth straight game.

Raptors 124, Bulls 115 – DeRozan scores 35 points, Raptors beat Bulls 124-115
DeMar DeRozan had 35 points, Delon Wright set career highs with 25 points and 13 rebounds, and the Toronto Raptors beat the Chicago Bulls 124-115 on Wednesday night. DeRozan came up big again after scoring a franchise-record 52 points in a win over Milwaukee on New Year’s Day. Held to nine in the first half this time, he scored 18 in the third quarter. He also shot 5 of 8 on 3-pointers and converted all 10 free throws.  Wright had his first career double-double and hit four 3s. Serge Ibaka scored 16 points for Toronto. Fred VanVleet added 13 and the Raptors pulled away in the fourth quarter for their ninth win in 11 games.  Justin Holiday led Chicago with 26 points.

NFL – Lions interview Vrabel for coaching opening
The Detroit Lions have interviewed Houston Texans defensive coordinator Mike Vrabel for their coaching position. The Lions announced the interview Wednesday, two days after coach Jim Caldwell was fired . Detroit has also interviewed its current defensive and offensive coordinators, Teryl Austin and Jim Bob Cooter.  Vrabel took over as defensive coordinator in 2017 after three seasons as Houston’s linebackers coach. He played 14 seasons in the NFL for Pittsburgh, New England and Kansas City, winning three Super Bowls with the Patriots.

NFL – Bears interview Fangio for coaching job
The Chicago Bears say they have interviewed defensive coordinator Vic Fangio for their head coaching job. The interview on Wednesday was the first for the Bears since they fired John Fox two days earlier. In his three seasons as Chicago’s defensive coordinator, Fangio has helped transform a unit that ranked among the worst in franchise history prior to his arrival. The Bears’ defense ranked 10th overall this season despite injuries to several key players, including linebacker Leonard Floyd.   Fangio was defensive coordinator for Carolina (1995-98), Indianapolis (1999-2001), Houston (2002-05) and San Francisco (2011-14).  Fox was let go after posting a 14-34 record in three years and a .292 winning percentage that ranks as the second-lowest in franchise history. The Bears were 5-11 this past season.

MLB – Cubs sued for better wheelchair access at Wrigley Field
A 20-year-old Chicago Cubs fan is suing team owners to force them to provide better wheelchair access at Wrigley Field. The Chicago Tribune reports the lawsuit was filed last month in federal court on behalf of David F. Cerda. His lawyer is his father, David A. Cerda. The lawsuit says the owners are violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by not providing better wheelchair access. It contends a $750 million renovation to the stadium built in 1914 eliminated wheelchair-accessible sections behind home plate and in right-field bleachers.   A Cubs spokesman declined to comment to the Tribune on the pending civil case.  The plaintiff has muscular dystrophy. His father told the Tribune that his son has had to watch games from a standing-room-only section from where obstructions partially block the view.

AHL – American Hockey League
Last Night
Chicago Wolves 5, Cleveland Monsters 3
Grand Rapids Griffins 4, Milwaukee Admirals 2

MCCAA – Junior College Women’s Basketball
Tonight
Kellogg Community College at Lake Michigan College, 5:30 p.m.            95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports

MCCAA – Junior College Men’s Basketball
Tonight
Kellogg Community College at Lake Michigan College, 7:00 p.m.            95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports

ECHL – East Coast Hockey League
Last Night
Kalamazoo Wings 8, Fort Wayne Komets 3

MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Girls Basketball
Benton Harbor at Wyoming Godwin Heights, Cancelled

Wrestling
Lakeshore Quad

  • Lakeshore 49, Chicago Brother Rice 23
  • Lakeshore 51, Mendon 21
  • Mendon 48, Chicago Brother Rice 31

Tonight
Boys Basketball
River Valley at Bridgman, 7:15 p.m.
Cassopolis at New Buffalo, 7:30 p.m.
Hartford at Mendon, 7:30 p.m.

Girls Basketball
Edwardsburg at Berrien Springs, 7:00 p.m.
Westview (IN) at Three Rivers, 7:00 p.m.
Centreville at Comstock, 6:30 p.m.
Mendon at Hartford, 7:30 p.m.