ReportWire

Tag: and the

  • No. 13 Texas Tech skids into meeting with West Virginia

    [ad_1]

    (Photo credit: Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

    Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland has not pressed the panic button ahead of the No. 13 Red Raiders’ Big 12 Conference matchup against West Virginia on Sunday in Morgantown, W.Va.

    While every game in the conference offers a stern test, McCasland is confident the Red Raiders (16-6, 6-3 Big 12) will bounce back from two straight losses. The first was an 88-80 setback at UCF on Jan. 31, and the latest a 64-61 home defeat against No. 11 Kansas on Monday.

    ‘We’ve got the right guys, we just need more experience and time together,’ McCasland said. ‘I love this group and I believe in them and I know we can win real games that are meaningful in March. We’ve got to find ways to collectively get a little more experience, get a little tougher, get a little more fight and grit to the way we compete down the stretch. We are just scratching the surface of what we can be.’

    Christian Anderson was a last-minute scratch for the loss to Kansas due to a reported illness. The sophomore guard ranks second on the Red Raiders in scoring at 19.6 points per game and leads the Big 12 in assists at 7.5 per contest. He shoots 43.6% from 3-point range and connects on 3.4 shots from beyond the arc per game.

    Texas Tech thought there still was a possibility he could get ready to play against the Jayhawks by halftime.

    ‘Before the game we didn’t have any idea it was an option (he wouldn’t play),’ McCasland said. ‘In warmups we were told he was being held out for now. But I fully anticipated him playing. As he got closer to being out there, I was told we were trying to warm him up during the intros to see if we could get him ready to play.’

    Even as the teams took the court after halftime, Texas Tech thought it could get Anderson back. Without him in the lineup, the Red Raiders surrendered a 10-point lead in the last eight minutes.

    ‘We don’t have time to think about anything other than we need to beat West Virginia on Sunday,’ McCasland said. ‘Staying in the Big 12 (race) is about being resilient, and we need to get better. Our guys are tough and care a lot about this team even though they are all hurt.’

    West Virginia (15-8, 6-4 Big 12) is coming off a 59-54 road win over Cincinnati on Thursday, but it could use a victory over Texas Tech as a resume-builder. The Mountaineers are 2-5 in Quad 1 games and 1-3 in Quad 2 games. That makes Sunday tilt in Morgantown, where they are 13-1, even more important.

    ‘We have a little momentum and need to go back home and take care of business there,’ said West Virginia’s leading scorer, Honor Huff, who puts up 15.8 points per game.

    ‘We don’t try to look ahead or hear the outside noise as to what can happen if you win this game or lose that game. We have to take care of every game that comes on our schedule.’

    Even though the Mountaineers trailed the Bearcats by as many as 14 points in the second half, they rode a familiar formula to victory: Muddy things up on defense and wait for Huff to get hot from beyond the arc. Huff scored 14 straight Mountaineers points to put his team up 42-40, and the West Virginia defense held Cincinnati to 36.4% shooting from the field and 30.4% on 3-point attempts.

    ‘For us it always starts on the defensive end of the floor,’ West Virginia coach Ross Hodge said. ‘Can you defend and can you rebound? In the last couple games, we’ve gotten some good offensive looks and are struggling a bit on that end of the floor. But I tell these guys all the time, let’s beat someone 52-48 then if that’s what it takes. It takes what it takes.’

    –Field Level Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Steeped in drama, Michigan, Texas get back to football in Citrus Bowl

    [ad_1]

    (Photo credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images)

    Before the College Football Playoff bracket was complete, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian delivered a strong rebuke of the process, well aware the Longhorns weren’t in position to make the 12-team field.

    That drama turned out to be minor compared to Michigan’s stunning firing of Sherrone Moore for having an improper relationship with a female football staffer and the coach’s subsequent arrest.

    The No. 13 Longhorns and the No. 18 Wolverines are surely happy to see the calendar turn to 2026 but first they fittingly ring out the current year together on Wednesday at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla.

    Both teams went 9-3 in the regular season before their campaigns were overshadowed by outside factors. Biff Poggi is serving as Michigan’s interim coach for the bowl game.

    Sarkisian lobbied for his team’s inclusion into the playoffs after a 27-17 victory over then-No. 3 Texas A&M on Nov. 28.

    He pointed out the team’s three top 10 wins and a season-opening loss to then-No. 3 Ohio State, and even threatened to remove the Buckeyes from the 2026 schedule to make his point. But it was an early October setback against Florida that sank his team.

    While the anger has dissipated, disappointment lingers at Texas over a spot in the Citrus Bowl.

    ‘A lot of the other guys see it as a chance to compete, prove ourselves, especially being in (the CFP) last year, not being in this year, we get a chance to prove the committee wrong,’ Longhorns guard Luke Hutson said. ‘So I’m really excited for that, and I think it should be really awesome.’

    Michigan formally introduced new coach Kyle Whittingham on Sunday, something nowhere on the radar when the month began.

    Moore’s arrest changed everything.

    After being informed of his firing on Dec. 10, he allegedly confronted the woman at her home and was arrested. Two days later, he was charged with felony home invasion and two misdemeanors (stalking and breaking and entering).

    The incident and Moore’s meltdown left the Michigan program swirling in chaos.

    ‘I was kind of stunned for a while,’ Wolverines linebacker Cole Sullivan said. ‘I didn’t know what to think. But at the end of the day, we’re still the same team. One person doesn’t define who we are. I’m not going to let what happened define me. And I know the rest of the team isn’t also going to let that happen.’

    Whittingham is focused on preventing a mass exodus and met with freshman Bryce Underwood on Sunday as speculation swirls that the No. 1 recruit of the 2025 class is considering his options.

    Underwood has passed for 2,229 yards and nine touchdowns against six interceptions while adding five scores on the ground.

    He said he’s looking forward to playing in the Citrus Bowl.

    ‘Playing football is our fun,’ Underwood said. ‘Us playing our game, and in any way possible we can be good, that’s what we’ll do.’

    Defensive end Derrick Moore (team-high 10 sacks), linebacker Jaishawn Barham (10 tackles for loss) and guard Giovanni El-Hadl have opted out of the game. Linebacker Ernest Hausmann (68 tackles) wasn’t in Orlando over the weekend and his status is unclear. Running back Justice Haynes (857 yards, 10 touchdowns) is bothered by a foot injury.

    The Longhorns had more than a dozen opt-outs. Four running backs headed to the transfer portal. Leading rusher Quintrevion Wisner (597 yards) opted out late last week to join CJ Baxter, Jerrick Gibson and Rickey Stewart Jr. on the departure list.

    Texas’ main ball-carriers against Michigan will be freshmen Christian Clark (131 yards, one TD) and James Simon (122 yards).

    All-American safety Michael Taaffe (70 tackles) isn’t playing so he can start preparing for the NFL Draft. Linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. (69 stops) declared for the draft and is skipping his senior season. Another linebacker, Liona Lefau (69 tackles), entered the transfer portal.

    Quarterback Arch Manning confirmed Sunday that he will indeed return for the 2026 season. He has thrown for 2,942 yards and 24 touchdowns against seven interceptions and added eight scores on the ground.

    ‘I felt like I developed a lot this year, especially toward the back half,’ Manning said Sunday. ‘I want to keep it going. There’s no reason to leave. I think I’ve got a lot more football left to play, and I’m excited to still be a part of this team.’

    Texas has won both previous meetings against Michigan, including a 31-12 victory last season in Ann Arbor.

    –Field Level Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Notre Dame, BYU to meet next two seasons; USC off Irish slate

    [ad_1]

    (Photo credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images)

    Notre Dame and BYU were the first two teams on the outside of the College Football Playoff this season, and the programs are beefing up their nonconference schedules for the next two seasons by playing one another.

    Both schools announced the series Monday that will see the first game played in Provo, Utah next season and the latter in South Bend, Ind., in 2027.

    Notre Dame finished 11th in the CFP rankings this season and BYU was No. 12. Miami, at No. 10, was the last at-large team to make the 12-team field.

    ‘We are excited to announce this home-and-home series between BYU and Notre Dame for the 2026 and 2027 seasons,’ BYU athletic director Brian Santiago said in a news release. ‘We have tremendous respect for Notre Dame. … These will be competitive football games, and will highlight coaches Kalani Sitake (BYU) and Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame), two of the best leaders and coaches in college football.’

    The game in Provo completes Notre Dame’s 2026 schedule, and knocks longtime rival Southern California off the schedule. Notre Dame and USC have played every season since 1946, except when the 2020 game was cancelled due to COVID-19.

    The two teams were slated to play in 2026 in Los Angeles but that contest is now off and the series is indefinitely halted.

    ‘USC and Notre Dame recognize how special our rivalry is to our fans, our teams, and college football, and our institutions will continue working towards bringing back The Battle for the Jeweled Shillelagh,’ Notre Dame and USC said in a joint statement. ‘The rivalry between our two schools is one of the best in all of sports, and we look forward to meeting again in the future.’

    According to reports, USC has expressed it no longer wants to host Notre Dame in late November and would prefer the game be played earlier in the season. Games in the series at Notre Dame typically are played in October.

    Also, USC now plays in the Big Ten and makes multiple trips to the Midwest or East and is concerned about having another long trip every other season.

    Notre Dame and BYU have played nine times with the Fighting Irish prevailing seven times. The most recent contest came in 2022 when Notre Dame beat the Cougars 28-20 in Las Vegas.

    The teams have split two meetings in Provo, while the Irish are 5-1 against the Cougars in South Bend.

    The addition of Notre Dame completes BYU’s schedules for the 2026 and 2027 seasons.

    Notre Dame (10-2) opted not to play in a bowl game after being passed over for the postseason. BYU (11-2) will face Georgia Tech (9-3) in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando on Dec. 27.

    –Field Level Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Crew remain 9th in East with Orlando City draw

    [ad_1]

    (Photo credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images)

    Fullback Marcelo Herrera scored his third goal and the Columbus Crew earned their best result in weeks with a 1-1 draw Saturday night at Orlando City.

    Goalkeeper Patrick Schulte’s error not long after Herrera’s tally kept the Crew from halting a winless run that extended to four matches.

    But it was still a promising performance from Columbus (13-8-12, 51 points) against a potential playoff opponent, even though it remained ninth in the Eastern Conference with the draw.

    Crew leading scorer Diego Rossi also made his first appearance since suffering a hamstring injury in a 5-4 win Sept. 13 at Atlanta.

    Marco Pasalic scored his 12th league goal for Orlando (14-7-11, 53 points), which saw a three-match home MLS winning streak snapped.

    Pedro Gallese made six saves in a performance the Lions needed to extend a modest unbeaten run to four games, which includes three draws.

    Columbus opened the scoring in the 32nd minute before Orlando responded only two minutes later.

    For the Crew, Lassi Lappalainen got down the left, then appeared to catch Orlando’s defense off guard by sending in a cross a few yards before he reached the byline.

    It met Herrera making a clever run parallel to the goal line, and the Argentine dispatched a tidy first-time finish past the flailing Gallese, who had too little time to react.

    The Lions pulled level essentially on their next trip into the Columbus end.

    Luis Muriel took a speculative shot from outside the box that dipped as it reached Schulte, who spilled it forward.

    Pasalic reacted to the error before the keeper could and capitalized for his first tally since he scored a consolation goal in a Leagues Cup semifinal defeat to Miami on Aug. 27.

    Columbus had the better of the late chances.

    Gallese made an enormous save with his trailing leg in the 83rd minute to deny Max Arfsten at point-blank range after Arfsten outmuscled Alex Freeman for a cross.

    Three minutes later, Herrera and Darlington Nagbe combined to find Daniel Gazdag, who missed the target from an excellent position near the penalty spot.

    –Field Level Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • After Fever’s Game 1 upset, Aces out to level semifinal series

    [ad_1]

    (Photo credit: Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images)

    Kelsey Mitchell appears to be on a mission to prove that the longer her season lasts, the stronger she gets. On Tuesday, she’s out to give the Indiana Fever a commanding lead in the WNBA semifinals.A finalist for the MVP award, Mitchell outplayed the actual MVP winner on Sunday to get a jump on A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces in Game 1 of the best-of-five series. Game 2 is in Las Vegas on Tuesday.Mitchell scored 34 points in the 89-73 Game 1 victory at Las Vegas and will attempt to repeat that performance to help steal a second road game in the series before the matchup shifts to Indianapolis for Game 3 on Friday.’Kelsey is just a tough shot-maker,’ said Fever head coach Stephanie White. ‘She’s always in constant motion, she’s fast as all get out (and) probably the fastest player in the league with the ball in her hands. … There have been multiple times this season when she’s put us on her back.’In four games so far in the playoffs, Mitchell has averaged 26.0 points on 48.6 percent shooting from the floor and 50.0 percent from 3-point range.

    The eighth-year pro finished the regular season averaging a career-best 20.2 points per game. She averaged 21.2 points per game over the final 22 games of the season that Caitlin Clark missed with a groin injury and a bone bruise on her left ankle.Odyssey Sims added 17 points in Game 1 while Natasha Howard had 12. Both Howard and Aliyah Boston delivered 11 rebounds.The Indiana defense also left its mark. Wilson was held to 16 points, well under her WNBA-best average of 23.4 per game during the regular season. Wilson was 6 of 22 (27.2 percent) from the floor after shooting 50.5 percent in the regular season.’We wanted to come in and be the aggressor right away to make sure we were dictating on the defensive end and dictating from a pace standpoint,’ White said. ‘They’re champions for a reason and we knew they were going to make runs.’After trailing by as many as 14 points, Las Vegas pulled within 58-55 with 2:51 remaining in the third quarter before Indiana closed the period on an 11-0 burst. Jackie Young had 19 points for the Aces while Dana Evans had 14. Wilson finished with 13 rebounds.The Aces, though, do know how to make a statement after a tough loss. Las Vegas was thrashed 111-58 by the Minnesota Lynx on August 2 before finishing the regular season on a 16-game winning streak that included a revenge victory over the Lynx.After the Aces saw their 17-game winning streak snapped in an 86-83 Game 2 loss in their best-of-three opening-round series against Seattle, they came back to advance with a 74-73 victory behind 38 points from Wilson.’We were in the huddle (Sunday) talking about how we didn’t really have a pep to us,’ Young said, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. ‘You saw the pace that they were playing with and the pep that they had in their step. And we just didn’t have that. It’s on us to change that next game.’–Field Level Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • NWSL roundup: Courage snap winless streak with victory over Angel City

    [ad_1]

    (Photo credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images)

    Manaka Matsukubo and Brianna Pinto scored in the first 20 minutes and the North Carolina Courage registered their first victory in seven matches, topping Angel City FC 2-1 on Saturday at Cary, N.C.

    The Courage (6-7-7, 25 points) have defeated Angel City twice this year by 2-1 scores.

    Sveindis Jonsdottir scored in the 88th minute for Angel City (6-9-5, 23 points). It was her first goal in seven matches this year.

    Marisa Bova made two saves for North Carolina. Angelina Anderson stopped five shots for Angel City, which has gone back-to-back matches without a point following a four-match points streak.

    Matsukubo’s sixth goal came in the sixth minute off an assist from Payton Linnehan, giving her two goals in a four-match stretch. Matsukubo’s shot from the right side went into the left-side of the net.

    Pinto posted her third goal of the year, a sequence aided when the ball bounced off an Angel City player before Pinto booted it into the net.

    Bay FC 1, Orlando Pride 1

    Ally Watt scored in the 70th minute and the Pride managed a home draw but saw their winless streak in league play extended to eight matches.

    Racheal Kundananji scored in first-half extra time for Bay FC (4-10-6, 18 points), which halted a four-match losing streak but saw the team’s winless stretch extended to nine matches. Bay goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz made seven saves.

    Pride (8-7-5, 29 points) goalkeeper McKinley Crone made four saves.

    Orlando’s goal came on Lizbeth Ovalle’s long delivery to Watt, who converted on a header. Bay FC’s opener came on a header in the box from Kundananji on a stellar lofted pass into the box by Caprice Dydasco.

    –Field Level Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link