Month: December 2022

NBA Twitter reacts to Nets’ dominating 123-106 win over the Hornets

NBA Twitter reacts to the Nets’ 123-106 win over the Hornets on New Year’s Eve.

The Brooklyn Nets took their talents to North Carolina to take on the Charlotte Hornets on New Years Eve and won 123-106. This is the third time that these teams have played each other this season and the Nets now lead the regular-season series 3-0.

For the Nets, Kyrie Irving had 28 points and six rebounds while Kevin Durant had 23 points and four assists. Royce O’Neale had 14 points and six assists while Nic Claxton had 14 points and six blocks.

For the Hornets, LaMelo Ball had 23 points and 11 assists while Mason Plumlee had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Terry Rozier had 16 points and five rebounds and PJ Washington had 12 points and three rebounds,

As expected, the Nets got off to a good start and didn’t look back. Brooklyn led by as many as 22 points in this game and had their fourth wire-to-wire win of this campaign.

The Nets held the Hornets to 39.6% shooting from the field as they emphasized closing out on three-point shooters. The Nets played well in every aspect of the game other than being out-rebounded by Charlotte 45-41 and turning the ball over 14 times. Ultimately, Brooklyn did not let the Hornets establish a rhythm at any point and that led to this win before 2023 comes upon us.

Here’s how NBA Twitter reacted to the Nets’ thorough win over the Hornets:

‘There’s no improvement’: Rockets crushed by Julius Randle, turnovers on New Year’s Eve

“There’s no improvement,” veteran guard Eric Gordon said of the 2022-23 #Rockets after a New Year’s Eve loss to the Knicks with 25 turnovers and a season-worst 37.7% shooting clip.

New York scored 37 points off 25 Houston turnovers in Saturday’s matchup, leading to a 108-88 victory (box score) for the visitors in Toyota Center’s annual New Year’s Eve matchup. The Knicks (19-18) snapped their five-game losing streak, while the Rockets (10-26) enter 2023 having lost eight of their most recent nine games.

“There’s no improvement,” veteran guard Eric Gordon said postgame from a frustrated home locker room. Gordon had 12 points and 3 assists in 27 minutes on 5-of-10 shooting and 2-of-4 on 3-pointers (50.0%), though he did turn the ball over four times.

“Same old thing all year,” Gordon elaborated. We have a small margin for error. … It’s a lot of things. It’s mindset. You got to play for one another. Do what’s right by your teammates. If you do that, it’d be more fun. You give yourself a better chance to win.”

Veteran forward Julius Randle led the Knicks, who turned the ball over only 10 times, with 35 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists on 9-of-20 shooting (45.0% FG) and 5-of-13 from 3-point range (38.5%). Third-year guard Immanuel Quickley added 27 points and 7 assists.

Kevin Porter Jr. led the Rockets with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists on 7-of-12 shooting (58.3%) and 4-of-8 on 3-pointers (50.0%). Backcourt mate Jalen Green added 16 points and 3 assists, though he shot just 4-of-12 from the field (33.3%) and 3-of-8 on 3-pointers (37.5%). Porter and Green had a game-high five turnovers apiece.

Rookie forward Tari Eason grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench, and he also added three steals. However, Eason shot just 4-of-11 from the field (36.4%), mirroring a night when the Rockets shot just 37.7% collectively and 30.4% on 3-pointers. By percentage, it was Houston’s coldest night of the 2022-23 NBA season.

Alperen Sengun sat out for the Rockets with lower back pain, while Jalen Brunson was scratched for New York with right hip soreness.

Scroll on for highlights, analysis, and postgame interview reaction from Toyota Center. Houston returns to action in the same building on Monday night versus Dallas, with tipoff at 7:00 p.m. Central.

MBB Recap: Oregon Ducks outlast Oregon State Beavers, 77-68 on New Year’s Eve

The Ducks needed that victory badly, outlasting the Beavers and heading into the new year on a positive note.

The Oregon Ducks looked much better after that 10-day break than they did before it, that’s for sure.

After struggling in the early parts of December, going into the holiday after a loss to Utah Valley, Will Richardson was able to lead the team to an impressive victory over the Oregon State Beavers on New Year’s Eve in Matthew Knight Arena.

The Ducks weathered an early storm from the Beavers but were able to utilize an 18-2 run in the first half that gave them a comfortable lead going into the break. While the Beavers managed to regain the lead briefly in the second half, Richardson and N’Faly Dante ultimately held them off and got Dana Altman’s team a much-needed win to go into the new year.

Player grades: Tobias Harris, short-handed Sixers beat up on Thunder

Tobias Harris and the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers blow out the Oklahoma City Thunder to end their road trip.

The Philadelphia 76ers paid a visit to the Paycom Center on Saturday night to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder looking to end their four-game road trip on the right note. They had lost their previous two games on the trip and were looking to go 2-2 on this trip.

They would have to do it short-handed as they were missing James Harden, Tyrese Maxey, and PJ Tucker all due to injury management. It didn’t matter as Philadelphia built a large 33-point lead in the first half on their way to a 115-96 win over the Thunder. Tobias Harris was a perfect 7-for-7 in the first half and had 23 points for the game for Philadelphia.

Joel Embiid had 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists, and four blocks Shake Milton had 18 points and five assists in a start, De’Anthony Melton added 17 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, and Matisse Thybulle drew a start and scored nine points. Montrezl Harrell added nine points and six rebounds while Danuel House Jr. had eight and five rebounds off the bench.

Here are the player grades following the win to close out the 2022 calendar year:

2023 NFL draft: 6 prospects who boosted their stock in the Fiesta Bowl

These six prospects in the 2023 NFL draft class made the most of their opportunity to shine in the College Football Playoff semifinal

On Saturday evening, the TCU Horned Frogs took care of business against the Michigan Wolverines in the Fiesta Bowl to advance to the College Football Playoff national championship.

Thanks to a national stage and a big performance, certain players saw their names rise on draft boards after how they fared in the game.

Here’s a look at six players who saw their draft stock rise:

ESPN’s Chris Fowler had an incredible call for Georgia RB Kenny McIntosh tripping on the turf

He was so close!

Georgia running back Kenny McIntosh had the ball in his hand and a clear path to the end zone Saturday in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Peach Bowl.

With a huge assist from some excellent blocking, McIntosh had a wide-open field ahead of him after dodging/basically breaking the ankles of an Ohio State defender. He was zooming on his way to a 62-yard touchdown until… he got tripped up around the 15-yard line before ultimately landing on the 10.

It was still an incredibly impressive play with McIntosh — who entered the playoff game with 10 touchdowns on the season while averaging 5.2 yards per carry — showing off his wheels on what ended up being a 52-yard run. But he got into trouble à la New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones and seemingly tripped over the turf. Or maybe his own two feet.

He had everyone convinced he’d make it to the end zone, including ESPN’s Chris Fowler, who was on the call for the game and blamed “the turf monster.”

Fowler called the touchdown a touch too early, and the second he said it, McIntosh went down. But it made for a great call from the veteran broadcaster.

The Bulldogs still scored off the drive, but that’s a huge bummer for the senior running back. And the 52-yard run was still McIntosh’s longest on the season.

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Watch: Ohio State takes lead back right before half on another Stroud touchdown pass

The Buckeyes take the lead back before the half #GoBucks

The Buckeyes led for the majority of this contest against Georgia in the [autotag]College Football Playoff[/autotag] semi-finals but found themselves trailing for the first time all game with just 1:44 before the half. [autotag]Ohio State[/autotag] head coach [autotag]Ryan Day[/autotag] had been adamant about being aggressive, taking chances and he took one.

With no timeouts, the Buckeyes drove right down the field in four plays, spanning just 55 seconds to retake the lead. Quarterback[autotag]C.J. Stroud[/autotag], who has been on fire during this game, went 4-for-4 finding [autotag]Xavier Johnson[/autotag] to start the drive, with a pass to [autotag]Emeka Egbuka[/autotag] and [autotag]Julian Fleming[/autotag] sandwiched around another pass to Johnson which was the scoring play. Stroud found the walk-on over the middle for a 37-yard touchdown pass to give Ohio State a 28-24 lead just before the half.

The response was much needed as the Bulldogs were on a 17-0 run to take the lead. The Buckeyes would go into the half a slim lead in the [autotag]Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl[/autotag].

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Ohio State answers Georgia’s 17-point surge with C.J. Stroud passing TD

A late first-half TD pass gave Ohio State the lead over Georgia in the Peach Bowl

Georgia had erased a 21-7 deficit in Saturday’s Peach Bowl to take a three-point lead nearing halftime.

Ohio State fans had to be concerned as the Buckeyes were behind after allowing 17 straight points.

C.J. Stroud took control and calmed the fears — for a while. He led a four-play, 75-yard drive that took only 55 seconds.

The scoring play came when Stroud found Xavier Johnson for a 37-yard TD and it gave Ohio State a 28-24 lead at the break.

Stroud had a great half, going 15-of-19 for 238 yards and 3 TD passes against the vaunted Georgia defense.

Marvin Harrison Jr. had 5 catches for 106 yards and a pair of TDs for Ohio State.

 

Michigan football players reiterate ‘we will be back’ after disappointing loss

Love the belief here! #GoBlue

It looked like this might have been Michigan’s year.

The Wolverines had a nearly flawless 2022 season, going 12-0 in the regular season with big wins against rivals Michigan State and Ohio State. The maize and blue also had a commanding win against Purdue in the Big Ten Championship, and it appeared Michigan was a team on a mission heading into its second straight College Football Playoff appearance.

But TCU had something to say about that. On Saturday, the Wolverines were bounced out of the playoff after losing to the Horned Frogs, 51-45.

The Wolverines turned the ball over three times; two pick sixes from J.J. McCarthy and a goal-line fumble by Kalel Mullings. While Michigan found itself down 19 points late in the third, the Wolverines came back, but fell short.

A disappointed McCarthy answered one question after the game. He started by giving TCU all the credit for the victory, but he made a promise for next season’s Wolverine squad.

“All credit to them,” said McCarthy. “They won the game in the 60 minutes that were played. They’re a good football team. No matter what it is, they got the win.”

“Fought our hearts out. There’s a lot of things that we could have done better. Can’t wait to watch the tape. But we’ll be back, and I promise that.”

Running back Donovan Edwards ran for 119 yards in the game on Saturday. Once Michigan went down by multiple scores, it was clear the Wolverines would need to pass the ball to stay in the game. But even trailing big for the majority of the game, the sophomore said they believe they are still a complete team and he shared similar sentiments to McCarthy.

“We had our heads up high the whole game,” said Edwards.” Regardless, we’re a four-quarter team. We’ll be back.”

“It sucks that we lost the game,” Edwards said. “Our whole season preparation has been to win a national championship, and this is the second year that we have lost in the 14th game of the season. So we’re just like, ‘We will be back.’ Same thing we said last year.”

After turning the ball over three times, Michigan had too many self-inflicted wounds. The Wolverines had several chances to complete the comeback, but between the offense fluttering at the wrong times and the defense getting gashed by the run — the comeback stalled.

Edwards said Michigan will get back to the drawing board and fix its mistakes. The Wolverines should have plenty of players returning for next season and freshmen Will Johnson and Colston Loveland gained valuable experience. Because of that, Edwards reiterated the Wolverines will be back.

“It ain’t nothing to it,” said Edwards. “Just back to the drawing board, you know? It’s like we got a good amount of the same people that were here last year and this year. So the new guys that are here this year, they understand what it takes.”

“The freshmen that were here, Will Johnston, Colston Loveland, et cetera, et cetera, they understand what it takes and the preparation that we have to be able to be in positions like this. So we’ll be back.”

Nickel back Mike Sainristil is one of those players that will return next year. He could have declared for the draft after a solid campaign as a defensive back, but he wants to hone his skills one more season. He believes Michigan will learn from this loss and come back better than ever.

“I would just simply say it’s time to — we’re going to learn from this one” said Sainristil. “Once we get back to the drawing board, it’s just time to rebuild, refocus.”

“There’s nothing we can do about it now, but learn from the mistakes and do the best we can this offseason to put ourselves in the best situation for the beginning of next year.”

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Player grades: Kyrie Irving nets 28 points in wire-to-wire 123-106 win over the Hornets

Here are your Nets player grades for Saturday’s 123-106 win over the Hornets on New Year’s Eve.

The Brooklyn Nets took their talents to North Carolina to take on the Charlotte Hornets on New Years Eve and won 123-106. This is the third time that these teams have played each other this season and the Nets now lead the regular-season series 3-0.

For the Nets, Kyrie Irving had 28 points and six rebounds while Kevin Durant had 23 points and four assists. Royce O’Neale had 14 points and six assists while Nic Claxton had 14 points and six blocks.

For the Hornets, LaMelo Ball had 23 points and 11 assists while Mason Plumlee had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Terry Rozier had 16 points and five rebounds and PJ Washington had 12 points and three rebounds,

As expected, the Nets got off to a good start and didn’t look back. Brooklyn led by as many as 22 points in this game and had their fourth wire-to-wire win of this campaign.

The Nets held the Hornets to 39.6% shooting from the field as they emphasized closing out on three-point shooters. The Nets played well in every aspect of the game other than being out-rebounded by Charlotte 45-41 and turning the ball over 14 times. Ultimately, Brooklyn did not let the Hornets establish a rhythm at any point and that led to this win before 2023 comes upon us.

Here are your Nets player grades: