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Archives for January 2025

Welcome to Cooper’s Town

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DURHAM – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Duke Freshman Cooper Flagg rang up 42 points and the No. 4 Blue Devils held off visiting Notre Dame for an 86-78 victory Saturday afternoon at Cameron Indoor in North Carolina.

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Flagg made 11 of 14 shots from the field, including a 4-for-6 mark on 3-pointers, and went 16-for-17 on free throws. He became the first Duke player to reach 40 points since J.J. Redick did it twice in January 2006 and marked the most points for any Blue Devil since Danny Ferry’s 58 in 1988. Flagg also distributed a team-high seven assists and pulled in six rebounds.

Duke (14-2, 6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), which has won 10 consecutive games, posted the game’s first 14 points to set the tone.

Khaman Maluach’s 19 points and 10 rebounds and Kon Knueppel’s 13 points also were a boost for the Blue Devils.

Markus Burton led Notre Dame (7-9, 1-4), which was coming off a pair of one-point losses, with 23 points. Braeden Shrewsberry notched 14 points and Tae Davis and Sir Mohammed each had 11 points for the Irish, who were helped going 14 of 23 on 3s.

Flagg is the most highly touted freshman in the country. He has racked up 24 or more points in four of the last six games.

Duke’s stellar start came at both ends of the court. Notre Dame didn’t have a field goal until more than five minutes into the game.

When Flagg was called for a push-off for an offensive foul late in the first half, it resulted in a technical foul assessed to irate Duke coach Jon Scheyer.

Flagg scored 15 points in the first half and 15 more in the first nine minutes of the second half, reaching a career-high mark by that point. His previous high was 26 points vs. Kentucky in the third game of the season.

Notre Dame was within 63-53 before managing only one point across the next three-plus minutes. Yet the Irish put together an 11-0 run to close to within 79-74 with 1:03 to play.

Duke’s Sion James made a free throw before Burton’s drive for a basket closed the gap to 80-76 with 36 seconds left. Flagg sank two foul shots.

Flagg drained three 3-pointers in the game’s first seven minutes, putting Duke up 19-8. The halftime score was 44-36.

–Field Level Media

Kings, Six in a Row for the Day

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BOSTON – Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis had 23 points and a career-high 28 rebounds to help the visiting Kings extend their winning streak to six games by beating the Boston Celtics 114-97 Friday night.

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Sabonis became the first player to grab more than 24 rebounds in a game at the renovated TD Garden (the mark was reached hundreds of times at the old Boston Garden). Sacramento had a 56-43 rebounding edge in the win.

The game was tied after three quarters, but the Kings outscored the Celtics 38-21 in the fourth. Sacramento led by as many as 19 points in the fourth quarter.

DeMar DeRozan tossed in 24 points for the Kings, who received 22 from Malik Monk and 19 from Keegan Murray.

Jaylen Brown led Boston with 28 points, and Kristaps Porzingis finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Jayson Tatum had 15 points and 12 rebounds, but committed eight turnovers.

Boston shot 40.5 percent from the field (34 of 84) and 26.8 percent from 3-point territory (11 of 41). Derrick White was 1 of 8 from the field (0 of 6 on 3-point attempts) and was held to three points.

The Kings improved to 6-1 under interim coach Doug Christie.

Sacramento played its third straight game without point guard De’Aaron Fox (glute contusion). Fox is averaging 26.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game this season.

Sacramento built a 10-point lead in the first quarter and led 34-27 entering the second. The Kings made eight 3-pointers in the first 12 minutes.

Boston held a 43-37 advantage after scoring 16 of the first 19 points in the second quarter. A 7-0 run gave the Kings a 44-43 lead later in the quarter, but Boston was up 55-53 at halftime. Sabonis had 16 rebounds in the first half.

Boston led 72-63 with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter, but Murray and Sabonis scored to ignite a Sacramento surge. In the final 1:01 of the quarter, Murray dunked and DeRozan hit a jumper to tie it 76-76 by the start of the fourth. Tatum turned the ball over five times in the third.

–Field Level Media

Late Field Goal Lifts Irish

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MIAMI GARDENS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Notre Dame’s PK Mitch Jeter’s 41-yard field goal with seven seconds left lifted Notre Dame to a 27-24 comeback win over Penn State in the Orange Bowl — one of the College Football Playoff semifinals — on Thursday.

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The seventh-seeded Fighting Irish (14-1) won their 13th game in a row and advanced to the CFP national championship game, which will be played January 20 in Atlanta. Their opponent will be the winner of tonight’s Cotton Bowl matchup between fifth-seeded Texas and eighth-seeded Ohio State.

It will be the first time Notre Dame has played for a national title since 2013 when it lost to Alabama in a game played in Miami Gardens.

Christian Gray’s diving interception of a pass from Penn State quarterback Drew Allar with 33 seconds left set up the Fighting Irish’s winning score.

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard completed 15 of 23 passes for 223 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions and converted a key first down on the Fighting Irish’s final drive to set up Jeter’s game-winner.

On third-and-3, Leonard found Jaden Greathouse for 10 yards to the Penn State 25, and Leonard subsequently ran for 2 yards to make the attempt closer. Jeter, who is 7-for-8 on field-goal attempts in the playoffs, snuck the ball just inside the right upright.

Greathouse, who finished with a career-high 105 receiving yards, made his biggest catch when he hauled in a 54-yard touchdown pass from Leonard to level the score at 24 with 4:38 to go.

The Fighting Irish regained possession after forcing a Penn State punt. However, Notre Dame’s own ensuing drive fizzled at midfield when Leonard was sacked by Coziah Izzard, forcing a punt with 47 seconds left.

The sixth-seeded Nittany Lions (13-3) were looking for a shot at their first national title since 1986. They fell despite a stellar game from Nicholas Singleton, who tied an Orange Bowl record with three rushing touchdowns.

Celtics Make Move in 4th Quarter

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DENVER – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Jayson Tatum had 29 points, his teammate Kristaps Porzingis finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds and the visiting Celtics beat the short-handed Denver Nuggets 118-106 on Tuesday night.

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Jrue Holiday scored 19 points and Jaylen Brown contributed 14 for the Celtics, who used a strong fourth quarter to break open a close game.

Boston was without starting point guard Derrick White due to an illness.

Russell Westbrook scored 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Denver, which played without reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and power forward Aaron Gordon. Jokic (illness) missed his fourth game of the season, with Dario Saric starting in his place. Saric didn’t score in his 17 minutes of court time.

Jamal Murray and Julian Strawther each scored 19 points, Michael Porter Jr. had 15 points and 10 rebounds, Peyton Watson contributed 14 points and Christian Braun finished with 12 points for the Nuggets.

Denver led by two twice early in the third quarter, but the Celtics snatched the momentum and were up 86-79 following a Tatum 3-pointer with 1:47 to go in the period. Boston took an 88-83 edge into the fourth.

Strawther tied the game at 88 with a triple just 1:10 into the final frame. It was later 93-93 when the Nuggets went cold, as they failed to score for over four minutes while watching the Celtics go on a decisive 15-0 run that made it 108-93 with 4:29 remaining.

Tatum punctuated the rally with a trio of free throws.

Despite punching back with seven straight points to trim its deficit to 108-100 with 3:26 remaining, Denver didn’t have enough gas in the tank to complete a comeback and lost for the second time in three games.

Boston saw a 15-point lead vanish in the first half and had to settle for a 57-57 tie at the break. By then, the Nuggets already had five scorers in double figures.

–Field Level Media

Inaugural TGL Match a Success

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PALM BEACH GARDENS – (Staff and Wire Service Report by Field Level Media) – The first match of the new TGL was a one-sided affair lacking true suspense. But there wasn’t any disappointment or sad faces to be found after Bay Golf Club rolled to a 9-2 victory over New York Golf Club on Tuesday night in South Florida.

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The new venture, which includes Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy as driving forces, was played at SoFi Center, a custom-built 1,500-seat arena. It was certainly much different than what golfers typically experience. And that was just fine by Bay Golf Club’s Ludvig Aberg.

“It was awesome. I always said I was so jealous of basketball and football players because they get to do this a lot and we don’t,” Aberg said. “So this whole stadium-like feel is awesome to be a part of, and it gets you going a little bit differently from a normal golf tournament.”

Bay GC clinched the victory on No. 10 of the 15-hole match that lasted just over two hours. The 15-hole course was custom-designed, and the competition is part virtual and part real life.

The high-tech indoor league features six teams and a 15-match season.

“Just to have the ability to showcase our sport,” Woods said of why he’s excited about the venture. “It’s not traditional golf, but it’s golf — and that’s the main thing.”

Players hit tee and approach shots into a simulated screen that has hole layouts, greens, bunkers and anything else you’d see on a golf course. After the ball lands, the rest of the shots and putts are hit inside the facility.

The fans in attendance were allowed to be vocal — kind of different than the marshal at Augusta holding “quiet” or “no noise” signs.

“You don’t hear that at most events,” Woods said, “but you’ll hear that here.”

Wyndham Clark and Shane Lowry also played for Bay Golf Club, while Min Woo Lee sat out.

“I thought it would be a little bit more of a match,” Clark said. “There wasn’t much trash talk to do because we beat them so bad.”

Lowry liked the atmosphere inside the venue, but he needed some time to adjust.

“It’s quite an intimidating place to play golf because it’s somewhere we’re not used to,” Lowry said.

New York’s team consisted of Xander Schauffele, Rickie Fowler and Matt Fitzpatrick. Cameron Young was inactive.

Schauffele was surprised his team couldn’t give Bay GC more of a match.

“They played pretty well,” Schauffele said. “It seems like every time their ball hit the screen it was going down the middle, and our ball would hit the screen and be 30 to 40 yards to the right … We have nobody else to blame but ourselves.”

A wrinkle the golfers had to get used to was the 40-second shot clock. A violation results in a one-stroke penalty.

“I didn’t feel rushed,” Fitzpatrick said. “I wish that was in real golf as well.”

Teams rotate possession of the hammer. When used, the hammer doubles the point total of a given hole.

Lowry hit the first tee shot in TGL history to get the festivities going.

Bay GC took a 1-0 lead on the first hole (The Plank) when Aberg made a 9-foot birdie putt.

After Fowler hit his tee shot, he professed to be feeling anxiety.

“This is a new environment,” Fowler said. “So this isn’t something we’re fully used to. You feel the nerves a bit.”

On No. 3 (Set in Stone), Bay GC elected to use the hammer and Clark’s ensuing 7-foot, 7-inch putt was good and worth two points to give Bay GC a 3-0 advantage.

On the fourth hole (Boomerang), Lowry’s 3-foot, 8-inch putt boosted Bay GC’s lead to four.

Aberg came up big on the fifth hole (Craic On) by sinking a 32-foot, 1-inch putt to make it 5-0.

New York earned its first point on the ninth hole (The Spear) to trail 6-1 at halftime.

When Bay GC won No. 10 (Serpent), the victory was clinched — but the remaining five holes were still played due to season tiebreaker reasons (most holes won).

The TGL is starting up one year later than initially planned. The original arena roof collapsed during a storm in November 2023.

The four other teams in the league are Atlanta, Boston, Jupiter (Fla.) and Los Angeles.

Next Tuesday, Los Angeles and Woods-led Jupiter square off in the league’s second match.

–Field Level Media

In a Bay Club State of Mind

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PALM BEACH GARDENS – (Staff Report from Official TGL News Release) – The Bay Golf Club’s Shane Lowry had the honor of the first shot in TGL history, but forgot to bring a tee to the hitting area to open the match. Following a laugh and a deep breath, the Irishman launched his tee shot into the massive simulator Screen, and it flew safely into the fairway, setting the inaugural season in motion Tuesday under the lights of the indoor SoFi Center in South Florida.

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Lowry would go on to record the clinching point for The Bay Golf Club over New York Golf Club, besting Rickie Fowler in Singles at the par-5 10th to make it 7-1 and secure the victory for himself and teammates Wyndham Clark and Ludvig Åberg with five holes left. The remaining holes were played out for a final score of 9-2.

NYGC (0-1) fell behind on the first hole with Fowler, Xander Schauffele and Matt Fitzpatrick looking on as Åberg drained a nine-foot birdie putt at The Plank for the early 1-0 lead. It was that kind of night for NY Golf Club, which found itself on the wrong side of an early two-point swing.

TBGC (1-0) began the match with the Hammer and held onto it for the first two holes. Then, with Clark feeling confident standing over a 7-foot birdie putt to win the par-3 third hole, Set in Stone, TBGC threw the Hammer to increase the point value of the hole to two points and show how quickly it can change the momentum in a match.

NYGC accepted and Clark drained the putt to give his team a 3-0 lead through three holes.

TBGC continued grinding out points with steady play and several spectacular highlights from Åberg. The 25-year-old Swede helped earn another point at the fourth hole, Boomerang, hitting his team’s third shot into the 582-yard par 5 to just four feet. Lowry made the birdie putt to put TBGC ahead, 4-0.

Åberg tacked on another at the par-3 fifth hole, Craic On, draining a 32-foot birdie putt to win the hole and make it 5-0 TBGC with 10 holes to play.

TBGC won its fourth consecutive hole with a stress-free par at the sixth, but NYGC finished strong in Triples thanks to a crafty chip from Fitzpatrick at The Spear, the par-5 ninth hole. That resulted in a conceded birdie and the first point on the board for NYGC with the score 6-1 entering Singles.

TBGC earned two points in the SoFi Cup Standings with the victory, while NY Golf Club will look to pick up its first point of the season in their next match.

NYGC returns to action at 7 p.m. on Jan. 21 against Atlanta Drive Golf Club, while The Bay looks to keep it rolling with two matches on Feb. 17 against Atlanta Drive (4 p.m.) and Boston Common Golf (7 p.m.) as part of a TGL tripleheader.

TGL Golf Season is Finally Here

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PALM BEACH GARDENS – (Staff Report from Official League Release) – It’s almost here. The first season gets underway when Shane Lowry takes the opening tee shot for The Bay Golf Club vs. New York Golf Club tonight.

But before the matches officially begin at SoFi Center, it is time for us to dig in and preview what the next three months of fun, fast-paced, prime time action are going to look like.

Six teams of world class players face off in 15-hole matches at SoFi Center, an indoor arena on the campus of Palm Beach State College in Florida on ESPN and ESPN+ from January-March.

The golf is played into a 64′ x 53′ screen that is 24 times larger than a standard golf simulator. Players will hit off of real grass fairways and rough, and play out of a unique sand that is only used at one other course, which happens to be located in the southeast United States.

Once players get their ball to the green, they move to the GreenZone, which includes a 41-yard-wide turntable green that can accommodate any number of hole designs created by TGL hole designers: Agustín Pizá, Beau Welling, and Nicklaus Design.

Every team will play five matches — the format of which we’ll get to in a moment — throughout the season and ahead of the playoffs at the end of March.

Let’s take a look at each of the six teams, starting with the Atlanta Drive GC.

Atlanta Drive GC

This team’s competitive nature will be off the charts. It’s a squad full of tremendous iron players who are hellbent on winning any game, match, or event they play.

Justin Thomas

J.T. is an amazing shot-shaper, and he should have the chance to show that off at every turn.

Patrick Cantlay

Cantlay has turned into a terrific match play player, which considering how good his tee-to-green game is, should be frightening for everyone else in the league.

Lucas Glover

One of the biggest flushers in the entire sport, and that should be fully on display at SoFi Center.

Billy Horschel

Perhaps the most competitive player on a team full of outrageously competitive players.

Boston Common Golf

The Ballfrogs may have the best chemistry of any team in the league. Scott and Matsuyama have been Presidents Cup pals for a long time, and McIlroy always seems to emerge as a team galvanizer wherever he plays.

Rory McIlroy

He is not only the best driver of the ball in the game but perhaps the best driver in the history of the game.

Hideki Matsuyama

One of the more underrated tee-to-green players of the last decade, Matsuyama should thrive on the creative hole setups. Just won at the 2025 Sentry.

Adam Scott

Even into his early 40s, Scott is still incredibly strong from tee to green.

Keegan Bradley

Along with Matsuyama, one of the more underrated tee-to-green players in modern golf.

Los Angeles Golf Club

If there was a most “fun” team in the league, this is it! These four seem to get more enjoyment out of playing professional golf than any other group.

Collin Morikawa

He is probably the most accurate player in the league from tee to green and given how creative some of these hole setups will be, that’s going to be extremely beneficial for LAGC.

Sahith Theegala

Theegala hits some truly magical golf shots on Tour and I expect he will hit plenty of them in his TGL matches. He also has some low-key power in reserve that he’ll use if needed.

Tommy Fleetwood

It would not be a stretch to call him the most underrated driver in the world.

Justin Rose

The former U.S. Open champion brings experience and some of the best iron play of the last 10 years of anyone in the world to this team.

New York Golf Club

NYGC just might have the most complete group of players of any team. It’s difficult to find anyone who has any glaring weaknesses and it will be fun to see them come together as a team.

Xander Schauffele

There’s a pretty good argument to be made that Schauffele is the most in-form player in the league with nine career wins on the PGA TOUR, including two majors last season, as well as 15 top-10 finishes.

Matt Fitzpatrick

At media day in early December, Wyndham Clark stressed the importance of doing pre-match work in order to take on some of the holes. Nobody in golf is more prepared than Fitzpatrick.

Rickie Fowler

Fowler has such a great all-around game. He can be put in almost any spot and thrive.

Cameron Young

Obviously a terrific driver of the ball, but Young is a net plus in the three other categories (iron play, around the green and putting), too.

The Bay Golf Club

This is the all-potential team. Three players in their 20s who crush driver and win all over the world, and they’ll be led at times by an Open champion in Lowry. It’s easy to see this being the team that chirps the most, as well.

Ludvig Åberg

He could be a future No. 1 player in the world.

Wyndham Clark

Where is the ceiling? Has he found it yet? Clark is awesome from tee to green and will put up some jaw-dropping numbers off the tee.

Shane Lowry

The all-everything guy on this team. He can do it all but should be especially valuable around the green.

Min Woo Lee

An amazing driver of the ball. If he dials in his approach play, he will be quite problematic for the rest of the league.

Jupiter Links GC

This is a fun team. There is legit talent at the top end of a variety of categories with two amazing iron players in Woods and Homa, a short game wizard in Kisner and somebody who does everything well in Kim.

Tiger Woods

He’s the best iron player in the history of the sport. And also, possibly, the best clutch putter.

Tom Kim

Reminds me a lot of Fowler at this age in that he does everything well. He’s not as long as Fowler was, but the floor is so high with Kim.

Max Homa

Elite-end iron play, and do not – I repeat, do not – let him get hot with the putter.

Kevin Kisner

Possibly the most consistent putter of anyone in the league over the last 10 years. Will it hold up on the So-Fi Center indoor green?

 

 

FOLD the MAYO

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FOXBOROUGH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The New England Patriots fired coach Jerod Mayo on Sunday shortly after the team completed a 4-13 season. Mayo, 38, was in his first season on the job after replacing legendary coach Bill Belichick after last season.

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The move was made after the Patriots defeated the Buffalo Bills 23-16 to halt a six-game losing streak.

“After the game today, I informed Jerod Mayo that he will not be returning as the head coach of the New England Patriots in 2025,” Patriots owner Robert Kraft said in a statement. “For me, personally, this was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made.

“I have known Jerod for 17 years. He earned my respect and admiration as a rookie in 2008 and throughout his career for his play on the field, his leadership in the locker room and the way he conducted himself in our community. When he joined our coaching staff, his leadership was even more evident, as I saw how the players responded to him.

“Unfortunately, the trajectory of our team’s performances throughout the season did not ascend as I had hoped.”

The Patriots defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Mayo’s debut and then dropped their next six games. New England won two of its next three games before the second six-game skid that ended with a 40-7 beatdown by the visiting Los Angeles Chargers.

New England, which won six Super Bowl titles under Belichick, missed the playoffs for the third straight season. The Patriots haven’t won a playoff game since winning the Super Bowl following the 2018 season.

“We have tremendous fans who expect and deserve a better product than we have delivered in recent years,” Kraft said. “I apologize for that. I have given much thought and consideration as to what actions I can take to expedite our return to championship contention and determined this move was the best option at this time.”

Mayo was a linebackers coach with the Patriots from 2019-23 before being promoted to the head coaching gig. He also was a two-time Pro Bowl linebacker for New England and racked up 802 tackles, 11 sacks and three interceptions in 103 regular-season games from 2008-15.

One available coach who should interest the Patriots is Mike Vrabel, who recorded a 54-45 record in six seasons with the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23. He guided the Titans to three playoff appearances, including a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019 season’s AFC title game.

Vrabel, 49, also played for the Patriots from 2001-08 and earned three Super Bowl rings.

–Field Level Media

Thunder Road Kill

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OKLAHOMA CITY – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – OKC’s MVP in waiting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points to lead the hometown Thunder to a 105-92 home win over the Boston Celtics on Sunday.

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The Thunder extended their winning streak to a franchise-record 15. Oklahoma City’s winning streak is tied for the longest this season with Cleveland, which won 15 consecutive games to start the season.

Aaron Wiggins, the star of Oklahoma City’s fourth-quarter comeback against the Knicks on Friday, scored 15 points off the bench. Luguentz Dort had 14, Cason Wallace added 13 and Jalen Williams put up 10.

The Thunder tightened things up defensively after giving up 65 first-half points, holding the defending champions to just 27 points in the second half. Boston hadn’t scored fewer than 44 points in a half this season.

The Celtics were just 8 of 40 (20 percent) from the field in the second half.

Jayson Tatum had 26 points and 10 rebounds for Boston, whose three-game winning streak was snapped. Brown added 21 points — all in the first half. Brown was 0 for 7 from the floor after halftime. Kristaps Porzingis added 19 points and nine boards.

Oklahoma City improved to 11-0 against the Eastern Conference this season.

The Thunder trailed by as many as 13 in the game and 11 in the second half before they fought their way back. Gilgeous-Alexander, who also finished with 11 rebounds and six assists, had his hands all over a 9-0 Thunder run in the fourth quarter that turned the tide.

The Thunder took the lead on a pair of Gilgeous-Alexander free throws, before Dort’s steal and dunk put them up 89-85.

After a Boston miss, Gilgeous-Alexander drained a step-back 3-pointer over Jrue Holliday to stretch the lead to seven. Two possessions later, he blocked Tatum’s shot at the rim, then found Isaiah Hartenstein for an alley-oop dunk in traffic.

OKC is Ready for Celtics

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OKLAHOMA CITY – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander cut off the question before it was finished.

The Oklahoma City Thunder star was asked if there was any extra motivation when the Thunder hosts Boston on Sunday.

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The Thunder are riding a franchise-record 14-game winning streak, while the Celtics are the defending NBA champions.

“Absolutely,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Absolutely. They won and we’re trying to win.”

The Thunder have trailed each of the last three games by at least 12 points before coming back to win, including overcoming a 14-point deficit in Friday’s 117-107 home win over the Knicks.

The Thunder are amid a four-game stretch against the top three teams from the Eastern Conference.

Oklahoma City is 10-0 against the Eastern Conference, though it fell to Milwaukee in the NBA Cup final that doesn’t count in the regular-season standings.

After dropping four of their previous nine games, the Celtics enter Sunday’s game on a three-game winning streak.

The last two have come to start a four-game road trip.

“We had a good meeting before this trip, just a little bit like looking-in-the-mirror type of meeting and see where we can improve and what we can do better,” Boston’s Kristaps Porzingis said. “Teams are obviously coming for us and some of them are playing their best basketball against us.”

During the winning streak, the Celtics are shooting 51.6 percent from the floor and have posted a 133.6 offensive rating — points scored per 100 possessions — and a 103.3 defensive rating. Both marks are best in the NBA over that span.

“December didn’t go the way we wanted to,” Celtics star Jayson Tatum said. “We’re trying to get back to our identity of who we are on both ends of the floor.”

Oklahoma City has the NBA’s best defense, with a 102.9 defensive rating.

During the Thunder’s winning streak, Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 32.7 points, 5.2 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 1.2 blocks.

“Big challenge,” Porzingas said of facing Gilgeous-Alexander. “They have great guys that can support him also, so we can’t just focus on him alone. But we’ll see. It’ll be a fun matchup for sure.”

While Gilgeous-Alexander sets the tone and Jalen Williams is making a case for an All-Star berth, Oklahoma City has shown it can win in a variety of ways.

In Friday’s game, Aaron Wiggins scored 15 fourth-quarter points to key the comeback while Isaiah Hartenstein had a handful of critical plays at both ends down the stretch.

“We’re a very deep team, a team full of high-level basketball players, professionals, hoopers, that do whatever it takes to win,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We have so many different looks, so many different lineups, and we all just want to win at the end of the day. Nothing comes before that.”

Porzingis returned Friday after missing four games with a left ankle sprain.

Boston star Jaylen Brown has missed the last two games with a shoulder strain while Al Horford figures to return Sunday after missing Friday’s win due to rest on the second night of a back-to-back.

–Field Level Media