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Nick Folk’s Revenge

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NASHVILLE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Place kicker Nick Folk converted a 25-yard field goal with 2:32 left in overtime Sunday and the Tennessee Titans snapped a three-game losing streak with a 20-17 win over Folk’s former team, the New England Patriots.

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Folk’s second field goal of the game capped a drive that ate the first 7:28 of overtime. New England’s ensuing possession ended when Amani Hooker intercepted a deep pass over the middle from rookie quarterback Drake Maye with 2:17 remaining.

The Patriots (2-7) forced overtime when Maye threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Rhamondre Stevenson on the final play of regulation. Maye eluded multiple defenders and flipped the ball to the end zone while being hauled down to the turf by two Titans.

Maye was 29 of 41 for 206 yards with the touchdown and two interceptions, both by Hooker. He also ran for 95 yards on eight carries.

Mason Rudolph completed 20 of 33 passes for 240 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for Tennessee (2-6). Rudolph snapped a 10-10 tie with a 6-yard strike to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine at the 4:27 mark of the fourth quarter.

Tony Pollard rushed for 128 yards on 28 carries for the Titans, bagging 36 yards on seven attempts during their scoring drive in overtime. Tennessee earned a 400-295 advantage in total offense and possessed the ball for nearly 39 minutes.

Tennessee initiated scoring with its first first-drive touchdown since Sept. 22, going 75 yards in eight plays. Rudolph finished it by finding Nick Vannett for a 9-yard strike, the 100th catch of Vannett’s career.

The Titans reached the 3 early in the second quarter but wasted that chance when Rudolph tossed an interception to Jahlani Tavai in the end zone. New England cashed that in with a drive of just 5:32 that Joey Slye capped with a 52-yard field goal at the 7:13 mark.

Tennessee missed on a second chance to add points just before the half when it took holding and delay of game penalties after reaching the Patriots’ 35. It settled for a 7-3 lead at the break.

Stevenson gave New England the lead with a 1-yard touchdown run on the first drive of the second half. Folk’s 21-yard field goal tied the game at 10 before the third-quarter intermission.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Blank Kraken

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s goalkeeper Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves and two first-period goals were all his Bruins needed as they pitched their second shutout in as many days, defeating the visiting Seattle Kraken 2-0 on Sunday.

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Justin Brazeau and Charlie Coyle tallied in the first half of the opening period for Boston, which has won back-to-back games and three of five since a three-game losing streak.

Swayman made 13 of his saves in the final frame, seeing by far his heaviest workload against a late Seattle push. After Boston had a combined 30-10 advantage in shots on goal over the first two periods, the visitors responded with a 13-3 finish.

Making a Massachusetts homecoming, Seattle netminder Joey Daccord stopped 31 shots.

The Kraken have lost three straight and were shut out for the second night in a row.

Boston had a dominant territorial advantage in the first, building its 2-0 lead while holding the visitors without a shot over the first 15:30 and finishing the period with a 15-3 advantage in that department. Three power plays boosted the Bruins’ total.

Brazeau needed only 3:23 to net the opening goal, deflecting Nikita Zadorov’s shot from the left point while stationed amidst traffic right in front of Daccord’s net.

The 26-year-old Brazeau has been one of Boston’s hottest players of late, scoring four goals in his last six games.

A highlight-reel power-play goal by Coyle increased the Bruins’ lead to 2-0 at the 9:57 mark. After accepting Brad Marchand’s pass from the right end of the goal line to the left, Coyle deked Daccord by moving to his backhand and quickly to his forehand to tuck the puck inside the post.

At 10:56, Pavel Zacha had a potential third Boston goal taken off the board due to an offsides call following a successful Seattle challenge.

Neither side found a goal in the second, with both teams’ best chances coming during a last-minute Boston power play. After Swayman denied Yanni Gourde on a short-handed 2-on-1, the Bruins rushed up ice but were unable to pot a loose puck past Daccord as time expired.

Seattle’s strong finish included both Chandler Stephenson and Oliver Bjorkstrand hitting posts in the final nine minutes.

Swayman also made multiple point-blank stops in succession just after two minutes following the first pipe. Another came on a Brandon Montour drive in the final minute of regulation.

–Field Level Media

Celtics Complete Weekend Sweep

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CHARLOTTE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Jayson Tatum pumped in 29 points and his teammate Payton Pritchard hit six 3-pointers on the way to 22 points off the bench as the Celtics defeated the host Charlotte Hornets 113-103 Saturday. It marked Boston’s second win over Charlotte in less than 24 hours.

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Luke Kornet’s 19 points and Derrick White’s 18 helped the Celtics to their sixth win in seven games to open the season, and Jrue Holiday’s triple with 3:44 to go polished off his 13-point evening.

LaMelo Ball racked up 36 points for the Hornets, who went 1-3 during a four-game homestand.

Brandon Miller, who hadn’t played since the Hornets’ season opener on Oct. 23 because of a glute injury, logged 31 minutes as a starter and provided 16 points. Josh Green added 12 points, Cody Martin supplied 11 and Tre Mann had 10.

The Celtics carved through Charlotte’s defense in the first half on the way to a 68-50 lead at the break.

But Boston couldn’t shake the Hornets until late in the fourth quarter. Charlotte was within 93-87 after Green canned a trey with 6:49 left in the game.

However, Holiday’s late 3-pointer later sparked a 7-0 run that pushed the Celtics’ lead to 108-93 with just 2:05 remaining.

For the second night in a row, the Celtics had a big advantage in free-throw scoring while the Hornets relied heavily on long-range shooting. Boston was 25-for-28 at the line compared to Charlotte’s 6-for-9 mark.

Still, the Celtics managed to finish with 16 triples to the Hornets’ 17 for the game, with Boston hitting four in the first seven-plus minutes of the contest to race out to a 26-12 lead with 4:42 left in the first quarter.

Boston attempted 52 shots from 3-point land on the night. Tatum was just 1-for-9 on threes, but he went 14-for-17 from the charity stripe.

Charlotte center Grant Williams, who was ejected from the game on Friday after committing a flagrant foul against Tatum, was in the Hornets’ starting lineup on Saturday, but he managed only five points in 34 minutes.

–Field Level Media

Maye’s Day in Tennessee

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NASHVILLE – New England Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye cleared concussion protocol and is in line to start today’s game against the host Tennessee Titans.

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Maye was a limited participant in practice for the third straight day on Friday. He does not carry an injury designation into the game with the Titans (1-6).

Maye, 22, was placed in the protocol last Sunday after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit in New England’s 25-22 win over the New York Jets. The Patriots (2-6) snapped a six-game losing skid with the victory.

He has completed 63.1 percent of his passes for 564 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions in four games (three starts) this season. He was selected by New England with the third overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft out of North Carolina.

–Field Level Media

Embiid Shoves Philly Reporter

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PHILADELPHIA – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid got into a verbal altercation with a local reporter that turned physical after the team’s 124-107 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night.

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The incident happened in the Sixers’ locker room, where Embiid confronted Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes about an article that made reference to Embiid’s son and late brother. The piece also criticized the seven-time All-Star’s ability to stay healthy and act professionally.

“The next time you bring up my dead brother and my son again, you are going to see what I’m going to do to you and I’m going to have to … live with the consequences,” Embiid told Hayes as reporters filtered into the locker room.

Embiid continued with some profane language before rejecting an attempted apology from Hayes. After Embiid said that he didn’t care what reporters had to say, Hayes said, “But you do,” prompting Embiid to raise his voice and push Hayes on the shoulder.

A public relations official for the 76ers then got in between the two while another staff member tried to get reporters out of the locker room.

Team security asked reporters not to report on the altercation, at which point Embiid delivered another message.

“They can do whatever they want,” he said. “I don’t give a (expletive).”

The league has already said that it is conducting an investigation into the matter.

“We are aware of reports of an incident in the Sixers locker room this evening and are commencing an investigation,” a spokesman for the NBA said in a statement.

Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey told ESPN that he too is aware of the situation.

“We take the situation very seriously and are investigating, and have already spoken to the NBA,” Morey said in a statement.

Embiid, 30, has yet to play in a game this season because of left knee injury management. He was limited to just 39 games (all starts) in 2023-24.

In those 39 games, Embiid averaged 34.7 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.7 blocks.

Embiid is only two seasons removed from being named MVP, earning that title by posting averages of 33.1 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.7 blocks in 66 games (all starts) during the 2022-23 campaign.

Philadelphia is off to a 1-4 start this season.

–Field Level Media

We Want a Rematch

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Despite tense moments between the Boston Celtics and Charlotte Hornets during parts of their Friday night game, lots of love was displayed afterward.

They teams get together for a rematch Saturday night in a game that also will be held in Charlotte.

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Many of the Celtics know Hornets coach Charles Lee well. He was a Boston assistant coach last season when the Celtics captured the NBA title.

“I think he definitely has his work cut for him,” Celtics guard Jaylen Brown said, “but I think he’s handling it with grace. I wish him well, just not in (this series).”

Jayson Tatum tallied 32 points and 11 rebounds as the Celtics won 124-109 on Friday. Lee exchanged hugs with several of the Celtics on the court following the final buzzer.

So now it’s back-to-back nights for the Hornets to try to breakthrough against the Celtics.

Charlotte’s Grant Williams and Miles Bridges were both ejected Friday night, and the Hornets’ LaMelo Ball also was whistled for a flagrant foul. Williams’ foul on Tatum could have led to bigger problems.

“I’m glad that he’s fine,” Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said of Tatum. “What I like most is that he jumped right up, didn’t lay around, didn’t really faze him. … I’m happy that he’s OK. I just like how JT handled it.”

Still, the Celtics were irked by Williams — who played for Boston from 2019-20 to 2022-23.

“It was for-sure intentional,” Brown said. “Y’all see the same play? He hit him like it was a football play, like Ray Lewis coming across the middle.”

Williams told NBC Sports Boston, “Probably not a hard foul, definitely not intentional. Not trying to hurt anybody. We all know that’s one of my closest friends in the league.”

Lee has a tight connection with Mazzulla, so maybe that helped prevent larger-scale problems.

“He is just so open-minded, so creative,” Lee said of Mazzulla. “He just goes with his guts. If it’s something that he believes in, that he believes is going to help the team, he does it with full-on passion. I really admire that about him. It’s something that I try to do myself.”

The Celtics responded from their first loss of the season to win two nights later in Charlotte. They outscored the Hornets 24-10 across the final 7 1/2 minutes, with 15 of those Boston points coming on free throws.

Lee was assessed a fourth-quarter technical foul after he complained about a no-call when Charlotte’s Tre Mann drove into the lane.

Perhaps it was part of the Hornets’ frustration. By game’s end, there were 47 free throws attempted, but of those only 12 taken by the Hornets.

Earlier in the fourth quarter, Mazzulla was assessed a technical foul with the Celtics holding a one-point lead.

The Hornets had to like the performance of Ball, who put up 31 points in 31 minutes, though he fouled out. His four turnovers weren’t overly troublesome, but he had only four assists.

The Hornets will be interested in seeing more from Tidjane Salaun, a 19-year-old rookie who scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench Friday night.

“I loved his energy tonight, I thought he gave us a great boost,” Lee said. “He’s grasping the speed of the game. … I really like him out there because he brings another layer of length and athleticism.”

The Celtics will want to check on their perimeter defense after surrendering 19 3-pointers. Six Charlotte players had two or more treys.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Caught in Hurricane

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RALEIGH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Andrei Svechnikov and Jack Roslovic each scored two goals and the Carolina Hurricanes had a huge first period in thumping the visiting Boston Bruins 8-2 on Thursday night in Carolina.

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Martin Necas finished with one goal and three assists, while Dmitry Orlov, Sean Walker and Jesperi Kotkaniemi also scored. The Hurricanes doubled their previous highest goal total of the season in the opener of a four-game homestand.

Carolina scored its final three goals of a four-goal opening period during a 52-second span. That marked the second-fastest three-goal bust in franchise history.

Pyotr Kochetkov made 13 saves for Carolina.

Brad Marchand and Hampus Lindholm scored for the Bruins, who’ve won only one of their last six games. Boston goalie Jeremy Swayman allowed six goals on 22 shots in less than half the game before he was pulled in favor of Joonas Korpisalo, who made 13 saves.

Carolina, which was coming off a 5-1-0 road trip, had seven first-period goals this season before racking up four in barely more than 18 minutes to begin Thursday’s game.

Roslovic’s fifth goal of the season came 6:28 into the game. With a Boston delayed penalty pending, the Hurricanes took advantage of sending in an extra skater and benefited from crisp puck movement.

The Bruins didn’t register a shot on goal for the game’s first 10 minutes, finally doing so while on a power play when Kotkaniemi was in the penalty box for a high-sticking double minor.

Soon, it turned into a 5-on-3 advantage for the Bruins. Marchand’s goal came at 13:11, with the puck going off Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin’s shin and past Kochetkov.

Less than 20 seconds later, the Bruins were on another 5-on-3, but they didn’t convert.

But the Hurricanes benefited from a power play of their own when Svechnikov deflected in a blast from Shayne Gostisbehere. Thirty-eight seconds later, Orlov blasted in a shot and then Necas scored just 14 seconds after that on a power play.

After Lindholm cut it to 4-2 early in the second for Boston, Svechnikov added his second power-play goal of the night at 8:51 and Roslovic tallied 41 seconds later to blow the game open.

–Field Level Media

J-E-T-S Offense Wakes Up

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EAST RUTHERFORD – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Garrett Wilson made two superb touchdown catches and the New York Jets halted a five-game losing streak with a 21-13 victory over the Houston Texans on Thursday night in New Jersey.

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Aaron Rodgers completed 22 of 32 passes for 211 yards and three second-half scoring passes as New York (3-6) won for the first time since beating the New England Patriots on Sept. 19. Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich earned his first win since taking over after the club fired Robert Saleh earlier this month.

Wilson caught nine passes for 90 yards, Davante Adams had seven catches for 91 yards and a touchdown and Breece Hall had 74 yards on 15 rushes.

C.J. Stroud was just 11-of-30 passing for 191 yards and was sacked eight times for the Texans (6-3), who lost for the second time in three games. Joe Mixon rushed for 106 yards on 24 carries for his fourth straight 100-yard outing and Tank Dell had six receptions for 126 yards.

Wilson’s second one-handed grab of the night gave the Jets a 14-10 advantage with 13:01 left in the game.

New York was facing third-and-19 from the Texans’ 26-yard line when Rodgers heaved it toward Wilson at the back of the end zone. He jumped and reached to grab the ball with his right hand but it was ruled that he didn’t get both feet down.

The Jets challenged and replays showed Wilson got his left foot down and the call was reserved.

Houston’s Ka’imi Fairbairn kicked a 43-yard field goal with 8:23 left but the Texans accepted a New York penalty. When the drive again stalled, Fairbairn’s 27-yard attempt clanked off the left upright with 6:57 to play.

The Jets responded. Rodgers threw a 37-yard score to Adams to make it 21-10 with 2:56 remaining. Adams briefly left the game late in the third quarter to be evaluated for a concussion before returning during this drive.

Fairbairn kicked a 29-yarder with 39 seconds left and the Jets recovered the ensuing onside kick.

After being shut out in the first half, New York scored with 9:03 left in the third quarter when Wilson made a one-handed grab inside the 15 and turned it into a 21-yard touchdown that tied the score at 7.

Fairbairn kicked a 54-yard field goal nearly five minutes later to give Houston a 10-7 lead.

Mixon scored on a 3-yard run with 3:21 remaining in the first half for the only points before halftime.

New York’s Malachi Corley made a huge gaffe on the opening play of the second quarter.

The Jets were on the Houston 19 when they ran a reverse to Corley and the rookie took it to the right and was headed toward the end zone. But he dropped the ball inside the 1-yard line and it rolled through the back of the end zone for a touchback.

–Field Level Media

Peacock Boosts Comcast Revenue

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Reports) – Peacock parent company Comcast reported Thursday that its streaming service added 3 million subscribers during its live broadcast of the Paris Olympics.

Comcast, which also owns NBC Sports, said it made $32.1 billion in total revenue during the third quarter, which was boosted by Peacock’s 9 percent subscription growth from the prior quarter. Peacock now has 36 million subscribers and saw its revenue jump 82 percent to reach $1.5 billion.

“It was probably the proudest moment that I can think of since we’ve owned NBCUniversal, or certainly right up there,” Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts said. “Just a tremendous team effort, really bringing the whole country into the drama. … We really look forward to (Los Angeles) in four years, we’ve got Milan in between (in 2026), and we go on from there.”

After the prior two Games were marred by the COVID-19 pandemic, viewership jumped 82 percent from the 2021 Olympics that were held in Tokyo. The Paris Games averaged 30.6 million viewers in the U.S. — the most for the Olympics since 2012 — on NBCU platforms. The earnings report Thursday was the first since the Paris Olympics, which lasted 17 days.

The next Winter Games are scheduled to be held in Milan in February 2026. Los Angeles is set to host the Summer Games in July 2028.

–Field Level Media

No. 1 Kansas Tough to Beat

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LAWRENCE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – No. 1 Kansas looks to shake off a disappointing end to the 2023-24 season when its revitalized roster opens the new campaign with a nonconference game against Howard on Monday.

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The Jayhawks are picked to win the sturdy Big 12 Conference, while the Bison are predicted to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

The Jayhawks are one of five Big 12 teams in the preseason AP top 10, joined by No. 4 Houston, No. 5 Iowa State, No. 8 Baylor and No. 10 Arizona.

Howard, which has won the MEAC tournament and the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament each of the past two years, is led by Bryce Harris, the MEAC Preseason Player of the Year, and Marcus Dockery, a All-MEAC preseason second-team selection.

Harris led the Bison with 16.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, from the guard position, last season. Dockery finished third on the team with 13.5 points per game.

The Bison are hoping an early-August trip to Brazil will galvanize this year’s squad.

“This trip is a huge part of our student-athlete experience,” Howard coach Kenneth Blakeney said. “To expose them to another continent and a place that most of our student-athletes have never gone to is exciting for me.

“Our program is about exposure and the opportunity to have our kids spend time in a place that we have heard about and seen pictures of, which is something they will not soon forget.”

The Jayhawks have size, depth and experience, as they return three of their top five scorers from the 23-11 squad that lost to Gonzaga in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. Kansas dropped five of its final seven games dating back to the regular season.

Hunter Dickinson, named to the AP Preseason All-America team, leads this year’s squad. The senior center was a consensus second-team selection last season, when he finished with 17.9 points and 10.9 rebounds per game.

The two other stars back from last year’s team are KJ Adams Jr. (12.6 points and 4.6 rebounds) and Dajuan Harris (8.5 points, 6.5 assists and 1.5 steals).

The Jayhawks also brought in a solid transfer class, including David Coit (from Northern Illinois), Rylan Griffin (Alabama), Zeke Mayo (South Dakota State), Shakeel Moore (Mississippi State) and AJ Storr (Wisconsin).

“I like them,” Kansas coach Bill Self said of his transfers. “I think they all have a chance to contribute, and you can make a case where they’ve all been one of our better players on any particular day thus far, whether it’s David Coit or Zeke Mayo or AJ or Rylan or Shakeel.”

Kansas’ recruiting class includes two highly touted freshmen, Rakease Passmore and Flory Bidunga.

Finding minutes for a roster full of stars is a perennial job for Self, something he always undersells — and this year is no different.

“I think the question will be coming from a different place — it’s this way with all coaches and all programs,” Self said. “How do they fit in with your present players and how do they fit in playing differently than maybe the way they played at their different place.

“I don’t think we’re quite comfortable yet. I think we have more talent. I think we’re more athletic. I think we shoot it a little bit better. But do they fit exactly the way we’ve won over time? I think that still remains to be seen.”

–Field Level Media