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Red Sox Ink Duran

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BOSTON – The Boston Red Sox announced a one-year deal with outfielder Jarren Duran on Friday, avoiding arbitration.

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Durran, 28, will earn $3.75 million in 2025 and has an $8 million club option for 2026 with a $100,000 buyout, according to MLB.com.

He can earn up to an additional $150,000 in performance bonuses in 2025.

FanSided reported that the option includes escalators based on the 2025 MVP voting, including $2 million for a top-10 finish (he finished eighth in 2024) and $4 million if he wins the award.

Durran led the majors in triples (14), doubles (48), plate appearances (735) and at-bats (671) in 2024, batting .285 with 21 homers, 75 RBIs and 34 stolen bases in 160 games.

He also was named to the American League All-Star team for the first time. He won MVP honors at the All-Star Game in Arlington, Texas, after hitting a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the fifth inning of the AL’s 5-3 win.

A seventh-round pick by Boston in 2018, Durran made his MLB debut in 2021 and has batted .272 with 34 homers, 142 RBIs and 67 steals in 353 games.

–Field Level Media

Del Rio Heads to Paris

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PARIS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Former NFL head coach Jack Del Rio was named the head coach of the Paris Musketeers in the European League of Football on Friday.

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Del Rio, 61, posted a 93-94 record in 12 seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars (2003-11) and then-Oakland Raiders (2015-17), leading his teams to the playoffs three times.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Coach Del Rio to Paris,” Musketeers CEO John McKeon said. “His commitment to excellence and his passion for teaching the game will build upon the tone and culture that was set by our first coach, Marc Mattioli. We couldn’t be more excited to welcome him to the Musketeers family and continue building our winning tradition.”

Del Rio was the defensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders from 2020-23 before serving as a senior adviser to Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell in 2024. He resigned from that position in November following a car accident in which he was cited for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

“I’m looking forward to working with this group of men,” he said. “We will teach, develop and compete.”

Founded in 2022, the Musketeers finished 10-2 in the regular season and reached the semifinals in 2024.

The franchise’s first head coach was former Vanderbilt assistant Mattioli, who compiled a 16-8 record before departing to become the defensive coordinator at Kennesaw State.

Paris kicks off the 2025 season against the defending champion Rhein Fire on May 17.

–Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Jan 12

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – When the Boston Celtics raised Banner 18 to the rafters of the TD Garden this past Fall, it marked the 12th title for New England area pro teams in 24 years, or since the year 2000. Since the New England Patriots drafted Tom Brady with the 199th overall selection in the 2000 NFL Draft, the Patriots led the way for titles with six since 2001. Banner 18 was the second NBA title for the Celtics in that span and MLB’s Boston Red Sox managed four championships after breaking the “Curse of the Bambino” way back in 2004.

The question at the dawn of 2025?

What happened?

First, let’s look at the Patriots:

Tom Brady, a legit VVIP in the Greatest of All-Time discussion amongst NFL quarterbacks, departed from Foxborough on St. Patrick’s Day of 2020 with six championship rings in his bag of tricks. Three days later, the fate of the Patriots was sealed when Brady (and eventually TE Rob Gronkowski) signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The two year deal lined Brady’s pockets with an additional $50m (and he added incentives, too) and put a seventh NFL championship ring on his finger in 2021.

Just preceding the development of Brady as the Patriots’ starting QB, head coach (and defacto GM) Bill Belichick took the reigns of New England and created an NFL dynasty like none other. From 2000 to his departure on January 11, 2024, the Patriots compiled a regular-season record of 266–121–0 over 24 seasons. Belichick is the most successful coach in Patriots history, by far, as his 266 wins with the franchise are more than quadruple those of runner-up Mike Holovak. Belichick compiled a 30–12 record in the playoffs with the Pats, including a 6–3 record in Super Bowls. He led the Patriots to 17 divisional titles, including five consecutive titles from 2003 to 2007 and eleven consecutive titles from 2009 to 2019. This streak of 11 consecutive playoff appearances is the most in NFL history for any team.

As most NFL fans know, when Belichick’s exit was combined with Brady’s departure, it sealed the Patriots’ fate.

Fast forward to the regular season just completed and an autopsy on the 2024 New England Patriots results in a (4-13) record with the only quality win coming in the final weekend of the season with a 23-16 win over Buffalo coming a week after the Bills had locked-in as the AFC’s No. 2 seed.

The season was a complete disaster, resulting in the one-and-done firing of coach Jerod Mayo, one of the most popular former players in New England history.

Aside from the drafting of QB prospect Drake Maye, the Patriots are depleted in talent department at nearly every position, aside from cornerback Christian Gonzalez and special teams ace Brenden Schooler. There’s no quick solution, although the Pats have more cap room than any other NFL team.

Of course, the Patriots didn’t help themselves when they won their final game of the season and went from NFL Draft first round pick No. 1 to pick No. 4. The only saving grace? The New England Patriots’ schedule for 2025 will include (Dates TBA):

Home @ Foxborough

*Buffalo Bills

*Miami Dolphins

*New York Jets

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Pittsburgh Steelers

New York Giants

Las Vegas Raiders

Road Games

*Buffalo Bills

*Miami Dolphins

*New York Jets

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

New Orleans Saints

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

*AFC East divisional opponents

Maybe the expected signing of former Patriots outside (and eventually inside) linebacker Mike Vrabel, will provide an added edge in training and execution next season. Vrabel, an accomplished NFL head coach and most recently a consultant with the Cleveland Browns, has been interviewing for head coaching jobs throughout the NFL. In addition to a key hire for head coach, the Patriots’ front office must draft very well over the next two seasons while improving via trades and free agency.

Now? A look at the Boston Red Sox:

Offseason moves include: The Sox’ moved for an ace in starting LH pitcher Garrett Crochet, acquired in a trade with the Chicago White Sox while shoring up the (possible six man) rotation and bullpen with free agent signing of reliever/closer Aroldis Chapman (age 36, 335 saves); signing of former LA Angels pitcher Patrick Sandoval and a stab at another ace in acquiring former Dodgers ace Walker Buehler could call for the 6th Man award!

Buehler, 30, went 1-6 with a 5.38 ERA during the 2024 regular season after missing the previous year recovering from Tommy John surgery. But in the 2024 postseason, he went 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA and added a save. Not bad.

The Red Sox lost free agent OF Tyler O’Neill who came out smoking in the spring of 2024 only to falter and fall to injury later in the summer. But, prospect Kristian Campbell will join OF Jarren Duran, INF Triston Casas and the Sox lone superstar in 3B Rafael Devers in a make-it-or-break-it offensive line-up.

Stiff competition in the AL East places the Red Sox solidly behind the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles, so a postseason berth is not likely in 2025.

Next up? The NHL Boston Bruins snapped a six-game losing streak with a big win at Florida on Saturday afternoon. The Bs (21-19-5) – went (8-9-3) early on to cause the dismissal of coach Jim Montgomery on November 19th after the club lost four of five.

Looking back, in his first season as Boston’s head coach (2022-23), Montgomery led the team to a historic season with the best single-season record in league history (65-12-5). The Bruins logged 135 regular season points and an .823 points percentage, also NHL bests. Montgomery won the Jack Adams Award that season as the League’s top coach. But, the Bruins lost to the Florida Panthers in seven games in the 2023 Eastern Conference First Round, and it was the Panthers – not the favored Bruins – who went on to the Stanley Cup Final.

It’s been downhill ever since with the retirement of Patrice Bergeron, the Bs highly respected captain and soul, leaving the club with quite a void. Can interim head coach Joe Sacco shed that preliminary title with a second half seson run to the Cup Playoffs?

And that brings us to the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics.

Without a doubt, the Celtics remain a solid contender for the 2025 NBA title, but they find themselves a distant third – behind the East’s Cleveland Cavaliers and the West’s Oklahoma City Thunder – when a look at the standings bring a realistic look of the ‘25 Finals.

The Celtics are a mediocre (8-7) over their last 15 games going into Sunday’s game against a struggling New Orleans Pelicans (8-31) team. Truth be told, the Cs have been battling a variety of injuries all season long. Bigman Kristaps Porzingis return brought hope, but he’s been slow in acclimating back into the regular rotation. Others – from PG Jrue Holiday to all-star swingman and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown to All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum to sharpshooter Sam Hauser to bigman Al Horford to reserve Luke Kornet to starting off guard Derrick White, have been in and out more often than teens at a Souther California burger joint. Boston coach Joe Mazzula has juggled 17 starting lineups during a first half-season timespan.

This week, a Friday/Saturday back-to-back against Orlando and Atlanta will provide another test. Will the Celtics regain that laser focus or will the likes of Tatum turn the ball over eight times, like he did this past Friday night in a 114-97 loss to the visiting Sacramento Kings?

In each round-up, there are far too many questions and not nearly enough definitive answers to the woes facing the New England clubs, the Celtics included.

It might be time for some major shake-ups at each and every club. The NBA Trade Deadline is February 6 (3:00pm ET).

And, how ‘bout dem Revs?

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The NBA is investing in a biomechanics program, according to reports from Sports Business Journal, the sports business trade magazine that reported on of a league-wide memo to all 30 NBA teams. According to SBJ, the league established two biomechanics committees, studying “a number of factors — the size of players, the nature of the game, the number of games in the season, the hardcourt surface — (all indications) that there’s reason to think about biomechanics that could be as helpful in basketball as almost any sport,”

BANNED FROM BASEBALL: You think Pete Rose had issues? The two fans who interfered with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Mookie Betts during Game 4 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium have been indefinitely banned from all MLB stadiums and facilities. … The letter read: “On October 29, 2024, during Game 4 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium, you interfered with play by intentionally and forcefully grabbing a player. Your conduct posed a serious risk to the health and safety of the player and went far over the line of acceptable fan behavior.

“Based on your conduct, Major League Baseball is banning you indefinitely from all MLB stadiums, offices, and other facilities. You are also hereby banned indefinitely from attending any events sponsored by or associated with MLB. Please be advised that if you are discovered at any MLB property or event, you will be removed from the premises and subject to arrest for trespass.”

TIDBITS: The need to cancel a few games in Los Angeles doesn’t come close when comparing the toil of the all-out devastation on-going in the LA area as wild fires burn as much land, homes, businesses in spaces equal to the size of the City of Minneapolis or the island of Manhattan. The League and teams also had concerns as the support to the games and arenas would take away first responder personnel fighting the wild fires. … Said the league in a statement cancelling two additional games, “The NBA and the Clippers and Lakers organizations have been in communication with local officials in Los Angeles and Inglewood about the ongoing situation in the Los Angeles area and the game postponements ensure no resources will be diverted from the wildfire response efforts. … The league and its players put their money where their mouth is with a cool $1m donation. … “The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association are donating one million dollars for immediate relief to the American Red Cross, World Central Kitchen and other organizations to support those affected by this disaster and are working with the Lakers and Clippers on ways to support longer term assistance and rebuilding efforts.” … The NFL was forced to move its Monday Night Playoff games between the Minnesota Vikings and the LA Rams to State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. … The LA Chargers changed their practice schedules to minimize their players’ outdoor time in coastal El Segundo. The Chargers are on the road Saturday against the Houston Texans in the wild-card round. … The LA Kings of the NHL were the first to postpone a regular season game, cancelling their Wednesday home game against Calgary at Crypto.com Arena. The Kings are now in the midst of a five-game road trip and play their next game January 20th against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins. … The PGA Tour has not yet decided whether to play the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club in LA, scheduled for Feb. 13-16. … There are several wild fires spread out across the neighboring towns of Los Angeles, including Pacific Palisades. At Santa Anita, the horse racing track is being used to stage fire fighting and relief equipment. The track, located in Arcadia, is near the smoldering Eaton fire that decimated Altadena. … The Palisades Fire is already the most destructive in Los Angeles history.

The Philadelphia 76ers are (4-17) against NBA clubs playing .500 or better basketball and that fact contributes to the Sixers’ (15-21) record overall. … If the NBA Playoffs began today, the once mighty 76ers would not qualify to play, nor attempt to play in.

selective focus photo of DJ mixer
Photo by Alexey Ruban on Unsplash

ADIEU VENU: That was quick. What was proclaimed to be the greatest viewing destination in the history of sports broadcasting has been scrapped. Gone. Left of the editing room floor. Kaput. Said Disney in a statement on the venture which would’ve been the mother of all ESPN, “After careful consideration, we have collectively agreed to discontinue the Venu Sports joint venture and not launch the streaming service. In an ever-changing marketplace, we determined that it was best to meet the evolving demands of sports fans by focusing on existing products and distribution channels. We are proud of the work that has been done on Venu to date and grateful to the Venu staff, whom we will support through this transition period,” the statement read.

Disney was supposed to join forces with FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery and package ESPN, ESPN2, ABC (Sports), Fox, Fox Sports 1, TNT, TBS and others for a whopping $42.99 per month.

Fubo-TV jumped into the fray and filed an anti-trust lawsuit to stop the venture. As of this week, Fubo has settled its lawsuit and will merge efforts with the Walt Disney Co. and its Hulu + Live TV streaming service and join together to create the second-biggest digital pay-TV provider.

IN OTHER SPORTS BUSINESS NEWS: Former NBA China CEO Derek Chang was named President and CEO of Liberty Media. In a January 8th announcement by Liberty Chairman John Malone, Chang’s work with leading the NBA China efforts from 2018 to 2020 when the league expanded its efforts and created a stand-alone entity with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Taipei. Greg Maffei stepped down from his CEO rile in November (2024). Maffei was a driving force behind Liberty’s acquisition of Formula 1 in 2017. After his stint with the NBA, Chang worked in executive roles with EverPass Media, DIRECTV, Scripps, Charter and TCI. EverPass Media was a 2023 effort between the NFL and RedBird Capital Partners to market the NFL League Pass and other sports offerings (Peacock, Thursday Night Football) to commercial customers.

XFINITY AND BEYOND: Here in Boston, Comcast’s Xfinity service has made a move that might take the NBA’s Celtics and NHL’s Bruins right off your remote come this Tuesday, unless customers are ready to anti-up and extra $20 a month for a premium sports package. Come springtime, the same goes for fans looking to watch the Red Sox on NESN. Comcast – Xfinity’s parent company – reached agreements with NESN and NBC Sports Boston to move the channels from its Popular TV (or basic cable package) to its Ultimate TV (premium) level of service. The midseason timing is a killer for Cs and Bs fans who are looking to save some money on their monthly bills.

PARTING WORDS AND MUSIC (from the The Appalachian lap dulcimer): Here’s a treat and something completely different from the usual weekly music clip. This week, a loyal reader sent along a very short clip – highlighting the great movie line, “It ain’t a fit night out for man or beast.” … The famous line comes from the 1933 W.C. Fields motion picture, “The Fatal Glass of Beer,” set in the Yukon. (By the way, a common mistake when quoting the epic is to use the word (nor) instead of the proper (or) when delivering the goods – which comes at the 4:55 mark or so. Enjoy.

While We’re Young (Ideas) is a weekly (every weekend) collection of Sports Notes and News written by Terry Lyons. The posting of each notebook harkens back to the days when you’d walk over to the city newsstand on Saturday night around 10pm to pick-up a copy of the Sunday papers. Inside, just waiting, was a sports-filled compilation of interesting notes, quotes and quips in a column that always sold a few newspapers.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes is brought to you by Digital Sports Desk.

-TL-

76ers Building New Arena

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PHILADELPHIA – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The ownership group of the Philadelphia 76ers and Comcast Spectacor on Monday announced plans to build a new arena in South Philadelphia that will open in 2031.

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The announcement of the new arena, which will also be home to the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers, comes a day after the 76ers abandoned plans for a $1.3 billion arena in downtown Philadelphia. This arena is a 50-50 joint venture between Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment and Comcast, which will have naming rights to the arena.

“Today’s announcement is great news for the City of Philadelphia,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a joint statement.

In addition, the venture will include a 50-50 effort between HBSE and Comcast to invest in the revitalization of Market East in Center City, where the new arena was originally slated to be built.

Sunday’s decision was a surprise, coming weeks after the city council voted to approve the NBA team’s move to Center City. However, Chinatown residents and activists had protested the project.

“By committing to both investments, the partnership will create thousands of jobs, generate billions of dollars in economic activity for the city, region and state, and enhance commitments to create economic opportunity in neighborhoods across Philadelphia,” the joint statement reads.

The Sixers and Flyers currently play in the Wells Fargo Center, which is owned by Comcast Spectacor. Their lease expires in 2031.

The new arena in South Philly will also host touring acts and special events.

–Field Level Media

Henry, Jackson Lead Ravens

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BALTIMORE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Baltimore RB Derrick Henry rushed for 186 yards and two scores and teammate Lamar Jackson passed for two touchdowns to lead the host Ravens to a 28-14 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC wild-card game on Saturday night.

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Jackson completed 16 of 21 passes for 175 yards and rushed for 82 yards on 15 carries while winning for the third time in seven attempts as a postseason starter. Rashod Bateman and Justice Hill had touchdown receptions for third-seeded Baltimore, which has won five straight games and will learn its next opponent on Sunday.

Henry, who carried 26 times, rushed for more than 150 yards for the fourth time in eight career playoff appearances. His postseason high of 195 came against the Ravens in the 2019 season divisional round when he was a member of the Tennessee Titans.

Russell Wilson was 20 of 29 for 270 yards and two touchdowns for sixth-seeded Pittsburgh, which trailed by 21 points twice while losing its fifth consecutive game. George Pickens had five catches for 87 yards and a touchdown and Van Jefferson also had a scoring reception for the Steelers.

The Ravens totaled 299 rushing yards and outgained Pittsburgh 464-280. Baltimore also had a 29-11 advantage in first downs.

The Steelers had just 29 yards on the ground with a long gain of five.

Baltimore receiver Zay Flowers (knee) missed the game.

The Ravens led 21-0 at halftime after dominating the first 30 minutes and putting together touchdown drives of 95, 85 and 90 yards.

Baltimore outgained the Steelers 308-59 and had a 19-2 edge in first downs in the half.

The Ravens took the lead on Jackson’s 15-yard touchdown pass to Bateman with 4:45 left in the first quarter. Henry’s 8-yard scoring run made it 14-0 with 4:09 left in the first half.

Jackson later scrambled out of trouble and hit Hill on a 5-yard scoring pass with two seconds remaining.

Pittsburgh suddenly displayed life in the third quarter as Wilson connected with Jefferson on a 30-yard scoring pass to cap a 98-yard drive with 8:05 left in the period. But Henry broke loose on the fourth play of Baltimore’s next drive and galloped 44 yards for a touchdown to make it 28-7 with 5:49 left.

The Steelers scored again five plays later as Wilson tossed a 36-yard touchdown pass to Pickens with 3:24 left in the third, but that would be the end of the scoring for the night.

–Field Level Media

Texans Too Much for Chargers

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HOUSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Houston’s QB C.J. Stroud passed for 282 yards and a touchdown, Joe Mixon rushed for 106 yards and a score and Eric Murray returned an interception for a touchdown as the host Texans routed the Los Angeles Chargers 32-12 in an AFC wild-card game on Saturday.

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Houston (11-7) advanced to the divisional round for the second straight season.

After throwing just three interceptions in 504 passing attempts during the regular season, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert was picked off four times on Saturday. Herbert was 14-for-32 for 242 yards and a touchdown.

The Chargers scored the first six points, on field goals of 35 and 39 yards by Cameron Dicker. His second came after a Texans fumble gave Los Angeles a short field.

Ka’imi Fairbairn connected on field goals of 41, 37 and 30 yards for Houston.

Houston ran just four offensive plays during the first quarter and had two punts bookending a Stroud interception to start the second.

Fortunes changed just before halftime. Houston drove 99 yards in 13 plays, punctuating the possession with a 13-yard scoring pass from Stroud to Nico Collins with 58 seconds left in the second quarter.

Stroud extended the drive with a highlight-reel play entering the two-minute warning. He scooped up a fumbled snap, then scrambled to connect with Xavier Hutchinson for a 34-yard gain to the Los Angeles 49-yard line on third-and-16.

Herbert threw three straight incompletions on the ensuing Chargers possession, and Houston responded with Fairbairn’s 41-yard field goal to take a 10-6 halftime lead.

The Texans scored the first 13 points after intermission. Murray delivered the lone touchdown over that span with a 38-yard pick six with 13 seconds left in the third quarter.

Derek Stingley Jr. snagged two interceptions for Houston and Kamari Lassiter had another.

Herbert recovered from his third pick with an 86-yard pass-and run touchdown to Ladd McConkey. The burst followed two straight Texans sacks. Houston blocked the extra-point attempt, and D’Angelo Ross returned it to the end zone for two points.

Mixon, who had 25 carries, capped the scoring with a 17-yard run with 3:42 left.

McConkey caught nine passes for 197 yards and a touchdown.

Collins had seven receptions for 122 yards and a score.

Houston outgained Los Angeles 429-261.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Win with 1.2 Seconds Left

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SUNRISE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s David Pastrnak scored with 1.2 seconds left in overtime for theBruins, who snapped a six-game losing streak with a 4-3 win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday afternoon in Florida.

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Pastrnak, who finished with two goals and one assist, got the game winner on an attempted pass that deflected in off the stick of Florida’s Sam Reinhart. The puck carried over the head of goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for Pastrnak’s sixth goal in his past five games.

The Bruins, who earned their first win of the calendar year after an 0-5-1 stretch since 2025 began, got one goal each from Morgan Geekie and Oliver Wahlstrom.

The Panthers got two goals from Reinhart and one from Evan Rodrigues.

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.