Chiefs, Lions Earn Much-Needed Victories
The Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions have both slowed down after quick starts to their season, making themselves fight for a playoff spot down the stretch. Both teams helped themselves on Saturday night, beginning with the Chiefs taking back sole possession of first place in the AFC West with a 30-13 rout of the Los Angeles Chargers. Alex Smith did not turn the ball over and threw for 231 yards and two touchdowns, while Kareem Hunt ran for 155 yards and a score in the win. The Chargers had recently gotten over .500 to make things interesting in the West, but four turnovers caused them to give up an early 13-10 lead. The Chargers drop their eighth straight to the Chiefs, who can only give up the division by losing out and the Chargers or Oakland Raiders winning out. Meanwhile, the Detroit Lions kept their NFC playoff hopes alive with a 20-10 victory over the Chicago Bears. Matthew Stafford threw for 237 yards and two touchdowns, as Detroit forced three Chicago turnovers to cruise at home. The win keeps them in the hunt for the NFC Wild Card, as they remain in a battle with the Atlanta Falcons, Seattle Seahawks, and Dallas Cowboys for the final Wild Card spot. The Lions' favorable schedule continues on Sunday when they visit the Cincinnati Bengals, before ending the season at home against the Green Bay Packers, who are once again led by Aaron Rodgers.
Rockets Top Bucks to Stay Perfect With Paul
It took the Houston Rockets 24 minutes of game time, but they kept their groove with Chris Paul on the floor by getting past the Milwaukee Bucks, 115-111, on Saturday night. The win is their 13th in a row, as they improved to 14-0 with CP3 in the starting lineup, despite the Bucks playing them tough the entire night. James Harden scored 31, while Paul added 25 to help the Rockets hang on at home. Harden's late four-point play on a three-pointer over Malcolm Brogdon sealed the victory for Houston, extending what is their longest win streak since a franchise-best 22-game run in 2007-08. On the other end, the Bucks got 28 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and four steals from Giannis Antetokounmpo in what was their third straight loss. Khris Middleton added 23 and Brogdon had 20 for the Bucks, who had won six of seven before this recent skid. Houston's own issues are what haunted them for most of the night, including 15 turnovers, technical fouls, and delay of games, but they were able to overcome the miscues and bounce back late. Paul had personal struggles in the first half, where he missed all five of his shot attempts and turned the ball over five times. He bounced back by shooting 7-of-8 from the floor after halftime, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. The Rockets will put their streak on the line when they play host to the Utah Jazz Monday night.
Wichita State Falls to Oklahoma
This college basketball season so far has been full of confusion, as nobody can truly figure out who is a legitimate top team in the country. Another twist took place on Saturday, when third-ranked Wichita State fell to unranked Oklahoma, 91-83, on their home floor. The Sooners were led by the nation's leading scorer, Trae Young, who had 29 points and 10 assists, including a hot start to get his team off and running. Young shot 6-of-9 for 18 points in the first nine minutes of the game, as he reached 28 points with ease for a seventh straight game. Brady Manek had 21 points, including 16 in the first half, while Christian James and Kamron McGusty had 13 points apiece in the Sooners' eighth win. The Shockers suffered their second loss of the year, despite getting a double-double of 20 points and 12 rebounds from Darral Willis off the bench,. The slow defensive performance was a rare outing for the Shockers, who had allowed just 68.2 points per game coming in to play. Oklahoma wasted little time figuring the Shockers out, as they shot 20-of-40 from the floor, including 10-of-23 from three-point range in the first half. The Sooners are expected to enter the top-25 this week and will be back home on Tuesday night to host Northwestern State. Wichita State looks to bounce back on Tuesday when they play host to Arkansas State.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions have both slowed down after quick starts to their season, making themselves fight for a playoff spot down the stretch. Both teams helped themselves on Saturday night, beginning with the Chiefs taking back sole possession of first place in the AFC West with a 30-13 rout of the Los Angeles Chargers. Alex Smith did not turn the ball over and threw for 231 yards and two touchdowns, while Kareem Hunt ran for 155 yards and a score in the win. The Chargers had recently gotten over .500 to make things interesting in the West, but four turnovers caused them to give up an early 13-10 lead. The Chargers drop their eighth straight to the Chiefs, who can only give up the division by losing out and the Chargers or Oakland Raiders winning out. Meanwhile, the Detroit Lions kept their NFC playoff hopes alive with a 20-10 victory over the Chicago Bears. Matthew Stafford threw for 237 yards and two touchdowns, as Detroit forced three Chicago turnovers to cruise at home. The win keeps them in the hunt for the NFC Wild Card, as they remain in a battle with the Atlanta Falcons, Seattle Seahawks, and Dallas Cowboys for the final Wild Card spot. The Lions' favorable schedule continues on Sunday when they visit the Cincinnati Bengals, before ending the season at home against the Green Bay Packers, who are once again led by Aaron Rodgers.
Rockets Top Bucks to Stay Perfect With Paul
It took the Houston Rockets 24 minutes of game time, but they kept their groove with Chris Paul on the floor by getting past the Milwaukee Bucks, 115-111, on Saturday night. The win is their 13th in a row, as they improved to 14-0 with CP3 in the starting lineup, despite the Bucks playing them tough the entire night. James Harden scored 31, while Paul added 25 to help the Rockets hang on at home. Harden's late four-point play on a three-pointer over Malcolm Brogdon sealed the victory for Houston, extending what is their longest win streak since a franchise-best 22-game run in 2007-08. On the other end, the Bucks got 28 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and four steals from Giannis Antetokounmpo in what was their third straight loss. Khris Middleton added 23 and Brogdon had 20 for the Bucks, who had won six of seven before this recent skid. Houston's own issues are what haunted them for most of the night, including 15 turnovers, technical fouls, and delay of games, but they were able to overcome the miscues and bounce back late. Paul had personal struggles in the first half, where he missed all five of his shot attempts and turned the ball over five times. He bounced back by shooting 7-of-8 from the floor after halftime, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. The Rockets will put their streak on the line when they play host to the Utah Jazz Monday night.
Wichita State Falls to Oklahoma
This college basketball season so far has been full of confusion, as nobody can truly figure out who is a legitimate top team in the country. Another twist took place on Saturday, when third-ranked Wichita State fell to unranked Oklahoma, 91-83, on their home floor. The Sooners were led by the nation's leading scorer, Trae Young, who had 29 points and 10 assists, including a hot start to get his team off and running. Young shot 6-of-9 for 18 points in the first nine minutes of the game, as he reached 28 points with ease for a seventh straight game. Brady Manek had 21 points, including 16 in the first half, while Christian James and Kamron McGusty had 13 points apiece in the Sooners' eighth win. The Shockers suffered their second loss of the year, despite getting a double-double of 20 points and 12 rebounds from Darral Willis off the bench,. The slow defensive performance was a rare outing for the Shockers, who had allowed just 68.2 points per game coming in to play. Oklahoma wasted little time figuring the Shockers out, as they shot 20-of-40 from the floor, including 10-of-23 from three-point range in the first half. The Sooners are expected to enter the top-25 this week and will be back home on Tuesday night to host Northwestern State. Wichita State looks to bounce back on Tuesday when they play host to Arkansas State.
