Former Boles Lady Hornet Bailey Miller, who just finished her college career with 28-4 Arizona State, is joining an Austin team in an indoor professional volleyball league.

The Austin team in the League One Volleyball league announced the addition of the 6-3 Miller.

As an outside hitter this past season at Arizona State, Miller earned first-team All-Big 12 honors, All-Pacific All-Region honors, academic all-district honors and was named to the honorable mention list on the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s all-America team.

Miller finished second on the team in kills for the season with 392 to go with 37 assists, 39 aces, 52 blocks and 293 digs.

She played two seasons at Arizona State and two at West Virginia after leading the Boles Lady Hornets in kills and blocks during her high school career.

There are other LOVB pro teams in Houston, Madison, Wisc., Salt Lake City, Atlanta, Ga., and Omaha, Neb.

League play starts on Jan. 7.

---

Dr. Marcus Sedberry, a former Greenville Lion athlete, served as the General Manager for the University of Wisconsin’s football program this season.

His duties included overseeing roster management, player personnel and operations for the Badgers. He’s also served as a Deputy Athletic Director for Wisconsin.

Sedberry, who ran track at Nebraska after running on a state finalist 4x400 relay for the Greenville Lions, has also been an administrator at Baylor, Central Florida, Arkansas and in the National Football League with the Philadelphia Eagles.

His father Marvin Sedberry Sr. coached three stints as the head football coach of the Greenville Lions and his brother Marvin Sedberry Jr. is the head football coach of the Terrell Tigers.

---

Nevaeh Zavala’s double-double helped High Point to an 85-83 double-overtime women’s basketball victory over Yale.

Zavala, a 6-0 senior from Royse City, scored 21 points and pulled down a team-high 14 rebounds.

Zavala is averaging 9.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game for the 11-2 Panthers, who’ll next play at North Carolina-Asheville on Dec. 31.

---

Maggie Hutka, a 6-0 junior from Royse City,scored two points and pulled down a rebound during Montana’s 90-85 women’s basketball victory over Tarleton State.

---

Brett Nix, a former Wolfe City basketball player, has scored 14 points and pulled down three rebounds in two basketball games this season for Oklahoma Science and Arts.

Nix, a 6-0 freshman who transferred from Wayland Baptist, is shooting 57.1% from 3-point range for the 5-8 Drovers.

Before the Magic took to the Kia Center court against the Hornets on Friday night, coach Jamahl Mosley said Charlotte‘s 10-20 record wasn’t indicative of what the team was capable of accomplishing.

Mosley made it clear Orlando needed to focus on taking care of the little things in order to secure the desired outcome during their second meeting of the season against the Southeast Division foe.

And he wasn’t wrong on either viewpoint.

The Magic trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half and later by as many as 24 in the third quarter when Charlotte exited a sold-out Kia Center on top 120-105, outrebounding Orlando 53-42 with 25 second-chance points.as

Charlotte (11-20) had seven different scorers finish in double figures, including 22 from star LaMelo Ball, as the team shot 19 for 39 (48.7%) from 3-point range.

In comparison, Orlando ended 11 for 35 (31.4%) from distance when nothing came easy on offense and the team couldn’t come up with the necessary defensive stops to mount a comeback.

The Magic (17-14) return to Kia Center on Saturday for the second game of a back-to-back when three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets (who beat Orlando by 11 points Dec. 18) make their lone trip of the season to Central Florida.

Starting 5

Playing without Franz Wagner (left high ankle sprain) and Jalen Suggs (left hip bruise) again, Tyus Jones and Anthony Black remained in the starting lineup alongside Banchero, Desmond Bane and Wendell Carter Jr. (16 points) against the Hornets.

Black, who had scored 19-plus points in the past four games, posted 15 in the first half after he hit his first three triples. He added his fourth 3-pointer in the fourth when he notched 24 in 36 minutes.

While Black had some success from distance, Bane and Banchero did not. The pair combined to shoot 0 for 4 from 3 before the break and ended 0 for 8 distance with missing all six of his attempts.

Bane drove to the basket early to reach 10 points by the half but was responsible for all three of Orlando’s first-quarter turnovers. He ended with just 15 points when he found himself in foul trouble after he picked up his fourth foul with 10 minutes left in the game and his fifth about two minutes later.

Banchero was passive at times when he missed first three shots from the floor and opened 1 for 5 and couldn’t find his footing the rest of the night. The Magic forward ended 4 for 13 shooting with just 13 points in 31 minutes.

Second unit

The Magic upgraded Tristan da Silva from probable to available earlier in the day after he had missed the past four contests due to a right shoulder bruise.

The second-year pro made his presence felt early when he hit his first 3-pointer and was the lone member of Orlando’s bench to score in the first half when he had 8 points with 2 assists. He didn’t score again.

Charlotte’s bench outscored Orlando’s 41-29.

Reserve center Goga Bitadze (left knee strain) missed his second straight game.

Rookie watch

Both Jase Richardson and Noah Penda entered in the first quarter but failed to make an offensive impact early.

Penda missed first three shots from the floor, including a pair of 3s, and only played 8 minutes through the first three frames. Richardson got on the board late in the third quarter with a triple and ended with 14 points in 22 minutes.

Hornets No. 4 pick Kon Knueppel posted 16 points when he shot 4 for 4 from 3, but did not return in the second half due to a right ankle injury.

Magic give back

At halftime of Friday’s game, the Magic surprised a local family with a variety of gifts as part of NBA Cares Season of Giving.

With help from president of business operations Charlie Freeman and Magic community ambassador Bo Outlaw, the team presented a family of four a new 2026 Kia Sorento EX, $5,000 for home furnishings courtesy of AdventHealth, family meals for a year from Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks, a three-day, two-night stay at Caribe Royale, four Chick-fil-A for-a-year packs, one phone and three tablets with service from Total Wireless, a free ice cream party at Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream, four gift bundles from hair ties company Teleties, a 65-inch TV, an air fryer, a kitchen aid mixer, pots and pans, arts and crafts and other household essentials to assist them through difficult times.

It marked the 17th consecutive season the Magic have hosted one family around the holidays for “The Big Give.”

Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com

ATLANTA — What do you get when a pair of teams enter at 2-8 in their previous 10? The desperation of Friday night at State Farm Arena.

Miami Heat vs. Atlanta Hawks wasn’t about making a statement.

It was about coming up for air.

To that end, the Heat can breathe a bit easier, after stealing into the Georgia night with a 126-111 victory.

With his team playing in the ailment absences of Bam Adebayo (back) and Tyler Herro (toe), Heat coach Erik Spoelstra reshuffled his rotation and found enough to stop the bleeding.

Overcoming 30 points from Hawks guard Trae Young and 24 from forward Jalen Johnson, the Heat got 25 points from Norman Powell, 21 from replacement starter Pelle Larsson, 18 from Andrew Wiggins, 16 from Jaime Jaquez Jr., as well as a 16-point, 13-rebound double-double from Kel’el Ware.

The Heat are right back at it on Saturday night, against the Indiana Pacers at Kaseya Center.

Five Degrees of Heat from Friday night’s game:

— 1. Game flow: It was tied 32-32 after the opening period. Then, boosted by a 12-0 run late in the second period, the Heat moved to a 63-51 halftime lead, with 14 fast-break points in that second period.

From there, the Heat took a 90-84 lead into the fourth, pushing their lead back to double digits early in the period, with Wiggins stepping up his scoring.

Eventually the lead got to 15, forcing Hawks coach Quin Snyder to call timeouts 49 seconds apart. But as has been the case all season amid the inability to build leads into bigger leads, it soon was an eight-point game.

A banked-in Larsson 3-pointer eventually provided needed relief, the Heat holding on from there.

— 2. No Bam: Not only was Adebayo out Friday, but Spoelstra did not cast an optimistic tone about Saturday night against the Pacers.

“We’ll see,” Spoelstra said before Friday night’s game. “We’ll treat him day-to-day. I know him, I know his personality, I know how much he wants to be out there. But since it is back soreness and he wasn’t moving well two days ago, it didn’t really get better yesterday. Today was just full treatment and some light activities. So we’ll see where he is tomorrow.”

Spoelstra declined to address whether the back had impacted Adebayo’s recent uneven play.

“I’m not going to comment on that,” he said. “He wouldn’t want me to comment on that. But we’ll just do as much treatment as we possibly can. I do know that he needs this right now.”

— 3. The Larsson factor: With Adebayo out, Spoelstra immediately injected Larsson into the starting lineup in the first game back for the second-year swingman after missing the previous five with an ankle sprain.

It was Larsson’s 17th start of the season. The first five was rounded out by Powell, Ware, Wiggins and Davion Mitchell. The Heat entered 4-2 with that lineup.

Larsson was injured in the Dec. 9 NBA Cup road loss to the Orlando Magic.

Larsson was 3 for 3 for eight points in his initial six-minute stint, and he kept going from there.

Larsson finished 9 of 13 from the field, with six rebounds and five assists.

— 4. Jovic, too: In addition to Larsson, also back was Nikola Jovic, who missed the previous four games with an elbow contusion.

Jovic was fourth off Spoelstra’s bench, behind Jaquez, Kasparas Jakucionis and Dru Smith.

That had Simone Fontecchio out of the rotation for just the second time this season.

After an 0-for-4 start, Jovic completed a four-point play early in the second period, before then falling to 1 of 8, as his season-long struggles continued, later falling to 1 of 11.

Jovic closed 3 of 14, although he did add seven rebounds and four assists.

— 5. Powell play: The uneven recent run for Powell continued early, at just six points midway through the first quarter.

Previously on pace for his first All-Star berth, Powell in the three previous games had shot 7 of 21, 7 of 17 and 6 of 17.

This time it was a 2-of-6 start. With Herro and Adebayo out, more was needed. So Powell immediately responded with back-to-back 3-pointers.

Powell came around to close 9 of 16 from the field, with seven rebounds and five assists.

Through it all, Powell extended his streak of games scoring in double figures to 29, six off the longest such run of his career.

Norfolk’s Keyshawn Davis will return to the boxing ring next month at Madison Square Garden — his first fight since a hometown title bout unraveled at Scope and spurred Davis to announce a break from the sport.

Davis will fight former world title challenger Jamaine Ortiz at MSG on Jan. 31 in a 12-round junior welterweight match. Davis (13-0 with nine knockouts), was stripped of his World Boxing Organization lightweight championship belt June 7 after his missed weight for his scheduled match at Scope against Edwin De Los Santos.

The next day, the card that included Davis’ two brothers went on without Davis, but it was marred by a post-fight scuffle involving Keyshawn and Keon Davis after Kelvin Davis’ first professional loss.

Two months later, Davis announced he was taking a break from boxing and apologized to his hometown.

“I hate what happened, but what happened is going to change me,” Davis, 26, said during an August interview on “The Ariel Helwani Show.”

“To Norfolk, to my town, like, y’all know how much I love y’all,” Davis said. “Y’all know how much I put y’all on a pedestal, so for me to act out that way … on the same week that the state and the city gave me an award. … I was wrong. … In terms of Norfolk, I apologize for putting us on that pedestal and making us look so (expletive) bad.”

Ortiz (20-2-1, 10 KOs) has won three straight fights since losing a decision to Teofimo Lopez for the WBO junior welterweight world title. The Davis-Ortiz bout is part of the undercard of a main event between Teofimo Lopez and Shakur Stevenson.

Davis, a silver medalist at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, became the WBO lightweight world champion with a knockout of Denys Berinchyk on Feb. 14.

This is a developing story.

Egor Demin entered the season looking like a rookie still learning the rhythms of the NBA game. The timing, the pace, the physicality and nonstop reads that come at you faster than the film ever suggests.

Months later, the Nets see a point guard who’s begun to stitch those pieces together. The confidence is louder. The decisions are quicker. And the moments where he tilts the floor in his team’s favor are happening more often and with more intention.

Head coach Jordi Fernández has seen that shift from the very beginning.

“I think he’s more comfortable,” Fernández said. “I think he always played like he belongs, and that’s been great. I remember since that preseason game in Toronto. He played and showed right away why we were so high on him and how he handled himself. It’s not just about the shot making but also seeing the floor and his ability to get deflections and rebounds and all those things. We’ve seen how much better he’s gotten from Day 1… We still want to see more and better. And that goes not just for him, but everybody else on the roster.”

That preseason game in Toronto on Oct. 17 mattered because it offered the first real look at a teenager who didn’t appear rattled by NBA physicality or the moment. His handle stayed tight under pressure, though he did have two turnovers. His decision-making looked poised. He consistently put the ball where it needed to be. And he finished with 14 points on 2-for-3 shooting from deep, added five rebounds and left no doubt that the stage wasn’t too big for him.

The foundation was there. What’s followed since has been steady, visible growth.

Demin’s assist-to-turnover ratio hovering around 2-to-1 is the clearest indicator. For a rookie guard, it’s often the line between simply staying afloat and actually running an offense. Fernández believes Demin’s not only meeting that bar but capable of clearing a higher one.

“I think he’s doing a great job,” Fernández said. “You said it, 2-to-1 is very good. The next step is can he get to 3-to-1. And I think he can because he’s one of the best at finding the 3-point line in the NBA. The numbers say so, but now he has to mix it in with when he touches the paint, when teams are in drop, when he creates a 2-on-1, how he throws the lob.”

Right now, Demin’s reads lean toward the perimeter, where his height and vision let him deliver passes over the top of defenders. Brooklyn loves that part of his game, but the staff wants him to broaden what he sees. That means locating cutters, dropping in lobs, manipulating defenders with his eyes and recognizing when to keep his dribble alive instead of settling for the first available kick-out.

They’ve seen progress. Early in the third quarter of Brooklyn’s 113-103 win over the Chicago Bulls on Dec. 3, Demin found Noah Clowney for two left-corner 3s on consecutive trips, both arriving perfectly in rhythm.

“Those were simple passes, but those passes were right in the pocket, and for guys like Noah, those are layups,” Fernández said

For the Nets, this is exactly the growth curve they hoped to see. And Fernández plans to keep pushing him. In his mind, Demin’s already shown he can handle whatever comes next.

The road to Santa Clara, Calif., starts in … well, Santa Clara.

If the Chicago Bears (11-4) can dare to dream of making it as far as Super Bowl LX, their most viable path begins with their first trip to host venue Levi’s Stadium, where they will face the San Francisco 49ers (11-4) on “Sunday Night Football” (7:20 p.m., NBC-5).

It’s two playoff-bound teams jockeying for position within not only the NFC, but also their own divisions.

With two games left in the regular season, the Bears need a win or a Green Bay Packers loss — or a tie by both — to lock down their first NFC North title since 2018. The longer shot would be securing the No. 1 seed, which earns a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.

With either outcome, the objective is the same: host as many playoff games as possible at Soldier Field.

Common sense says you always want to play on your turf, backed by your crowd, and the numbers underscore why it’s so important. Since the 2000 season, home teams have gone 169-91 in the playoffs (excluding Super Bowls), a .650 winning percentage, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

“Punching playoffs is cool and all, but we’ve still got work to do,” wide receiver Luther Burden III said. “We’ve got bigger goals, and we’re going to keep our head down and keep working.”

Defensive tackle Andrew Billings said the stakes have “been high since Week 1.”

“Every game was like that game,” he said. “When it comes to the playoffs, what we’re trying to do is prepare ourselves, approaching each week like a divisional game — like you win this and you get the No. 1 seed. And when you do get that … statistically it’s great.”

Here are five things to watch in the Bears-49ers matchup — plus our Week 17 predictions.

1. Pressing question: Can the Bears defense stop the 49ers on third down?

Or in the red zone, for that matter. The 49ers are tough outs in both situations.

San Francisco’s offense ranks second in third-down efficiency at 50%, slightly behind the Packers’ 50.27%. Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen explained why the 49ers excel on third down.

“No. 1 is they do a really good job executing on first and second down,” he said. “They do a great job kind of staying ahead of the chains.

“And then they do a great job of getting to spots. The quarterback does a really good job of reading out the defense, throwing it to the open guy. Yeah, it’s tough to deal with.”

The Bears defense has been pretty good at stalling teams in the red zone — ranking ninth at 54.17% — and there was no better illustration of keeping opponents out of the end zone than Saturday, when the Packers went 0 for 5 in trips to the red zone.

But the 49ers convert 63.33% of their red-zone opportunities into touchdowns, which ranks eighth.

“Their ability to run the football down there in the red area helps them out a lot,” Allen said.

Both third-down and red-zone success draws from the same well.

“They’re extremely well-coached,” Allen said of ninth-year 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan. “How do you know when a team is really well-coached? You just watch the speed at which they operate … up front in the running game and how they get to their landmarks and how they get to their spots and how all the offensive linemen are working in unison in terms of how they run their routes.

“Each player will run a certain route, and no matter who the player is, it looks the same. And so that, to me, is the detail in the coaching, and that’s what makes it really tough to defend.”

Bears coach Ben Johnson said Shanahan runs a precise, detailed offense.

“They know how to attack coverages and it continues to morph and evolve,” he said. “Each year this Shanahan offense looks a little bit different. It’s got some different wrinkles.

“As defenses change, he’s been changing as well, and that’s enabled him to stay on the forefront of some of these concepts.”

2. Player in the spotlight: 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey

McCaffrey leads the NFL with 372 touches, according to NFL Pro’s Next Gen Stats. He has 26.9% of the team’s targets, which is ninth in the league regardless of position. Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell is the only non-wide receiver who receives a higher percentage of targets (29.3%).

That’s the 49ers’ M.O.: Shanahan keeps you guessing — and not just with McCaffrey.

The combination of McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle — both 2025 Pro Bowl selections — is enough to keep a defensive coordinator up at night.

“The backs and tight ends are really tough matchups on a defense,” Allen said. “There’s usually some things, if you have an outstanding receiver … you can do to try to take those guys away. It becomes more challenging inside at the tight end (or) running back position. It’s unique that they’re getting so much production from those two spots.

“Those two guys are as good as it comes in terms of playing the tight end position: Kittle as a blocker, Kittle as a receiver, the run-after-catch that he provides. It’s certainly a challenge.”

Kittle is fourth in the league in expected points added per target (plus-0.74), according to NFL Pro. His availability for Sunday is in question (more on that later).

Allen, the former New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator and head coach, saw a lot of McCaffrey when the latter was the star of the Carolina Panthers and led the NFL with 2,392 scrimmage yards in 2019.

“So I know exactly what type of challenge he presents,” Allen said.

A particularly good matchup will be McCaffrey versus the Bears linebackers in the passing game. According to NFL Pro, McCaffrey has run a route against a linebacker 260 times, 69 more than any other running back.

Bears weak-side linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is one of the best coverage linebackers in the league. He has four interceptions, third at his position, and has held opposing quarterbacks to a 62.2 passer rating, which ranks ninth among qualified linebackers — just behind San Francisco’s Fred Warner.

3. In the fourth quarter, ‘the spark becomes a fire.’

The Bears have scored 83 points in the fourth quarter and overtime over the last eight weeks, the most by any NFL team in that span. They have a league-best six fourth-quarter comebacks this season.

When trailing with four minutes or less to go, the Bears have six touchdowns (tied for first) and average 7.64 yards per play (second), according to Sports Reference’s Stathead.

Caleb Williams has thrown the most touchdown passes (four) and has the third-highest passer rating (115.5) when trailing with four minutes or less to go (minimum 30 plays).

“It’s really just us,” Williams said. “Realizing that it isn’t necessarily the other team that’s actually stopping us.

“We’ve played versus some of the best players in this league. I think that’s where it’s come from. The mindset just changes. A play happens and the spark becomes a fire, and we’re ignited at that point.”

Johnson said the Bears’ fourth-quarter success doesn’t necessarily come from the play-calling but the people.

“We have put a premium on guys that we feel like will be able to handle pressure,” he said. “The guys we look to bring in this building, we want to make sure that they can handle that type of stuff.

“And Caleb’s certainly built that way. I know for certain Colston Loveland’s built that way. We have a number of guys on this roster that are built that way.”

Related Articles

• As Ozzy Trapilo follows his father’s legacy, is he the Chicago Bears’ left tackle of the future?
• Minnesota Vikings force 6 turnovers to eliminate Detroit Lions — and put Green Bay Packers in playoffs
• Lamar Jackson doubtful and Jordan Love questionable for Saturday’s Baltimore Ravens-Green Bay Packers game
• What we learned from the Chicago Bears, including Luther Burden III returning to practice but not Rome Odunze
• Chicago Bears DE Austin Booker says NFL fined him $5K apiece for 2 roughing-the-passer penalties on Jordan Love

Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle felt like the Bears did a better job against the Packers of getting off to a fast start, not just a strong finish. They moved 70 yards on their first possession before a botched snap caused them to turn the ball over on downs.

“When you look at it big picture, we didn’t score in the first half,” Doyle said. “The fourth-quarter piece has more to do with the players and them not flinching, them being comfortable in those situations, them feeling like all of their preparation is going to lead to a successful outcome and them just kind of staying with the process.”

Part of it is Williams’ processing seems to speed up and his improvisational skills come alive during gotta-have-it moments in the fourth quarter and overtime.

“His arm talent is elite,” 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said. “It feels like when he starts scrambling, he gets more accurate.”

Shanahan added: “Caleb is one of the best throwers, one of the most athletic quarterbacks I’ve ever seen in terms of his height, weight and speed. He makes some big-time throws, extremely scary on the perimeter, can hold on to the ball for a while — not in a bad way — but by creating stuff which makes coverages have to hold up forever.

“And when you have a talented guy like that who’s got the speed and the size, usually they get a run game, get some bootlegs and play actions off of it, you limit how many times you’ve got to drop back. It makes sense why he is playing at such a high level.”

4. By the numbers

One thing to watch is the turnover battle. San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy threw seven interceptions over his first four starts, including a three-pick game in a 20-9 victory against the Panthers on Nov. 24.

Purdy has been stingier with interceptions in three starts since then (one pick), but he has put the ball on the ground in each of the last two games, losing one of those fumbles.

The Bears lead the NFL with 31 takeaways and a plus-21 turnover differential. They have a takeaway in eight straight games, the longest active streak in the league.

5. Injury updates

Like last week, the Bears will be monitoring the health of their wide receivers. Burden (ankle) returned to practice on a limited basis Wednesday, but Rome Odunze (foot) sat out again.

Down both Odunze — who missed a third straight game — and Burden against the Packers, the Bears leaned on DJ Moore, who has endured his own injury issues this season. Moore had a game-high 97 yards on five receptions, including the walk-off touchdown catch in overtime. He also had a 12-yard run.

“With each player you start to understand reliability and durability, obviously with DJ having to fight through stuff,” Doyle said. “DJ has done a great job of being dependable and just being consistent down-in and down-out.”

Rookie Jahdae Walker was stunned when he learned of Moore’s attendance record from coaches. Moore has missed only two games in his eight-year career — none since 2020 — and one was because he was on the league’s reserve/COVID-19 list.

“I’m like: ‘This dude, is he even mortal? Like, dang,’” Walker said. “He’s never injured. I’ve seen him battle through so many injuries and just keep working.

“Y’all don’t see a lot of stuff that he goes through, pain-wise. I see it from behind the scenes and it’s crazy. I don’t know how he gets up and walks every day. He’s been hurting for real.”

Four members of the secondary popped up on Wednesday’s injury report: Pro Bowl safety Kevin Byard III (ankle) and cornerbacks Nahshon Wright (hamstring), Nick McCloud (illness) and C.J. Gardner-Johnson (knee).

“I can’t speak for anybody else, but I practiced today,” Byard told the Tribune on Wednesday. “So if you ask if I’m going to play, I’m going to play.”

Meanwhile, the 49ers could face a significant setback if Kittle can’t go. He was a non-participant Wednesday because of an ankle injury.

“He’s got a chance, so we’re not ruling him out,” Shanahan said.

Predictions

Brad Biggs (11-4)

The winner will remain alive for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. While the Panthers (8-7) are the only team with a winning record that the 49ers have faced during their five-game winning streak, the closest of those games was 11 points and the average margin was 16.4. The Bears have won only two games by more than that all year: 31-14 over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3 and 31-3 over the Cleveland Browns two weeks ago. Quarterback Brock Purdy is playing really well, and if the Bears sit in zone coverage, he’s capable of a big game. The status of tight end George Kittle (ankle) is a significant question. He’s pivotal to the passing and running games, and if he’s unable to go, I might flip my pick.

49ers 30, Bears 24

Sean Hammond (12-3)

It’s hard to pick against the Bears when so much has gone their way this season, but the 49ers are surging at the right time now that Purdy is healthy again. This looks like a scary team at the moment. It won’t be easy for the Bears to pull this one off on the road. If the 49ers can take care of the ball, I think they’ll take care of business.

49ers 30, Bears 27

Phil Thompson (10-5)

The bend-but-don’t break defensive strategy worked out surprisingly well against the Packers, who mostly settled for field goals. But Kyle Shanahan’s offense is too surgical for that. Yes, the 49ers have the league’s worst pass rush and an inconsistent run defense, but I can’t see the Bears winning a shootout at San Francisco.

49ers 31, Bears 27

There are reasons for optimism for New York sports in 2026.

The Knicks are contenders in the wide-open Eastern Conference. The Yankees are set to get one of their biggest stars back. The World Cup is headed to MetLife Stadium.

As 2025 comes to an end, here’s what New York has to look forward to in 2026.

KNICKS IN THE MIX

This past year was kind to the Knicks, who advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000.

There’s reason to believe they can go even further in 2016.

The Knicks’ bench is deeper. The Eastern Conference is weaker. Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo could be traded before the February deadline, and his affinity for New York has been well-documented.

Whether they acquire Antetokounmpo or not, the Knicks have a chance to advance to their first NBA Finals since 1999 — and to win their first championship since 1973.

COLE COMEBACK

Gerrit Cole is not expected to be ready for Opening Day, but the Yankees’ ace is on track to return from Tommy John surgery during the season’s first half.

That will be a welcome sight for the Yankees, who envision an eventual rotation of Cole, Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Cam Schlittler and Luis Gil as a major strength.

Cole missed the entire 2025 season due to the elbow operation, but he is still just two years removed from a Cy Young campaign in 2023.

And while Cole is entering his age-35 season, he can take comfort in knowing Justin Verlander and Jacob deGrom returned to elite form after having Tommy John surgery at similar ages.

DART PART TWO

Jaxson Dart looked the part of a franchise building block during his rookie season, even if it didn’t result in many wins for the Giants.

The Giants now hope there’s a sophomore leap for the dual-threat quarterback, who should benefit from the returns of top receiver Malik Nabers and running back Cam Skattebo after this year’s season-ending injuries.

The ideal trajectory is that of the New England Patriots, who made a huge jump this year in Drake Maye’s second season.

Also sparking the Pats’ turnaround was the hiring of head coach Mike Vrabel. The Giants, of course, are now in the market for a new head coach following Brian Daboll’s midseason firing.

JET FUEL

The Jets find themselves in a similar position as last winter’s Giants, seeking a franchise quarterback without a clear-cut target at this point.

With five first-round picks over the next two drafts, the Jets have ample ammunition to trade up in the first round or to swing a deal for a veteran.

Heisman-winning Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza and Oregon’s Dante Moore appear to be the top QB prospects in 2025, though the 2026 class is expected to be stronger if the Jets decide to wait.

And Jets fans will fantasize about Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow demanding a trade, though someone like Arizona’s Kyler Murray is more likely to become available.

WORLD CUP

For the second time ever, the U.S. is hosting the men’s World Cup, this time sharing those duties with Canada and Mexico.

And for the first time ever, the World Cup final will take place in New York/New Jersey.

Indeed, MetLife Stadium will host the final on July 19 — one of eight matches that will be played at the stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC

And the World Cup won’t be the only major international sports tournament in 2026.

While New York isn’t hosting any WBC games, the event should still be of interest to local fans, as the Yankees’ Aaron Judge is the captain of Team USA and the Mets’ Francisco Lindor is the captain of Team Puerto Rico.

The WBC is scheduled for March 5-17, with the final set to take place at Miami’s LoanDepot Park.

ST. JOHN’S ENCORE

After winning the Big East’s regular-season and conference tournament championships in 2025, St. John’s entered this season with sky-high expectations.

And while the Red Storm got off to a slow start, head coach Rick Pitino remains optimistic that his new-look roster can round into form in time to defend its conference crown.

What St. John’s does as an encore is a major storyline in 2026, and meetings with UConn on Feb. 6 and Feb. 25 should be particularly telling.

CHICAGO — Winning is a contradictory thing for the Chicago Bulls.

The Bulls allowed opponents to score at least 120 points in four of their last six games. They also won all four of those games. This dichotomy is powering a four-game winning streak for the Bulls, who at 14-15 after winning five of six — including two straight over the Hawks in Atlanta — have nearly pulled themselves back to .500.

This might seem antithetical, but it has been the reality since the start of the season — when the Bulls are at their best, their defense seems to fall by the wayside.

“Listen, we’re not a great defensive team,” coach Billy Donovan said. “But we can be better and we can improve. We can take a little bit more control over the things that we can.”

The Bulls were never going to be a defensive juggernaut. Donovan entered the season warning about this roster’s defensive deficiencies. Even during the opening 6-1 stretch that fostered so much hope, the Bulls gave up at least 120 points in two of those wins. In fact, they have won only five games in which their opponent scored fewer than 120 points.

This Bulls team was always destined to win in spite of its defense, not because of it. But that’s not an excuse — or a fact that should let the Bulls off the hook.

“We’re going to have to figure it out,” guard Coby White said. “We don’t want to be one of these teams that’s just trying to outscore teams. We know what reality is. We’ve got to do the little things more in terms of taking away a couple baskets here and there.”

The Bulls play fast. As the rest of the league picks up its pace, the Bulls are still the second-fastest team in the NBA. That speed is almost entirely concentrated on the offense. Playing that fast invites the game to open up, which requires both defenses to communicate effectively, switch rapidly and react sharply if they want to keep up.

This is a boon for the Bulls offense, which picks apart opposing defenses in sped-up situations to force points in transition and sling 3-pointers while the defense is still getting set. But it only makes life harder for the defense, which is forced to compete at the pace the Bulls already set — and often falls apart as a result.

It’s easy to blame this on effort. The Bulls often look disjointed and discombobulated on defense, which means they don’t contest consistently enough at the rim (where they allow 21.6 baskets per game) and allow open shots at the perimeter.

In particular, the defense struggles with switches. The Bulls lineup includes several visible weaknesses — notably, both center Nikola Vučević and guard Josh Giddey offer poor options to switch on screens due to their lack of maneuverability from the perimeter to the rim. The Bulls often choose simply to force both players to switch regardless — relying on help defense from the weak side to bolster both players — but poor communication is a primary disruptor in these situations.

When Donovan talks about defense with the Bulls, he still is focusing on fundamentals: boxing out, communicating, staying aware of gaps and lanes.

“I’m not saying we’ve got to be perfect, but the total intention to focus has got to be on those things,” Donovan said.

A simple fact of basketball is that poor defensive teams simply have to work harder on that end of the court. Donovan has been tempted at times to use more gimmicky defensive tactics — like shifting into a matchup-specific zone — to combat his team’s lack of natural defensive discipline. Those fixes can help in the short term, particularly when the Bulls are facing a particular sharpshooter or need to accommodate a lack of length at the rim.

But in the long term, the Bulls are focused on the margins. This team isn’t going to hold opponents under 105 points per game, but it can reduce scoring through improved intention in those same fundamental areas.

“We’re going to have to help a little bit more,” Donovan said. “We’re just going to have to be a team that’s going to have to help each other more. It’s going to be hard to win giving up that many points and expecting to score as many as we did.”

CHICAGO — Chicago Bears defensive end Austin Booker said he has been fined $5,000 apiece for two roughing-the-passer penalties he was issued during Saturday’s 22-16 overtime win over the Green Bay Packers.

“I did get a fine, but we’ll see what they say on the appeal,” Booker told the Chicago Tribune on Wednesday.

He said he believes it’ll take about a week to receive a ruling on his appeal.

Booker was flagged for roughing the passer on the Packers’ third offensive play of the game, when quarterback Jordan Love threw incomplete to Romeo Doubs on third-and-1 from the Bears 44-yard line.

Then, in the second quarter, on first-and-10 from the Packers 17, Booker was penalized a second roughing the passer for making head-on, helmet-to-helmet contact with Love.

Love left the game and didn’t return. He was placed in concussion protocol and appeared on Tuesday’s estimated report with a left shoulder injury and concussion.

On replays of the second sack attempt, it appeared that Love lowered his head just as Booker was striking, which Booker suggested should’ve been a mitigating factor.

“One hundred percent,” he said. “The first one I’ll take full responsibility for. Like, I landed on him, I should have braced myself more.

“But I think the second one could definitely go both ways.”

Bears coach Ben Johnson said Monday: “That’s 100 percent a flag where he ends up getting concussed, and that’s not what anybody wants. But at the same time that one is a more difficult one to coach just from a technique perspective just because we’re trying to go after the quarterback and it’s a bang-bang play like that.”

Booker agreed Wednesday.

“I’m just a physical player, too, and I was just trying to play fast,” he said. “And things happen quick and sometimes stuff happens. But the first one I can definitely make (it) not happen, because it’s a lot of (lost) field position, for sure. … But the second one, I feel like I was playing hard, playing fast and things happened how they did.”

Booker added later: “At the same time, I know the significance of (a 15-yard penalty), and I’m going to try to clean (it) up for next game.”

NEW YORK — Eighty-two. Seventy-three. Seventy-two. Eighty-two. Eighty-three. Eighty-two. Eighty-two — and now 29.

Mikal Bridges’ track record of perfect attendance reads like an NBA head coach’s fantasy.

Mike Brown is living that fantasy in real time during his first season at Madison Square Garden, guiding a Knicks team with championship aspirations. Bridges isn’t just a premier two-way wing capable of locking down the league’s best scorers one night and detonating offensively the next.

He’s also the league’s reigning, uncontested iron man. If there’s any certainty to the Knicks’ season this year, it’s Bridges suiting up for tipoff every night.

And in a league increasingly shaped by load management and star absences, Bridges’ availability has become its own competitive advantage — one you can’t quite put a price on (though the Knicks might argue otherwise after surrendering five first-round picks to acquire him from Brooklyn, then signing him to a four-year, $150 million extension this summer).

“The best ability is availability, and to have that is a big thing,” Brown said after practice in Tarrytown earlier this month, just before the team boarded its flight to Las Vegas for the NBA Cup semifinal. “And anybody — everybody — would love to have that.”

Bridges is the only current player to appear in 500 consecutive games, with 600 looming. He and Golden State’s Buddy Hield are the only active players who haven’t missed a game over the past five seasons. And in 2023, after a midseason trade from Phoenix to Brooklyn created an extra contest on his schedule, Bridges became the first player since Josh Smith in 2014-15 to appear in 83 regular-season games.

On Christmas Day against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Bridges will move into 11th place all time in consecutive games played, surpassing James Donaldson’s mark of 586 set in 1981. He can pass Jack Twyman and John Stockton (tied for ninth at 609) as soon as January, and overtake Andre Miller’s 632-game streak to stand alone in eighth place by season’s end.

“He takes care of his body. He does a great job taking care of his body,” Brown said. “I don’t know what his sleep patterns are like, but I know that he works extremely hard with his preparation. And when you work as hard as he does with your preparation, usually good things happen. And then probably got good genes. So thanks mama.”

Bridges hasn’t missed a game since high school. He played 116 straight at Villanova, where Jalen Brunson first saw the lengths his teammate would go to just to be available.

Now reunited in New York, Brunson says nothing has changed.

“He takes care of his body. He works tremendously hard,” Brunson said. “He’s a psychopath when it comes to his craft. So he’s really locked in with everything he needs to do to make sure he’s ready. And that’s just who he’s been since I’ve met him.”

A psychopath?

“That’s not my story to tell,” Brunson said with a grin. “But he’s a lunatic for sure.”

Bridges owned the label moments later.

“Maybe a little bit of a psychopath, but nothing crazy,” he said. “Just trying to take care of it every single day. Try to stay up on it.”

What might read as lunacy from the outside has become ritual for the NBA’s longest-standing iron man.

“I take advantage of the cold tubs, always get a massage before the game, the stretcher routine and everything,” Bridges said. “I think it’s just being consistent with it. It’s a long season with a lot of emotions going on. People tend to stop doing all the things. I just try to be consistent all the time and continue to do all the things that are going to get me prepared for the game.”

Bridges isn’t chasing records. But if he finishes this season with perfect attendance once again, he’ll reach 638 consecutive games played. To catch A.C. Green’s NBA record of 1,192 straight appearances, Bridges would need 555 more — roughly seven additional seasons.

That would take him to age 37. A lot of basketball to play. A lot of mileage to accrue. But maybe not quite an impossible feat for the basketball psychopath on the loose at the Garden this season.

The Chicago Bears got a boost to their banged-up wide receiver corps Wednesday with rookie Luther Burden III returning to practice. He was listed as limited with an ankle injury.

Fellow receiver Rome Odunze (foot), however, was a non-participant.

When asked if he expects to play Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers, Burden said: “Yeah, I think so.”

The Bears didn’t issue an injury report Tuesday, but neither Burden or Odunze was spotted on the field during the portion that was open to the media. Burden is fourth on the team in receiving yards with 479 on 36 receptions, but he has the highest catch rate at 76.6%, per NFL Pro.

Chicago Bears Q&A: Would Ben Johnson rest players for the playoffs? Will Nahshon Wright be re-signed?

With Burden and Odunze inactive for Saturday night’s 22-16 overtime win against the Green Bay Packers, the Bears relied more heavily on DJ Moore, Olamide Zaccheaus and Jahdae Walker.

“It was really tough, man,” Burden said. “It was my first game missing ever, like college, little league.”

Burden was forced to miss the Nov. 2 game in Cincinnati because he was in concussion protocol.

“It was kind of different, just watching my team from the sideline,” he said.

Walker, an undrafted rookie, had his first two career receptions, one of which went for a game-tying touchdown with 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter to force overtime.

“I told him before the play, ‘You’re going to have to come down and make a play,'” Burden said. “Before he even caught the touchdown, I knew where it was going, who’s going to make the play.”

Meanwhile, several new injuries popped up for the Bears on Wednesday.

Linebacker T.J. Edwards (glute) was a non-participant, as were receiver/return specialist Devin Duvernay, linebacker D’Marco Jackson and defensive back Nick McCloud, all listed with illnesses.

With the exception of running back/special teamer Travis Homer (ankle), several limited participants were new additions who didn’t appear on last week’s report. They included safety Kevin Byard III (ankle), cornerbacks Nahshon Wright (hamstring) and C.J. Gardner-Johnson (knee), center Drew Dalman (ankle/hand) and linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga (hamstring).

The Bears opened the 21-day practice window for offensive lineman Luke Newman, who’s designated to return from injured reserve. He was listed as limited with a foot injury. Guard Joe Thuney took a rest day.

Here are three other things we learned Wednesday.

1. Cairo Santos honored.

The Bears kicker was named the NFC Special Teams Players of the Week for Week 16.

During Saturday’s win over the Packers, Santos cut through gusty winds at Soldier Field to boot 46-, 51- and 43-yard field goals, executed the onside kick that set up Walker’s touchdown and drilled the tying extra point — all of which the Bears needed to send the game to overtime.

Special teams coordinator Richard Hightower credited the whole field-goal operation, from Scott Daly’s snaps to Tory Taylor’s holds, but held special praise for Santos navigating the wind.

“You guys saw the paper cups and all of the things flying and floating all over the field,” Hightower said. “For him to just have the mental fortitude to stay focused and play the conditions is what we talk about doing.

“Not trying to beat the conditions, not being upset about the conditions, but play the conditions.”

Chicago Bears DE Austin Booker says NFL fined him $5K apiece for 2 roughing-the-passer penalties on Jordan Love

Added special teamer Josh Blackwell: “He makes incredible kicks in the wind and elements, so it’s no surprise to us, to me, that he’s winning an award like that. He deserves all that and all the credit in the world.”

Santos expressed his appreciation for the recognition given some of the bumps he has experienced this season. He missed two games with a right thigh injury, and his accuracy has dipped to 82.8% (ranked 35th among qualifiers) from 93.8% five years ago in his first season in Chicago.

“It definitely helps me kind of stay on path that what I’m doing it’s going turn into great things,” Santos said of the award. “I just want to make kicks to help the team.”

Five Bears have been named Player of the Week this season, the first time they have had at least that many receive the honor since 2006 (six).

2. Another side of the pivotal onside kick.

Onside kicks rarely work, but one did during the rally against the Packers. Hightower said his unit spends “hours and hours and hours” practicing the kicks.

“Some people tend to think that you can just go out there and you just kick the ball and ‘Oh, they got it,’ you know what I mean? Like, that’s crazy,” he said. “(Cairo Santos has) done so much work on the premises here. … I’ve tried to stop him at times from kicking onside kicks so much, like, ‘Hey, it’s time to go in, time to go in.’ …

“It’s not an accident, like he put work in for it, and he hit a really good ball.”

Related Articles

• Chicago Bears DE Austin Booker says NFL fined him $5K apiece for 2 roughing-the-passer penalties on Jordan Love
• Chicago Bears player Colston Loveland paid $1.3M for a Long Grove home over the summer
• Chicago Bears Q&A: Would Ben Johnson rest players for the playoffs? Will Nahshon Wright be re-signed?
• Vintage Chicago Tribune: Bears playoff appearances — including the ‘Sneakers Game,’ the ‘Fog Bowl’ and ‘Double Doink’
• 5 things we learned from the Chicago Bears: Caleb Williams fueled by naysayers when told ‘I can’t win here’

The ball took a hop before Packers receiver Romeo Doubs dropped it, and Blackwell pounced and recovered it.

“The kick that (Santos) hit was perfect,” Blackwell said. “Right spot. Executed it right.”

Hightower said Daniel Hardy and Noah Sewell were the keys to that play, breaking through the Packers receiving line and flashing navy jerseys in front of Doubs’ eyes.

“Hardy got a phenomenal jump on that ball,” Hightower said. “If you go back and look at that play and look at how he timed that up — and he’s worked on that. We’ve had to stop him; he’s been too early, he’s been too late, he’s been right on time. He did a phenomenal job.”

Blackwell could see it from Doubs’ perspective.

“You’ve got a defensive end (Hardy) and a linebacker (Sewell) coming at you at full speed,” he said. “That’d make anybody flinch up.”

Blackwell said they were crucial to the play and allowed him to just keep his eye on the ball the whole time.

“I’m just the back-line player waiting for anything to kick back at me, and sure enough it did,” he said.

3. Wright has his coach’s appreciation.

If not the NFL’s.

The Bears cornerback was snubbed for the Pro Bowl on Tuesday despite leading the league with eight takeaways and two forced fumbles.

One of the latter came in the third quarter Saturday when he stripped Packers running back Josh Jacobs at the Bears 3-yard line. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds recovered the fumble.

Last week, Wright told the Tribune that his favorite takeaway was ripping the ball from Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts during his signature “Tush Push” on Black Friday last month.

“It’s just what he does,” defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. “He’s extremely ball-conscious and he’s looking for the opportunities that present themselves to take the ball away. …

“It’s not the first time he’s done it, but it was a heck of a play by him. He’s had a great year. He’s made a lot of big plays for us and (I’m) looking forward to him continuing that.”

MIAMI GARDENS — The Miami Dolphins are in a desperate situation as they move toward their home finale against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

Their coach, Mike McDaniel, is fighting to keep his job and their rookie quarterback, Quinn Ewers, is fighting to earn a job. All the while their fans are getting turned off by the entire situation and being constantly reminded the franchise hasn’t won a playoff game since 2000 and the Dolphins (6-9) are concluding their second consecutive losing season.

A strong performance by the Dolphins in their home finale against the Buccaneers (7-8) could go a long way toward soothing the seething anger that’s beginning to bubble to the surface from fans.

Here are five things to look for in Sunday’s game:

Quinn Ewers

The rookie quarterback has drawn positive reviews from coaches and players for his debut performance last Sunday. Ewers seems more confident this week. One thing to watch is how Tampa Bay defends him now that it has a game’s worth of video to review. The Buccaneers have a better idea of Ewers’ strengths and weaknesses and you can be assured they’ll attack his weaknesses.

But Ewers (20 of 30, 260 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions vs. Cincinnati) has a strong arm, good composure, and he makes good decisions so this should be an interesting matchup. Ewers’ success will likely have more to do with things that don’t show up on his stat line such as pre-snap reads, mobility, and ability to deal with in-game setbacks. 

Mike McDaniel

McDaniel, whose job status is in question, is taking lots of criticism both locally and nationally, from media and fans. He appeared to be in better spirits Wednesday than he’s been in a while. He spoke clearly and assertively when addressing the media with very little stammering.

McDaniel seems a bit more confident with Ewers on the field. Players say McDaniel remains the same now as he was a few months ago before the losses began compiling, which seems to indicate he’s not buckling under pressure. We’ll see if that translates to a victory.

Related Articles

• Dolphins’ Quinn Ewers builds off first start as he preps for Buccaneers
• Could more young Dolphins players get a shot in home finale against Bucs?
• Dolphins Deep Dive: Who makes the decision on McDaniel? | VIDEO
• Dolphins Deep Dive: What did we see from Ewers in first start? | VIDEO
• Dolphins Deep Dive: Should Miami draft a QB in first round? | VIDEO
• Dolphins Deep Dive: Prediction time — Will Ewers, Miami defeat Bucs? | VIDEO
• Dolphins Deep Dive: What’s the best draft strategy in 2026? | VIDEO

De’Von Achane

Pro Bowl running back De’Von Achane, who is No. 3 in the NFL in rushing at 1,267 yards, is one of the biggest keys to victory. Achane is a dual threat as his 64 receptions, tied for the team lead with wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, for 459 yards attests.

The Buccaneers will do their best to corral Achane but few have been successful so far. Surprisingly, Achane only has four 100-yard rushing games. The Dolphins are 3-1 in those games. However, Achane has eight games with more than 100 yards from scrimmage and the Dolphins are 5-3 in those games. If Achane thrives, the Dolphins usually win.

Run defense

The Dolphins must stop the run. Period. Tampa Bay is tied for 16th in the league in rushing at 116.9 yards per game. That’s so-so. The problem is that Miami’s run defense is 27th in the league at 130.3 yards allowed per game.

The Dolphins have allowed four of their past seven opponents to rush for 105 or more yards and they’ve gone 1-3 in those games. In the bigger picture, the Dolphins are 2-9 when their opponent rushes for 100 or more yards. If the Dolphins allow the Buccaneers 100 or more rushing yards they’ll almost certainly lose.

Turnover margin, penalties

Turnover margin is the category McDaniel values over all others. Unfortunately, the Dolphins are tied for 25th in the league in turnover margin at minus-5. In last Sunday’s 45-21 loss to the Bengals they were minus-3. In that stretch in which the Dolphins won five out of six games they were plus-7 in turnover margin.

Regarding penalties, the Dolphins are good overall. Their 95 penalties are 13th fewest in the league and their 744 penalty yards are tied for ninth fewest. The Dolphins were good vs Cincinnati with three penalties for 20 yards. Unfortunately, one of the penalties was an offensive pass interference that negated a 33-yard reception. If the Dolphins are good in these two categories their chances to win increase greatly.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Prediction time — Will Ewers, Miami defeat Bucs? | VIDEO

MIAMI GARDENS — Miami Dolphins rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers looks to build off a debut as a starter in which he exhibited composure, was poised in the pocket, orchestrated the team’s complex offense and made his share of throws while having some that didn’t go his way.

He gets his second shot at starting in the NFL back at home Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8).

“I want to see growth, and that comes in a numerous amount of ways,” said Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel before the team’s Wednesday practice after a Tuesday walkthrough as players get Christmas Day off Thursday. “I saw some (Tuesday) with how he was quarterbacking the group. He took a step forward in terms of his confidence, his disposition.”

Ewers was 20 of 30 for 260 yards and two interceptions, with one not necessarily his fault, in a 45-21 defeat that got away from the team as a whole.

“There’s a lot of promising things from this start and we’re really encouraged by a lot of his performance,” offensive coordinator Frank Smith said Tuesday.

For the young quarterback, it all starts with how he operates McDaniel’s complicated offense, which involves an array of formations and pre-snap motions. The coach said he was “pleasantly surprised” by how the rookie out of Texas handled those aspects in his first start.

“There’s people moving everywhere before the ball is snapped, and a lot of that was on (previous starter) Tua (Tagovailoa),” senior passing game coordinator Bobby Slowik said Tuesday. “And (Ewers) almost never had an error in that regard, and I think that’s a lot to handle. I think Quinn is working to get there and is pretty dang close, but that’s probably where there’s a few minute adjustments, a little bit of the pre-snap stuff but not a lot. We’re still going to do everything that we do.”

Ewers noted there was only one pre-snap issue the team had in last Sunday’s game.

Related Articles

• Could more young Dolphins players get a shot in home finale against Bucs?
• Chris Perkins: Would Dolphins’ Zach Wilson really buy the N.Y. Jets if he won Powerball?
• Can Dolphins’ past two first-round picks become defensive building blocks?
• Dolphins Deep Dive: Prediction time — Will Ewers, Miami defeat Bucs? | VIDEO
• Dolphins Deep Dive: What’s the best draft strategy in 2026? | VIDEO

Slowik gives Tagovailoa high marks in that aspect of his game that Ewers tries to replicate. Another area is Tagovailoa’s anticipation on his throws.

“Tua’s really exceptional about anticipatory throws, letting the ball go early, particularly before receivers are even out of their break,” Slowik said. “Quinn doesn’t necessarily do that as naturally as Tua did, but he can make up for it.

“He’s got a really whippy release. He might throw later, but it might get there at the same time because of how the ball just fires off his wrist.”

“It’s definitely true,” Ewers said, when the notion was mentioned to him. “Throughout the week, we’ve even changed up some of the footwork that Tua would do to how it would time up with my footwork, with my anticipation.”

There were a few instances last Sunday of timing appearing a bit off with a receiver, as Ewers hasn’t had as many reps with Dolphins pass-catchers as Tagovailoa has.

Ewers said he’ll have to rely on the “QB math” he’s equipped with in order to fine-tune his timing with different receivers, calculating how different targets break on their routes and run to a spot.

“We may not have been good at math in school, but we’re pretty good at math on the field,” Ewers said.

Against the Buccaneers, Ewers will face coach Todd Bowles’ aggressive defense, which ranks fifth in blitz percentage (29.6 percent). The rookie will have to take part in the mind games of how much Tampa will pressure or if the Bucs will counter off the threat of the blitz.

“I feel like it’s notorious that people are going to pressure rookie quarterbacks more,” said Ewers, when asked about the mind games. “Sometimes, it can work in your favor. Sometimes, they get ahead of you.”

Ewers is locked in during this final stretch of the season in which he has taken over as the starter. When asked Wednesday if anyone famous had reached out to him after his debut as a starter, he replied he didn’t know because he has barely checked his phone but that he might have a better idea in two weeks.

Dolphins Deep Dive: What did we see from Ewers in first start? | VIDEO

Santa Claus made an appearance at the United Center on Tuesday night. He sounded the horn before the puck drop of the Chicago Blackhawks game against the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Hawks wanted a win for Christmas. They got more coal instead, with a sixth-straight loss in regulation, this time a 3-1 contest to the Flyers.

Scoring was hard to come by once again for the home team without Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar. The Hawks have scored just eight goals in the absence of Bedard this season, a 1.6 goals-per-game average across five games.

At 13-17-6, they’re at the bottom of the NHL standings going into the Christmas break. It’s a far cry from the playoff talk that surrounded the team heading into Thanksgiving.

“We’re doing our best, I don’t think we’re focusing on what’s been in the past,” a dejected André Burakovsky said. “We look forward to the next game and try to find success.”

Photos: Philadelphia Flyers 3, Chicago Blackhawks 1

Without Bedard and Nazar, the Hawks don’t have a forward who is decisive in shooting the puck. The home team had four shots on goal in the first period.

The Hawks prevented the Flyers from utilizing the center of the ice for a good portion of the first period. Philadelphia right winger Travis Konecny was able to find a crack in the Hawks’ defense at 10:17 in the first to go up 1-0.

The power play, despite not seeing a goal with a man advantage, produced some looks for the Hawks in the second. They took 10 of their 21 shots on goal in the second period.

“In the end, we had more chances than they did (but) we didn’t score,” Hawks coach Jeff Blashill said. “On the power play there at the end, we generated chances (and) that was probably our best power play.

“(We got to) keep grinding and find a way to score.”

Ryan Donato scored a goal for the first time since Nov. 28 at 18:30 in the second period. It was a sigh of relief, even with the chances he’s generated.

“I think it’d be different if I wasn’t getting the chances, that would be a little scary,” Donato said. “Definitely a little bit of weight off the shoulders.”

It can be tough to deal with a skid like the Hawks are on, especially with a young team. But the skaters seem to be keeping their heads up.

“The young guys are actually always positive, in great moods and happy-go-lucky guys,” Donato said. “It’s a matter of finding a way to win.

“There’s no negative attitude, there’s no feeling sorry for ourselves. I think everybody’s hungry to push in the right direction.”

Spencer Knight (17 saves) skated off the ice near the end of the third period, down 2-1. It was poorly timed, as the Flyers went on a breakaway with right winger Carl Grundstrom scoring the empty-netter to put Philadelphia up by two.

“I made the decision to pull him,” Blashill said. “I thought we were getting possession (and) we didn’t get possession, so that’s on me.”

Nick Lardis seems to be the Hawks’ best chance at putting shots in the back of the net without Bedard and Nazar. His ice time increased to 10:32 against the Flyers compared to 8:17 on Saturday in Ottawa.

He didn’t have any shots on goal, but he was active on the power play. The young player also got into a scuffle with right winger Matvei Michkov early in the third, sending them both to the penalty box.

“When you get into those type of combative situations, that brings the emotional level of the whole building up,” Blashill said. “At least it puts (the team) in a position to have that emotion rise, which I think is a good thing.”

If Lardis’ ice time is going to increase, Blashill is looking for a few things from the young winger.

“I would say finding space at this level, he’s not really fast and he’s not really big,” Blashill said. “He’s a good skater (but) he’s not going to separate himself with his speed, so I think he’s got to find the right spacing.”

For now, the Hawks need to enjoy the holiday break. With the Dallas Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders on the horizon, things aren’t getting easier.

“I think with where we’re at, (the break is) probably a good thing,” Blashill said. “I love Christmas, I love seeing my family and I’m sure a number of guys are the same way.

“Flying to Dallas that first day coming out is a hard thing, but we’re going to have to find a way to grind.”

To Karl-Anthony Towns’ credit, he did everything he could to keep the short-handed Knicks in the fight Tuesday at Target Center.

In his second game played in Minneapolis since being traded ahead of the 2024-25 campaign, Towns tallied 35 points and 11 rebounds.

The Knicks — who were without Jalen Brunson, O.G. Anunoby, Deuce McBride, Guerschon Yabusele and Landry Shamet — led midway through the third quarter.

But the Timberwolves eventually managed to overwhelm New York for the team’s third-straight win and 10th in its last 12 games via a 115-104 victory.

Anthony Edwards scored 38 points, Julius Randle had 25, 17 of which came in the final frame. Rudy Gobert continued his recent interior dominance, logging 11 points and 16 rebounds.

“Pick shoutout to Big Ju. He picked it up in the fourth quarter and led us to the win,” Edwards said in his postgame, on-court interview. “We call him ‘The Bully,’ and he played like a bully in the fourth quarter. ”

Towns fouled out with 35 seconds to play and exited the court to a nice ovation from the Minnesota faithful.

“Big shoutout to KAT,” Edwards said after the game. “Show love to KAT.”

Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart struggled mightily for New York (20-9), going 11 for 27 from the floor. Towns’ only assistance came in the form of second-year point guard Tyler Kolek, who logged 20 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.

Bridges and Hart struggled on a night when the Wolves’ perimeter defensive intensity was stout, with Edwards playing a large role in those efforts.

Minnesota was out-rebounded 55-42, but made up that gap and then some by forcing 19 turnovers that resulted in 22 points.

Naz Reid had eight points and 11 rebounds, while Minnesota won Bones Hyland’s 25 minutes by a gaudy 24 points.

Minnesota next plays on Christmas night in Denver in a nationally-televised affair between two of the best teams in the West.

Related Articles

• Rudy Gobert has 10,000-plus rebounds, envisions many more to come
• Mike Conley and the bench help Timberwolves rally past Milwaukee
• Frederick: That was Playoff Ant, rising to meet another big moment
• Late Edwards triple lifts Wolves past Thunder
• Frederick: Timberwolves had to bring Kevin Garnett back into the fold

MIAMI – On the night before the night before Christmas, another lump of coal for the Miami Heat.

So make it eight losses in the last nine games and a .500 record at the holiday break with Tuesday night’s 112-91 loss to the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center, this time their lowest-scoring game of the season.

Looking nothing like the team that dominated on offense at the start of the season, Erik Spoelstra’s team instead this time fell to Sandro Mamukelashvili & Co.

Unlike the efforts in road losses to the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks over the weekend, when the Heat competed until the decisive stages, this had the look of a team beaten down by the recent losses, in desperate need of a break.

At 15-15, the Heat now get Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off, before returning for a back-to-back set on Friday night in Atlanta and then Saturday night at home against the Indiana Pacers.

By then, it will become a matter of whether they can avoid having a losing record for the first time since they stood 1-3 after a Nov. 2 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The numbers were limited across the board for the Heat, save for a 21-point performance from Jaime Jaquez Jr.

Otherwise, 17 points from Norman Powell on 6-of-17 shooting, nine from Bam Adebayo and this time only five points and nine rebounds from Kel’el Ware.

Scottie Barnes led the Raptors with 27 points, on a night Mamukelashvili also outscored much of the Heat roster.

Five degrees of Heat from Tuesday night’s game:

—Game flow: The Raptors led 21-16 after the first quarter and 51-44 at halftime.

The Heat then went down 16 in the third quarter,

Then, as was the previous two games, in the road losses in Boston and New York, the Heat swooned at the end of the third period, this time down 82-67 going into the fourth.

The Raptors extended their lead to 21 early in the fourth quarter, effectively ending it.

It ended with the Heat at .402 from the field and 8 of 30 on 3-pointers, with 18 turnovers.

—Nothing early: The Heat’s lowest-scoring first half of the season was a study in struggle.

The Heat were 4 of 18 on 3-pointers over the first two periods, with 10 turnovers at halftime.

No Heat player had more than three field goals in the first half, with Andrew Wiggins the lone starter with even that many.

For that matter, even the start was telling, with Toronto moving to an initial 16-3 lead.

Both of the Heat’s two lowest-scoring games of the season have come at Kaseya Center against the Raptors, the Heat’s only two games below 100 points this season.

—Adebayo off: The offensive struggles continued for Adebayo, this time with just three points in the first half on 1-of-5 shooting.

Adebayo also was just 1 of 3 from the foul line in the first half, compensating somewhat with his game-high eight first-half rebounds.

Adebayo closed 4 of 11 from the field, albeit with a game-high12 rebounds.

— Three down: The Heat continued in the injury absences of Tyler Herro (toe), Pelle Larsson (ankle) and Nikola Jovic (elbow).

“I am very encouraged by the progress,” Spoelstra said pregame. “They’re not ready to go tonight, but we don’t have a timeline.

“I came in yesterday and I was encouraged.”

And then the Heat took the court, showing how much the scoring of Herro, the energy of Larsson and perhaps even the creativity of Jovic are needed.

— Comeback tour: On the one-year anniversary of his Achilles tear, Dru Smith sparked the Heat off the bench with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting in his initial eight-minute stint.

Smith ruptured his left Achilles in a Dec. 23, 2024, victory over the Brooklyn Nets. He was on the verge of being converted to a standard contract at the time of his injury.

He finally got that contact this past offseason, re-emerging as a rotation mainstay.

Smith closed with 10 points, two rebounds and two assists.

____

MIAMI — Losing can be painful enough, with the Miami Heat dealing with plenty over the past three weeks. Death by 3s can be excruciating.

As it was in the fourth quarter of Friday night’s loss to the Boston Celtics and then throughout the night on Sunday against the New York Knicks.

Lately, much of the pain for the Heat has been over the top.

Despite entering the week sixth in the NBA in 3-point defensive field-goal percentage, the Heat also entered the week allowing the seventh-most 3-pointers per game.

So, yes, there is acknowledgement that something has to change.

“That’s us,” guard Norman Powell said of opponents recently breaking open games three points at a time. “I mean, the Boston game, you break down and watch the film, everybody is like, ‘Oh, they just got hot.’ But they took advantage of our glitches, our miscommunications on switches.”

The Celtics were 10 of 15 on 3-pointers in that fourth quarter, on a night Boston guard Derrick White closed 9 of 14 from beyond the arc.

“The first half we did a really great job getting them in the mud, taking them off the three-point line, making their three-point shots tough,” Powell said of the loss at TD Garden. “And then I’ll say the last 15 minutes of that game, our miscues and miscommunications and switches on defense and that Boston game opened up the threes for them. And then they got hot. They burned us on every one of those miscommunications on defense.”

Fast forward then to Sunday night at Madison Square Garden, when the Knicks closed 20 of 38 from beyond the arc, with guard Mikal Bridges 6 of 7 on 3-pointers.

“Not getting back in transition or locating Bridges in transition, he got a lot of wide open shots there,” Powell said, with the Heat turning their attention to Tuesday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center, before a two-day Christmas break. “So, I mean, it’s honestly us and being more mentally locked in and knowing guys’ tendencies and what they like to do.”

The Heat’s approach has long been prioritizing protecting the paint, while also appreciating the need for energetic and timely closeouts at the 3-point arc.

But in what increasingly has evolved into a 3-point league, such daggers become defeating.

Guard Davion Mitchell said it was clear the Heat allowed the Knicks on Sunday to grow their confidence throughout the game from the arc.

Related Articles

• ASK IRA: Is it time for the Heat to start leaning into their future?
• Heat’s Spoelstra says more needed now: ‘It’s got to be another level. It’s not enough’
• Knicks rave about Heat’s Kel’el Ware after monster night: ‘He was a beast’
• ASK IRA: Heat in the midst of a malaise or simply mediocre?
• Winderman’s view: With Adebayo again limited, challenges mount for Heat

“I think when you get comfortable and you kind of let them get open threes or threes that we should contest, and they hit one, you kind of get confidence,” he said. “Just like the beginning game, you get confidence. It’s kind of hard to stop any of those guys because they’re really good players. So I think we got to start at the beginning of the game and not making them comfortable.

“Make their first shot like a hard one or a tough one, a contested three or even just run them off the three-point line, and kind of just live with the results from there and trust our teammates to help us on the backside. So I think we just got to stop letting them get comfortable in the beginning.”

In addition to Bridges’ 3-pointers, the Heat also were victimized by Jalen Brunson’s 6 of 13 from beyond the arc in his 47-point performance, the highest-scoring game against the Heat this season.

“It’s got to be more,” coach Erik Spoelstra said of his team’s 3-point defense. “It could be something different. (Sunday), they hit shots while we were there. Other than Bridges in the first half, I thought he shook free for some transition threes. Brunson’s threes, we’re there. If they’re making them, what it requires is more.

“You don’t know what it requires until you get the stop, and we’re going to get there.”

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — In the wake of the Kansas City Chiefs announcing plans to leave Arrowhead Stadium for a new domed stadium in Kansas in 2031, the home of Chiefs training camp in St. Joseph has provided a statement.

We are beyond proud to have served as the Summer Training Camp home of the Kansas City Chiefs since 2010. Training camp has been a point of pride for our campus, our students, and the greater St. Joseph community. We will continue planning to make future training camps a great experience for the team and the fans," a statement provided by Missouri Western on Monday reads.

The Chiefs reportedly signed a multi-year extension in 2025 with Missouri Western to continue hosting training camp in St. Joseph. Back in July, Chiefs owner Clark Hunt expressed his appreciation of continuing the partnership with Missouri Western.

"It's great for the organization to be able to extend our relationship going forward," Hunt said. "We do believe it's been a key part of helping us win a few championships.

It's unclear exactly how the Chiefs announcement will impact those plans, but the latest statement from Missouri Western indicates planning will continue for training camp in St. Joseph.

For the past 15 years, Missouri Western State University has hosted the annual Chiefs training camp, bringing in thousands of tourists each year from across the country.

CHICAGO — Now would be a good time for all Chicago White Sox fans to declare their true feelings about the state of the organization as the team ends 2025 on an upbeat note.

Is the hard part of the rebuild finally over, or is “Mune Time” a mirage?

The signing of Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami, whom Sox general manager Chris Getz described as a “superstar,” capped off a year in which their most valuable asset was Pope Leo XIV, who was not on the payroll and whose contributions were relegated solely to the marketing of the team.

The pope couldn’t prevent the Sox from their third straight season of 100-plus losses. He could not rush the ownership switch and put Justin Ishbia in Jerry Reinsdorf’s chair. And he couldn’t move the chains on the Sox’s pursuit of a new ballpark in the South Loop.

All he really did was make Sox fans proud that the pope was one of theirs. That and $14 will buy you a beer at Sox Park.

But now the Sox have someone to replace Pope Leo as the centerpiece of the 2026 marketing plan, and the selling of Mune will be something to watch. He made a good first impression Monday at his introductory news conference in the auditorium that was virtually abandoned during the Pedro Grifol era.

Murakami said all the right things through his interpreter about wanting to be a White Sox, and Getz hyped the signing by saying “to be able to have him now wear a White Sox uniform, it cannot be overstated how significant that is.”

So how significant is it?

Financially, not so much. His two-year, $34 million deal pales in comparison to the five-year, $75 million deal for Andrew Benintendi in 2022, the biggest in White Sox history. It’s also not anywhere near the four-year, $73 million deal for Yasmani Grandal in 2019, which signaled the Sox were ending their rebuild and trying to win.

“The signing of Grandal was a mind-blowing one to be honest, especially with (catcher James) McCann having such a great year,” Dallas Keuchel said at the 2020 SoxFest. “It fortifies us (having) two of the best backstops in the league, and that’s really where you build from.”

It didn’t end well on the South Side for Keuchel or Grandal, and the Benintendi deal hasn’t exactly worked out as planned either. But the Murakami signing was mind-blowing in its own way because who thought the Sox could convince a power-hitting free agent to come to the South Side on a two-year deal?

“My main priority was to find the best fit,” Murakami said. “Whether the contract was long or not wasn’t really a factor for myself. I just really believe in the city and the organization, really, really happy to be here.”

It’s here that it must be noted Murakami is going to strike out quite a bit and might be a liability in the field at third or first base. No reason to worry about that now. If he can hit 35-40 home runs and not be a butcher, he’ll be worth the investment.

What he brings to the Sox is hope, which has been missing since the downfall began under Tony La Russa in the summer of 2022. His replacement, Grifol, proved to be the wrong messenger, and executives Ken Williams and Rick Hahn were subsequently fired. Hahn was replaced by Getz after Reinsdorf declined to search for a general manager outside the organization, citing the need to win quickly. Getz was given total control.

“Except when it comes to spending money,” Reinsdorf said that day. “But every owner reserves that right. But now I lost my train of thought. I feel like Mitch McConnell.”

Getz’s first two seasons have been less than inspiring, but an improved core and a manager with a calming presence in Will Venable made the second half of ’25 tolerable. And now he convinced Reinsdorf to go all in on Murakami, who fit the financial profile of a Sox free agent.

Getz said “when we identify a player that we feel like has a chance to really come into the organization and fit with what we’re trying to accomplish, you know I have a conversation with Jerry about it. And in this case, the more we talked about it, obviously talking about Mune and what he’s capable of doing on the field, the international connection, he got more and more excited.”

Well, the two-year commitment at Aldi prices probably got Reinsdorf excited as well. He’s not a Whole Foods kind of guy, as we’ve seen.

We don’t know if Mune, as he was referred to Monday, can take the Sox to the next step of the rebuild, as Grandal and Keuchel did in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. At the very least he’ll get some of the Japanese reporters covering the Los Angeles Dodgers at Camelback Ranch this spring to take the short hike over to the Sox clubhouse and check in on the newest Japanese sensation.

Murakami said he got great reviews of Chicago from Cubs players Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga, and hopefully he can match their popularity in his two-year stint. Sox fans could use a superstar, especially one who can hit home runs and help them win some games.

“Obviously I’ve heard that this club has lost a lot of games in the past, but that is in the past,” he said. “I only look forward.”

That’s always the best direction to look.

Maybe he’ll blow our minds in 2026, leading the Sox out of the rebuild desert and getting the pope off the hook.

It’s worth a shot.

____

CLEVELAND — Fort Hill graduate Ty Johnson scored the 15th touchdown of his career to give the Buffalo Bills the lead Sunday in Cleveland.

Johnson took a handoff and made a defender miss in the hole to find the goal line from two yards out, giving Buffalo a 13-7 lead with 12:54 left in the second quarter.

Buffalo went on to win the game over the Browns, 23-20.

The seventh-year NFL veteran gained the final 16 yards of the Buffalo scoring drive himself on three straight carries, the longest a nine-yard scamper.

Johnson has two rushing touchdowns this season and seven in his career. He has eight receiving scores.

Entering Sunday, Johnson had 29 carries for 133 yards and 19 receptions for 210 yards and another touchdown on the season.

Johnson’s receiving score on Nov. 16 against Tampa Bay was the longest of his career — a 52-yard catch-and-run from Josh Allen.

Johnson led Fort Hill to back-to-back state championships in 2013-14, winning Area Player of the Year both seasons before signing with the University of Maryland. He was a sixth-round pick by the Detroit Lions in 2019.