Hometown Broadcasting Sports Monday 12/28/20
28 December 2020 Sports
Sports for December 28th
Davante Adams caught three of Aaron Rodgers’ four touchdown passes as the Green Bay Packers trounced the Tennessee Titans 40-14 for their fifth consecutive victory on a snowy Sunday evening. The Packers (12-3) already have clinched the NFC North title and can earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs if they win at Chicago (8-7) or Seattle (11-4) loses at San Francisco (6-9) next week. Green Bay ran wild behind 124 yards and two touchdowns from A.J. Dillon and 94 yards from Aaron Jones. Dillon, a second-round pick from Boston College, had run for just 115 yards all season during a rookie year in which he spent over a month on the COVID-19 reserve list. Tennessee (10-5) squandered an opportunity to clinch its first AFC South championship since 2008. The Titans still can clinch a division title and their second straight playoff berth by winning at Houston (4-11) next week.
Adams’ three touchdown catches gave him 17 this season, one off the Packers’ single-season game regular season record that Sterling Sharpe set in 1994. Adams, who caught 11 passes for 142 yards Sunday, leads the NFL in touchdown receptions despite missing two games with a hamstring injury.
This game showcased why the Packers want to make sure the playoffs go through Lambeau Field after losing on the road in three of the last six NFC championship games. With snow falling throughout the first half and continuing to cover much of the field the rest of the game, Green Bay moved the ball at will all night. The Packers’ defense also played well while picking off two passes from Ryan Tannehill, who went 11 of 24 for 121 yards. Tennessee’s Derrick Henry rushed for 98 yards on 23 carries, ending his streak of nine consecutive road games in which he’d run for at least 100 yards.
Green Bay pulled ahead 19-0 when Rodgers threw touchdown passes on each of their first three possessions. Tennessee got back in the game by scoring two touchdowns in a 3 1/2-minute span midway through the game. Tannehill’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith with 43 seconds left in the second quarter made it 19-7. With the Titans facing third-and-1 on the opening series of the second half, Tannehill faked a handoff to Henry and raced 45 yards untouched to cut Tennessee’s lead to 19-14.
Rodgers completed 21 of 25 passes for 231 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. He completed passes to eight different receivers. Adams caught 11 passes for 142 yards and three scores. Dillon rushed for 124 yards on 24 carries and scored twice while Jones gained 94 yards on 10 carries and in the process went over 1,000 yards for the second straight season.
The Packers played without running back Jamaal Williams, who injured his quadriceps a week earlier in a 24-16 victory over Carolina. Offensive tackle Rick Wagner suffered a knee injury during the game.
The Packers already have clinched the NFC North title, and with Sunday’s win, move to a 12-4 record. They can earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs if they win at Chicago or Seattle loses at San Francisco next week. NFL officials bumped next week’s game at Chicago to 3:25 p.m. It was previously scheduled to begin at 12 p.m.
Elswhere in the NFC North, Tampa Bay pounded the Lions in Detroit on Saturday, 47-7 as Tom Brady threw four touchdown passes. Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford was forced to leave the game in the first quarter with an ankle injury and did not return. On Friday, the New Orleans Saints at home dominated the Minnesota Vikings 52-33 to end the Vikings playoff hopes. Alvin Kumara rushed for an NFL record six touchdowns on the way to gaining 155 yards on 22 carries. Drew Brees was 19 of 26 for 311 yards and was picked off twice as the Saints improved to 11-4 in the NFC South. Vikings’ quarterback was 27 of 41 for 291 yards and three touchdowns while Dalvin Cook rushed for 73 yards on 15 carries and one touchdown as Minnesota drops to 6-9. On Sunday, the Bears routed the Jaguars 41-17 at Jacksonville to keep their playoff hopes alive. Chicago quarterback Mitchell Trubisky completed 24 of 35 passes for 265 yards, two touchdowns to tight end Jimmy Graham and had one pass picked off. David Montgomery rushed for 95 yards on 23 carries and one touchdown.
In Monday Night Football, Buffalo is at New England.
The NFL is planning to expand the regular season to 17 games in 2021 — a historic move that would generate new revenue and could at least slightly soften an anticipated drop in the salary cap next year, sources say.
An announcement may not come for weeks, if not months, since the NFL must first negotiate at least one new media contract in order to make the move to 17 games in 2021, per the collective bargaining agreement. But as one team source apprised of discussions said: “We’re all anticipating it’s going to happen.”
In turn, the preseason would be cut to either two or three games. There still would be one bye week per club, extending the total regular season to 18 weeks and pushing back the Super Bowl into the second week of February.
The NFL has played a 16-game regular season since 1978, when it added two games to each team’s schedule. Under the new CBA finalized this past March, the league and/or clubs have the discretion to increase the number of regular-season games per club to 17 — but not more — at any time, in concert with a reduction in the number of preseason games to no more than three.
D’Mitrk Trice scored a season-high 29 points, lifting No. 9 Wisconsin to a 85-76 win over No. 12 Michigan State on Friday. The Badgers (8-1, 2-0 Big Ten) won at the Breslin Center for the first time since 2004 and extended their Big Ten winning streak to 10 games, dating to last season when they shared the conference championship with the Spartans and Maryland. Michigan State (6-2, 0-2) trailed by two points before Wisconsin scored 14 of the last 21 points over the final 4:03 to turn a closely contested game into a lopsided result. Joey Hauser scored a career-high 27 points, but he didn’t get much help from his teammates offensively. Aaron Henry was the only other Spartan to score in double figures, but he was 5 of 13 from the field for 12 points. The Badgers, meanwhile, had balance with four double-digit scorers, and they were much more active defensively as a team. Wisconsin’s Aleem Ford scored 13 points while Brad Davison and Micah Potter each had 11. Wisconsin hosts the Maryland Terrapins on Monday night, shooting to extend its 15-game winning streak at home.
Amari Davis scored a career-high 35 points but the Green Bay Phoenix lost 90-77 to Wright State. PJ Pipes scored 10 points, Ryan Claflin and Paris Taylor had 7. Wright State notched its sixth consecutive win and moved to a perfect 4-0 in Horizon League play. The Raiders were led by Jaylon Hall, who finished with 22 points while going 7-of-9 in 32 minutes. Reigning HL Player of the Year Loudon Love finished with 15 points, nine rebounds in 27 minutes. Green Bay now falls to 0-8 overall and 0-4 in HL play. They will look to win its first game in the New Year, as the Phoenix returns to Ohio next weekend to play Youngstown State.
The New York Knicks blew out the Milwaukee Bucks at Madison Square Garden on Sunday 130-110. Two days after the Bucks routed the Golden State Warriors 138-99, Milwaukee was dominated by the Knicks to fall to 1-2 on the season. Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with 27 point and Khris Middleton had 22. Julius Randle led New York with 29 points and Elfrid Payton chipped in with 27.
In girls basketball tonight, Montello is at Wautoma.
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