NFL – National Football League – Week 16
Last Night

Los  Angeles Chargers 20, Indianapolis Colts 3

Chargers 20,  Colts 3 – Chargers reach playoffs, beat Foles, overmatched Colts 20-3

  Austin Ekeler scored  on two 1-yard runs and the Los Angeles Chargers clinched their first playoff  berth since 2018, intercepting Indianapolis quarterback Nick Foles three times  to beat the overmatched Colts 20-3. Justin Herbert threw for 235 yards and  Cameron Dicker made two short field goals for the Chargers, who won their third  straight after getting the help they needed this weekend from Las Vegas, Miami,  New England and the New York Jets. Los Angeles won on the road on a Monday night  for the first time in more than a decade. Indianapolis lost its fifth straight  under interim coach Jeff Saturday.

NFL – Campbell: Lions will learn from loss, be ready  for Bears

  The Detroit Lions could have gained the advantage for  an NFC wild-card playoff berth with a victory last weekend. They instead got  run over by the Carolina Panthers on Saturday, 37-23. Detroit coach Dan  Campbell doesn’t necessarily look at it as a bad thing. He’s trying to spin the  outcome into a positive. The good news for the Lions is that most of the other  contenders for the final two wild-card spots also lost over the weekend.  Detroit plays its final home game against Chicago on Sunday, then heads to  Green Bay for the regular-season finale.

NFL – Eberflus: Bears won’t consider sitting Fields  rest of season

  Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus insists the team  won’t shut down quarterback Justin Fields for the remaining two games. Fields  was hobbling at the end of Saturday’s 35-13 loss to the Buffalo Bills after  someone stepped on his foot. His nonthrowing, left shoulder also bothered him  during the game. That’s the same one he separated last month. But Eberflus said  Monday sitting him the rest of the way is “absolutely not” a consideration  because the Bears need to improve. The Bears matched the 1978 and 2002 teams  for the franchise record with their eighth straight loss.

NFL – Another QB change for Colts produces same futile  results

  The Indianapolis Colts tried their third starting  quarterback of the season Monday night. It didn’t make a difference. Indy’s  struggling offense produced just one field goal and no third-down conversions.  Nick Foles threw three interceptions and was sacked seven times. For the Colts,  this kind of futility has been the norm regardless of whether Matt Ryan, Sam  Ehlinger or Foles was behind center. And with only two games remaining in this  season of futility, the Colts seem to be out of options.

NFL – Broncos fire rookie head coach Hackett after  4-11 start

  The Denver Broncos have fired coach Nathaniel Hackett  after 15 games. Hackett never was able to get quarterback Russell Wilson out of  a season-long slump. The Broncos are 4-11 and have posted their sixth straight  losing season and are missing the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season.  Hackett replaced Vic Fangio last January but the Broncos got worse in almost  every category under the first-time head coach. Players were told during a team  meeting Monday that senior assistant coach Jerry Rosburg will serve as interim  head coach.

NHL – National Hockey League
Tonight

  Chicago  Blackhawks at Carolina Hurricanes, 7:00 p.m.

NCAAFB – College Football – Bowls
Yesterday
Quick Lane Bowl – Ford Field – Detroit

  New  Mexico State 24, Bowling Green 19

New Mexico  State 24, Bowling Green 19 – New Mexico State holds off Bowling Green in Quick  Lane Bowl

  Diego Pavia threw for  167 yards and two touchdowns, and New Mexico State held off a late rally by  Bowling Green to win the Quick Lane Bowl 24-19. The Aggies were up 24-7 late in  the third quarter, but the Falcons closed the gap in the fourth quarter. It was  24-19 after a field goal, a safety off of a blocked punt and Camden Orth’s  19-yard touchdown pass to Tyrone Broden with 6:27 left. Bowling Green lost  starting quarterback Matt McDonald early in the first quarter when he was hit  late by Aggies safety Dylan Early while going out of bounds on a third-down  run.

NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night

  Los  Angeles Clippers 142, Detroit Pistons 131 – OT 

  Houston  Rockets 133, Chicago Bulls 118

  New  Orleans Pelicans 113, Indiana Pacers 93

Clippers 142,  Pistons 131 – OT – George, Clippers rally late, beat Pistons 142-131 in OT 

  Paul George scored 32  points and the Los Angeles Clippers overcame a 14-point deficit in the final  3:34 of regulation to beat the Detroit Pistons 142-131 in overtime. Terance  Mann hit a tying jumper with 5 seconds left in regulation to cap a closing 16-2  run for the Clippers, who trailed 126-112 with 3:34 remaining. Los Angeles then  outscored Detroit 14-3 in the extra period. Ivica Zubac added 12 points and 15  rebounds for Los Angeles, which has beaten Detroit eight straight times. The  Clippers had seven players in double figures. Bojan Bogdanovic led Detroit with  23 points, including the Pistons’ only field goal of the last eight minutes.

Rockets 133,  Bulls 118 – Porter’s 36 points lead Rockets past Bulls 133-118

  Kevin Porter Jr.  scored a season-high 36 points and the Houston Rockets pulled away in the  second half for a 133-118 victory over the Chicago Bulls. The Rockets sank 50  of 90 shots to help snap a five-game losing streak. DeMar DeRozan scored 31  points to lead Chicago, which had its three-game winning streak snapped. The  Rockets blew an 18-point first-quarter lead but countered with a 17-1 run in  the third to erase a 74-67 deficit.      

Pelicans 113,  Pacers 93 – Marshall leads short-handed Pelicans past Pacers, 113-93

  Naji Marshall scored a  career-high 22 points, Jonas Valanciunas had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the  short-handed New Orleans Pelicans extended their winning streak to three games,  beating the Indiana Pacers 113-93. Rookie Bennedict Mathurin led the Pacers  with 15 points in 22 minutes off the bench. Myles Turner scored 14 points for  Indiana. 

Tonight

  Atlanta  Hawks at Indiana Pacers, 7:30 p.m.

NCAAMBKB – Men’s College Basketball
Tonight

  Jacksonville  at Notre Dame, 7:00 p.m.

NCAAMBKB – No. 1 Purdue headlines AP Top 25; Miami  leaps, UNC returns

  Purdue remained atop The Associated Press men’s  college basketball poll for a third straight week. The week also included  preseason No. 1 North Carolina returning to the rankings at No. 25 and New  Mexico cracking the poll for the first time in eight years. The Boilermakers  earned 40 of 60 first-place votes in Monday’s new poll, while fellow unbeaten  Connecticut earned the other 20 to sit at No. 2 in an unchanged top. Houston,  Kansas and Arizona rounded out the top five. Miami made the week’s biggest jump  by climbing eight spots to No. 14.

NCAAWBKB – No. 1 South Carolina women reach milestone  in AP Top 25

  South Carolina maintained its hold on top of The  Associated Press women’s basketball poll. The Gamecocks have held the No. 1  spot for 27 consecutive weeks. That is the fifth longest run all-time. UConn  has three of the top four streaks, including the record 51-week run from Feb.  18, 2008 to Dec. 10, 2010. Louisiana Tech has the second longest streak of 36  weeks. The top five teams remained unchanged as Stanford, Ohio State, Indiana  and Notre Dame stayed behind the Gamecocks. South Carolina hosts Texas A&M  on Thursday.

NCAAHKY – College Hockey
Tonight
57th Great Lakes Invitational – Van Andel  Arena – Grand Rapids

  Western  Michigan vs. Michigan Tech, 3:30 p.m.

  Michigan  State vs. Ferris State, 7:00 p.m.

MHSAA – High School Sports
Tonight
Boys Basketball
Earl McKee Holiday Classic at Benton Harbor Farnum Gym

  Ypsilanti  Lincoln vs. Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills, 5:15 p.m.

  Kalamazoo  Loy Norrix at Benton Harbor, 7:00 p.m.

Girls Basketball

  Grand  Rapids Ottawa Hills at Benton Harbor, 3:30 p.m.

NFL – National Football League – Week 16 
 Last Night 
Los Angeles Chargers 20, Indianapolis Colts 3
Chargers 20, Colts 3 – Chargers reach playoffs, beat Foles, overmatched Colts 20-3 
 Austin Ekeler scored on two 1-yard runs and the Los Angeles Chargers clinched their first playoff berth since 2018, intercepting Indianapolis quarterback Nick Foles three times to beat the overmatched Colts 20-3. Justin Herbert threw for 235 yards and Cameron Dicker made two short field goals for the Chargers, who won their third straight after getting the help they needed this weekend from Las Vegas, Miami, New England and the New York Jets. Los Angeles won on the road on a Monday night for the first time in more than a decade. Indianapolis lost its fifth straight under interim coach Jeff Saturday.
NFL – Campbell: Lions will learn from loss, be ready for Bears 
 The Detroit Lions could have gained the advantage for an NFC wild-card playoff berth with a victory last weekend. They instead got run over by the Carolina Panthers on Saturday, 37-23. Detroit coach Dan Campbell doesn&rsquo;t necessarily look at it as a bad thing. He&rsquo;s trying to spin the outcome into a positive. The good news for the Lions is that most of the other contenders for the final two wild-card spots also lost over the weekend. Detroit plays its final home game against Chicago on Sunday, then heads to Green Bay for the regular-season finale.
NFL – Eberflus: Bears won&#8217;t consider sitting Fields rest of season 
 Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus insists the team won&rsquo;t shut down quarterback Justin Fields for the remaining two games. Fields was hobbling at the end of Saturday&rsquo;s 35-13 loss to the Buffalo Bills after someone stepped on his foot. His nonthrowing, left shoulder also bothered him during the game. That&#8217;s the same one he separated last month. But Eberflus said Monday sitting him the rest of the way is &ldquo;absolutely not&rdquo; a consideration because the Bears need to improve. The Bears matched the 1978 and 2002 teams for the franchise record with their eighth straight loss.
NFL – Another QB change for Colts produces same futile results 
 The Indianapolis Colts tried their third starting quarterback of the season Monday night. It didn&#8217;t make a difference. Indy&#8217;s struggling offense produced just one field goal and no third-down conversions. Nick Foles threw three interceptions and was sacked seven times. For the Colts, this kind of futility has been the norm regardless of whether Matt Ryan, Sam Ehlinger or Foles was behind center. And with only two games remaining in this season of futility, the Colts seem to be out of options.
NFL – Broncos fire rookie head coach Hackett after 4-11 start 
 The Denver Broncos have fired coach Nathaniel Hackett after 15 games. Hackett never was able to get quarterback Russell Wilson out of a season-long slump. The Broncos are 4-11 and have posted their sixth straight losing season and are missing the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season. Hackett replaced Vic Fangio last January but the Broncos got worse in almost every category under the first-time head coach. Players were told during a team meeting Monday that senior assistant coach Jerry Rosburg will serve as interim head coach.
NHL – National Hockey League 
 Tonight 
 Chicago Blackhawks at Carolina Hurricanes, 7:00 p.m.
NCAAFB – College Football &#8211; Bowls 
 Yesterday 
 Quick Lane Bowl – Ford Field &#8211; Detroit 
 New Mexico State 24, Bowling Green 19
New Mexico State 24, Bowling Green 19 – New Mexico State holds off Bowling Green in Quick Lane Bowl 
 Diego Pavia threw for 167 yards and two touchdowns, and New Mexico State held off a late rally by Bowling Green to win the Quick Lane Bowl 24-19. The Aggies were up 24-7 late in the third quarter, but the Falcons closed the gap in the fourth quarter. It was 24-19 after a field goal, a safety off of a blocked punt and Camden Orth&rsquo;s 19-yard touchdown pass to Tyrone Broden with 6:27 left. Bowling Green lost starting quarterback Matt McDonald early in the first quarter when he was hit late by Aggies safety Dylan Early while going out of bounds on a third-down run.
NBA – National Basketball Association 
 Last Night 
 Los Angeles Clippers 142, Detroit Pistons 131 – OT 
 Houston Rockets 133, Chicago Bulls 118 
 New Orleans Pelicans 113, Indiana Pacers 93
Clippers 142, Pistons 131 – OT – George, Clippers rally late, beat Pistons 142-131 in OT 
 Paul George scored 32 points and the Los Angeles Clippers overcame a 14-point deficit in the final 3:34 of regulation to beat the Detroit Pistons 142-131 in overtime. Terance Mann hit a tying jumper with 5 seconds left in regulation to cap a closing 16-2 run for the Clippers, who trailed 126-112 with 3:34 remaining. Los Angeles then outscored Detroit 14-3 in the extra period. Ivica Zubac added 12 points and 15 rebounds for Los Angeles, which has beaten Detroit eight straight times. The Clippers had seven players in double figures. Bojan Bogdanovic led Detroit with 23 points, including the Pistons&rsquo; only field goal of the last eight minutes.
Rockets 133, Bulls 118 – Porter&#8217;s 36 points lead Rockets past Bulls 133-118 
 Kevin Porter Jr. scored a season-high 36 points and the Houston Rockets pulled away in the second half for a 133-118 victory over the Chicago Bulls. The Rockets sank 50 of 90 shots to help snap a five-game losing streak. DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points to lead Chicago, which had its three-game winning streak snapped. The Rockets blew an 18-point first-quarter lead but countered with a 17-1 run in the third to erase a 74-67 deficit.      
Pelicans 113, Pacers 93 – Marshall leads short-handed Pelicans past Pacers, 113-93 
 Naji Marshall scored a career-high 22 points, Jonas Valanciunas had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the short-handed New Orleans Pelicans extended their winning streak to three games, beating the Indiana Pacers 113-93. Rookie Bennedict Mathurin led the Pacers with 15 points in 22 minutes off the bench. Myles Turner scored 14 points for Indiana. 
Tonight 
 Atlanta Hawks at Indiana Pacers, 7:30 p.m.
NCAAMBKB – Men&rsquo;s College Basketball 
 Tonight 
 Jacksonville at Notre Dame, 7:00 p.m.
NCAAMBKB – No. 1 Purdue headlines AP Top 25; Miami leaps, UNC returns 
 Purdue remained atop The Associated Press men&rsquo;s college basketball poll for a third straight week. The week also included preseason No. 1 North Carolina returning to the rankings at No. 25 and New Mexico cracking the poll for the first time in eight years. The Boilermakers earned 40 of 60 first-place votes in Monday&rsquo;s new poll, while fellow unbeaten Connecticut earned the other 20 to sit at No. 2 in an unchanged top. Houston, Kansas and Arizona rounded out the top five. Miami made the week&#8217;s biggest jump by climbing eight spots to No. 14.
NCAAWBKB – No. 1 South Carolina women reach milestone in AP Top 25 
 South Carolina maintained its hold on top of The Associated Press women&rsquo;s basketball poll. The Gamecocks have held the No. 1 spot for 27 consecutive weeks. That is the fifth longest run all-time. UConn has three of the top four streaks, including the record 51-week run from Feb. 18, 2008 to Dec. 10, 2010. Louisiana Tech has the second longest streak of 36 weeks. The top five teams remained unchanged as Stanford, Ohio State, Indiana and Notre Dame stayed behind the Gamecocks. South Carolina hosts Texas A&amp;M on Thursday.
NCAAHKY – College Hockey 
 Tonight 
 57th Great Lakes Invitational – Van Andel Arena – Grand Rapids 
 Western Michigan vs. Michigan Tech, 3:30 p.m. 
 Michigan State vs. Ferris State, 7:00 p.m.
MHSAA – High School Sports 
 Tonight 
 Boys Basketball 
 Earl McKee Holiday Classic at Benton Harbor Farnum Gym 
 Ypsilanti Lincoln vs. Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills, 5:15 p.m. 
 Kalamazoo Loy Norrix at Benton Harbor, 7:00 p.m.
Girls Basketball 
 Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills at Benton Harbor, 3:30 p.m.

Depend On Us. Featuring local news, weather, sports, and people on The Morning Show with Jonny Reinhardt & Ken Lundberg weekday mornings from 6-9am. Find local stories, state news, sports, video and more at wsjm.com and the WSJM Mobile app!

Depend On Us. Featuring local news, weather, sports, and people on The Morning Show with Jonny Reinhardt &amp; Ken Lundberg weekday mornings from 6-9am. Find local stories, state news, sports, video and more at wsjm.com and the WSJM Mobile app!

News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM

NFL – National Football League – Week 16 Last Night Los Angeles Chargers 20, Indianapolis Colts 3 Chargers 20, Colts 3 – Chargers reach playoffs, beat Foles, overmatched Colts 20-3 Austin Ekeler scored on two 1-yard runs

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