preview Page 135 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

No. 2 Duke hopes to grow from close call, has NC State next
Even coming off a critical road test, there's little chance No. 2 Duke will overlook its next opponent.,The Blue Devils have Monday night's home assignment against North Carolina State in Durham, N.C.,Duke (17-2, 9-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) has won 13 consecutive games, with none tougher than pul...

Raptors try to keep stacking wins, host Pelicans
The suddenly surging Toronto Raptors aim to extend their season-best three-game winning streak when they return home to face the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night.,Toronto completed a two-game road sweep of the Atlanta Hawks with a 117-94 victory on Saturday. The Raptors have won five of their pa...

Quinn Hughes sparks Canucks into battle vs. Blues
Defenseman Quinn Hughes is doing his best to keep the Vancouver Canucks in the Western Conference playoff chase.,He's scored five goals and earned two assists in his past five games leading into Monday night's contest against the host St. Louis Blues.,Canucks goaltender Kevin Lankinen faced Hughes t...

Devils take injury issues into matchup with Flyers
Injuries have suddenly become a topic of concern for the New Jersey Devils heading into their matchup at the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday.,One game after losing No. 1 goalie Jacob Markstrom to an MCL strain, the Devils watched team captain Nico Hischier depart 36 seconds into the third period of a ...

No. 21 Michigan hopes lessons learned translate vs. Penn State
No. 21 Michigan likely will fall out of the Associated Press Top 25 before it plays host to Penn State on Monday night in Ann Arbor, Mich., following a humbling 91-64 defeat against No. 11 Purdue on Friday. ,But first-year Wolverines coach Dusty May wants his team to use the loss as a tool from whic...

Kings out to get revival back on track vs. Nets
The Sacramento Kings are appreciative that De'Aaron Fox has been playing through a thumb injury and other ailments, even as the production has taken a hit in recent games.,Coming off their most lopsided loss under interim coach Doug Christie, the Kings hope to see Fox heat up Monday night when they ...

Rockets bring road success into matchup with Celtics
As if facing the defending NBA champions on the road was not enough, the visiting Houston Rockets must also contend with the development that the Boston Celtics' Derrick White appears to have broken out of his shooting slump when the teams plays Monday night.,White entered Saturday's matchup with th...

Surging Blazers aim to buckle down vs. West-leading Thunder
The Portland Trail Blazers will put their season-high four-game winning streak to the test when they face the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday.,Portland is beginning a seven-game homestand with a matchup against the Western Conference-leading Thunder, who are trying to bounce back from a 121...

Northwestern eyes elusive road win vs. No. 17 Illinois
Northwestern hasn't won at Illinois since January 2013 -- two months before Chris Collins became the Wildcats' head coach., ,Collins has led Northwestern to the first three NCAA Tournament appearances in school annals, yet he hasn't been able to lead the Wildcats to a victory in Champaign. They've l...

On 3-game win streak, Texas Tech hosts struggling Oklahoma St.
Texas Tech will look for its fourth straight win and a push that could move the team back to the Top 25 when the Red Raiders host Oklahoma State on Sunday afternoon in a Big 12 Conference clash in Lubbock, Texas.,The Red Raiders (14-4, 5-2) have been at their best as they have gotten healthier over ...

Strong at home, No. 18 Wisconsin out to extend Nebraska's skid
After splitting a pair of games on the West Coast, No. 18 Wisconsin is looking forward to home-court advantage in a Big Ten matchup against Nebraska on Sunday afternoon in Madison, Wis.,Wisconsin (15-4, 5-3) lost at UCLA 85-83 on Tuesday to end a seven-game winning streak. ,Nebraska (12-7, 2-6) has ...

Richie Saunders leads BYU into Big 12 clash vs. Cincinnati
Despite the hype that has surrounded BYU freshman Egor Demin -- a potential NBA lottery draft pick -- it's junior Richie Saunders who has been the Cougars' MVP and steadiest player this season.,BYU (12-6, 3-4 Big 12) will lean on Saunders again Saturday night when it hosts Cincinnati (12-6, 2-5) and...

Panthers eye return to Cup form vs. lowly Sharks
The Florida Panthers will look to return to the win column after blowing a third-period lead when they continue their four-game road swing Saturday against the San Jose Sharks.,The defending Stanley Cup champions have been inconsistent lately, although they have managed to win three of their last fi...

Filip Forsberg, Preds surging offensively with Ducks up next
Filip Forsberg will look to break his own franchise record by scoring a goal in his eighth straight game on Saturday night when the Nashville Predators finish a two-game California road trip against the Anaheim Ducks., ,Forsberg scored twice in a 6-5 victory over the host San Jose Sharks on Thursday...

Capitals cruise into Vancouver riding 6-game win streak
The Washington Capitals look for their seventh straight win when they visit the scuffling Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night.,The Capitals shut out the host Seattle Kraken 3-0 on Thursday night, increasing their point streak to 12 games (9-0-3). Washington has won the first two games of its five-ga...

Clemson rising, but must take care of business at Virginia Tech
Off to its second-best start ever in ACC play, Clemson might be tempted to look ahead two weeks when the Tigers host conference blue bloods Duke and North Carolina in a span of three days.,But first, Clemson (16-4, 8-1) must take care of business against three teams with losing records in the confer...

Baylor tries to land another punch in Big 12 play vs. Utah
Kansas State received something unexpected after Wednesday's loss to Baylor -- a motivational postgame speech from the opponent's head coach.,Baylor coach Scott Drew, whose Bears (12-6, 4-3 Big 12) play Utah (11-7, 3-4) on Saturday in Salt Lake City, delivered a unique act of compassion after the 70...

UCF, TCU eye win to break out of Big 12 logjam
A pair of Big 12 teams battling to stay within the top half of the conference standings square off Saturday when UCF hosts TCU in Orlando, Fla.,The Knights (12-6, 3-4 Big 12) and Horned Frogs (10-8, 3-4) entered Friday in a four-way tie for eighth place with BYU and Utah. UCF aims to break a two-gam...

Speculation swirls around Suns' Bradley Beal as Wizards visit
The Phoenix Suns are showing life, with seven wins in 10 games to move a game above .500.,But uncertainty remains as the Suns open a three-game homestand against the lowly Washington Wizards on Saturday night.,Rumors continue to run rampant that Phoenix will try to acquire disgruntled Jimmy Butler f...

Focus is on bigs as Warriors get rematch with Lakers
Quinten Post gets introduced to one of the NBA's biggest rivalries when the Golden State Warriors host the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night in San Francisco.,Post, a Netherlands native who played collegiately at Mississippi State and Boston College, has played six NBA games for the Warriors sinc...