Sports Headlines: Monday, October 5, 2020

Top Sports Headlines

NBA=

Jimmy Butler put the depleted Heat on his back to close the gap on the Lakers in the NBA Finals. The All-Star forward notched the third 40-point triple-double in Finals history to propel Miami to a 115-104 win in Game 3, cutting Los Angeles’ lead in the series to two games to one. Butler matched a postseason career high in points and added 11 rebounds and 13 assists for the Heat, who trailed by two early in the fourth quarter before pulling ahead to stay with a 14-4 run. Miami prevailed despite point guard Goran Dragic and center Bam Adebayo missing a second straight game with injuries, and will try to even the series in Tuesday’s Game 4.

NFL=

The Seahawks and Bills are the first teams to start 4-0 this season after both posted victories behind another strong performance from their star quarterbacks. Russell Wilson threw for 360 yards and two touchdowns in Seattle’s 31-23 win at steamy Miami, while Josh Allen threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to lead Buffalo past the Raiders 30-23. Wilson’s 15 TD passes in 2020 tied Peyton Manning’s NFL record for the most by any player in a season’s first four games, while Allen has matched a Bills franchise record with 12 touchdown passes through the first four weeks.

The Chiefs and Packers can also move to 4-0 as part of an unexpected Monday night doubleheader. The NFL has officially moved Kansas City’s game with New England back a day after players on both teams tested positive for the coronavirus, with the contest set to kick off at 7:05 Eastern Time. The league also pushed back the start of Green Bay’s game with the Falcons to 8:50 p.m. as part of the switch. Veteran Brian Hoyer will reportedly start at quarterback for New England with Cam Newton on the COVID-19 reserve list.

Tom Brady threw for 369 yards and five touchdowns to help rally the Buccaneers from a 17-point deficit to beat the Chargers 38-31. The Bucs trailed 24-7 in the second quarter, with Los Angeles getting one of its scores on a 78-yard pick-six by Michael Davis off a Brady pass. Brady responded by throwing touchdown passes to five different players for the first time in his career. Rookie Justin Herbert completed 20 of 25 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns for the Chargers, who’ve lost three in a row.

The Eagles scored two touchdowns in a span of eight seconds in the fourth quarter to defeat the 49ers 25-20 for their first win of the season. After Carson Wentz’s 42-yard touchdown pass to Travis Fulgham with 5:50 remaining gave Philadelphia an 18-14 lead, Alex Singleton intercepted Nick Mullens on the next play from scrimmage and returned it 30 yards for a game-sealing touchdown. Mullens, subbing for an injured Jimmy Garappolo for a second straight week, had three turnovers in all and was replaced by C.J. Beathard following the pick-six. The win put the Eagles atop the struggling NFC East with a 1-2-1 record.

The Saints rallied from an early two-touchdown deficit to beat the Lions 35-29 in a game that was uncertain to even be played after New Orleans fullback Michael Burton had a false positive test for the coronavirus Saturday. Drew Brees threw two touchdown passes to Tre’Quan Smith 2:19 apart in the second quarter, while Latavius Murray scored two rushing touchdowns to help the Saints put an end to their first two-game losing streak in three years. With New Orleans’ comeback win, Detroit became the first team in NFL history to lose six straight games in which it led by double digits.

The Browns are 3-1 for the first time since 2001 after holding on for a 49-38 win at Dallas. Cleveland led 41-14 in the fourth
quarter before the Cowboys scored 24 straight points on three TDs and three 2-point conversions to cut the deficit to three.
Cleveland’s Odell Beckham Jr. then scored on a 50-yard run on a reverse to put the game away. Baker Mayfield had two TD passes and Kareem Hunt had a pair of TD runs for a Cleveland team that rushed for 307 yards despite losing Nick Chubb to a knee injury in the first quarter. Dak Prescott had four touchdown passes and a career-high 502 passing yards to become the first NFL QB to throw for 450-plus yards in three straight games, but he also had an interception and lost a fumble.

Lamar Jackson scored his first rushing touchdown of the season on a 50-yard scamper – the longest run of his career – in the Ravens’ 31-17 win at Washington. The reigning league MVP also threw for two touchdowns to help Baltimore improve to 3-1 and bounce back from Monday’s humbling loss to Kansas City. The Rams are also 3-1 after bouncing back from a Week 3 loss by beating the lowly Giants 17-9, a game marred by a postgame fight between Los Angeles cornerback Jalen Ramsey and New York wide receiver Golden Tate. The Colts are now 3-1 as well after defeating Chicago 19-11, the first loss for the Bears after a 3-0 start.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL=

In the latest AP Top 25, Clemson and Alabama are still 1-2, while Georgia and Florida switched spots, with the Bulldogs now at three and the Gators ranked fourth. Notre Dame was idle over the weekend and stayed at No. 5, while Ohio State remained at No. 6 despite being weeks away from starting its season. Five teams dropped out of the poll, including Oklahoma, which was ranked 18th, and UCF, which went from 11th to unranked. Iowa State is back in the poll at No. 24 after beating the Sooners for the first time since 1960.

NASCAR=

Denny Hamlin passed Matt DiBenedetto at the finish line to finish 0.023 seconds ahead of him to win the YellaWood 500 at Talladega. Erik Jones ended up being the runner-up after finishing 0.086 seconds behind Hamlin after DiBenedetto was penalized for forcing a car below the double yellow line. Playoff drivers Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch and Aric Almirola ended up not finishing.

TENNIS=

Top-seeded Simona Halep has been upset at the French Open as Polish teenager Iga Swiatek won in straight sets to eliminate the 2018 champion and reach the quarterfinals. No. 5 Kiki Bertens was also ousted by Italian qualifier Martina Trevisan. Third-seeded Elina Svitolina, however, moved on after beating Caroline Garcia in straight sets and will face Argentinian qualifier Nadia Podoroska.

On the men’s side, 12-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal cruised past qualifier Sebastian Korda to reach his 14th
quarterfinal in Paris. He’ll next face 19-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner, who upset U.S. Open finalist Alexander Zverev in four sets. Sinner is the first man to make the quarterfinals in his French Open debut since Nadal in 2005. Two-time French Open runner-up Dominic Thiem survived a comeback bid from the 239th-ranked Hugo Gaston to win in five sets. The third-seeded Thiem next faces No. 12 seed Diego Schwartzman.

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10-04-2020 22:10:14