Investec Champions Cup Sale Sharks (12) 29 Tries: JL du Preez, Roebuck, Carpenter, B Curry Cons: R du Preez 3 Pen: R du Preez Racing 92 (7) 7 Tries: Gogichashvili Con : Le Garrec Sale righted their Champions Cup campaign as they took advantage of Racing 92's errors and inconsistencies to earn a comfortable victory at Salford Community Stadium. Jean-Luc du Preez and Tom Roebuck's tries established a five-point half-time advantage for the hosts, before Joe Carpenter scampered in and Ben Curry shoved over to ensure the Sharks could see out the contest in comfort. With the home fans serenading their team, Rob du Preez powered over, only to see his try chalked off for a knock-on. But it couldn't take the shine off a deeply satisfying night for coach Alex Sanderson. Bottom of pool four after coming away from Glasgow without a losing bonus point in the opening round, Sale climb to second with a weekend of action to come elsewhere. The top four qualify for the last 16, with the top two in each of the four pools having home advantage for the knockouts. The Sharks delivered on Sanderson's pre-match request to test Racing's commitment to the competition with their physicality. The swirling Salford drizzle didn't add to the attraction for Racing, who beat Harlequins at home in the opening round, as they underwhelmed throughout. Neither side could gain supremacy for much of an opening quarter which featured a touchline skirmish that pitted England second rows past and future – Jonny Hill and Junior Kpoku – against each other and a hooked drop-goal shot from Racing fly-half Dan Lancaster. But after repelling Racing from a similarly promising attacking platform, Sale made territory count as Jean-Luc du Preez battered his way over around the remnants of a driven line-out. Racing, who have had a patchy start to their Top 14 season but are three-time runners-up in this competition, rarely threatened to get their expensively assembled side into gear. Henry Arundell, ineligible for England since he extended his contract with the Parisians after the 2023 World Cup, spilled a routine pass. Sale started to win scrum penalties against the heavier French pack. The home front row provided immaculate set-piece ball for Sale's second try, with George Ford looping out the back after Rob du Preez's line had fixed the defence and, via Carpenter, putting Roebuck into the corner to nudge Sale 12 unanswered points clear. Racing's route back was less intricate. The visitors leaned into their considerable bulk and a succession of heavy cavalry charges culminated in prop Guram Gogichashvili picking through the wreckage to score on the stroke of half-time. Sale's lead was cut to five, but they kept the upper hand. Luke Cowan-Dickie was held up over the line shortly after the restart before an aimless kick from Racing's Antoine Gibert was brilliantly snaffled by Roebuck. The wing cantered through before carefully putting Carpenter under the posts for a 19-7 advantage. Ben Curry marked a busy performance by bustling over for a try and, with Racing flanker Maxime Baudonne having been sin-binned for illegally stopping a Sale surge on the previous play, the game was done. The main remaining interest was in the subplots involving England Test wannabes. Sale came out on top in those as well, with Roebuck dumping Arundell to his shorts with a thumping hit two minutes from time. Sale director of rugby Alex Sanderson: "We just wanted to be on it for longer defensively this week. I think we were, that was one of our best defensive performances. "We are a little more connected and we have a little more bite to us when the collision comes, when we have to 'find the monster'. We were lacking some bite, and I feel like we have it back." Player of the match Ben Curry: "My favourite moment was Tom Roebuck's tackle on Henry Arundell. Henry is not a small boy, a great player, but I was very impressed with Roebuck tonight, he showed a different side of him which perhaps coaches have questioned. I was really happy for him. "The work he puts in day in and day out doesn't get seen. He is knocking on the door. "He was very disappointed after the summer - he came on against Japan and played really well and to get dropped, hit him really hard. "You can start feeling sorry for yourself or you can show people what you can do. He has gone multiple steps forward since the summer." Sale: Carpenter; Roebuck, R du Preez, James, O'Flaherty; Ford, Warr; Rodd, Cowan-Dickie, Harper, Bamber, Hill, JL du Preez, B Curry (capt), D du Preez. Replacements: McElroy, McIntyre, John, Beaumont, Dugdale, Quirke, Nayacalevu, Wills. Racing 92: Tedder, Arundell, James, Chavancy, Spring; Lancaster, Le Garrec; Gogichashvili, Chat, Sordoni, Kpoku, Rowlands, Woki (capt), Baudonne, Dayimani. Replacements: Escobar, Julien, Kharaishvili, Sanconnie, Diallo, Le Bail, Gibert, Naituvi. Referee: Craig Evans (Wal)AP Sports SummaryBrief at 3:39 p.m. EST
Caitlin Clark honored as AP Female Athlete of the Year following her impact on women's sports Caitlin Clark has been named the AP Female Athlete of the Year after raising the profile of women’s basketball to unprecedented levels in both college and the WNBA. She led Iowa to the national championship game, was the top pick in the WNBA draft and captured rookie of the year honors in the league. Fans packed sold-out arenas and millions of television viewers followed her journey on and off the court. Clark's exploits also put other women's sports leagues in the spotlight. A group of 74 sports journalists from AP and its members voted on the award. Other athletes who received votes included Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles and boxer Imane Khelif. Clark’s only the fourth women’s basketball player to win the award since it was first given in 1931. Wemby at The Garden. LeBron vs. Steph. The NBA's Christmas Day lineup, as always, has star power LeBron James made his Christmas debut in 2003. Victor Wembanyama was born 10 days later. That’s right: James has been featured on the NBA’s big day for longer than Wembanyama has been alive. And on Wednesday the league’s oldest player and brightest young star will be big parts of the holiday showcase. It’s another Christmas quintupleheader, with Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs visiting the New York Knicks, Minnesota going to Dallas for a Western Conference finals rematch, Philadelphia heading to Boston to renew a storied rivalry, James and the Los Angeles Lakers taking on Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors, and Denver playing at Phoenix. Pro Picks: Chiefs will beat the Steelers and Ravens will edge the Texans on Christmas Day Playoff berths, draft positioning and more are up for grabs in Week 17. There’s going to be plenty of football on television this holiday week with the NFL playing games on five out of six days, starting with a doubleheader on Christmas Day featuring four of the AFC’s top five teams. Patrick Mahomes and the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs visit Russell Wilson and the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday. Then, two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens take on C.J. Stroud and the Houston Texans. The Bears host the Seahawks on Thursday night and there are three games on Saturday, making Sunday’s schedule light at nine games. Falcons drafting Penix no longer a head-scratcher with rookie QB shining in place of benched Cousins It was the most surprising first-round pick in a long time when the Atlanta Falcons chose Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth overall selection in the NFL draft last April. That came just six weeks after the Falcons had signed free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million deal with $100 million in guarantees. But that move is no longer a head-scratcher after Penix's solid starting debut in place of a benched and turnover-prone Cousins. Several teams have fared well with new quarterbacks this season including the Steelers, Broncos, Vikings and Commanders. Lindsey Vonn thinks her new titanium knee could start a trend in skiing. And pro sports in general ST. MORITZ, Switzerland (AP) — Lindsey Vonn thinks her new titanium knee could be the start of a trend in ski racing. The 40-year-old American standout had replacement surgery in April and returned to the World Cup circuit after nearly six years last weekend. She says her knee feels “amazing" and that "it’s something to seriously consider for athletes that have a lot of knee problems.” Her surgery was the first of its kind in World Cup skiing. Vonn had a robot-assisted surgery in April with part of the bone in her right knee cut off and replaced by two titanium pieces. She was planning her comeback a month later. Boise State's legacy includes winning coaches and championship moments No. 8 and third-seeded Boise State is preparing for its third trip to the Fiesta Bowl. This time it's in a playoff quarterfinal against No. 5 and sixth-seeded Penn State on New Year’s Eve. Boise State's first appearance on the national stage was in a memorable victory over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1, 2007. But former coach Chris Petersen said the victory in that bowl three years later over TCU was even more meaningful for the program. Embiid ejected after drawing 2 technicals in game against Wembanyama and Spurs PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid was ejected in the first half of Monday night’s game against San Antonio after drawing two technical fouls. Referee Jenna Schroeder ejected Embiid with 2 minutes, 59 seconds left in the second quarter. The seven-time All-Star received the first technical for arguing with Schroeder, and received another technical — and ejection — from Schroeder before any more game time elapsed. Embiid was close to Schroeder, but it wasn’t clear from replays whether he made contact with the official. An enraged Embiid charged toward the officials after the ejection and was restrained by teammate Kyle Lowry, head coach Nick Nurse and several assistants. Nikki Glaser uses Prime Video's NFL postgame show appearances to help prepare for Golden Globes INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Nikki Glaser has become a familiar face to football fans this season. Her breakthrough performance at the Tom Brady Roast on May 5 paved the way for five appearances on Amazon Prime Video’s “Thursday Night Football” postgame show. Glaser said before last Thursday’s game between the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers that doing her “Late Hits” segment was a no-brainer following her success at the Brady roast. Leaving Thunder, Bucks off the NBA's Christmas game list has those teams feeling snubbed Oklahoma City leads the Western Conference and has a MVP candidate in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Milwaukee has the NBA’s leading scorer in Giannis Antetokounmpo. They were the teams that made their way to the NBA Cup final. By any measure, they’re both very good teams. And neither will play on Christmas Day this year. Bah, humbug. The NBA faces the same challenge every summer, figuring out which 10 teams will get the honor of playing on Christmas Day. But the Bucks and Thunder are right to feel snubbed. Heat lose guard Dru Smith for remainder of season with torn Achilles Miami Heat guard Dru Smith has suffered another season-ending injury, this one a torn Achilles in his left leg. It is the third time that Smith has had a season cut short since February 2022. Smith got hurt Monday night in Miami’s 110-95 win over Brooklyn. The Achilles tear was the preliminary diagnosis once he left the court for evaluation, and an MRI exam on Tuesday confirmed the severity of the injury. This injury comes 13 months after he was lost for most of the 2023-24 season with a right knee injury. Smith also saw his 2021-22 season in the G League cut short by a knee injury.
Manipur: 12 Tribals killed in encounter to be laid to rest on December 5
Coleman 2-3 2-2 6, Lendeborg 4-10 5-8 14, Johnson 6-12 5-5 18, McGhee 3-6 0-0 6, Toney 1-2 0-0 3, Vasquez 8-12 0-0 19, Moore 3-7 0-0 8, Ezewiro 4-4 1-4 9, Shaver 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-56 13-19 83. Walker 5-7 5-8 16, Banks 4-7 2-2 10, Kinziger 8-12 3-3 21, Pence 3-7 3-3 10, Wolf 3-8 0-0 8, Poindexter 3-4 0-1 7, Daugherty 3-6 0-0 9, Boser 1-2 0-0 3, Barnes 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-53 13-17 84. Halftime_UAB 43-39. 3-Point Goals_UAB 8-19 (Vasquez 3-4, Moore 2-5, Lendeborg 1-2, Toney 1-2, Johnson 1-5, McGhee 0-1), Illinois St. 11-27 (Daugherty 3-6, Kinziger 2-5, Wolf 2-6, Walker 1-1, Boser 1-2, Poindexter 1-2, Pence 1-4, Banks 0-1). Fouled Out_Lendeborg. Rebounds_UAB 22 (Lendeborg 4), Illinois St. 28 (Walker 8). Assists_UAB 19 (Lendeborg 7), Illinois St. 14 (Banks 5). Total Fouls_UAB 18, Illinois St. 20.
By Jim Rossman, Tribune News Service (TNS) Everyone seems to be listening to something. I’m not sure what they’re listening to, because they all seem to be wearing headphones. I suppose they’re all listening to their favorite podcast or just their playlists. Here are a few gift suggestions for headphones that’ll make anything sound better. I’ve listed the retail pricing, but don’t be surprised if you find them on sale. Soundcore AeroFit 2 adjustable open-ear wireless earbuds We’ve all tried traditional earbuds. They can sound good if the fit is correct. The SoundCore AreoFit 2 ($99.99, soundcore.com) don’t fit inside your ear canal. Instead, they sit on the outside of your ear. The battery sits behind your ear, much like a hearing aid. The speaker is attached by a sturdy, yet flexible cable. The only adjustment is on the speaker end – it clicks to adjust the angle of the speaker to sit directly over your ear canal. The fact that they don’t insert into your ears means you can still hear the outside world, so you are not so isolated. These are great for jogging or biking. The sound is really nice. The full range of sound comes in very clearly and the form factor is comfortable to wear, even for hours at a time. There are four microphones, so your voice sounds clear on phone calls. They have an IP55 rating, so they can withstand water spashing, sweat or dust. They can also connect to more than one device, so you can keep them paired to your phone and laptop and switch easily between them. The AeroFit 2 can play for 10 hours on a charge. They live in a battery case that can keep them charged for more than 40 hours. The charging case can power up via a USB-C port or a Qi wireless charger. They are available in white, blue, green or black. Soundcore C40i clip-on earbuds The Soundcore C40i ($99.99, soundcore.com) is another fun option in a non-traditional form factor. Instead of going inside or even over the top your ears, the C40i earbuds are u-shaped and they clip on the sides of your ears. They are unlike anything I’ve ever tried, and they sounded surprisingly good once you get them in the right spot. They are a bit flexible, in that you can pull them apart slightly to get them in the right spot. Once you let go, they gently grip your earlobe. I must admit I was a little self-conscious when I first started wearing the C40i earbuds, as they look a bit like earrings. The fit is interesting. The end with the speaker sits in front of your ear canal and the end with the battery and action button goes behind your ear. You can adjust them on your ear until the sound becomes clear. It’ll be obvious to your ears when you have them adjusted correctly. If your earlobes are thin, there are some rubber sleeves that can help with the fit. You want them to be snug, but not to the point where they are pinching your ears. There is a customizable button on the back of each earbud for call and music control. They are on the small side, so the battery life is seven hours before needing to return to the case for a charge. The case can charge them twice more before it needs recharging. The case charges via USB-C cable, but it is too small for wireless chargers. The earbuds have a 12mm x 17mm oval shaped driver and the sound quality is very good. Voice quality on phone calls also surprised me with its clarity. They sync with the Soundcore phone app to let you assign the button commands and tweak the sound settings. They also can pair to two devices at once. Baseus Bowie 30 Max noise-canceling headphones Frequent flyers know all about noise canceling over-the-ear headphones. These headphones usually have active noise canceling, which uses microphones to listen to the ambient noise and reduce it before it can get to your ears. What I’m noticing is more and more people wearing these during workouts or just walking around. The Baseus Bowie 30 Max noise canceling headphones ($79.99, baseus.com) are fairly generic looking headphones, but their performance is incredible for the price. Baseus says the Bowie 30s can eliminate 96 percent of noise, but that actual noise cancellation will vary depending on the ambient noise level. I can tell you the noise canceling is impressive. There is also a transparency mode that lets in outside sounds so you can have a conversation with someone without taking them off. You can pair them to the free Baseus phone app to unlock some additional features including spatial acoustics, bass enhancement and low-latency mode. These connect to your phone or PC wirelessly via Bluetooth or wired with an included 3.5mm cable. They last an impressive 65 hours on a charge without noise canceling or 50 hours with noise canceling enabled. The ear cups and piece that fits over the top of your head are nicely padded and the entire headset folds up to take up less room in your bag. ©2024 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.AICTE declares 2025 as ‘Year of AI’ to shape India as global leaderBarca collapse in Celta draw without Yamal, Simeone hits milestone
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AP Sports SummaryBrief at 1:56 p.m. ESTHow Trump's bet on voters electing him managed to silence some of his legal woes