ORLANDO

DeRozan, LaVine lead Bulls to 128-109 win over Magic

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine each scored 32 points, Nikola Vucevic added 26 points and 13 rebounds and the Chicago Bulls turned back a late rally and beat the Orlando Magic 128-109 on Saturday night.

Mo Wagner led the Magic with 27 points, combining with Cole Anthony and Jalen Suggs to lead a furious second-half rally that cut a 25-point deficit to six with 5:08 remaining.

"I thought we controlled most of the game," said Vucevic, who had 17 points and eight rebounds in the first half. "They made a really good run and they cut it close. It's been an issue for us all year long, playing with big leads. We let them back in the game, but this time we were able to finish the game off."

Patrick Williams had 16 points and six rebounds for the Bulls, who shot 59.3% for the game just two nights after getting outscored by 23 points in the second half of a loss at Charlotte.

"In the Charlotte game we never responded," coach Billy Donovan said. "The encouraging part is we did respond (tonight). I think it's good that we had that. ... Being pressed against it, we needed a game where we could respond and come out on the winning side."

The Bulls led 60-47 at halftime. A 3-pointer by Vucevic, who played more than eight seasons in Orlando, stretched their lead to 24 points and a free throw by LaVine made it 89-64, Chicago's largest lead of the game, with 3:27 left in the third quarter.

"I don't know how, but we found some energy and we went on a run, got some easy buckets, hit some shots," said Anthony, who finished with 21 points, six rebounds and six assists.

Wagner scored the Magic's final 11 points in the third period and their first five points in the fourth, pulling the Magic back into contention. But when the Bulls' lead got down to six, DeRozan and LaVine responded with baskets, and a 3-pointer by Williams made it 116-106 with 3:29 left.

Magic coach Jamahl Mosley thought the bad start cost his team the game.

"Obviously the energy level wasn't where we wanted it to start the game," he said. "I really think sometimes it falls down to taking the easy route, in some ways. When it's hard, you just want to catch and shoot. But we weren't making shots, and that takes its toll on the defense. But we have to be a defensive team first, whether the shots are falling or not."

"This is not an excuse but we were just flat," said Mo Wagner, "and part of that was we put our head down too quickly. We kind of let go of our focus."

Bulls: G Lonzo Ball, who has not played since tearing his left meniscus on May 10, 2021, is not yet back to running on a consistent basis and will likely not play this season, unless he is making progress by the All-Star break, according to coach Billy Donovan. ... F Derrick Jones Jr., limped off the floor in the third quarter, but came back to play four minutes in the fourth. . . . G Goran Dragic had seven points in 13 minutes after missing three games due to illness. ... DeRozan, who came into the game with a 26.3 scoring average, played eight scoreless minutes in the first quarter without taking a shot.

Magic: F Jonathan Isaac had five points and four rebounds in nine minutes in his third game back from a knee injury. ... The Magic missed their first eight 3-point attempts and finished 10 for 28. . . . Anthony has scored 18 or points in four of his last six games, all off the bench.

Bulls: Host the L.A. Clippers on Tuesday night.

Magic: Play at Philadelphia on Monday night.

Credit: https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/derozan-lavine-lead-bulls-to-128-109-win-over-magic/

LSU vs. Purdue – College Football Game Recap – January 2, 2023

ORLANDO, Fla. -- -- LSU has had a lot of talent in the receiving room in recent years: Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry. Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson. For most of this season it was Kayshon Boutte.

Malik Nabers made an attempt to join those names Monday when he threw for a touchdown, hauled one in and had 163 receiving yards in the No. 16 Tigers' 63-7 win over Purdue in the Citrus Bowl.

“That's the mantle of LSU wide receivers,” Tigers coach Brian Kelly said of Nabers, who was the game's Most Valuable Player. "It's his chance now, and you can see he wanted to make sure he made a statement today."

LSU never trailed behind, recording 594 yards of offense and concluding the scoring with Quad Wilson's 99-yard interception return for a touchdown.

The Tigers (10-4) finished with at least 10 wins for the first time since the 2019 season, when Joe Burrow, Chase and Jefferson led undefeated LSU to a national title.

The Boilermakers (8-6) were led by interim coach Brian Brohm after his brother, Jeff, left at the end of the regular season to take over as Louisville's head coach. Ryan Walters, a former defensive coordinator at Illinois, will now take over as Purdue's coach.

Purdue had an up-and-down year, starting 1-2 before rallying to win the Big Ten West and reach the conference title game, where it lost 43-22 to Michigan. The Boilermakers were playing in their first Citrus Bowl.

“I feel like the show is in a good place,” Brian Brohm said. “Coach Walters will inherit a program of guys who are tough, want to play hard and want to win. I hope he's able to keep it going and take it to the next level."

LSU, after a year in which they beat Alabama and reached the Southeastern Conference title game, controlled the game from the start. And nothing changed when starting quarterback Jayden Daniels was relieved by backup Garrett Nussmeier. After punting on their first drive, the Tigers scored touchdowns on seven of their next eight possessions to take a 49-0 lead.

Daniels led four scoring drives, going 12 of 17 for 139 yards and a touchdown. He also had 67 rushing yards and caught Nabers' TD pass.

Nussmeier finished 11 of 15 for 173 yards and two touchdowns. He threw an interception in the second half, but LSU was already leading 42-0 at that point and the Tigers defense kept forcing a three-and-out.

Nabers, LSU's leading receiver this season, had season-highs for yards and receptions (nine), and his TD throw wasn't even his most impressive pass of the day. After running wide on a squirt sweep, he threw a deep target pass to Kyren Lacy for a 45-yard completion that set up a first-half touchdown.

After the game, he first regretted three passes that he felt he should have caught. Still, he has high hopes for the upcoming season.

“This performance shows that I am capable of going out here and performing at a high level with anyone,” Nabers said.

John Emery Jr. had a 1-yard TD run, Derrick Davis Jr. had a 12-yard rushing TD run, and Noah Cain had two rushing TDs, giving the Tigers a school-record 39 rushing TDs for year.

Austin Burton made his third career start at quarterback for the Boilermakers in place of Aidan O'Connell, who opted not to prepare for the NFL draft. Burton completed 12 of 24 passes for 74 yards with one interception.

Michael Alaimo relieved Burton in the second half and threw a 16-yard TD pass to TJ Sheffield. Alaimo finished 4 of 11 for 31 yards with an interception.

Purdue crossed the center of the field four times. The first was on a drive set up by a fake punt, but it ended when Burton threw an interception. The other three ended in touchdowns, interceptions, and turnovers on attempts. Purdue's first nine possessions resulted in six punts and three turnovers.

WOUNDS OF FEAR

Purdue catcher Deion Burks took a terrifying blow and had his head stabilized as he was loaded onto a stretcher, carried off the field and taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center. Burks gave a thumbs up as he walked off the field, and Purdue officials told ABC reporters that he had movement in his extremities.

THE TO TAKE

LSU: The Tigers were without a number of players, including Boutte, who recently declared for the NFL draft, but their success demonstrated the depth of the program. LSU had 27 first downs and was 6-for-7 in the red zone.

Purdue: The Boilermakers were left with a roster depleted by opt-outs. Purdue only had 17 first downs.

UNTIL NEXT TIME

LSU: Play Florida State in Orlando on September 3 to kick off the 2023 season.

Purdue: Hosts Fresno State on September 2.

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Credit: https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap/_/gameId/401442012

Drew Brees joins Purdue Football staff and offers possible remedy to racial inequities in college coaching

ORLANDO, FLORIDA - Interim football coach Drew Brees of the Purdue Boilermakers looks on during the... [+] Citrus Bowl vs. the LSU Tigers at Camping World Stadium on January 2, 2023 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

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After graduating from Purdue University in 2001, Drew Brees spent two decades in the NFL. During his 15 seasons as the New Orleans Saints' quarterback, Brees led the team to nine playoffs and three NFC championships. He was named MVP of Super Bowl XLIV, in which the Saints clinched the franchise's first Super Bowl victory. Brees held career records for touchdown passes, completions, yards and completion percentage when he retired from the NFL in 2021.

Just before their matchup against LSU in the 2023 Cheez-It Citrus Bowl, Brees was named the interim assistant coach of the 8-5 Purdue Boilermakers football team. Brees is white. Ryan Walters, a black man whom the university named its new head coach last month, enthusiastically welcomed Brees to the interim position on his staff. This appointment did nothing to improve the racial diversity of Purdue's coaching roster. Yet it does present a potentially replicable answer to one of college football's most perplexing diversity issues.

According to the NCAA demographic database, 14% of American football head coaches in 2022 were black; that number would be less if it did not include historically black colleges and universities. Black representation was better and worse in the two roles that are typical on the runways for head coaching gigs: Defensive Coordinators (24%) and Offensive Coordinators (11%). Black men and two black women held 34% of the other football assistant coaching positions at NCAA member institutions last year.

Purdue is in the Big Ten, one of the five conferences that make up what is affectionately known as 'The Power Five.' In a 2018 USC Race and Equity Center research report on black student athletes and racial disparities in college sports, I provided statistics showing that black men made up 55% of football teams at all 65 Power Five universities. . At Purdue, 56% of the scholarship student-athletes on their football team during the 2021 season were black. Racial diversity on the team's coaching staff was exponentially less.

It's a shame that black men make up such a large part of college football players and yet are so underrepresented among coaches at all levels. Former standouts like Brees should be sought after for college coaching careers. Nearly 70% of NFL players are black. Why wouldn't their alma maters and other colleges aggressively recruit more of them for full-time, or at least interim, coaching positions?

It is worth recognizing that playing and training are not the same. However, it seems that an interim assistant position like the one Purdue has created for Brees could give retired NFL players a chance to show their coaching potential. Not all of them will be as decorated and accomplished as Brees, but some will be far more talented than many current assistant coaches. Acting roles are usually low stakes. More colleges and universities should seek out talented former athletes of color for them.

In an ESPN College GameDay interview hours before the Citrus Bowl, Brees was asked why he accepted the interim job and if he was considering college coaching in the future. “First of all, I'm doing this for Purdue University because I love my school,” Brees responded. “There was a transition period from the Big 10 championship game to building up to this bowling game: our head coach is leaving, taking a lot of his employees with him, and I immediately thought, look, we have a bowling game to play. , we have a Bowl to go win, and these guys deserve the best opportunity and the best experience there." Brees said this forced him to call the university to offer his help.

There are thousands of black men who excelled in college football. Some of them made it to the NFL, where they also performed extraordinarily well. It's entirely plausible that, like Brees, many of them love their undergraduate alma maters and would be excited to accept interim coaching roles at those institutions. Short-term terms could tempt them to stay in longer-term positions. It could also provide them with an opportunity to be seen by other colleges and universities who have convinced themselves that their failure to hire black coaches can be blamed on a shortage of pipelines.

More institutions should extend the 'come see us for a while' invitation to former college and professional sports stars like Brees. They just have to be more intentional about ensuring that such invitations are not extended to just white men.

To be sure, the provisional path to college coaching isn't limited to soccer. Athletic directors should, for example, pursue Black women who were outstanding basketball or track athletes in college, and went on to establish distinguished careers in the WNBA or at the Olympics. In addition to benefiting from their experience in the sport, the star power these retired athletes of color would bring is likely to excite potential student-athletes being recruited to the institution, similar to the recruiting success the University of Colorado is experiencing. in response to the appointment of Deion Sanders to the head soccer coaching job there last month.

Credit: https://www.forbes.com/sites/shaunharper/2023/01/02/drew-brees-joins-purdue-football-staff-one-potential-response-to-racial-inequities-in-college-coaching/

Football dominates Purdue, 63-7, to win Cheez-It Citrus Bowl – LSU

ORLANDO, Fla. – LSU's offense exploded for 594 yards of total offense to defeat Purdue, 63-7, and become Cheez-It Citrus Bowl champions Monday at Camping World Stadium.

LSU ends the season with a 10-4 record.

KEY PERFORMANCE

Quarterback Jayden Daniels was 12 of 17 for 139 yards and a touchdown. Redshirt freshman Garrett Nussmeier was 10 of 14 for 98 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Sophomore wide receiver Malik Nabers won the Citrus Bowl MVP award, leading receivers with nine receptions for 163 yards and one touchdown. Freshman tight end Mason Taylor had five receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown.

Senior safety Greg Brooks shone on defense with five tackles, one for loss, along with an interception.

KEY PLAYS

Purdue won the toss and it was carried over to the second half.

On 1st-and-10 from the LSU 44, Daniels found Taylor for a 19-yard completion to the Purdue 44. On 4th-and-2 from the 36, the Tigers elected to go for it, and Daniels connected with Nabers for a 12-yard reception to move the chains at Boilermaker 24. Daniels then found Nabers again for a 9-yard gain to Purdue 15.

The drive culminated with a 1-yard touchdown run by senior running back John Emery to give the Tigers a 7–0 lead with 7:01 remaining in the first quarter of action.

After forcing Purdue to punt, the Tigers were given an additional 15 yards after a kick and receiving interference penalty was assessed. Gregory Clayton just caught the ball at the LSU 18 and the penalty kick moved the ball to the 33.

Nussmeier entered at quarterback on LSU's third offensive possession of the game. On 3 and 4, Nussmeier found Taylor for a 17-yard completion and first and 10 to the Purdue 14-yard line. Noah Cain ran up the middle for a 9-yard touchdown run, extending the lead to 14-0 with 1:06 left. in the first trimester.

It was a good start for LSU's defense, holding Purdue to just four passing yards and 17 rushing yards in the first quarter.

Daniels returned at quarterback for the Tigers, finding Nabers for a 17-yard connection to the Purdue 46 and then finding Taylor for a 32-yard TD completion, creating some separation with an early 21-0 lead at 13. :03 for playing in the second quarter.

On his next offensive possession, Daniels got back to Taylor for a 15-yard completion up the middle of the field to the LSU 45-yard line. Taylor had five receptions for 83 yards, averaging 20.8 yards per catch at that point in the game.

Daniels put the Tigers in prime scoring position after a 37-yard quarterback advanced the ball to the Purdue 9. Daniels' 37-yard run marked a long season.

Cain recorded his second rushing touchdown of the game with a 9-yard score, extending LSU's lead to 28-0 with 8:23 left in the first half at Camping World Stadium.

With Purdue driving inside the LSU 30, Burton's pass was intercepted by senior cornerback Jarrick Bernard-Converse.

On a trick play, Nabers found Kyren Lacy for a 45-yard completion to the Purdue 10. (Nabers' 45-yard completion to Lacey was the longest by a non-LSU QB since WR Todd Kinchen threw a 51-yard TD pass to WR Tony Moss vs. Ohio on 09/30/1989.)

Nussmeier, who was under center again, then found Brian Thomas Jr. for a 10-yard touchdown run to make it 35-0.

Leading 35-0 at halftime, LSU tied their school record for halftime margin in a bowl game (35). (LSU led Oklahoma in the CFP (Peach Bowl) semifinal, 49-14, on December 28, 2019.)

The Tigers forced a turnover on opportunities to open the second half when senior linebacker Micah Baskerville nearly intercepted Burton on 4 and 4 from the Purdue 45.

Nabers found Daniels for a 5-yard TD pass on a trick play. That marked Nabers' second completion of the game, giving him 50 passing yards and a touchdown to extend the Tigers' lead to 42-0. With the receiving score, Daniels also became the only LSU quarterback with a passing and receiving touchdown in the same game since at least World War II.

Brooks intercepted Alaimo at the Purdue 27 with 9:17 remaining in the third quarter.

Nabers added to an already impressive day by pulling off a 75-yard Nussmeier jet sweep for a touchdown, extending LSU's lead to 49-0 with 3:15 remaining in the third quarter.

On the second play from scrimmage in the fourth quarter, the Boilermakers got on the board as Alaimo found Sheffield for a 16-yard touchdown run to make it 49-7 over the Tigers.

True freshman Walker Howard entered at quarterback for LSU, leading the offense on a seven-play scoring drive, culminating in a 12-yard touchdown run up the middle by Derrick Davis Jr. to extend the lead to 56-7.

Quad Wilson intercepted Jack Albers and returned it 99 yards for a touchdown, scoring a bow in the 2022-23 season to clinch the Citrus Bowl victory, 63-7.

Credit: https://lsusports.net/news/2023/01/02/football-dominates-purdue-to-win-cheez-it-citrus-bowl/