About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 2018)
The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com SPORTS 2B Thursday, December 20, 2018 NFL Panthers plan to sit QB Newton rest of season Associated Press MIKE MCCARN I Associated Press Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) looks to pass against the New Orleans Saints in the first half of Monday’s game in Charlotte, N.C. COLLEGE BASKCTBALL ‘One-of-a-kind’ athlete GERRY BROOME I The Associated Press Duke’s Zion Williamson (1) and Princeton’s Ryan Schwieger (15) run up the court during the second half of the game Dec. 18 in Durham, N.C. Duke freshman Williamson everything he was advertised Associated Press Cam Newton is headed to the bench with a sore shoulder. The Panthers made the decision to shut down the 2015 league MVP for at least one game and possibly the remainder of the season due to a lingering right shoulder problem. Coach Ron Rivera said Taylor Heinicke will make his first career start when Carolina hosts the Falcons on Sunday. Kyle Allen will be Carolina’s backup and Newton will be inactive. Rivera said he made the decision to sit Newton after meeting with owner David Tepper, general manager Marty Hurney, team doctors and Newton on Wednesday morning before practice. “It was a good conversa tion with Cam and he under stood our thinking behind this,” Rivera said. “He’s disappointed and he’s frus trated. You know him, he wants to play.” But Rivera said a “healthy Taylor Heinicke” gives the Panthers the best chance to win this week. He hasn’t made a decision about New ton’s status for Week 17 at New Orleans, saying the Atlanta coach Dan Quinn says running back Devonta Freeman won’t make it back for the final two games of the season. The Falcons were math ematically eliminated from the playoffs last week. Even though Atlanta’s chances were less than 1 percent, Quinn didn’t want to rule Freeman out for the rest of the year until he was certain. Quinn said Wednesday FALCONS ■ Continued from 1B likely be Jones against Pan thers multipurpose back Christian McCaffrey, who focus is on the Falcons. The Panthers (6-8) have lost six straight games and are all but out of playoff contention as Newton has struggled with an unknown shoulder issue. He had sur gery in March of 2017 to repair a partially torn rota tor cuff and has had prob lems ever since. The Panthers have lim ited his reps in practice for most of the season and it’s rare when he throws a ball more than 20 yards down that the Falcons “were going to keep all of our options open in the hopes that the season would keep extend ing so he would have the largest window if he could come back. We know where that window is closing, so he won’t make it in time.” Freeman, signed to the NFL’s richest contract for a running back before the 2017 season, has missed 14 games over the last two years with head, knee and groin injuries. He is still not fully recov- can be a nightmare to cover man-to-man. “That’s strength on strength in that instance,” Quinn said. “We’ll rely on Debo quite a bit in that way. ” Even if Jones has a slipup similar to one he had against Falcons at Panthers When: 1 p.m. Sunday TV: Fox the field in a game. Newton started 14 games and threw for 3,395 yards with 24 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. However, he has just nine TD passes and nine interceptions during Carolina’s six-game skid and has looked uncomfortable in the pocket. ered from in-season groin surgery and hasn’t practiced since Week 5. Tevin Coleman, Brian Hill and Jeremy Langford will handle the running duties Sunday when Atlanta (5-9) visits Carolina (6-8). The Falcons, already with the NFL’s second-worst rushing attack, lost Coleman’s pri mary backup, Ito Smith, to a season-ending knee injury in last week’s win over Arizona. Atlanta ends its regular season at Tampa Bay on Dec. 30. Arizona, Quinn likes his line backer’s chances over the course of a full game. “It doesn’t happen that often with him,” Quinn said. “People try him a lot, but he’s usually right there ready to respond.” Zion Williamson seems comfortable as the star of the show at No. 2 Duke. That’s not easy at a pro gram that has taken an ensemble approach to its collection of likely one-and- done freshmen. But with his mix of high-flying acrobatics on the court and his charis matic personality off it, Williamson has emerged as the natural face of the Blue Devils (10-1) — and maybe as college basketball as a whole. “It’s like a movie,” Wil liamson said. “You say you want to be a part of it, but when you’re actually here, it’s a movie. Ups and downs. Hard practices. Hard games. But for me, somebody like me, I always want to have fun, no matter what I’m doing, so it’s been like a movie for me.” Put simply, there’s nobody else like him in the sport. With a rare blend of physi cal size and freakish ath letic ability, Williamson has helped turn those otherwise humdrum home-court routs of mid-major schools into must-see events with moves he jokingly described as “poetry in motion.” “For somebody like me, coming down on a fast break, an in-and-out cross over, and that moment where I jump and glide to the rim and lay it in, for me, it’s like poetry in motion,” he said. “I feel like I was in slow motion, and it’s just poetry. ” At 6-foot-7 and 285 pounds, he’s larger than both start ing defensive ends on the Blue Devils’ football team — yet he also set a Duke record over the summer with a 45-inch vertical leap. He’s the Atlantic Coast Con ference’s second-leading scorer at 20.4 points per game, ranks fourth with a 9.0 rebounding average and is blocking two shots per game heading into Thursday night’s game against No. 12 Texas Tech (10-0) at Madi son Square Garden. Williamson has drawn comparisons to Charles Barkley — who played at an inch shorter and some 30 pounds lighter — both for his style of play and for his playful personality. But according to Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyze- wski, those comparisons are pointless. “You can’t say he’s like somebody,” Krzyzewski said. “He’s not like anybody. He’s like Zion.” That became clear from his first college game, when he scored 28 points in a 34-point rout of then-No. 2 Kentucky. In seemingly every game since, the high light package has included at least one can’t-miss play from Williamson. There was his breakaway windmill dunk against Indi ana that was reminiscent of Dominique Wilkins in his prime. There was the alley- oop lob from Cameron Red dish that seemed headed for the pep band until he skied for it — with both his eyes and armpits above the rim — and slammed it home against Eastern Michigan. And when he came down on a 2-on-l break against Hartford, everyone expected another William son dunk — so he bounced an alley-oop pass off the backboard to RJ Barrett, who finished with the slam. Williamson said his favor ite dunk so far was the lob from Reddish. And he played coy when asked how many more dunks he still has in his rep ertoire, saying there are more he wants to show off — but only at the proper times, of course. NORTH CAROLINA’S WILLIAMS GETS NEW 8-YEAR DEAL: North Carolina has given basket ball coach Roy Williams an eight-year contract exten sion that runs through the 2027-28 season. Williams’ deal headlined the list of 11 contracts or extensions for Tar Heels head coaches announced Wednesday by athletic direc tor Bubba Cunningham. He also announced a 10-year extension of the school’s contract with Nike that’s worth more than $10 million annually and a 12-year extension of its media rights deal with Learfield Communications that has an average annual guaranteed value of $12.6 million. Falcons will sit Freeman final two games of season Associated Press Football/NFL AMERICAN CONFERENCE East W L T Pet PF PA New England 9 5 0 .643 374 310 Miami 7 7 0 .500 295 374 Buffalo 5 9 0 .357 215 333 N.Y. Jets 4 10 0 .286 292 359 South W L T Pet PF PA Houston 10 4 0 .714 352 281 Indianapolis 8 6 0 .571 372 300 Tennessee 8 6 0 .571 268 254 Jacksonville 4 10 0 .286 225 289 North W L T Pet PF PA Pittsburgh 8 5 1 .607 384 316 Baltimore 8 6 0 .571 341 253 Cleveland 6 7 1 .464 309 348 Cincinnati 6 8 0 .429 337 413 West W L T Pet PF PA x-Kansas City 11 3 0 .786 499 380 x-L.A. Chargers 11 3 0 .786 395 298 Denver 6 8 0 .429 306 299 Oakland 3 11 0 .214 260 418 NATIONAL CONFERENCE East W L T Pet PF PA Dallas 8 6 0 .571 276 269 Philadelphia 7 7 0 .500 311 318 Washington 7 7 0 .500 265 310 N.Y. Giants 5 9 0 .357 307 348 South W L T Pet PF PA y-New Orleans 12 2 0 .857 459 292 Carolina 6 8 0 .429 333 344 Atlanta 5 9 0 .357 356 381 Tampa Bay 5 9 0 .357 344 403 North W L T Pet PF PA y-Chicago 10 4 0 .714 383 264 Minnesota 7 6 1 .536 323 308 Green Bay 5 8 1 .393 332 331 Detroit 5 9 0 .357 284 333 West W L T Pet PF PA y-L.A. Rams 11 3 0 .786 448 343 Seattle 8 6 0 .571 363 292 San Francisco 4 10 0 .286 301 373 Arizona 3 11 0 .214 192 367 x-clinched playoff spot y-clinched division Saturday’s Games Washington at Tennessee, 4:30 p.m. Baltimore at L.A. Chargers, 8:20 p.m. Sunday’s Games Atlanta at Carolina, 1 p.m. Houston at Philadelphia, 1 p.m. N.Y. Giants at Indianapolis, 1 p.m. Green Bay at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m. Minnesota at Detroit, 1 p.m. Buffalo at New England, 1 p.m. Cincinnati at Cleveland, 1 p.m. Jacksonville at Miami, 1 p.m. Tampa Bay at Dallas, 1 p.m. L.A. Rams at Arizona, 4:05 p.m. Chicago at San Francisco, 4:05 p.m. Pittsburgh at New Orleans, 4:25 p.m. Kansas City at Seattle, 8:20 p.m. Monday’s Games Denver at Oakland, 8:15 p.m. Football/college Bowl schedule Wednesday’s game Frisco (Texas) Bowl San Diego State (7-5) vs. Ohio (8-4), late Today’s game Gasparilla Bowl At St. Petersburg, Fla. Marshall (8-4) vs. South Florida (7-5), 8 p.m. (ESPN) Friday’s games Bahamas Bowl Nassau Toledo (7-5) vs. FIU (8-4), 12:30 p.m (ESPN) Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Boise Western Michigan (7-5) vs. BYU (6-6), 4 p.m. (ESPN) Saturday’s games Birmingham (Ala.) Bowl Memphis (8-5) vs. Wake Forest (6-6), Noon (ESPN) Armed Forces Bowl Fort Worth, Texas Houston (8-4) vs. Army (10-2), 3:30 p.m. (ESPN) Dollar General Bowl Mobile, Ala. Buffalo (10-3) vs. Troy (9-3), 7 p.m. (ESPN) Hawaii Bowl Honolulu Louisiana Tech (7-5) vs. Hawaii (8-5), 10:30 p.m. (ESPN) Wednesday, Dec. 26 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl Dallas Boston College (7-5) vs. Boise State (10-3), 1:30 p.m. (ESPN) Quick Lane Bowl Detroit Minnesota (6-6) vs. Georgia Tech (7-5), 5:15 p.m. (ESPN) Cheez-lt Bowl Phoenix California (7-5) vs. TCU (6-6), 9 p.m. (ESPN) Thursday, Dec. 27 Independence Bowl Shreveport, La. Temple (8-4) vs. Duke (7-5), 1:30 p.m. (ESPN) Pinstripe Bowl Bronx, N.Y. Miami (7-5) vs. Wisconsin (7-5), 5:15 p.m. (ESPN) Texas Bowl Houston Baylor (6-6) vs. Vanderbilt (6-6), 9 p.m. (ESPN) Friday, Dec. 28 Music City Bowl Nashville, Tenn. Purdue (6-6) vs. Auburn (7-5), 1:30 p.m. (ESPN) Camping World Bowl Orlando, Fla. West Virginia (8-3) vs. Syracuse (9-3), 5:15 p.m. (ESPN) Alamo Bowl San Antonio Iowa State (8-4) vs. Washington State (10-2), 9 p.m. (ESPN) Saturday, Dec. 29 Peach Bowl Atlanta Florida (9-3) vs. Michigan (10-2), Noon (ESPN) Belk Bowl Charlotte, N.C. South Carolina (7-5) vs. Virginia (7-5), Noon (ABC) Arizona Bowl Ihcson, Ariz. Arkansas State (8-4) vs. Nevada (7-5), 1:15 p.m. (CBSSN) Cotton Bowl Classic Arlington, Texas CFP Semifinal, Notre Dame (12-0) vs. Clemson (13-0), 4 p.m. (ESPN) Orange Bowl Miami Gardens, Fla. CFP Semifinal, Oklahoma (12-1) vs. Alabama (13-0), 8 p.m. (ESPN) Monday, Dec. 31 Military Bowl Annapolis, Md. Cincinnati (10-2) vs. Virginia Tech (6-6), Noon (ESPN) Sun Bowl El Paso,Texas Stanford (8-4) vs. Pittsburgh (7-6), 2 p.m. (CBS) Redbox Bowl Santa Clara, Calif. Michigan State (7-5) vs. Oregon (8-4), 3 p.m. (FOX) Liberty Bowl Memphis, Tenn. Missouri (8-4) vs. Oklahoma State (6-6), 3:45 p.m. (ESPN) Holiday Bowl San Diego Northwestern (8-5) vs. Utah (9-4), 7 p.m. (FS1) Gator Bowl Jacksonville, Fla. NC State (9-3) vs. Texas A&M (8-4), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) Tuesday, Jan. 1 Outback Bowl Tampa, Fla. Mississippi State (8-4) vs. Iowa (8-4), Noon (ESPN2) Citrus Bowl Orlando, Fla. Kentucky (9-3) vs. Penn State (9-3), 1 p.m. (ABC) Fiesta Bowl Glendale, Ariz. LSU (9-3) vs. UCF (12-0), 1 p.m. (ESPN) Rose Bowl Pasadena, Calif. Washington (10-3) vs. Ohio State (12-1), 5 p.m. (ESPN) Sugar Bowl New Orleans Texas (9-4) vs. Georgia (11-2), 8:45 p.m. (ESPN) TODAY ON TV BASKETBALL FOOTBALL ■ G-League: Vipers vs. Nets, 3 p.m., ESPNU ■ G-League: Lakers vs. Swarm, 5 p.m., ESPNU ■ Texas Tech vs. Duke, 7 p.m., ESPN2 ■ G-League: Stars vs. Mads Ants, 8 p.m., FS1 ■ Coe at Creighton, 8 p.m., FS1 ■ NBA: Rockets at Heat, 8 p.m., TNT ■ G-League: Warriors vs. Magic, 10:30 p.m., ESPNU ■ Gasparilla Bowl: Marshall vs. South Florida, 8 p.m., ESPN MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOP 25 Bone carries No. 3 Tennessee to win over Samford Jordan Bone set career highs with 24 points and 11 assists, and No. 3 Ten nessee beat Samford 83-70 on Wednesday night for its fifth consecutive victory. Bone shot 11 of 16 and committed only two turn overs. Admiral Schofield scored 18 points and Grant Williams had 13 of his 16 points after halftime to help the Volunteers (9-1) snap Samford’s three-game winning streak. Kyle Alex ander added 10 points. Ruben Guerrero had 16 points and eight rebounds before fouling out for Sam ford (10-3). NORTH CAROLINA STATE 78, No. 7 AUBURN 71: Markell Johnson had career highs of 27 points and five 3-pointers to help North Carolina State upset No. 7 Auburn on Wednes day night. Devon Daniels scored all 15 of his points after half time for the Wolfpack (10- 1), who led nearly all night before pushing ahead for good in the final 10 minutes. N.C. State shot 58 per cent after halftime behind Johnson and Daniels. John son stood out with 19 points after the break, including a run of 10 straight points — a 3-pointer, a four-point play and pullup 3 in transi tion — during one critical 75-second sequence. By the time Daniels scored twice followed by Johnson’s layup, the Wolf- pack had pushed the lead to a dozen near the four- minute mark on the way to another big upset under second-year coach Kevin No. 22 INDIANA 86, CENTRAL ARKANSAS 53: Devonte Green scored 19 points, freshman Romeo Langford recorded his sec ond double-double and No. 22 Indiana beat Central Arkansas 86-53 on Wednes day night. The Hoosiers (10-2) have won five straight, though this was their first victory by more than three points during the streak. They’ve also won eight straight home games. Associated Press Top 25 results Men’s Top 25 Wednesday 1. Kansas (10-0) did not play. Next: at No. 18 Arizona State, Saturday. 2. Duke (10-1) did not play. Next: vs. No. 12 Texas Tech, Thursday. 3. Tennessee (9-1) beat Samford 83-70. Next: vs. Wake Forest, Saturday. 4. Michigan (11-0) did not play. Next: vs. Air Force, Saturday. 5. Virginia (10-0) beat South Carolina 69-52. Next: vs. William & Mary, Saturday. 6. Nevada (11 -0) did not play. Next: vs. Akron, Saturday. 7. Auburn (9-2) lost to N.C. State 78-71. Next: vs. Murray State, Saturday. 8. Gonzaga (10-2) did not play. Next: vs. Denver, Friday. 9. North Carolina (8-2) did not play. Next: vs. No. 19 Kentucky, Saturday. 10. Michigan State (9-2) did not play. Next: vs. Oakland, Friday. 11. Florida State (10-1) beat North Florida 95-81. Next: vs. Saint Louis, Saturday. 12. Texas Tech (10-0) did not play. Next: vs. No. 2 Duke, Thursday. 13. Virginia Tech (10-1) beat N.C. A&T 82-60. Next: vs. Maryland-Eastern Shore, Friday, Dec. 28. 14. Buffalo (11-0) did not play. Next: at No. 20 Marquette, Friday. 15. Ohio State (10-1) did not play. Next: vs. UCLA, Saturday. 16. Wisconsin (9-2) did not play. Next: vs. Grambling State, Saturday. 17. Mississippi State (9-1) vs. Wofford. Next: vs. Wright State, Saturday. 18. Arizona State (8-2) did not play. Next: vs. No. 1 Kansas, Saturday. 19. Kentucky (8-2) did not play. Next: vs. No. 9 North Carolina, Saturday. 20. Marquette (9-2) did not play. Next: vs. No. 14 Buffalo, Friday. 21. Houston (10-0) did not play. Next: vs. Utah State, Thursday. 22. Indiana (10-2) beat Central Arkansas 86-51. Next: vs. Jacksonville, Saturday. 23. Iowa (9-2) did not play. Next: vs. Savannah State, Saturday. 24. Furman (12-0) did not play. Next: at LSU, Friday. 25. Nebraska (9-2) did not play. Next: vs. Cal State Fullerton, Saturday. Associated Press Transactions BASEBALL American League CHICAGO WHITE SOX—Agreed to terms with C James McCann on a one-year contract. DETROIT TIGERS — Agreed to terms with RHPs Eduardo Paredes and Chris Smith and LHP Nick Ramirez on minor league contracts. HOUSTON ASTROS — Agreed to terms with OF Michael Brantley on a two-year contract. National League ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS — Named Joe Garagiola Jr. special adviser to the president and CEO. MILWAUKEE BREWERS — Signed RHP Chris Dula to a minor league contract. BASKETBALL National Basketball Association SACRAMENTO KINGS — Assigned F Harry Giles to Stockton (NBAGL). Transferred F Troy Williams to Stockton. FOOTBALL National Football League ARIZONA CARDINALS — Released OL Justin Evans from the practice squad. Signed LB Pete Robertson and S Fish Smithson to the practice squad. Claimed WR Pharoh Cooper off waivers from the L.A. Rams. BUFFALO SABRES — Placed F Patrik Berglund on unconditional waivers for the pur pose of terminating his contract. DENVER BRONCOS — Placed CB Chris Harris Jr. on injured reserve. Signed CB Craig Mager. DETROIT LIONS — Placed RB Kerryon Johnson on injured reserve. Released G Salesi Uhatafe from the practice squad. Activated CB Jamal Agnew from injured reserve. Signed RB Justin Stockton to the practice squad. MIAMI DOLPHINS — Placed RB Frank Gore on injured reserve. Signed DT Kendrick Norton. NEW YORK GIANTS — Placed DB Antonio Hamilton on injured reserve. Activated WR Cody Latimer from injured reserve. TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS — Signed DT Jeremiah Ledbetter from the practice squad and DEs Farrington Huguenin and Alec James to the practice squad. WASHINGTON REDSKINS — Placed CB Danny Johnson on injured reserve. Signed DB Jeremy Reaves from the practice squad and DB Jack Tocho to the practice squad. HOCKEY National Hockey League NHL — Fined St. Louis D Vince Dunn $1,942.20 for cross-checking Edmonton F Jujhar Khaira. ARIZONA COYOTES — Assigned G Adin Hill and F Conor Garland to Tucson (AHL). DALLAS STARS — Reassigned D Joel Hanley to Texas (AHL). NEW YORK ISLANDERS — Recalled D Devon Toews from Bridgeport (AHL). TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING — Signed C Gabriel Fortier to a three-year, entry-level contract. American Hockey League LEHIGH VALLEY PHANTOMS — Signed F Steven Swavely to a professional tryout agree ment. SOCCER Major League Soccer LA GALAXY — Re-signed M Chris Pontius. ORLANDO SC — Traded G Earl Edwards Jr. to D.C. United for a 2019 second-round draft pick. PHILADELPHIA UNION — Traded D Keegan Rosenberry to Colorado for general and targeted allocation money. COLLEGE CHATTANOOGA — Named Rusty Wright foot ball coach. CLARKE — Named Marq Hicks men’s and women’s bowling coach. MICHIGAN — LB Devin Bush will enter the NFL draft. NEW MEXICO — Announced the contract of volleyball coach Jeff Nelson will not be renewed. NORTH CAROLINA — Signed men’s bas ketball coach Roy Williams to an eight-year contract extension through the 2027-28 season. YALE — Named Brendan Faherty women’s soccer coach. Associated Press
