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Gilgeous-Alexander scores 40, Thunder beat Bulls for sixth straight victory

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points, Chet Holmgren had 18 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Chicago Bulls 116-102 on Wednesday night for their sixth straight victory.Isaiah Joe added 20 points for the Thunder (11-4), on their longest winning streak since the 2018-19 season.Gilgeous-Alexander raised his average to 30 points for the season and was showered with “MVP! MVP!” chants as he closed out the game with six free throws down the stretch. DeMar DeRozan, after making just one basket in the first half, led the Bulls with 25 points.After being held to 14 points in the first quarter, the Bulls (5-11) got five 3-pointers from Coby White in the second period, but the Bulls still trailed 50-39 at the half. White finished with 23 points, including a season-high seven 3-pointers.Chicago chipped away at the Thunder’s 11-point halftime lead, tying the game midway through the third quarter on a bucket and free throw f...

Adam Lowry scores in OT, Jets beat Lightning 3-2 to extend winning streak to 4 games

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Adam Lowry scored 1:39 into overtime and the Winnipeg Jets won their fourth consecutive game, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Wednesday night.Lowry scored from the left circle off a pass from Neal Pionk.“We had some good patience,” Lowry said, “Unbelievable pass. Just tried my best to not miss.”Vladislav Namestnikov stole the puck and controlled it in the offensive zone to also assist on the winner.“There was endless breakdowns,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said of the overtime goal. “Didn’t take the puck out, We turned it over.”Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck stopped 31 shots. Josh Morrissey and Mark Scheifele scored for Winnipeg.“Helly was really pushing for the day off tomorrow,” Lowry said. “I think there’s some great fishing on that (east) side (of Florida).”The Jets have 11 overtime wins since the start of last season. Only New Jersey and Carolina, with 12 each, have more.Steven Stamkos and Brayden Point scored for the Lightning, who had...

Kawhi Leonard leads Clippers past Spurs amid boos that prompt Popovich to admonish crowd

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points while hearing boos that prompted San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich to admonish the crowd, Paul George added 24 and the Los Angeles Clippers beat Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs 109-102 on Wednesday night.Wembanyama, the No. 1 overall draft pick, had 22 points and 14 rebounds for the Spurs, whose fans were more focused on jeering one of their former stars.Fans booed as Leonard — who played for San Antonio from 2011-18 before he was traded at his request to Toronto — stood at the free-throw line following a foul by Spurs forward Keldon Johnson with 3:08 remaining in the first half. Popovich then walked over, grabbed the public address microphone and chastised the crowd at the Frost Bank Center.“Excuse me for a second,” Popovich said, silencing the crowd. “Can we stop all the booing and let these guys play? Have a little class. It’s not who we are. Knock off the booing.”After an initial stunned silence, the crowd began booing even louder...

What does Sam Altman’s firing — and quick reinstatement — mean for the future of AI?

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — It’s been quite a week for ChatGPT-maker OpenAI — and co-founder Sam Altman.Altman, who helped start OpenAI as a nonprofit research lab back in 2015, was removed as CEO Friday in a sudden and mostly unexplained exit that stunned the industry. And while his chief executive title was swiftly reinstated just days later, a lot of questions are still up in the air.If you’re just catching up on the OpenAI saga and what’s at stake for the artificial intelligence space as a whole, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s a rundown of what you need to know.WHO IS SAM ALTMAN AND HOW DID HE RISE TO FAME?Altman is co-founder of OpenAI, the San Francisco-based company behind ChatGPT (yes, the chatbot that’s seemingly everywhere today — from schools to health care ).The explosion of ChatGPT since its arrival one year ago propelled Altman into the spotlight of the rapid commercialization of generative AI — which can produce novel imagery, passages ...

Green scores 34 to help Rockets snap 3-game skid with 111-91 win over Grizzlies

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — Jalen Green scored 26 of his season-high 34 points in the second half to lead the Houston Rockets to a 111-91 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night.The victory snaps a three-game skid overall for Houston and a five-game losing streak in the series against Memphis.The Rockets were up by six points to start the fourth, and used a 10-2 run, with the last seven points from Green, to make it 84-70 with about 10 minutes remaining.Fred VanVleet opened the quarter with a 3-pointer before Green added his seven points in just over a minute.Desmond Bane made two free throws for Memphis before the Rockets got a three-point play from Alperen Sengun and a 3 from VanVleet to make it 90-72 with nine minutes to go.Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 23 points each for the Grizzlies, who lost for the third time in four games. Dillon Brooks, who spent his first six seasons with the Grizzlies, had 13 points in the first game against his former team after signing with the Rocket...

Arthur Kaluma scores 20, Kansas State dominates Central Arkansas 100-55

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Arthur Kaluma scored 20 points, David N’Guessan added a double-double, and Kansas State routed Central Arkansas 100-55 on Wednesday night.K-State (4-2) led 10-1 in the early going and 26-5 eight minutes into the game on the way to a 49-22 halftime lead. The Wildcats outshot the Bears 51%-18% in the first half. A 10-0 run by K-State put the game completely out of reach midway through the second half and the lead reached 45 on a layup by Macaleab Rich with about a minute remaining.At no point in the game did Central Arkansas score back-to-back baskets.N’Guessan had 11 points and 11 rebounds, Rich had 13 points and eight rebounds off the bench, and Dai Dai Ames scored 14, also off the bench for the Wildcats.Carl Daughtery had 23 points and seven rebounds, and Tucker Anderson scored 13 for the Bears (1-5). Only six players scored for Central Arkansas.The Wildcats opened a four-game homestand with a convincing win that pushed their non-conference home winning strea...

Trae Young scores season-high 43 points, Hawks outlast Nets 147-145 in overtime

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Trae Young scored a season-high 43 points, including 14 in overtime, and the Atlanta Hawks outlasted the Brooklyn Nets 147-145 on Wednesday in their second shootout in two nights. A night after falling 157-152 to the Indiana Pacers, the Hawks snapped a three-game losing streak got back to .500.De’Andre Hunter had 25 points and 11 rebounds, and scored nine straight points for the Hawks in the fourth quarter. Clint Capela finished with 14 points and 15 rebounds.Mikal Bridges had 45 points and 10 rebounds for the Nets. He had 11 points in overtime.Young’s 15-footer with 17 seconds left gave the Hawks the lead for good at 144-143. Onyeka Okongwu had a key blocked shot of Bridges’ layup with 7 seconds left that kept Atlanta in front, and Lonnie Walker IV shot an airball on a 17-footer at the buzzer for the Nets.The Nets, without injured starters Ben Simmons and Cam Thomas, and key reserve Dennis Smith Jr., have lost three straight.Young forced overtime when he ...

UT Arlington beats Alcorn State 82-69

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Kade Douglas scored 20 points as UT Arlington beat Alcorn State 82-69 on Wednesday night.Douglas also contributed five rebounds for the Mavericks (3-2). Shemar Wilson scored 14 points while shooting 3 of 4 from the field and 8 for 11 from the line, and added 12 rebounds and three blocks. Dwayne Koroma went 6 of 9 from the field to finish with 12 points and Brandyn Talbot hit four 3s for 12 points.The Braves (1-6) were led in scoring by Byron Joshua, who finished with 21 points and five assists. Jeremiah Gambrell added 13 points for Alcorn State. In addition, Jeremiah Kendall finished with 10 points.___The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.Source

Oregon State AD says keeping coach Jonathan Smith is top priority

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

With Oregon State coach Jonathan Smith’s name being bandied about in connection with coaching vacancies, Beavers athletic director Scott Barnes said his top priority is retaining him. Barnes released a statement on Wednesday as speculation grew about Smith’s future with the Beavers. The speculation coincides with uncertainty about the Pac-12 going forward. Oregon State and Washington State are the lone remaining teams in the conference after the other 10 teams bolted in realignment. Together the Beavers and the Cougars have filed a lawsuit to retain the Pac-12’s assets. The No. 15 Beavers were preparing for Friday’s game at No. 6 Oregon, possibly the final meeting in the storied rivalry between the schools for the foreseeable future. The Ducks are headed to the Big Ten next season. “Coach Smith and I have had ongoing conversations for more than a month regarding his future at Oregon State and our path forward for football specifically and our athletic departm...

Walter and Missi lead No. 13 Baylor to 88-72 win over Oregon State in NIT Season Tip-Off

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:14:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Ja’Kobe Walter scored 24 points and fellow freshman Yves Missi posted his first career double-double Wednesday night as No. 13 Baylor beat Oregon State 88-72 in the opening game of the NIT Season Tip-Off at Barclays Center.Baylor (5-0) led the entire way and will face the winner of the Florida-Pittsburgh nightcap in the championship game Friday evening.The 7-foot Missi had 14 points and 14 rebounds. Jalen Bridges added 14 points for the Bears.“We want the other team to work for everything for the whole 40 minutes,” Bridges said. “We want them to leave the gym feeling like they don’t want to play Baylor again. I feel like we did a great job in the first half of doing that.”Dexter Akanno scored 16 for the Beavers (3-2). Jordan Pope had 13, DaJohn Craig added 12 and KC Ibekwe 10.“That’s as good a test as we’re going to see this early in the season,” Oregon State coach Wayne Tinkle said. “Disappointed with our start. I think we got caught up in the moment a little bit.”T...