Jeff White had a career-high 23 points and Milton Doyle scored all 18 of his points in the second half as Loyola held on for a 76-72 win over UW-Milwaukee in the season opener for both teams.Loyola (1-0) was up by 3 with just under five minutes remaining when Doyle scored six straight points to give the Ramblers a 73-64 lead, their biggest of the game. UWM (0-1) cut the lead to 73-70 with 28 seconds left but Loyola made three of four free throws to hold on for the win.Loyola shot 50 percent from the field and was 7-of-14 on 3-pointers while forcing 18 Milwaukee turnovers. Loyola has now won 23 of their past 27 non-conference home games.Matt Tiby had 21 points and 8 rebounds for Milwaukee.

Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane scored in the first period, leading the Blackhawks to a 4-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday night.The Blackhawks also got goals from Brandon Pirri and Patrick Sharp in their fourth win in five games. Corey Crawford made 24 saves and defenseman Duncan Keith had two assists. Winnipeg forward Michael Frolik received a standing ovation when he was recognized during a break in the first period in his first game in Chicago since he helped the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup in June. Frolik, who played a pivotal role on the Hawks penalty-kill unit last season, was traded to the Jets for draft picks at the beginning of the offseason.Frolik stood in front of the Winnipeg bench and waved as the crowd cheered after the Blackhawks showed some of his highlights from the playoffs last season. With the game in hand with 6:22 left in the third, Blackhawks forward Brandon Bollig got a big cheer from the sellout crowd when he drove Jets defenseman Adam Pardy through a glass panel in Winnipeg’s end of the ice.Pardy then was leaning over the boards and into the crowd when a fan took his helmet off and put it on. A woman also dumped her beer on Pardy before the officials were able to break up the scrum.Devin Setoguchi scored his third goal for the Jets in the third period of his 400th career game, and Al Montoya had 24 stops in his second career game in his native Chicago.It was the Blackhawks’ second convincing victory over the Jets in five days, after they won 5-1 in Winnipeg on Saturday.The Blackhawks grabbed control at the end of the first, jumping ahead 2-0 in a span of 2:25 while bouncing back from Sunday’s 3-2 overtime loss to Calgary.Toews provided a spark when he set up Kane with a nice spinning pass on a 2-on-1. Kane was stopped by Montoya, but Toews skated around to the front of the net, got a pass from Sharp and stuffed it home at 17:29. Kane then skated through much of Winnipeg’s end before beating Montoya with a wrist shot for his team-best ninth goal of the season with 6 seconds left in the first.Pirri added his third goal on a breakaway in the second, and Sharp made it 4-0 when he beat Montoya on the glove side at 4:00 in the third period. Crawford was working on his first shutout of the season before Setoguchi scored on a rebound at 8:40 of the third. Former Blackhawks defenseman Dustin Byfuglien got an assist on the play.

NOTES—Jets LW Evander Kane missed his second straight game with an unspecified injury. D Zach Redmond also was scratched. … Fs Michal Handzus, Jeremy Morin and Brad Mills were scratched for the Blackhawks. Handzus has missed six straight games with an injury. … It was Winnipeg’s first game in Chicago since a 4-3 loss to the Blackhawks on Oct. 13, 2011.

INDIANAPOLIS—Indiana spent the offseason investing heavily in its bench. On Wednesday night, the Pacers got the payoff. Luis Scola, Donald Sloan and Lance Stephenson combined for all 12 points in a decisive fourth-quarter run, sending the still unbeaten Pacers past the division rival Bulls 97-80 and to its best start since 1971-72.

”They brought all of us in to make the bench a little deeper than it was last year, and I think the guys on the bench know their role,” Sloan said. ”So it just fits.”

Perfectly.The NBA’s last unbeaten team is 5-0 for the first time in Indiana’s NBA history. Indiana can tie its franchise record, 6-0 set by the 1970-71 ABA powerhouse, when Toronto visits Friday night.Wednesday’s victory may have been the most impressive yet.Again, the Pacers played short-handed. Starting point guard George Hill missed his third straight game with a sore left hip, and swingman Danny Granger still has not played because of a strained left calf. Again, they had to rally from a halftime deficit.And again, they found a way to close it out. Paul George, the league’s second-leading scorer, finished with 21 points, six rebounds and three assists. David West had 17 points and 13 rebounds, both season-highs. Roy Hibbert had eight points, 10 rebounds and added five more blocks to his league-leading total.But Scola, Sloan and Stephenson changed the script.After missing his first seven shots and scoring just three points in the first three quarters, Stephenson had 12 points in the final 12 minutes including two big 3-pointers during the decisive stretch. He finished with 15 points. Scola added 12, none more critical than the consecutive baskets he made midway through the fourth. Sloan scored nine points including the 17-footer that tied the score midway through the fourth.

”We just play hard. We feel like that we going to bring it every night on the defensive end, offensive end and we going to find a way to get that `W,”’ Stephenson said. ”And we did that tonight.”

It sure wasn’t easy against their fiercest division rival.Derrick Rose and Luol Deng scored 17 points each to lead the Bulls (1-3), though Rose scored only three points in 12 minutes in the second half and he spent the first half of the fourth quarter on the bench.

”A couple players on their team made big plays, great second-chance efforts with the rebounding and Lance, I think, played great for them tonight knocking down shots and just playing hard,” Rose said before answering a question about his minutes. ”I’ll leave that up to Tibs, he’s the coach on this team, so I’ll let him coach.”

Perhaps Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau thought it was better to protect Rose’s surgically repaired left knee in this rugged game that looked more like a boxing title bout.Bodies repeatedly crashed hard to the court all night, and the game got progressively more physical with each quarter. Pacers backup center Ian Mahinmi left late in the third quarter with a sprained left ankle and did not return. Kirk Hinrich was called for a flagrant foul in the fourth. There was a resounding thud inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse, too, when Joakim Noah hit the court while trying to protect his own basket late in the fourth. But until the stretch, neither team could get the upper hand. After leading 25-19 at the end of one quarter and trailing 43-37 at halftime, it looked like Indiana might break away after starting the third quarter on a 10-2 run and then coming up with a 9-2 spurt to regain the lead. When Sloan hit a 3-pointer with 1:12 left in the third, Indiana suddenly led 63-55.It didn’t last.Hinrich answered with a 3, Deng hit an 11-foot jumper, drawing a foul on George, and Pacers coach Frank Vogel was called for a technical.The Bulls hit both free throws to make it 63-62. The Bulls pulled even on Mike Dunleavy’s 3 early in the fourth and regained the lead, 67-65, on Deng’s midrange jumper with 8:38 to play.Sloan tied the score at 67, Stephenson gave Indiana the lead with a 3, Scola followed that with consecutive baskets and Stephenson closed the run with another 3 to make it 77-69 with 5:16 to go. The Bulls never seriously challenged again as the Pacers pulled away.

”We’ve had a good feel since he got here. The guy’s just a winner,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said of Scola. ”He just goes out there and knows how to play this game. He’s one of the best players in the history of international basketball and one of the best power forwards in the game. We’ve got him as a backup power forward. It’s quite a luxury.”

NOTES—Rose opened the game with his best offensive half of the season, going 5 of 9 from the field with 12 points and one 3 in the first two quarters. … The Bulls fell to 6-22 all-time at Bankers Life Fieldhouse….Carlos Boozer came into the game shooting an NBA-best 65.9 percent from the field and averaging 22.3 points but went just 3 of 10 with six points. … The Pacers follow this back-to-back stretch with three games in the next five days.

SAN FRANCISCO over Carolina
Buffalo over PITTSBURGH
TENNESSEE over Jacksonville
BALTIMORE over Cincinnati
SAN DIEGO over Denver
ARIZONA over Houston
INDIANAPOLIS over St.Louis
Seattle over ATLANTA
NY GIANTS over Oakland

Sun Night NEW ORLEANS over Dallas
Mon Night Miami over TAMPA BAY

NFC NORTH GAMES
Thur Night MINNESOTA over Washington
GREEN BAY over Philadelphia
BEARS over Detroit

HOME TEAMS in all CAPS

Last week: Les 7-6, Adam 8-5

Total through Week 9:  Les 95-38,  Adam 89-44

GREEN BAY—For the better part of two decades now, the Green Bay Packers backup quarterback has been little more than an afterthought.No more.With Aaron Rodgers knocked out of the game — and perhaps longer — by a shoulder injury on the first series, Josh McCown and the Bears reminded the Packers why good insurance is so important. McCown, playing in place of the injured Jay Cutler, threw for two touchdowns Monday night and led the Bears to a 27-20 victory that ended a six-game skid to its NFC North rivals.

“We expected to win this game, even with the situation that happened,” Jordy Nelson said. “We had an opportunity to win the game, and we just didn’t make enough plays.”

The loss snapped Green Bay’s four-game winning streak, but the far larger concern is the health of Rodgers, who hurt his left (non-throwing) shoulder when he was sacked on the first series by Shea McClellin.Rodgers took a few warm-up throws with backup Seneca Wallace but, after being examined by medical staff, ran into the Green Bay locker room. He wasn’t seen again until midway through the third quarter, when he came back onto the field in sweats. Though he waved to fans with his right hand, and didn’t appear to be wearing a brace, he kept his left hand jammed in his pocket.

“He has a shoulder injury,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. “They want to run more tests. They don’t have an exact diagnosis. We’ll have more information, probably tomorrow.”

Pressed for more information, McCarthy insisted there wasn’t any.

“No timeline, no exact diagnosis,” he said. “That’s where we’re at.”

Alshon Jeffery had five catches for 60 yards, including a 6-yard grab for the go-ahead touchdown at the end of the third quarter. Brandon Marshall, largely shut down in two games against Green Bay last year, had seven catches for 107 yards and a score. Matt Forte ran for 125 yards and a TD, and also had 54 yards receiving for the Bears, who pulled into a three-way tie for first in the NFC North with Green Bay and Detroit.All are 5-3.

“It’d be hard to find one better than this,” said McCown, who was coaching high school when the Bears signed him two years ago. “They’re all special, but this is really neat because it means so much to our team.”

The loss spoiled another big night by Green Bay rookie Eddie Lacy, who ran for 150 yards and a touchdown.Green Bay has been hit hard by injuries, with James Jones (knee) returning Monday night after a two-game absence and sackmaster Clay Matthews (thumb) and tight end Jermichael Finley still out. Wide receiver Randall Cobb (leg) is also on the injured list-designated to return, and offensive lineman T.J. Lang (concussion) and linebacker Andy Mulumba (ankle) left the game.But there are injuries and then there are INJURIES, and a hurt Aaron Rodgers is Green Bay’s ultimate nightmare.With the 2011 NFL MVP almost as durable as predecessor Brett Favre — he hasn’t missed a game due to injury since Dec. 19, 2010 — the backup quarterback has been the most anonymous person in Green Bay.

“Aaron’s a huge part of our offense,” McCarthy said. “This is a thing that’s been built over time with Aaron as the centerpiece. I don’t think it’s realistic to put anyone in there and think they’re going to pick up and run it the way he has run it.”

But as the Bears know all too well, backups can be just as invaluable as a starter.After a series of forgettable backups under Lovie Smith — Caleb Hanie or Jonathan Quinn, anyone? — the Bears signed McCown when Cutler was hurt two years ago. He played well enough then to stick around, and his familiarity with his receivers and coach Marc Trestman’s system was evident.

McCown may not have been dazzling, going 22 for 41 for 272 yards, but he mixed his passes effectively to Marshall, Jeffery and Forte, and Forte ran roughshod on the Green Bay defense.

The Bears sealed their victory with 53 seconds left with Robbie Gould’s 27-yard field goal, which followed an 18-play, 80-yard drive that ate almost nine minutes off the clock.

“You understand the nature of the game and the impact that [Rodgers] has on the game,” McCown said. “So when that player’s not on the field, your odds of winning probably increase.”

Better yet, McCown didn’t do anything to hurt the Bears, which is more than Wallace can say.Wallace hadn’t played a game since the 2011 season finale, and the rust was evident. He was intercepted on his very first series by Julius Peppers and was sacked twice, once by Peppers and once by McClellin. The Packers had a second-and-goal from the Bears 5 late in the third quarter and were forced to settle for Mason Crosby’s 23-yard field goal after Wallace overthrew James Jones and Andrew Quarless. Green Bay would get no further than the Bears 39 the rest of the game.Wallace finished 11 of 19 for 114 yards. The Packers were just 1 of 9 on third down.

“Seneca, he needs to perform better, and he’ll definitely do that with a week of practice,” McCarthy said.

NOTES—This was Green Bay’s first loss to an NFC North foe at Lambeau Field since Nov. 1, 2009, when Favre returned with the Minnesota Vikings. … It was the Bears first victory in Green Bay since 2007. … Green Bay’s 199 yards rushing was a season high, and best since the Packers ran for 202 against Cleveland on Oct. 25, 2009. … Jamari Lattimore blocked a punt and recovered an on onside kick for the Packers.

This was fun to take part in. My Score teammates David Schuster and Dan Bernstein were also interviewed as were our friends on this cover.
Here is the link to this story:
http://www.chicagojewishnews.com/story.htm?sid=1

Kris Russell scored at 1:32 of overtime, Reto Berra made 42 saves in his first NHL game and the Calgary Flames defeated the Blackhawks 3-2 on Sunday night.Russell’s shot from the blue line clanked off the crossbar and past Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford, ending Calgary’s 10-game losing streak in Chicago. The Flames won at the United Center for the first time since March 2008.Mike Cammelleri and Curtis Glencross scored in regulation for the Flames. Calgary’s T.J. Galiardi missed on a second-period penalty shot. Marian Hossa scored a power-play goal with 4:19 left in the third period to tie it at 2,which alowed the Hawks to at least get one standing point. Patrick Kane also scored for Hawks, who had won three in a row.

LINCOLN—Jordan Westerkamp caught Ron Kellogg III’s tipped desperation heave to the end zone with no time left Saturday, giving Nebraska a 27-24 victory over Northwestern on Saturday. The Cornhuskers looked like they were finished after Northwestern took a three-point lead with 1:20 left. They started their final drive at their 17 with no timeouts. Ameer Abdullah caught a short pass and stretched to convert a fourth-and-15. Then, with four seconds on the clock, Kellogg dropped back for a final play. The strong-armed Kellogg let fly a ball that was tipped by Northwestern’s Anthony Walker in the end zone. Westerkamp was there to snatch it, bringing the entire Nebraska bench running onto the field in celebration. The play was confirmed on video review. Jeff Budzien had kicked a 21-yard, tie-breaking field goal with 1:20 left after defensive lineman Tyler Scott’s interception set up Northwestern inside the Nebraska 10. Nebraska’s winning play was perhaps its most dramatic since Matt Davison’s “Miracle at Missouri” catch that kept alive the Huskers’ national-championship season in 1997.Kellogg, who came into the season as the third-string quarterback, was backing up Tommy Armstrong Jr. in the absence of the injured starter Taylor Martinez.The Huskers’ previous series ended with Armstrong, trying to hit Quincy Enunwa, instead firing a pass right into the hands of Scott. Kain Colter had run 6 yards to the Nebraska 1, but the Wildcats’ struggling offense couldn’t get into the end zone and had to call on Budzien for the short field goal.Coach Bo Pelini has said that if the Huskers ever needed to drive the field in the final 2 minutes, Kellogg would be the guy he called on. Kellogg, a walk-on who wasn’t put on scholarship until August, came through in a big way for a Nebraska team whose season was teetering after last week’s loss at Minnesota. The Huskers avoided back-to-back conference losses for the first time since 2009. The Huskers (6-2, 3-1 Big Ten) continue to control their own destiny in the Big Ten Legends Division. The Wildcats (4-5, 0-5) lost their fifth straight. Abdullah ran 24 times for 127 yards, but his biggest play came when the Huskers were trying to keep their last drive alive. Kellogg was in trouble on fourth-and-15 when he dumped the ball to Abdullah, who fought his way to the first-down marker and even got an extra yard. Armstrong was 15 of 29 for 173 yards and a touchdown, but he threw three interceptions.Kellogg was 7 of 13 for 104 yards, with one interception and the winning touchdown. Treyvon Green ran for 149 yards and a career-high three touchdowns for the Wildcats, who have lost five straight and were playing without injured running backs Venric Mark, Mike Trumpy and Stephen Buckley. Buckley injured his left knee in the first quarter and didn’t return. Nebraska defensive end Avery Moss tied it 21-all in the middle of the third quarter, picking off Trevor Siemian and running 25 yards for a touchdown. In 11 possessions after it went up 21-7, Northwestern punted 10 times and was intercepted.

SOUTH BEND—Navy‘s triple-option offense had Notre Dame flummoxed and flailing for most of the game.In need of one stop with 68 seconds left in the fourth quarter, freshman linebacker Jaylon Smith — with some help — made the play the Fighting Irish so badly needed. Smith and Eilar Hardy combined to snuff out an end-around by Navy’s Shawn Lynch on fourth-and-4 in Irish territory, and Notre Dame held on 38-34 Saturday. The Midshipmen ran for 331 yards, 207 in the first half. On Navy’s final drive, it ran the ball four straight plays for 18 yards and had it second-and-5 from the Notre Dame 32.

“It’s a scenario you want. On the road at Notre Dame, driving to win the game. It doesn’t get any better than that,” Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds said. “It’s a dream come true.”

Notre Dame’s hopes of returning to the Top 25 and hopes for a BCS bowl berth appeared tenuous at best. But Reynolds, who had run for three touchdowns and thrown for another, tossed a pitch just out of reach of DeBrandon Sanders. Sanders fell on the ball at the 41 for a 9-yard loss. Reynolds completed a 10-yard pass to Casey Bolena to set up a fourth down. Reynolds pitched the ball to Lynch on a reverse and for a moment it appeared he had room, but Smith quickly closed the gap and with the help from Hardy tackled Lynch for no gain.

“Luckily, Eilar was there to slow the guy down initially, and then I was there to make the play,” Smith said.

Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said Navy was a step too slow on the play.

“Normally it should have been a fraction of a second sooner,” he said.

Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said the Irish were fortunate to pull out the victory.

“They executed flawlessly today,” Kelly said. “They really put us in a position where we had to play great in the second half.”

Navy had no turnovers, no penalties and held the ball for 37:36 while the Irish had it just 22:24.Kelly said he wasn’t disappointed in the win.

“There’s no asterisk next to this one. This is a W. We’re excited about it,” he said.

Notre Dame (7-2) improved to 11-1 in November in four seasons under Kelly and clinched its fourth consecutive winning season, the first time that’s happened since 1995-98. The Irish also keep alive their hopes for a BCS bowl berth. Navy lost for the third time in the past four games. Notre Dame has won its past 10 games decided by a touchdown or less, tying Kelly with Knute Rockne for the second-longest such streak in school history. Elmer Layden holds the record with 12.The bright spot for Notre Dame was the play of freshman running back Tarean Folston, who scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 1-yard plunge and rushed for 144 yards on 18 carries, with 116 yards in the second half. He had rushed for only 116 yards on 22 carries before Saturday. Notre Dame finished with 506 yards total offense, averaging 9 yards per play, the most for the Irish since 1998. Tommy Rees threw touchdown passes to TJ Jones and Ben Koyack, George Atkinson III scored on a 41-yard run and Cam McDaniel added a TD. Rees was 12-of-20 passing for 242 yards with two interceptions. It was the third time this season Rees has thrown at least two interceptions. The Irish lost the other two against Michigan and against Oklahoma.Reynolds completed 6 of 9 passes for 88 yards, including two key passes that gave Navy its final lead. First he threw an 18-yard pass to Marcus Thomas to the Notre Dame 49. After three running plays, Reynolds then found a wide open Matt Aiken for a 34-yard score. The Midshipmen finished with 419 yards total offense and had 27 first downs, the most ever by a Navy team against Notre dame.Chris Swain led Navy with 85 yards Quinton Singleton had 77 yards.

PHILADELPHIA—Rookie Michael Carter-Williams had 26 points and 10 assists and Spencer Hawes added 18 points and 11 rebounds as the Philadelphia 76ers continued their stunning start to the season, beating the Bulls 107-104 on Saturday night.Pegged to be one of the league’s worst teams, the Sixers (3-0) have opened the season with wins over the Bulls, Washington and two-time defending champion Miami. Carlos Boozer led the Bulls with 22 points and 10 rebounds and Luol Deng had 20 points. Still dealing with neck soreness, Derrick Rose finished with 13 points and six assists.After trailing by as many as 18 points in the second half, the Sixers took a 100-99 lead with 3:29 left when Carter-Williams picked up a loose ball and calmly laid it in. It was the Sixers’ first lead since 11-10.