SPORTS HEADLINES

Patriots punch ticket to 12th Super Bowl with gritty 10-7 win over Broncos in snowy Denver

DENVER (AP) — Drake Maye ran for 68 yards and threw for 86 in sloppy, snowy conditions and scored New England’s only touchdown on a 6-yard keeper, propelling the Patriots to their 12th Super Bowl with a 10-7 win over the Denver Broncos. Christian Gonzalez intercepted Jarrett Stidham, starting in place of an injured Bo Nix, at the New England 36 with 2:11 remaining and the Patriots iced their first playoff win in Denver when Maye ran for 7 yards on third-and-5 from his 41. The Broncos finished one step shy of fulfilling Sean Payton’s preseason prediction of a trip to Super Bowl 60.

NBA postpones Grizzlies-Nuggets, Mavs-Bucks games because of the winter storm

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The NBA has postponed two games in Memphis and Milwaukee because of the massive winter storm that has made for dangerous travel conditions across much of the U.S. The Dallas Mavericks tried twice to fly to Milwaukee for their game against the Bucks on Sunday night, but conditions didn’t allow it. A decision to postpone was announced a few hours before tipoff. Earlier Sunday, a game between the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies was postponed about three hours before tipoff. Reschedule dates were not announced. The league also changed the start times for two games on Monday.

Mikaela Shiffrin wins last slalom before Olympics and locks up record ninth season discipline title

SPINDLERUV MLYN, Czech Republic (AP) — Mikaela Shiffrin has locked up the World Cup slalom title with two races to spare and became the first skier with nine season titles in one discipline. The American star dominated the last slalom before the Olympics as she won both runs to beat runner-up Camille Rast. The race took place at the Czech venue of Shiffrin’s World Cup debut at age 15 in March 2011. No other skier in the six-decade-long history of the World Cup has won more than eight globes in a single event. Shiffrin’s teammate Lindsey Vonn has eight downhill titles and leads those standings again in the current season.

Roger Penske’s team wins third consecutive Rolex 24 at Daytona in thrilling finish

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Roger Penske’s team won the Rolex 24 at Daytona, marking a three-peat in the prestigious endurance race. The Penske squad becomes the third team in the event’s 64-year history to achieve the feat. The Porsche Penske Motorsports team joins Chip Ganassi Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing in this accomplishment. Brazilian driver Felipe Nasr, the only constant in the lineup, helped secure the win. Nasr held off Action Express Racing’s Cadillac in the final hour. The race had a record-long caution because of foggy conditions, lasting more than six hours. The event featured 60 cars and 228 drivers from 32 countries.

Patrick Reed wins in Dubai. Money earned can go toward European tour fines for playing LIV

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Patrick Reed finally has a European tour title and a lot of perks that come with it. He shot 72 and won the Dubai Desert Classic by four shots. This was his first regular European title. The victory will move him inside the top 30 in the world for the first time since he joined LIV Golf in 2022. It also should exempt him for all the majors this year. And he had jokingly said a big payoff would help cover his European tour fines for when he plays LIV. Reed led by at least two the whole way.

Cunha’s winner for Man United against Arsenal blows Premier League race wide open

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester United’s Matheus Cunha blew the Premier League title race wide open with a stunning winner as his team beat Arsenal 3-2. The Brazil international curled an 87th-minute long-range shot past goalkeeper David Raya to decide a thrilling game at the Emirates Stadium that leaves Arsenal just four points clear of Manchester City and Aston Villa at the top of the standings. Villa kept up its unlikely title challenge with a 2-0 win against Newcastle. Emiliano Buendia and Ollie Watkins scored in each half at St. James’ Park to move third-place Villa level on points with Manchester City in second.

Snow and wind pick up in 2nd half of AFC championship game in Denver

DENVER (AP) — The heavy snow and swirling wind moved into the Mile High City for the second half of the AFC championship game Sunday as Denver played New England. The snow gathered on the field and made the yard lines hard to see. Patriots kicker Andres Borregales sent his 46-yard field goal into the swirling wind wide right late in the third quarter. The Patriots held a 10-7 lead over the Broncos heading into the fourth quarter. The day started out sunny and 26 degrees (minus-3 Celsius) with a wind chill of 17 (minus-8). A light snow began to fall just as halftime ended and steadily picked up. Players huddled by the heaters on the sideline.

Latson, Johnson lead No. 2 Gamecocks to 103-74 win, ending ‘Dores perfect start

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Ta’Niya Latson scored 21 points, Tessa Johnson added 20 and No. 2 South Carolina ended No. 5 Vanderbilt’s unbeaten start with a 103-74 victory on Sunday. The Commodores had won a school record 20 straight games to start the season, but had no answer for South Carolina, which has won 19 straight over Vanderbilt.Madina Okot had 17 points and Joyce Edwards had 16. The Commodores came in as one of only two undefeated teams left in the country along with No. 1 UConn. But South Carolina opened a 21-point lead in the first half and Vanderbilt could not rally. Mikayla Blakes had 23 to lead Vanderbilt.

A safe space: How figure skating became a comfort zone for the LGBTQ+ community amid perilous times

Figure skating for decades has provided a progressive sort of safe space for those within the LGTBQ+ community, some of whom still may be trying to realize their authentic selves. And while there are plenty of out athletes in other sports, what might set skating aside is the incredible success enjoyed by the LGBTQ+ community. It wasn’t always that way. Throughout the 1900s, women often were encouraged to be more effeminate, and male counterparts were told to embrace their masculinity. But that began to change about 40 years ago, as more athletes embraced who they were. Now, those in skating’s LGBTQ+ community are leaning on each other amid a tumultuous time in their country, where some politicians are aiming for many of their rights.

Aryna Sabalenka beats 19-year-old Mboko, faces 18-year-old Jovic in Australian Open quarterfinals

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka held off 19-year-old Vicky Mboko 6-1, 7-6 (1) to advance to an Australian Open quarterfinal against another teenager, 18-year-old Iva Jovic. The 29-seeded Jovic overwhelmed Yulia Putintseva 6-0, 6-1 in 53 minutes as she moved into the last eight in a Grand Slam for the first time. She’s been getting some good advice from 24-time major winner Novak Djokovic during the tournament. Coco Gauff, 21, is into the Australian Open quarterfinals for the third straight year. And so is men’s No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz, who had a 7-6 (6), 6-4, 7-5 win over No. 19-seeded Tommy Paul. He’s also been looking to Djokovic for inspiration on his serve.