No. 8 Michigan St. tops No. 6 Duke
Rocket Watts scored 20 points and Julius Marble had a career-high 12 to help No. 8 Michigan State beat No. 6 Duke 75-69 on Tuesday in the Champions Classic.
The visiting Spartans (3-0) trailed by 10 early in the game but closed the first half with a 13-4 surge to take a 37-33 lead at halftime.
Michigan State maintained control in the second half, leading by as many as 16.
The Blue Devils (1-1) rallied late and pulled within five in the final minute..
Matthew Hurt had 21 points and 13 rebounds for Duke.
■ Matt Coleman III scored 16 points to help No. 17 Texas beat Indiana 66-44 in the semifinals of the relocated Maui Invitational, reaching the tournament’s championship game for the first time. The tournament is being played in the Asheville, North Carolina mountains instead of its traditional Hawaii setting due to the coronavirus pandemic. Courtney Ramey added 13 points for the Longhorns (3-0). In the other semifinal, Leaky Black had a big driving basket at the 1:02 mark followed by a clinching free throw with 5.5 seconds left to help No. 14 North Carolina (3-0) hold off Stanford 67-63. ... Two days after upsetting then No. 10 Kentucky, Richmond paused team activities and called off its game at College of Charleston on Wednesday night because of COVID-19 concerns within the 19th-ranked Spiders’ program.
College football: The ACC announced a series of scheduling changes that allowed Notre Dame to clinch a spot in the ACC championship game Dec. 19. In addition, the ACC has changed its testing procedures, requiring teams to have a PCR test administered on Thursdays so they can receive their results before traveling for games. ... Ohio State resumed team activities and hopes to play Saturday at Michigan State. The Buckeyes paused team activites Friday night and canceled last weekend’s game at Illinois after a rise in COVID-19 cases in the program. Ohio State coach Ryan Day was among those who tested positive. He will not coach in person if Saturday’s game takes place.
NBA: The defending league champion Lakers will host the Mavericks in the prime-time slot on Christmas Day, ESPN reported. The other games: Pelicans at Heat, Warriors at Bucks, Nets at Celtics and Clippers at Nuggets.
The Browns activated DE Myles Garrett off the reserve/COVID-19 list, clearing the way for the former Pro Bowl pass-rusher to return Sunday against the Titans. Garrett was leading the league with 9 1/2 sacks before missing the last two games. He’s still tied for the league lead with four forced fumbles. ... The Giants placed LB Kyler Fackrell on IR with a calf injury. Fackrell, who’s second on team with three sacks, will miss at least three games.
NFL:
Soccer: Former Champions League winners Liverpool and Porto eased to the knockout stage with Liverpool beating Ajax 1-0 and Porto holding alreadyqualified Manchester City to a 0-0 draw. Thirteen-time champ Real Madrid fell 2-0 to Shakhtar Donetsk in other group-play action, putting the Spanish club’s streak of advancing in all of its group-play campaigns at risk of ending at 24.