In Local Sports, in girls high school hoops, Hall pulled out a win over Serena 35-30. Paisley Twait scored 18. Mendota beat Earlville 47-31, Lasalle-Peru defeated Illinois Valley Central 49-40, and Streator lost to Pontiac 60-25. The Ottawa Lady Pirates picked up two wins 49-15 over Streator, Marlie Orlandi led with 15 and 56-40 over Pontiac. Ella Schmitz scored 10. In boys high school hoops, Serena defeated Depue 79-22. Tanner Faivre scored 14. Streator fell to Washington 62-41 and the Marquette Crusaders rolled Deer Creek-Mackinaw 65-25. The Ottawa Dolphins swim team fell to Rockford this past weekend. Winners included Cole Bressendorf, Ryland Heaver, Lewis Kuiper, Quinn Wilkinson Maya Burke, Declan Hawkins, Evvie Jeppson, Breckyn Jobst, Gabriel Marini Evelyn Andree, Caden Brown, Addisyn Budnick, Kailey Goetsch, Dane Hawkins, Brennen Heaver, Parker Hettel, Dawsynn Kettman, and Jace Sandoval.
>>Illinois Basketball Crushes Alabama A&M
(Champaign, IL) — The number-19 Illinois Fighting Illini got back in the win column with a 68-47 win over Alabama A&M on Saturday. Matthew Mayer led Illinois with 21 points, and Terrence Shannon Jr. poured in 18. The Illini are 8-and-3 overall and 0-and-2 in the Big Ten. They take on Mizzou in St. Louis on Thursday.
>>Northwestern Dismantles DePaul
(Evanston, IL) — The Northwestern Wildcats dominated the DePaul Demons 83-45 in a Chicagoland battle at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Saturday. Chase Audige had a big game with 28 points, and Boo Buie chipped in with 17. The 8-and-2 Wildcats are on a three-game winning streak, and they host UIC on Tuesday.
>>Fighting Irish Fall To Georgia
(Atlanta, GA) — The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are on a two-game losing streak following a 77-62 loss to Georgia at State Farm Arena. Notre Dame trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half. Nate Laszewski poured in a game-high 20 points in the losing effort. The Irish are 7-and-4 overall and 0-and-1 in the ACC. They visit Florida State on Wednesday.
>>College Basketball Round Up
(Undated) — In college hoops action on Friday, Chicago State fell to Southern Illinois 63-52. On Saturday, Bradley was crushed by number-10 Arkansas 76-57, Illinois State lost to Ball Sate 83-69, and Northern Illinois was defeated by VCU 90-63.Tonight, Bradley hosts Stonehill, and Illinois State welcomes Chicago State.
\>>Bulls Lose To Wolves
(Minneapolis, MN) — The Chicago Bulls couldn’t keep up with the Timberwolves during a 150-126 loss at the Target Center. The Bulls defense gave up at least 32 points in each quarter of the contest. DeMar DeRozan had 29 points in the losing effort, while Nikola Vucevic chipped in with 23. The Bulls are on a four-game losing streak. Chicago is in 11th place in the Eastern Conference at 11-and-18. The Bulls visit the Heat tomorrow night.
>>Bears Fall To Eagles
(Chicago, IL) — Justin Fields became the third quarterback in NFL history to rush for over one-thousand yards in a season as the Bears lost to the Eagles 25-20 at Soldier Field. The Bears scored a touchdown with under three minutes left in regulation to make it a one-possession game, but the Eagles were able to run out the clock on the ensuing series. Justin Field passed for 152 yards and two touchdowns, and he added 95 yards on the ground. Guard Teven Jenkins suffered a neck injury in the loss, but the Bears says that the received positive news about the setback. Chicago has lost seven games in a row to drop to 3-and-11. The Bears host Buffalo on Christmas Eve.
>>Blackhawks Get Crushed By Rangers
(Chicago, IL) — The Chicago Blackhawks are continuing their free-fall after a 7-1 loss to the New York Rangers at United Center. Chicago gave up at least two goals in each period, and the Blackhawks were down 3-0 before Philipp Kurashev got them on the board with their only goal of the game. Chicago is on a seven-game losing streak and has dropped 15 of its last 16. The Blackhawks are in last place in the Central Division with 18 points and a 7-19-and-4 record. They host Nashville on Wednesday.
>>Cubs Sign Swanson, Smyly
(Chicago, IL) — The Chicago Cubs are finally making a splash in free agency. The club signed former Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson to a seven-year contract worth 177-million dollars on Saturday. The contract includes a no-trade clause. The 28-year-old won his first Gold Glove and made his first All-Star Game in 2022. He hit .277 with 25 home runs and 96 RBI last season. In other news, Chicago also agreed to a one-year deal with starting pitcher Drew Smyly yesterday.
>>White Sox Ink Benintendi
(Chicago, IL) — The Chicago White Sox are adding another corner outfielder. The team inked Andrew Benintendi to a five-year deal worth 75-million dollars on Friday. The 28-year-old was a Gold Glove winner in 2021, and he made the American League All-Star team in 2022. He hit .304 with five home runs and 51 RBI in 126 games between the Royals and Yankees last season. In other White Sox news, the club signed outfielder Billy Hamilton to a minor league contract on Saturday.
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