EAGLES/CHIEFS SET UP TOP-SEEDED SUPER BOWL:
The final game of the NFL season is officially set as the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs – both No. 1 seeds in their respective conferences – punched their ticket to Super Bowl 57 with wins on Championship Sunday.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts had one of Philadelphia’s four rushing touchdowns and the Eagles soared into the Super Bowl, forcing both of San Francisco’s quarterbacks out of the game with injuries and beating the wounded 49ers 31-7 in the NFC championship game on Sunday.
The Eagles, who won the Super Bowl five years ago with a different coach and quarterback, will try to do it again behind the formidable duo of Hurts and coach Nick Sirianni.
Patrick Mahomes had a mad dash to the sideline on a bum ankle in the final seconds of the AFC Championship game at Arrowhead Stadium to setup Harrison Butker’s game winning field goal as Kansas City edged past the returning AFC Champs Cincinnati Bengals 23-20.
Kansas City will have participated in three of the last four Super Bowls after hosting five consecutive AFC Championship games.
Philadelphia will play former Eagles coach Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs.
LOPERS EARN WINS OVER MISSOURI WESTERN SATURDAY:
It was a clean sweep of the Griffons for UNK at the Health & Sports Center on Saturday afternoon.
Redshirt junior reserve wing Meg Burns scored a career-high 15 points and No. 13/19 Nebraska Kearney sunk 15 threes to demolish No. 26/30 Missouri Western State, 91-55.
The Lopers (20-3, 13-2) reach the 20-win mark for the 21st time in school history and record a 14th consecutive home victory. UNK also broke the Griffons’ eleven game win streak.
On the men’s side, super senior forward Darrian Nebeker scored a game-high 23 points and senior forward Winston Cook added 20 off the bench to help Nebraska Kearney beat Missouri Western State, 85-75.
The Lopers (4-16, 2-12) pick up its second league win of the year while the Griffons (8-12, 4-9) drop a sixth straight game.
Both Loper squads head to Central Oklahoma on Thursday night.
HUSKER MEN DROP ROAD TEST AT MARYLAND:
Nebraska put together its best shooting night in Big Ten play this season, but Maryland was nearly perfect from the free throw line in an 82-63 win over Nebraska Saturday afternoon.
The Huskers (10-12, 3-8 Big Ten) shot 53 percent from the field, its best shooting night since Nov. 30, and got strong performances from Derrick Walker and Sam Hoiberg in a losing effort.
Walker finished with a team-high 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting and eight rebounds, while Hoiberg posted a career-high 15 points, eclipsing his entire season total entering the contest.
Nebraska will continue its two-game road trip on Tuesday, as the Huskers travel to Illinois.
NEBRASKA WOMEN RALLY IN CLOSE LOSS AT TOP TEN IOWA:
Nebraska rallied from a 17-point deficit to open the fourth quarter but came up just short in an 80-76 loss to No. 10 Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Sam Haiby led five Huskers in double figures with 16 points, while Alexis Markowski and Jaz Shelley each added double-doubles, but Nebraska slipped to 12-9 overall and 4-6 in the Big Ten.
Nebraska returns to Big Ten home action on Thursday when the Huskers host Michigan State.
BIG RED SIGNS CALIFORNIA D-LINEMAN:
Nebraska Football has picked up a commitment from former Washington pledge Sua Lefotu – a three-star 2023 defensive lineman out of national powerhouse St. John Bosco (Calif.) High School who announced his commitment on Saturday.
Lefotu, the No. 73-ranked player in California, was committed to the Huskies for a little over four months but decommitted on Nov. 2 and reopened his recruitment.
The 6-foot-4, 295-pounder, who is listed as a strongside defensive end in his recruiting profile, was offered by Matt Rhule and Huskers defensive line coach Terrance Knighton on Jan. 14
Lefotu is the 27th member of the Huskers’ 2023 class.
HUSKER WRESTLING’S MANNING EARNS 300 CAREER WINS:
Behind seven wins and three bonus point victories, the Nebraska wrestling team defeated Wisconsin, 24-11, in front of 2,209 fans on Sunday afternoon at the Devaney Center.
This dual win marked Coach Manning’s 300th career win. Manning now holds a career record of 300-129-5.
Up next, Nebraska will face Illinois on Friday, Feb. 3 to kick off a three-meet road-slate.
NFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME RESULTS:
SUNDAY:
NFC – #1 Philadelphia Eagles 31-7 #2 San Francisco 49ers
AFC – #1 Kansas City Chiefs 23-20 #3 Cincinnati Bengals
Local Results & Schedules:
THIS WEEK IN LOCAL SPORTS:
MONDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- N/a
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- N/a
- UNK:
- N/a
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- JV Men’s Basketball: @ Concordia – 7 PM
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- High School Coaches Show (5 PM – 6 PM)
- Sports Nightly (6 PM – 8 PM)
TUESDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- Swimming & Diving: @ Grand Island Dual @ YMCA – 4:30 PM
- Girls Basketball: v. Lincoln Pius X @ Kearney High School – 5:15 PM
- KGFW Pregame at 5 PM
- Boys Basketball: v. Lincoln Pius X @ Kearney High School – 7 PM
- KGFW Pregame after KHS GBB
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- Swimming & Diving: @ Grand Island Dual @ YMCA – 4:30 PM
- Girls Basketball: v. Sandhills Valley – 5:30 PM
- Boys Basketball: v. Sandhills Valley – 7:30 PM
- UNK:
- N/a
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- N/a
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- Kearney Girls Basketball v. Lincoln Pius X (5 PM – 7 PM)
- Kearney Boys Basketball v. Lincoln Pius X (7 PM – 9 PM)
WEDNESDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- Collegiate Signing Day @ CHaT – 4 PM
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- N/a
- UNK:
- N/a
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- Women’s Basketball: v. Doane – 6 PM
- Men’s Basketball: v. Doan – 7:45 PM
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- Sports Nightly w/ MBB Head Coach Fred Hoiberg (6 PM – 8 PM)
THURSDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- Swimming & Diving: v. Norfolk @ Kearney High School – 4 PM
- Wrestling: @ Grand Island – 7 PM
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- Girls Basketball: v. Adams Central – 6 PM
- UNK:
- Women’s Basketball: @ Central Oklahoma – 5:30 PM
- Men’s Basketball: @ Central Oklahoma – 7:30 PM
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- N/a
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- Sports Nightly (6 PM – 7 PM)
- Nebraska Women’s Basketball v. Michigan State (7 PM – 10:15 PM)
FRIDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- N/a
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- Wrestling: @ Arcadia-Loup City Invite – 2 PM
- UNK:
- Softball: v. Colorado Springs @ Lubbock, TX – 11 AM
- M/W T&F: @ Concordia Classic – 12 PM
- Softball: v. Eastern New Mexico @ Lubbock, TX – 3 PM
- Women’s Tennis: v. Midwestern State – 4 PM
- M/W T&F: @ Husker Invitational @ Lincoln, NE – 4:30 PM
- Wrestling: v. Fort Hays State @ Health & Sports Center – 7 PM
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- M/W T&F: @ Concordia Classic – 1 PM
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- Sports Nightly (6 PM – 8 PM)
SATURDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- Swimming & Diving: Kearney High Diving Invite @ Kearney High School – 10 AM
- Girls Basketball: v. Lincoln Northeast @ Kearney High School – 3:30 PM
- KGFW Pregame at 3:15 PM
- Boys Basketball: v. Lincoln Northeast @ Kearney High School – 5:15 PM
- KGFW Pregame after KHS GBB
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- Swimming & Diving: Kearney High Diving Invite @ Kearney High School – 10 AM
- Girls Basketball: v. Columbus Scotus Catholic – 2 PM
- Boys Basketball: v. Columbus Scotus Catholic – 4 PM
- UNK:
- M/W T&F: @ Husker Invitational @ Lincoln, NE – 12 PM
- Softball: v. Southwestern Oklahoma State @ Lubbock, TX – 11 AM
- Women’s Basketball: @ Newman – 1:30 PM
- Wrestling: v. Central Missouri @ Health & Sports Center – 2 PM
- Softball: @ Lubbock Christian @ Lubbock, TX – 3 PM
- Men’s Basketball: @ Newman – 3:30 PM
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- Softball: @ Ottawa, KS – 1 PM
- Women’s Basketball: @ Mount Marty – 2 PM
- Softball: @ Ottawa, KS – 3 PM
- Men’s Basketball: @ Mount Marty – 3:45 PM
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- Kearney Girls Basketball v. Lincoln Northeast (3:15 PM – 5:15 PM)
- Kearney Boys Basketball v. Lincoln Northeast (5:15 PM – 7:15 PM)
SUNDAY:
- KEARNEY HIGH:
- N/a
- KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
- N/a
- UNK:
- Women’s Tennis: v. Hastings – 8 AM
- HASTINGS COLLEGE:
- N/a
- KGFW Sports Schedule:
- Nebraska Men’s Basketball v. Penn State (2:30 PM – 6:15 PM)
