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Of late, that has seemed so much ancient history. Going into this season, Boston hadn’t won a title in five years nor reached the championship round in four. Those nerdy black high-top sneakers that are a Celtics trademark seemed appropriate for a bunch of guys who, for the past two seasons, couldn’t get a date to the second round of the playoffs. With the same three aging stars who had anchored the club since 1980 - Larry Bird, 34, Kevin McHale, 33, and Robert Parish, at 37 the oldest player in the NBA - prospects appeared dismal....

The 24-year-old kicker drilled a 53-yard field goal as time expired to give Chicago a 16-14 win over the Broncos at Mile High Stadium. Chicago needed the game-winning kick after the Broncos scored a touchdown with a little more than 30 seconds to play. Instead of going for the tie, Denver elected to go for two and, after a series of penalties, converted the attempt and took the lead when Joe Flacco found Emmanuel Sanders in the end zone....

The clock is ticking down on the Mitchell Trubisky era in Chicago, it appears, after the Bears declined his fifth-year option on Saturday. Really, it was an expected conclusion after GM Ryan Pace pulled the trigger on a Nick Foles trade in March. The Trubisky era in Chicago is going to be one that’s looked back on with some level of confusion. As one of the big three quarterbacks who came out of the 2017 draft — the others being Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes — Trubisky’s tenure with the Bears has been shaky at times, putting it lightly....

While going 14-34 under now-fired John Fox for the past three seasons, the team struggled to score points with consistent balance and explosiveness. Now that the Bears have their franchise quarterback in Mitchell Trubisky, they need an offensive-minded leader to take him to the next level as they also continue to improve the personnel around him. With that in mind, here are the seven coaching candidates most qualified for the task at hand....

Injured quarterback Jay Cutler will miss at least the next four weeks of the season and Pro Bowl linebacker Lance Briggs will be out for around six weeks, staggering blows for a struggling team. MORE: Week 7 injury updates | Bears lose in dramatic fashion | Week 7 overview The Bears announced the news Monday, a day after Cutler suffered a muscle tear in his groin during a 45-41 loss to the Washington Redskins, forcing the Bears to go with veteran Josh McCown....

Defense has been the Jets’ calling card over recent seasons – particularly the play of their secondary – but the secondary is one of their main concerns right now as they’re dealing with injuries to key players. That’s good news for a Bears offense that will lean heavily on the right arm of Jay Cutler. Cutler is on the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook’s props board with a gross passing yardage total of 259....

It’s official: Messi-like Dybala is a global superstar A brilliant first-half Paulo Dybala brace put Juve in control in Turin, with a header from Giorgio Chiellini providing the third goal after the interval. Allegri’s men are unbeaten in their last 18 continental home matches and the coach - who recently ended speculation linking him with Arsenal by signalling his intention to stay at Juve - hailed the performance of his side....

The former Barcelona boss has seen at first hand what the 30-year-old is capable of - and believes that he has benefitted from the Argentine’s talents. Messi 15/4 to be CL top scorer He told ‘The Premier League Show’: “He is the best player ever. Messi is the beauty - he makes managers better, he makes team-mates better. The Argentine is still to finalise the penning of fresh terms at Camp Nou, with his current deal set to expire in the summer of 2018....

The death toll in the Garden State alone has climbed to 27, as the Category 4 storm wreaked havoc across the Gulf Coast, before ripping through the eastern seaboard. Despite being downgraded to a tropical storm after landfall, it caused severe flash flooding in New York, Connecticut, Philadelphia and New Jersey as Ida traveled northwards. The National Weather Service reported 8.44 inches of rain were dumped on Newark, LaGuardia recorded 6....

The Warriors’ odds to win the 2015-16 NBA title have been shortened this week to 9-to-4 (+225) at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, which makes them co-favorites with the Cavaliers. The Wynn adjusted Golden State’s price from 9-to-2 to 7-to-2 on Sunday, still behind the 9-to-5 Cavs on the oddsboard. Bookmakers often adjust a team’s futures odds based on the liability they face. That’s not the case with the Warriors at these two Vegas bet shops....

Just about as photogenic as the original from the Oscars. MORE NCAA TOURNAMENT: Get our updated Field of 68 projection

He’s not the first. Clinton, who reads biographies of even his most obscure predecessors, may have an eye on how they tried to fight back. Even our most troubled presidents have moments of glory, and the engines of ambition that propelled them to the top in the first place aren’t easily shut off. For the rest of us, post-presidential maneuvering illustrates just how driven the men we elect to the highest office are–and remain....

That science can be bought is hardly news to anyone who knows about tobacco “scientists.” But how pervasive, effective and stealthy this science-for-hire is—as masterfully documented by David Michaels of George Washington University in his new book, “Doubt Is Their Product: How Industry’s Assault on Science Threatens Your Health”—will shock anyone who still believes that “science” and “integrity” are soulmates. In studies of how toxic chemicals affect human health, Michaels told me, “It’s quite easy to take a positive result [showing harmful effects] and turn it falsely negative....

Maroon 5 frontman Levine, 43, was caught up in a social media scandal in September, after Instagram model Sumner Stroh alleged in a viral TikTok video that she had a year-long affair with the musician. The model and influencer, 23, also shared screenshots of messages that she claimed were from Levine, including one in which he asked if he could name his expected third child after her. Former The Voice coach Levine broke his silence soon afterward, issuing a statement on an Instagram Story in which he denied an affair, though he admitted to having “crossed the line” in his communications....

Each Monday, we’ll discuss the weekend that was with Phill Gray, head of trading for Sports Interaction, breaking down the most notable results and whether they went in favor of the house or the bettors. Week 12 NFL Betting Action Report Public rakes in on Thanksgiving Thursday’s NFL games resulted in the worst day of the NFL season for Sports Interaction. Despite favorites going 1-2 against the spread (ATS losses by the Bills and Cowboys), all three favorites won straight up, cashing the public’s parlays, teasers, and player props....

The loss means Jurgen Klinsmann’s men are headed home, while Belgium moves on to face Argentina in the quarterfinals. Here is the good, bad and ugly from the USA’s 2-1 loss to Belgium. PHOTOS: U.S. fan reactions | Beautiful people in Brazil The Good Tim Howard’s stunning show: CONCACAF cohorts Guillermo Ochoa and Keylor Navas have stolen headlines this tournament. Some fans called for back-up Brad Guzan to take over the number one role during qualifying....

Spurred by a desire to express solidarity in the face of post-9/11 discrimination, young Muslim Americans are connecting with their Islamic heritage and embracing a religious culture many of them had known only secondhand. Henna Khan, whose parents emigrated from Pakistan and Kashmir in the 1970s, began wearing a higab just before her freshman year at UC, Berkeley, in 2003. “It’s easier to put it on when you see other girls putting it on,” says Khan, 21....

The nine-figure deal will feature seven exclusive stacked fight cards per year on DAZN and another 15 that are simulcast across Paramount Network and DAZN. All fights will stream in any country where DAZN is available. DAZN will launch in the U.S. and Italy in 2018, with the service already live in Canada, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Japan. The deal begins Sept. 29 from SAP Center in San Jose. The card features a highly anticipated middleweight title fight pitting Gegard Mousasi (44-6-2) against Rory MacDonald (20-4), who is moving up a weight class for a title shot against the 185-pound champ, along with the fourth fight in the legendary rivalry between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (37-13) and Wanderlei Silva(35-13)....

He headed from Churchill Downs in Louisville to Louisville International to Long Island’s MacArthur Airport and, eventually, to Belmont Park. We tracked his one hour and 36 minute flight, which was set to depart at 10:40 a.m. ET, but was delayed an hour. He landed at around 1:40 p.m. and arrived at Belmont Park about two hours later. No, American Pharoah was not flying the plane. BELMONT 2015: Get to know the contenders | Time, TV info | Records, all-time leaders...