James, Lakers hold off Warriors

SHORTS

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Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde, standing, watches during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the St. Louis Blues, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

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Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) looks on against the Golden State Warriors during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Eakin Howard)

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Teddy Bridgewater (10) is coming out of retirement and joining the Lions as they prepare for the playoffs. (AP Photo/Stacy Bengs, File)

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James, Lakers hold off Warriors

LeBron James had 31 points and 10 assists playing in his NBA-record 19th Christmas Day game, and the Los Angeles Lakers held off the Golden State Warriors 115-113 on Wednesday night. Austin Reaves scored the winning layup with one second left after Stephen Curry tied it on a 31-foot 3-pointer with seven seconds remaining. Curry scored 38 with eight 3s, hitting one under pressure from the baseline with 12 seconds left and another with 2:49 remaining only for James to answer from long range on the other end. Reaves recorded a triple-double with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Lakers, who lost big man Anthony Davis to a sprained left ankle late in the first quarter. Davis stepped awkwardly and rolled the ankle while moving through the paint toward the Lakers basket and exited with 4:48 remaining in the quarter. He went to the locker room and initially was listed as questionable to come back. “I don’t have an update on AD,” coach JJ Redick said after the Lakers’ victory. The 6-foot-10 Davis had already been questionable to play coming into the game.

Red Wings fire coach Lalonde

The Detroit Red Wings fired coach Derek Lalonde on Thursday and named Todd McLellan as his replacement, a major change by general manager Steve Yzerman more than a third of the way through another disappointing season in the place known as “Hockeytown.” The move the day after Christmas comes with the Red Wings on a three-game skid and having lost nine of their past 12. They’ve lost 21 of their first 34 games this season and are above only the lowly Buffalo Sabres in the Eastern Conference. Lalonde was nearly midway through his third season with Detroit after winning the Stanley Cup twice as an assistant with Tampa Bay. Yzerman inherited Jeff Blashill as coach when he left the Lightning for the Red Wings in 2019 and hired Lalonde in the summer of 2022 with the goal of getting the team back in the playoffs. Associated coach Bob Boughner was also fired and Trent Yawney hired to work on McLellan’s staff as an assistant. McLellan signed a multiyear contract to start his fourth NHL head coaching job after stints with San Jose, Edmonton and Los Angeles.

Lions sign backup QB Bridgewater

The Detroit Lions are bringing back Teddy Bridgewater to give the team a veteran backup quarterback for their playoff run. Coach Dan Campbell said Thursday that the team signed Bridgewater as another backup with second-year player Hendon Hooker behind starter Jared Goff. The Lions have clinched a playoff spot and can earn the top seed in the NFC with two more wins. Bridgewater was the backup in Detroit for the 2023 season when he got on the field for three snaps at the end of a blowout win over Carolina. Bridgewater spent the fall coaching at his high school alma mater, leading Miami Northwestern High to the Florida Class 3A state title. Bridgewater was a first-round pick by Minnesota in 2014 and has started 65 games over his NFL career. He spent two seasons in New Orleans when Campbell was an assistant on the Saints. Hooker has played in three games this season, completing 6 of 9 passes for 62 yards.

—Associated Press