The Detroit Red Wings fired coach Derek Lalonde on Thursday and named former Kings coach Todd McLellan as his replacement.

The move the day after Christmas was announced by general manager Steve Yzerman and 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.

Assistant Bob Boughner was also fired and Trent Yawney hired to work on McLellan’s staff. McLellan signed a multiyear contract to start his fourth NHL head coaching job after stints with San Jose, Edmonton and the Kings.

Lalonde was nearly midway through his third season with Detroit after winning the Stanley Cup twice as an assistant with Tampa Bay.

NBA

Joel Embiid popped up from a pregame fall and scored 27 points with nine rebounds, making 4 of 5 from 3-point range and sinking a pair of free throws with 3 seconds left as the Philadelphia 76ers held off the Boston Celtics 118-114 on Christmas in Boston.

Tyrese Maxey had 33 points and 12 assists. He scored 13 in the fourth quarter, including a quick-trigger layup to open a seven-point lead with about a minute left after the Sixers inbounded the ball with 1.1 seconds on the shot clock. Caleb Martin scored 23, hitting 7 of 9 from 3-point range.

Jayson Tatum scored 32 with 15 rebounds for Boston, Jaylen Brown scored 23 and Derrick White had 21. Boston wore red socks and leggings with their green jerseys for an extra dose of Christmas spirit.

Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis, who has missed all but nine games this season with injuries, did not return for the second half. The team said he had an ankle injury.

SUNS 110, NUGGETS 100: Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal each scored 27 points and Phoenix beat Denver in the nightcap to the NBA’s Christmas slate of games.

The Nuggets blew out Phoenix 117-90 on Monday night in Denver, but the Suns put up much more of a fight despite playing without Devin Booker (groin) and Grayson Allen (concussion protocol).

Phoenix led by seven after three quarters and stretched it to 99-81 by the midpoint of the fourth quarter. The Suns pushed the lead to 15 and held off the Nuggets down the stretch to end a three-game losing streak.

Nikola Jokic had 25 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Nuggets. Michael Porter Jr. added 22 and Russell Westbrook had 17.

Jamal Murray had 13 points, six rebounds and six assists after missing the game Monday game with a sprained ankle.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Jim Larrañaga is stepping down as Miami’s men’s basketball coach effective immediately, a person with knowledge of the decision told the AP Thursday.

Larrañaga will be replaced by associate head coach Bill Courtney — one of Larrañaga’s best friends for the past three decades or so — for the remainder of the season, the person said.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the school had not made any public announcement.

A press conference was planned for later Thursday.

The decision by Larrañaga ends a 14-year run as coach of the Hurricanes — and, presumably, a 41-year college career that saw him win 744 games at Miami, American International, George Mason and Bowling Green. He took Miami and George Mason to the Final Four.

The Hurricanes are 4-8 this season and only 5-19 in their last 24 games, a stunning freefall for a program that went to the Final Four just two seasons ago.

NEBRASKA 78, OREGON STATE 66: Brice Williams scored 11 of his 25 points in the final six minutes and the Cornhuskers closed on a 6-0 run to beat the Beavers late Wednesday night in the championship game of the Diamond Head Classic.

Nebraska (10-2) claimed its first tournament title since the San Juan Shootout in 2000 when the Cornhuskers won three games by a total of four points. Fred Hoiberg also became the first coach to win multiple Diamond Head Classic titles, including his Iowa State squad in 2013.

After Oregon State (10-3) tied it at 51 with 10:20 to go, Nebraska used a 10-2 run to take control as the Beavers went five-plus minutes without a field goal. The Cornhuskers’ lead didn’t drop below four points the rest of the way.

Berke Buyuktuncel banked in a 3-pointer with 1:51 left to extend Nebraska’s lead to 72-63.

Buyuktuncel finished with 16 points and three 3-pointers, and Juwan Gary added 14 for Nebraska.

Nate Kingz scored 19 points and Damarco Minor added 16 for Oregon State.

SAILING

Organizers said that two Sydney to Hobart sailors have died at sea amid wild weather conditions that forced line honors favorite Master Lock Comanche to withdraw among mass retirements.

The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia in Sydney, which administers the yacht race, has said that one sailor each on entrants Flying Fish Arctos and Bowline were killed after being struck by the boom, a large horizontal pole at the bottom of the sail.

The race will continue as the fleet continues its passage to Constitution Dock in Hobart, with the first boats expected to arrive later on Friday or early Saturday morning. The race is 628 nautical miles (722 miles, 1,160 kilometers) long.

David Jacobs, vice-commodore of the CYCA, said the race would “absolutely” continue.

“The conditions are challenging, but they’re not excessive,” he said. “So we’ve got sort of winds at about 25 knots coming from the north seas around about 2 meters or thereabouts, so the conditions that most of the sailors would normally easily handle.”

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute to the sailors who died.

The incident aboard Flying Fish Arctos occurred around 30 nautical miles east-southeast of Ulladulla on the New South Wales south coast. Crew members attempted CPR but could not revive their teammate.

The crew member aboard Bowline was struck approximately 30 nautical miles east/north-east of Batemans Bay and fell unconscious, with CPR also unsuccessful.