SUNDAY SPORTS

NFL

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) – The Super Bowl is almost here. The big game takes place Sunday in Glendale, Arizona, with the defending champion Seahawks facing the Patriots (5:30 pm kickoff Sask time). Seattle is trying to become the first team since New England in 2004 and 2005 to repeat as Super Bowl champions.

A shortage of tickets made available to brokers on the secondary market has driven prices into five figures even for nosebleed seats.

As of midday Saturday the NFL Ticket Exchange, the league’s official ticket re-sale website, didn’t have tickets for less than $9,000. The cheapest ticket on StubHub was nearly the same. One listing on Craigslist in Phoenix was selling tickets for $8,000 each with the seller willing to meet the buyer at their bank to complete the transaction.

NFL-HALL OF FAME

PHOENIX (AP) – The Pro Football Hall of Fame will have eight new members this summer.

Junior Seau, Jerome Bettis, Tim Brown, Charles Haley and Will Shields have been elected to Hall of Fame, along with senior selection Mick Tingelhoff and contributors Bill Polian and Ron Wolf.

Seau was the only first-time eligible candidate to get in this year. He spent 13 of his 20 seasons with San Diego, made six All-Pro teams and was the Defensive Player of the year in 1992.

Bettis began his 13-season career by earning Rookie of the Year honours for the Rams. His 13,662 yards rushing rank fifth in history, and he had eight seasons of at least 1,000.

Brown ranked No. 2 in NFL history with 14,934 yards receiving, No. 3 with 1,094 catches, and No. 3 with 100 touchdown catches when he retired after the 2004 season.

Haley was the first player in NFL history to play on five Super Bowl-winning teams. He finished his career with 100 1/2 sacks and twice was an All-Pro, once at linebacker and once at defensive end.

Shields was a guard for Kansas City from 1993-2006, never missing a game in his 14 seasons. He was a first-team All-Pro three times, a second-team All-Pro four times, and was a member of the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 2000s.

NFL-AWARDS

PHOENIX (AP) – The NFL is held its awards show on the eve of the Super Bowl in Arizona.

The Associated Press MVP is Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who threw for 38 touchdowns and a league-low five interceptions for the NFC North champs. Rodgers received 31 votes compared to 13 for Houston’s J.J. Watt.

Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray captured The AP Offensive Player Of The Year award after leading the league with 1,845 rushing yards, nearly 500 more than any other player. Murray topped the NFL with 2,261 yards from scrimmage and scored 13 touchdowns for the NFC East champs.

Watt is a unanimous selection as the AP’s NFL Defensive Player Of The Year. Watt earned his second such honour with 20 1/2 sacks, 78 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, 50 quarterback hits, four forced fumbles and 10 blocked passes.

New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. beat out Dallas guard Zack Martin to win the AP’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Beckham tied Michael Irvin’s NFL mark with nine consecutive games of 90 yards receiving and finished with 91 receptions for 1,305 yards and 12 TDs.

St. Louis Rams tackle Aaron Donald is The Associated Press NFL Defensive Rookie Of The Year after recording 37 tackles and leading all rookies with nine sacks.

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is the AP’s Comeback Player Of The Year following his 82 receptions for 1,124 yards and 12 touchdowns, one year after missing nine games because of knee problems.

Arizona’s Bruce Arians is the AP’s Coach of the Year for the second time in three years after guiding the Cardinals to an 11-5 record. Arians also won the award in 2012 after stepping in for the ailing Chuck Pagano at Indianapolis.

Todd Bowles is the recipient of the inaugural AP Assistant Coach Of The Year award. Bowles guided Arizona’s defence this season before being named head coach of the Jets.

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NHL

The Edmonton Oilers had no answer for Calgary tonight. The Flames scored four straight goals in the third period to beat Edmonton 4-2. Lance Bouma led the charge with two goals. Paul Byron and Sean Monahan had the others. The Oilers held a 2-0 lead going into the third.

Another game, another loss for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Michael Del Zotto scored the only goal Philadelphia needed and Steve Mason stopped all 30 shots as the Flyers edged Toronto 1-0. That’s the ninth straight loss for the slumping Maple Leafs, who have scored one goal or less in eight of their last nine games.

John Klingberg was the difference as the Stars topped the Jets. The Dallas defencemen struck twice and added two assists en route to a 5-2 victory in Winnipeg. The Stars scored four goals on the power play, including one of Klingberg’s. Jason Spezza, Patrick Eaves and Shawn Horcoff also scored for Dallas.

Earlier in NHL action, the Ottawa Senators dominated Arizona in a 7-2 victory. Marc Methot led the offensive charge with three assists while seven different Sens skaters found the back of the net. And in Montreal, Carey Price stopped 36 shots in his second straight shutout and Max Pacioretty scored in OT as the Habs beat Washington 1-0.

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NBA

The Toronto Raptors extended their winning streak to six straight games, but it wasn’t easy. Toronto squandered a 17-point lead in the second half but came back for a 120-116 overtime win over the Washington Wizards. Kyle Lowry scored 23 points, Lou Williams had 19, Amir Johnson added 17 and DeMar DeRozan finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

The Atlanta Hawks just can’t lose. Al Horford scored 23 points and Atlanta recovered after squandering a 21-point lead to beat the 76ers 91-85. That stretches their franchise-record winning streak to 19 games. The Hawks led by 21 in the first half but the 76ers stormed back to take their first lead at 83-81 with less than 3 minutes remaining.

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PGA

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) – Martin Laird has a three-shot lead after three rounds of the PGA’s Phoenix Open. He stands 13-under par after a 3-under 68.

Hideki Matsuyama, Brooks Koepka and Zach Johnson are tied for second at minus-10.  Weyburn’s Graham DeLaet is tied for seventeenth at 7-under.

(CP/AP)