The Browns began trying to fill an unexpected vacancy on Thursday by interviewing Seattle offensive line coach Andy Dickerson to be their offensive coordinator.

Dickerson previously worked in Cleveland on coach Eric Mangini’s staff in 2009-10.

On Wednesday, coordinator Alex Van Pelt parted ways with the Browns after four seasons working under coach Kevin Stefanski. Van Pelt’s departure was surprising since he appeared to enjoy his time in Cleveland and was instrumental in helping the Browns make the playoffs while coping with numerous injuries on offense.

It’s still not known why Van Pelt left. General manager Andrew Berry is scheduled to hold a postseason news conference next week.

Van Pelt’s exit wasn’t the only one as Stefanski fired running backs coach Stump Mitchell and tight ends coach T.C. McCartney wasn’t retained after his contract expired.

Dickerson has spent the past three seasons in Seattle working with coach Pete Carroll, who was removed as coach after 14 seasons. Dickerson was initially the Seahawks’ run game coordinator before shifting to the offensive line.

Before he was with Seattle, Dickerson spent nine seasons as an assistant line coach with the Rams. He also worked for the New York Jets after beginning his NFL career as an intern with New England.

A day after his firing, Mitchell, who spent four seasons with Cleveland, released a statement in which he thanked Cleveland owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam and former Browns coach Freddie Kitchens, who first hired him with the Browns.

Mitchell was retained by Stefanski in 2020 and by all measures seemed to do a good job with Cleveland’s backs. Nick Chubb developed into one of the league’s best running backs under Mitchell’s guidance.

“I want to express my sincere thanks to the players and running backs who donned the Browns helmet, giving their all to achieve success on Game Day,” Mitchell wrote. “I devoted my efforts to maximize your hard work and talent, and it has been a rewarding journey.”

The Browns have spoken with former NFL running back Duce Staley about replacing Mitchell.

Staley most recently worked with Carolina under Frank Reich before being fired in November. Staley has also worked for the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles, where he was on the same staff as Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

MADISON, Wis. — Five of the six major conferences have a leader or co-leader that failed to make the NCAA Tournament last season.

That doesn’t mean this is a college basketball season full of Cinderella stories. Four of the major-conference leaders that got left out of March Madness last season have reached a Final Four within the last decade.

But those teams’ early success shows how the 2021 rule change allowing players to transfer without sitting out a season has made it easier for established programs to bounce back quickly.

“A lot of kids that are coming over from different rosters are bringing in new skillsets to the team,” said St. John’s transfer AJ Storr, who is scoring a team-high 15.3 points per game for No. 11 Wisconsin. “And they already have good skillsets there. They’re just adding new pieces. It’s like a new piece to the puzzle.”

Wisconsin has sole possession of first place in the Big Ten and Oregon leads the Pac-12 outright after those two teams faced off in last season’s NIT quarterfinals. No. 4 North Carolina, which went 20-13 and turned down an NIT bid last season, is unbeaten in Atlantic Coast Conference competition.

No. 25 Texas Tech is in a four-way tie for first place in the Big 12 after going 16-16 last season, while Seton Hall shares the Big East lead with No. 1 UConn after finishing 17-16 a year ago.

Most of these programs are accustomed to success.

Wisconsin has played in 22 of the last 24 NCAA Tournaments and reached the championship game in 2015. North Carolina won its most recent national title in 2017 and was runner-up in 2022. Texas Tech lost the NCAA final in overtime in 2019. Oregon reached the Final Four in 2017.

The schools just needed to get back to their usual standards. In many cases, they found solutions in the transfer portal.

Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland added five transfers who played in the NCAA Tournament last season: Warren Washington (Arizona State), Devan Cambridge (Arizona State), Chance McMillian (Grand Canyon), Joe Toussaint (West Virginia) and Darrion Williams (Nevada).

All five are averaging over eight points per game, though Cambridge suffered a season-ending knee injury last month. They’ve complemented leading scorer Pop Isaacs, a holdover from last season.

“This team just learns,” McCasland said last week. “We learn as we play. That’s what I love. Their heart is to get better.”

North Carolina lost its leading scorer from last season when Caleb Love transferred to Arizona, but the Tar Heels added Cormac Ryan (Notre Dame) and Harrison Ingram (Stanford) to the starting five and Jae’Lyn Withers (Louisville) and Paxson Wojcik (Brown) to the bench.

Those newcomers have boosted a roster that features RJ Davis and Armando Bacot, key players on North Carolina’s 2022 squad that nearly won it all.

“We’ve been having fun all year,” Bacot said last week. “I think the other guys are really starting to see how fun it is, winning at a school this and a program like this, and how much the fans are into it. It’s been great.”

Seton Hall’s starting five includes a pair of transfer newcomers in Dylan Addae-Wusu (St. John’s) and Jaden Bediako (Santa Clara).

All five of Seton Hall’s starters began their careers elsewhere. Kadary Richmond spent one season at Syracuse before transferring in 2021. Al-Amir Dawes (Clemson) and Dre Davis (Louisville) are in their second seasons with the Pirates.

That hasn’t hindered Seton Hall’s chemistry.

“Our togetherness is through the roof,” Dawes said earlier this month. “No matter what we’re going through — ups and downs — we’re just connected.”

Oregon also added a few transfers during the offseason. Kario Oquendo (Georgia) is averaging over 10 points per game, Mahamadou Diawara (Stetson) has been a part-time starter and Jesse Zarzuela (Central Michigan) is out for the season with an ankle injury.

The Ducks have benefited from the emergence of freshman Jackson Shelstad, and their depth has enabled them to withstand injuries. N’Faly Dante just came back from a knee injury last week and Nate Bittle is nearing a return from a wrist injury that has kept him out since mid-November.

“When we went into the season, we thought our depth was going to be one of our big things, one of the things that we could really count on, when you’re playing Thursday-Saturday, that we would have 10 guys that we could play,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said. “I think moving forward that’s got to be one of our strengths.”

Wisconsin has benefited from a similar formula as Storr joined a roster that returned 92% of its scoring from last season, but Badgers coach Greg Gard wonders if the lack of transfer restrictions eventually could make it difficult for programs to maintain consistency.

“If there’s three or four or five bluebloods, I think they will because they’ll be in the market for the best transfers and they’re probably going to have the top five kids who don’t go to the NBA but can you sustain it over the course of time because of the volatility of the roster,” Gard said. “I think we’re too early in this process to have an answer for that, but that’s something obviously I keep an eye on and watch other programs and their rosters as the fluctuation happens.”

It could make it tougher for teams to return to the NCAA Tournament just about every year as Wisconsin has done over the last two decades.

But for now, it also could assure that the Badgers don’t get let out of the field for a second straight season.

AP Basketball Writer Aaron Beard contributed to this report.

DETROIT — The Detroit Lions and their fans waited a long time to celebrate as they did last week after beating the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round.

Tampa Bay, meanwhile, is used to being part of the party this time of year.

The Lions won their first playoff game in 32 years, taking advantage of hosting a postseason game for the first time in three decades.

Detroit has two home games in the same playoffs for the first time in franchise history, improving its chances to earn two postseason victories in a season for the first time since winning the 1957 NFL title.

The Buccaneers are the only NFC team in the playoffs for a fourth straight year and their win over Philadelphia was their sixth in the postseason during the span, a total that trails only the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs since 2020.

NFC North champion Detroit is determined to move a step closer toward potentially reaching the Super Bowl for the first time with a win Sunday in the divisional round against NFC South champion Tampa Bay, which won it all for a second time in Super Bowl 55 with Tom Brady at quarterback.

Lions offensive tackle Taylor Decker, in his eighth season with the long-suffering franchise, is simply thankful he stuck around long enough to experience the thrill of the 24-23 win over the Rams.

“That’s one of the beautiful things about sports, is to be able to see things through,” Decker said. “I’m just proud that I got to be a part of something special.”

THEY’RE BOTH NO. 1

Detroit’s Jared Goff and Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield were No. 1 overall picks two years apart — for other teams — and have had their share of success in the playoffs.

With fans at Ford Field chanting, “Jar-ed Goff! Jar-ed Goff!” early and often in last week’s win against former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Rams, the eighth-year pro was efficient and effective.

Goff completed his first 10 passes and finished 22 of 27 with 277 yards and a touchdown.

“He’s a really good quarterback — one of the best I’ve seen on film,” Tampa Bay cornerback Zyon McCollum said.

Mayfield, drafted by Cleveland in 2018, had perhaps the best season for his fourth team in three years. He had career highs with 4,044 yards passing and 28 touchdown passes in the regular season and became the first Buccaneers quarterback to throw for at least 300 yards and three touchdowns in a postseason game.

“He looks like he’s having fun like he was in college,” Tampa Bay coach Todd Bowles said. “He’s going out there playing free and playing carefree. It’s really helping him, and it’s really helping us.”

Lions defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson took a verbal swipe at Mayfield last week when he praised Tampa Bay’s receivers, saying they would be a great group if they had a good quarterback.

Mayfield returned some kind words and added a shot.

“He’s a good player,” Mayfield said. “But yeah, he’s just got to do a little more film study.”

SACK DANCE

Detroit defensive end Aidan Hutchinson has a chance to join a select list of players with multiple sacks in four or more consecutive games, including the playoffs. Simeon Rice had at least two sacks in five straight games while Hall of Famers Reggie White and Kevin Greene pulled off the feat in four consecutive games.

Tampa Bay rookie YaYa Diaby, a third-round pick from Louisville, has 7 1/2 sacks to lead a defense that has seven players with at least four sacks.

UNDERDOG MENTALITY

Tampa Bay is a 6 1/2-point underdog, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, after dominating the Eagles as a 2 1/2-point underdog.

“It doesn’t surprise us at all,” Bowles said. “We don’t even worry about it anymore. We kind of laugh when we see it.”

THE PREVIOUS MATCHUP

Goff threw for 353 yards and two touchdowns to help Detroit win 20-6 at Tampa Bay in Week 6. The Lions played the entire game without rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs and veteran running back David Montgomery was out for two-plus quarters.

Mayfield was 19 of 37 passes for 206 yards with no touchdowns and one interception against the Lions.

AP Sports Writer Fred Goodall contributed.

BUCS AT LIONS

What: NFC Divisional playoff game

When: 3 p.m., Jan. 21

Where: Ford Field, Detroit

Records: Bucs 10-8, Lions 13-5

TV: WKYC

North Carolina’s Roy Williams and Gonzaga’s Mark Few were a day from meeting for the 2017 national championship with teams relying heavily on imposing front lines. And the coaching buddies couldn’t overlook one oddity.

“He said, ‘You know, this is strange — it’s the first time all year long that we’ve had to defend a team with two big guys, it’s been go chase the 3-point shot,’” Williams recalled Few saying.

“I said, ‘But Mark, look around. … We’re the only two left standing,” Williams said.

It’s a moment the now-retired Hall of Fame coach said the two have chuckled about since. It illustrates how much college basketball has changed since the arrival of the 3-point shot for the 1986-87 season. It has certainly been a factor in The Associated Press Top 25 men’s college basketball poll as it turns 75 years old.

There have been more upsets and more turnover at the top as the shot became a rankings-altering fixture.

“It’s the equalizer,” said Williams, who won three NCAA titles at UNC before stepping aside in 2021. “In the old days, three or four teams would rotate 1-2-3 in the country, and those were the most talented teams, and a lot of years those were the teams that had the best big men or best people the attacked the rim.”

It’s certainly made things more interesting, and volatile considering how the shot itself has made even the best of teams vulnerable to a hot-shooting upstart.

In the poll’s first 38 seasons before the 3-point shot, there were an average of 2.61 teams to hold the No. 1 ranking each year. That average has increased to 3.95 in the 37 seasons that followed with the 3.

Before the 3, there were 10 seasons in which one team went wire-to-wire at the top all season. There have been only four since, most recently Few’s Zags in 2020-21.

There were only three seasons with at least five different teams holding the No. 1 ranking before the 3-pointer. In the years since, that number has swelled to 16.

And it’s been easy to see that impact so far in this season’s upsets. Look no further than current No. 2 Purdue, led by 7-foot-4 Zach Edey as the returning AP national player of the year, seeing Northwestern and Nebraska shoot a combined 24 of 43 (56%) from behind the arc in stunning upsets when the Boilermakers were ranked No. 1.

ACC Network analyst Luke Hancock, the most outstanding player of the 2013 Final Four in Louisville’s later-vacated title run, said the 3 has long offered smaller teams a way to compete by offsetting a size or talent disadvantage.

“It’s spacing, it’s creating driving lanes,” Hancock said. “Everybody’s talking about paint touches and then kicking to open shooters. … It’s how you have to counter if you’re not as big and athletic as Zach Edey or (Kentucky’s) Oscar Tshiebwe.”

Everyone is chasing it in recruiting, too.

“Man, it’s the most important thing,” Duke associate head coach Chris Carrawell said. “In today’s game, you have to be able to shoot the ball with range, and range is the 3-point line. It’s hard to be a great player in today’s game without having the ability to shoot the ball. It just is.”

Williams long preferred a two-post lineup, partly to attack the glass and fuel transition chances but also to get to the line and put other teams in foul trouble. Yet he also embraced the 3 to further elevate some of his top teams.

The 2005 team that won Williams’ first NCAA title ranked seventh nationally in 3-point percentage (.403) to aid Sean May inside. The 2009 title winner — which spent nine weeks at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 — ranked 20th (.387) in an offense built around Atlantic Coast Conference all-time leading scorer Tyler Hansbrough inside.

Carrawell pointed to another example: the 2017-18 Villanova team led by AP national player of the year Jalen Brunson. That squad spent eight weeks at No. 1, ranked third nationally by making 11.6 3s per game and romped its way to a second NCAA title in three seasons.

It’s no coincidence that Jay Wright’s Wildcats posted the second-most efficient season ever charted by KenPom (scoring 127.8 points per 100 possessions) dating to 1999.

“They just carved teams up because they were able to space you, they had everybody on the court who was a threat,” Carrawell said. “So you had to pick your poison, and they just broke you down, they were able to get to the rim, and they were able to make you pay from the 3-point line.

“That’s modern-day basketball,” he said. “And it’s a great brand to watch, I’m not going to lie.”

Donovan Mitchell had 31 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers took advantage of Milwaukee being without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo to extend their winning streak to a season-best six games by pounding the Bucks, 135-95, on Jan. 17.

Antetokounmpo sat with a bruised right shoulder, an injury that kept him out of the lineup for the first time in 29 games — the second longest streak of his career. The two-time MVP is not expected to be out for an extended period.

The Bucks had better hope not.

The Cavs, who have made a surprising push despite being without two starters, held Milwaukee to 2 points in the first six minutes and a season-low for a game.

“Our defense, that’s where it started,” said Cleveland center Jarrett Allen. “We really set the tone.”

PHOTOS: Cavaliers vs. Bucks, Jan. 17, 2024

Georges Niang made 13 of 14 shots and added a career-high 33 points — 20 in the first half — for the Cavs, who improved to 11-3 since losing Darius Garland (broken jaw) and Evan Mobley (knee surgery) with injuries last month.

Allen added 21 points and 13 rebounds — his 10th straight double-double — for Cleveland, which opened a 22-2 lead and never looked back.

On a night when the Bucks were missing Antetokounmpo’s presence along with his 31 points and needed someone to step up, no one did.

Damian Lillard, who hit a 3-pointer at the overtime buzzer to beat Sacramento on Jan. 14, led Milwaukee with 17 points on just 7 of 20 shooting. Khris Middleton had two points, going 1 of 10 from the field.

“Tough night collectively, but we’ve got to find the energy from the jump, especially being short-handed,” Bucks coach Adrian Griffin said. ”You have to learn from this because you can’t allow this to happen again, especially at the start of the game.

“Before we looked up, we were down 20. We would literally come down and just shoot.”

The injuries to Garland and Mobley threatened to derail Cleveland’s season. However, the opposite has happened as the Cavs have played better at both ends without them and moved among the Eastern Conference’s top teams.

“At that point in time, you’ve got a decision to make: You quit or you fight,” said Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff. “And I never expected this group of guys to quit. The fight came and the results have been what they’ve been.”

Any thought Milwaukee had of staging a comeback ended in the second quarter, when Niang made four 3-pointers, his last giving the Cavs a 55-30 lead.

During a timeout while Niang was on his tear, the Cavs showed a video tracing his journey to the NBA on the arena’s scoreboard.

“I learned a lot about him today on the Jumbotron — and on the court,” Allen cracked. “Two thousand plus points in high school, and that’s not easy to do. He really showed why he had that many points in high school tonight.”

Cleveland’s lead swelled to 40 in the third quarter before Griffin pulled his starters and cleared his bench, bringing in seldom-used Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Giannis’ younger brother.

It was the first of three games between the Bucks and Cavs in nine days. They’ll play on Jan. 24 and Jan. 26 in Milwaukee.

THE SCORE

Cavaliers 135, Bucks 95

Up next: The Cavs visit Atlanta on Jan. 20.

Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević, a mentor to two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and a former star player in his native Serbia, died Jan. 17 in Utah after suffering a heart attack, the team announced. Milojević, part of the staff that helped the Warriors win the 2022 NBA championship, was 46.

Milojević died in Salt Lake City, where he was hospitalized Jan. 16 after the medical emergency happened during a private team dinner. The Warriors had been scheduled to play the Utah Jazz on Jan. 17, a game the NBA postponed.

“We are absolutely devastated by Dejan’s sudden passing,” coach Steve Kerr said in a statement released by the team. “This is a shocking and tragic blow for everyone associated with the Warriors and an incredibly difficult time for his family, friends, and all of us who had the incredible pleasure to work with him.”

Milojević was in his third season with the Warriors. He previously coached in Serbia — where he once worked with a young Jokic before the now-Denver Nuggets star came to the United States — along with Montenegro. He had been a head coach for eight years in Europe and previously was an assistant coach for the Serbian national team alongside current Atlanta assistant Igor Koskoskov.

“The NBA mourns the sudden passing of Golden State assistant coach Dejan Milojević, a beloved colleague and dear friend to so many in the global basketball community,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. “In addition to winning the 2022 NBA championship in his first season with the Warriors and mentoring some of the best players in the world, Dejan had a decorated international playing career and was a distinguished head coach in his native Serbia.”

Milojević worked closely with Jokic, Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac, Orlando center Goga Bitadze and Houston center Boban Marjanovic, among others, during his time as a coach in Europe. With the Warriors, he worked primarily with the big men like Kevon Looney, who raved about Milojević’s attention to detail.

“Rest in peace, Deki,” Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic wrote on social media.

Kerr said he originally learned of Milojević from Kent Lacob, the son of Golden State owner Joe Lacob. And when the Warriors went through some staffing changes in 2021, Kerr decided to pursue Milojević. It took some convincing, but Milojević finally agreed to take the offer. Kerr was thrilled.

“I immediately saw what Kent was talking about,” Kerr said in a video produced by the Warriors last year. “He was so great to be around. At the same time, he had this amazing basketball background both as a player and a coach. It made so much sense for us to bring Deki in.”

Milojević won three consecutive MVP awards in the Adriatic League, taking those trophies in 2004, 2005 and 2006 when the 6-foot-7, 240-pound power forward was at the peak of his playing career. Jokic was MVP of that league in 2015, a year after current Golden State forward Dario Saric was MVP.

No player has more Adriatic MVPs than Milojević, and the stories of some games in his youth were legendary. Among them: how he scored 141 points as a 14-year-old in 1991, with 83 of those points coming in the second half after his coach ordered he take all the shots.

“I teach all my players that basketball is not a job, but that they should enjoy the game,” Milojević told Bosnian radio-television outlet RTV in a 2018 interview. “Because if you want to do something for the next 20 years, then you have to love it a lot. It’s not easy to endure all these efforts if you don’t like something. Only those who have a sincere love for the game can handle everything with great success.”

Before joining the Warriors, Milojević had NBA experience through Summer League assistant-coach stints with Atlanta, San Antonio and Houston.

Toronto coach Darko Rajaković said he had known Milojević since he was a teenager.

“He was a role model as a player, as a man, as a husband, as a coach — somebody that I really admired and have a lot of respect for,” Rajaković said. “Unfortunately, last night, his heart stopped working and he left his wife and two kids behind and a big, big legacy. This is a really sad day for the whole NBA community.”

Tributes like those began pouring in after Milojević’s death was announced, from teams he worked with and even teams he didn’t. “I had the pleasure of working with Dejan during my time with the Warriors,” former Golden State assistant and current Sacramento coach Mike Brown said. “Not only was he an extremely talented coach, he was an even better person.”

Added Dylan Ennis, a longtime international pro who was once coached by Milojević: “You were not only a basketball master, you were an amazing human being. You will be missed by so many.”

A rescheduled date for the Warriors-Jazz game was not immediately announced. The Jazz said tickets for Jan. 17 would be honored at the rescheduled game. Golden State is next scheduled to play at home Jan. 19 against Dallas.

Milojević is survived by his wife, Natasa, and their children, Nikola and Masa.

“Their loss is unfathomable,” Kerr said.

Associated Press Writer Ian Harrison in Toronto contributed to this report.

MELBOURNE, Australia — Already sick and tired in another early round slog, Novak Djokovic unloaded on a heckler who crossed the line at the Australian Open.

Defending champion Djokovic angrily challenged the spectator to “say that to my face” and gestured to the man to come down onto the Rod Laver Arena court, the venue for 10 of his record 24 Grand Slam titles.

He then went on a roll, winning three straight games from 2-2 in the fourth set before finishing off Alexei Popyrin, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (4) 6-3.

The 36-year-old Serb then turned to the crowd again and yelled, pumping his fist to celebrate the victory.

Asked later what triggered his rage, Djokovic responded: “I mean, you don’t want to know.”

“I was tolerating it for most of the match. At one point I had enough,” he said. “He didn’t have the courage to come down. That’s what I was asking him: ‘If you have courage, if you’re such a tough man, tough guy, come down and tell it to my face.’”

That didn’t happen. Djokovic didn’t ask for the man to be removed. Stadium security didn’t intervene.

Djokovic moved on to the third round, still simmering a little bit about the episode.

“I’m not going to sit and say ‘it’s all good.’ It’s not good,” he said. “Of course, it upsets me. I’m frustrated. I don’t want to be experiencing that, but I have to accept it as it is.

“Sometimes I don’t tolerate when somebody crosses the line. That’s it.”

Djokovic has been dealing with a sore wrist and said after his opening match — a four-hour, four-set win over 18-year-old qualifier Dino Prizmic — that he hasn’t been well. He was struggling against Popyrin, who is ranked 43rd.

So, was it the kind of spark that he needed?

“Look, I don’t want to be in those types of situations. Yeah, I was flat I guess emotionally. Game-wise I was quite flat,” he said. “Maybe that was needed for me to be shaken up a bit and start to find the kind of intensity that I needed to have all match.”

Last year’s losing finalist, Stefanos Tsitsipas, also had a tough time against an Aussie with the crowd behind him on an adjacent court.

Tsitsipas wasted match points in the 10th game of the fourth set and then had to save four set points to force a tiebreaker, which he clinched for a 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2, 7-6 (4) win over Jordan Thompson.

Women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka and U.S. Open winner Coco Gauff avoided the early Day 4 upsets in their draw to advance to the third round, along with 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva.

Three-time major finalist Ons Jabeur lost 6-0, 6-2 in 54 minutes to Andreeva on Rod Laver, and then 2018 champion Caroline Wozniacki also lost to a young Russian on the No. 3 show court.

Two other 16-year-old players lost on center court to highly-ranked players: No. 10 Beatriz Haddad Maia accounted for Alina Korneeva 6-1, 6-2 and Sabalenka overpowered Brenda Fruhvirtova 6-3, 6-2.

Gauff, still a teenager herself, extended her winning streak to nine matches at Grand Slams with a 7-6 (2), 6-2 win over fellow American Caroline Dolehide.

She’ll next play Alycia Parks, who beat 2021 U.S. Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez 7-5, 6-4.

Sixth-seeded Jabeur went out in 54 minutes against the up-and-coming Andreeva.

“I was really nervous before the match because I’m really inspired by Ons and the way she plays,” said Andreeva, who lost in the junior final here last year. “Before I started on the WTA Tour, I always watched her matches and was always so inspired.”

Wozniacki, who had two children before returning to the tour late last year after 3 1-2 years away, led by a set and a break before losing 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 to 20-year-old Maria Timofeeva.

Amanda Anisimova, coming back from a seven-month mental health break, beat Nadia Podoroska to move onto a match against Paula Badosa.

No. 8 Maria Sakkari, No. 16 Caroline Garcia and No. 25 Elise Mertens didn’t make it past the second round.

On the men’s side, No. 4 Jannick Sinner, No. 5 Andrey Rublev and No. 10 Alex de Minaur — Australia’s highest-ranked player — advanced in straight sets and progressed along with No. 12 Taylor Fritz, No. 15 Karen Khachanov and U.S. Open semifinalist Ben Shelton, the No. 16 seed, who had a 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (5) over local hope Chris O’Connell.

A quarterfinalist on debut here last year, Shelton said he enjoyed the atmosphere and the support that the home crowd gave O’Connell and said he could still hear “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi” in his sleep.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes has done just about everything in his NFL career, particularly when it comes to the postseason.

Five straight AFC title games. Three conference championships. Two Super Bowl titles. One shattered helmet.

Mahomes will try something entirely new Jan. 21, though, when he leads the Kansas City Chiefs into Buffalo for the divisional round of the playoffs. His previous 15 postseason games have been played in the friendly environment of Arrowhead Stadium, including a pair of wins over the Bills, so Mahomes never has been forced to go on the road.

“It kind of is what it is,” he said Jan. 17. “I’ve been lucky enough to play a lot of games at home, at Arrowhead Stadium, and things have fallen that way. Now we get to go on the road to a hostile environment, and one I have not played in with fans in the stands. But it’s what you want to do when you grow up watching these games.”

The only time Mahomes has played at Highmark Stadium was in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic saved him from having to tune out all of those Bills fans. He threw for 225 yards and two TDs in leading Kansas City to a 26-17 win that day.

The reason the Chiefs are hitting the road following their wild-card win over the Dolphins is in part because of a rare offensive offside penalty on Kadarius Toney in their regular-season game against Buffalo last month. The call wiped out a miraculous play in which Travis Kelce lateraled to Toney for what would have been the go-ahead touchdown in the final minutes.

The Bills wound up winning, eventually secured the No. 2 seed and that relegated Kansas City to the No. 3 seed.

It might not be such a bad thing that Mahomes is going on the road, though. He has a higher completion percentage, throws for more yards per game and has a significantly better quarterback rating during road games in his career.

He’s even taken eight fewer sacks away from home, despite playing in two more games.

Asked to explain that one, Mahomes replied: “It’s just Coach (Andy) Reid preaches communication.”

“You have to have nonverbal communication when you’re on the road. We preach that,” Mahomes continued, “and then not letting anything be too negative or too positive, just going about your business the right way.

“On the road,” he said, “one big plays seems to be magnified more, and one bad play is magnified more, too.”

All of that bodes well for the Chiefs. So does this: Mahomes is better in the divisional round than any other round, going 5-0 with 11 touchdowns, no interceptions and a completion rate of 70% that is well above his career average.

“I know he looks forward to playing. He gets fired up for every game,” Reid said. “That’s a great venue up there (in Buffalo). If you can’t get fired up for that, it’s hard to get fired up. But he’s always ready and excited.”

Mahomes has certainly been a problem for the Bills, but mostly in the postseason. He won that pandemic game at Highmark Stadium, but is winless in three tries against Josh Allen and Co. in regular-season games at Arrowhead Stadium.

The playoffs are another story. He has ended Buffalo’s season in two of the past three years.

The first time came during the AFC championship game in the 2020 season, when he went 29 of 38 for 325 yards with three touchdowns and no picks in a 38-24 romp. The second came one year later, when he needed a mere 13 seconds to drive Kansas City within range of a tying field goal to end regulation, then hit Kelce for the winning touchdown in overtime in the divisional round.

In those two games, Mahomes completed 76% of his throws for 703 yards with six TD passes, no picks and a touchdown run.

“The Bills are a great challenge. I think everybody understands that,” he said. “They’ve gotten my number a number of times. They beat us earlier this year. We know we’ll have to play great football to win the game. It’s not about ending their season for us. It’s about advancing. Finding a way to get to the next round.”

Notes

DT Derrick Nnadi (elbow) did not practice. LT Wanya Morris (concussion) and WRs Justyn Ross (hamstring) and Kadarius Toney (hip and ankle) did practice after missing last week’s game against Miami. … WR Skyy Moore (knee) returned to practice, beginning a 21-day window to return to the active roster. Moore has been on injured reserve since mid-December, and the Chiefs would have to make room on the 53-man roster for him to play against Buffalo. … LB Cam Jones (chest) was put on IR and LB Cole Christiansen promoted from the practice squad to take his place.

CHIEFS AT BILLS

What: AFC divisional playoff game

When: 6:30 p.m., Jan. 21

Where: Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, N.Y.

Records: Chiefs 12-6, Bills 12-6

TV: WOIO

Donovan Mitchell scored 34 points, Jarrett Allen had 10 points and 14 rebounds for his ninth straight double-double, and the Cavaliers pulled away late for a 109-91 victory over the Bulls on Jan. 15.

Caris LeVert added 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists off the bench as the Cavaliers extended their longest winning streak of the season to five, despite blowing a 21-point lead in the second half.

“They’re a good team, a competitive team, so we knew they were going make a run,” said Mitchell, who also had seven assists. “And we missed wide-open shots. But the biggest thing is how we responded, and we did it as a group.”

Coby White made two free throws early in the fourth quarter to put Chicago in front for the only time at 81-80, capping a 28-6 run that began after Cleveland went up 74-53 in the third.

The Cavaliers immediately answered with 10 straight points, five by Mitchell on drives to the basket, and closed out the game with a 29-10 surge.

“Right now we’re getting the timely stops we need, and the really good teams do that,” LeVert said. “We have versatile defenders and we have bigs that can switch. We’re just locking in more defensively and we’re getting better at our scheme.”

Cleveland made 20 3-pointers in a franchise-record 57 attempts — an NBA season high in regulation — as it took the court for the first time since beating Brooklyn, 111-102, in Paris on Jan. 11. Mitchell, LeVert and Georges Niang each went 4 of 10 beyond the arc.

White scored 18 points and Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic had 17 apiece for the Bulls, who had won two in a row on the road. Vucevic and Andre Drummond each grabbed 10 rebounds as coach Billy Donovan played them together for much of the second half.

“What was disappointing was a lot of the (mistakes) when we went up one were self-induced,” Donovan said. “It was rushed shots, turnovers, offensive rebounds; all stuff we did to ourselves.”

Ayo Dosunmo had 10 points in the third to ignite Chicago’s rally, but could not finish the game after his sore left shoulder flared up. Patrick Williams missed his second consecutive game with right ankle soreness that is affecting his heel area.

Allen is averaging 18.8 points, 15.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists during his career-long streak of double-doubles. Cleveland is 10-3 since losing power forward Evan Mobley (left knee surgery) and point guard Darius Garland (broken jaw) until February.

“J-A gets me open, that’s for sure, and he’s willing to do the little things,” Mitchell said of Allen. “We all appreciate it. He’s playing out of his mind and he should be an All-Star. We need to get him there.”

The Cavaliers made eight 3-pointers in the first — three by Niang — to build a 40-21 advantage. White had eight points in the second for Chicago, which trailed 60-46 at halftime.

PHOTOS: Cavaliers vs. Bulls, Jan. 15, 2024

THE SCORE

Cavaliers 109, Bulls 91

Up next: The Cavs host Milwaukee on Jan. 17.

The top 10 teams in the Associated Press Ohio high school boys basketball poll with first-place votes in parentheses and won-lost record. Total points and position last week at right:

DIVISION I

1. Cle. St. Ignatius (5) 11-3 85

2. L.C. Olentangy Orange (1) 12-0 83

3. Findlay (2) 10-0 74

4. Garfield Hts. (2) 12-0 71

5. Cin. Moeller 12-1 62

6. Louisville 10-1 60

7. Cin. Elder 11-2 52

8. Tol. Whitmer 10-1 49

9. Centerville (2) 9-4 33

10. Beavercreek 10-2 25

Others receiving 12 or more points: Delaware Hayes 17. Cin. Sycamore 13. Newark 12.

DIVISION II

1. Lutheran West (10) 13-0 112

2. Lexington 14-1 97

3. Kettering Alter (2) 10-3 86

4. Cin. Wyoming 9-0 81

5. Cols. Hartley 10-1 49

(tie) Cuyahoga Falls CVCA 12-0 49

7. Youngs. Ursuline 8-2 39

8. Creston Norwayne 9-0 24

9. Willard 10-2 16

10. Cols. Bishop Ready 7-4 14

(tie) Shelby 9-2 14

Others receiving 12 or more points: Napoleon 13. Cin. Woodward 12.

DIVISION III

1. Cle. Hts. Lutheran E. (10) 12-1 111

2. Ottawa-Glandorf 9-1 87

3. Camden Preble Shawnee (2) 11-0 75

4. Haviland Wayne Trace 9-1 62

5. Toledo Emmanuel Christian 10-1 54

6. Castalia Margaretta 8-1 45

7. Malvern 10-0 39

8. Minford 10-1 37

9. Cadiz Harrison Cent. 10-1 22

10. Ashland Crestview 12-0 21

(tie) New Madison Tri-Village 12-1 21

Others receiving 12 or more points: Cin. Mariemont 13.

DIVISION IV

1. Russia (4) 13-0 109

2. Warren JFK (6) 10-1 105

3. Lima Cent. Cath. (1) 11-1 94

4. Tol. Maumee Valley 9-1 70

5. Troy Christian 8-1 39

6. Pandora-Gilboa 12-0 36

7. Richmond Hts. (1) 5-8 35

(tie) Berlin Hiland 8-2 35

9. Woodsfield Monroe Cent. 10-0 32

10. Leesburg Fairfield 13-0 24

Others receiving 12 or more points: S. Webster 23. Antwerp 23.