Kansas City finally clinched its third consecutive AFC West title and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, Sunday, with a 35-3 pounding of the Raiders. Patrick Mahomes threw for 281 yards, highlighted by a 67-yard TD pass to Tyreek Hill and an 89-yard TD toss to Demarcus Robinson for the 12-4 Chiefs. That gave the first-year starter 5,097 yards and 50 touchdown passes, joining Peyton Manning as the only QBs to hit 5,000 and 50 in the same season.

Hill finished with five catches for 101 yards, becoming the Chiefs’ single-season leader for yards receiving with 1,479, while adding a fourth-quarter touchdown run. Damien Williams added 51 yards and a score on the ground as the Chiefs beat the Raiders for the eighth time in nine games.

The Chiefs’ Travis Kelce had five catches for 62 yards, giving him 1,336 yards this season. That broke the NFL record for tight ends set by the Patriots’ Rob Gronkowski in 2011, only for the 49ers’ George Kittle to pass him a few minutes later.

Mahomes was 14 of 24, giving him a franchise-record 383 completions this season. He began the day tied with Trent Green with 369. Coach Andy Reid broke a tie with former Chiefs coach Marty Schottenheimer for seventh on the NFL’s career wins list with his 206th.

Next up: A postseason bye and divisional-round game at home await the Chiefs.

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Nia Clouden scored 27 points, Jenna Allen had 17 rebounds, both career highs, and No. 20 Michigan State pulled away from No. 16 Iowa in the second half on Sunday for an 84-70 win in the Big Ten Conference opener. The one-two punch for the Spartans (11-1) offset a 30-point, 14-rebound outing for Megan Gustafson, who became the all-time leading scorer for the Hawkeyes (9-3). Gustafson surpassed former teammate Ally Disterhoft (2,102) and men’s great Roy Marble (2,116). Gustafson, the nation’s leading scorer (26.5 ppg) now has 2,124 points.

The turning point was the third quarter when Michigan State shot 50 percent and outscored Iowa, which shot 17 percent (2 of 12), 23-10 to take a 60-53 lead. Clouden, a freshman, had nine points in a 13-3 run to start the second half, converting two 3-point plays and hitting a 3-pointer.

Iowa, which had a five-game winning streak snapped, never got untracked, shooting 29 percent in the second half and 43 percent for the game. For the Hawkeyes, who lead the Big Ten at 53 percent, it was just their fifth time below 50 percent. Iowa was within seven with 3:07 to go when MSU went on a 9-0 run as the Hawkeyes missed four straight 3-pointers.

Allen also had 20 points for Michigan State, which won its eighth straight.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — It had been over three decades since Iowa had last finished its non-conference team schedule undefeated. But the 24th-ranked Hawkeyes will resume Big Ten play next week at 0-2 in the league — and coming off one of their ugliest wins in years. Tyler Cook scored 19 points with 12 rebounds for his fourth double-double in seven games and 24th-ranked Iowa held off lowly Bryant 72-67 on Saturday night. Jordan Bohannon had 17 points for the Hawkeyes (11-2), who swept their out of league opponents for the first time since 1986-87.

Iowa hardly looked like it was ready for what’s coming. The pesky Bulldogs (3-8) pestered the Hawkeyes with a slow tempo — and even tied it at 66-all with 3:08 left. Cook gave Iowa the lead back with a layup, and the Hawkeyes forced a subsequent shot-clock violation. Bryant’s Adam Grant then missed an open look at a potential game-tying 3 with 24 seconds left, and Bohannon sealed it at the free throw line.

Bryant showed it was ready to give the Hawkeyes a game from the get-go, as Grant scored 12 of the Bulldogs’ first 13 points — and buried a 3 at the buzzer — to help keep them within 43-34 at the break. The Bulldogs then opened the second half on a 10-2 run to get within a point of Iowa’s lead, and Grant’s 3 with 5:37 left cut the lead to 64-62. Joe Kasperzyk then tied it up on a layup. Grant had 20 of his 23 points in the opening 20 minutes for Bryant. The Bulldogs hit 10 3s after shooting just 27.8 percent entering play.

The Hawkeyes played a relatively ambitious non-conference slate, going up against the likes of Oregon, Connecticut, Pitt and Iowa State — and their first two Big Ten games were against No. 15 Wisconsin and No. 8 Michigan State. It’s understandable, then, that coach Fran McCaffery would finish December with Western Carolina, Savannah State and Bryant. But the Hawkeyes looked lost at times against a team they might beat by 40 if they played again. Iowa could be at risk of dropping out of the Top 25 on Monday after barely beating a team that Yale thumped by 42 points.

Iowa’s team stat sheet wasn’t indicative of one for a squad that could only beat one of the worst teams in America by five points. The Hawkeyes shot 46 percent from the floor, 36 on 3s and 67.7 on free throws — not great numbers, but not terrible ones either. Iowa also forced 13 turnovers and had 16 assists on 21 baskets.
UP NEXT: Iowa travels to Purdue on Thursday.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — Andrew Garcia scored 24 points and Stony Brook won its school-record 12th non-conference game, pulling away from Northern Iowa, 73-63 Saturday night in their final contest before opening America East play. The Seawolves (12-3) already set the school’s record as a Division I school with 11 non-conference wins with a 76-73 victory over Quinnipiac. Stony Brook opens conference play Saturday at UMass-Lowell.

Wyatt Lohaus scored at the basket as time expired in the first half to get Northern Iowa within two at the break 36-34. The Seawolves answered to start the second half. Andrew Garcia drilled a 3 seconds into the period and Jeff Otchere dunked to make it 41-34. Garcia hit the second of two free throws and followed it with a jumper seconds later to push Stony Brook’s lead into double figures, 56-46 midway through the second half, and Jules Moor hit a 3 to make it a 13-point bulge.

Garcia was 9-for-9 from the field, including 4 of 4 from distance. Jules Moor added 14 points off the bench. Lohaus hit 5 of 9 from beyond the arc and finished with 23 points for Northern Iowa (5-8).

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Garrett Sturtz scored 16 points off the bench as Drake completed its non-conference schedule by bolting past Division II McKendree, 98-70 on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs posted their 11th win in 13 starts after capturing the Las Vegas Classic tournament championship last week, their first tourney title since 2013, and enter Missouri Valley Conference play at Evansville Wednesday.

Drake took the lead on Nick Norton’s 3 four minutes into the game and his layup with 12:33 left pushed the lead into double digits. D.J. Wilkins’s 3 with a second left made it 51-27 at the break. Six Drake players scored in double figures and 11 contributed to the offense. Nick McGlynn added 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Alijah Thomas scored 15 points and Jacob Donaldson added another 13 off the bench for McKendree.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Ric Hanson.

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Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Gardner Minshew II threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score and No. 12 Washington State stopped No. 25 Iowa State on a late two-point conversion in a 28-26 victory in the Alamo Bowl. Minshew passed for 299 yards to help Washington State (11-2) set a school record for wins in a season.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs safety Eric Berry missed practice Friday after the heel injury that kept him out most of the season acted up, leaving his status for Sunday’s game against Oakland in question. The Chiefs can clinch the AFC West and No. 1 seed in the playoffs by beating the Raiders at Arrowhead Stadium.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — JT Gibson hit five 3-pointers and finished with a career-high 22 points and Matt Pile scored 17 on 8-of-12 shooting to help Omaha hold on for a 91-84 win over Denver in the Summit League opener for both teams. Mitch Hahn added 16 points, Zach Jackson scored 11 and Ayo Akinwole 10 for Omaha (7-7), which has won four in a row.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Gardner Minshew II and that glorious mustache conjured up a final bit of magic in a grand finale for Washington State, Friday night. The graduate transfer quarterback whose whiskered upper lip was loved and mimicked by Cougars fans all season, threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score in sending No. 12 Washington State to a 28-26 win over No. 25 Iowa State in the Alamo Bowl.

Minshew’s passing and scrambling earned the Cougars (11-2) a school record for wins in a season.
He threw for 299 yards, none of them bigger than a play made out of desperation when Iowa State had all the momentum. After watching a 21-10 lead dwindle to 21-20 by early in the fourth quarter, the Cougars stripped the ball from Iowa State running back David Montgomery at the Cyclones’ 30. Minshew, who had been held in check in the third quarter, escaped a third-down pass rush to flip a last-second shovel pass to Tay Martin that went for 20 yards.

The play stunned the Cyclones, and Max Borghi scored on a 10-yard run the next play. It was just another big fourth-quarter moment for the transfer from East Carolina who coach Mike Leach had lured out West with the promise he could lead the nation in passing. Minshew was the nation’s leading passer in yards per game this season and won the Johnny Unitas Award as the nation’s top senior quarterback in a season the Cougars fell one game short of playing for the Pac-12 championship. Nearly all of his completions this season were more orthodox than the flip to Martin.

The Cyclones did a good job in bottling him up for much of the game. Iowa State’s defense held Washington State 10 points and 135 yards below their season averages and two of the Cougars’ touchdowns came on short drives after turnovers. But after Minshew found a way to get Washington State in the end zone, the Cougars’ defense made the one play it had to at the end.

Iowa State’s last chance came after quarterback Brock Purdy scored from a yard out with 4:02 left. The Cyclones went for two, but a pass to Montgomery was stopped well short of the goal line after a false-start penalty pushed the line of scrimmage back to the 8. Iowa State had seven false start penalties and had two players ejected for targeting hits on Minshew.

Purdy passed for 315 yards and Cyclones receiver Hakeem Butler caught nine passes for 192 yards, six yards shy of the Alamo Bowl record. Montgomery rushed for 124 yards. The Cyclones (8-5) had rallied from a 1-3 start to finish third in the Big 12, the program’s best conference finish in 40 years. Turnovers and targeting calls were critical in the fame. Purdy threw two first-quarter interceptions and Montgomery’s fumble was a game-changer. Iowa State had two key defenders ejected in the second quarter for targeting hits to Minshew. Senior linebacker Willie Harvey was ejected after smashing Minshew in the facemask on a scramble. Defensive end Enyi Uzwazike was booted after a sack knocked Minshew’s helmet off.
UP NEXT: The Cyclones were in the mix for a Big 12 title-game berth late in the season and will expect to be again in 2019 with Purdy leading an experienced lineup that loses only five senior starters. The key will be the NFL draft options for 1,000-yard rusher Montgomery and 1,000-yard receiver Butler.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs safety Eric Berry missed practice Friday after the heel injury that kept him out most of the season acted up, leaving his status for Sunday’s pivotal game against Oakland in question. The Chiefs (11-4) can clinch the AFC West and No. 1 seed in the playoffs by beating the Raiders.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said the soreness was similar to what Berry experienced early in training camp. The three-time All-Pro, who missed most of last season with an Achilles’ tendon injury, returned to practice over the summer but was sidelined early in camp. He did not play until Week 15 against the Chargers, and had been increasing his playing time slowly the past couple of games.

“He’s going to try to see if he feels better. That’s what he is going to do right now,” said Reid, who listed Berry as questionable on the final injury report. “We’ll just see how he is as time goes on.”
Wide receiver Sammy Watkins remained out of practice with his foot injury, while running backs Spencer Ware and Darrel Williams were listed as questionable with hamstring injuries.

Meanwhile, top cornerback Kendall Fuller is hopeful of playing after missing a game with a hand injury. Fuller had surgery about two weeks ago and thought he could play last week in Seattle, but the pain from the recovery was too much when game time rolled around. “I feel like he did a good job,” Reid said. “He worked through it and didn’t miss a beat.”

Reid also felt good about the first week back at practice for Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, who has been on injured reserve with a broken bone in his leg. The starting right guard was injured in Week 5 against Jacksonville, but the team hoped he would return in time for the playoffs. He has a three-week practice window in which the Chiefs must decide whether to activate him.

In other news, the agent for Damien Williams announced that the Chiefs had signed their backup running back to a two-year contract extension that could be worth up to $8.1 million Williams was signed to compete for a third-string job in training camp. But when the Chiefs cut Kareem Hunt following his off-the-field issues, and Ware went down with hamstring and shoulder injuries, it pushed the former Dolphins running back into a feature role.

The 27-year-old Williams ran 13 times for 103 yards last week against the Seahawks, and he has three touchdowns on the ground and another through the air over the past three games. Williams, who signed this season for $1.2 million with just $60,000 guaranteed, also helps to solidify the next season. Ware and Charcandrick West are due to become a free agent, leaving Darrel Williams as the only other running back signed next season.

“Damien’s really done a nice job,” Reid said. “He was rewarded for that with a nice contract. It allows him to be on the football team here for a little bit here. I’m happy for him because he’s earned it. He’s gone out and played special teams and excelled on special teams. And was given an opportunity to play the running back position.”

(Learfield Sports) Iowa basketball coach Fran McCaffery says Connor McCaffery will play but Luka Garza will be out of Saturday night’s game when the 24th ranked Hawkeyes host Bryant University. McCaffery missed the last game against Savannah State with a concussion while Garza was out with a sprained ankle.

McCaffery says with Garza out Tyler Cook will spend time playing the post.

The 24th ranked Hawkeyes are 10-2.