Sports briefs
Wild Things sign former FL all-star
The Wild Things have signed former Joliet Slammers starting pitcher Daren Osby.
Osby was part of Joliet’s 2018 Frontier League championship-winning team, which defeated Washington in the finals.
Osby has a 3.14 ERA in 29 career professional outings, all in the Frontier League.
Signed by Joliet in 2018 out of Troy University, Osby had a 7-3 record and 3.50 ERA in his rookie season. In 2019, Osby’s ERA dropped to 2.95 over 18 starts but his record was 4-6. In 177.2 career innings, Osby has allowed only 158 hits with 176 strikeouts.
He pitched one scoreless inning with a strikeout in the 2019 all-star game for the Frontier League against the Can-Am League.
“We have had numerous battles with Daren over the years and have always viewed him as one of the league’s best,” said Wild Things president and general manager Tony Buccilli. “His addition immediately elevates the top of our rotation. The competitiveness he pitches with, the consistency he chases and the aspirations to dominate made him a priority free agent for us.”
NBC Sports Net to be shut down
NBC will shut down the NBC Sports Network at the end of the year.
NBC Sports Chairman Pete Bevacqua announced the move Friday in an internal memo to staff.
NBC Sports Network is best known for carrying NHL and English Premier League games as well as NASCAR and IndyCar races. It also carries a significant amount of programming during the Olympics.
NBC will parcel out events between USA Network and its Peacock streaming service.
PSU game postponed
Nebraska has announced that its men’s basketball home game against Penn State on Jan. 30 has been postponed.
The Huskers (0-5 Big Ten, 4-8) have now had five games postponed amid the pandemic. Last week, Nebraska said coach Fred Hoiberg and 11 other staffers or players had tested positive for COVID-19.
Options for rescheduling the Penn State game will be discussed with the Big Ten Conference.
In the NBA
Kevin Porter quickly went from being a future star with the Cleveland Cavaliers to part of their past.
Cleveland completed its trade with Houston, sending Porter to the Rockets for a second-round draft pick, a deal the Cavs made after running out of patience with a player they once viewed as a possible franchise cornerstone.
The teams agreed to the swap less than a week after Porter’s outburst in Cleveland’s locker room convinced the team it had to part with the 20-year-old.
n Zach LaVine continued his strong play with 25 points and nine assists, leading the Chicago Bulls to a 123-110 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
Lauri Markkanen chipped in with 23 points and Coby White added 18 points and eight assists as the Bulls won their third straight.
n Jerami Grant’s driving layup on the final play came too late, and the Houston Rockets held on for a 103-102 victory over the Detroit Pistons.
In the NHL
Jakub Vrana had a goal and an assist, Vitek Vanecek made 24 saves through overtime and the short-handed Washington Capitals beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-3 in a shootout Friday night.