FRIDAY SPORTS, DECMEBER 5, 2025
MITCHELL KERNELS
— Mitchell Kernels wrestling takes on Tea Area and Chamberlain in its first competition of the season. The triangular in Tea starts on Friday at 5 pm. The Kernels return six state place-winners, including boys standouts Rocky Clark, Blaze Sevigny and Noah Bennett, plus girls veterans Frankie Kranz, Danny Borja and Taylor DeJong. Mitchell wrestling is going into its third season with head coach Baker Haar.
— Mitchell Kernels gymnastics competes at the Pierre Invitational on Saturday. The Kernels opened the season with a triangular victory in Yankton on Tuesday night.
— Mitchell Marlins girls hockey will be at Watertown on Friday, followed by a home game vs. Brookings on Saturday at Noon.
— Mitchell Marlins boys hockey plays at Huron on Friday, followed by a home game vs. Brookings on Saturday at 8 pm.
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan volleyball defeated The Master’s University (Calif.) on Thursday night 3-2 (19-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-11, 15-13) at the NAIA National Volleyball Tournament in Sioux City. Freshman Keatyn Liebsack led the Tigers with 15 kills on 33 attempts. Liebsack had only 13 total kills this season coming into the match. Karly VanDerWerff and Evy Knoblock added 12 kills each, while Emily Dale finished with 10. Setter Kayleigh Hybertson finished with a double-double of 43 assists and 15 digs, while Lizzie Tyler had a match-high 26 digs. DWU improves to 20-12 on the season and awaits the results of Friday’s match between Concordia and The Master’s to see if its season will continue.
— No. 14 Dakota Wesleyan women’s basketball will be at Concordia on Saturday at 2 pm. The Tigers fell to 5-3 on the season after a 74-62 loss at No. 4 Dakota State on Tuesday.
— Dakota Wesleyan men’s basketball will be at Concordia on Saturday at 4 pm. The Tigers fell to 5-5 on the season after a 64-53 loss at Dakota State on Tuesday.
— Dakota Wesleyan girls wrestling travels to Storm Lake, Iowa on Saturday for a tournament at 9 am.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State football heads west to face third-seeded Montana on Saturday in Missoula. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Central in the second round of the FCS playoffs. The two teams meet for the third consecutive season in the playoffs and fifth time overall. SDSU defeated New Hampshire last Saturday 41-3 to advance to the second round, while No. 3 Montana received a first round bye. The Jackrabbits defeated Montana 35-18 in last year’s second round. The pregame starts at 11 am on KORN News Radio.
— South Dakota State women’s basketball will be at Northern Arizona on Saturday at 3 pm CST. The Jacks improved to 7-2 on the season with an 87-56 home win on Wednesday night vs. Weber State in the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge.
— South Dakota State men’s basketball hosts Idaho on Saturday at 2 pm in Brookings. The Jacks won the opening game of the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge on Wednesday, picking up a 75-62 road win at Northern Arizona. South Dakota State is now 5-4 overall.
— South Dakota State volleyball will face Arizona on Friday night at 6:30 pm in Stanford, California, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Jackrabbits come into the match with a 23-4 overall record, going 17-1 vs. Summit League competition. Arizona is 16-12 overall, going 10-8 in the Big 12 this season. The winner advances to take on either No. 2 seed Stanford or Utah Valley on Saturday night at 8 pm CST in the second round.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD men’s basketball will be at Northern Colorado on Saturday at 7 pm CST.
— USD women’s basketball hosts Eastern Washington on Saturday at 1 pm.
— USD football hits the road to face No. 6–seeded Mercer on Saturday at 11 a.m. Central. It’s the third straight season that the Coyotes have reached the second round of the FCS playoffs. USD advanced after a 38-17 win last Saturday vs. Drake. Mercer received a first round bye. It will be the first ever meeting between the two schools.
NFL
— Jahmyr Gibbs ran for three touchdowns as the Detroit Lions picked up a 44-30 win on Thursday night over the Dallas Cowboys. Gibbs’ final score was a 13-yarder with 2:19 left that sealed a much-needed win for the Lions. Detroit avoided losing consecutive games for the first time in more than three years. Dallas kicker Brandon Aubrey hits five field goals for the Cowboys, including from 55, 57 and 63 yards. Jared Goff threw for 309 yards for Detroit, while Dallas WR CeeDee Lamb finished with six catches for 121 yards. The Lions improve to 8-5 on the season and pull to within one game of San Francisco for the final wild card spot in the NFC. Meanwhile, Dallas falls to 6-6-1 on the season.
— The playing surfaces at every NFL stadium will have to meet new enhanced standards set through lab and field testing by the start of the 2028 season. NFL field director Nick Pappas detailed the plans for a program on Thursday that will provide each team “a library of approved and accredited NFL fields” before the start of next season. Any new field will immediately have to meet those standards and all teams will have two years to achieve the standards, whether they use a grass or synthetic surface or a hybrid. Most artificial surfaces are replaced every two or three years, Pappas said. Natural fields can be replaced several times a season.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
— Kansas State has hired former quarterback and current Texas A&M offensive coordinator Collin Klein as its football coach. The move Thursday night comes one day after Chris Klieman’s abrupt retirement following seven seasons leading the Wildcats. Klein will continue working with Texas A&M during the College Football Playoff. Klein agreed to a five-year deal with an average salary of $4.3 million. This will be his first head coaching job.
— Iowa State head football coach Matt Campbell has emerged as the focus of Penn State’s head coaching search. Penn State is in discussions with Campbell about its vacancy after initiating contact with him Wednesday. Both sides are early in the process, and any hire at Penn State will require additional steps and board approval. Penn State shifted its attention to other candidates after BYU coach Kalani Sitake chose to remain with the Cougars and agree to a long-term extension on Tuesday.
MLB
— The Major League Baseball Players’ Association has gathered Arizona to discuss the future of the game and look ahead to a possible lockout next December. In-game attendance was up in 2025 for the third straight season, and a set of rule changes that started in 2023 season has produced a faster-paced game that’s been widely lauded. But MLB also has a widening payroll disparity that is a point of contention. The Dodgers have spent roughly $890 million building back-to-back World Series champions while the Athletics have spent less than $150 million over the same period.
WORLD CUP
— The World Cup draw takes place Friday, featuring four debuting teams: Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan. The tournament, expanded to 48 nations, will run from June 11 to July 19 across the U.S., Mexico and Canada. All top 11-ranked teams have qualified, with Italy among 22 nations in playoffs for the final spots. Led by Lionel Messi, Argentina aims for consecutive titles. Matches will be held at 16 sites, with attendance expected to break records. FIFA announced ticket prices ranging from $60 to over $6,700.
NBA
— The NBA fined the Cleveland Cavaliers $250,000 on Thursday for violating the league’s player participation policy by resting All-Star guard Darius Garland for a nationally televised game against the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 24. It is the second time this season the Cavaliers have been fined for violating the policy. They received a $100,000 fine on Nov. 18 for resting both Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley against the Miami Heat on Nov. 12.
— LeBron James’ streak of 1,297 consecutive double-digit scoring games has ended. On Thursday night, the NBA’s career points leader scored only eight points in the Lakers’ 123-120 win over the Toronto Raptors. James had a chance to extend the streak on the final possession but passed the ball to Rui Hachimura. Hachimura’s 3-pointer sealed the win as time expired. Austin Reaves scored 44 points, 22 in the third quarter.
— Julius Randle had 28 points and nine rebounds, carrying Minnesota on a quiet night from Anthony Edwards, as the Timberwolves beat the New Orleans Pelicans 125-116. Edwards finished with just 11 points in 31 minutes.
— 76ers rookie VJ Edgecombe made the go-ahead follow shot with 0.9 seconds left, while Tyrese Maxey raced back for a game-saving blocked shot as Philadelphia beat the Golden State Warriors 99-98. Maxey scored 35 points but missed a jumper with the 76ers trailing by one with Edgecombe tipping it in.
— Derrick White scored a season-high 30 points as the Boston Celtics routed the Washington Wizards 146-101.
— Lauri Markkanen scored 30 points, Keyonte George had 29 and the Utah Jazz used a huge fourth quarter to beat the Brooklyn Nets 123-110 on Thursday night. The Jazz outscored the Nets 42-20 in the final quarter after trailing by 15 points in the first half. Markkanen and George nearly outscored the Nets by themselves, combining for 18 points.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL – FRIDAY
No. 25 James Madison vs. Troy, 6 pm on ESPN (Sun Belt Championship)
Jacksonville State vs. Kennesaw State, 6 pm on CBS Sports Network (Conference USA Championship)
No. 20 Tulane vs. No. 24 North Texas, 7 pm on ABC (American Championship)
Boise State vs. UNLV, 7 pm on FOX (Mountain West Championship)
COLLEGE FOOTBALL – SATURDAY
No. 4 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 BYU, 11 am on ABC (Big 12 Championship)
Western Michigan vs. Miami (Ohio), 11 am on ESPN (MAC Championship)
No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 9 Alabama, 3 pm on ABC (SEC Championship)
No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 2 Indiana, 7 pm on FOX (Big Ten Championship)
No. 17 Virginia vs. Duke, 7 pm on ABC (ACC Championship)
COLLEGE BASKETBALL – SATURDAY
No. 1 Purdue vs. No. 10 Iowa State, 11 am on CBS
No. 7 Michigan State vs. No. 4 Duke, 11 am on FOX
No. 22 Indiana vs. No. 6 Louisville 1 pm on CBS
No. 13 Tennessee vs. No. 14 Illinois, 7 pm on ESPN
No. 2 Arizona vs. No. 20 Auburn, 9 pm on ESPN
NFL – SUNDAY
Minnesota Vikings vs. Washington Commanders, Noon on FOX
Las Vegas Raiders vs. Denver Broncos, 3 pm on CBS
Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears, 3:25 pm on FOX
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Houston Texans, 7:20 pm on NBC
Los Angeles Chargers vs. Philadelphia Eagles, 7:15 pm on ABC/ESPN, Monday Night Football