1-5-25 roundup: Pro football, soccer and basketball, High school basketball, College football and basketball

By Richard Walker

When the old Charlotte Coliseum opened in 1955, high school basketball wasn’t considered a huge local sporting event.

Spurred on by what is believed be the first Charlotte in-season prep tournament, high school basketball started gaining more and more attention and features one of the most-attended games in state history featuring future Basketball Hall of Famer James Worthy of Gastonia.

The historic first prep games at the venue came in 1955 when the current Bojangles’ Coliseum had just opened.

Called the “Charlotte High School Invitational,” it also was called “the first … pre-Christmas tournament ever held in the state” for high school teams by The Charlotte Observer. (Further research shows that Hickory hosted a 5-year Kiwanis Tournament from 1947 to 1951 and old Fallston High of Cleveland in 1949 and old North Brook High of Lincoln County in 1951 competed with Hickory-area teams in that event.)

In the 1955 Charlotte tournament, Gastonia’s old Ashley High was was invited as part of the four-team field that included Charlotte Central (now Garinger), Durham (Durham School of the Arts) and Raleigh (now Raleigh Broughton).

Ashley was only 10 months removed from its first appearance in the state finals – it lost to Asheville – while Central, Durham and Raleigh were Class 3A state powers and in the highest classification of the N.C. High School Athletic Association at that time.

Ashley would lose both games – to Raleigh in the opening round and to Durham in the consolation round – while Raleigh would claim the tournament title with a 2-0 record finished off with a 51-42 victory over Central in the championship game.

When the ABA’s Carolina Cougars came to town in the 1969-70 season, 10 preliminary games featured Charlotte-area high school teams Charlotte Catholic, East Mecklenburg, Garinger, Harding, Hickory, Huss, Independence, North Mecklenburg, Olympic, Piedmont, West Charlotte and West Mecklenburg.

On Feb. 27, 1979, a near-sellout crowd of 10,076 jammed into the 11,666-seat venue and called the largest crowd in N.C. high school basketball history.

Led by Worthy’s 21 points, Ashbrook defeated “host” West Charlotte 59-41 in the opening round of the state 4A playoffs. Worthy, who had a few months earlier announced his intention to play for the University of North Carolina.

The large attendance in Charlotte led N.C. High School Athletic Association officials to move the eight-team state championship tournament in Greensboro to the Greensboro Coliseum for the first time two weeks later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pro football

Carolina 44, Atlanta 38 (OT): Despite setting an inglorious record for points allowed in a season (534), the Panthers had their highest-scoring game since 2018 as Bryce Young threw for 3 TDs and ran for 2 more .

Miles Sanders, oft-injured in his Panthers’ career, scored on a 1-yard run with 3:15 left in overtime to cap his 66-yard day with the game-winning score.

Carolina finished 5-12 overall for first back-to-seasons of 12 or more losses in its history.

But 2 wins in the last 3 games, both in OT, can give 1st-year coach Dave Canales some momentum into the offseason.

It was Carolina’s 4th overtime game of the season – tying a franchise record set in 2003 – and marks the 1st OT win over the Falcons; The Panthers had previously been 0-4.

The winning score came moments after Tampa Bay’s win over New Orleans had eliminated Atlanta from the playoffs.

Here is the Carolina Panthers’ full 2024 schedule:

(preseason)
Aug. 8 at New England (L 3-17)
Aug. 17 N.Y. Jets (L 12-15)
Aug. 24 at Buffalo (W 31-26)
(regular season)
Sept. 8 at New Orleans (L 10-47)
Sept. 15 L.A. Chargers (L 3-26)
Sept. 22 at Las Vegas (W 36-22)
Sept. 29 Cincinnati (L 24-34)
Oct. 6 at Chicago (L 10-36)
Oct. 13 Atlanta (L 20-38)
Oct. 20 at Washington (L 7-40)
Oct. 27 at Denver (L 14-28)
Nov. 3 New Orleans (W 23-22)
Nov. 10 N.Y. Giants* (W 20-17 in OT)
*-game played in Munich, Germany
Nov. 17 BYE
Nov. 24 Kansas City (L 27-30)
Dec. 1 Tampa Bay (L 23-26 in OT)
Dec. 8 at Philadelphia (L 16-22)
Dec. 15 Dallas (L 14-30)
Dec. 22 Arizona (W 36-30 in OT)
Dec. 29 at Tampa Bay (L 14-48)
Jan. 5 at Atlanta (W 44-38 in OT)

The 2024-25 NFL playoff schedule:

(Wild Card weekend – Jan. 11-13)
-AFC
No. 1 Kansas City – bye
No. 5 L.A. Chargers at No. 4 Houston
No. 7 Denver at No. 2 Buffalo
No. 6 Pittsburgh at No. 3 Baltimore
-NFC
No. 1 Detroit/Minnesota winner – bye
No. 5 Detroit/Minnesota loser at No. 4 L.A. Rams
No. 7 Green Bay at No. 2 Philadelphia
No. 6 Washington at No. 3 Tampa Bay

(Conference semifinals – Jan. 18-19)

(Conference finals – Jan. 26)

(Super Bowl – Feb. 9 at New Orleans)
AFC champion vs. NFC champion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

High school basketball

Here are area results and schedule:

(Friday, Jan. 3)
-BOYS
Bessemer City 86, East Gaston 61
Burns 70, Cherryville 33
Thomas Jefferson 51, Highland Tech 35
East Lincoln 99, Statesville 74
Hickory 80, North Lincoln 78
Shelby 58, Kings Mountain 53
South Point 79, Cox Mill 76
Piedmont CC 81, Sugar Creek 74

-GIRLS
Bessemer City 68, East Gaston 28
Burns 75, Cherryville 25
Thomas Jefferson 62, Highland Tech 11
East Lincoln 59, Statesville 13
North Lincoln 73, Hickory 55
Shelby 53, Kings Mountain 15
South Point 55, Cox Mill 44
Piedmont Community Charter 66, Sugar Creek 18: Bree Phillips had 19 points, Allasha Houser 13 and Aniya Jones 10 for Piedmont.

(Saturday, Jan. 4)
-BOYS
Crest 72, Asheville 58

-Phenom Hoops Ambassador Classic at Ambassador Christian
Gaston Day 57, Carolina International 52: Dylan Bradley (16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists), Braylen Todd (15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals) and Griffen Simpson (11 points, 6 rebounds) led Gaston Day.

Gaston Christian 57, Zebulon Heritage Christian 51: Cameron Newman (38 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) led Gaston Christian.

-GIRLS
Asheville 51, Crest 35

Team Australia at Shelby

(Tuesday, Jan. 7)
Cramer at North Gaston
Crest at Huss
Kings Mountain at Ashbrook
South Point at Forestview
Cherryville at East Gaston
Shelby at Bessemer City
Thomas Jefferson at Burns
North Lincoln at North Iredell
West Iredell at East Lincoln
Bandys at Lincolnton
Bunker Hill at West Lincoln
Lincoln Charter at Langtree Charter
Pine Lake Prep at Mountain Island Charter
Piedmont CC at Valor Prep
Concord Academy at Gaston Christian

(Wednesday, Jan. 8)
Langtree Charter at Highland Tech
South Point at Catawba Ridge, S.C.

(Friday, Jan. 10)
Cramer at South Point
Crest at Ashbrook
Huss at Kings Mountain
North Gaston at Forestview
Bessemer City at Cherryville
East Gaston at Thomas Jefferson
Highland Tech at Shelby
East Lincoln at Foard
North Lincoln at St. Stephens
Polk County at Burns
Lincolnton at West Caldwell
Newton-Conover at West Lincoln
Mountain Island Charter at Langtree Charter
Pine Lake Prep at Lincolnton Charter
Piedmont CC at Carolina International
Gaston Christian at Westminster Catawba
Gaston Day at SouthLake Christian

(Saturday, Jan. 11)
Lincoln Charter at Combine Academy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pro basketball

Cleveland 115, Charlotte 105: The Hornets lost their 10th straight game and 22nd in 25 games to fall to 7-27 overall.

It’s the 18th losing streak of 10 or more games in franchise history – and 3rd in the last 13 months. Charlotte lost 11 straight 2 separate times during the 2023-24 season.

LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller returned to the starting lineup for the 1st time since Dec. 26 and lead the team with 24 points apiece.

Here is the Charlotte Hornets full 2024-25 results and schedule:

-Regular season
(*-Emirates Cup games)
OCTOBER
Wed. 23 at Houston (W 110-105)
Fri. 25 at Atlanta (L 120-125)
Sat. 26 MIAMI (L 106-114)
Wed. 30 TORONTO (W 138-133)

NOVEMBER
Fri. 1 BOSTON (L 109-124)
Sat. 2 BOSTON (L 103-113)
Mon. 4 at Minnesota (L 93-114)
Wed. 6 DETROIT (W 108-107)
Fri. 8 INDIANA (W 103-83)
Sun. 10 at Philadelphia (L 105-107 in OT)
Tue. 12 at Orlando* (L 89-114)
Sat. 16 MILWAUKEE (W 115-114)
Sun. 17 at Cleveland (L 114-128)
Tue. 19 at Brooklyn* (L 115-116)
Thu. 21 DETROIT (W 123-121 in OT)
Sat. 23 at Milwaukee (L 119-125)
Mon. 25 ORLANDO (L 84-95)
Wed. 27 MIAMI (L 94-98)
Fri. 29 NEW YORK* (L 98-99)
Sat. 30 ATLANTA 6:00 (L 104-107)

DECEMBER
Tue. 3 PHILADELPHIA* (L 104-110)
Thu. 5 at New York (L 101-125)
Sat. 7 CLEVELAND (L 102-116)
Sun. 8 at Indiana (W 113-109)
Fri. 13 at Chicago (L 95-109)
Mon. 16 Philadelphia (L 108-121)
Thu. 19 at Washington (L 114-123)
Fri. 20 at Philadelphia (L 98-108)
Mon. 23 HOUSTON (L 101-114)
Thu. 26 at Washington (L 110-113)
Sat. 28 OKLAHOMA CITY (L 94-106)
Mon. 30 CHICAGO (L 108-115 in OT)

JANUARY
Fri. 3 at Detroit (L 94-98 )
Sun. 5 at Cleveland (W 115-105)
Tue. 7 PHOENIX 7:00
Thu. 9 at L.A. Lakers 10:30
Sat. 11 at LA Clippers 10:30
Sun. 12 at Phoenix 9:00
Wed. 15 at Utah 9:00
Fri. 17 at Chicago 9:30
Mon. 20 DALLAS 12:00
Wed. 22 at Memphis 8:00
Fri. 24 PORTLAND 7:00
Sat. 25 NEW ORLEANS 7:00
Mon. 27 L.A. LAKERS 7:00
Wed. 29 BROOKLYN 7:00
Fri. 31 LA CLIPPERS 7:00

FEBRUARY
Sat. 1 DENVER 7:00
Mon. 3 WASHINGTON 7:00
Wed. 5 MILWAUKEE 7:00
Fri. 7 SAN ANTONIO 7:00
Sun. 9 at Detroit 1:00
Mon. 10 at Brooklyn 7:30
Wed. 12 at Orlando 7:00
Thu. 20 at Denver 9:00
Sat. 22 at Portland 10:00
Mon. 24 at Sacramento 10:00
Tue. 25 at Golden State 10:00
Thu. 27 at Dallas 8:30

MARCH
Sat. 1 WASHINGTON 6:00
Mon. 3 GOLDEN STATE 7:00
Wed. 5 MINNESOTA 7:00
Fri. 7 CLEVELAND 7:00
Sat. 8 BROOKLYN 6:00
Mon. 10 at Miami 7:30
Wed. 12 at Atlanta 7:30
Fri. 14 at San Antonio 8:00
Tue. 18 ATLANTA 7:00
Thu. 20 NEW YORK 7:00
Fri. 21 at Oklahoma City 8:00
Sun. 23 at Miami 6:00
Tue. 25 ORLANDO 7:00
Fri. 28 at Toronto 7:30
Sun. 30 at New Orleans 7:00
Mon. 31 UTAH 7:00

APRIL
Wed. 2 at Indiana 7:00
Fri. 4 SACRAMENTO 7:00
Sun. 6 CHICAGO 1:00
Tue. 8 MEMPHIS 7:00
Wed. 9 at Toronto 7:30
Fri. 11 at Boston 7:30
Sun. 13 at Boston 1:00

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

College basketball

Here are the area men’s results and schedule:

(Saturday, Jan. 4)
Barton 74, Belmont Abbey 46
Rice 68, Charlotte 55
Davidson 77, Duquesne 71
Queens 92, Florida Gulf Coast 83
Virginia State 75, J.C. Smith 68
Cleveland CC 83, Pellissippi State 73
Gardner-Webb 63, Presbyterian 61

(Monday, Jan. 6)
J.C. Smith at Bluefield State

(Tuesday, Jan. 7)
Cleveland CC at Catawba Valley CC
Gaston College at Converse JV

(Wednesday, Jan. 8)
Belmont Abbey at Converse
Florida Atlantic at Charlotte
Winthrop at Gardner-Webb

(Thursday, Jan. 9)
J.C. Smith at Elizabeth City State
Queens at Lipscomb

(Saturday, Jan. 11)
Charlotte at Tulsa
Cleveland CC at Bryant & Stratton, Va.
Emmanuel at Belmont Abbey
Fordham at Davidson
Gardner-Webb at High Point
Pitt CC at Gaston College
Queens at Austin Peay

(Sunday, Jan. 12)
Pitt CC at Cleveland CC

(Monday, Jan. 13)
J.C. Smith at Fayetteville State

(Tuesday, Jan. 14)
Charlotte at Wichita State

(Wednesday, Jan. 15)
Davidson at LaSalle
Gardner-Webb at Radford
Gaston College at Denmark Tech
Lees-McRae at Belmont Abbey
Southwest Virginia at Cleveland CC

(Thursday, Jan. 16)
Queens at Stetson

(Saturday, Jan. 18)
Belmont Abbey at UNC Pembroke
Cape Fear CC at Gaston College
Davidson at Rhode Island
Queens at Florida Gulf Coast
Sandhills CC at Cleveland CC
USC Upstate at Gardner-Webb

(Sunday, Jan. 19)
Memphis at Charlotte

(Monday, Jan. 20)
Belmont Abbey at Southern Wesleyan

(Tuesday, Jan. 21)
Livingstone at J.C. Smith
Saint Joseph’s at Davidson

(Wednesday, Jan. 22)
Cleveland CC at Guilford Tech
King at Belmont Abbey
Queens at North Florida
South Florida at Charlotte
UNC Asheville at Gardner-Webb
USC Salkehatchie at Gaston College

(Saturday, Jan. 25)
Belmont Abbey at Chowan
Davidson at Richmond
Fayetteville Tech at Cleveland CC
Gaston College at Richard Bland
Jacksonville at Queens

(Tuesday, Jan. 28)
Belmont Abbey at Erskine
J.C. Smith at Shaw

(Wednesday, Jan. 29)
Charlotte at Temple
Denmark Tech at Gaston College
Franklin Prep at Cleveland CC
Longwood at Gardner-Webb
North Alabama at Queens

(Thursday, Jan. 30)
Winston-Salem State at J.C. Smith

(Saturday, Feb. 1)
Central Carolina CC at Gaston College
Charlotte at UAB
Cleveland CC at Fayetteville Tech
Francis Marion at Belmont Abbey
Gardner-Webb at Winthrop
George Mason at Davidson
West Georgia at Queens

(Sunday, Feb. 2)
Cleveland CC at Johnston CC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

College football

2024-25 College football Division I playoff/bowl schedule:

-College Football Playoff

(Friday, Dec. 20)
No. 10 Indiana at No. 7 Notre Dame – ND 27-17

(Saturday Dec. 21)
No. 11 SMU at No. 6 Penn State – PS 38-10
No. 12 Clemson at No. 5 Texas – Texas 38-24
No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Ohio State – OS 42-17

(Tuesday, Dec. 31)
-CFP Quarterfinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl
No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 3 Boise State – PS 31-14

(Wednesday, Jan. 1)
-CFP Quarterfinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
No. 5 Texas vs. No. 4 Arizona State – Texas 39-31 (2 OT)
-CFP Quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl Game
No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 1 Oregon – OS 41-21

(Thursday, Jan. 2)
-CFP Quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl
No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Georgia – ND 23-10
(postponed from Jan. 1 due to terrorist attack)

(Thursday, Jan. 9)
-CFP Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl
No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 7 Notre Dame, 7:30 p.m., ESPN

(Friday, Jan. 10)
-CFP Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic
No. 5 Texas vs. No. 8 Ohio State, 7:30 p.m., ESPN

(Monday, Jan. 20)
-CFP National Championship Presented at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)
7:30 p.m., ESPN

-Bowl schedule

(Saturday, Dec. 14)
-Cricket Celebration Bowl at Atlanta
Jackson State vs. South Carolina State – JS 28-7

-IS4S Salute to Veterans Bowl at Montgomery, Ala.
South Alabama vs. Western Michigan – SA 30-23

(Tuesday, Dec. 17)
-Scooter’s Coffee Frisco (Tex.) Bowl
Memphis vs. West Virginia – Memphis 42-37

(Wednesday, Dec. 18)
-Boca Raton (Fla.) Bowl
Western Kentucky vs. James Madison – JM 27-17

-Art of Sport LA Bowl at Inglewood, Cal.
Cal vs. UNLV – UNLV 24-13

(Thursday Dec. 19)
-R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Georgia Southern vs. Sam Houston – SH 31-26

(Friday, Dec. 20)
-StaffDNA Cure Bowl at Orlando, Fla.
Ohio U. vs. Jacksonville State – Ohio 30-27

-Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl at Tampa, Fla.
Tulane vs. Florida – Florida 33-8

(Monday, Dec. 23)
-Myrtle Beach Bowl at Conway, S.C.
Coastal Carolina vs. UTSA – UTSA 44-15

-Famous Idaho Potato Bowl at Boise, Id.
Northern Illinois vs. Fresno State – NI 28-20 (2 OT)

(Tuesday, Dec. 24)
-Hawai’i Bowl at Honolulu
South Florida vs. San José State – SF 41-39 (5 OT)

(Thursday, Dec. 26)
-GameAbove Sports Bowl at Detroit
Pittsburgh vs. Toledo – Toledo 48-46 (6 OT)

-Rate Bowl at Phoenix
Rutgers vs. Kansas State – KS 44-41

-68 Ventures Bowl at Mobile, Ala.
Arkansas State vs. Bowling Green – AS 38-31

(Friday, Dec. 27)
-Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl at Fort Worth, Tex.
Oklahoma vs. Navy – Navy 21-20

-Birmingham (Ala.) Bowl
Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt – Vanderbilt 35-27

-AutoZone Liberty Bowl at Memphis, Tenn.
Texas Tech vs. Arkansas – Arkansas 39-26

-DirecTV Holiday Bowl at San Diego
Syracuse vs. Washington State – Syracuse 52-35

-SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl
Texas A&M vs. USC – USC 35-31

(Saturday, Dec. 28)
-Wasabi Fenway Bowl at Boston
North Carolina vs. UConn – UConn 27-14

-Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl at Bronx, N.Y.
Boston College vs. Nebraska – Nebraska 20-15

-Isleta New Mexico Bowl at Albuquerque, N.M.
Louisiana vs. TCU – TCU 34-3

-Pop-Tarts Bowl at Orlando, Fla.
Iowa State vs. Miami – Iowa State 42-41

-Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl at Tucson, Ariz.
Miami, Ohio vs. Colorado State – Miami 43-17

-Go Bowling Military Bowl at Annapolis, Md.
East Carolina vs. N.C. State – EC 26-21

-Valero Alamo Bowl at San Antonio
BYU vs. Colorado – BYU 36-14

-Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl at Shreveport, La.
Louisiana Tech vs. Army – Army 27-6
(Marshall opts out Dec. 14 due to transfer portal departures)

(Monday, Dec. 30)
-TransPerfect Music City Bowl at Nashville, Tenn.
Iowa vs. Missouri – Missouri 27-24

(Tuesday, Dec. 31)
ReliaQuest Bowl at Tampa, Fla.
Alabama vs. Michigan – Michigan 19-13

-Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl at El Paso, Tex.
Louisville vs. Washington – Louisville 35-34

-Cheez-It Citrus Bowl at Orlando, Fla.
South Carolina vs. Illinois – Illinois 21-17

-Kinder’s Texas Bowl at Houston
Baylor vs. LSU – LSU 44-31

(Thursday, Jan. 2)
-TaxSlayer Gator Bowl at Jacksonville, Fla.
Duke vs. Ole Miss – Ole Miss 52-20

(Friday, Jan. 3)
-SERVPRO First Responder Bowl at Dallas
North Texas vs. Texas State – TS 30-28

-Duke’s Mayo Bowl at Charlotte
Minnesota vs. Virginia Tech – Minnesota 24-10

(Saturday, Jan. 4)
-Bahamas Bowl at Nassau, Bahamas
Buffalo vs. Liberty – Buffalo 26-7

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pro soccer

The Charlotte FC MLS team’s 2025 schedule:

Saturday, Feb. 22 at Seattle 10:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 1 Atlanta 2 p.m.
Sunday, March 9 at Miami 5 p.m.
Saturday, March 15 Cincinnati 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 22 San Jose 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 29 at Colorado 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 5 Nashville 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 12 at Montreal 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 19 San Diego 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 26 New England 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 3 at Columbus 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 10 at Nashville 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, May 14 at Orlando 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 17 Chicago 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 24 Columbus 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, May 28 at NY Red Bulls 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 31 at Toronto 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 14 at Philadelphia 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, June 25 at Kansas City 8:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 28 at Chicago 8:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 5 Orlando 7 p.m.
Saturday, July 12 New York 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, July 16 DC 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 19 at Atlanta 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 10 at Cincinnati 6 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 16 Real Salt Lake 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 24 NY Red Bulls 7 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 30 at New England 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 13 Miami 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 19 at New York 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 27 Montreal 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 4 at DC 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 18 Philadelphia 6 p.m.