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Today in History: December 17, Black motorcyclist beaten to death after leading police chase

South Florida Local News - Wed, 12/17/2025 - 02:00

Today is Wednesday, Dec. 17, the 351st day of 2025. There are 14 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Dec. 17, 1979, Arthur McDuffie, a Black insurance broker and former Marine, was beaten by police after leading them on a chase with his motorcycle in Miami. McDuffie died four days later. (Four white police officers accused of beating McDuffie were acquitted in 2000, sparking riots in Miami that led to several deaths and millions of dollars in damages.)

Also on this date:

In 1777, France becomes one of the first nations to officially recognize the independence of the United States.

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In 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright conducted the first successful manned, powered airplane flights near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, using their experimental craft, the Wright Flyer.

In 1933, the Chicago Bears defeated the New York Giants 23-21 in the first NFL championship game.

In 1944, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Henry C. Pratt rescinded incarceration orders for people of Japanese ancestry during World War II; more than 110,000 people, about two-thirds of them U.S. citizens, had been forced into camps after a February 1942 executive order by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In 1963, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Clean Air Act into law; it was the first federal legislation targeting the control of air pollution.

In 1975, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme was sentenced to life in prison for her attempt on the life of President Gerald R. Ford in Sacramento, California. (She was paroled in August 2009.)

In 1989, “The Simpsons” debuts on Fox television; it has become the longest-running animated U.S. TV series.

In 1992, President George H.W. Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari signed the North American Free Trade Agreement in separate ceremonies; NAFTA went into effect in 2004 and was replaced by the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement in 2020.

In 2014, the United States and Cuba announced they would restore diplomatic relations, which had been severed in 1961 after Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution overthrew a U.S.-backed government. Full diplomatic relations resumed in 2015.

In 2024, Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, a senior Russian general, was killed by a bomb hidden in a scooter outside his apartment building in Moscow, a day after Ukraine’s security service accused him of directing the use of banned chemical weapons in Russia’s war in Ukraine. A Ukrainian official said the service carried out the attack in which Kirillov’s assistant also died.

Today’s Birthdays:
  • Actor Armin Mueller-Stahl is 95.
  • Actor Ernie Hudson is 80.
  • Political commentator Chris Matthews is 80.
  • Comedian-actor Eugene Levy is 79.
  • Actor Wes Studi is 78.
  • Rock singer Paul Rodgers is 76.
  • Actor Bill Pullman is 72.
  • Filmmaker Peter Farrelly is 69.
  • Rock musician Mike Mills (R.E.M.) is 67.
  • Country singer Tracy Byrd is 59.
  • Actor Laurie Holden is 56.
  • Actor Claire Forlani is 54.
  • Filmmaker Rian Johnson is 52.
  • Actor Sarah Paulson is 51.
  • Actor Giovanni Ribisi is 51.
  • Actor Milla Jovovich (YO’-vuh-vich) is 50.
  • Boxer Manny Pacquiao is 47.
  • Actor Emma Bell is 39.
  • Actor-singer Nat Wolff is 31.

Henderson scores 30 to lead Miami Hurricanes over FIU

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 20:29

CORAL GABLES — Shelton Henderson scored 30 points as the Miami Hurricanes beat Florida International 98-81 on Tuesday.

Henderson had five rebounds for the Hurricanes (10-2). Malik Reneau scored 22 points and added six rebounds. Tru Washington went 5 of 8 from the field (2 for 4 from 3-point range) to finish with 13 points.

Corey Stephenson led the Panthers (5-4) in scoring, finishing with 23 points, six assists and three steals. Florida International also got 17 points and two steals from Julian Mackey. Thiago Sucatzky had 10 points and two steals.

Miami got a team-high 16 points in the first half from Henderson, but it was only enough to head to the locker room tied 43-43 at halftime. Miami took the lead for good on Washington’s layup with 17:24 remaining in the second half and outscored Florida International by 17 points in the final stretch.

NBA’s Silver says league will try to work with Heat regarding Rozier impact

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 18:12

MIAMI — For the first time since guard Terry Rozier was arrested in October as part of an FBI gambling investigation and subsequently placed on leave by the league, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday directly addressed the impact on the Miami Heat.

Rozier, who was arraigned last week, remains listed on the Heat roster, with his $26.6 million salary continuing to count against the team’s payroll. In addition, the Heat still owe the Charlotte Hornets a future first-round draft choice from the teams’ January 2024 trade.

Multiple NBA sources have confirmed that neither the league nor the Hornets made the Heat aware at the time of the trade that Rozier already was under investigation in an NBA gambling probe.

For the Heat, expediency remains paramount, with Jan. 7 the date that Rozier’s salary becomes fully guaranteed for the season, and the Feb. 5 NBA trading deadline now less than two months away.

Plus, if the Heat were to receive draft relief, they then would have as many as four future first-round picks to put into a trade, as opposed to their current limitation of two.

Such issues remain unresolved at a time when Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, Dallas Mavericks forward Anthony Davis and other NBA stars could potentially reach the trade market.

“In terms of Miami, this is an unprecedented situation,” Silver said in response to a question from Miami-based Associated Press writer Tim Reynolds, as Silver addressed the media in Las Vegas ahead of the championship game of the NBA Cup. “I think I’m incredibly sympathetic to the Heat and to their fans. But I think we’re going to try to work something through, work this out with them.”

Silver, however, did not offer anything concrete, even with Rozier charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

“But there’s no obvious solution here,” he said. “I would just say that there’s no doubt at the moment they have a player that can’t perform services for them. And as to the draft pick they conveyed — obviously he hasn’t been convicted of anything yet, either, but this is an unfortunate circumstance.

“But sometimes there’s unique events and maybe sometimes they require unique solutions. We’ll be looking at this with the Heat and the other teams in the league and see if there’s any satisfactory relief, but at the moment there is none.”

Rozier issues already are being addressed, including a Wednesday hearing between the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association to determine whether the league can continue to divert Rozier’s 2025-26 salary into an escrow-type interest-bearing account.

The next scheduled pre-trial hearing for Rozier is in March, with Rozier free on $3 million bond posted with his South Florida home as equity.

Silver said the league has to continue to allow the legal process to play out.

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“First of all, on the timeline, it’s essentially out of our hands,” he said. “As you know, these are federal indictments. In the case of Terry Rozier, in Brooklyn, New York, the Eastern District of New York.

“We had investigated him at some point earlier. We had not found sufficient evidence to discipline under the rules of the league, and then at some point that investigation was taken over by federal authorities. As I said, it’s in their hands, and also now he’s been indicted and trial schedule, et cetera.”

But Silver indicated the league has resumed inspection into the matter.

“There are tangential issues that we’re looking into in that indictment, which is public record,” he said. “There were also references to other players, other incidents, as has been reported. Much of that information was new to us.

“So in essence, on a parallel path with the federal authorities, we are using whatever investigative powers we have to look into those incidents, as well, but we don’t have ultimately the leverage, the authority that federal investigators have. We take a backseat to their work, so timeline uncertain.”

Border Patrol official who is the face of Trump’s crackdown back in Chicago amid immigration raids

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 17:53

By CHRISTINE FERNANDO

CHICAGO (AP) — Senior Border Patrol official Greg Bovino returned to the Chicago area on Tuesday, about a month after leaving to lead immigration enforcements in other cities, immigration advocates say.

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Bovino, the face of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, was photographed Tuesday in the predominantly Mexican American neighborhood of Little Village by the Chicago Sun-Times as neighbors and activists blew whistles and shouted.

Videos obtained by The Associated Press showed several unmarked cars and Border Patrol agents deploying pepper balls and detaining a man in the neighborhood’s business corridor.

Bovino arrived in the Chicago area in September amid Operation Midway Blitz, which has yielded thousands of arrests and fueled fear among immigrant communities. The operation has become known for its aggressive tactics, including the use of chemical munitions and car chases. Since the operation began, federal agents deployed tear gas in neighborhood streets, hit protesters and journalists with pepper balls and shot at least two people, killing one.

Bovino left Chicago in November to lead immigration operations in New Orleans and North Carolina. While immigration operations had continued in Chicago, they were noticeably subdued with fewer tense confrontations, and Tuesday’s enforcements were among the most visible since Bovino left town.

“As we said a month ago, we aren’t leaving Chicago and operations are ongoing,” said Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker complained that he was not given notice that Bovino and additional Border Patrol agents were returning to the Chicago area on Tuesday. And he said he doesn’t know how long they’ll stay.

Pritzker also called on Bovino to testify in front of an Illinois commission created in October to document misconduct by federal agents.

“I’m so proud of the people of Illinois, for doing as they have, which is to protect their neighborhoods and their neighbors, to do the right thing,” Pritzker said Tuesday. “And so, I think we’re in a much better position.”

Show Caption1 of 4Federal immigration enforcement agents detain an individual near West 27th Street and South Ridgeway Avenue in the Little Village neighborhood of Chicago, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (Anthony Vazquez/Chicago Sun-Times via AP) Expand

At a Tuesday news conference, activists vowed to continue supporting immigrant communities in the Chicago area. Advocates said 15 people, including day laborers and a tamale vendor, were detained Tuesday on the city’s Southwest side and in suburban Berwyn and Cicero.

“We are tired but we are not weary,” said Illinois State Senator Celina Villanueva. “… Every single time that they come, we are going to show up.”

Victor Rodriguez II, a lifelong resident of Little Village, said he helped a woman when her husband was detained after a “caravan of masked agents began terrorizing our community,” including using pepper balls in neighborhood streets. Rodriguez accused Bovino of “targeted political theater.”

Bob Reiter, president of the Chicago Federation of Labor, said Border Patrol agents questioned striking laborers on Chicago’s Southwest side and accused Bovino of “coming to our picket line to chill union activity.”

“We have seen the first act of this political theater they have brought,” he said. “Now it’s the second act, and we’re ready.”

Takeaways: Susie Wiles pulls back the curtain on the Trump administration in revealing interviews

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 17:48

By BILL BARROW

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles offered an unusually candid look inside President Donald Trump’s administration in a series of interviews published Tuesday by Vanity Fair magazine, delivering details and reservations that presidential aides usually save for memoirs.

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From criticizing Attorney General Pam Bondi as having “whiffed” on the Jeffrey Epstein case to saying that no rational person could believe Elon Musk did a good job dismantling the United States Agency for International Development, Wiles revealed her own thoughts about her boss and the work of his aggressive administration. The assessments are even more notable because Wiles, before now, has maintained a low profile.

Wiles dismissed Vanity Fair’s work as a “hit piece,” and a number of Cabinet officials and other aides rushed to her defense. But Wiles notably has not denied any details or quotes.

Here are some takeaways from Wiles’ interview:

Wiles defends Trump while comparing him to an alcoholic

Wiles described Trump as an intense figure who thinks in broad strokes yet is often unconcerned about process and policy details.

She assessed Trump as having “an alcoholic’s personality,” even though the president does not drink. But the personality trait is something she recognizes from her father, the famous sports broadcaster Pat Summerall.

“High-functioning alcoholics or alcoholics in general, their personalities are exaggerated when they drink. And so I’m a little bit of an expert in big personalities,” she said.

Said Wiles: “I’m not an enabler. … I try to be thoughtful about what I even engage in. I guess time will tell whether I’ve been effective.”

Trump’s revenge crusade has gone longer than Wiles initially wanted

Wiles affirmed Trump’s ruthlessness and determination to achieve retribution against those he considers his political enemies, especially those who prosecuted him.

“We have a loose agreement that the score settling will end before the first 90 days are over,” Wiles said early in Trump’s second administration, telling Vanity Fair she did try to tamp down Trump’s penchant for retribution.

But in August 2025, she shifted. “I don’t think he’s on a retribution tour,” she said, arguing Trump has a different principle: “‘I don’t want what happened to me to happen to somebody else.’”

Still, she said, “there may be an element of that from time to time” and Trump “will go for it … when there’s an opportunity.”

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles arrives before the lighting of the National Christmas Tree, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

“Who would blame him?” she asked rhetorically. “Not me.”

Asked about the prosecution of New York Attorney General Letitia James for mortgage fraud, Wiles allowed, “Well, that might be the one retribution.”

On Epstein, Pam Bondi gets scorched and Trump was ‘wrong’ about Bill Clinton

In some of her most eye-popping commentary, Wiles said Attorney General Pam Bondi “whiffed” on handling the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking case, particularly trying to manage public expectations by suggesting the Justice Department had a client list waiting to be disclosed only for the administration to later say it doesn’t exist.

Wiles also said Trump pushed false narratives that former President Bill Clinton frequented Epstein’s infamous island. “There is no evidence” those visits happened, according to Wiles, and there are no damning findings concerning Clinton at all.

“The president was wrong about that,” Wiles said.

Wiles pays attention to Trump’s inner circle — and has thoughts

Wiles often sits to the side in the Oval Office, out of camera view. But she’s paying attention.

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and White House communications director Steven Cheung listen as President Donald Trump talks after meeting with New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Vice President JD Vance has been “a conspiracy theorist for a decade,” she said, and his MAGA conversion — he once compared Trump to Adolf Hitler — was “sort of political.”

Elon Musk overstepped on his Department of Government Efficiency efforts, she said. She called him “a complete solo actor … an odd, odd duck” and an “avowed ketamine user.” (Musk has acknowledged using the dissociative anesthetic.) She recalled having to explain to him that “you can’t just lock people out of their offices” and said his gutting of USAID left her “initially aghast.“

“Because I think anybody that pays attention to government and has ever paid attention to USAID believed, as I did, that they do very good work,” she said, adding that “no rational person could think the USAID process was a good one. Nobody.”

She calls Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “quirky Bobby” and White House budget chief Russell Vought “a right-wing absolute zealot.”

But in praising Kennedy, Wiles explained her embrace of the administration’s hard-liners: “He pushes the envelope — some would say too far. But I say in order to get back to the middle, you have to push it too far.”

Wiles sees Trump’s tariffs as ‘more painful’ than expected

Few events undermined Trump’s standing quite like his April 2 announcement of “Liberation Day” tariffs, in which he announced import taxes ranging from 10% to 99% on most of the world. Trump’s move sparked recession fears and a delay in imposing his wider tariff strategy, leading to a rollercoaster of negotiations and new tariff threats.

Wiles called the April rollout “so much thinking out loud” and said there were internal disputes about it among Trump’s aides. She said she told aides to “work into what he’s already thinking” and asked Vance to tell Trump to “not talk about tariffs today” until his team was “in complete unity.”

Trump proceeded on his own.

Wiles said she believed a middle ground on tariffs would be successful. But, she concluded, “It’s been more painful than I expected.”

Wiles concedes mistakes on immigration

When a federal judge chided the administration for deporting Maryland resident Kilmar Abrego Garcia, Trump publicly defended the approach despite the administration telling the court it was a mistake. Wiles did not mince words, telling Vanity Fair at the time, “We’ve got to look harder at our process for deportation.”

FILE – White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles waves after disembarking Air Force One, June 25, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

When the administration deported two mothers and their U.S. citizen children, including one who was a cancer patient, Wiles was even more plainspoken: “It could be an overzealous Border Patrol agent, I don’t know. I can’t understand how you make that mistake, but somebody did.”

Trump is more skeptical of Putin’s intentions than reflected in public

After nearly four years of fighting, Trump has made the case that Russian President Vladimir Putin can be persuaded to end the war in Ukraine if Kyiv agrees to cede Ukrainian land in the eastern Donbas region and if Western powers offer economic incentives that would bring Russia back into the economic world order.

“I actually think that President Putin wants to see it end,” Trump told reporters Monday.

But Wiles offered deep skepticism to Vanity Fair about Putin.

“The experts think that if he could get the rest of Donetsk, then he would be happy,” Wiles said in August, referring to the oblast that is a key part of Donbas.

“Donald Trump thinks he wants the whole country,” Wiles told her interviewer.

For Trump, boat strikes are about knocking Nicolás Maduro out of power

Wiles said in November that Trump “wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle.”

Trump has repeatedly said Maduro’s “days are numbered” as the U.S. intensifies deadly attacks on vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific. The administration alleges the targets are drug-smuggling cartels.

Still, Trump and administration officials have stopped short of saying they want to topple the Maduro regime. They insist the strikes, which have killed at least 95 people in 25 known incidents since September, are a strategy to stem the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs into the U.S.

Associated Press reporters Aamer Madhani and Josh Boak contributed from Washington.

Texas woman arrested for hiding razor blades in loaves of bread at Mississippi Walmart stores

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 17:29

By SOPHIE BATES

A woman who allegedly pushed razor blades into loaves of bread at two Biloxi, Mississippi, Walmart stores was arrested on Tuesday.

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Camille Benson, 33, of Texas, has been charged with attempted mayhem. Her bond is set at $100,000.

Customers reported finding the razor blades at a Walmart Supercenter and a Walmart Neighborhood Market, said Lt. Candace Young, a public information officer for the Biloxi Police Department.

Walmart employees told police a customer first reported finding a razor blade in a loaf purchased from the Walmart Supercenter on Dec. 5. On Dec. 8, a customer who bought a loaf at the Walmart Neighborhood Market also reported finding a razor blade.

After another customer complained to the Walmart Supercenter on Sunday, employees inspected the merchandise and found several more loaves had been tampered with, law enforcement officials said.

The police department was notified on Monday.

In a press release, the department asked all citizens who bought bread from those Walmart locations to inspect the loaves and report any findings.

“The health and safety of our customers is always a top priority,” Walmart said in a statement. “We have removed and thoroughly inspected all potentially affected products at impacted stores in Biloxi. We appreciate law enforcement for their swift action and will continue cooperating with them as they investigate.”

The Biloxi Police Department said it does not believe any other stores have been targeted.

If customers purchase a product that has been tampered with, they should immediately throw it out and visit their local Walmart for a full refund, the company said.

Trump orders blockade of ‘sanctioned oil tankers’ into Venezuela, ramping up pressure on Maduro

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 17:01

By MICHELLE L. PRICE, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday he is ordering a blockade of all “sanctioned oil tankers” into Venezuela, ramping up pressure on the country’s authoritarian leader Nicolás Maduro in a move that seemed designed to put a tighter chokehold on the South American country’s economy.

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Trump’s escalation comes after U.S. forces last week seized an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast, an unusual move that followed a buildup of military forces in the region. In a post on social media Tuesday night announcing the blockade, Trump alleged Venezuela was using oil to fund drug trafficking and other crimes and vowed to continue the military buildup until the country gave the U.S. oil, land and assets, though it was not clear why he felt the U.S. had a claim.

“Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America,” Trump said in a post on his social media platform. “It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before — Until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us.”

Pentagon officials referred all questions about the post to the White House.

Venezuela’s government press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But before Trump’s announcement Tuesday, Maduro praised Venezuela for having “proven to be a strong country” in the face of U.S. pressure.

“Venezuela has 25 weeks denouncing, confronting and defeating a campaign of multidimensional aggression, ranging from psychological terrorism to the piracy of the corsairs who assaulted the oil tanker,” Maduro said on state television Tuesday.

He added, “We have taken the oath to defend our homeland, and that on this soil peace and shared happiness triumph.”

The buildup has been accompanied by a series of military strikes on boats in international waters in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. The campaign, which has drawn bipartisan scrutiny among U.S. lawmakers, has killed at least 95 people in 25 known strikes on vessels.

Trump has for weeks said that the U.S. will move its campaign beyond the water and start strikes on land.

The Trump administration has defended the strikes as a success, saying they have prevented drugs from reaching American shores, and pushed back on concerns that they are stretching the bounds of lawful warfare.

The Trump administration has said the campaign is about stopping drugs headed to the U.S., but Trump’s chief of staff Susie Wiles appeared to confirm in a Vanity Fair interview published Tuesday that the campaign is part of a push to oust Maduro.

Wiles said Trump “wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle.”

Tuesday night’s announcement seemed to have a similar aim.

Venezuela, which has the world’s largest proven oil reserves and produces about 1 million barrels a day, has long relied on oil revenue as a lifeblood of its economy.

Since the Trump administration began imposing oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2017, Maduro’s government has relied on a shadowy fleet of unflagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains.

The state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela S.A., commonly known as PDVSA, has been locked out of global oil markets by U.S. sanctions. It sells most of its exports at a steep discount in the black market in China.

Francisco Monaldi, a Venezuelan oil expert at Rice University in Houston, said about 850,000 barrels of the 1 million daily production is exported. Of that, he said, 80% goes to China, 15% to 17% goes to the U.S. through Chevron Corp., and the remainder goes to Cuba.

In October, Trump appeared to confirm reports that Maduro has offered a stake in Venezuela’s oil and other mineral wealth in recent months to try to stave off mounting pressure from the United States.

“He’s offered everything,” Trump said at the time. “You know why? Because he doesn’t want to f—- around with the United States.”

It wasn’t immediately clear how the U.S. planned to enact what Trump called a “TOTAL AND COMPLETE BLOCKADE OF ALL SANCTIONED OIL TANKERS going into, and out of, Venezuela.”

But the U.S. Navy has 11 ships, including an aircraft carrier and several amphibious assault ships, in the region.

Those ships carry a wide complement of aircraft, including helicopters and V-22 Ospreys. Additionally, the Navy has been operating a handful of P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft in the region.

All told, those assets provide the military a significant ability to monitor marine traffic coming in and out of the country.

Trump in his post said that the “Venezuelan Regime has been designated a FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATION,” but it wasn’t clear what he was referring to.

The foreign terrorist organization designation has been historically reserved for non-state actors that do not have sovereign immunities conferred by either treaties or United Nations membership.

In November, the Trump administration announced it was designating the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization. The term Cartel de los Soles originally referred to Venezuelan military officers involved in drug-running, but it is not a cartel per se.

Governments that U.S. administrations seek to sanction for financing, otherwise fomenting or tolerating extremist violence are usually designated “state sponsors of terrorism.”

Venezuela is not on that list.

In rare cases, the U.S. has designated an element of a foreign government as an “FTO.” The Trump administration in its first term did so with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, an arm of the Iranian government, which had already been designated a state sponsor of terrorism.

Associated Press writers Konstantin Toropin and Matt Le in Washington and Regina Garcia Cano in Caracas, Venezuela, contributed to this report.

Daily Horoscope for December 17, 2025

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 17:00
General Daily Insight for December 17, 2025

Opportunities to get out of our heads are likely to find us today. When the melancholy Scorpio Moon faces off against unpredictable Uranus, surprise glitches could interrupt our ruminations. Luna’s trine to dreamy Neptune softens reactions and helps us rebuild optimism. Once the emotional Moon enters the adventurous territory of Sagittarius at 11:38 am EST, we may embrace movement and a wider view of our choices. The world is probably a lot bigger than some of the things we worry about!

Aries

March 21 – April 19

Sometimes getting back on the horse is all it takes. The intuitive Moon arrives in your 9th House of Travel and Learning, potentially drawing your attention back toward a course of study you’ve drifted away from. Your energetic nature could thrive when you speak with a mentor and set a few clear milestones. You love a challenge, and you wouldn’t want to let down another person who’s counting on you! Momentum favors action more than perfection, so dig in however you can.

Taurus

April 20 – May 20

Deeper trust changes how money conversations flow. As the nurturing Moon lights up your 8th House of Shared Resources and Intimacy, you’re in an ideal position to negotiate a tender agreement that will ultimately provide both security and respect. Your sign is known to value comfort, and that’s helpful here because you’ve probably accumulated a lot of experience in naming what feels comfortable by now. Pursue progress by offering clear next steps that are fair and kind to everyone involved.

Gemini

May 21 – June 20

Partnership asks for transparent words at present. As the fluctuating Moon floats into your 7th House of Relationships, you might realize you’re not happy with the status quo in one of your close connections. If you’re able to translate your mixed feelings into plain terms without blaming anyone, you have a chance to build a fair agreement you can actually keep. While you’re reconfiguring things, try to make room for the possibility that your plans may change further in the future!

Cancer

June 21 – July 22

Patience and thoughtful judgment can help you pass the tests before you today. The temperamental Moon activates your 6th House of Work and Wellness, nudging you to streamline routines and care for your body with consistency. Your nurturing nature can calm the people around you if a small crisis pops up. Getting sucked too deeply into anyone else’s emotional upheaval isn’t ideal, though. You can also show leadership by breaking tasks into manageable pieces! Trust your instincts as to what’s most important.

Leo

July 23 – August 22

Your desire for excitement is likely to need an outlet today. The candid Moon in your 5th House of Creativity encourages heartfelt expression that feels fun and generous without pushing for attention. A simple gesture, like sharing a song, could open a door in a burgeoning friendship and help you start a conversation. Invite play into work, and let your dramatic tendencies develop into honest charm that builds trust rather than stealing the scene. Warm connections pave the way for bigger creative wins.

Virgo

August 23 – September 22

Home could ask for practical care today. The observant Moon wakes up your 4th House of Family and Roots, guiding you to make improvements that support your peace. Although it may be tempting to chase perfection, thoughtful triage is a better use of your analytical energy at this point. Prioritize fixing the squeaky hinge you encounter multiple times a day vs. complicated projects on your nice-to-have list. Any task that actually gets done is likely to build momentum for more!

Libra

September 23 – October 22

Having a good think about what really needs to be said could be necessary now. As the caring Moon pops into your 3rd House of Communication, you may be interested in starting a conversation to clear a misunderstanding. However, endless discussion often has the potential to worsen the sort of conflict that would otherwise fizzle out on its own. If you’re on the fence, try asking a test question that opens the dialogue. Listen carefully to the answer, and don’t push past obvious discomfort.

Scorpio

October 23 – November 21

Scorpio, your values ask for honest action. With the perceptive Moon passing into your 2nd House of Money and Self-Worth, you might reassess a financial decision that no longer fits your current priorities. Intense insight helps you hold a firm line during a negotiation, and you can maintain a respectful atmosphere by keeping your tone calm while you stick to numbers. Choose power that builds trust, not control that invites fear. You can convey to others that you’re serious without being mean about it!

Sagittarius

November 22 – December 21

The mood is likely to shift in your favor today. As the passionate Moon powers into your sign, your drive to start something new could land better than usual with the people around you. You might as well commit to action before doubts have a chance to develop. Momentum matters, so you can refine details later. Your confidence opens doors, and your enthusiasm reminds others why beginnings can be exciting. At that stage, just about any journey has the potential to be a great one!

Capricorn

December 22 – January 19

Private time could clear fog and restore your footing today. The unconscious Moon draws attention to your 12th House of Solitude and Closure, inviting rest and reflection. You might be surprised to discover how much hidden stress you’ve been carrying! Your disciplined personality benefits from an occasional short break. Consider journaling to help your mind untangle private worries. Putting as many concerns as you can to rest at this time should free up energy for you to pursue new interests later.

Aquarius

January 20 – February 18

When friendship calls, your purpose may grow clearer. With the nourishing Moon emphasizing your 11th House of Friends and Community, group plans are likely to pull you in, highlighting where your unique approach can truly help. You have the potential to remind people why collaboration unlocks fresh possibilities. Even if logistics shift, you’re able to stay focused on the shared goal rather than getting derailed by the quirks in how others work. Your thoughtful contribution today might seed connections that support you later.

Pisces

February 19 – March 20

Taking the next brave step is possible now. The temperamental Moon spotlights your 10th House of Career and Status, asking you to act on a goal that influences your reputation. Perhaps your compassionate instincts will help you present a solution during a meeting, or your creativity will turn a fuzzy idea into something that earns respect. Do what you can to prepare, but don’t overthink it. Your natural strengths give you a lot to offer, so you might as well share that with the world!

Fellow Wisconsin judge ‘shocked’ by Hannah Dugan’s response to immigration officers

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 16:34

By TODD RICHMOND

MILWAUKEE (AP) — A colleague of the Milwaukee judge accused of helping a Mexican immigrant evade arrest testified Tuesday that she was shocked by her fellow judge’s behavior.

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“Judges shouldn’t help defendants evade arrest,” Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Kristela Cervera testified at Hannah Dugan’s trial.

The testimony on the second day of trial came after officers involved in the arrest told the jury that Dugan’s behavior on April 18 made it more dangerous for them to do their jobs.

Dugan is on trial on charges of obstruction and concealment in connection with the incident. The maximum sentence for obstruction, the more serious charge, is five years in prison, though federal judges have much discretion to go lower.

The highly unusual charges against a sitting judge are an extraordinary consequence of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. Dugan’s supporters say Trump is looking to make an example of her to blunt judicial opposition to immigration arrests.

Eduardo Flores-Ruiz was scheduled to appear before Dugan on the morning of April 18 on state battery charges. Prosecutors allege that after Dugan learned that federal officers were in the hallway waiting to arrest him, she cleared a path for him to escape by directing the officers to the chief judge’s office and then leading Eduardo-Flores out of her courtroom through a private door.

Cervera testified that she was irritated that Dugan used her as backup during the incident, making her come out of her courtroom into the hallway while still wearing her robe.

Dugan proceeded to angrily confront two officers waiting to arrest Flores-Ruiz, telling them repeatedly that they needed a judicial warrant before sending them to the chief judge’s chambers, Cervera testified. She escorted the officers to the chambers while Dugan returned to her courtroom, she said.

Dugan approached her three days later and said she was “in the doghouse” with the chief judge, saying something to the effect that the chief was upset with her because she had “tried to help that guy,” Cervera testified.

When she learned that Dugan had led Flores-Ruiz out the private door, “I was shocked,” Cervera testified.

FBI agent Phillip Jackling testified on Tuesday that he was concerned that his team was divided when Dugan directed agents to speak with the chief judge.

Dugan appeared angry when she approached him in the hallway outside her courtroom, he said. Another member of the arrest team, Customs and Border Protection Supervisory Officer Joseph Zuraw, said Dugan jerked her thumb over her shoulder and told him to “get out” before directing him to the chief judge’s chambers.

Four of the arrest team’s six members were in the chief judge’s chambers or a hallway leading to the chambers when Flores-Ruiz left the courtroom, the agents testified. Zuraw said he remembered thinking: “This is a bad spot we’re in right now. It’s a bad spot because we don’t’ have a decent number of officers to safely make an arrest.”

The team followed him outside the courthouse and had to chase him down through traffic when they could have safely arrested him in the building, they testified.

Dugan’s defense team has suggested that agents could have arrested Flores-Ruiz at any point in the hallway and Dugan shouldn’t be blamed for their decision to wait until he was outside.

Defense attorney Steven Biskupic said in opening statements that the judge had no intention of obstructing agents. He said that Dugan was just following a draft courthouse policy that called for court personnel to refer immigration agents looking to make an arrest in the courthouse to supervisors.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced in November that Flores-Ruiz had been deported.

Associated Press writer Scott Bauer contributed to this report from Madison, Wisconsin.

Former Fort Lauderdale Police recruiter faces federal charges of stalking, fraud

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 16:17

A former Fort Lauderdale Police officer who was often the face of the department is facing federal charges more than a year after allegations surfaced that he placed a GPS tracker on his ex-girlfriend’s car.

Henry Lockwood III, whose last assignment was in the recruiting department, was terminated earlier this year after an internal investigation. A federal criminal complaint was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Dec. 9. While a Fort Lauderdale officer, he was well-known and helped lead efforts to connect with young Spring Breakers, mentored children and appeared on national television to speak about the police force.

Lockwood faces charges of stalking, related to his use of GPS trackers to allegedly surveil his ex-girlfriend; fraud and related activity in connection with computers; and one count of wire fraud, according to the complaint.

“We’re aware of the charges, and we plan to respond to them at the appropriate time in court,” defense attorney Sam Rabin told the South Florida Sun Sentinel on Tuesday.

GPS trackers

Lockwood and the woman he is accused of stalking had dated for about two years, before the relationship ended at her request in April 2024, according to the criminal complaint.

Lockwood purchased two trackers from BrickHouse Security in 2023. The histories for the trackers showed they were at or near the woman’s home on at least 21 different dates between July and August 2024 and at or near her work on at least 15 dates between June and August 2024, the complaint said. Lockwood logged onto his account with the tracker company 399 times between July 2024 and January 2025.

On a night months after their relationship ended, Lockwood and a person identified in the complaint only as “Brother 1” had been hanging out together, and the ex-girlfriend rejected their offer to meet up, according to the complaint. But they showed up to a lounge in Hollywood where the woman was even though she didn’t tell them her location.

A few days later, the woman took her car to a shop in Coconut Creek and asked for it to be inspected for any tracking device. A mechanic found one placed near the back of the car, the complaint said. She filed a police report after the discovery.

Lockwood arrived at the mechanic shop a few hours later that same day while on duty as a Fort Lauderdale officer, according to the complaint. CCTV footage showed Lockwood walking into an employee-only area up to the woman’s car and was seen leaving with the tracker.

Well-known Fort Lauderdale detective fired after investigation

Unauthorized database searches

In April 2024, the same month the two broke up, Lockwood searched the license plate number of two different cars his ex-girlfriend previously owned years earlier in the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles and Highway Safety Driver and Vehicle Information Database, known as DAVID, the complaint said. The new owners of both cars, one who lives outside of Florida, told investigators they didn’t know Lockwood and never authorized having their plates searched.

About a week later, Lockwood searched the license plate, driver’s license number, name and vehicle’s VIN belonging to another person who is not identified in the complaint. That person also did not know Lockwood and lives over 200 miles away from Fort Lauderdale, the complaint said.

$150,000 for personal expenses

Lockwood served as the treasurer for the Fort Lauderdale Black Police Officers Association, a nonprofit organization of officers and civilians, the complaint said, and was one of the authorized signers of the organization’s Wells Fargo account.

A payroll specialist for the city began asking the organization’s president in April 2025 about two overpayments totaling more than $56,000 that the city made more than a year earlier, in January 2024. The city employee had communicated with Lockwood over email for months in early 2024 about the overpayments, and he claimed to have mailed two checks to reimburse the city, though the checks the city received had been marked with a stop payment, the complaint said.

The organization’s president tried throughout 2024 to be added as an authorized signer to the bank account, but Lockwood “consistently appeared to avoid the efforts,” the complaint said. Lockwood briefed members of the group on finances during monthly meetings but did not share actual bank statements and instead showed “spreadsheets with summaries of the account that he created himself.”

Lockwood eventually in early 2025 gave the president an envelope of documents, including Wells Fargo bank statements from 2024, and “many inconsistencies” were found once records were compared, including subpoenaed business records, according to the complaint.

Investigators discovered that Lockwood had misappropriated funds from the organization dating back to 2023, including more than $60,000 used to pay two credit card accounts, about $17,000 transferred to a personal business owned by Lockwood and nearly $10,000 to pay a creditors’ rights law firm on his behalf, the complaint said.

Lockwood also allegedly used the organization’s account to make purchases at liquor stores, groomers, pharmacies and “companies that sell GPS devices, on multiple occasions spanning multiple years,” according to the complaint. In total, investigators discovered about $150,000 worth of funds used for Lockwood’s personal expenses, “which he knowingly took steps to conceal.”

His first appearance was held on Friday, and an arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 5 in Fort Lauderdale, federal court records show. One condition of his release after posting bail includes being subject to GPS monitoring.

Today in History: December 16, Colin Powell nominated for secretary of state

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 02:00

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 16, the 350th day of 2025. There are 15 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Dec. 16, 2000, President-elect George W. Bush nominated Colin Powell to become secretary of state; Powell was confirmed by the Senate and became the first African-American to hold the position.

Also on this date:

In 1773, the Boston Tea Party took place as American colonists boarded British ships in Boston Harbor and dumped more than 300 chests of tea overboard to protest tea taxes.

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In 1907, 16 U.S. Navy battleships, which came to be known as the “Great White Fleet,” set sail from Hampton Roads, Virginia, on a 14-month, round-the-world voyage to demonstrate American sea power.

In 1944, the World War II Battle of the Bulge began as German forces launched a surprise attack against Allied forces through the Ardennes Forest in Belgium and Luxembourg.

In 1960, 134 people were killed when a United Air Lines DC-8 and a TWA Super Constellation collided over New York City.

In 2020, a French court convicted 14 people accused of being accomplices in the 2015 Islamic State terror attacks in Paris against the satirical Charlie Hebdo newspaper and a kosher supermarket. The attacks, claimed jointly by the Islamic State group and al-Qaida, left 17 people dead along with three gunmen.

In 2024, a 15-year-old student opened fire at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, killing a fellow student and a teacher. The shooter also died.

Today’s Birthdays:
  • Artist Edward Ruscha is 88.
  • Actor Liv Ullmann is 87.
  • CBS news correspondent Lesley Stahl is 84.
  • Pop singer Benny Andersson (ABBA) is 79.
  • Rock singer-musician Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top) is 76.
  • Actor Benjamin Bratt is 62.
  • Filmmaker James Mangold is 62.
  • Actor-comedian JB Smoove is 60.
  • Actor Miranda Otto is 58.
  • Astrophysicist Adam Reiss is 56.
  • Actor Krysten Ritter is 44.
  • Singer-songwriter Gaby Moreno is 44.
  • Actor Theo James is 41.
  • Actor Anna Popplewell is 37.
  • Actor Stephan James is 32.
  • Pop singer Zara Larsson is 28.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Perkins, Furones break down Miami’s loss to Steelers | VIDEO

South Florida Local News - Tue, 12/16/2025 - 00:19

In this Dolphins Deep Dive video, the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Chris Perkins and David Furones discuss Miami’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on “Monday Night Football” that ended any hopes of making the postseason and what to expect in the last three games of the season.

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Things we learned in Miami Dolphins’ 28-15 loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 21:48

PITTSBURGH — Playoff hopes were on the line Monday night when the Dolphins faced the Pittsburgh Steelers. A Dolphins loss, and their playoff hopes were dashed for the second consecutive season.

Guess what? 

The Dolphins’ playoff hopes are over after Monday’s 28-15 loss at Pittsburgh ended their winning streak at four games and dropped their season record to 6-8.

The Steelers entered Monday’s game riding an amazing 22-game Monday night winning streak — they hadn’t lost a Monday night home game since 1991. 

There was another cool thing on the line Monday. The Dolphins, who started the season 2-7, were trying to become the fifth team in NFL history to reach .500 after starting 2-7, joining the 2021 Dolphins, among others.

And, of course, there were personal and business stakes in this one considering the Dolphins and Steelers engaged in a blockbuster offseason trade.

Here’s what we learned Monday night:

Dolphins in ‘cold weather’

When I talk about the Dolphins in “cold weather” the line of delineation is 45 degrees. It was 17 degrees at kickoff Monday but cold weather didn’t cause this loss. For what it’s worth, in the coach Mike McDaniel era, the Dolphins are now 1-6 in “cold weather” games.

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is now 1-4 in suchgames under McDaniel because he didn’t play in the Buffalo playoff game or last season’s finale at the New York Jets.

Under McDaniel, the Dolphins lost to Pittsburgh in cold weather (28-9), defeated the Jets in cold weather earlier this season (34-10), lost to the Jets in last season’s finale (32-20), lost to Green Bay on Thanksgiving 2024 (30-17), lost to Kansas City in the 2023 playoffs (26-7), lost to Buffalo in the 2022 playoffs (34-31), and lost to Buffalo in the 2022 regular season (32-29). — Chris Perkins

McDaniel road record, and December road record

McDaniel is now 12-21 (.364) on the road, and 12-22 (.353) including playoffs on the road. Both are poor marks. Typically, teams want to go at least .500 on the road.

McDaniel is now 3-6 (.333) on the road in December. He was 0-3 in 2022, losing at San Francisco, the Los Angeles Chargers and Buffalo; he was 1-1 in 2023, winning at Washington and losing at Baltimore; he was 1-1 in 2024, losing at Houston and winning at Cleveland; he’s 1-1 this season winning at the New York Jets and losing at Pittsburgh.

McDaniel is 34-32 (.523) overall, 34-33 (.508) including playoffs.

Related Articles Tua record in “cold weather” under McDaniel

Tagovailoa is now 1-4 in cold weather games in the McDaniel era. Tagovailoa entered Monday’s game with a 1-3 record in these games in the McDaniel era. He was 87 of 136 for 891 yards, six touchdowns and one interception and a 94.3 passer rating.

In his cold weather games under McDaniel, Tagovailoa lost to Pittsburgh on Monday, defeated the Jets earlier this season and lost to Kansas City in the 2023 playoffs, lost to Green Bay on Thanksgiving last season and lost to Buffalo in the 2022 regular season.

Dolphins score first in seventh consecutive game

The Dolphins scored first Monday, taking a 3-0 lead on a 54-yard field goal by kicker Riley Patterson in the second quarter, and have now scored first in their past seven games. This was the first time in the stretch the Dolphins didn’t score in the first quarter. It should be noted this was yet another occasion in which the Dolphins won the pregame coin toss and opted to receive the ball instead of deferring until the third quarter.

De’Von Achane held in check

Running back De’Von Achane ended with 61 yards rushing on 12 carries, his worst showing since 10 carries for 16 yards in a 27-24 loss against Carolina on Oct. 5. Achane had six receptions for 68 yards Monday, marking the third time this season he’s had more receiving yards than rushing yards. He had seven receptions for 30 yards against Carolina, and in a 33-27 loss against New England on Sept. 14, Achane had 10 receptions for 92 yards and 11 carries for 30 yards.

Tua’s INTs reach career worst

Tagovailoa (22 of 28, 254 yards, two touchdowns, one interception) threw his career-worst 15th interception Monday, and it came in his 14th game. In 2023, Tagovailoa threw 14 interceptions in 17 games.

Tagovailoa’s interception on Monday came in the first quarter when he was targeting wide receiver Jaylen Waddle on a deep route. Cornerback Asante Samuel Jr., who attended St. Thomas Aquinas High, drifted over to record the interception on a pass that was slightly underthrown.

Tagovailoa had a potential interception that was dropped by outside linebacker Alex Highsmith.

Scoring defense takes a hit

The Dolphins defense entered Monday’s game having allowed just 10 touchdowns in the past six games. But Pittsburgh solved that mystery by scoring four unanswered touchdowns from the second to fourth quarters.

The Dolphins ranked 15th in scoring defense (22.8 points allowed per game) before Monday’s game and had only allowed one team in the past six games to score more than 17 points (Baltimore, which scored 28 points).

Sieler coming alive

Defensive tackle Zach Sieler, who sacked Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the second quarter, now has 4.5 sacks on the season, all of them coming in the past five games. Sieler is coming off back-to-back 10-sack seasons and signed a three-year, $64 million extension during the offseason. Sieler was shaken up briefly early in the fourth quarter when he was slammed to the ground on an extra point attempt but he returned to the game.

Special teams woes

Kicker Riley Patterson had a short kickoff, giving Pittsburgh the ball at the 40-yard line right after he made a 54-yard field goal. Special teams also had a delay of game on a punt as their woes continue to mount. So far this season special teams have run into the punter, roughed the punter, allowed kickoff and punt return touchdowns, failed to recover an onside kick and allowed a fake punt.

The Steelers scored a go-ahead touchdown to take a 7-3 lead after getting the short-field on the kickoff. They then scored another touchdown on their first possession of the second half and never looked back.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Perkins, Furones break down Miami’s loss to Steelers | VIDEO

Jalen Ramsey, Jonnu Smith and Minkah Fitzpatrick

Pittsburgh free safety Jalen Ramsey (he’s no longer a cornerback) had a third-down sack on Tagovailoa in the third quarter, making it the first play among the principals in the June 30 blockbuster trade between these teams. The deal’s parts were Miami sending Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith to Pittsburgh in exchange for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. 

Ramsey ended the game with six tackles, Smith ended with two receptions for 12 yards and one carry for 14 yards and a touchdown, and Fitzpatrick ended with six tackles.

Sadly, it is now guaranteed . . .

That the Dolphins will pass the 25-year anniversary of their most recent playoff win (Dec. 30, 2000). And, who knows how long this embarrassing run will extend. — Steve Svekis

Another personal record for Achane

Again, De’Von Achane was the Dolphins’ lone bright spot among the skilled positions, with his 127 total yards. He also registered five first downs, giving him 72 in 2025 and setting a career high, which had been 67 last year.

Again . . . what is McDaniel doing?

In what seems like a weekly installment, what on earth was Mike McDaniel’s game-management thought in the fourth quarter? The Dolphins casually went through their huddles and line calls in a fourth quarter with their playoff lives on the line, when it should have been 15 minutes of nu-huddle. The apathy drew deserved sharp criticism from Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman during the ESPN broadcast. Then, in the waning seconds, Tua Tagovailos took a delay of game penalty by calling a timeout he didn’t have.

Brooks sets a personal record, with a lot of football left

In the first quarter, Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks hauled down Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell for a loss of a yard and then, two snaps later, sacked Aaron Rodgers for a minus-9 yards. With that, Brooks sat at 12 tackles for loss in this season’s 14 games. It breaks a personal best he established last year. Additionally in the first half, Brooks also had two tackles for no gain. So, in 31 career games in Miami, Brooks has 23 TFLs. At his previous stop in Seattle, in 64 games, Brooks that same number of TFLs in 23.

Dolphins’ defensive backs were on a run-stop heater

In the first half, the Miami defense kept the Dolphins in the game. Spearheading that effort were the defensive backs, five of whom had at least one tackle each for a 1 yard gain or less. Ashtyn Davis made two such tackles, with Ifeatu Melifonwu, Jack Jones, Minkah Fitzpatrick and Rasul Douglas getting one each. The performance suffered, relatively, in the second half, but the first-half output could have been a difference-maker if the offense had shown up. Fitzpatrick also had a tackle for minus-2, Douglas a stop for no gain and Melifonwu a tackle for a 1-yard gain in the second half.

Some plaudits for Brewer

Former Philadelphia Eagles star center Jason Kelce showered credit upon Dolphins center Aaron Brewer in the pregame, though he also mentioned that Brewer has had to overcome a lot to become an NFL stalwart. Kelce called Brewer “the shortest man in the NFL.” Not sure if he was referencing only centers, or being hyperbolic. But, the meat of his commentary was about how well Brewer has played throughout the season. Kelce said: “He’s been consistent all year. … If you are going to be undersized, you gotta dominate in the second level” while showing clips of Brewer doing that.

The bizarre ‘Monday Night Football’ scheduling history between the Dolphins and Steelers

“Monday Night Football” began in 1970, and the Dolphins and Steelers had their first such matchup in the Orange Bowl in 1974. Then came three matchups at Hard Rock Stadium, the most recent one in 1996. The first Monday night Dolphins game in Pittsburgh came in 2007 in the infamous Mud Bowl game the Steelers won 3-0. In that game, a punt plugged into the grass without bouncing. And, since then, the Dolphins haven’t played that prime-time game to end an NFL week in South Florida. So, that means there were no Dolphins-Steelers games in Pennsylvania in the first 37 years of the MNF series, and haven’t been any in Miami Gardens in the past 29 seasons entering 2027. Next year, the Dolphins won’t play the Steelers.

On deck: Cincinnati Bengals, Hard Rock Stadium, Sunday, 1 p.m.

Joe Burrow makes his first visit to South Florida with the Bengals in free fall at 4-10. The previous matchup between the Bengals and Dolphins came in 2022 in Cincinnati, when Tua Tagovailoa sustained his first official concussion.

Hyde10: Cold trouble, Tua’s struggles, McDaniel’s odd strategy — 10 thoughts on Dolphins’ loss to Steelers

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 21:24

The playoffs are officially gone.

The four-game win streak is a thing of the past.

The Miami Dolphins couldn’t be rid of frigid Pittsburgh soon enough as they lost to the Steelers 28-15. It’s tough to win five straight games in the NFL and the Dolphins didn’t come close Monday night.

Here are 10 thoughts on the game:

1. Stat of the Game: 0 for their past 14. That’s the Dolphins’ record in games under 40 degrees. It was 17 degrees at kickoff on Monday night in Pittsburgh. That doesn’t just apply to this particular team, or era, obviously. But …

2. Tua had another troubling game and it’s hard to just blame the cold even as he fell into 0-6 in games under 40 degrees. Pittsburgh’s game plan was to take away the run and force Tua to beat them. He threw a lobbed, moonball pass that was intercepted in the first quarter. That was his 15th interception of the year to lead the league and set a career-high mark. He then ran on third-and-2 and slid short of the first-down marker in a repeat of a failed run against New Orleans. The Dolphins offense didn’t pass 100 yards on the night until early in the fourth quarter. Down 28-3 then, Tua completed two touchdowns to Darren Waller in the fourth quarter to make the numbers look good. He completed 6 of 10 passes for 65 yards and the interception through three quarters. He ended up completing 22 of 28 for 253 yards, two touchdowns and the interception. Game rating: 113.2

3. Why was there absolutely no sense of giddy-up offense as the Dolphins fell behind in the second half? They didn’t pass the ball downfield. They sped up nothing. It was understandable down 14-3 to not hurry anything. But down 21-3? Or 28-3? Down 28-9 with under seven minutes to play, most teams would have at least tried to hurry up the tempo when they had the ball. The Dolphins kept huddling and taking their time.  “They kind of waved the white flag as far as the fourth quarter is concerned,” ESPN’s Troy Aikman said. He later said he was “flabbergasted” as the Dolphins called a timeout with 2:14 left: “It’s about as ridiculous a fourth quarter as I’ve seen in a long time.”

4. Stat of Game: 167 yards to minus-20. That’s the yardage for the teams in the consequential third quarter. Up 7-3 at half, Pittsburgh had touchdown drives of 71 and 77 yards and was 19 yards into another touchdown drive against the Dolphins defense when the quarter ended. Yes, this Dolphins defense got dragged up and down the field in the second half as Pittsburgh scored four straight TDs. Aaron Rodgers had a night with two touchdowns on 23 of 27 passing for 224 yards. The Dolphins, meanwhile, had two, three-and-out possessions in the third quarter for minus-8 and minus-12 yards.

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5. How’d last summer’s trade look in this head-to-head reunion? Well, as you’d guess, Pittsburgh’s Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith had more fun than the Dolphins’ Minkah Fitzpatrick. To break it down:

* Fitzpatrick had six tackles, including one for a loss, but his most visible play was being tossed aside by Pittsburgh receiver D.K. Metcalf on what became a 28-yard touchdown to make it 21-3. He was then injured in the fourth quarter and laid on the ground to the point both teams’ benches come out to wish him well. He got up and wanted back in the game.

*Ramsey sacked Tua for a 13-yard loss in the third quarter for his notable play. He had six tackles, including four solo.

*Smith negated a big Steelers run with a holding penalty in the first half (blocking was never his thing with the Dolphins), but the bigger play was a tight-end run for a 14-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter to make it 28-3. It was Smith’s first rushing touchdown since 2020. He also caught two passes for 12 yards.

6. It’s time to track the Dolphins spot in the draft: They’re 11th right now. At 6-8, they win the strength-of-schedule tiebreak against Kansas City and Minnesota (they have the easier schedule which means they’re the worse of those teams). The Dolphins last picked 11th in 2017 when they took Minkah Fitzpatrick. They also picked Ring of Honor recipient Bill Stanfill 11th in 1969.

7. Not-the-Play of the Game (but it could have been): Tomlin went for it in the first quarter. He used the same tush-push play using tight end Connor Heyward the Dolphins just stuffed for no gain on third down. Tomlin had more risk than return here, considering if the Dolphins repeated that result they’d get the ball in good position. Kansas City’s Andy Reid tried this two weeks ago, didn’t get the first down and the game flipped on him to the point he said it was a mistake. No such luck for the Dolphins. Heyward got 2 yards for the first down.

8. It became a footnote (pun alert!), but Riley Patterson’s 54-yard field goal broke the ice (ha-ha!) to give the Dolphins a 3-0 lead in the second quarter. It was a career-long kick and continued one of the good stories of this season. When Jason Sanders was injured this summer, it led to a question of where to find a reliable kicker. Enter Patterson. He’s made 24 of 26 field goals. That included 3 for 3 in an overtime win over Washington (including the game-winner) and 4 for 4 in a 21-17 win against New Orleans.

9. Quick Hits:

The Dolphins were 1 for 7 on third-down conversions.

Asante Samuel Jr. — remember the Dolphins flirting with him? — intercepted Tua in the first half.

Zach Sieler got another sack Sunday to give him three-and-a-half sacks in the past two games.

The good news: No more ha-ha 6-7 jokes.

ESPN’s Troy Aikman on the Dolphins: “After winning five of six and four in a row, I think they kind of ran out of gas.”

10. Next week: Cincinnati at Dolphins. It looked like such a good matchup when the schedule was made it was originally set as the Sunday night game. That changed of late. Cincinnati, at 4-10, lost its season when Joe Burrow missed nine games. He provided a spark in returning, but that went missing in Sunday’s 24-0 loss to Baltimore. Burrow or no Burrow, the Bengals have the league-worst defense in allowing 31.2 points a game.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Perkins, Furones break down Miami’s loss to Steelers | VIDEO

Instant Analysis: Pittsburgh Steelers 28, Miami Dolphins 15

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 21:15

Quick thoughts from South Florida Sun Sentinel staffers on the Dolphins’ loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium as Miami’s win streak was ended and the Dolphins fell to 6-8:

Dave Hyde, Columnist

It’s hard to win five straight games in the NFL and it’s impossible the way the Dolphins played starting with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. And why no hurry-up from Mike McDaniel when they fell behind in second half?

Chris Perkins, Dolphins Columnist

The Dolphins have been eliminated from playoff contention and their four-game winning streak is over. Now all that’s left is seeing where they’ll be drafting. Oh, and seeing if QB Tua Tagovailoa finishes as the starter or whether they give Zach Wilson and/or Quinn Ewers a look. By the way, if coach Mike McDaniel returns hopefully this run-first offense becomes the main offense instead of the big-play passing game.

David Furones, Dolphins Writer

Playoff hopes were slim anyway, and finally ended with this one. The Dolphins could never get any offense going while the game was competitive, and the swing from the end of the first half to start of the second half was killer. Miami looked like a team that can’t handle the cold in Monday night’s elements in Pittsburgh.

Steve Svekis, Assistant Sports Editor

Well, that song-and-dance is over, with Miami’s earliest elimination from the playoffs since the 2019 atrocity. It seems the Dolphins have to look hard at taking the Sean Payton path the Broncos coach took after 2023, choking down a massive dead cap hit to move on from his highly paid but ineffective quarterback (Russell Wilson), and draft someone.

Keven Lerner, Assistant Sports Editor

Somehow, the passing offense has become easily the worst unit on the Miami Dolphins, even though the defense also was awful in the second half on Monday night. Miami now is two weeks from trucking through the 25th anniversary of their last playoff win, with no end in sight.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Perkins, Furones break down Miami’s loss to Steelers | VIDEO

Dolphins pounded in Pittsburgh, eliminated from playoff contention

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 21:12

PITTSBURGH — The Miami Dolphins’ late surge in the season will ultimately leave them short of any postseason aspirations.

The Pittsburgh Steelers scored touchdowns at the end of the first half and start of the second half to spark a run of 28 unanswered points as the Dolphins were pounded before scoring a pair of late touchdowns for a 28-15 final at frigid Acrisure Stadium in temperatures in the teens Monday night.

Miami (6-8) is eliminated from playoff contention with three weeks remaining in the NFL season. Pittsburgh (8-6) stays out in front of the Baltimore Ravens atop the AFC North.

“Supremely disappointed in the outcome,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said. “I think it does a disservice to, really, the objective, the work that we’re doing on this opponent. Flat out, their team was better than our team.”

Said linebacker Jordyn Brooks: “Being eliminated, you never want to hear that. … I still think we should finish the right way. That shows character.”

The Dolphins had their four-game winning streak snapped, which was prolonging the elimination that was a foregone conclusion back when the team was 1-6 and 2-7. The franchise has now lost 14 consecutive games in kickoff temperatures below 40 degrees.

Miami could never get an offensive drive going while the score was still competitive. The team only surpassed 100 yards of offense early in the fourth quarter.

“There were just some things offensively that we were messing ourselves up, really, said quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who went 22 of 28 for 254 yards, an interception and two late touchdowns. “Just basically every aspect, from my communication, to the guys with them getting in the huddle, getting out, guys knowing where to go with their alignments, all of that.”

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Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was 23 of 27 for 224 yards and two touchdowns. Pittsburgh running back Kenneth Gainwell had 80 rushing yards and 46 receiving as he was found by Rodgers for seven receptions, often in the flat.

Dolphins running back De’Von Achane had 60 rushing yards and 68 receiving.

The Steelers took a 7-3 lead with 17 seconds left before halftime as fullback Connor Heyward punched in a touchdown from the 1-yard line on a Tush Push.

Receiving the football to start the second half, the Steelers scored in six plays, with Rodgers finding longtime teammate in Green Bay, wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on a deep crossing route for a 19-yard touchdown where the defense lost track of him.

“It was gigantic,” McDaniel said of the halftime swing. “That was a little too deflating because we knew that was an important area of focus that we really wanted to be good coming out of that third quarter. It was a one-score game. I thought that was a gigantic momentum swing.”

Later in the third quarter, Rodgers found big wide receiver DK Metcalf over the middle for a 28-yard touchdown. Safety Ashtyn Davis whiffed trying to swoop in front of the pass, Metcalf tossed Dolphins defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, making his return to Pittsburgh, to the side and outraced the rest of the Miami defense for the score.

“Second half, I don’t know what happened to us,” Brooks said. “I think it really came down to tackling. I haven’t seen us tackle like that really all year.”

The rout was on, and early in the fourth quarter, tight end Jonnu Smith, who was a Pro Bowl selection for the Dolphins in 2024, scored a touchdown against his former team, an 11-yard rush to the outside.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Perkins, Furones break down Miami’s loss to Steelers | VIDEO

As Smith had his moment against his former team, earlier, former Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey, now playing safety for the Steelers, had a sack on Tagovailoa. Ramsey was jawing with the Miami sideline whenever involved with a play near his former teammates.

Miami finally got moving offensively once down 25, as Tagovailoa twice threw touchdown passes to big tight end Darren Waller, but the Dolphins were not in a hurry and didn’t go for an onside kick between the two trips to the end zone, trying one after the second score.

“I knew, based on the amount of possessions we needed, that we were going to have to convert at least one onside kick,” McDaniel said. “The major focus, to me, was getting the ball in the end zone.”

The first points of the game were scored with 5:11 left in the second quarter as Riley Patterson just got a 54-yard field-goal attempt over the crossbar, kicking into Acrisure Stadium’s open end zone.

The key play on the drive was Tagovailoa extending a third-down play by rolling left and finding Achane over the middle for a 24-yard gain. Miami got the 3 points despite running back Ollie Gordon’s third-and-1 rush losing 4 yards.

Tagovailoa threw a first-quarter interception to former St. Thomas Aquinas High standout Asante Samuel Jr., who was a midseason pickup by Pittsburgh after recovering from neck surgery. Samuel dropped into a zone that was under Jaylen Waddle’s corner route and in perfect position to pick off Tagovailoa’s underthrow.

Early in the second quarter, in a scoreless tie, Tagovailoa scrambled short of a first down on third-and-2 where it appeared he was between sliding and diving forward and Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen side-swiped up near the head to keep him from the line to gain.

“Things happen so fast when you got to make split decisions,” Tagovailoa said. “It was what it was.”

Pittsburgh had two first-half series end in third-down sacks of Rodgers, one by Brooks and the other by defensive tackle Zach Sieler. Brooks’ sack sent the Steelers out of field-goal range.

While the Steelers were 1 for 7 on third downs in the first half, they had three fourth-down conversions.

The Steelers, playing without stellar edge rusher T.J. Watt, sacked Tagovailoa four times.

Rookie Dolphins defensive tackle Zeek Biggers had a sack of a sliding Rodgers late in Monday’s game.

The Dolphins now head back home for the short turnaround of a Sunday game against the Cincinnati Bengals (4-10), one which was flexed out of the night slot to be played at 1 p.m.

Sam Reinhart scores twice to lead Panthers over Lightning

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 20:24

By ERIK ERLENDSSON

TAMPA — Sam Reinhart scored a shorthanded goal and a power play goal to lead the Florida Panthers to a 5-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night.

Reinhart recorded his fourth career game with a shorthanded and power play goal in the same game, most in franchise history. Anton Lundell, Brad Marchand and Carter Verhaeghe also scored for Florida, which improved to 5-1-1 in the past seven games.

Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 26 saves.

J.J. Moser and Max Crozier scored for Tampa Bay. Brayden Point finished with a pair of assists. Jonas Johansson, making his seventh consecutive start in place of Andrei Vasilevskiy, made 19 saves.

Reinhart scored shorthanded 2:16 into the first period for Florida’s fourth shorthanded goal of the season. Reinhart passed Scott Mellanby on the play for sixth most points in franchise history.

The Panthers made it 2-0 at 3:48 moments after Yanni Gourde hit the crossbar on an open chance above the crease before Lundell finished off a 3-on-1 rush.

Marchand made it 3-0 at 11:48 of the second period before Reinhart notched a power play goal with 1:52 remaining.

Crozier scored his first career goal with 33 seconds left in the second. Moser cut it to 4-2 deficit 2:11 into the third period. But Verhaeghe scored his eighth goal in his past 10 games at 6:37 to regain a three-goal lead.

The Panthers played most of the third period without defenseman Gustav Forsling, who blocked a shot from Nikita Kucherov off his arm at 3:03 of the third. Forsling went down the tunnel to the locker room and did not return.

Lightning leading goal scorer Brandon Hagel did not play the final 15-plus minutes of the third period after a hit by Florida defenseman Seth Jones.

Up next

Panthers: Host Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday.

Winderman’s view: Again no Herro, and again no sense of where this is headed for slumping Heat

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 20:01

MIAMI — Observations and other notes of interest from Monday night’s 106-96 loss to the Toronto Raptors:

– Tyler Herro was away.

– Or at least out of view.

– But the debate doesn’t go anywhere.

– On one hand, with Herro unavailable because of a return of his toe issue, Norman Powell again got to somewhat play as leading man.

– On the other, the offense in this one sure looked like it could have used some of Herro’s help.

– The bottom line: The Heat need to see more Herro.

– Because the Heat need to see more of how/if this works.

– The Heat waited nearly two months for Herro to get back from his September ankle surgery.

– Now, again, more waiting.

– Yes, still relatively early based on the length of the season.

– But who are the whole Heat?

–  As before Monday night, who knows?

– But this was bad.

– Very bad.

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– Perhaps enough to slant the direction of the offense black in the direction of Herro.

– When he returns.

– Which all now realize can’t come soon enough.

– There was a bit of a pregame thunderbolt, with Herro late scratch due to the toe issue that had him out for two games before returning in last week’s NBA Cup loss in Orlando.

– With Pelle Larsson also out, that had Simone Fontecchio starting in place of Herro, along with Powell, Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell.

– All of which still had Kel’el Ware coming off the bench.

– This time, though, there was at least some Adebayo and Ware together.

– The Raptors opened with a lineup of  Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl, Ochai Agbaji and Immanuel Quickley.

– Jaime Jaquez Jr. was first off the Heat’s depleted bench.

– Nikola Jovic, Dru Smith and Ware then followed together.

– With Jovic then almost immediately sidelined by an elbow injury, replaced by Keshad Johnson.

– That left first-round pick Kasparas Jakucionis as the lone available Heat player not to see action.

– Both teams were coming off five-day breaks, having last played a week ago Tuesday in NBA Cup quarterfinals.

– “Well, the whole league, basically, had some practice time. I think it was good for us,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We took advantage of it. By this point, we’re ready to play a game.”

– Among the reasons the Heat were able to land Mitchell at last season’s trading deadline was the Raptors’ decision to move forward with second-round pick Jamal Shead.

– “It was probably why we were able to get D-Mitch,” Spoelstra said. “They made a choice and we’re just grateful that we were able to acquire him. But they both have defensive tenacity commitment on that side of the floor and upside offensively.”

– Spoelstra again was asked pregame about Jovic having been removed from the rotation in two of the three previous games.

– “He’s been good the last three weeks,” Spoelstra said.  “He’s made some progress in focusing on what he can control — and that’s his work, that’s his approach, the consistency, everyday. Every player gets their opportunity at some point, and then you have to make the most of it, ideally, where you’ve improved, ideally, where you’re impacting the scoreboard.”

– Spoelstra added, “And I want you guys to have to make me make decisions. And that’s what I hope for Niko, that his play makes me have to play him more.”

– Mitchell’s fourth basket was the 1,000th of his career.

Heat skid hits five as Herro misses 106-96 loss to Raptors

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 19:57

MIAMI — The payoff for five days off? A fifth straight loss.

Whether playing games in bunches or otherwise, it is not going well for the Miami Heat, this time falling 106-96 Monday night to the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center. It was the first time this season the Heat failed to reach 100.

Still without a victory since Dec. 1, the Heat this time could not overcome another injury absence from guard Tyler Herro.

“Seasons get like this,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, “and you just have to stay together and get back to work.”

Factor in an ugly early tumble that left Heat forward Nikola Jovic with an elbow injury and the return from the five-day break seemingly only pushed Spoelstra’s team further toward a breaking point.

As has been the case in recent games, the offense again sputtered, much of the early-season energy missing.

“They made more plays in the moments of truth than we did,” Spoelstra said.

So while the Raptors snapped their four-game losing streak, the Heat’s moved to five.

Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 20 points and 10 rebounds, with Norman Powell also scoring 20. Otherwise, not nearly enough amid Herro’s absence.

“Coach won’t rest, the coaching staff won’t rest until we get this right,” Powell said. “We’re not going to quit. All of us have to be better.”

Brandon Ingram led the Raptors with 28 points.

Adebayo said the concern should be with the defense.

“It’s the defensive end I’m really worried about,” he said. “Even if you don’t score 140, we score 96, we can still win.”

Five Degrees of Heat from Monday night’s game:

1. Game flow: The Raptors led 23-22 after the first period, with the Heat then moving to a 52-46 halftime lead. From there, the Heat went into the fourth quarter up 77-74.

The Raptors swiftly moved to a 91-81 lead with 7:31 to play, putting the Heat in catch-up mode from that stage, as the offense stalled.

From there, the Heat closed within 100-96 with 1:28 to play on a pair of Powell free throws, but the inability to get a defensive stop on the other end and then the Heat’s 19th turnover effectively ended it.

“It’s just about in those moments of truth, finding a way to win those moments,” Spoelstra said of where and how the Heat came up short.

2. No Herro: Having returned from a two-game absence in last Tuesday night’s NBA Cup loss in Orlando, Herro again was listed as out with a toe contusion, his third game missed with the ailment since Dec. 5. That is in addition to the 17 games he missed at the start of the season after September ankle surgery.

“He and the trainers met and he just didn’t feel right,” Spoelstra said, “and they didn’t feel right about it.”

With guard Pelle Larsson out due to an ankle sprain, it resulted in the first Heat start for Simone Fontecchio, in an opening lineup rounded out by Adebayo, Powell, Andrew Wiggins and Davin Mitchell.

That gave the Heat their 11th lineup in their 26 games.

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3. Jovic lost: Forward Nikola Jovic left in the first period with his right arm in a protective brace after a hard fall.

The Heat listed it as an elbow injury, ruling him out for the night.

“Hopefully it looks like we dodged a bullet on that one,” Spoelstra said. “The bones are fine. He lost all feeling in his hand, because it was a massive stinger.”

Jovic, who had been held out of the rotation in two of the previous three games, got the opportunity for the playing time with Herro and Larsson sidelined.

Jovic entered Monday night’s game with 3:50 to play in the opening period and was forced out 12 seconds later.

Because Jovic was unable to shoot the free throws from the foul on Toronto’s Collin Murray-Boyles, the Raptors were allowed to select the replacement shooter. They selected seldom-used forward Keshad Johnson, who entered 7 of 11 from the line, making both replacement free throws.

Johnson then remained in the game, taking the minutes that would have gone to Jovic.

A stretcher initially was brought to the court, with Jovic instead able to walk off the court while assisted.

“We wish we could have got that win for him,” Adebayo said.

4. Still struggling: For the first time in a week, Fontecchio hit a shot, after going 0 for 5 in last week’s loss in Orlando.

But the struggles remain ongoing, with Fontecchio closing 1 of 5 from the field Monday night, including 1 of 4 from beyond the arc.

The Heat closed 9 of 31 from beyond the arc, compared to the Raptors’ 16 of 40.

“Right now,” Powell said, “I think the offense is slow.

“But, again, it didn’t have to be a pretty game. It wasn’t aesthetically a pretty game for them, either. We held them to low 100s. It was in the 90s going down the stretch, but they were able to make more plays.”

5. Up next: It’s now out on the road for a three-game trip for the Heat after a two-day break, opening with a back-to-back set on Thursday and Friday nights against the Brooklyn Nets and then the Boston Celtics, with the trip concluding Sunday against the New York Knicks.

The Heat’s next home game also will be against the Raptors, on Dec. 23.

Heat’s Jovic assisted to locker room after elbow injury, MRI next

South Florida Local News - Mon, 12/15/2025 - 18:18

MIAMI — Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic left Monday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors with his right arm in a protective brace after a hard fall when he was fouled in the first quarter.

The Heat initially listed it as an elbow injury, ruling him out for the night. The team later reported that X-rays were negative, with an MRI scheduled for Tuesday.

“Hopefully it looks like we dodged a bullet on that one,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “The bones are fine. He lost all feeling in his hand, because it was a massive stinger.”

Jovic was not available for comment afterward.

Jovic, who had been held out of the rotation in two of the previous three games, got the opportunity for the playing time with Tyler Herro (toe) and Pelle Larsson (ankle) sidelined for the Heat.

Herro was a late scratch due to the toe issue that previously had sidelined him for two games last week.

Jovic entered Monday night’s game with 3:50 to play in the opening period and was forced out 12 seconds later.

Because Jovic was unable to shoot the free throws from the foul on Toronto’s Collin Murray-Boyles, the Raptors were allowed to select the replacement shooter. They selected seldom-used forward Keshad Johnson, who entered 7 of 11 from the line, making both replacement free throws.

Johnson then remained in the game, taking the minutes that would have gone to Jovic.

A stretcher initially was brought to the court, with Jovic instead able to walk off the court while assisted.

Jovic signed a four-year, $62.4 million extension in the offseason that goes into effect starting next season.

  
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