AP Sports SummaryBrief at 5:52 a.m. EST

Hamlin thankful, speaks publicly for 1st time in video

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Damar Hamlin released a video Saturday in which he says he’s thankful for the outpouring of support and vows to pay it back, marking the first time the Buffalo Bills safety has spoken publicly since he went into cardiac arrest and needed to be resuscitated on the field in Cincinnati on Jan. 2. Hamlin said now was “the right time” to speak after the Bills’ season ended and because he needed time to recover and gather his thoughts. The 5 1/2-minute video was posted on Hamlin's social media accounts.

Brown forces OT, Celtics snap skid by beating LA 125-121

BOSTON (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 37 points, completing a tying three-point play with 4.1 seconds left in regulation and adding 11 more in overtime as the NBA-leading Boston Celtics snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the archrival Los Angeles Lakers 125-121 on Saturday night. Brown added nine rebounds, and Jayson Tatum had 30 points and 11 rebounds. LeBron James had 41 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, and Anthony Davis had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers. Patrick Beverly scored 15 points, twice giving the Lakers the lead in the final minute of the fourth, but he also missed a foul shot that might have clinched it and was called for a technical foul on the contentious last play of regulation.

Max Homa comes from 5 back to win Farmers Open by 2 strokes

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Southern California native Max Homa came from five shots off the lead to win the Farmers Insurance Open by two strokes over Keegan Bradley on Saturday at Torrey Pines, where Jon Rahm imploded early and missed a shot at winning his third straight start and moving to No. 1 in the world. Homa reeled in Sam Ryder, who was trying for a wire-to-wire win, and then held off Bradley and Collin Morikawa for his sixth PGA Tour win and fourth in his home state. Homa closed with a 6-under 66 to finish at 13-under 275. He made a 4-foot birdie putt on No. 18 and pumped his right fist before greeting wife Lacey and infant son Cam just off the green.

Djokovic leads 2-0 in Australian Open final vs Tsitsipas

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Novak Djokovic is one set away from his 10th Australian Open singles championship and his 22nd Grand Slam title. Djokovic won the first set 6-3 and the second 7-6 (4) against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open final on Sunday. In addition to the championship, the winner will claim the No. 1 spot in the ATP rankings. For the fourth-seeded Djokovic, it’s also a chance to win his 10th Australian Open title a year after he wasn’t allowed to compete at Melbourne Park because he was not vaccinated for COVID-19. A 22nd Grand Slam singles title would also tie the 35-year-old Serbian player with Rafael Nadal for the men’s record.

Sherfield scores 30 as Oklahoma beats No. 2 Alabama 93-69

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Grant Sherfield scored a season-high 30 points, and Oklahoma beat No. 2 Alabama 93-69 in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Jalen Hill added a career-high 26 points on 9-for-11 shooting, helping second-year Oklahoma coach Porter Moser to his biggest win with the program. Tanner Groves had 14 points and 12 rebounds. The Sooners had lost three straight. Rylan Griffen led Alabama with 15 points and seven rebounds. Freshman Brandon Miller finished with 11 on 4-for-14 shooting.

Analysis: Aussie Open champ Sabalenka reworked serve, belief

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka’s Australian Open championship is about persistence. It’s about the value of confronting problems instead of ignoring them. It’s about putting in the effort required to get better. Sabalenka and her team says it's much about the way she reconfigured her self-belief as it is about the way she configured her serving technique. Sabalenka is now a Grand Slam champion after coming back to beat Elena Rybakina 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the final Saturday night. Sabalenka is 11-0 in 2023 and will move up to No. 2 in the WTA rankings behind Iga Swiatek on Monday.

NFL playoffs: Vegas believes some classics could be coming

If Vegas oddsmakers are correct — and there’s a reason those casinos are huge and luxurious — then football fans are in for a treat this weekend. The NFL’s conference championship weekend is here: The Philadelphia Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers for the NFC title while the Kansas City Chiefs host the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC. Both games are Sunday. The gambling odds are tight for both games, though both home teams have a slight edge. The Eagles are a 2 1/2-point favorite while the Chiefs are favored by 1 1/2 points, according to odds from FanDuel Sportsbook. The winners will meet in the Super Bowl on Feb. 12 in Glendale, Arizona.

US skier Shiffrin leads slalom in pursuit of record 86th win

SPINDLERUV MLYN, Czech Republic (AP) — American skier Mikaela Shiffrin led the first run of a women’s World Cup slalom as she approached the all-time record for the most career wins with 86. If Shiffrin wins the race, she'll match Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark’s best mark from the 1980s. The American built a big lead of 0.67 seconds over Lena Dürr of Germany. Croatian skier Zrinka Ljutic was 0.85 behind in third. Shiffrin won a race on the same course Saturday.

Estrada, Hofstra end No. 18 Charleston's 20-game win streak

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Aaron Estrada scored 25 points and Darlinstone Dubar added 18 as Hofstra ended No. 18 College of Charleston’s 20-game win streak with an 85-81 victory. The Pride lead the Colonial Athletic Association in field-goal percentage and used that in the second half to hold off the Cougars, who had won 20 in a row since their lone loss at North Carolina on Nov. 11. Charleston cut a seven-point lead to 81-79 with two minutes left. But the Cougars missed four threes down stretch to fall to Hofstra.

Former MVP Candace Parker to sign with champion Aces

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Former MVP Candace Parker announced Saturday on social media she would sign with the defending champion Las Vegas Aces. Parker spent the past two seasons playing for her hometown Chicago Sky. She led Chicago to the WNBA championship in 2021 and won the 2016 title playing for the Los Angeles Sparks. Parker adds to an already loaded lineup that includes reigning MVP A’ja Wilson, who also won the league’s top award in 2020. The Aces traded two-time Sixth Woman of the Year Dearica Hamby to the Sparks on Jan. 21, creating speculation they were creating salary cap room to sign a big-name player.