Moderate Republican Rep. Don Bacon is projected to survive a close re-election race in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District.

The Associated Press projected on Friday that Bacon, a retired military general, who ran against Democratic state lawmaker Tony Vargas, won. 

The race was one of the most closely watched races of the 2024 election cycle. It was a key win for House GOP leaders fighting to keep the chamber majority.

CLUB FOR GROWTH POURS $5M INTO TIGHT HOUSE RACES AS GOP BRACES FOR TOUGH ELECTION

In a testament to the district’s battleground status, both Bacon and Vargas emphasized their bipartisan work in the closing days of the campaign.

Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District is the least red House seat in the state. It includes all of Omaha, the state’s largest city, as well as the city of Papillion. 

Bacon was one of 16 House Republicans who won seats in 2022 in areas that had voted for President Biden in 2020, making it one of the most competitive races from the get-go.

SPEAKER JOHNSON RIPS ‘LACK OF LEADERSHIP’ IN BIDEN ADMIN’S HELENE RESPONSE: ‘ALARMED AND DISAPPOINTED’

Bacon is one of 16 Republicans serving in areas President Biden won in 2020. (Getty Images)

The moderate GOP lawmaker made a name for himself for speaking his mind, even when it came to criticizing plans and measures levied by fellow Republicans and House Republican leadership.

He retired from the Air Force as a brigadier general in 2014.

Bacon won the seat in 2016 by defeating incumbent Democratic Rep. Brad Ashford by roughly 1%.

FORMER REPUBLICAN US SENATOR ENDORSES KAMALA HARRIS, SAYS ELECTION OFFERS ‘STARK CHOICE’

House Speaker Mike Johnson, left, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are fighting to win the House majority. (Getty Images)

His three subsequent elections saw him narrowly hold on to power by roughly 2% or less.

Vargas had previously challenged Bacon in the 2022 midterms and lost by about 2.2%.

A former teacher and Omaha Public Schools Board member, Vargas joined the Nebraska Legislature in 2017. Like Bacon, he defeated an incumbent of the opposite party to win his seat.

The Detroit Lions overcame a myriad of mistakes to steal an impressive road win over the Houston Texans and extend their winning streak to seven games.

In the game, the Lions trailed by as many as 16 points before shutting out the Texans in the second half and rallying to win on a last-second Jake Bates field goal.

Detroit was able to overcome five Jared Goff interceptions and a Houston defense that was schemed to take away many of the offense’s strongest points. As a result, opposing teams may have a template on how to slow down their potent offense.

“Moving forward, the Lions have to be aware of the fact that teams are gonna try to deploy, whether it’s the two-high shell that teams used to do to Kansas City when they had Tyreek Hill or other things of that nature,” said co-host Christian Booher. “Every team is gonna think they have the answer coming in, and so it should make for a lot of fun tests for Ben Johnson to try to out-scheme some of these defensive coordinators. Houston did an excellent job, and the Lions had all the right counter-punches at the end of that game.”

MORE: Film Review: What Went Wrong With Jared Goff Against Texans

Though it was tough at times, the Lions ultimately overcame the struggles to steal the win. Part of the comeback was an intangible showing, as their grit proved once again that they can overcome even the toughest elements of winning a game.

“There’s also an intangible part of this, and it’s the grit. When it’s winning time, you make winning plays. It doesn’t matter who’s number is called, that person is ready to go. (Sunday), it was Amon-Ra St. Brown on that third down,” Booher said. “Really, that’s another element that I don’t think teams are gonna be able to take away. If you want to beat the Lions, you’ve got to blow them out. If it’s whithin seven points in the fourth quarter, or 16 points at halftime, it does not matter. The Lions are gonna be in it at the end, and with that culture, they’re gonna have everything they need to go and win a game.”

The latest ‘Lone Wolves’ podcast explores the Lions’ defensive success under Aaron Glenn, Jared Goff’s struggles and Jake Bates’ ascent into becoming one of the league’s best kickers.

Don’t miss any future episodes of the podcast. Make sure to subscribe to the Lone Wolves podcast, which is available everywhere your favorite podcasts are housed.

The Milwaukee Bucks will kick off their quest for their first NBA Cup on Tuesday when they take on the Toronto Raptors. The Bucks will host the Raptors for their first NBA Cup game of the season. 

Milwaukee missed out on the cup last year, and this year, the mission is to be the last team standing. Although the Bucks haven’t had the strongest start to the season, they still have highly favorable odds of hoisting the NBA Cup. 

According to FanDuel, the Bucks have the 10th-best odds of winning the 2024 NAB Cup. 

Milwaukee holds +1900 odds to win the trophy. 

Despite their 2-8 start to the season, oddsmakers believe the Bucks are in the thick of things. They hold better odds to win the cup than the Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, and Phoenix Suns, to name a few, despite all those teams having better records than them. 

Nonetheless, the beauty of the NBA Cup is that anything can happen. Last season, the Lakers and Pacers went on a hot streak and competed for the trophy and $500,000 per player. 

Talk about motivation. 

The Bucks have not been the team that many expected them to be thus far. They cannot defend to save their lives; injuries have already hampered them, and there is chatter throughout that Giannis Antetokounmpo’s days in Milwaukee are numbered. 

That’s all speculation at the moment, but if things continue to trend that way, it could eventually become a reality. The Bucks are far from the team they want to be at, and the numbers indicate that. 

They are mediocre or in the bottom half in both offensive and defensive stats. Milwaukee ranks 21st in points in the paint per game, 20th in opponent points per game, 27th in assists per game, 13th in opponents’ total rebounds per game, and 21st in total rebounds per game. 

The Bucks cannot defend and don’t dominate in the paint despite having the personnel to do so. 

The good news is that there is still plenty of time to turn their season around, starting with this NBA Cup. The Bucks are in East Group B with the Raptors, Miami Heat, Pacers, and the Detroit Pistons. 

Group play games will be played on Tuesdays and Fridays from Tuesday until Dec. 6.

If the Bucks are lucky enough, they will play in the quarterfinal games on Dec. 10 and 11. The semifinals and championship will be in Las Vegas on Dec. 14 and Dec. 17. 

More Bucks: History Might Be On Bucks’ Side Despite Horrible Start to Season