Arizona
Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani wins reelection to Arizona U.S. House seat
PHOENIX – Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani won reelection to a U.S. House seat in southeastern Arizona in a rematch that pitted him against the Democrat he narrowly beat two years ago.
Ciscomani defeated Democrat Kirsten Engel in the race for Arizona’s 6th Congressional District, which runs from Tucson east to the New Mexico state line and includes a stretch of the Arizona-Mexico border.
With Ciscomani’s win, Republicans have enough seats to control the U.S. House, completing the party’s sweep into power and securing their hold on U.S. government alongside President-elect Donald Trump.
“Now, it is time to get to work,” Ciscomani said in a statement Wednesday after Engel called him to concede, but before The Associated Press declared a winner.
“Our country is facing big challenges and I am ready to continue tackling these issues head-on,” he said. “Our top priorities — securing our border, lowering costs, and ensuring that our veterans and seniors are protected and valued – are essential to the strength and stability of our district and country.”
Engel wrote on the social platform X, “The voters have made their decision and we must respect it – I will not be the next Representative for Arizona’s 6th Congressional District. While we came up short, I couldn’t be prouder of the work we’ve put in.”
Ciscomani was an aide to former Republican Gov. Doug Ducey. He immigrated from Mexico as a child and calls border enforcement his top priority, but has distanced himself from Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric.
Engel, a law professor at the University of Arizona and a former state legislator, has pointed out Ciscomani rejected a major bipartisan border bill in February that would have overhauled the asylum system and given the president new powers to expel migrants when asylum claims become overwhelming.
Voter registration in the district is closely divided among Democrats, Republicans and independents, although the GOP has a slight advantage.
Ciscomani won his first term in 2022 when he beat Engel by over 5,200 votes.
With Ciscomani’s win this election, the state’s House delegation is unchanged with six Republicans and three Democrats.
Arizona
How to watch Arizona State football vs. UCF: TV channel, live stream, prediction
The Arizona State football team is 5-0 at home this season.
But they have yet to play in front of a crowd like the one expected at Mountain America Stadium on Saturday afternoon vs. BYU.
“We’ve already sold out [for the BYU game],” Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham said during his Monday press conference. “There’s like a thousand person wait line for tickets. For The Valley to be able to experience what they get to experience, which is an unbelievable college football environment on Saturday, is what we need to get people bought back into here. That there’s nothing that can replicate it. We haven’t had one like this yet since I’ve been here.”
In the biggest game for Arizona State (8-2) in more than a decade, they are 3.5-point favorites over BYU (9-1). The winner will have a great shot at a berth in the Big 12 football championship game. The loser will be all but eliminated.
Quarterback play will be a huge factor on Saturday. Over the last three weeks Arizona State redshirt freshman QB Sam Leavitt has arguably been the best quarterback in the nation. In wins over Oklahoma State, UCF and Kansas State, Leavitt completed 65% of his passes for 740 yards and 9 touchdowns, with no interceptions. He also rushed for 69 yards.
BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff, a senior, has had a big season, throwing for 2,283 yards and 19 touchdowns, and rushing for 312 yards and 4 TDs. But he has struggled in the passing game the last two weeks. He completed just 45.5% of his passes and didn’t throw a TD pass in BYU’s 22-21 road win over rival Utah. In last week’s 17-13 home loss to Kansas he passed for just 192 yards, with one TD and one interception.
Which QB will rise to the occasion on Saturday? Stay tuned. Here are the details on how to watch and follow Arizona State’s Big 12 showdown vs. BYU on Saturday:
Arizona State vs. BYU TV Channel, Live Stream, Betting Odds
Who: Arizona State (8-2, 5-2) vs. BYU (9-1, 6-1) in a Big 12 football game
When: 1:30 p.m. MST | Saturday, November 23
Where: Mountain America Stadium | Tempe, Arizona
Live Stream: Stream Arizona State-BYU live on fuboTV (Start your free trial)
TV Channel: ESPN
Our Prediction: Arizona State 30, BYU 27
Betting Odds: Arizona State is favored by 3.5 points per FanDuel Sportsbook
Live Updates, Highlights: Follow the game on Arizona State On SI for live updates and big-play highlights throughout Saturday’s matchup
More Arizona State & Big 12 Analysis
Arizona
Flagg quiets Arizona crowd as Duke aces road test
TUCSON, Ariz. — Seconds after No. 12 Duke’s players ran onto the court for pregame introductions at the McKale Center on Friday night, someone in the crowd hurled a beer can in their direction.
That moment did not define the largely positive and vibrant atmosphere at the arena, where Cooper Flagg’s 24-point effort led the Blue Devils to a 69-55 win over No. 17 Arizona.
But throughout the game, building security and local police gathered near Duke’s tunnel and the team’s family and friends section because of concerns that additional objects would be thrown, sources told ESPN. Those same security and police personnel also entered the Arizona student section at halftime to address at least one fan’s behavior.
Duke coach Jon Scheyer said he didn’t notice the off-court chaos, a metaphor for the way his team responded in its first true road game of the season.
“I didn’t even see that,” Scheyer said afterward about the beer-can incident. “First of all, I thought the environment and atmosphere was top notch. I mean, people were respectful. I thought there was just a big-time college basketball crowd, but at the end of the day, the crowd doesn’t control how you defend, how you sprint back on defense, how you take care of the ball.”
More than 14,000-plus gathered for the highly anticipated matchup involving a pair of teams that hadn’t met in Tucson since the 1980s. The notable personalities in the crowd gave the game a prime-time vibe. Flagg, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA draft, and his teammates faced an Arizona squad led by Caleb Love, a preseason All-American.
Mike Bibby and Gilbert Arenas, a pair of former NBA stars who anchored some of Arizona’s greatest teams, sat in the front row. Phoenix Suns star Bradley Beal found his seat next to theirs early in the game, and Beal’s teammates Tyus Jones and Grayson Allen — who starred on Duke’s 2014-15 national title team — sat behind the Blue Devils’ bench.
Bryce James, son of LeBron James and a prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, also attended the matchup with his mother, Savannah James.
Flagg delivered his best performance this season in another high-profile matchup, more than a week after he committed multiple turnovers in the final seconds of a loss to Kentucky in the Champions Classic in Atlanta. Arizona seemed to corral him in the first half, but Flagg dominated after the break, scoring 16 points.
Flagg, who shot 10-of-22 from the field, also finished with 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal.
“He is tall, athletic and he can finish over a lot of bodies,” Arizona’s Jaden Bradley, who led his team with 18 points, said of Flagg. “He’s just super athletic. I feel like we did a good job of containing him in the first half. I think we just went away from the game plan and then didn’t talk, didn’t communicate as a group and he found openings in our defense. He provides mismatch problems for them. We get a smaller guard on him, he can take us inside and use his strength, his height advantage. We get a bigger guy on him, he can play quick, play fast and be able to shoot over the top or get by him.”
As his team entered halftime, Scheyer said, “We’ve been here before,” referencing Duke’s halftime lead over Kentucky in the Champions Classic loss. But Duke avoided a similar fate Friday when Flagg, Tyrese Proctor (8 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds) and Kon Knueppel (13 points, 3-for-6 on 3-pointers) wouldn’t yield.
“It was a high-level college basketball game,” Flagg said. “It was really physical, and they’re a very physical team. So I guess I found my footing [in the second half].”
Arizona entered the game ranked top five in adjusted tempo on KenPom and the Wildcats were also the top offensive rebounding team in the country. But against the Blue Devils, Arizona scored only six points on fast breaks and grabbed only six offensive rebounds.
After the game, the fears of security and police personnel were not realized. There were no further incidents, and Duke’s players, staff, family members and friends all safely exited the building without issue.
The Blue Devils, who next face No. 1 Kansas in Las Vegas on Tuesday, had weathered storms on and off the court in their first true road test. Scheyer said he was impressed by his team’s resilience in a hostile environment, especially as Arizona tried to close the gap late.
“I thought there were a couple of stretches at the beginning of the second half late when I think it got cut to eight points … but to have the maturity to answer and then come back on defense, I think that’s a credit to these guys,” he said. “We’ve done a lot of game situations this year and in the preseason [in practice], but it’s really the maturity by them.”
Arizona
By the Numbers: Seahawks vs. Cardinals
The Seahawks and Cardinals are set to do battle at Lumen Field in Seattle on Sunday. This will be the first of two meetings over a three-week span between the NFC West rivals.
What numbers and themes are relevant in this game between frequent divisional opponents?
The Seahawks have won five straight games against the Arizona Cardinals. They last lost to Arizona on November 21, 2021, in Seattle. The Seahawks held the Cardinals to just 30 total points in the teams’ two matchups last year.
That is Kyler Murray’s record as a starter against the Seahawks. He hasn’t beaten Seattle since October 2020. That includes being sacked 12 times over the last three games. The Seahawks will need to continue to pressure Murray to keep him contained. Otherwise, he can hurt them with his legs or downfield in the passing game.
That is how many points per game the Seahawks are allowing in their last two games as a defense. The defense has stepped it up after an abysmal showing against the Buffalo Bills. The Cardinals have the 13th-ranked scoring offense and 12th-ranked total offense in the NFL. If Seattle can ride this momentum on defense, they should be able to beat the Cardinals a sixth straight time.
Yards per rushing attempt by the Cardinals. That is the second-best in all the NFL. The running back tandem of James Conner and Trey Benson, alongside the lethal legs of quarterback Kyler Murray, make the Cardinals one of the most dynamic running teams in all of football. The Seahawks need to be disciplined in their run defense. If they are caught in the wrong gaps or miss tackles, the Cardinals could control the game on the ground.
Arizona’s pass rush win rate is next to last in the NFL. One of their top pass rushers has been former Seahawks first-round pick L.J. Collier. Dante Stills leads the team with 3.5 sacks. They rank 23rd in sacks as a team. Seattle’s offensive line needs to take advantage of not facing a stellar pass rush and give Geno Smith ample time to take shots downfield.
Yards receiving for running back James Conner against the Jets. He is a big play threat in the passing game as well as on the ground. The defense will need to be aware of Conner’s whereabouts at all times. They cannot afford to let Conner create big plays in the passing game, as he did against the Jets two weeks ago.
The Seahawks need to set a goal of getting at least 23 first downs. The Cardinals are 0-4 when they allow their opponents to get at least 23 first downs and 6-0 when they hold teams under 23. The Seahawks have only reached 23 first downs once. Incredibly, they got 38 first downs in their loss to the Lions. Racking up first downs is a positive result of having an offense in sync and sustaining drives. The longer Seattle can sustain drives, the less chances Kyler Murray and Arizona’s offense will have to make impact plays.
The Seahawks’ record over their six home games this season. This is a shocking development after the Seahawks enjoyed one of the best home-field advantages in all of the NFL for the better part of a decade. This includes having lost four straight. Their last win at home came on September 22 against the Dolphins. This game is a big opportunity to flip the script at home after a tough stretch.
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