December 2012 in sports
Days of the month
31 December 2012 (Monday)
[American football]
- NCAA bowl games :
- *Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee: Vanderbilt 38, NC State 24.
- *Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas: Georgia Tech 21, USC 7.
- *Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee: Tulsa 31, Iowa State 17.
- *Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta, Georgia: Clemson 25, LSU 24.
30 December 2012 (Sunday)
[American football]
- [2012 2012 NFL season|NFL season|NFL], Week 17:
- *In Denver, Colorado: Denver Broncos 38, Kansas City Chiefs 3.
- **The Broncos, already won the AFC West title, clinch the conference's No. 1 seed to earn home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs and first round bye.
- **The Chiefs finish their season with 2–14 record, and win the right to the first overall pick in the 2013 draft.
- *In Foxborough, Massachusetts: New England Patriots 28, Miami Dolphins 0.
- **The Patriots, winner of the AFC East, get the conference's No. 2 seed and wrap up a first round bye in the AFC playoffs.
- *In Indianapolis, Indiana: Indianapolis Colts 28, Houston Texans 16.
- **With wins by the Broncos and Patriots, the AFC South champion Texans fall to the conference's No. 3 seed and will host the [2012 2012 Cincinnati Bengals season|Cincinnati Bengals season|Cincinnati Bengals] in the first round of the playoffs.
- *In Cincinnati, Ohio: Cincinnati Bengals 23, Baltimore Ravens 17.
- **The Ravens, the AFC North winner and conference's No. 4 seed, will face off with the Colts in the first round of the playoffs.
- *In San Francisco, California: San Francisco 49ers 27, Arizona Cardinals 13.
- **The 49ers grab the NFC West title, and clinch the conference's No. 2 seed to gain a first round bye in the NFC playoffs.
- *In Minneapolis, Minnesota: Minnesota Vikings 37, Green Bay Packers 34.
- **The NFC North champion Packers fail to get the conference's No. 2 seed as the Vikings secure an NFC Wild Card spot, and they have to contend with each other again in the first round of the playoffs.
- *Sunday Night Football in Landover, Maryland: Washington Redskins 28, Dallas Cowboys 18.
- **The Redskins claim their first NFC East title since 1999, and get the conference's No. 4 seed to host the Seattle Seahawks in the first round of the playoffs.
- *In Detroit, Michigan: Chicago Bears 26, Detroit Lions 24.
- **The Bears' victory eliminates the New York Giants, the reigning Super Bowl champion, from postseason action. Thus for the eighth consecutive year, the Vince Lombardi Trophy will have a new owner who will be crowned the new Super Bowl champion.
[Cricket]
- Pakistan in India:
- *1st ODI in Chennai: 227/6 ; 228/4. '''Pakistan win by 6 wickets; lead 3-match series 1–0.'''
Cross-country skiing">Cross-country skiing (sport)">Cross-country skiing
- Tour de Ski:
- *Stage 2 in Oberhof, Germany:
- **Men's 15 km Classic Pursuit: Maxim Vylegzhanin Alexander Legkov Petter Northug
- ***Tour de Ski standings : Vylegzhanin 47:45.7 Legkov +5.1 Northug +16.5
- **Women's 9 km Classic Pursuit: Justyna Kowalczyk Therese Johaug Anne Kyllönen
- ***Tour de Ski standings : Kowalczyk 31:59.5 Johaug +46.4 Kyllönen +55.0
[Ski jumping]
- Four Hills Tournament:
- *Stage 1, HS 137 in Oberstdorf, Germany: Anders Jacobsen Gregor Schlierenzauer Severin Freund
29 December 2012 (Saturday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Downhill in Bormio, Italy: Hannes Reichelt and Dominik Paris Aksel Lund Svindal
- **Overall standings : Svindal 674 points Marcel Hirscher 560 Ted Ligety 537
- **Downhill standings : Svindal 285 points Paris 193 Klaus Kröll 141
- Women's World Cup:
- *Slalom in Semmering, Austria: Veronika Zuzulová Kathrin Zettel Tina Maze
- **Overall standings : Maze 1059 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 632 Zettel 582
- **Slalom standings : Maze 230 points Höfl-Riesch 224 Zuzulová 205
[American football]
- NCAA bowl games :
- *Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas: Rice 33, Air Force 14.
- *Pinstripe Bowl in Bronx, New York: Syracuse 38, West Virginia 14.
- *Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco, California: Arizona State 62, Navy 28.
- *Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, Texas: Texas 31, Oregon State 27.
- *Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in Tempe, Arizona: Michigan State 17, TCU 16.
Cross-country skiing">Cross-country skiing (sport)">Cross-country skiing
- Tour de Ski:
- *Stage 1 in Oberhof, Germany:
- **Men's 4.0 km Freestyle Sprint: Petter Northug Marcus Hellner Alexander Legkov
- **Women's 3.1 km Freestyle Sprint: Kikkan Randall Charlotte Kalla Justyna Kowalczyk
[Mixed martial arts]
- UFC 155 in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States :
- *Middleweight bout: Derek Brunson def. Chris Leben via unanimous decision
- *Middleweight bout: Yushin Okami def. Alan Belcher via unanimous decision
- *Middleweight bout: Costas Philippou def. Tim Boetsch via TKO
- *Lightweight bout: Jim Miller def. Joe Lauzon via unanimous decision
- *Heavyweight Championship bout: Cain Velasquez def. Junior dos Santos via unanimous decision
28 December 2012 (Friday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Women's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in Semmering, Austria: Anna Fenninger Tina Maze Tessa Worley
- **Overall standings : Maze 999 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 582 Kathrin Zettel 502
- **Giant Slalom standings : Maze 540 points Zettel 342 Viktoria Rebensburg 301
[American football]
- NCAA bowl games:
- *Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana: Ohio 45, Louisiana–Monroe 14.
- *Russell Athletic Bowl in Orlando, Florida: Virginia Tech 13, Rutgers 10.
- *Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas in Houston, Texas: Texas Tech 34, Minnesota 31.
[Cricket]
- Pakistan in India:
- *2nd T20I in Ahmedabad: 192/5 ; 181/7. India win by 11 runs; 2-match series drawn 1–1.
27 December 2012 (Thursday)
[American football]
- NCAA bowl games :
- *Military Bowl in Washington, D.C.: San Jose State 29, Bowling Green 20.
- *Belk Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina: Cincinnati 48, Duke 34.
- *Holiday Bowl in San Diego: Baylor 49, UCLA 26.
26 December 2012 (Wednesday)
[American football]
25 December 2012 (Tuesday)
[Basketball]
- [2012–13 2012–13 NBA season|NBA season|NBA] Christmas games:
- *In Brooklyn, New York: Boston Celtics 93, Brooklyn Nets 76.
- *In Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Lakers 100, New York Knicks 94.
- *In Miami, Florida: Miami Heat 103, [2012–13 2012 Oklahoma Sooners football team|Oklahoma City Thunder season|Oklahoma City Thunder] 97.
- *In Chicago, Illinois: Houston Rockets 120, Chicago Bulls 97.
- *In Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Clippers 112, Denver Nuggets 100.
[Cricket]
- Pakistan in India:
- *1st T20I in Bangalore: 133/9 ; 134/5. Pakistan win by 5 wickets; lead 2-match series 1–0.
24 December 2012 (Monday)
[American football]
- NCAA bowl games:
- *Hawaii Bowl in Honolulu, Hawaii: SMU 43, Fresno State 10.
23 December 2012 (Sunday)
[American football]
- NFL, Week 16:
- *In Kansas City, Missouri: Indianapolis Colts 20, Kansas City Chiefs 13.
- **The Colts secure an AFC Wild Card spot, and advance to the first round of the playoffs.
- *In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Cincinnati Bengals 13, Pittsburgh Steelers 10.
- **The Bengals also secure an AFC Wild Card spot, and advance to the first round of the playoffs.
- *In Houston, Texas: Minnesota Vikings 23, Houston Texans 6.
- **The Vikings' victory eliminates the New Orleans Saints, the host team for Super Bowl XLVII, from postseason action and fail to reverse the Home Field Curse.
22 December 2012 (Saturday)
[American football]
- NFL, Week 16:
- *Monday Night Football in Detroit, Michigan: Atlanta Falcons 31, Detroit Lions 18.
- **The Falcons, already won the NFC South title, clinch the conference's No. 1 seed to earn home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs and first round bye.
- **Despite losing the game, Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson breaks NFL's single-season receiving yardage record, that has been held by Jerry Rice who gained 1,848 yards in 1995.
- NCAA bowl games :
- *New Orleans Bowl in New Orleans, Louisiana: Louisiana–Lafayette 43, East Carolina 34.
- *Maaco Bowl Las Vegas in Whitney, Nevada: [2012 2012 Boise State Broncos football team|Boise State Broncos football team|Boise State] 28, Washington 26.
21 December 2012 (Friday)
[American football]
20 December 2012 (Thursday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Women's World Cup:
- *Slalom in Åre, Sweden: Mikaela Shiffrin Frida Hansdotter Tina Maze
- **Overall standings : Maze 919 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 532 Kathrin Zettel 466
- **Slalom standings : Shiffrin 196 points Höfl-Riesch 174 Maze 170
[American football]
19 December 2012 (Wednesday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Women's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in Åre, Sweden: Viktoria Rebensburg Anna Fenninger Tina Maze
- **Overall standings : Maze 859 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 508 Kathrin Zettel 466
- **Giant Slalom standings : Maze 460 points Zettel 306 Rebensburg 256
18 December 2012 (Tuesday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Slalom in Madonna di Campiglio, Italy: Marcel Hirscher Felix Neureuther Naoki Yuasa
- **Overall standings : Aksel Lund Svindal 614 points Hirscher 560 Ted Ligety 537
- **Slalom standings : Hirscher 240 points André Myhrer 200 Neureuther 196
17 December 2012 (Monday)
16 December 2012 (Sunday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in Alta Badia, Italy: Ted Ligety Marcel Hirscher Thomas Fanara
- **Overall standings : Aksel Lund Svindal 614 points Ligety 508 Hirscher 460
- **Giant Slalom standings : Ligety 360 points Hirscher 320 Manfred Mölgg 162
- Women's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in Courchevel, France: Tina Maze Kathrin Zettel Tessa Worley
- **Overall standings : Maze 799 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 468 Zettel 440
- **Giant Slalom standings : Maze 400 points Zettel 280 Worley 160
[American football]
- NFL, Week 15:
- *Bills Toronto Series in Toronto, Canada: Seattle Seahawks 50, Buffalo Bills 17.
- **Seahawks become the third team in NFL history to score more than 50 points in consecutive games of the same season, joining the Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants, both in 1950.
[Baseball]
- Australian Baseball League All-Star Game in Melbourne: Team Australia 6, World All-Stars 4.
[Nordic combined]
- World Cup:
- *HS 98 / 10 km in Ramsau, Austria: Mikko Kokslien Jason Lamy-Chappuis Mario Stecher
- **Standings : Lamy-Chappuis 355 points Magnus Moan 323 Bernhard Gruber 200
15 December 2012 (Saturday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Downhill in Val Gardena, Italy: Steven Nyman Rok Perko Erik Guay
- **Overall standings : Aksel Lund Svindal 585 points Ted Ligety 408 Marcel Hirscher 380
- **Downhill standings : Svindal 225 points Kjetil Jansrud 139 Guay 116
- Women's World Cup:
- *Super Giant Slalom in Val-d'Isère, France: Cancelled due to heavy snow.
[American football]
- NCAA bowl games :
- *New Mexico Bowl in Albuquerque, New Mexico: Arizona 49, Nevada 48.
- *Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise, Idaho: Utah State 41, Toledo 15.
[Mixed martial arts]
- UFC on FX: Sotiropoulos vs. Pearson in Gold Coast, Australia:
- *Middleweight bout: Hector Lombard def. Rousimar Palhares via TKO
- *Lightweight bout: Norman Parke def. Colin Fletcher via unanimous decision
- *Welterweight bout: Robert Whittaker def. Brad Scott via unanimous decision
- *Lightweight bout: Ross Pearson def. George Sotiropoulos via TKO
- The Ultimate Fighter: Team Carwin vs. Team Nelson Finale in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States :
- *Featherweight bout: Dustin Poirier def. Jonathan Brookins via submission
- *Heavyweight bout: Pat Barry def. Shane del Rosario via KO
- *Welterweight bout: Colton Smith def. Mike Ricci via unanimous decision
- *Heavyweight bout: Roy Nelson def. Matt Mitrione via TKO
[Nordic combined]
- World Cup:
- *HS 98 / 10 km in Ramsau, Austria: Magnus Moan Mikko Kokslien Fabian Riessle
- **Standings : Moan 313 points Jason Lamy-Chappuis 275 Bernhard Gruber 168
14 December 2012 (Friday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Super Giant Slalom in Val Gardena, Italy: Aksel Lund Svindal Matteo Marsaglia Werner Heel
- **Overall standings : Svindal 540 points Ted Ligety 408 Marcel Hirscher 380
- **Super Giant Slalom standings : Svindal 280 points Marsaglia 209 Heel 150
- Women's World Cup:
- *Downhill in Val-d'Isère, France: Lara Gut Leanne Smith Nadja Kamer
- **Overall standings : Tina Maze 699 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 463 Lindsey Vonn 414
- **Downhill standings : Vonn 200 points Stacey Cook 186 Gut 124
13 December 2012 (Thursday)
12 December 2012 (Wednesday)
11 December 2012 (Tuesday)
10 December 2012 (Monday)
9 December 2012 (Sunday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in Val-d'Isère, France: Marcel Hirscher Stefan Luitz Ted Ligety
- **Overall standings : Aksel Lund Svindal 440 points Ligety 402 Hirscher 380
- **Giant Slalom standings : Ligety 260 points Hirscher 240 Manfred Mölgg 150
- Women's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in St. Moritz, Switzerland: Tina Maze Viktoria Rebensburg Tessa Worley
- **Overall standings : Maze 677 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 443 Lindsey Vonn 414
- **Giant Slalom standings : Maze 300 points Kathrin Zettel 200 Rebensburg 140
8 December 2012 (Saturday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Slalom in Val-d'Isère, France: Alexis Pinturault Felix Neureuther Marcel Hirscher
- **Overall standings : Aksel Lund Svindal 400 points Ted Ligety 342 Hirscher 280
- **Slalom standings : André Myhrer 150 points Hirscher 140 Neureuther 116
- Women's World Cup:
- *Super Giant Slalom in St. Moritz, Switzerland: Lindsey Vonn Tina Maze Julia Mancuso
- **Overall standings : Maze 577 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 414 Vonn 410
- **Super Giant Slalom standings : Vonn 200 points Mancuso 140 Maze 130
[American football]
- NCAA Division I FBS:
- *Army–Navy Game in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Navy 17, Army 13.
[Mixed martial arts]
- UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz in Seattle, Washington, United States :
- *Welterweight bout: Matt Brown def. Mike Swick via KO
- *Welterweight bout: Rory MacDonald def. B.J. Penn via unanimous decision
- *Light Heavyweight bout: Alexander Gustafsson def. Maurício Rua via unanimous decision
- *Lightweight Championship bout: Benson Henderson def. Nate Diaz via unanimous decision
7 December 2012 (Friday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Women's World Cup:
- *Super Combined in St. Moritz, Switzerland: Tina Maze Nicole Hosp Kathrin Zettel
- **Overall standings : Maze 497 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 369 Zettel 320
6 December 2012 (Thursday)
[Rugby union]
- The Varsity Match in London, England: Oxford University 26–19 Cambridge University
5 December 2012 (Wednesday)
[Basketball]
- NBA:
- *In New Orleans, Louisiana: Los Angeles Lakers 103, New Orleans Hornets 87.
- **Lakers guard Kobe Bryant becomes the fifth and youngest player in NBA history to score 30,000 career points.
4 December 2012 (Tuesday)
3 December 2012 (Monday)
2 December 2012 (Sunday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Giant Slalom in Beaver Creek, United States: Ted Ligety Marcel Hirscher Davide Simoncelli
- **Overall standings : Aksel Lund Svindal 400 points Ligety 320 Hirscher 220
- **Giant Slalom standings : Ligety 200 points Hirscher 140 Manfred Mölgg 130
- Women's World Cup:
- *Super Giant Slalom in Lake Louise, Canada: Lindsey Vonn Julia Mancuso Anna Fenninger
- **Overall standings : Tina Maze 397 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 319 Vonn 310
[Nordic combined]
- World Cup:
- *HS 142 / Team sprint in Kuusamo, Finland: Bernhard Gruber/Mario Stecher Håvard Klemetsen/Mikko Kokslien Sébastien Lacroix/Jason Lamy-Chappuis
1 December 2012 (Saturday)
[Alpine skiing]
- Men's World Cup:
- *Super Giant Slalom in Beaver Creek, United States: Matteo Marsaglia Aksel Lund Svindal Hannes Reichelt
- **Overall standings : Svindal 360 points Ted Ligety 220 Kjetil Jansrud 159
- **Super Giant Slalom standings : Svindal 180 points Marsaglia 129 Ligety 100
- Women's World Cup:
- *Downhill in Lake Louise, Canada: Lindsey Vonn Stacey Cook Marianne Kaufmann-Abderhalden
- **Overall standings : Tina Maze 347 points Maria Höfl-Riesch 274 Kathrin Zettel 260
- **Downhill standings : Vonn 200 points Cook 160 Höfl-Riesch 100
[American football]
- NCAA Division I FBS :
- *Conference championship games:
- **C-USA Championship Game in Tulsa, Oklahoma: Tulsa 33, UCF 27.
- **SEC Championship Game in Atlanta, Georgia: [2012 2012 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama] 32, Georgia 28.
- ***Alabama advances to the BCS National Championship Game against Notre Dame.
- **ACC Championship Game in Charlotte, North Carolina: Florida State 21, Georgia Tech 15.
- **Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis, Indiana: Wisconsin 70, Nebraska 31.
- *Other games:
- **In Fort Worth, Texas: Oklahoma 24, TCU 17.
- **In Manhattan, Kansas: [2012 2012 Kansas State Wildcats football team|Kansas State Wildcats football team|Kansas State] 42, Texas 24.
- ***Oklahoma and Kansas State claim a share of the Big 12 championship, with Kansas State winning the tiebreaker for the BCS berth.
- **In East Hartford, Connecticut: Cincinnati 34, Connecticut 17.
- ***Cincinnati shares the Big East title with Louisville, Rutgers and Syracuse.
- **In Reno, Nevada: Boise State 27, Nevada 21.
- ***Boise State shares the MWC title with Fresno State and San Diego State.
- **In Jonesboro, Arkansas: [2012 2012 Arkansas State Red Wolves football team|Arkansas State Red Wolves football team|Arkansas State] 45, Middle Tennessee 0.
- ***Arkansas State wins the Sun Belt championship for the second consecutive year.
[Nordic combined]
- World Cup:
- *HS 142 / 10 km in Kuusamo, Finland: Jason Lamy-Chappuis Magnus Krog Sébastien Lacroix
- **Standings : Lamy-Chappuis 230 points Magnus Moan 213 Håvard Klemetsen 141