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SUNRISE — Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe had power-play goals, Sam Reinhart had a short-handed score and the Florida Panthers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-1 on Wednesday night for only their second win in eight games. Mackie Samoskevich also scored for Florida, Sam Bennett got an empty-net goal and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 24 shots for the Panthers.

Observations and other notes of interest from Wednesday night’s 98-94 victory over the Charlotte Hornets: – This is why you need specialists. – Because sometimes you need a spark. – Duncan Robinson was that specialist Wednesday night. – And he provided the exact spark the Heat needed on the second night of a back-to-back. – Not quite what Damian Lillard did at the outset Tuesday night against the Heat for the Bucks. – But close. – And needed. – On a night Jimmy Butler took a while to get going. – Before emulating Robinson’s 3-point shooting. – So make it 3-1 now with Robinson as a starter this season. – Coach Erik Spoelstra staying with that lineup even after Tuesday night’s loss. – With Robinson, it provides an alternative to all-or-nothing from Tyler Herro when it comes to 3-pointers. – Because on this night, while Robinson was on, Herro was off. – Yes, there are the ongoing defensive concerns with that first five, Robinson and Herro together.. – But Butler, Bam Adebayo and Haywood Highsmith handle that in this lineup. – And, heck, Robinson even stayed out of foul trouble this time. – As with Lillard for the Bucks a night earlier, without Robinson early in this one, who knows how it otherwise could have ended. – He created a needed buffer. – And, so, a welcomed win heading into Thanksgiving. – It was the 250th regular-season start for Robinson. – It also was the 200th career regular-season double-figure scoring effort for Robinson. – So, for now, Terry Rozier continues in reserve. – Of Rozier, Spoelstra said pregame, “We really love Terry, what he brings.

This is who the Miami Heat have become. Living on the edge. Seemingly every night. A night after coming up short following a rally from 22 down at home against the Milwaukee Bucks, Erik Spoelstra’s team this time coughed up a 20-point third-quarter lead to again find itself in yet another game decided at the wire. This time, survival. Barely. And, so, a 98-94 victory Wednesday night over the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center, an 8-8 record at Thanksgiving, and an exhale, thanks, in part, to the late contributions of guard Tyler Herro. “From the mental toughness standpoint, we’re getting pretty comfortable in these kinds of games,” Spoelstra said.

If UCF men’s basketball has anything to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, it’s Darius Johnson. The senior guard scored a season-high 28 points to help spark the Knights past Milwaukee 84-76 on Wednesday night. It was his second consecutive game of 20-plus points after scoring 25 in a 109-102 loss to LSU on Sunday. Johnson was 8 of 10 from 3-point range while the rest of the team shot 3 of 14 from deep (21%). “Darius was terrific.

A number of President-elect Donald Trump’s most prominent Cabinet picks and appointees have been targeted by bomb threats and “swatting attacks,” Trump’s transition team said Wednesday. The FBI said it was investigating. “Last night and this morning, several of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees and Administration appointees were targeted in violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them,” Trump transition spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The attacks ranged from bomb threats to swatting, in which attackers initiate an emergency law enforcement response against a target victim under false pretenses, she said.