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Lottery Summary for Saturday, Jan. 14

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Misericordia hoops hoping to get healthy after loss to Delaware Valley

<p>ATLANTA &#8212; Matt Ryan looked very much like an MVP, and the Atlanta Falcons are headed to the NFC championship game.</p><p>Ryan threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Falcons to a 36-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in the divisional round Saturday.</p><p>Atlanta will face either the Dallas Cowboys or the Green Bay Packers, who meet Sunday in the NFC&#8217;s other divisional game.</p><p>After the Seahawks zipped down the field for a touchdown on the opening possession, Atlanta&#8217;s young defense largely shut down Russell Wilson &amp; Co. the rest of the way.</p><p>Ryan and the high-scoring Falcons took it from there &#8212; getting a huge boost from a holding penalty that wiped out an 80-yard punt return by Devin Hester.</p><p>Ryan hooked up with Julio Jones on a 7-yard touchdown and Tevin Coleman for a 14-yard score before finishing off the Seahawks with a 3-yard toss to Mohamed Sanu in the corner of the end zone with just under 4 minutes remaining, sparking a raucous chant of &#8220;MVP! MVP! MVP!&#8221; from a Georgia Dome crowd that stood most of the game, giving the Falcons the sort of home-field advantage that Seattle is used to having at the Link.</p><p>&#8220;It feels good,&#8221; said Ryan, who came in with a 1-4 record in the playoffs. &#8220;I think we executed really well across the board. We weren&#8217;t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, we made some mistakes. But consistency for the entire day was really, really good. I was proud of the way we played.&#8221;</p><p>Before a foot injury limited him in the second half, Jones made life miserable for Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman, who got away with an apparent pass interference penalty on Atlanta&#8217;s star receiver when the teams met during the regular season, preserving a 26-24 victory for the Seahawks.</p><p>Jones was targeted eight times, coming up with six receptions for 67 yards to set a tone that Atlanta would not be intimidated by the Legion of Boom.</p><p>But, as usual, Ryan spread the ball around to everyone.</p><p>Speedy Taylor Gabriel had a 37-yard reception.</p><p>Running back Devonta Freeman slipped out of the backfield to haul in a 53-yard pass, putting a dazzling fake on replacement free safety Steven Terrell right in the middle of the field. The Seahawks sure missed Earl Thomas, out for the season with a broken leg.</p><p>In all, eight players caught passes from Ryan.</p><p>&#8220;He stayed on exactly the same path he had during the regular season,&#8221; said second-year Atlanta coach Dan Quinn, who beat the team he worked for previously as defensive coordinator. &#8220;He was on it.&#8221;</p><p>For only the fourth time in their 51-year history, the Falcons (12-5) will be playing for the conference title and a spot in the Super Bowl.</p><p>They made their only Super Bowl appearance during the 1998 season, falling to Denver in John Elway&#8217;s final game, and lost in the NFC title game during the 2004 and 2012 seasons.</p><p>The Seahawks (11-6-1) couldn&#8217;t follow up a dominating win over Detroit in the opening round, the game turning dramatically on a holding penalty in the second quarter that wiped out Hester&#8217;s return to the Atlanta 7.</p><p>Instead of having first-and-goal and a chance to extend a 10-7 lead, Seattle was backed up to its 7. After Thomas Rawls was thrown for a 3-yard loss, Wilson attempted to drop back for a pass.</p><p>One problem: rookie right guard Rees Odhiambo, taking over after Germain Ifedi was injured, stepped back onto Wilson&#8217;s foot, sending the quarterback tumbling down in the end zone. Ben Garland fell on Wilson for a safety that turned the momentum Atlanta&#8217;s way.</p><p>Matt Bryant&#8217;s 35-yard field goal put the Falcons ahead to stay, and the home team closed out the first half with a 99-yard drive touchdown that was extended by Sanu&#8217;s brilliant, one-handed catch for 22 yards with Jeremy Lane grabbing at his arm.</p><p>After getting beat on Seattle&#8217;s first possession, an Atlanta defense featuring four rookies and a bunch of second-year players limited the Seahawks to a pair of a field goals before giving up a meaningless 31-yard touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin in the closing minutes.</p><p><strong>Dynamic Hester</strong></p><p>Facing his former team, Hester certainly had quite an impact on special teams.</p><p>Even though his longest play was wiped out, he had five kickoff returns for 194 yards, including a 78-yarder.</p><p>Hester played for the Falcons in 2014 and &#8216;15. He signed with the Seahawks just before the playoffs.</p><p><strong>Injury Report</strong></p><p>Seattle&#8217;s tight ends took quite a beating. Brandon Williams went out with a concussion and Luke Willson was evaluated for a possible concussion late in the game.</p><p>Also, Seahawks cornerback DeShawn Shead did not return after being helped off the field with a left knee injury early in the second half.</p><p>The Falcons lost defensive end Adrian Clayborn with a biceps injury on Seattle&#8217;s opening drive.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Falcons 36, Seahawks 20</strong><table class="mceItemTable"><tbody><tr><th>Seattle`7`3`3`7`&#8212;`20</th></tr><tr><th>Atlanta`0`19`7`10`&#8212;`36</th></tr></tbody></table></p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>First Quarter</strong></p><p>Sea&#8212;Graham 7 pass from Wilson (Hauschka kick), 6:26. Drive: 14 plays, 89 yards, 8:34. Key Plays: D.McDonald 10-yard offensive holding penalty` Wilson 10 pass to Reece` Wilson 14 run` Wilson 18 pass to Baldwin on 3rd-and-7` Rawls 2 run on 3rd-and-1. Seattle 7, Atlanta 0.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Second Quarter</strong></p><p>Atl&#8212;J.Jones 7 pass from M.Ryan (Bryant kick), 14:14. Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 7:12. Key Plays: M.Ryan 8 pass to J.Jones on 3rd-and-7` M.Ryan 12 pass to J.Jones` M.Ryan 10 pass to Hooper. Seattle 7, Atlanta 7.</p><p>Sea&#8212;FG Hauschka 33, 11:20. Drive: 6 plays, 40 yards, 2:54. Key Plays: Wilson 33 pass to Richardson` Wilson 11 pass to Graham. Seattle 10, Atlanta 7.</p><p>Atl&#8212;safety, 9:22. Seattle 10, Atlanta 9.</p><p>Atl&#8212;FG Bryant 35, 6:06. Drive: 5 plays, 40 yards, 3:16. Key Plays: M.Ryan 37 pass to Gabriel` M.Ryan 7 pass to Freeman. Atlanta 12, Seattle 10.</p><p>Atl&#8212;Coleman 14 pass from M.Ryan (Bryant kick), :53. Drive: 9 plays, 99 yards, 2:55. Key Plays: M.Ryan 22 pass to Sanu` M.Ryan 18 pass to Gabriel` M.Ryan 12 pass to Sanu` M.Ryan 20 pass to J.Jones. Atlanta 19, Seattle 10.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Third Quarter</strong></p><p>Atl&#8212;Freeman 1 run (Bryant kick), 9:12. Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 5:48. Key Plays: M.Ryan 12 pass to J.Jones on 3rd-and-8` M.Ryan 12 pass to Gabriel on 3rd-and-10` Coleman 15 run. Atlanta 26, Seattle 10.&lt;</p><p>Sea&#8212;FG Hauschka 26, 3:03. Drive: 14 plays, 80 yards, 6:09. Key Plays: Rawls 11 run` P.Wheeler 5-yard illegal formation penalty on 4th-and-2` Wilson 40 pass to Richardson` Wilson 12 pass to A.Collins on 3rd-and-6. Atlanta 26, Seattle 13.&lt;</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Fourth Quarter</strong></p><p>Atl&#8212;FG Bryant 31, 14:57. Drive: 7 plays, 62 yards, 3:06. Key Plays: M.Ryan 53 pass to Freeman on 3rd-and-4` M.Ryan 8 pass to Toilolo. Atlanta 29, Seattle 13.</p><p>Atl&#8212;Sanu 3 pass from M.Ryan (Bryant kick), 3:40. Drive: 8 plays, 46 yards, 4:36. Key Plays: Allen 45 interception return to Seattle 46` M.Ryan 18 pass to Toilolo` M.Ryan 7 pass to Sanu on 3rd-and-5. Atlanta 36, Seattle 13.</p><p>Sea&#8212;Baldwin 31 pass from Wilson (Hauschka kick), 3:21. Drive: 1 plays, 31 yards, 00:19. Key Play: Hester 78 kickoff return to Atlanta 31. Atlanta 36, Seattle 20.</p><p>A&#8212;71,155.<table class="mceItemTable"><tbody><tr><th style="text-align: center;">`Sea`Atl</th></tr><tr><td>First downs`17`28</td></tr><tr><td>Total Net Yards`309`422</td></tr><tr><td>Rushes-yards`21-101`29-99</td></tr><tr><td>Passing`208`323</td></tr><tr><td>Punt Returns`1-0`1-10</td></tr><tr><td>Kickoff Returns`5-194`1-18</td></tr><tr><td>Interceptions Ret.`0-0`2-73</td></tr><tr><td>Comp-Att-Int`17-30-2`26-37-0</td></tr><tr><td>Sacked-Yards Lost`3-17`3-15</td></tr><tr><td>Punts`2-59.5`3-44.3</td></tr><tr><td>Fumbles-Lost`0-0`2-0</td></tr><tr><td>Penalties-Yards`7-40`2-10</td></tr><tr><td>Time of Possession`26:41`33:19</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS</strong></p><p>RUSHING&#8212;Seattle, Wilson 6-49, Rawls 11-34, A.Collins 2-14, McKissic 1-3, Baldwin 1-1. Atlanta, Coleman 11-57, Freeman 14-45, Hardy 1-0, M.Ryan 3-(minus 3).</p><p>PASSING&#8212;Seattle, Wilson 17-30-2-225. Atlanta, M.Ryan 26-37-0-338.</p><p>RECEIVING&#8212;Seattle, Baldwin 5-80, Richardson 4-83, Graham 3-22, A.Collins 2-17, Reece 1-10, Kearse 1-8, McKissic 1-5. Atlanta, J.Jones 6-67, Freeman 4-80, Gabriel 4-71, Sanu 4-44, Coleman 3-22, Toilolo 2-26, Hardy 2-18, Hooper 1-10.</p><p>MISSED FIELD GOALS&#8212;None.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Mohamed Sanu (12) makes a touchdown catch against Seattle Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane (20) during the second half of an NFL football divisional football game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/web1_FALCONS-1-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Mohamed Sanu (12) makes a touchdown catch against Seattle Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane (20) during the second half of an NFL football divisional football game, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/NFL-PlayoffLOGOS-1.pdf">
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<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Ryan throws for 338 yards, 3 TDs in 36-20 win</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Paul Newberry</p><p>AP Sports Writer</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>EDITOR&#8217;S NOTE:</strong> The AFC divisional playoff game between Houston and New England was in progress at press time. For a story on the game, go to timesleader.com.</p></factboxMeta></div>

Falcons defeat Seahawks to advance to NFC title game