The UFC today will stream the weigh-ins for UFC 207 live on Periscope as part of the Twitter-owned platform’s rollout of interactive 360 video. The UFC is among a select group of properties involved in the initial rollout. The North Carolina basketball program streamed last night's warmups in 360, and Oregon's athletic department will also be among the early adopters. The weigh-in broadcast starts at 6:00pm ET and can be found on the UFC’s Twitter and Periscope pages, as well as on UFC.com and the promotion’s official YouTube channel. Periscope plans to promote the 360 video feature at CES, which is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas beginning next Thursday, and roll the functionality out more broadly in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, the UFC is engaging a few additional social activations around Friday’s card, which features Ronda Rousey’s return to the octagon against Amanda Nunes. The promotion introduced a Twitter emoji for #UFC207 on Christmas day, and Snapchat will feature a UFC 207 Live Story on Friday night. In addition, fans in the venue will have access to a Snapchat lens that allows them to simulate a fighter walkout, complete with a virtual hoodie.

Cavaliers F LeBron James yesterday echoed Thunder F Kevin Durant's criticism of the NBA's Last Two Minute Report, saying he is "not a fan." James: "It discredits what the referees are doing for 48 minutes. If that's the case, you might as well do a 48-minute report. It's not fair to the referees that you only talk about the final two minutes of the game and not the first 46. There's plays that's missed, there's plays that called throughout 48 minutes that don't get talked about" (ESPN.com, 12/28). James "similarly criticized" the reports last season as well (CBSSPORTS.com, 12/28).

Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy also criticized the reports: "What I don't like in general is this emphasis on the last two minutes of the game being more important than the first 46 minutes of the game. Presumably, at least, in the public eye, the only things we care about are in the last two minutes of the game" (DETROIT NEWS, 12/29).

The "first look" at an adidas-made NHL jersey has emerged, as the league prepares to transition from Reebok as its official outfitter with the start of the '17-18 season. Images of a Penguins "warmup jersey leaked via eBay this week." Those jerseys will be "worn during the skate prior to the opening puck drop" (FOXSPORTS.com, 12/28). See a screen shot of the original eBay post at SportsLogos.net.

USF has distributed 3,200 of its 10,000 allotted tickets for today's Birmingham Bowl against South Carolina, "representing a mild dropoff" from last season's appearance in the Miami Beach Bowl. South Carolina reportedly has sold "3,000 of their allotted 7,500 tickets" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 12/27). Elsewhere, "more than 40,000 tickets have been sold" for today's Arkansas-Virginia Tech Belk Bowl at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 12/29).

• Kansas State defeated Texas A&M 33-28 in front of 68,412 in the AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl at Houston's NRG Stadium, the "fourth largest crowd in the bowl's history" (CHRON.com, 12/29).
• A crowd of 48,625 was on hand at Camping World Stadium yesterday as Miami defeated West Virginia 31-14 in the Russell Athletic Bowl, marking UM's first bowl win since '06. Miami coach Mark Richt: "I've heard the term 'meaningless bowl games.' It just makes me mad when I hear that because I know how much it means to us" (MIAMI HERALD, 12/29). It was the bowl's best crowd since '13 (THE DAILY).
• The seventh New Era Pinstripe Bowl drew a "crowd announced at 37,918" to Yankee Stadium, where Northwestern defeated Pitt 31-24 (N.Y. TIMES, 12/29). The last two years have produced the bowl's two smallest crowds (THE DAILY).
• Utah defeated Indiana 26-24 yesterday in front of a "sparse crowd that didn’t nearly account for the 27,608 tickets 'distributed' for the Foster Farms Bowl" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 12/29). It was the bowl's smallest crowd since moving to to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara in '14 and the smallest crowd overall for game since '05 at AT&T Park in S.F. (THE DAILY).

The NFL has entered into a streaming partnership with China-based social media platform Sina Weibo. In addition to the six regular-season games streamed in recent weeks, Sina Weibo will live stream throughout China the Week 17 Packers-Lions "SNF" game, three playoff games and the Super Bowl. The NFL now has more than 1.5 million online viewers in China each week, and viewership continues to grow (NFL).

Roughly 400 people were on hand yesterday for the grand opening of the Univ. of New Mexico baseball program's new $2.4M R.D. and Joan Dale Hubbard Clubhouse. The 6,000-square-foot facility, located "just south of UNM's Santa Ana Star Field," is a "massive upgrade for the Lobos baseball team." It features a locker room with four big-screen TVs, plus coaches’ offices, showers, laundry facilities and an upstairs deck. UNM coach Ray Birmingham: "This is one of the top 20 baseball clubhouses in the country, no question" (ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL, 12/29).

Russian officials yesterday issued a statement "backtracking on admissions of doping orchestrated at the highest level that involved hundreds of the country's athletes." RUSADA claimed that its acting Dir Anna Anseliovich was "misquoted" in a N.Y. Times story (ESPN.com, 12/28).

Peach Bowl President & CEO Gary Stokan said that there are "no current plans for any type of ceremony Saturday to commemorate" the Washington-Alabama CFP semifinal as the "final college game" in the Georgia Dome (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 12/29).

Agropur subsidiary BiPro announced a partnership with Lakers F Brandon Ingram to promote its protein drinks (BiPro).

Tickets for today's UConn-Maryland women's basketball game at Xfinity Center "have sold out." Maryland is ranked No. 4, and defending national champion UConn is ranked No. 1 (Baltimore SUN, 12/28).

N.Y. developer Keith Rubenstein has agreed to match Knicks F Kristaps Porzingis' $500 per blocked shot donation to the Ben Job Educational and Scholarship Fund for free tutoring, free SAT prep and tuition money. The initiative is called "KrisStops" (RENS).

"It's a privilege to have me up there. You're going to miss me when I'm gone" – Seahawks CB Richard Sherman, who for the first time this season opted not to hold his weekly news conference (Mult., 12/28).

"It feels like we're putting the final touches on a decade of intense efforts to move this city forward" – Greater Houston Partnership President Bob Harvey, on Super Bowl LI preparations (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 12/29).

"The last conversation Conor and I had, he was taking 10 months off. Everybody keeps talking about Conor but I'm not even thinking about Conor. He's not in my plans for the next 10 months" – UFC President Dana White, on fighter Conor McGregor (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 12/28).

"It's a great building to play in, if you watch as a fan, the atmosphere is fantastic. But I think it's time. Everything I've seen of the new building, it's going to be great for the organization and ... fantastic for the city" –  Lightning VP & GM Steve Yzerman, a former Red Wings player, on the Detroit team's upcoming move from Joe Louis Arena to Little Caesars Arena (DETROIT NEWS, 12/29).

The WASHINGTON TIMES notes some fans "believe that athletes/coaches should refrain from unrelated comments and keep societal observations to themselves. Or is that only when the topic is race?"

ESPNW: "The resourcefulness and determination that Olympians need to keep their careers alive between big events isn't unique to women's hockey players. But the challenges seem perennially bigger for female athletes, even in a high-visibility sport like hockey."

Also: 

• Panthers QB Cam Newton “exists in a world of nuances and shifts.”
• New Oregon State AD Scott Barnes lauded by former colleagues.
• Showtime’s Florida State football-themed show “easy to get hooked on.”
• Look back on the year shows it was “hardly business as usual” for the NFL.
• Legendary Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully’s farewell was one to remember.
• Georgia Dome’s final college football game may be its biggest.
• Phil Jackson’s struggles with Knicks has him deserving of better in '17.

Fun Fact: The background crowd buzz from 'Madden 17' makes for a fantastic white noise for napping. #dadlife

— J.W. Cannon (@cannonjw) December 28, 2016

There was a time not that long ago where the Warriors only answer was some impossible trade

— Marcus Thompson (@ThompsonScribe) December 29, 2016

For as much as people dislike Thursday night football, feels odd not to have it tonight.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 29, 2016

After watching players from Army and Northwestern, some of our brightest, celebrate wins, I hope we can stop the "meaningless" bowl talk.

— Kenny Mossman (@Kenny_Mossman) December 28, 2016

One day I'm going to be on the cover of @CigarAficMag

— Chad Johnson (@ochocinco) December 29, 2016

Last night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Fictional Places.”

“This land is described as ‘All that lies between the lamp-post and the great castle of Cair Paravel on the Eastern Sea.’”

The Hornets promote G Kemba Walker's All-Star candidacy with this video that parodies the '90s-era Chuck Norris show "Walker, Texas Ranger."

“What is Narnia?”