KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — On at least three occasions this season, an opposing coach was asked what it takes to stop Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles. Each time, they came back with the exact same response. “If you’ve got the answer,” Colts coach Chuck Pagano said, “I’m all ears.”

That was before Kansas City played Indianapolis a couple of weeks ago at Arrowhead Stadium, and the Colts didn’t need to do much to stop Charles in a 23-7 victory. The Chiefs only gave him six touches in the second half, something coach Andy Reid lamented following the game.

It stands to reason that Kansas City will at least make the Colts do the job themselves when the teams meet in a wild-card playoff game Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Pagano calls Charles a “game wrecker” and a “home-run hitter.”

Two years after a devastating knee injury threatened his career, and one year after he was the lone bright spot in a blighted season, Charles has put together one of the finest campaigns in the history of a franchise that has had plenty of notable offensive stars.

He’s already run for 1,287 yards and 12 touchdowns, solid if unspectacular numbers unless you consider that he’s done it while averaging 5 yards per carry. He also has a career-best 70 catches for 693 yards and seven more touchdowns, giving him nearly 2,000 yards from scrimmage.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — Seth Tuttle scored a season-high 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Northern Iowa to an 80-46 victory over Bradley on Wednesday night. Matt Bohannon had 16 points and three assists for the Panthers (7-6). Wes Washpun added 15 with eight assists and a pair of steals and Jeremy Morgan came off the bench to score 10.

Northern Iowa surged to a 14-0 advantage early in the first period and went on to lead 43-26 at the break. A pair of 3-pointers by Bohannon and two buckets from inside the paint by Tuttle to start the second half extended the Panther lead to 26. Northern Iowa would finish the game hitting 48 percent from the field and sinking 84.2 percent from the line.

Bradley averaged just 37 percent from the field overall and suffered 13 turnovers in the contest. Walt Lemon, Jr. led the Braves (5-9) with 17 points.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Jordan Daniels scored 28 points with three assists as Drake defeated Evansville 94-66 on Wednesday night. Richard Carter put up 19 points and grabbed four rebounds for the Bulldogs (10-3). Chris Caird had 10 points and Aaron Hawley came off the bench to score 12. Drake hit 61 percent from the field overall, 65.5 percent from the line and sank 65.5 percent from 3-point range. A Daniels 3-pointer at 16:25 in the first capped a 12-2 Bulldog run to start the game.

Evansville’s D.J. Balentine scored nine points in the final minute of the first period, including a 3-pointer at the buzzer, to cut the Aces’ deficit to four points at the break. The Bulldogs completely dominated the second period, leading by as many as 30 points with a minute left to play.

Balentine led the Aces (7-7) with 20 points.

AMES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa State will hold a public visitation to honor legendary former basketball coach Johnny Orr, who died Tuesday at age 86.  The doors to Hilton Coliseum in Ames will open at 1 p.m. Thursday for the visitation. The Orr family will be present from 4 p.m. until Hilton closes at 8 p.m.  It is the arena where Orr was known for entering to the “Tonight Show” theme and a trademark fist pump, helping cultivate a tremendous home-court advantage for the Cyclones.

Orr led the Cyclones to a school-record 218 wins from 1980 until 1994. He previously spent 12 years as head coach at Michigan and three at Massachusetts.  The energetic and charismatic Orr finished with a career record of 466-346 and 10 NCAA tournament appearances.

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Jeremy Hill rushed for 216 yards and two touchdowns, helping No. 14 LSU and inexperienced quarterback Anthony Jennings hold off Iowa 21-14 in the Outback Bowl on Wednesday. Craig Loston’s interception stopped a potential game-tying drive, giving Hill a chance to put the game out of reach by carrying four times for 87 yards on a six-play, 92 yard march that gave the Tigers (10-3) a 21-7 lead.

Iowa (8-5) again pulled within a touchdown after Jordan Cotton returned the ensuing kickoff to the Tigers’ 4. Jennings rushed for a touchdown but only threw for 82 yards while standing in for the injured Zach Mettenberger in the freshman’s first college start.

Backup quarterback C.J. Beathard ‘s fourth-down interception stopped one promising drive for Iowa, but he also tossed a 4-yard TD pass to Kevonte Martin-Manley to trim the Hawkeyes’ deficit to 21-14 with 1:42 remaining.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — More than a year after its completion, several companies who helped build the University of Iowa’s new indoor football practice facility say they’re still owed money for their work. Four subcontractors have filed claims in state court in recent weeks alleging the project’s general manager, the Samuels Group, Inc. of Wausau, Wis., owes them a total of more than $1.5 million.

In a separate federal lawsuit, the Samuels Group argues that it should not have to pay some of the companies because they delivered and installed metal panels that did not initially meet specifications. State and federal judges are expected to sort out the claims in the coming months.

The new practice facility has been praised by the football team, which was competing in the Outback Bowl on Wednesday.

With KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — There are only seven players left on the Kansas City Chiefs roster who’ve been with the team since the 2008 season, who have enjoyed scant few highs and unimaginable lows. In that time span, there have been four coaching changes. There’s been two seasons in which the Chiefs went 2-14, matching the franchise mark for futility. There was a murder-suicide that involved a teammate, and a fan revolt that came to symbolize a lost season a year ago.

Yet for Jamaal Charles, Brandon Flowers and the rest of those hardy souls, all of those years of disappointment have been worth it now that Kansas City is back in the playoffs. The Chiefs visit Indianapolis on Saturday searching for their first postseason win since 2003.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The mother of former Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the team after exhuming his body so that his brain could be examined. The lawsuit, filed by Cheryl Shepherd in Jackson County circuit court Tuesday, alleges that Belcher was subjected to “repetitive head trauma” and that the Chiefs failed to provide adequate medical care before he killed his girlfriend and then committed suicide last December.

Belcher’s body was exhumed this month at his family’s request so his brain could be studied for chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative condition found in some former players. Shepherd is seeking a jury trial and $15,000 in damages.

A spokesman for the Chiefs told The Associated Press that the team was aware of the lawsuit but could not comment on pending litigation.