TEXANS, COWBOYS BOTH PLAYOFFBOUND AS 2018 TURNS INTO 2019

WHILE BOTH THE Texans and Cowboys are in the playoffs, the question for both will be whom they will face next weekend. Houston’s path is trickier than the one Dallas has all but locked up, making them more of a must-watch on Sunday. The end of the old year and the start of the new one are tied together in the form of high school soccer scrimmages, as the regular season begins for the girls this week. SUNDAY: The Texans are in the playoffs, but their Wild Card Weekend fate will be determined by the outcome of the regular season finale against the visiting Jaguars beginning at noon. A win would clinch the AFC South for Houston (10- 5) and would set them up for a home game either next Saturday or Sunday. However, a loss to Jacksonville (5-10) would put the Texans on the road, as the Sunday night game between the Colts and Titans would decide the division winner. The Texans took a 20-7 decision at the Jaguars on October 21. KHOU 11 will have the game live. Assured of the NFC East title and a home playoff game next weekend, the Cowboys (9-6) could use their regular season finale at the Giants (5-10) as an opportunity to give their key players an added day of rest. Dallas is locked into the fourth seed in the NFC, so playoff positioning is not an issue. The Cowboys defeated the Giants 20-13 in their previous regular season meeting on September 16. KRIV 26 will have the game live. MONDAY: With the girls’ soccer regular season beginning later in the week, a host of schools will take part in their final scrimmages before the matches count for real. Clear Springs is at Fort Bend Clements beginning at 12:00pm, while Texas City travels to Clear Falls for a 2:00pm scrimmage. The boys’ soccer slate also has a pair of scrimmages, with Clear Springs at Kingwood starting at 12:30pm and Clear Brook visiting Houston Memorial for a 7:30pm scrimmage. In what has become a tradition, the Rockets close out the year with a New Year’s Eve matchup against the Grizzlies at Toyota Center beginning at 6:00pm. Houston needed a triple-double from James Harden (32 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) to fend off Memphis in a 105-97 road win on December 15. AT&T Sportsnet Southwest will have the game live starting with the pregame show at 5:30pm. TUESDAY: The year doesn’t start silently. Friendswood’s girls’ soccer team gets its final tune-up when the Mustangs host Clear Lake and Dawson for a triscrimmage beginning at 2:00pm. Clear Falls’ boys’ soccer team will scrimmag