“THE SCOREBOARD”
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INDIANA BOYS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
ANDERSON PREP 86 SMITH ACADEMY 55
ANDREAN 58 HIGHLAND 44
BARR-REEVE 50 NORTH DAVIESS 45 OT
BATESVILLE 53 CONNERSVILLE 45
BENTON CENTRAL 68 RENSSELAER CENTRAL 26
BETHANY CHRISTIAN 69 HAMILTON 9
BLOOMINGTON SOUTH 68 MARTINSVILLE 56
BLUFFTON 55 FORT WAYNE HAWKS 49
COLUMBIA CITY 61 DEKALB 53
CONNERSVILLE CHRISTIAN 50 UNION COUNTY 38
CRAWFORDSVILLE 60 SOUTHMONT 50
EASTERN (GREENTOWN) 109 SOUTHERN WELLS 39
EASTERN GREENE 63 SOUTH KNOX 58
FISHERS 79 CARROLL (FORT WAYNE) 37
FRANKFORT 67 CLINTON CENTRAL 62
FRANKTON 58 WES-DEL 36
FRONTIER 68 TRI-COUNTY 55
GARY LIGHTHOUSE 55 TIPPECANOE VALLEY 47
HAMILTON HEIGHTS 65 MACONAQUAH 51
HAMMOND NOLL 63 WHITING 19
HARRISON (WEST LAFAYETTE) 70 MERRILLVILLE 35
HUNTINGTON NORTH 56 BELLMONT 50
INDIANAPOLIS METROPOLITAN 54 WESTERN 47
JIMTOWN 83 SOUTH BEND WASHINGTON 62
KANKAKEE VALLEY 51 LOWELL 46 OT
KNOX 40 NORTH JUDSON 33
KOKOMO 60 TIPTON 50
LAFAYETTE JEFF 72 LAFAYETTE CENTRAL CATHOLIC 51
LAPEL 79 DALEVILLE 44
LAWRENCEBURG 51 JAC-CEN-DEL 27
LEBANON 68 COVINGTON 28
LEO 43 EAST NOBLE 40
MADISON-GRANT 54 EASTBROOK 46
MANCHESTER 74 ADAMS CENTRAL 48
MISHAWAKA 73 TRINITY ACADEMY 39
MONROE CENTRAL 66 BLACKFORD 65 OT
MONROVIA 80 MOORESVILLE CHRISTIAN 26
MOORESVILLE 68 GREENCASTLE 56
MOUNT VERNON (FORTVILLE) 69 HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN 50
NEW HAVEN 58 NORWELL 51
NORTH MIAMI 51 TRI-CENTRAL 34
NORTH MONTGOMERY 57 VICTORY COLLEGE PREP 46
PENDLETON HEIGHTS 68 TRI-WEST 43
PENN 96 FORT WAYNE WAYNE 65
PIKE 74 INDIANAPOLIS SHORTRIDGE 59
RANDOLPH SOUTHERN 63 WAPAHANI 62
RICHMOND 76 CENTERVILLE 74
ROSSVILLE 63 SEEGER 49
SEYMOUR 54 SCOTTSBURG 45
SHELBYVILLE 64 GREENFIELD-CENTRAL 45
SHENANDOAH 58 EASTERN HANCOCK 55
TERRE HAUTE NORTH 75 SOUTHPORT 57
TRITON CENTRAL 41 INDIANAPOLIS LUTHERAN 35
WARSAW 70 GARRETT 37
WESTFIELD 88 MUNCIE CENTRAL 75
ZIONSVILLE 42 WARREN CENTRAL 39
BI-COUNTY TOURNAMENT
BREMEN 58 CULVER 26
CULVER ACADEMY TOURNAMENT
CULVER ACADEMY 53 FORT WAYNE CANTERBURY 36
LAKE FOREST ACADEMY (ILL.) 69 CAREER ACADEMY 18
CAREER ACADEMY 53 FORT WAYNE CANTERBURY 48
LAKE FOREST ACADEMY (ILL.) 48 CULVER ACADEMY 34
INDIANAPOLIS CITY TOURNAMENT
INDIANAPOLIS CATHEDRAL 67 INDIANAPOLIS RITTER 54
INDIANAPOLIS SCECINA 67 INDIANAPOLIS ATTUCKS 38
PCC TOURNAMENT
KOUTS 56 SOUTH CENTRAL (UNION MILLS) 37
WASHINGTON TWP. 59 BOONE GROVE 48
KOUTS 79 WASHINGTON TWP. 60
SSAC TOURNAMENT
LALUMIERE REGIONAL 74 ST. THOMAS MORE 66 OT
BLOOMFIELD LOOGOOTEE PPD., F2
BORDEN HENRYVILLE PPD., F12
BROWN COUNTY MORRISTOWN PPD., F10
CANNELTON LIGHTHOUSE CHRISTIAN PPD., F7
CARMEL BROWNSBURG PPD., F10
CASTLE EVANSVILLE MEMORIAL PPD.
CLAY CITY CLOVERDALE PPD.
CLINTON PRAIRIE WEST CENTRAL PPD.
COLUMBUS EAST JEFFERSONVILLE PPD., F21
CROTHERSVILLE MEDORA PPD.
DEMOTTE CHRISTIAN NORTH WHITE PPD., J27
DUBOIS ACADEMY (KY.) SOUTH CENTRAL (ELIZABETH) PPD.
EDGEWOOD BEDFORD NORTH LAWRENCE PPD.
EDINBURGH TRI PPD., F12
EVANSVILLE CHRISTIAN SOUTHRIDGE PPD., F17
EVANSVILLE REITZ NEW ALBANY PPD.
FAITH CHRISTIAN CARROLL (FLORA) PPD.
FRANKLIN NEW PALESTINE PPD., F24
FRANKLIN COUNTY NORTHEASTERN PPD.
GARY WEST LAWRENCE CENTRAL PPD.
HAUSER RISING SUN PPD., F10
INTERNATIONAL UNION (MODOC) PPD., F28
JASPER EVANSVILLE HARRISON PPD.
KNIGHTSTOWN WINCHESTER PPD.
LANESVILLE CLARKSVILLE PPD., F10
MUNCIE BURRIS HAGERSTOWN PPD., F11
NEW WASHINGTON MADISON PPD.
NORTH CENTRAL (FARMERSBURG) NORTH VERMILLION PPD.
NORTH HARRISON SALEM PPD., F7
NORTH NEWTON ATTICA PPD., F21
NORTH PUTNAM OWEN VALLEY PPD.
NORTHVIEW CASCADE PPD.
OWENSBORO CATHOLIC (KY.) EVANSVILLE DAY PPD.
PAOLI CHRISTIAN ACADEMY PPD., F17
PARKE HERITAGE EVANSVILLE CENTRAL PPD.
PERRY MERIDIAN COLUMBUS NORTH PPD.
PIKE CENTRAL WASHINGTON PPD., F17
PLEASANT VIEW CHRISTIAN CHRISTIAN ACADEMY MADISON PPD.
PRAIRIE HEIGHTS WHITKO PPD., J28
PROVIDENCE INDIANAPOLIS RONCALLI PPD., F14
SHOALS WOOD MEMORIAL PPD.
SOUTH DECATUR GREENSBURG PPD., F19
SOUTH PUTNAM DUGGER UNION PPD., F27
SPRINGS VALLEY NORTHEAST DUBOIS PPD.
SWITZERLAND COUNTY SOUTH DEARBORN PPD.
TECUMSEH FOREST PARK PPD.
TELL CITY GIBSON SOUTHERN PPD., F7
TERRE HAUTE SOUTH BLOOMINGTON NORTH PPD., F17
TRINITY LUTHERAN AUSTIN PPD.
WALDRON BETHESDA CHRISTIAN PPD., J27
WASHINGTON CATHOLIC SEVEN OAKS PPD.
WHITE RIVER VALLEY SULLIVAN PPD., J30
WINAMAC DELPHI PPD.
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INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
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INDIANA WRESTLING
INDIANA STATE WRESTLING ASSOCIATION: https://www.iswa.com/
INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS WRESTLING COACHES ASSOCIATION: https://www.ihsgw.net/
INDIANA MAT: https://indianamat.com/
============
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
#18 CLEMSON 77 GEORGIA TECH 63
#15 VANDERBILT 88 MISSISSIPPI STATE 56
#22 NORTH CAROLINA 85 #14 VIRGINIA 80
#5 DUKE 90 WAKE FOREST 69
#10 MICHIGAN STATE 91 MARYLAND 48
#7 NEBRASKA 76 MINNESOTA 57
#2 UCONN 75 VILLANOVA 67 OT
TEXAS 87 #21 GEORGIA 67
#12 TEXAS TECH 90 #6 HOUSTON 86
#1 ARIZONA 88 WEST VIRGINIA 53
#23 LOUISVILLE 85 VIRGINIA TECH 71
#11 ILLINOIS 88 #4 PURDUE 82
IOWA STATE 84 OKLAHOMA STATE 71
AUBURN 76 #16 FLORIDA 67
#20 ARKANSAS 85 LSU 81
#13 BYU 91 UTAH 78
#19 KANSAS 86 KANSAS STATE 62
#GONZAGA 68 SAN FRANCISCO 66
TENNESSEE 79 #17 ALABAMA 73
UCLA 71 NORTHWESTERN 64
BALL STATE 58 NORTHERN ILLINOIS 53
KENT STATE 76 EASTERN MICHIGAN 75 2OT
TOLEDO 73 BOWLING GREEN 72
WESTERN MICHIGAN 77 CENTRAL MICHIGAN 65
GEORGETOWN 81 PROVIDENCE 78
ST. JOHN’S 88 XAVIER 83
DEPAUL 67 SETON HALL 60
DUQUESNE 71 LOYOLA ILLINOIS 59
ST. JOSEPH’S 81 DAYTON 74
RHODE ISLAND 74 GEORGE MASON 65
GEORGE WASHINGTON 85 RICHMOND 69
VCU 75 DAVIDSON 69
CENTRAL FLORIDA 95 COLORADO 86
TCU 97 BAYLOR 90
ARIZONA STATE 82 CINCINNATI 68
KENTUCKY 72 OLE MISS 63
TEXAS A&M 92 SOUTH CAROLINA 69
MISSOURI 88 OKLAHOMA 87 OT
DRAKE 76 INDIANA STATE 62
BELMONT 80 ILLINOIS STATE 69
NORTHERN IOWA 81 MURRAY STATE 76
ILLINOIS CHICAGO 85 BRADLEY 70
WRIGHT STATE 88 NORTHERN KENTUCKY 80
GREEN BAY 71 ROBERT MORRIS 67
MILWAUKEE 65 YOUNGSTOWN STATE 64
OAKLAND 95 DETROIT MERCY 87
==========
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL SCORES
#8 LOUISVILLE 85 BOSTON COLLEGE 56
#1 UCONN 92 SETON HALL 52
#20 PRINCETON 58 BROWN 49
GEORGIA 72 #11 KENTUCKY 67
#24 NEBRASKA 81 ILLINOIS 75
#9 TCU 67 CENTRAL FLORIDA 50
#21 DUKE 95 PITTSBURGH 41
#19 TEXAS TECH 77 UTAH 49
#22 WEST VIRGINIA 91 BYU 77
OREGON 89 PENN STATE 59
ST. JOSEPH’S 72 DUQUESNE 53
DAVIDSON 66 VCU 51
LASALLE 83 ST. BONAVENTURE 74
GEORGE WASHINGTON 58 FORDHAM 47
LOYOLA ILLINOIS 74 ST. LOUIS 59
CINCINNATI 66 ARIZONA STATE 64
IOWA STATE 90 ARIZONA STATE 65
============
NFL
NFL PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
NFL CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME SCHEDULE
JAN. 25
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP, 3:00 ET, CBS
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP, 6:30 ET, FOX
SUPER BOWL 60 SCHEDULE
FEB. 8
AFC CHAMPION VS. NFC CHAMPION, 6:30 PM NBC
==========
NBA
CHARLOTTE 119 WASHINGTON 115
NEW YORK 112 PHILADELPHIA 109
CLEVELAND 119 ORLANDO 105
CHICAGO 114 BOSTON 111
LA LAKERS 116 DALLAS 110
MIAMI 147 UTAH 116
===========
NHL
BUFFALO 5 NY ISLANDERS 0
UTAH 5 NASHVILLE 2
DETROIT 5 WINNIPEG 1
COLUMBUS 8 TAMPA BAY 5
CAROLINA 4 OTTAWA 1
BOSTON 4 MONTRÉAL 3
LOS ANGELES 5 ST. LOUIS 4
FLORIDA 4 MINNESOTA 3 OT
EDMONTON 6 WASHINGTON 5 OT
===========
WOMEN’S PRO VOLLEYBALL
OMAHA 3 INDY IGNITE 1
============
NATIONAL SPORTS NEWS RELEASES
NFL PLAYOFFS, WHAT TO EXPECT
Below are the players, coaches and teams that can set historic marks or reach career milestones during the 2025 Conference Championships, including:
- New England Patriots
- Denver Broncos
- Los Angeles Rams
- Seattle Seahawks
- Mike Vrabel
- Sean Payton
- Sean McVay
- Mike Macdonald
- QB Drake Maye
- QB Jarrett Stidham
- QB Matthew Stafford
- QB Sam Darnold
- WR Davante Adams
- WR Puka Nacua
- WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
- WR Cooper Kupp
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WINS
New England is 11-5 (.688) in Conference Championship games, the most such wins in NFL history.
Denver is 8-2 (.800) in their previous 10 Conference Championship games and with a win on Sunday against the Patriots (3 p.m. ET, CBS), can surpass the Dallas Cowboys (eight wins), Pittsburgh Steelers (eight) and San Francisco 49ers (eight) for the second-most Conference Championship wins in NFL history.
The teams with the most Conference Championship wins in NFL history:
| TEAM | CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WINS |
| New England Patriots | 11 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 8 |
| Denver Broncos | 8 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 8 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 8 |
DENVER BRONCOS
Denver led the league with 68 sacks this season, tied with the New York Giants (68 sacks in 1985) for the fifth-most sacks in a regular season in NFL history.
With at least two sacks against New England on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, CBS), the Broncos, who have 71 sacks this season, including the playoffs, can surpass the 1983 Los Angeles Raiders (72 sacks) and the 1985 New York Giants (72) for the fifth-most sacks in a season, including the playoffs, in NFL history. Only the 1984 and 1985 Chicago Bears (82 sacks in 1984; 80 in 1985), the 2022 Philadelphia Eagles (78) and the 1967 Oakland Raiders (74) have more.
The teams with the most sacks in a season, including the playoffs, in NFL history:
| TEAM | SEASON | SACKS |
| Chicago | 1984 | 82 |
| Chicago | 1985 | 80 |
| Philadelphia | 2022 | 78 |
| Oakland Raiders | 1967 | 74 |
| L.A. Raiders | 1983 | 72 |
| N.Y. Giants | 1985 | 72 |
| Denver | 2025 | 71* |
| *entering AFC Championship Game | ||
LOS ANGELES RAMS
With a win at Seattle on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), the No. 5 seed Rams, can become the fifth non-division winning team since realignment in 2002 to advance to the Super Bowl, joining the 2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2010 Green Bay Packers, 2007 New York Giants and 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers.
TOP SCORING OFFENSE AND TOP SCORING DEFENSE
On Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Seattle, who led the NFL in scoring defense during the 2025 regular season (17.2 points per game allowed), will host the Los Angeles Rams, who led the NFL in scoring offense (30.5 points per game) in 2025, marking the third Championship Game since 1970 to feature the No. 1 scoring offense against the No. 1 scoring defense from the regular season, joining 2014 NFC Championship Game (Green Bay vs. Seattle) and 1980 NFC Championship Game (Dallas vs. Philadelphia).
The Championship Games to feature a matchup between the No. 1 scoring offense and No. 1 scoring defense from the regular season:
| DATE | NO. 1 OFFENSE | NO. 1 DEFENSE | RESULT |
| Jan. 25, 2026 | L.A. Rams | Seattle | ??? |
| Jan. 18, 2015 | Green Bay | Seattle | GB 22 at SEA 28 (OT) |
| Jan. 11, 1981 | Dallas | Philadelphia | DAL 7 at PHI 20 |
MIKE VRABEL
New England head coach Mike Vrabel has 16 wins, including the playoffs, in his first year as head coach with the Patriots.
With a win on Sunday against Denver (3 p.m. ET, CBS), Vrabel can become the eighth coach in NFL history to lead his team to a Super Bowl appearance in his first season with a club, joining Gary Kubiak (2015 with Denver), Jim Caldwell (2009 with Indianapolis), Bill Callahan (2002 with the Oakland Raiders), Jon Gruden (2002 with Tampa Bay Buccaneers), George Seifert (1989 with San Francisco), Red Miller (1977 with Denver) and Don McCafferty (1970 with the Baltimore Colts).
The head coaches to lead their team to a Super Bowl appearance in their first season with a team in NFL history:
| HEAD COACH | TEAM | SEASON |
| Gary Kubiak | Denver | 2015 |
| Jim Caldwell | Indianapolis | 2009 |
| Bill Callahan | Oakland Raiders | 2002 |
| Jon Gruden | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2002 |
| George Seifert | San Francisco | 1989 |
| Red Miller | Denver | 1977 |
| Don McCafferty | Baltimore Colts | 1970 |
With a win on Sunday, Vrabel can tie George Siefert (17 wins in 1989 with San Francisco) for the most wins by a coach in their first season with a team in NFL history, including the playoffs.
The head coaches with the most wins in their first season with a team, including the playoffs, in NFL history:
| HEAD COACH | TEAM | SEASON | WINS |
| George Seifert | San Francisco | 1989 | 17 |
| Jim Caldwell | Indianapolis | 2009 | 16 |
| Mike Vrabel | New England | 2025 | 16* |
| *entering AFC Championship Game | |||
SEAN PAYTON
Denver head coach Sean Payton led the Broncos to 14 wins this season, tying a franchise record and earning an AFC West title, as well as the No. 1 seed for the first time since 2015.
With a win against New England on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, CBS), Payton, who led New Orleans to the Super Bowl XLIV title following the 2009 season, can become the eighth coach ever to lead multiple franchises to a Super Bowl appearance.
The head coaches to make the Super Bowl with multiple franchises:
| HEAD COACH | TEAM & SEASON(S) | TEAM & SEASON(S) |
| John Fox | Carolina (2003) | Denver (2013) |
| Mike Holmgren | Green Bay (1996-97) | Seattle (2005) |
| Bill Parcells HOF | N.Y. Giants (1986, 1990) | New England (1996) |
| Dan Reeves | Denver (1986-87, 1989) | Atlanta (1998) |
| Andy Reid | Philadelphia (2004) | Kansas City (2019-20, 2022-24) |
| Don Shula HOF | Baltimore Colts (1968) | Miami (1971-73, 1982, 1984) |
| Dick Vermeil HOF | Philadelphia (1980) | St. Louis Rams (1999) |
SEAN MCVAY
Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay has 10 career playoff wins, including a Super Bowl LVI victory with the Rams.
With a win at Seattle on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), McVay, who turns 40 years old on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Don Shula (10 wins) for the most postseason victories by a head coach under the age of 45 in NFL history.
MIKE MACDONALD
Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald led the Seahawks to 14 wins during the 2025 regular season, a single-season franchise record.
With a win against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Macdonald, who is 38 years old and has 15 wins this season, including the playoffs, can tie Sean McVay (16 wins in 2021 with the Los Angeles Rams) for the most wins by a head coach under the age of 40 in a season, including the playoffs, in NFL history.
DRAKE MAYE
New England quarterback Drake Maye led the NFL with a 113.5 passer rating and has 447 passing yards and four touchdowns in two career playoff games.
With a win at Denver on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, CBS), Maye, who is 23 years old, can become the third starting quarterback under the age of 24 to reach the Super Bowl all-time, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino (1984) and Ben Roethlisberger (2005).
Maye, who has won each of his first two career playoff games, can become the fourth quarterback since 2000 to win each of his first three career playoff starts, joining Tom Brady (won first 10 starts), Joe Burrow (three) and Jake Delhomme (three).
Additionally, Maye can join Ben Roethlisberger (five wins) as the only quarterbacks to win three playoff starts prior to their 24th birthday in NFL history.
Maye has 14 games this season with a passer rating of 100-or-higher, including the playoffs, and with a passer rating of 100-or-higher on Sunday, can tie Lamar Jackson (15 games with Baltimore in 2024) and Matt Ryan (15 with Atlanta in 2016) for the most such games in a season, including the playoffs, in NFL history. Only Aaron Rodgers (16 games with Green Bay in 2020) has more.
The players with the most games with a passer rating of 100-or-higher in a season, including the playoffs, in NFL history:
| PLAYER | TEAM | SEASON | GAMES |
| Aaron Rodgers | Green Bay | 2020 | 16 |
| Lamar Jackson | Baltimore | 2024 | 15 |
| Matt Ryan | Atlanta | 2016 | 15 |
| Patrick Mahomes | Kansas City | 2018 | 14 |
| Drake Maye | New England | 2025 | 14* |
| Steve Young HOF | San Francisco | 1994 | 14 |
| *entering AFC Championship Game | |||
JARRETT STIDHAM
Denver quarterback Jarrett Stidham has 1,080 passing yards and six touchdowns in four career starts.
Stidham, who is expected to make his first start of the season against New England on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, CBS), can become the seventh quarterback in the Super Bowl era to make their first start of the season in the playoffs, joining Taylor Heinicke (Jan. 9, 2021; NFC-WC with Washington), Connor Cook (Jan. 7, 2017; AFC-WC with the Oakland Raiders), Joe Webb (Jan. 5, 2013; NFC-WC with Minnesota), Frank Reich (Jan. 3, 1993; AFC-WC with Buffalo), Gary Danielson (Dec. 31, 1983; NFC-D with Detroit) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Roger Staughbach (Dec. 31, 1972; NFC-C with Dallas).
The quarterbacks to make their first start of the season in the playoffs in the Super Bowl era:
| PLAYER | TEAM | DATE (ROUND) | RESULT |
| Jarrett Stidham* | Denver | Jan. 25, 2026 | ??? |
| Taylor Heinicke | Washington | Jan. 9, 2021 (NFC-WC) | TB 31 at WAS 23 |
| Connor Cook | Oakland Raiders | Jan. 7, 2017 (AFC-WC) | OAK 14 at HOU Texans 27 |
| Joe Webb | Minnesota | Jan. 5, 2013 (NFC-WC) | MIN 10 at GB 24 |
| Frank Reich | Buffalo | Jan. 3, 1993 (AFC-WC) | HOU Oilers 38 at BUF 41 (OT) |
| Gary Danielson | Detroit | Dec. 31, 1983 (NFC-D) | DET 23 at SF 24 |
| Roger Staubach HOF | Dallas | Dec. 31, 1972 (NFC-C) | DAL 3 at WAS 26 |
| *expected to start | |||
With only four career starts, Stidham has the fewest career starts by a quarterback entering the Championship Game since 1970.
MATTHEW STAFFORD
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who led the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdown passes this season, has 3,558 passing yards and 22 touchdown passes in 12 career postseason starts.
With a win at Seattle on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Stafford can become sixth player in NFL history to lead the NFL in both passing yards and touchdown passes and make the Super Bowl in the same year, joining Tom Brady (2007 with New England), Patrick Mahomes (2022 with Kansas City) and Pro Football Hall of Famers Peyton Manning (2013 with Denver), Dan Marino (1984 with Miami) and Kurt Warner (2001 with the St. Louis Rams).
SAM DARNOLD
Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold ranked fifth in the NFL with 4,048 passing yards in his first season with the Seahawks.
With a win against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Darnold can become the fifth starting quarterback since 2000 to make the Super Bowl in his first season with a team, joining Tom Brady (2020 with Tampa Bay), Jake Delhomme (2003 with Carolina), Trent Dilfer (2000 with Baltimore) and Matthew Stafford (2021 with the Los Angeles Rams).
DAVANTE ADAMS
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Davante Adams led the NFL with 14 touchdown receptions this season.
With a win at Seattle on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Adams can become fifth player since 1990 to lead the NFL in touchdown receptions during the regular season and make the Super Bowl in the same year, joining Larry Fitzgerald (2008 with Arizona), Rob Gronkowski (2011 with New England), Cooper Kupp (2021 with the Los Angeles Rams) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss (2007 with New England).
PUKA NACUA & JAXON SMITH-NJIGBA
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua led the NFL with a career-high 129 receptions and ranked second with 1,715 receiving yards in 2025.
With a win at Seattle on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Nacua can become the fourth player to lead the NFL in receptions during the regular season and make the Super Bowl in the same year, joining Todd Christensen (1983 with the Los Angeles Raiders), Cooper Kupp (2021 with the Los Angeles Rams) and Wes Welker (2007 and 2011 with New England).
Seattle wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba led the league with a career-high 1,793 receiving yards this season.
With a win against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Smith-Njigba can become the fourth player to lead the NFL in receiving yards during the regular season and make the Super Bowl in the same year, joining Cooper Kupp (2021 with the Los Angeles Rams) as well as Pro Football Hall of Famers Drew Pearson (1977 with Dallas) and Jerry Rice (1989 and 1994 with San Francisco).
With Smith-Njigba (1,793 receiving yards) and Nacua (1,715), this will be the first playoff game ever to feature two players with at least 1,700 receiving yards in the regular season and the fourth postseason matchup all-time between the top-two leaders in receiving yards from the regular season, joining the 2020 AFC Championship Game (Stefon Diggs and Travis Kelce), 1993 NFC Championship Game (Pro Football Hall of Famers Jerry Rice and Michael Irvin) and 1971 AFC Divisional playoffs (Otis Taylor and Pro Football Hall of Famer Paul Warfield).
COOPER KUPP
Seattle wide receiver Cooper Kupp had 634 receptions for 7,776 yards and 57 touchdowns with the Los Angeles Rams (2017-24).
On Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Kupp, who was named Super Bowl LVI Most Valuable Player while with the Rams, will become the fifth player ever to face the team he won Super Bowl MVP with in the postseason, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Richard Dent (1994 with San Francisco against Chicago) and Peyton Manning (2014 with Denver against Indianapolis) as well as Santonio Holmes (2010 with the New York Jets against Pittsburgh) and Von Miller (2024 with Buffalo against Denver).
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW
For the first time in 14 seasons (since 2011) and 11th time since 1970, four new teams are in the Conference Championships compared to the previous season. On Sunday, New England will travel to Denver for the AFC Championship Game (3 p.m. ET, CBS) and the Los Angeles Rams will visit Seattle in the NFC Championship Game (6:30 p.m. ET, FOX).
This postseason, there have been 15 fourth quarter lead changes, the most in any postseason in NFL history, and six games decided by four points or fewer, tied with 2021 and 2006 for the most such games in NFL postseason history.
The Conference Championship games feature the top three scoring offenses (the Los Angeles Rams, New England and Seattle) and three of the top four scoring defenses (Seattle, Denver and New England) from the regular season.
AFC Championship Game (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 2 New England Patriots (16-3) at No. 1 Denver Broncos (15-3)
Championship history: The Patriots are 11-5 (.688) in Conference Championship games, tied with the Green Bay Packers (11) for the most in NFL history. The Broncos are 8-2 (.800) in their previous 10 Conference Championship appearances, the highest winning percentage in Championship games all-time.
Postseason history: Denver is 4-1 against New England in the postseason, including home Conference Championship wins in 2013 (Denver 26, New England 16 on Jan. 19, 2014) and 2015 (Denver 20, New England 18 on Jan. 24, 2016).
Game notes:
- The Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Chargers, 16-3, on Wild Card Weekend and the Houston Texans, 28-16, in the Divisional playoffs. New England has appeared in 11 Super Bowls (6-5), the most in NFL history.
- The Broncos defeated the Buffalo Bills, 33-30, in overtime in the Divisional playoffs. Denver has eight Super Bowl appearances (3-5), tied for the second-most among all teams.
- This season, New England can become the fifth team since 2003 to go from “worst to first” and make the Super Bowl in the same season, joining the 2021 Bengals, 2017 Eagles, 2009 Saints and 2003 Panthers. The 2017 Jaguars and 2006 Saints also followed a last-place finish with an appearance in the Championship Game.
- New England’s Mike Vrabel is the third head coach to win 16 games, including the playoffs, in his first season with a club in NFL history, joining George Seifert (17 wins with San Francisco in 1989) and Jim Caldwell (16 with Indianapolis in 2009).
- Vrabel can become the eighth coach in NFL history and first since 2015 (Gary Kubiak with Denver) to lead his team to a Super Bowl appearance in his first season with a club.
- Denver’s Sean Payton, who led New Orleans to the Super Bowl XLIV title following the 2009 season, can become the eighth coach ever to lead multiple franchises to a Super Bowl appearance, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Bill Parcells (the New York Giants and New England), Don Shula (the Baltimore Colts and Miami) and Dick Vermeil (Philadelphia and the St. Louis Rams) as well as John Fox (Carolina and Denver), Mike Holmgren (Green Bay and Seattle), Dan Reeves (Denver and Atlanta) and Andy Reid (Philadelphia and Kansas City).
- Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who has started four career games, can become the first quarterback ever to start a Conference Championship game with fewer than five career starts. He can also become the seventh quarterback in the Super Bowl era to make his first start of the season in the playoffs and first since 2020 (Taylor Heinicke with Washington).
- Stidham, selected by New England in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, can become the fourth quarterback to start a Conference Championship or Super Bowl against the team that drafted him, joining Daryle Lamonica (Super Bowl II with the Oakland Raiders against Green Bay), Craig Morton (Super Bowl XII with Denver against Dallas) and Joe Theismann (Super Bowl XVII with Washington against Miami).
NFC Championship Game (Sunday, 6:30 p.m. ET, FOX)
No. 5 Los Angeles Rams (14-5) at No. 1 Seattle Seahawks (15-3)
Championship history: The Rams are 7-9 all-time in Conference Championship games but have won four consecutive Championship appearances since 1999. The Seahawks are 3-1 in Conference Championship appearances (3-0 in the NFC, 0-1 in the AFC).
Postseason history: The Rams are 2-0 against the Seahawks in the postseason, with both victories coming in the Wild Card round on the road (2004 and 2020).
2025 regular season: The NFC West rivals split their regular season meetings this season, with each team winning at home. The Rams earned a 21-19 win in Week 11 as their defense recorded four interceptions. In Week 16, the Seahawks recorded a 38-37 overtime victory, overcoming a 16-point fourth quarter deficit, including a game-tying two-point conversion in the fourth quarter and game-winning two-point conversion in overtime.
Divisional opponents in Championship games since 2002: The Los Angeles Rams and Seattle will mark the sixth Conference Championship game between divisional opponents since 2002. In the previous five such matchups, the division-winning team won four times and each of the five winners went on to win the Super Bowl. The previous matchups: 2024 NFC Championship (Washington, 23 at Philadelphia, 55), 2021 NFC Championship (San Francisco, 17 at L.A. Rams, 20), 2013 NFC Championship (San Francisco, 17 at Seattle, 23), 2010 NFC Championship (Green Bay, 21 at Chicago, 14) and 2008 AFC Championship (Baltimore, 14 at Pittsburgh 23).
Game notes:
- The Los Angeles Rams defeated Carolina, 34-31, on Wild Card Weekend and earned a 20-17 overtime win at Chicago in the Divisional playoffs. The Rams have five Super Bowl appearances (2-3), most recently winning Super Bowl LVI following the 2021 season.
- Seattle defeated San Francisco, 41-6, in the Divisional playoffs for its first postseason win since the 2019 Wild Card round (at Philadelphia). The Seahawks have played in three Super Bowls (1-2), including consecutive appearances following the 2013 (won Super Bowl XLVIII against Denver) and 2014 season (lost Super Bowl XLIX to New England).
- The Seahawks will become the sixth team since 1970 to face multiple division opponents in the same postseason, joining the 2021 Los Angeles Rams, 1997 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1985 New England Patriots, 1983 Seattle Seahawks and 1982 Miami Dolphins.
- The Rams can become the fifth Wild Card team since realignment in 2002 to advance to the Super Bowl, joining the 2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2010 Green Bay Packers, 2007 New York Giants and 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers.
- The Rams – who led the NFL in scoring offense (30.5 points per game) – and the Seahawks – who led the NFL in scoring defense (17.2 points per game allowed) – during the 2025 regular season will mark the third Championship Game since 1970 to feature the No. 1 scoring offense against No. 1 scoring defense from the regular season, joining 2014 NFC Championship Game (Green Bay vs. Seattle) and 1980 NFC Championship Game (Dallas vs. Philadelphia).
- With head coaches Mike Macdonald (age 38) and Sean McVay (turns 40 years old on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026), it will mark the second Championship game ever to feature two head coaches age 40-or-younger, joining the 2019 NFC Championship game between San Francisco and Green Bay (Kyle Shanahan and Matt LaFleur, both age 40).
- Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who was named Super Bowl LVI Most Valuable Player while with the Rams, will become the fifth player ever to face the team he won Super Bowl MVP with in the postseason, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Richard Dent (1994 with San Francisco against Chicago) and Peyton Manning (2014 with Denver against Indianapolis) as well as Santonio Holmes (2010 with the New York Jets against Pittsburgh) and Von Miller (2024 with Buffalo against Denver).
- Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold can become the eighth quarterback ever to lead his team to a Super Bowl appearance in his first season with a team and first since Matthew Stafford in 2021 with the Los Angeles Rams.
NFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME PREVIEW: LOS ANGELES RAMS (14-5, NO. 5) AT SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
(15-3, NO. 1)
All-Time Series History
Regular Season: SEA leads series, 29-26 (SEA won 2 of past 3)
Postseason: LAR leads series, 2-0
The Last Time…
Regular Season: 12/18/25: LAR 37 at SEA 38 (OT)
Postseason: NFC-WC 1/9/21: LAR 30 at SEA 20
RAMS NOTES:
RAMS seeking 3rd SB appearance since 2018 (SB LVI win & SB LIII appearance). • HC SEAN MCVAY won 10th career playoff game, most by HC under age 40. • QB MATTHEW STAFFORD has 3,558 pass yards & 25 TDs (22 pass, 3 rush) with 98.2 rating in 12 career postseason starts. Led NFL with 4,707 pass yards & career-high 46 TD passes in 2025, his 10th-career season with 4,000+ pass yards & 20+ TD passes, 1 of 7 QBs in NFL history to do so. Aims for 4th in row vs. Sea. with 2+ TD passes. Made 4th-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • RB KYREN WILLIAMS had 117 scrimmage yards & 2 rush TDs in NFC-D. Aims for 6th in row in postseason with 70+ scrimmage yards. Ranked 10th with career-high 1,533 scrimmage yards in 2025. Aims for 4th in row vs. Sea. with 85+ scrimmage yards. • WR PUKA NACUA has 489 rec. yards (97.8 yards per game) in 5 career postseason starts, 3rd most by player under age 25 all-time. Led NFL with 129 receptions, ranked 2nd with career-high 1,715 rec. yards & tied-6th with 10 TD catches this season. Had career-high 225 rec. yards & had 2 TD catches in Week 16 meeting. Made 2nd-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • WR DAVANTE ADAMS led NFL with 14 TD catches in 2025. Has 1,006 rec. yards & 8 TD catches in 13 career playoff games. • TE COLBY PARKINSON has TD catch in 2 of his past 3 playoff games. • LB NATE LANDMAN had 10 tackles & TFL in NFC-D. Aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with 10+ tackles. Ranked tied-2nd with career-high 4 FFs in 2025. • LB OMAR SPEIGHTS had career-high in playoffs with 8 tackles & 2 PD in NFC-D. • LB BYRON YOUNG ranked tied-8th with career-high 12 sacks this season. Made 1st-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • CB EMMANUEL FORBES ranked tied-3rd with 18 PD this season. Had PD in 11 games in 2025, 1 of 6 players to do so. • CB COBIE DURANT had 2 INTs in NFC-D, his 2nd consecutive playoff game with INT. Aims for 5th in row in playoffs with PD. • S KAM CURL led team with 13 tackles & had INT & 2 PD in NFC-D. Aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with 10+ tackles. Had career-high 122 tackles this season.
SEAHAWKS NOTES:
SEAHAWKS seeking 4th SB appearance in franchise history & 1st since back-to-back appearances in 2013 (SB XLVIII win) & 2014 (XLIX). • QB SAM DARNOLD had TD pass & 110.9 passer rating in NFC-D, his 9th game this season with 110+ rating. Ranked 5th with 4,048 pass yards in 2025. Is 5th QB all-time to record 13+ wins in consecutive seasons & 1st to do so with different teams (Min. in 2024). Had 270 pass yards & 2 TDs in Week 16 meeting. Aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with TD pass. • RB KENNETH WALKER had 145 scrimmage yards (116 rush, 29 rec.) & 3 rush TDs in NFC-D. Had 164 scrimmage yards (100 rush, 64 rec.) in Week 16 meeting & aims for 4th in row vs. LAR with 100+ scrimmage yards. • WR JAXON SMITH-NJIGBA had TD catch in NFC-D. Led NFL with career-high 1,793 rec. yards, ranked 4th with 119 receptions & tied-6th with 10 TD catches in 2025. Became 3rd player in NFL history under age 24 with 1,700+ rec. yards in a single season. Had 96 rec. yards & TD catch in Week 16 meeting. Aims for 3rd in row vs. LAR with 95+ rec. yards. Made 2nd-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • WR RASHID SHAHEED returned opening kickoff 95 yards for TD in NFC-D, 6th game opening kickoff return TD in NFL playoff history. Had PR-TD in Week 16 meeting. • LB ERNEST JONES had 6 tackles, INT & FF in NFC-D. Ranked tied-2nd with career high 5 INTs in 2025. Aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with FF. Had 12 tackles & TFL in Week 16 meeting. Had 316 tackles, 5.5 sacks, FF & 3 INTs with LAR (2021-23). • LB DRAKE THOMAS had 6 tackles & TFL in NFC-D. Had season-high 13 tackles in Week 16 meeting. • LB DEMARCUS LAWRENCE had sack, 2 FFs, 2 TFL & PD in NFC-D, the only player since 2000 to do so in a playoff game. Ranked tied-1st with 3 FRs & tied-7th with 3 FFs in 2025. Made 5th-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • DT LEONARD WILLIAMS had sack in NFC-D. Made 3rd-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • CB DEVON WITHERSPOON led team with 7 tackles & had PD in NFC-D. Had 9 tackles & TFL in Week 16 meeting. Made 3rd-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • S NICK EMMANWORI (rookie) had PD & FR in NFC-D. Had season-high 11 tackles in Week 16.
FOX: Kevin Burkhardt, Tom Brady, Erin Andrews / Tom Rinaldi (field reporter) Westwood One: Kevin Harlan, Kurt Warner
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME PREVIEW
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (16-3, NO. 2) AT DENVER BRONCOS (15-3, NO. 1)
All-Time Series History
Regular Season: DEN leads series, 27-23 (away team won past 4)
Postseason: DEN leads series, 4-1 (home team won all 5)
The Last Time…
Regular Season: 12/24/23: NE 26 at DEN 23
Postseason: AFC-C 1/24/16: NE 18 at DEN 20
PATRIOTS NOTES:
PATRIOTS will appear in 1st Conf. Champ game since 8 consec. appearances from 2011-18. Seeking 4th SB appearance in last 10 seasons (2016-25) & 1st since 2018 (SB LIII win). • QB DRAKE MAYE passed for 179 yards & 3 TDs for 100.7 passer rating in AFC-D, his 14th game this season with 100+ rating, incl. playoffs, tied-4th most in single season in NFL history. Aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with TD pass. Led NFL with 113.5 rating. Ranked 3rd with career-high 31 TD passes & 4th with career-high 4,394 pass yards in 2025 & is 6th QB under 24 in NFL history with 4,000+ pass yards & 30+ TD passes in a single season. Became 3rd QB under 24 all-time with 2+ TD passes & 100+ rating in 10 games in a single season. • RB RHAMONDRE STEVENSON led team with 70 rush yards in AFC-D. Aims for 3rd in row with 80+ scrimmage yards. Had career-high 9 scrimmage TDs this season. • RB TREVEYON HENDERSON ranked 2nd among rookies with 911 rush yards & 1,132 scrimmage yards in 2025. Became 3rd rookie in NFL history (Saquon Barkley & HOFer Lenny Moore) with 4+ rush TDs of 50+ yards. • WR STEFON DIGGS had TD catch in NFC-D & became 7th player in NFL history with playoff TD catch with 3+ different teams. • WR KAYSHON BOUTTE led team with 75 rec. yards & had TD catch in AFC-D. • WR DEMARIO DOUGLAS had 1st career playoff TD catch in AFC-D. • DT MILTON WILLIAMS has 2+ sacks in 2 of his past 3 playoff games. • TE HUNTER HENRY had career-high 768 rec. yards & had 7 TD catches this season. • LB K’LAVON CHAISSON had sack & PD in AFC-D. Had career-high 7.5 sacks, 10 TFL & 2 FFs in 2025. • LB CHRISTIAN ELLISS had TFL & PD in AFC-D & aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with PD. • LB ROBERT SPILLANE had 6 tackles & PD in AFC-D & aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with PD. • CB CHRISTIAN GONZALEZ had 9 tackles, PD & FF in AFC-D. • CB MARCUS JONES had 2 PD & INT-TD in AFC-D. Had career-high 3 INTs this season. • CB CARLTON DAVIS had 4 PD & 2 INT in AFC-D, 1 of 9 to do so in playoffs since 2000. • S CRAIG WOODSON (rookie) had 5 tackles, INT, 3 PD & FR in NFC-D.
BRONCOS NOTES:
BRONCOS won AFC West & earned No. 1 seed for 1st time since 2015. Tied franchise record with 14 wins this season. Have advanced to Super Bowl 6 of previous 8 times as No. 1 seed. Seeking 1st SB appearance since 2015 (SB 50 win). • QB JARRETT STIDHAM expected to make 1st career playoff start & 5th career start in AFC-C. Has 1,422 passing yards & 8 TDs in his career. • RB RJ HARVEY (rookie) had 66 scrimmage yards in AFC-D, his 1st career playoff game. Led rookies with 12 scrimmage TDs in 2025. Was 1 of 2 rookie RBs (Alvin Kamara) since 2000 with 7+ rush TDs & 5+ rec. TDs. Has TD in 5 of his past 6. • WR COURTLAND SUTTON had 53 rec. yards in AFC-D & aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with 50+ rec. yards. Led team in receptions (74) & rec. yards (1,017) in 2025, 3rd season with 1,000+ rec. yards. Made 2nd-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • WR MARVIN MIMS led team with 8 receptions for 93 yards & had TD catch in AFC-D, his 1st career playoff TD. • TE EVAN ENGRAM is 1 of 3 TEs all-time with 40+ receptions in each of 1st 9 seasons. • T FRANK CRUM had TD catch in AFC-D, 6th OL with rec. TD in playoff game since 2000 & 1st since 2021. • LB ALEX SINGLETON led team with 14 tackles & had FF in AFC-D & aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with 14+ tackles. Led team with 135 tackles in 2025, 5th-career season with 100+ tackles. • LB NIK BONITTO had 2 FFs & sack in AFC-D. Had career-high 14 sacks in 2025. Made 2nd-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • DL ZACH ALLEN had 5 tackles & half sack in AFC-D. Made 1st-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • CB PAT SURTAIN II had 47 tackles & 12 PD in 2025. Is 1 of 5 since 2010 with 45+ tackles & 10+ PD in each of 1st 5 seasons. Made 4th-career Pro Bowl in 2025. • CB RILEY MOSS tied-most in NFL with career-high 19 PD this season. • CB JA’QUAN MCMILLIAN had 1st career postseason INT in AFC-D. • S TALANOA HUFANGA had 10 tackles & FR in AFC-D. Set career highs in tackles (106), PD (11) & TFL (6) in 2025. • S P.J. LOCKE had 9 tackles, INT & FF in AFC-D. Aims for 3rd in row in playoffs with 9+ tackles.
CBS: Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson (field reporter) Westwood One: Ryan Radtke, Mike Golic
STEELERS AND MIKE MCCARTHY HAVE REACHED A VERBAL AGREEMENT FOR MCCARTHY TO COACH HIS HOMETOWN TEAM
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mike McCarthy is coming home.
The Pittsburgh Steelers announced Saturday the club has reached a verbal agreement with McCarthy to replace Mike Tomlin as head coach.
McCarthy grew up in the Greenfield neighborhood, just a couple of miles away from the team’s practice facility on the city’s South Side.
The 62-year-old McCarthy is 185–123–2 (playoffs included) across 18 seasons, 13 with Green Bay — which beat the Steelers in the Super Bowl following the 2010 season — and five with Dallas.
His potential hire is just the fourth by the Steelers since 1969 and a marked departure from his predecessors, Tomlin and Hall of Famers Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher.
All three were largely unknown assistants/coordinators. McCarthy is hardly that.
McCarthy would replace Tomlin, who stepped down earlier this month after his 19th season ended with a seventh straight playoff loss, this one at home to the Houston Texans. Tomlin’s surprise departure came as he was under contract for 2026 with a club option for 2027.
The Steelers took a methodical approach, interviewing nearly a dozen candidates that spanned a wide spectrum of experience, from Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores (who spent 2022 as a defensive assistant on Tomlin’s staff) to Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, who was hired by the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday to replace John Harbaugh.
They ultimately landed on McCarthy, who takes over a team that has been stuck in a purgatory of sorts for going on a decade.
Tomlin’s nearly two-decade tenure included 193 regular-season victories — tied with Noll for the most in franchise history — and the team’s sixth Super Bowl. Perhaps most remarkably, Pittsburgh didn’t have a losing season with Tomlin on the sideline.
That startling consistency, however, did not always translate to postseason success. Pittsburgh has been one-and-done in each of its last six playoff appearances, all of them double-digit losses.
In some ways, the Steelers have been victims of their own success. They have frequently been drafting in the high teens and low-20s, not exactly a prime position to find a franchise quarterback. It didn’t help that they chose not to draft Ben Roethlisberger’s replacement in his final seasons, then whiffed badly on Kenny Pickett, who flamed out in less than two years after being taken in the first round of the 2022 draft.
It’s led to a revolving door at the most important position on the field. If Aaron Rodgers, who will be a free agent in March, doesn’t return for a 22nd season, the Steelers will have their sixth different Week 1 quarterback in six years. McCarthy’s arrival, however, would seemingly open the door for the 42-year-old Rodgers to come back.
Rodgers said earlier this month he believes he would have at least a couple of options if he chose to run it back one more time, and his long partnership with McCarthy in Green Bay included a Super Bowl victory over Tomlin and the Steelers. Pittsburgh will have the 21st pick when a draft that appears to be thin in quality options at quarterback descends on the Steel City in late April.
There’s a very real chance the Steelers, who currently only have veteran backup Mason Rudolph and 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard under contract for next season, will kick the can down the road again and address a handful of other positions of need in the draft, namely wide receiver and cornerback.
Regardless, president Art Rooney II brushed off the idea of the Steelers rebuilding.
“I don’t like that word that much,” Rooney said the day after Tomlin resigned. “We’ll try to compete day one if we can.”
McCarthy’s potential arrival would indicate that’s still the plan.
His hire would also give McCarthy a chance to burnish a resume that stalled a bit after guiding the Packers from a wild-card berth to the franchise’s fifth Super Bowl in 2010.
McCarthy is just 6-9 in the playoffs since the confetti fell at AT&T Stadium. That includes a 1-2 mark with the Cowboys, where he posted three straight 12-win seasons from 2021-23 before being fired after Dallas tumbled to 7-10 in 2024 thanks in large part to an injury to quarterback Dak Prescott that limited him to just eight games.
The one thing McCarthy — who early in his career was a graduate assistant at the University of Pittsburgh (which now shares a building with the Steelers) — has consistently done is put together offenses that can move the ball.
McCarthy-coached teams have finished in the top 10 in yards in 12 of his 18 seasons, though his first years in both Green Bay in 2006 and Dallas in 2020 were sluggish.
The Steelers have been stuck in a transition period on offense for a solid half-decade. That transition may soon move to an expensive and aging defense that has potential Hall of Famers at every level (defensive tackle Cam Heyward, linebacker T.J. Watt and defensive back Jalen Ramsey), all in their 30s.
McCarthy would be the first Steelers hire with previous NFL head coaching experience since Mike Nixon in 1965. Nixon lasted just one season in Pittsburgh and was fired after going 2-12. Nixon was replaced by Bill Austin, who made it three years before Pittsburgh hired Noll, a decision that transformed the franchise from a laughingstock into one of the league’s most successful and stable teams.
Noll and his four Super Bowls set a standard of excellence that Cowher and Tomlin maintained in their own unique ways.
That standard, however, had slipped of late. McCarthy’s mandate will be returning some of the luster to a team that hasn’t won a playoff game since the final days of the Barack Obama administration.
It will also provide a test of sorts for the hometown boy who made good, who now gets to find out whether you can truly go home again.
RAIDERS INTERVIEW FORMER GIANTS COACH BRIAN DABOLL FOR HEAD COACHING JOB
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Las Vegas Raiders interviewed former New York Giants coach Brian Daboll on Saturday for their head coaching position.
Daboll coached the Giants from 2022 until midway through this season when the club fired him after a 2-8 start. He was 20-40-1.
In his first season, the Giants went 9-7-1 and won a playoff game. Daboll was named Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year.
He also was Buffalo’s offensive coordinator from 2018-21, overseeing Josh Allen’s development. Daboll was named AP NFL Assistant Coach of the Year in 2020 after Allen passed for 4,544 yards and 37 touchdowns.
The Raiders own the top pick in this year’s draft and are expected to take Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza. The Indiana QB, who led his team to the national championship, declared for the draft Friday.
“He’s just a very mature young man,” Raiders minority owner Tom Brady said Friday on “The Herd with Colin Cowherd.” ”He’s got a bright future. Everybody coming into the league, there’s still so much room for development. Nobody’s a finished product, I don’t care if you won the Heisman or you’re the 199th pick in the draft.”
Daboll is the 15th candidate the Raiders have interviewed since firing Pete Carroll, who went 3-14 in his one season. Three candidates have taken jobs elsewhere — Jeff Hafley with Miami, Jesse Minter with Baltimore and Kevin Stefanski with Atlanta.
Another candidate, former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, appears headed to Los Angeles to be the Chargers’ offensive coordinator, but he reportedly isn’t out of the running for a head coaching job elsewhere. The Raiders’ website does not list him with the Chargers as it does with the other three who took head coaching positions.
The Raiders conducted second interviews this week with Minter and Carolina defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero.
Other coaches under consideration are involved in conference championship games Sunday. From the Los Angeles Rams, the Raiders have interviewed offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur, defensive coordinator Chris Shula and pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase. The Raiders also spoke with Denver defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, Broncos offensive pass game coordinator Davis Webb and Seattle offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.
PACKERS OFFENSIVE TACKLE RASHEED WALKER ARRESTED ON GUN POSSESSION CHARGE AT LAGUARDIA AIRPORT
NEW YORK (AP) — Green Bay Packers offensive tackle Rasheed Walker has been arrested after police say he presented a firearm for inspection without proper credentials at LaGuardia Airport.
Port Authority police said Walker was arrested Friday morning after they responded to a request for a firearms check at LaGuardia’s Terminal C. Police said the 25-year-old had checked in at Delta and had presented a firearm for inspection without proper credentials.
Arthur Aidala, the lawyer representing Walker, said his client voluntarily disclosed an unloaded, secured firearm upon his arrival at the airport. Aidala said Walker was arrested because his license wasn’t valid in New York.
“We are confident the matter will eventually be dismissed,” Aidala said via email.
The Packers’ season ended Jan. 10 with a 31-27 loss to the Chicago Bears in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs.
Walker has been Green Bay’s first-team left tackle for the last three seasons and has started 48 games since the Packers selected him out of Penn State in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. Walker just completed the final year of his contract and is set to become a free agent in the offseason. He has started each of Green Bay’s four playoff games over the last three seasons.
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DABO SWINNEY ACCUSSES OLE MISS’ PETE GOLDING OF ‘BLATANT’ TAMPERING
Clemson football coach Dabo Sweeney denounced Ole Miss coach Pete Golding for allegedly direct tampering with a Tigers player, calling for changes to the current system of college football transfers which he said is “a really sad state of affairs.”
Swinney’s comments came during an hour-long press conference Friday in which he discussed a complaint Clemson filed with the NCAA alleging Golding committed “blatant” and “straightforward” tampering. It came after alleged attempts to lure Clemson’s Luke Ferrelli to Ole Miss after the linebacker had already agreed to a revenue-sharing contract with the Tigers, enrolled in and attended classes, started offseason workouts on campus, rented an apartment and bought a car.
“This is a whole other level of tampering,” Swinney said of the communications between Golding, Ole Miss and Ferrelli. “It’s total hypocrisy. … We have a broken system, and if there are no consequences for tampering, then we have no rules and we have no governance.”
After showing star potential as a freshman at Cal, Ferrelli entered the transfer portal in January and was courted by Clemson and Ole Miss, with Ferrelli signing a contract with Clemson on Jan. 7.
Swinney alleges that Clemson general manager Jordan Sorrells was alerted by Ferrelli’s agent that starting Jan. 14, Ferrelli began receiving communications from Ole Miss to switch allegiances. Those communications allegedly included phone calls from Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and former Ole Miss and current New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Swinney said that at his request, Sorrells reached out to Ole Miss general manager Austin Thomas to cease communications with Ferrelli.
On Jan. 15, Ferrelli started the day assuring Clemson he was staying put but by the end of the day he requested to enter the portal to transfer to Ole Miss.
Swinney filed a complaint with the NCAA on Jan. 16 alleging “blatant” and “straightforward” tampering by Ole Miss. Clemson athletic director Graham Neff said if no resolution is reached by the NCAA, the school will consider further legal action.
“I’m not trying to get anybody fired, but when is enough enough?” Swinney said. “If we have rules, and tampering is a rule, then there should be a consequence for that. And shame on the adults if we’re not going to hold each other accountable.”
The Ferrelli situation is one of several high-profile controversies surrounding the transfer portal. Duke quarterback Darian Mensah is being sued by the school for breach of contract for his attempts to enter the transfer portal for a potential spot at Miami after agreeing to play for the Blue Devils. Quarterback Demond Williams Jr. attempted to back out of a contract with Washington before ultimately returning to the Huskies.
Swinney shared numerous ideas for improving the landscape of college football, including a better revenue-sharing system that would withhold a percentage of money earned until graduation or turning 25 as an attempt to prevent long-term financial problems for players. He even suggested collective bargaining as a better alternative to the current system.
“If we don’t act about these current transfer rules, we’re going to look up in five or six years and see a mass of players without degrees who’ll have spent their short-term money. We’re going to have a bunch of screwed-up 30-year-olds,” Swinney said. “I believe college football is set up to reward the 2% that have a chance to make it to the NFL. As adults, we should know better and do better for the 98 percent of college football players who won’t play in the NFL.”
Swinney also suggested moving the portal window to the spring and limiting free transfers to one per player unless a head coach leaves or the player graduates.
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TOP 25 ROUNDUP: KEATON WAGLER ERUPTS, NO. 11 ILLINOIS BESTS NO. 4 PURDUE
Keaton Wagler poured in a career-high 46 points and his teammates drilled four consecutive 3-pointers down the stretch to rally No. 11 Illinois to a Big Ten victory over No. 4 Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind., on Saturday afternoon
Wagler, a freshman guard, finished 13 of 17 from the field, an Illinois-record 9 of 11 from 3-point range and 11 of 13 at the line to set the Mackey Arena mark for points by a visiting player.
David Mirkovic added 12 points and eight rebounds as the Fighting Illini (17-3, 8-1 Big Ten) canned 18 of 38 3-point tries to earn their ninth win in a row and stay within one game of Nebraska in the conference race.
Braden Smith shrugged off a second-half high ankle sprain to produce 27 points and 12 assists for Purdue (17-3, 7-2), which lost its second straight game since reeling off a nine-game winning streak. Trey Kaufman-Renn added 12 points, and Omer Mayer contributed 11 off the bench.
No. 1 Arizona 88, West Virginia 53
Brayden Burries scored 13 of his game-high 22 points in the first half as the top-ranked Wildcats led wire-to-wire against the Mountaineers in Tucson, Ariz., to claim their biggest Big 12 victory margin since joining the league last year.
Koa Peat added 17 points for Arizona (20-0, 7-0) while Motiejus Krivas notched 11 points and 12 rebounds for his fifth double-double. Anthony Dell’Urso contributed 12 points, and Tobe Awaka grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds.
Chance Moore paced West Virginia (13-7, 4-3) with 12 points. Honor Huff and Treysen Eaglestaff added 10 apiece as the Mountaineers trailed 43-23 at halftime and never got closer.
No. 2 Connecticut 75, Villanova 67 (OT)
Alex Karaban grabbed an offensive rebound with 1:24 left in overtime and sank two free throws to break the game’s 11th tie and lead the Huskies to the Big East victory over the Wildcats in Hartford, Conn.
Karaban recorded all of his 17 points after halftime and added eight rebounds for UConn (19-1, 9-0), which extended its winning streak to 15 games – the program’s longest since a 19-game run by the 1998-99 national champions.
Solo Ball paced the Huskies with 24 points while Tarris Reed added 10 points and 11 rebounds. Tyler Perkins and Duke Brennan posted 16 points apiece for Villanova (15-5, 6-3) while Brennan added 14 rebounds.
No. 5 Duke 90, Wake Forest 69
Cameron Boozer racked up 22 of his 32 points in the second half as the Blue Devils ran away from the Demon Deacons for a victory at Durham, N.C.,
Patrick Ngongba II added 13 points and Isaiah Evans had 11 for the Blue Devils (18-1, 7-0 ACC), who shot 50% from the field and enjoyed a 43-22 rebounding advantage. Boozer shot 11-for-20 with three 3-pointers from the field to go with 7-for-7 free-throw shooting. He also provided a team-high nine rebounds.
Juke Harris’ 23 points and Cooper Schwieger’s 12 points paced Wake Forest (11-9, 2-5), which lost its second game in a row. Omaha Biliew added 11 points and Tre’Von Spillers had 10.
No. 12 Texas Tech 90, No. 6 Houston 86
Donovan Atwell knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers in a 34-second span, then went 3 of 4 from the free-throw line in the final 22 seconds to lift the Red Raiders to a victory over the Cougars at Lubbock, Texas.
J.T. Toppin led Texas Tech (16-4, 6-1 Big 12) to its second home win against a ranked foe in an eight-day span with 31 points and 12 rebounds. Atwell and Jaylin Petty scored 18 apiece and combined to go 10 of 14 from 3-point range, while Christian Anderson scored 12 points with nine assists.
The Red Raiders snapped the Cougars’ program record 16-game road winning streak and spoiled a record-setting performance by Houston freshman Kingston Flemmings. It was just enough to offset Flemmings’ 42 points, the most ever for a Cougars freshman. Houston (17-2, 5-1 Big 12) allowed 90 points in regulation for the first time since 2018.
No. 7 Nebraska 76, Minnesota 57
Pryce Sandfort scored 22 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, and the Cornhuskers relied on a second-half surge to beat the Golden Gophers and remain unbeaten in Minneapolis.
Jamarques Lawrence and Sam Hoiberg added 14 points apiece for Nebraska (20-0, 9-0 Big Ten), which outscored Minnesota 46-21 in the second half after trailing by six points at the break.
Bobby Durkin scored 16 points on 6-for-13 shooting to lead Minnesota (10-10, 3-6), which lost its fifth game in a row. Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and Cade Tyson added 12 points apiece.
No. 8 Gonzaga 68, San Francisco 66
The Bulldogs survived at the buzzer after the Dons missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer to extend their win streak to 14 games in a victory in Spokane, Wash.
This was the Bulldogs’ 34th straight win over the Dons in their 100th meeting for a 78-22 record all-time. Jalen Warley led Gonzaga (21-1, 9-0 West Coast Conference) with a game-high 19 points on 7-for-10 shooting, while Davis Fogle and Tyon Grant-Foster each chipped in 15 points off the bench.
San Francisco (13-9, 5-4) almost played spoiler by making three straight 3-pointers to cut the lead to 68-66 with 1:02 left after going 3:22 without scoring. Junjie Wang’s 3-point shot with three seconds left bounced off the front of the rim before the Bulldogs’ Fogle corralled the rebound with no time left. Legend Smiley was 5-for-6 from 3, scoring 18 points for the Dons. Ryan Beasley had 14 points and four made 3-pointers, and Vukasin Masic tallied 11 points.
No. 9 Iowa State 84, Oklahoma State 71
Milan Momcilovic scored 29 points on 8-of-12 shooting, and the Cyclones held on for a win over the Cowboys in Stillwater, Okla.
Joshua Jefferson added 20 points for Iowa State (18-2, 5-2 Big 12), which won its second straight game after sustaining back-to-back losses. Tamin Lipsey added 13 points. The Cyclones shot 62.1% from the floor in the first half on the way to a 51-21 halftime lead.
Kanye Clary scored 19 points on 5-of-7 shooting to lead Oklahoma State (14-6, 2-5). Jaylen Curry also finished with 19 points. The Cowboys cut the deficit to as little as 10 points with 1:41 left but never were able to cut the deficit to single digits after falling behind 23-4.
No. 10 Michigan State 91, Maryland 48
Jeremy Fears Jr. dominated with 17 points and 17 assists as the Spartans routed the Terrapins at East Lansing, Mich.
Carson Cooper added 14 points and eight rebounds for the Spartans (18-2, 8-1 Big Ten), who converted 60.7% of their field goal attempts, including 9-of-19 3-point shooting. Fears’ gaudy assist total was the most by a Michigan State player since Mateen Cleaves had 20 in a game on March 4, 2000, against Michigan.
Elijah Saunders scored 13 points for Maryland (8-12, 1-8) and David Coit added 11. The Terrapins again experienced trouble offensively, shooting 33.3% from the floor.
No. 13 BYU 91, Utah 78
A.J. Dybantsa scored a career-high 43 points to lead the Cougars to the Big 12 victory over the Utes in Provo, Utah.
Dybantsa shattered the school’s freshman record set by Danny Ainge in 1977. He posted 24 of his points in the second half as BYU (17-2, 5-1) pulled away. Robert Wright III added 21 points as the Cougars shot 53.3% to sweep the season series.
Keanu Dawes paced Utah (9-11, 1-6) with 23 points and Terrance Brown added 22. They each hit four 3-pointers as the Utes canned 13 of 21 shots from beyond the arc. Utah was within 55-53 with 15 minutes to go when BYU broke it open with a 14-3 run.
No. 22 North Carolina 85, No. 14 Virginia 80
The Tar Heels got 17 second-half points from Jarin Stevenson and rallied for a win over the Cavaliers in ACC action in Charlottesville, Va.
Caleb Wilson scored 20 points for the Tar Heels (16-4, 4-3 ACC), who had lost their first three conference road games. It was the 14th 20-point game of the season for the freshman star. Seth Trimble added 16 points, Luka Bogavac had 14 and Derek Dixon added 11.
Thijs De Ridder led Virginia with 20 points and Malik Thomas, Sam Lewis and Chance Mallory each had 11.
No. 15 Vanderbilt 88, Mississippi State 56
Tyler Tanner scored 24 points and the Commodores ended a three-game losing streak by dominating the Bulldogs from start to finish in a victory in Starkville, Miss.
Tanner triggered a few surges and received plenty of help as Duke Miles added 17 points, Tyler Nickel had 13 and Devin McGlockton scored 10 for the Commodores (17-3, 4-3 SEC), who bounced back from a 93-68 loss at No. 20 Arkansas on Tuesday.
Vanderbilt’s defense was much improved after allowing more than 90 points in each of its last two games. The Commodores had 10 steals and forced 17 turnovers, leading to 28 points. Jayden Epps scored 14 off the bench to lead the Bulldogs (10-10, 2-5), who lost their fifth straight. Leading scorer Josh Hubbard (seven points), who entered the game averaging 21.7 points, saw his recent slump continue.
Auburn 76, No. 16 Florida 67
Keyshawn Hall scored 24 points and the Tigers ended the Gators’ five-game winning streak in Gainesville, Fla.
KeShawn Murphy added 16 points, Tahaad Pettiford had 11 and Kevin Overton scored 10 for the Tigers (13-7, 4-3 SEC), who won for the fourth time in five games.
Thomas Haugh recorded 27 points and 10 rebounds, Urban Klavzar scored 12 and Rueben Chinyelu added 10, though his seven rebounds left him short of what would have been his fifth consecutive double-double, for the Gators (14-6, 5-2).
Tennessee 79, No. 17 Alabama 73
Freshman Nate Ament scored a career-high 29 points and collected seven rebounds to lead the Volunteers to a solid victory over the Crimson Tide in SEC play at Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Ja’Kobi Gillespie added 24 points for his ninth 20-point outing of the season as the Volunteers (13-6, 3-3 SEC) defeated Alabama for the fifth consecutive time.
Labaron Philon Jr. had 26 points and seven assists but was just 7-of-20 from the field for the Crimson Tide (13-6, 3-3). Latrell Wrightsell Jr. had 14 points, and Charles Bediako had 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting in his controversial “second” debut with the school. Bediako, a former professional player, spent two seasons at Alabama before going unselected in the 2023 NBA Draft.
No. 18 Clemson 77, Georgia Tech 63
Nick Davidson and Jake Wahlin scored 13 points apiece to lead the Tigers to a win over the Yellow Jackets in Atlanta.
Dillon Hunter and Ace Buckner added 12 points each for Clemson (17-4, 7-1 ACC), which rebounded from its first conference loss of the season on Tuesday. The Tigers trailed by as many as five points in the first half but outscored Georgia Tech 42-30 in the second half.
Kowacie Reeves Jr. led Georgia Tech (11-9, 2-5) with 19 points, while Lamar Washington scored 10. Baye Ndongo had five points and a game-high 10 rebounds for the Yellow Jackets, who dropped their fourth game in five tries.
No. 19 Kansas 86, Kansas State 62
Flory Bidunga scored 21 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the visiting Jayhawks past the rival Wildcats in a Big 12 contest in Manhattan, Kan.
Melvin Council Jr. contributed 17 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds for Kansas (15-5, 5-2 Big 12). Elmarko Jackson scored 19 points, Bryson Tiller added 16 and Tre White chipped in 13 as the Jayhawks won their fourth straight game.
P.J. Haggerty led Kansas State (10-10, 1-6) with 23 points, and Andrej Kostic added 12 points as the only other Wildcat in double figures.
No. 20 Arkansas 85, LSU 81
Darius Acuff Jr. scored 24 of his career-high 31 points in the second half and the Razorbacks overcame an eight-point deficit before holding off the Tigers in Fayetteville, Ark., improving to 12-0 at home.
Acuff scored nine straight Arkansas points and had 12 of 15 as the Razorbacks (15-5, 5-2 SEC) turned a 59-56 deficit into a 71-67 lead with six minutes remaining. Meleek Thomas had 14 points, and Billy Richmond III had 11 points.
Mike Nwoko scored 14 points for the Tigers (13-7, 1-6), who led 45-37 2:05 into the second half. Dedan Thomas Jr. had 18 points and five assists, and Pablo Tamba had 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Texas 87, No. 21 Georgia 67
Dailyn Swain scored 26 points and Tramon Mark added 23 as the Longhorns found another gear seven minutes into the second half and swamped the Bulldogs in SEC action in Austin, Texas.
The victory was the third over a ranked team for Texas (12-8, 3-4 SEC) in its past five games. Vokietaitis and Jordan Pope finished with 14 points each for Texas, which shot 68.8% from the floor after halftime.
Jeremiah Wilkinson led Georgia (16-4, 4-3) with 17 points, while Somto Cyril added 12 and Jordan Ross had 11. The Bulldogs trailed by as many as 23 points and missed nine of their final 11 field-goal attempts.
No. 23 Louisville 85, Virginia Tech 71
Mikel Brown Jr. returned to the lineup after a six-week absence and scored a team-high 20 points as the Cardinals cruised past the visiting Hokies.
Ryan Conwell added 15 points and six rebounds for Louisville (14-5, 4-3 ACC). J’vonne Hadley scored 14 points and grabbed six boards, while Sananda Fru tallied 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Virginia Tech (15-6, 4-4) got a brilliant effort from Jailen Bedford, who scored 24 points and shot 6-for-8 from 3-point range. Ben Hammond added 18 points, including 4-for-5 3-point shooting. Hansberry tallied 12 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. The Hokies made 11 of 17 3-pointers in the second half to remain moderately competitive.
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WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
WOMEN’S TOP 25 ROUNDUP: OLIVIA MILES LEADS NO. 9 TCU PAST UCF
Olivia Miles scored 17 points as No. 9 TCU (19-2, 7-1 Big XII) beat UCF in Orlando, Fla., to move into a tie with Baylor for the conference lead.
Donovyn Hunter added 12 points and Taylor Bigby scored 11 for the Horned Frogs, who raced to a 36-17 halftime lead.
Mahogany Chandler-Roberts scored 17, and Khyala Ngodu added 10 for the Golden Knights (10-10, 2-7).
No. 24 Nebraska 81, Illinois 75
Britt Prince had 20 points to lead four double-figure scorers, and the Cornhuskers (15-5, 4-5 Big Ten) held off the Illini (15-5, 5-4) in Lincoln, Neb., to end a three-game losing streak.
Cearah Parchment had 25 points and 11 rebounds, Berry Wallace scored 22, Destiny Jackson had 13 and Maddie Webber added 11 to lead Illinois.
No. 21 Duke 95, Pitt 41
Toby Fournier scored 19 points, Arianna Roberson and Riley Nelson had double-doubles and the Blue Devils (14-6, 9-0) routed the host Panthers for their 11th straight victory and stayed tied with Louisville atop the ACC.
Roberson finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds, Nelson had 18 points and 10 rebounds, Delaney Thomas scored 16 and Taina Mair added 12 for Duke, which outscored Pitt 22-8 in the first quarter and 29-8 in the second quarter for a 51-16 halftime lead.
Mikayla Johnson scored 15 to lead the Panthers (8-14, 1-8), who lost their fifth straight game.
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NBA
NBA ROUNDUP: HEAT LIGHT UP JAZZ FOR 147 POINTS IN VICTORY
Bam Adebayo recorded his 16th double-double of the season with 26 points and 15 rebounds and Pelle Larsson added 20 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 147-116 win over the Utah Jazz on Saturday in Salt Lake City.
Nikola Jovic scored 23 points on 6-for-12 shooting off the bench for the Heat, who had seven players score in double figures. Andrew Wiggins chipped in with 17 points, Simone Fontecchio had 14, Norman Powell added 13 and rookie Kasparas Jakucionis finished with 12.
This game marked the eighth time the Heat have scored 140 or more points this season. They are 8-0 in such games.
Jusuf Nurkic recorded his third consecutive triple-double with 17 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, becoming the first Jazz player to achieve the feat. Brice Sensabaugh scored 23 points off the bench and Keyonte George chipped in 19 points.
Hornets 119, Wizards 115
Brandon Miller scored 21 points, LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges both racked up 20 points and Charlotte hit 51.9% of its shots from the field in a victory against visiting Washington.
Kon Knueppel’s 16 points and Moussa Diabate’s 11 points and 14 rebounds also were critical for Charlotte. Bridges, Ball and Knueppel all made three 3-pointers as the Hornets won back-to-back games for the second time this month.
Tre Johnson’s 26 points and Alex Sarr’s 24 points led the Wizards, who absorbed their ninth consecutive loss despite connecting on 19 shots from beyond the 3-point arc. Justin Champagnie went 7-for-9 for 15 points off the bench, while Bub Carrington also provided 15 points to go with eight assists and Kyshawn George had 11 on 4-for-15 shooting. Jamir Watkins had 11 points off the bench.
Cavaliers 119, Magic 105
Donovan Mitchell scored 36 points and dished out nine assists and Jaylon Tyson had 17 points as surging Cleveland defeated host Orlando.
Evan Mobley added 13 points and seven rebounds for Cleveland, which has won three straight and five of its last six. Mitchell poured in 27 points in the second half as the Cavaliers improved to 10-4 since Dec. 29.
Paulo Banchero topped the Magic with 27 points and made 10 of 12 free-throw attempts, while Desmond Bane had 20 points and Anthony Black scored 16. Orlando dropped its third in a row and never led after the first quarter.
Lakers 116, Mavericks 110
Luka Doncic had 33 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in his second game in Dallas since being traded to Los Angeles, and the Lakers rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the Mavericks.
The Lakers trailed by 15 with 7:41 left in the fourth quarter before moving ahead 108-106 with 2:15 remaining. LeBron James and Rui Hachimura scored 17 points apiece for the Lakers, who improved to 2-1 on their eight-game road trip. Jake LaRavia and Marcus Smart each had 13 points, and Deandre Ayton grabbed 11 rebounds to go with nine points.
Max Christie led Dallas with 24 points, and Naji Marshall added 21 points and 11 rebounds. Brandon Williams scored 20 points, Caleb Martin added 17 and Cooper Flagg had 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Knicks 112, 76ers 109
Jalen Brunson had 31 points and added six assists to help New York hold on for a victory over host Philadelphia.
The Knicks outscored the Sixers 30-13 in the third quarter. It was the Knicks’ second consecutive win after losing nine of 11, constituting their first winning streak in 2026. OG Anunoby went 10-for-15 from the field and finished with 23 points and seven rebounds.
The 76ers went just 2-4 on their season-long six-game homestand. Joel Embiid was nearly unstoppable for the 76ers with a game-high 38 points. Tyrese Maxey had 22 points and six assists.
Bulls 114, Celtics 111
Kevin Huerter buried a corner 3-pointer with 0.2 seconds remaining to give host Chicago a victory over Boston.
Coby White made five 3-pointers while registering 22 points and seven assists as the Bulls won their fourth consecutive game. Nikola Vucevic added 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Jaylen Brown recorded 33 points, eight rebounds and five assists as Boston had a two-game winning streak halted. Anfernee Simons had 21 points and five treys off the bench, Derrick White added 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and Payton Pritchard contributed 10 points and seven assists.
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NHL
NHL ROUNDUP: JACKETS HALT LIGHTNING’S POINT STREAK AT 15
Mason Marchment scored a hat trick and also had an assist as the host Columbus Blue Jackets brought an end to Tampa Bay’s 15-game point streak with an 8-5 victory on Saturday night.
It was the third hat trick of Marchment’s career. Charlie Coyle and Adam Fantilli each had a goal and two assists, and Zach Werenski and Kirill Marchenko had two assists apiece. Jet Greaves finished with 25 saves. Cole Sillinger, Dmitri Voronkov and Sean Monahan also scored goals for the Blue Jackets, who won for the sixth time in their last seven games.
Nikita Kucherov had a goal and three assists for the Lightning, while Jake Guentzel collected two goals and an assist, Anthony Cirelli had a goal and two assists and Darren Raddysh also scored. Tampa Bay, which had a three-game win streak snapped, suffered its first regulation loss since Dec. 18 against the Los Angeles Kings.
Brandon Hagel had two assists and Jonas Johansson stopped 23 of 29 shots for the Lightning. The 15-game point streak ranked as the third-longest in team history, three off the record of 18 games set in 2003-04.
Oilers 6, Capitals 5 (OT)
Zach Hyman tied the game with 32 seconds left in regulation and Connor McDavid scored 47 seconds into overtime to lift Edmonton to a win against visiting Washington.
In his 400th NHL game, Evan Bouchard had a hat trick and three assists and McDavid had two goals and three assists for the Oilers. Leon Draisaitl (three assists) had missed four games to attend to a family illness in his native Germany. Edmonton starting goalie Connor Ingram was lifted after allowing three goals on 12 shots. Tristan Jarry made 13 saves on 15 shots.
Connor McMichael and Justin Sourdif each had a goal and an assist for the Capitals, who won Friday night in Calgary and were looking to win consecutive games for the first time since early December. Lindgren made 34 saves on 40 shots.
Panthers 4, Wild 3 (OT)
Brad Marchand tallied two goals — including the game-winner in overtime – and added an assist as Florida topped Minnesota in Saint Paul, Minn.
Matt Boldy put the Wild ahead 3-2 on a short-handed wrist shot at 12:09 of the third period, but Sam Bennett responded with his own wrister to tie the game n a power play at 13:11. Marchand ended the stalemate at the three-minute mark of overtime when Carter Verhaeghe set him up for a snap shot past Filip Gustavsson.
Sam Reinhart had a goal and an assist and Matthew Tkachuk and Verhaeghe tallied two assists apiece for the Panthers, who got 18 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky. For the Wild, Kirill Kaprizov and Boldy each had a goal and an assist, and Joel Eriksson Ek also scored and Gustavsson made 30 saves.
Kings 5, Blues 4 (SO)
Trevor Moore returned to action with a goal plus the shootout winner as visiting Los Angeles edged St. Louis.
Moore missed the previous 11 games with an upper-body injury. Alex Laferriere had a goal and an assist for the Kings, who earned just their second victory in six games (2-1-3). Taylor Ward and Brian Dumoulin also scored for the Kings and Darcy Kuemper made 25 saves.
Jordan Kyrou scored twice for the Blues, who are winless (0-3-1) in their last four games. Dalibor Dvorsky and Brayden Schenn scored for St. Louis and Joel Hofer made 24 saves.
Bruins 4, Canadiens 3
Morgan Geekie scored two of Boston’s three power-play goals, including the game-winner with 5:53 left in regulation, as the hosts edged Montreal.
Just 12 seconds after Fraser Minten’s tying goal, Geekie gave Boston its first and only lead when he teed up a shot from just above the left circle. Viktor Arvidsson also lit the lamp, Minten added an assist for a multi-point game, and Charlie McAvoy had three helpers for the Bruins. Jeremy Swayman backstopped the win with 22 saves, including all nine he faced in the third period.
Cole Caufield recorded his second career hat trick in defeat for the Canadiens. Nick Suzuki assisted on two of Caufield’s goals. Sam Montembeault made 17 saves in his second straight loss.
Sabres 5, Islanders 0
Jason Zucker scored twice and Alex Lyon stopped all 26 shots he faced for Buffalo, which continued surging with a shutout of New York in Elmont, N.Y.
The two-goal game was the second of the season for Zucker, and the shutout was also the second of the campaign for Lyon. Tage Thompson, Rasmus Dahlin and Alex Tuch also scored for the Sabres, who have vaulted into playoff contention by going 18-3-1 since Dec. 9.
Goalie David Rittich recorded 16 saves for the Islanders, who have lost consecutive games for the first time since a three-game skid from Dec. 16-20.
Mammoth 5, Predators 2
Kailer Yamamoto and Barrett Hayton each had a goal and an assist as Utah earned a win over host Nashville.
Clayton Keller, Michael Carcone and JJ Peterka also scored goals for the Mammoth, who have points in nine straight (8-0-1) and took control with three goals in a span of just over five minutes in the second period. Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev had three assists, Sean Durzi and Dylan Guenther each had two assists and Karel Vejmelka stopped 27 shots.
Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault scored goals for the Predators, who lost for the third time in four games. Juuse Saros made 26 saves.
Hurricanes 4, Senators 1
Brandon Bussi made 35 saves for his 19th win in 23 starts to begin his NHL career as Carolina topped host Ottawa.
Seth Jarvis tallied a goal and an assist while Jalen Chatfield posted a pair of assists. William Carrier, Taylor Hall and Andrei Svechnikov also scored for the Hurricanes, who have won four out of five (4-0-1).
Tim Stutzle was the Senators’ lone goal scorer and James Reimer made 15 saves in a subpar start. Ottawa has dropped four of its last five (1-2-2).
Red Wings 5, Jets 1
J.T. Compher scored twice and Andrew Copp recorded two assists as Detroit rode a four-goal third period to down host Winnipeg.
John Gibson made 26 saves to win his eighth straight start — and 17 of his last 19 — for the Red Wings, who are 19-5-4 after Nov. 29, and have earned at least one point in nine of the last 10 contests. With the game tied 1-1 after two second-period goals, Compher, Lucas Raymond, Alex DeBrincat and Marco Kasper scored for Detroit.
Cole Koepke scored for the Jets and Connor Hellebuyck made 26 saves. Winnipeg, which is 1-2-2 on the heels of winning four straight, also saw a six-game home point streak (4-0-2) come to an end.
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GOLF
SI WOO KIM TOPS CROWDED AMERICAN EXPRESS LEADERBOARD AFTER 54 HOLES
South Korea’s Si Woo Kim shot 6-under par 66 and he claimed a one-shot lead through the third round of The American Express on Saturday at La Quinta, Calif.
Kim is at 22-under 194 going into Sunday’s final round.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and third-round co-leader Blades Brown both shot 68s on the Pete Dye Stadium Course. They’re one shot behind Kim and tied for second place.
Scheffler scrambled for par on the final hole, with his second shot into the greenside rough. He used a 25-foot par putt to salvage the hole and avoid his second bogey on the backside.
Brown, 18, posted birdies on his final three holes, including a 43-footer on the par-4 18th a day after recording 60.
Kim’s round at LaQuinta Country Club included seven birdies with a bogey as he bids for his second championship in the tournament, which he won in 2021. He rolled in three straight birdie putts on his back nine.
Eric Cole (66) and Wyndham Clark (66) are tied for fourth place at 20 under. Cole had the lead earlier in the round after a chip-in.
At 19 under, Tom Hoge (65), Matt McCarty (68) and Andrew Putnam (65) are within range. Putnam, who had a 60 on Friday, followed that with a solid round on the Nicklaus Tournament Course.
BLADES BROWN’S COURSE RECORD HAS HIM TIED ATOP AMERICAN EXPRESS LEADERBOARD
Eighteen-year-old Blades Brown shot 12-under-par 60 Friday to surge into a tie for the lead with World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler through two rounds of The American Express in La Quinta, Calif.
Brown, whose first PGA Tour event as a pro was last January at The American Express when he was 17, raced out to 8 under through seven holes on Friday. He shot the final 11 holes at 4 under, bogey-free, but failed to birdie any of the last three holes, one of which would have made him the youngest competitor in PGA Tour history to shoot 59.
Even still, Brown set a course record on the Nicklaus Tournament Course after shooting 5 under in Thursday’s opening round to enter the weekend tied with Scheffler atop the leaderboard at 17-under-par 127.
“I just really like this golf course. There’s something about the Nicklaus Course that I just really like,” Brown said after the round. “It’s so money. It’s so pure. Everything is just perfectly well kept. I love playing with no wind. So when you put all those things together it’s fun.”
This week’s field will play the first three rounds at three different courses, with one round at each: the Pete Dye Stadium Course, the Nicklaus Tournament Course and La Quinta Country Club. The cut will occur Saturday after 54 holes, with the top 65 players and ties advancing to Sunday’s round at the Pete Dye Stadium Course.
Scheffler and Brown each played La Quinta on Thursday and will play at the stadium course Saturday and Sunday, barring major collapses.
Scheffler took a more consistent path to the top of the leaderboard through two rounds, following up a 9-under showing Thursday with 8 under in the second round. He also did it in opposing fashion to Brown, just 2 under through eight holes before carding four birdies in his final six holes.
Neither Brown nor Scheffler has scored a bogey or worse through 36 holes of competition.
“If you want to make a name for yourself, you got to put up some good scores,” Scheffler said of Brown.
South Korea’s Si Woo Kim shot 7 under at the Stadium Course to grab sole possession of third place at 16 under, one stroke back. S.H. Kim of South Korea and Matt McCarty also had good days on the Nicklaus course, following 9-under opening rounds with 6 unders on Friday to enter the weekend tied for fourth place at 15 under.
Brown didn’t have sole possession of the best round of the day. Andrew Putnam also put up a 12 under on La Quinta after finishing even par in Round 1 to move into a tie for 18th.
Min Woo Lee of Australia and Pierceson Coody each plummeted back to earth Friday after they were co-leaders at 10 under following Round 1. Playing the stadium course, Lee shot 71 to fall back to a tie for 26th while Coody shot 72 to drop to a tie for 35th.
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TENNIS
CARLOS ALCARAZ’S QUEST FOR 1ST AUSSIE OPEN TITLE STAYS ON COURSE
Carlos Alcaraz has won six major titles and 24 ATP championships before his 23rd birthday, which occurs in May. He has won on every surface, but the Australian Open has eluded him. In fact, the Spaniard has never reached the semifinals.
But the top seed in Melbourne reached the quarterfinals for the third consecutive year with a 7-6 (6), 6-4, 7-5 victory over No. 19 Tommy Paul in sunny, but cooler conditions at Rod Laver Arena.
Alcaraz leads the series 6-2 over Paul and has won five straight.
Heading into the match, Paul had reason for optimism because they have split four previous matches on outdoor hard courts. He jumped out to an early lead, breaking Alcaraz in a five-point first game.
But Alcaraz broke back in the eighth game of the set, forcing it to a tiebreaker. Paul had the tiebreaker on his racquet at 5-4, but lost both serves and ended up dropping the critical first set.
Alcaraz did not face a break point in the second set and gave Paul few opportunities, winning 20 of 27 points on serve.
Paul saved three break points in the third game of the third set, but only won five points on Alcaraz’s serve through five service games. At 5-5, the match came to an end quickly, as the 2025 U.S. Open champion dropped only two points in the final two games of the match.
Alcaraz won 76% (71 of 94) on serve and a sizzling 86% (19 of 22) points at the net.
“I’m surprising myself, to be honest,” said Alcaraz post-match, when asked about his high first-serve numbers. “The serve is something I’ve been working on. … For me, I am really happy to see the improvement of the serve.
“In general, in the four matches I’ve played, the serve has been an important weapon for me.”
Alcaraz has not dropped a set through four matches in Melbourne.
Alcaraz will face the winner of the night session’s match between sixth-seeded Alex de Minaur of the host country and 10th-seeded Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan.
NO. 1 ARYNA SABALENKA, TEEN IVA JOVIC STORM INTO AUSSIE OPEN QUARTERS
At the outset of the 2010s, current World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka had earned a reputation for struggling in the big moments. She rose to the top five in the world, but would lose to lower-seeded players in the second week of majors.
But hoisting four major championship trophies in three years has completely erased that reputation. The Belarussian advanced to her 13th major quarterfinal in 14 tournaments by showing that determination in a 6-1, 7-6 (1) victory over 17th-seeded Victoria Mboko of Canada on Sunday at the Australian Open.
In fact, Sabalenka is now regarded as one of the top pressure players in the history of the sport. With her match-clinching tiebreak victory over Mboko, Sabalenka has extended her Open Era record streak of consecutive tiebreakers won in major championships to 20.
Sloane Stephens held the previous record of 14 in a row, won between Roland Garros in 2015 and Wimbledon in 2016.
Sabalenka will face 18-year-old American sensation Iva Jovic, who reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam for the first time. The Californian and 29th-seeded player shellacked Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva, 6-0, 6-1 in a match that lasted 53 minutes.
It appeared as though Sabalenka would break form in the fourth round against the Canadian 19-year-old. She cruised to a 6-1, 4-1 lead, but Mboko stayed composed and Sabalenka let errors creep into her game.
Mboko won three of four games, setting up Sabalenka to serve for the match. But in a 13-point game, Mboko fought off three match points, ripped multiple winners off her opponent’s serve that evened the set at 5-5.
Both players held, setting up Sabalenka for what is now her trademark.
“I don’t know, I’m just trying to play point-by-point,” said Sabalenka about her incredible tiebreaker streak, adding that her opponents may be intimidated entering the breakers.
Mboko earned more break-point chances at 6-5, but converted a pair, whereas Sabalenka went 4 of 5.
“What an incredible player for such a young age,” Sabalenka said in her on-court interview regarding Mboko. “It’s incredible to see these kids coming up on tour. I can’t believe I say that, I feel like I’m a kid still but whatever! Incredible player. She pushed me really hard today.
“I’m super happy with the win, once again in straight sets. She played incredible tennis. She pushed me so much. Happy to be through.”
Jovic captured 14 of 19 points on Putintseva’s serve in a 25-minute first set. She led, 6-0, 4-0 before the 31-year-old earned a game.
“I think I’m just gonna try to keep taking care of my side of the net,” said Jovic on her impending match with the top seed. “Obviously she’s No. 1 for a reason and has had so much success at this tournament, but that’s what I want. I said it last year that I hoped to play her this year because you definitely want to play the best and see how it goes. I’m really excited.”
Jovic has been more dominant than Sabalenka through four rounds in Melbourne. Each player has won all eight sets, but the American has only played one tiebreaker and Sabalenka is now 3-0 in tiebreakers in Melbourne this fortnight.
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UFC
JUSTIN GAETHJE DOMINATES PADDY PIMBLETT TO WIN 2ND INTERIM LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE
LAS VEGAS – Justin Gaethje opened the Paramount era with a bang, dominating rising star Paddy Pimblett to win the interim UFC lightweight title belt at UFC 324 on Saturday.
Gaethje’s win gave him his second career interim lightweight championship and sets up an undisputed title fight against Ilia Topuria, who stepped away last November amidst mounting personal issues but is expected to return at some point in 2026.
The 37-year-old Gaethje (27-5-0) dominated the bout, landing 56% of his significant strikes while succeeding on all three of his takedown attempts.
Gaethje nearly finished Pimblett two minutes into the first round before Pimblett miraculously found his way out. The second round saw Gaethje nearly finish the Englishman for a second time in the closing seconds before Pimblett was narrowly saved by the bell.
Pimblett briefly found new life in the third, taking advantage of a tiring Gaethje, but the damage he suffered throughout the fight proved too much to overcome in the championship rounds as Gaethje eventually got his second wind in the fourth.
The loss was Pimblett’s first in UFC since joining from his native England, snapping a nine-fight winning streak and dropping him to 23-4-0 in his career.
Sean O’Malley, one of the company’s biggest stars, ended a two-fight losing skid in the co-main event with a controversial unanimous decision victory over Song Yadong of China. The first two rounds both could have arguably gone to Song, but the third round made all the difference on the cards as O’Malley (19-3-0) finished strong with a convincing third round against Song (22-9-1) which proved to be the difference.
Predictably, O’Malley called out bantamweight champion Petr Yan in his post-fight interview. O’Malley beat Yan in their first meeting at UFC 280 in October 22, but Yan’s stunning upset of Merab Dvalishvili with a lights out performance at UFC 323 has added a new level of intrigue for the potential rematch.
Waldo Cortes-Acosta of the Dominican Republic defeated Derrick Lewis by KO/TKO at 3:14 in the second round. Cortes-Acosta (17-2-0) dominated the 40-year-old Lewis for the duration of the heavyweight fight, landing 72% of his total strikes, all but two of which were significant. Meanwhile, Lewis (29-13-0) only landed 19% of his total strike attempts and had zero seconds of control time.
Natalia Silva of Brazil defeated Rose Namajunas by unanimous decision in a potential women’s flyweight title eliminator, although the controversial outcome was met with unanimous dismay from a Vegas crowd that clearly believed Namajunas (15-8-0) did enough to pull off the upset against Silva.
The performance marks Silva’s 14th straight victory and her eighth consecutive in the flyweight division to improve her overall record to 20-5-1. More importantly, it may line her up for a title shot against Valentina Shevchenko later this year.
The opening fight of the main card saw heavily favored Brazilian fighter Jean Silva rebound from his loss against Diego Lopes in September, defeating England’s Arnold Allen (20-4-0) in a slugfest that was decided in the third round on two of three official scorecards. Silva (17-3-0) landed 55% of his strikes and succeeded on four of six takedown attempts. After the match, he declared himself as the next competitor for the featherweight championship after next Saturday’s title rematch between Lopes and champion Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 325 in Sydney.
Dominick Cruz, a two-time Bantamweight champion and the division’s inaugural belt holder, was announced as the first member of UFC’s 2026 Hall of Fame class at the conclusion of the prelim show. Cruz will be inducted into the “Modern Era Wing”, which honors fighters who debuted after the first sanctioned UFC event under unified rules was held on November 17, 2000.
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INDIANA RELEASES
INDY IGNITE
IGNITE FALL FOR FIRST TIME THIS SEASON IN HOME OPENER
On a night when a determined crowd braved a winter storm to cheer on their favorite volleyball team, the Indy Ignite had difficulty igniting the competitive fire they needed at Fishers Event Center. The result was a four-set loss to the visiting Omaha Supernovas.
Omaha won for the third time in as many tries on Indy’s home court, this time by scores of 23-25, 25-22, 25-16 and 25-23. Even with the defeat, the Ignite remain tied atop the Major League Volleyball standings at 3-1, but they were disappointed with their effort.
“I don’t think we showed up today,” Indy head coach Lauren Bertolacci admitted. “I think we had a lack of competitiveness, a lack of grit, not so much personality in the game – and we struggle when we play like that. I do believe it’s a big learning point for us on how we need to be aggressive in the game and how we need to be attacking it and winning the game. I don’t really care that we lose. … The issue would be the manner in which that happened today.”
Ignite opposite hitter Azhani Tealer, who led the team with 15 kills and a block, agreed that the energy that carried Indy through three consecutive road victories to open the season was lacking on this night.
Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness was among the several thousand in attendance. Earlier in the week, he signed a proclamation, making Saturday Indy Ignite Day in the City of Fishers—the Ignite responded early, rallying to take the opening set 25-23. Tealer scored back-to-back kills and outside hitter Anna DeBeer followed with consecutive kills of her own as Indy overcame a 22-21 deficit. Behind seven Tealer kills and five apiece from DeBeer and outside hitter Leketor Member-Meneh, Indy notched a sizzling .410 kill efficiency in the set in what was the high point of the match.
Omaha turned the tables in the second set, winning 25-22 after trailing 21-20. The Supernovas then took control of the third set, breaking from a 6-all tie with a 10-3 run on their way to a 25-16 triumph.
Facing elimination in the fourth set, the Ignite showed glimmers of that competitive fire when they rallied from a 15-11 hole to tie the set 18-18. But Indy could never forge ahead and Omaha closed out the set and match at 25-23 on the match-leading 18th kill for Brooke Nuneviller, the reigning MLV Outside Hitter of the Year. Playing her first full match of the season, fellow outside hitter Reagan Cooper added 17 kills.
Following Tealer on Indy’s scoring chart were Member-Meneh with 13 kills, DeBeer with 11 kills and middle blocker Lydia Martyn with nine kills and a block. Setter Mia Tuaniga finished with 46 assists, three kills, two blocks and a service ace. Libero Elena Scott tied her season high with 15 digs.
DeBeer added 14 digs to complete a double-double but agreed the Ignite didn’t bring the level of intensity they needed on this night.
“We kind of lacked that competitiveness,” she said. “We’ve had that in the last few games we played and we felt it, but I think tonight we were a little hesitant in things and weren’t going after it all the time. Obviously, that impacts the whole outcome of the game if we’re not being the attacker and being the aggressor. I really think it just came down to the competitive fire that we didn’t have.”
To which Tealer added, “I don’t want to give out any excuses. It’s a long season and it’s hard to bring that every day, but it’s what we signed up to do and it’s our job. So, we’ve got to find a way. Yeah, that wasn’t who we are tonight.”
The Ignite continue a four-match homestand Thursday when they host the Atlanta Vibe at 7 p.m. ET. Tickets are available at IndyIgniteVB.com.
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INDY FUEL
FUEL DEFEAT BISON 3-1 ON SATURDAY NIGHT
BLOOMINGTON– The Indy Fuel headed to Bloomington to take on the Bison for the first game of a two-game set against them this weekend. After scoring two goals in the first period, the Fuel claimed a 3-1 victory on Saturday night over the Bison.
1ST PERIOD
Bloomington’s Matt Hubbarde took the game’s first penalty at 1:09. He earned two minutes for elbowing, which put the Fuel on the power play, however it was killed off.
At 6:58, Indy’s Eric Martin took a minor tripping penalty. This gave the Bison an early power play chance as well. That was also killed off.
Indy’s Jordan Martin struck first with a goal at 10:38 that was reviewed but remained a good goal. Cody Laskosky and Christian Berger were credited with the assists.
With less than twenty seconds to go in the first period, Terry Broadhurst gave the Fuel a 2-0 lead with the help of Sahil Panwar and Matt Petgrave.
Indy outshot Bloomington 10-4 in the first period and led by a score of 2-0 at the end.
2ND PERIOD
Owen Robinson hit the game sheet first in the second period, taking a hooking call at 1:43. This put the Bison on the power play for the second time.
That penalty was killed off before Jeremie Bucheler took another for Indy at 4:29. He was sent to the penalty box for interference. The Fuel also killed off that penalty. Bloomington did not record a shot through either of those power plays.
At 11:50, Bloomington’s Shane Ott was called for holding. This put the Fuel back on the power play, which would quickly turn into a lengthy 5-on-3 chance after Brenden Datema was called for slashing less than a minute later. Both of those penalties were killed.
Fuel captain Chris Cameron took the game’s next penalty at 17:06. He was called for interference. That penalty was killed off.
The period ended with the Fuel still up 2-0, leading in shots 21-11.
3RD PERIOD
Ott took his second penalty of the game at 4:19. This time, he was called for elbowing but the Bison were able to kill off the penalty.
With 11:30 to go in the third period, Cameron headed back to the box for tripping. With eleven seconds left in the power play, Bloomington’s Nikita Sedov scored to put the Bison on the board and make it 2-1.
At the same time, Jesse Tucker and Bloomington’s Lou-Félix Denis took coincidental roughing penalties. They were both killed off.
At 12:25, Fuel goaltender Owen Flores took a tripping penalty that was served by Sahil Panwar, but ultimately killed off as well.
With about two minutes to go, Bloomington pulled their goaltender in favor of the extra skater but it would not pay off as Chris Cameron scored an empty net goal at 18:57 to make it 3-1.
Brandon Yeamans took a slashing minor penalty and a ten minute misconduct at 19:21, to put the Fuel on the power play to end the game.
With 21 seconds to go, things got chippy between everyone on the ice. This resulted in roughing minor penalties for Dustin Manz and Cullen Ferguson.
Time expired soon after, with the Fuel claiming the 3-1 win.
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INDIANA FOOTBALL
HOOSIERS AND THEIR FANS BRAVE A STRONG WINTER STORM TO CELEBRATE THE SCHOOL’S 1ST NATIONAL TITLE
The Indiana Hoosiers took one last stroll from Assembly Hall to Memorial Stadium on Saturday, waving to the crowd, signing autographs and trading fist bumps with the fans who lined the way.
Then the Hoosiers walked onto their home field for the first time as national champions.
This was a scene even the most loyal Indiana fans couldn’t have fathomed when Curt Cignetti was hired to coach major college football’s losingest program in 2023. A little more than two years later, here they were, folding chairs on the field, trophies lined up across the dais and a series of presentations to cap the celebration.
It was the perfect ending to a perfect season.
“From the bottom of my heart, thank you Hoosier Nation,” Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza said just before the 35-minute ceremony ended with players, coaches and fans singing the school’s fight song together. “Playing here has been one of the greatest privileges of my life. Thank you so much and again, myself, my teammates are forever indebted to you guys. God bless. Go Hoosiers!”
Heisman Trophy Trust chief executive officer Jeff Price brought the trophy that will stay on campus permanently. University president Pam Whitten promised students at the half-filled stadium this wouldn’t be their last football championship. Some of the team’s seniors even helped local native John Mellencamp belt out “Hurts So Good” before, naturally, hearing “We Are The Champions” blaring across the public address system.
“The greatest university in the country is now the home to the greatest football team in the United States of America,” Whitten said to loud roars.
But the fans, like this team, had to tough it out Saturday.
The temperature barely hovered above 10 degrees, wind chills were below zero and the forecast called for up to a foot of snow for the celebration of major college football’s first 16-0 season since the 1890s.
Players, many of whom came from warmer states such as Virginia or Florida, were bundled up, too, and wasted little time in making their remarks.
But some adverse weather wasn’t going to deter the players or these long-suffering football fans, who spent years just hoping the program could get back to respectability when it seemed like winning a championship — Big Ten or national — was unreachable.
Now, thanks in large part to Cignetti and the coaches and 13 players who followed him from James Madison, Indiana begins next season as the defending national champs, defending Big Ten champs and with both the nation’s longest winning streak and nation’s longest home winning streak.
“First of all, I can’t put into words what Indiana, the fans, my coach and my teammates have meant to me,” said All-American linebacker Aiden Fisher, one of those who followed Cignetti. “These two years have changed my life for the better and thank you, God, for making me a Hoosier.”
It didn’t take long for Cignetti to deliver on his promise to win. The Hoosiers posted a school-best 11-2 in mark in 2024. Yet many of these Hoosiers fans who had watched so many other promising starts unravel were skeptical the Hoosiers could replicate that success in 2025.
They didn’t. Indiana surpassed those numbers with a season for the record books.
The Hoosiers won games by huge margins, with late-game heroics and at sites that seemed impossibly challenging such as Oregon and Penn State. They beat traditional powers Ohio State and Alabama along with Oregon again as their storybook journey headed to Miami for the title game. And there, the school’s first Heisman Trophy winner finished off the 27-21 victory on Miami’s home field with one powerful, spinning touchdown run that encapsulated Indiana’s fight to the top.
It was so good Mendoza started making the television rounds this week, booking appearances on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and “Good Morning America” before announcing Friday that he would enter this year’s draft.
First, though, he wanted to make one more stop in Bloomington.
“The Heisman Trophy is the ultimate team award” Mendoza told the crowd. “I want to thank God, thank the Heisman Trophy Foundation and thank IU.”
Then it was back to the usually stone-faced Cignetti, who appeared to genuinely cherish sharing this moment with his first national championship team as a head coach albeit briefly because he doesn’t want college football’s perfect story to end just yet.
“Chapter 3 begins tomorrow,” he shouted.
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INDIANA SWIMMING AND DIVING
NO. 3/9 INDIANA DERAILS PURDUE
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – No. 3/9 Indiana swimming and diving put together a dominant performance in dual meet victories against Purdue on Saturday (Jan. 24) inside the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center.
The victories coincided with Senior Day celebrations, as the program honored 13 student-athletes prior to the meet: Mya DeWitt, Katie Forrester, Dash Glasberg, Lily Hann, MacKenna Lieske, Owen McDonald, Collin McKenzie, Kristina Paegle, Drew Reiter, Zalán Sárkány, Kai van Westering, Maxwell Weinrich and Chiok Sze Yeo. Combined, the class includes four Big Ten team championships, two Olympians, three NCAA medalists and seven All-Americans.
DeWitt, Paegle, Sárkány and van Westering all captured victories at the meet. Paegle won two individual events, sprinting to victory in the 50-yard freestyle (22.24) and 100-yard freestyle (48.35).
Freshman Noah Cakir, who has spent most of the season in breaststroke and IM events, flexed his talents in the distance freestyles on Saturday, winning both for the men. Cakir became the program’s No. 4 performer all-time in the 1,000-yard freestyle with an 8:54.58 before setting another personal best in the 500 free in 4:19.73.
Classmate Liberty Clark also excelled outside of her regular program, sweeping her slate in the 100-yard backstroke (52.40), 100-yard butterfly (51.26) and 200-yard IM (1:55.86).
TEAM SCORES
Women: Indiana 186, Purdue 114
Men: Indiana 209.5, Purdue 90.5
HOOSIER WINNERS
Women
Liberty Clark – 200 medley relay (1:36.08), 100 backstroke (52.40), 100 butterfly (51.26), 200 IM (1:55.86)
Mya DeWitt – 200 medley relay (1:36.08), 200 freestyle relay (1:28.01)
Miranda Grana – 200 freestyle (1:45.97)
Jonette Laegreid – 200 medley relay (1:36.08), 100 breaststroke (1:01.92), 200 breaststroke (2:13.05)
Grace Hoeper – 200 medley relay (1:36.08), 200 freestyle relay (1:28.01)
Kristina Paegle – 50 freestyle (22.24), 100 freestyle (48.35), 200 freestyle relay (1:28.01)
Ella Roselli – 1-meter (311.78)
Chiok Sze Yeo – 200 freestyle relay (1:28.01)
Men
Alexei Avakov – 200 medley relay (1:23.67), 100 breaststroke (52.53), 200 breaststroke (1:57.04)
Noah Cakir – 1,000 freestyle (8:54.58), 500 freestyle (4:19.73)
Vidar Carlbaum – 200 medley relay (1:23.67), 100 freestyle (42.91)
Travis Gulledge – 200 freestyle relay (1:17.43)
Miroslav Knedla – 200 medley relay (1:23.67)
Mikkel Lee – 200 medley relay (1:23.67), 50 freestyle (19.38), 200 freestyle relay (1:17.43)
Max Lestina – 200 freestyle relay (1:17.43)
Raekwon Noel – 200 IM (1:45.96)
Zalán Sárkány – 200 freestyle (1:35.20)
Kai van Westering – 100 backstroke (46.50), 200 backstroke (1:43.03), 200 freestyle relay (1:17.43)
NCAA CUTS
Women’s 200 medley relay (1:36.08); Women’s 200 freestyle relay (1:28.01); Alexei Avakov – 100 breast (52.53); Liberty Clark – 100 back (52.40), 100 fly (51.26), 200 IM (1:55.86); Mikkel Lee – 50 free (19.38); Kristina Paegle – 50 free (22.24), 100 free (48.35).
NCAA ZONE QUALIFIERS
1-meter: Kaylee Bishop (273.98), Mary Kate Cavanaugh (281.48), Dash Glasberg (336.98), Ella Roselli (311.78), Aiden Sadler (341.40), Maxwell Weinrich (339.15), Lily Witte (276.60)
Platform: Kaylee Bishop (236.10), Mary Kate Cavanaugh (279.75), Dash Glasberg (323.40), Ella Roselli (302.55), Joshua Sollenberger (317.63), Maxwell Weinrich (396.45)
UP NEXT
Indiana will host its final regular season dual meet on Friday (Jan. 30) against No. 9/6 Louisville inside the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center.
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PURDUE MEN’S BASKETBALL
#4 PURDUE DROPS SECOND STRAIGHT GAME, FALLING TO #11 ILLINOIS
[11] Illinois 88, [4] Purdue 82 (Postgame Notes)
No. 4 Purdue lost its second straight game and fell to 17-3 overall and 7-2 in the Big Ten Conference with an 88-82 loss to No. 11 Illinois at Mackey Arena on Saturday.
Purdue held a five-point lead (73-68) on a Braden Smith jumper with 4:36 to play, but was outscored 20-9 the rest of the way for its second straight setback. Purdue held a 6-point lead with under two minutes to play in Tuesday’s loss at UCLA.
Purdue became the first team in the Stathead database (20 years) to shoot over 56.0 percent from the field, score 80 or more points and have three or fewer turnovers and lose.
The difference came on the offensive glass. Illinois had 13 offensive rebounds for 18 second-chance points. Purdue had three offensive rebounds for two second-chance points.
Purdue’s minus-14 rebound margin (33-19) was its lowest since Illinois outrebounded the Boilermakers 37-19 on Jan. 21, 2020.
Purdue’s three turnovers tied a school record for fewest turnovers in a game. Purdue is averaging just 6.2 turnovers over the last five games.
Over the last 10 seasons, Purdue is now 137-7 (.951) when scoring 80 points in a game.
Purdue fell to 129-6 (.956) when shooting at least 50 percent from the field during the Matt Painter era.
Braden Smith scored 27 points with 12 assists, three rebounds and one steal against one turnover, going 11-of-16 from the field.
Smith now has 1,678 career points, 943 assists and 608 rebounds for his career, moving into 12th place on the NCAA career assists list (943). He needs seven assists to move into the top 10.
The 12 assists marked his 16th career game of 12 or more assists, the most in the Big Ten over the last 20 years by 11 games (Cassius Winston, Zavier Simpson — 5).
His 33, 10-assist games are tied for the fourth most in a career in NCAA history.
The double-double marked his 24th career double-double and 23rd point-assist double-double.
Smith now has six career 20-point, 10-assist games. In Purdue history, there have been eight total 20-point, 10-assist games.
Omer Mayer scored 11 points with two assists, going 3-of-6 from 3-point range. The 11 points were his most since Nov. 21, vs. Texas Tech (11 points).
Over his last seven games, Mayer is 9-of-16 (.563) from 3-point range.
Oscar Cluff surpassed 1,000 points in his career, now with 1,005 in his career. Cluff had 244 points at Washington State, 528 at South Dakota State and now has 233 at Purdue.
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NOTRE DAME HOCKEY
IRISH RALLY FOR 6-1 WIN SATURDAY NIGHT
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame hockey team secured a strong victory Saturday evening against the Buckeyes of Ohio State University to close out a hard fought weekend inside Compton Family Ice Arena, defeating the Buckeyes 6-1 in front of a sold out crowd.
The Irish opened up Saturday’s game trading shots with the Buckeyes early in the first period, but no shots from either side found their way into the back of the net through the opening minutes of play.
A boarding call against OSU at 4:01 of the first period sent Notre Dame to the powerplay. As the Irish special teams unit took to the ice, they started fast, registering two quick shots on the Buckeye net. On their third shot, they found the back of the net off a wrist shot from Evan Werner at 5:33 of the first period as the Irish struck first in the contest. Play would go back and forth between the zones of both teams for the next nine minutes as neither team was able to capitalize and the score held steadfast at 1-0 Irish.
With 5:07 left to play in the first period, the Irish special teams unit was put to work, this time on the penalty kill, after a slashing penalty sent Michael Mastrodomenico to the box. The Irish had a chance to score short handed, but the two-on-one break away shot went wide.
After killing the remainder of the penalty, Notre Dame kept the pressure on OSU for the rest of the period. With high pressure in the Buckeye zone, the Irish tried to add to their lead to close out the first frame of play with chances from Danny Nelson, whose shot was glove saved by the OSU tender, and Cole Knuble, whose shot hit the top crossbar before sailing out of play. The first 20 minutes would end with the Irish carrying a lead of 1-0 back to the locker room.
At 2:10 into the second period a fast shot from Carter Slaggert was buried on the rebound into the top right shelf of the net by Pano Fimis as he added another tally to the scoreboard to extend the Irish lead to 2-0 to begin the second period.
The Irish would continue to press in the second frame, playing hard and fast as less than a minute later at 2:59, Sutter Muzzatti buried a pass from Evan Werner across the OSU zone into the Buckeye net. Muzzatti would notch his second point of the night and second goal of the weekend to put the Irish up 3-0 on the Buckeyes.
At 3:08 into the second period the Notre Dame special teams unit was put back to work after an infraction for head contact put the Irish at the man-disadvantage. OSU put the pressure on and 18 seconds into the penalty kill, the Irish went down another man on a boarding penalty creating a five-on-three advantage for the Buckeyes. Despite killing off the first 50 seconds of the two-man kill, OSU capitalized on the two-man advantage with a goal that snuck past the left blocker of Nicholas Kempf to make the score 3-1 in favor of Notre Dame.
As the halfway point of the game came and went, the Irish powerplay went back to work at 8:44 after an OSU cross-checking infraction. Notre Dame attacked the Buckeye zone as they worked to provide an answer to extend the Irish lead further.
After setting back up in the Buckeye zone from a clear by their penalty kill unit, a pass from Axel Kumin set up a one-timer rip from junior captain, Danny Nelson, less than a minute into the powerplay to push Notre Dame further ahead, 4-1.
To cap the second period scoring barrage from the Irish, at 10:11 Maddox Fleming took a pass from Henry Nelson across the Buckeye crease and buried the puck into the back of the net. The Irish took a 5-1 advantage over OSU at the end of two periods of play in South Bend.
A roughing penalty just 46 seconds into the third sent the special teams unit of Notre Dame out onto the ice early into the final frame of play. The Irish had a few chances at an odd man rush to the OSU goal, but turned the puck over in the neutral zone or cleared the puck on said chances. No harm would come to the scoreboard as the special teams unit killed the penalty.
Niko Jovanovic had a scoring chance at 6:20 in the frame, as he stormed the Buckeye zone and had his shot waved off by the referees in the middle of play to keep the score knotted at 5-1 as the contest headed towards the final ten minutes of play.
A final powerplay chance came to the Irish at 13:21 from a tripping call against OSU. The Irish powerplay unit capitalized on the opportunity 39 seconds into the powerplay with a second goal from Sutter Muzzatti. Muzzatti had an open net after a scrum left the OSU defense lost and without hesitation, the graduate forward let the puck rip off his stick across the goal line to give the Irish the 6-1 final, sealing the Buckeyes’ Saturday night fate.
While in control, Notre Dame went on the penalty kill once more for tripping at 14:54. In this kill, sophomore netminder Nicholas Kempf put his talents on full display as he made a series of highlight reel saves to his chest protector and then followed it up with a butterfly save that sent the puck out of play.
As the game wound down, neither team would gain more chances at the net, but played hard and physical until the final buzzer. At the final horn sounding, the Irish had claimed a 6-1 final.
GOALS
Late on the powerplay, Evan Werner secured a centering pass from Danny Nelson in front of the crease and buried the shot to put the Irish up 1-0 early in the first period. Sutter Muzzatti registered the second assist on the tally, his 10th of the season and first point of the night.
Pano Fimis recorded his fourth goal of the season off of a strong rebound pass from Carter Slaggert that was set up along the wing from sophomore defenseman, Jaedon Kerr.
Following quickly behind Fimis, Sutter Muzzatti buried a one-timer on a pass from across the offensive zone from Evan Werner.
Danny Nelson ripped his 8th goal of the season on a powerplay with a one-timer of his own from Axel Kumlin. As the Buckeye defense went after Kumlin with the puck he dished it quickly to Nelson who buried it into the top right shelf of the net.
Gaining the Ohio State zone, Will Belle and Henry Nelson navigated the puck around the zone until Nelson saw Fleming break for the net and he sent the puck on a dime to Maddox who sent the puck flying into the net as his stick tipped it in.
For his second of the night, Sutter Muzzatti scored on the final powerplay of the night for the Irish. As time was winding down on the power play, Sutter gained the puck after a charge at the OSU goal left an open lane to the back of the net available for him to take. Muzzatti notched goal number ten on the season with this effort.
KEY STATS
Maddox Fleming scored his first goal of the season against OSU with a tip-in goal at 10:11 in the second frame of the night. Fleming was assisted by Henry Nelson and Will Belle on the play.
Freshman defenseman Will Belle tallied his first collegiate point for Notre Dame with an assist on Flemming’s goal in the second period.
Sutter Muzzatti had two goals and two assists to get himself a four point night. Muzzatti recorded his second and third goals of the series and his ninth and 10th goals of the year.
The four-point night by Muzzatti (2-2-4) ties his career best and was his second four-point night of the season for the Irish.
His four points also eclipsed 20 points on the season alongside Evan Werner who had three on the evening. The duo leads the team with 21 and 20, respectively, as their multi-point nights pushed them to the milestone in their first seasons with the Irish.
UP NEXT
The Irish return to Compton Family Ice Arena on Friday, January 30th to host Bowling Green at 7:00 PM. The tilt will be the first game of a home-and-home series against the Falcons with the series concluding the following evening in Bowling Green, Ohio.
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NOTRE DAME MEN’S BASKETBALL
IRISH EARN GRITTY 68-64 WIN OVER BOSTON COLLEGE
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11-9, 2-5) dug deep and erased a 13-point deficit to record a 68-64 victory over Boston College (9-10, 2-5) on Saturday night inside Purcell Pavilion – Presented by Verizon. It marked their third double-digit come-from-behind win on the season and their largest comeback of the 2025-26 campaign.
The Blue & Gold outscored the Eagles 44-29 in the second half, marking the most points scored in a half in an ACC game this year. Notre Dame shot 50.0 percent from the field in the second half, where they were led by Braeden Shrewsberry and Jalen Haralson.
Shrewsberry finished with a game-high 22 points, marking his second-highest scoring output of the season and second ACC game with 20+ points. The junior was 8-17 from the field and 4-6 from the stripe. Shrewsberry hit the biggest shot of the night, draining a three with 1:26 remaining to push the Irish up five.
Jalen Haralson recorded 11 of his 17 points in the second half and finished 8-13 overall on the night. Carson Towt reeled in 13 boards, seven offensive, to go along with his six points and two assists.
With tonight’s win, Notre Dame has now won three straight in the series against Boston College.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Boston College made its first 3-6 from the field, while Notre Dame started 0-8, all resulting in an early 7-0 deficit by the first media timeout.
Shrewsberry got the Irish on the board with a floater in the paint at 14:45, followed by a Sundra three to bring some life to the offense. Another Shrewsberry jumper would bring the Irish within four at 7-11 at 13:36.
Next, the Eagles ripped off a quick 7-0 run, capping a 5-7 stretch from the field to push their lead to double digits at 11 points. Ryder Frost ended the drought with a three, converting his first shot of the game at 11:10.
BC’s Fred Payne’s second triple of the game pushed the Eagles lead back to double digits as he got to 12 points by the 9:45 mark, the same total as ND at the under-eight media (ND 12-21 BC).
Looking to attack the basket, Notre Dame went 4-for-5 in a two minute stretch with back-to-back buckets from Haralson coupled with finishes from Shrewsberry and Mohammed to make it 20-27 with 4:07 left in the half.
Notre Dame cut it to as few as five, but the Eagles would outscore the Irish 8-2 in the final two minutes to lead 24-35 at halftime.
While the Irish shot 32.3 percent on 10-31 shooting from the floor, the Eagles were 46.7 percent from the floor on 14-30 shooting. The Irish knocked down just two threes shooting 15.4 percent from behind the arc with Boston College knocking down six triples on 35.3 percent shooting from three.
Shrewsberry led the Irish with 10 points at the half, followed by Haralson with six points. Payne led the Eagles with 12 points, followed by Luka Toews who didn’t miss a shot in the first half. Toews had 11 points on 4-4 shooting.
The Irish offense opened the half with a 10-0 run in just two and a half minutes with Shrewsberry leading the offensive charge with five of the 10.
Notre Dame held Boston College to just one field goal for over a seven minute stretch, while cashed in on 7-of-8 shots to cut the deficit to one at 42-43 with 11:33 remaining.
At 10:40, Cole Certa drained a three from downtown and gave the Irish their first lead of the game. The ball was then put back in the hands of Haralson who attacked the rim and converted back-to-back layups, 50-48 at 7:50 media.
Boston College was charged with a Class A technical foul at 7:03, which led to four straight points and free throws from Towt and Certa.
Fast forward to three minutes remaining and the Irish had a five-point lead. They turned to Haralson once more as the freshman drove into the paint and scored.
The seven point advantage dwindled to two with just under two minutes remaining. Shrewsberry came in clutch with the big-time three at 1:26 to make it a five-point game yet again.
For the next 1:16 both teams were scoreless, until there was just ten seconds left – the Eagles would hit a triple make it a two-point game. The Eagles fouled Shrewsberry on the inbounds pass, sending him to the charity stripe where he knocked down both.
With the Irish in front 66-62, the Eagles made one last shot to make it 66-64, but would follow it with a bench technical foul after calling a timeout with none remaining.
Certa capped off the win by making both free throws to secure the 68-44 win over Boston College.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame will remain home and host #14/15 Virginia on Tuesday, Jan. 27, at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
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BUTLER WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
BUTLER FACES MARQUETTE ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON AT HINKLE FIELDHOUSE
INDIANAPOLIS – Butler will welcome the Marquette Golden Eagles to Hinkle Fieldhouse on Sunday afternoon for a BIG EAST Conference matchup. Tip-off between the two sides is slated for 2 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Kelsie Kasper and Alexis Ayala on the call.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Date: Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026
Time: 2 PM
Location: Indianapolis, Ind.
Live Stats: Butlersports.com
Watch: ESPN+
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
Butler (9-11, 3-7 BE) is coming off a 73-67 victory over DePaul on Wednesday evening. Saniya Jackson was spectacular for Butler recording her first career double-double. The redshirt sophomore poured in a career-high 22 points on an efficient 7-for-10 shooting performance from the floor. The Fort Wayne native added 10 rebounds, four assists and a steal in the contest.
Kennedy Langham (16) and Lily Zeinstra (13) rounded out the Bulldogs in double figures against DePaul. Butler had 14 assists on 22 made baskets and shot 25-for-29 from the charity stripe in the contest.
Saniya Jackson leads the BU offense, averaging 9.8 points per game. The redshirt sophomore is shooting 48.3-percent from the floor and 34.0-percent from beyond the arc. Caroline Dotsey leads the squad on the glass, pulling down 5.7 rebounds per game.
Butler’s two freshmen, Addison Baxter and Anna Wypych, have been solid contributors this season for BU averaging 18.9 and 16.0 minutes per game, respectively. Baxter, a 2025 Indiana All-Star from Columbia City, is averaging 6.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 0.8 steals per game. She is shooting 42.0-percent from the floor and is shooting 78.4-percent from the charity stripe. Wypych posts 5.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. The Michigan native has been impressive from the floor, shooting 48.6-percent while sinking 42.3-percent of her shots from behind the arc.
Dotsey, Zeinstra and Mallory Miller have all been pivotal pieces for Butler, averaging 8.5, 8.8 and 9.4 points per game, respectively. Dotsey was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Dec. 22 after leading Butler to its first conference win of the season over Xavier with 25 points in the contest. Miller earned a nod to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Dec. 15. Miller averaged 12.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 blocks per game in a 2-0 week for Butler.
BU is in the top 100 nationally in free throw percentage (76.2%; 40th) and is fourth in the BIG EAST in free throws made per game averaging 11.85 makes per contest.
Butler had six players score in double figures against Dayton on Nov. 28 (Lily Zeinstra 19, Anna Wypych 12, Caroline Dotsey 12, Saniya Jackson 11, Mallory Miller 10 and Nevaeh Jackson 10). That was the first time Butler has had six players in double figures in the last 15 seasons. The last time Butler had six score in double digits was Dec. 12, 2010, when Butler defeated Ball State 105-98.
Butler returns three letterwinners from a year ago and added nine new players to the team with the addition of seven transfers and two freshmen.
Austin Parkinson enters his fourth season at the helm of the Bulldogs. Parkinson has led the squad to 42 wins in his first three seasons.
SCOUTING MARQUETTE
Marquette (12-7, 6-4 BE) is coming off a 56-55 victory over St. John’s on Wednesday evening. Skylar Forbes and Lee Volker led the Golden Eagles with 12 points and 11 points, respectively.
Forbes leads the Marquette offense averaging 15.3 points per game. Halle Vice (13.8), and Volker (11.6) round out the Golden Eagles averaging double figures.
Vice leads the squad on the glass, pulling down 8.9 rebounds per game.
Cara Consuegra is in her second season at the helm of Marquette.
2025-26 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TICKETS: Season tickets remain on sale, providing the best seating locations still available for the upcoming season. Contact the Butler Ticket Office at tickets@butler.edu or 317-940-DOGS (3647) to place your order. Single-game tickets for the 2025-26 Butler Women’s Basketball season are available through ButlerSports.com/BuyTickets.
Butler University Upgrades Iconic Hinkle Fieldhouse with Dynamic LED Video
Technology consultant Anthony James Partners (AJP) provided design, procurement, and construction administration services for the upgrades, supporting Butler in selecting SNA Displays to manufacture and install more than 2,700 square feet of LED video display technology, including a center hung display system, baseline LED ribbons, multiple courtside tables, and other digital signage.
The centerpiece of the project is a new LED center hung display consisting of four curved, 14-foot-tall video screens seamlessly connected to create a continuous 360-degree video surface. Each side features a 4 mm pixel pitch for increased pixel density and clarity. The center hung also includes custom static lettering along the top ring of the structure and a team-branded Bulldog logo facing downward toward the playing surface.
Other video signage includes 3-foot-high LED ribbons along the second-level fascia at both ends of the Fieldhouse, two 19-foot-long vomitory displays between the second and third levels, and eight new courtside mobile scorer’s tables equipped with LED screens. For recruitment and training purposes, the project also features two new ASPECT™ all-in-one 16:9 video screens from SNA Displays in an adjacent practice facility, directly integrated into the new control management system.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Sunday, Feb. 1 as BU makes the quick trip to Xavier for a BIG EAST matchup. Tip-off at the Cintas Center is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
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BALL STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
DOMINANT DEFENSE LEADS CARDINALS TO 58-53 WIN OVER NORTHERN ILLINOIS
MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State men’s basketball team put on a defensive showcase, and Davion Hill closed the game out on offense in a 58-53 win against Northern Illinois on Saturday afternoon at Worthen Arena.
Hill had a hand in the final 11 points the Cardinals scored including a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to clinch the home triumph. The guard also made a pair of baskets in the paint and assisted on a 3-pointer by Armoni Zeigler and a dunk from Kayden Fish in the last few minutes, as the slam by Fish put Ball State ahead 56-48 at the 1:06 mark of the second half.
Ball State (7-13, 3-5 Mid-American Conference) got its third win in a row with the decision on a day the 1985-86 men’s basketball team that won the MAC Tournament was recognized.
Hill (18 points, eight rebounds, three assists) and Zeigler (18 points, three rebounds) paced the Cardinals in scoring, while Elmore James IV (seven points, two rebounds), Fish (six points, two rebounds) and Devon Barnes (five points, three rebounds, two assists) posted a pair of field goals each. Zeigler tied a career high in 3-pointers, going 4-for-6 from beyond the arc.
Ball State built a lead as large as 10 points in the first half at 18-8 following a free throw from Barnes and went into halftime up 29-22. The Cardinals limited the Huskies (5-13, 2-6 MAC) to 30.4 percent shooting from the field in the opening period, when NIU went 0-for-10 from distance.
Northern Illinois won the rebounding battle 34-29 in the program’s final game at Worthen Arena in the MAC before going to the Horizon League next season, but Ball State tallied four more points in the paint (32-28). The Cardinals committed three fewer turnovers (11-8) on the afternoon and outscored the Huskies in points off turnovers 16-13 and bench points 26-15.
The hosts went 44.7 percent (21-47) from the field, 27.8 percent (5-18) on 3-pointers and 61.1 percent (11-18) at the foul line. Northern Illinois hit 34.6 percent (18-52) of its field goal attempts including 14.3 percent (4-28) from distance and went 76.5 percent (13-17) on free throws.
Ball State is next set to return to the road in a game at Toledo on Saturday.
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INDIANA STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
INDIANA STATE FALLS TO DRAKE ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State men’s basketball fell to Drake, 76-62, on Saturday afternoon inside Hulman Center.
Ian Scott and Markus Harding paced the Sycamores with 12 points apiece. Jo Van Buggenhout contributed eight points, six rebounds, six assists, and two steals, while Enel St. Bernard pulled down a game-high eight rebounds.
Drake opened the game with a five-point run before a dunk by Scott stopped the early surge. The Bulldogs continued to apply pressure, using a 9-2 run to take a 14-2 lead with 16:17 on the clock. Following a media timeout, St. Bernard scored to spark a 10-5 Indiana State run that cut the deficit to 19-14 with 10:36 remaining in the first half.
After nearly two minutes without a basket, Van Buggenhout restarted the scoring with a pull-up jumper and two free throws. Drake answered with four straight points before Sterling Young connected on a three. The Bulldogs responded with a triple of their own, and after another extended scoreless stretch, Bruno Alocen converted a layup and-one to send Drake into halftime with a 26-24 lead.
Camp Wagner opened the second half with a three-pointer, giving Indiana State its first lead of the game. The teams traded baskets until Drake used a 7-2 run to regain the advantage, which was halted by a layup from Scott off an assist from Van Buggenhout. Harding followed with a layup, and the Sycamores closed the gap before going on an 8-5 run to reclaim a 43-42 lead with 13:52 remaining.
After exchanging three-pointers, the Bulldogs pulled ahead with a 7-1 run before Scott answered with an and-one to keep the margin at two. The game remained tight over the next three minutes as both teams scored five points, but Drake took control with a decisive 14-5 run to make it 66-55 with 3:34 left. The Bulldogs closed the game on a 10-7 stretch, aided by eight rebounds, to secure the 76-62 victory.
News and Notes
With 37 bench points today, this is the highest mark for the season for the Sycamores against a DI opponent.
With 18 assists today, this is the first game since Jan. 21, 2026, at Bradley where they had 16.
The Sycamores recorded assists on 18-of-23 shots today, assisting 78% of made shots, which ties the second highest this season (85% vs. Belmont)
For the second-straight game, the Sycamores recorded just two points off turnovers, marking the lowest of the season.
With 62 points tonight, this ties the second fewest points scored by the Sycamores (62 at Duke, 60 vs. Louisiana Tech).
Shooting 58.8% from the free-throw line, this marks the third lowest on the season.
With 18 turnovers today, this ties the second most recorded by the Sycamores this season (18 at Duke, 19 at Bradley).
Jo Van Buggenhout recorded a career high of six rebounds and tied his MVC high of two steals.
Enel St. Bernard recorded an MVC high of eight rebounds and tied his MVC high of two assists
Markus Harding recorded a season high of three-pointers made with two.
Sterling Young tied his season high with five assists and recorded his first block of the season.
The bigs of Ian Scott, Markus Harding, Derek Vorst, and Enel St. Bernard combined to shoot 14-for-21 (66.7%).
Up Next
Indiana State returns to the road Tuesday, January 27, traveling to Chicago, Ill., to face the UIC. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. ET.
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PURDUE FT. WAYNE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
‘DONS WIN 97-91 AT NKU IN INSTANT OVERTIME CLASSIC
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Saturday’s (Jan. 24) women’s basketball game between Purdue Fort Wayne and Northern Kentucky had everything anyone could want out of a Horizon League battle.
High-quality offense, superstar-level individual performances and overtime? Purdue Fort Wayne’s 97-91 victory at Northern Kentucky featured all of it.
In the era of transfers and super-seniors, it was a duo of freshmen dueling with answer after answer. Purdue Fort Wayne’s Rylee Bess finished with a career-high 27 points and NKU’s Karina Bystry had a career-high 35 of her own.
Bess is the first Mastodon freshman to score 27 or more against a Division I foe since 2016.
The Mastodons led for over 40 minutes of the game and led by as many as 13, but NKU took a 79-76 lead after a 7-0 run in the last two minutes of regulation. It looked as though the Mastodons were doomed to repeat the game against the Norse in Fort Wayne. That game featured a 17-point comeback from the Norse to force overtime, which NKU eventually won.
The last two minutes of regulation took nearly 20 minutes of real time with appeals, reviews and timeouts, but the Mastodons got two free throws from Bess and a traditional 3-point play from Lili Krasovec to tie the game at 81 with 24 seconds left. NKU had a shot to win it, but missed. The Norse got the rebound, but turned it over. The ‘Dons turned it back over to give NKU another look, but overtime was ahead.
In overtime, Bystry, the Norse star, hit a layup to put the ‘Dons behind. Bess answered with a massive 3-pointer, then Alana Nelson did the same on the following possession. The next time down, Krasovec made two free throws to go up 89-83. From there, the Norse never got any closer than five.
In the overtime period, all five starters played all five minutes all scored.
The Mastodons finished with 46 rebounds, the fourth-most in a game against a Division I foe in program history. Nelson led the way with eight, while Krasovec and Jordan Reid had seven each.
While Bess led with 27, Reid finished with 19 on 8-of-18 shooting after a 1-for-6 start. Nelson had 16 on 7-of-14. Lauren Lee added a season-high-tying 11 points and four assists. Krasvoec had 10 points with six coming at the free throw line. All 10 of her points came in the fourth quarter or overtime.
Saturday’s game was the highest-scoring performance by the Mastodons in a road league game since 2014, which was a double-overtime win at North Dakota State. It was also the first overtime win since 2023, a 70-64 win at Southern Illinois. The Mastodons’ 97 points were the fourth-most scored in a road game in the Division I era.
With the win, Purdue Fort Wayne improved to 13-8 and 7-4 in Horizon League play to move back into second place in the standings. NKU fell to 10-13, 7-5.
The Mastodons will return home for a game against Robert Morris on Tuesday (Jan. 27) at 7 p.m. in the Gates Sports Center.
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MARIAN WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
ABBEY MCNALLY BREAKS SINGLE GAME SCORING RECORD IN 74-56 WIN OVER BETHEL
INDIANAPOLIS – Abbey McNally scored 14 points in the first quarter Saturday afternoon, pacing a historic afternoon for the senior as she broke her own school record for single-game scoring, dropping a career-high 39 points in a 74-56 victory over Bethel University. The win improves Marian to 18-2 overall on the season, while picking up the team’s eighth Crossroads League win in 10 tries.
The Knights won the opening tip Saturday and set the tone for the afternoon on the defensive end of the court, forcing a turnover on each of Bethel’s first three possessions. The early steals led to a pair of Abbey McNally baskets, with the senior scoring the Knights’ first eight points on the offensive end of the court. Taylor Double knocked a three-pointer for the team’s first non-McNally points, helping Marian control a 13-9 lead by the media stoppage. Abbey McNally continued her scoring ways after the timeout to extend Marian’s lead to multiple possessions, eventually ending the first quarter with 14 points, giving her team a 17-12 lead after one period.
Marian started the second quarter strong with an early Zoe Wheeler layup, but quickly came to a slow down as the scoring began to match the frigid temperatures outside. Marian scored just five points through the first five minutes of the second quarter, allowing Bethel to keep within striking distance. While Marian worked through its offensive woes, Bethel equally fell to the scoring slumps, as the Knights’ defense limited the Pilots to an equal five by the media break.
Taylor Double kept the Knights afloat with a jumper, while the defense continued to hound the Pilots, holding them to a 2-10 stretch from the field in the seven minutes of the half. Olivia Faust drained a transition three-pointer with 42 seconds remaining in the half, securing a Marian lead of 29-20 at the intermission.
The third quarter script went in favor of both teams, as Bethel and Marian experienced different strings of success in the period. The Pilots outscored the Knights 6-4 in the first two minutes of the period, but the presence of Abbey McNally prevented the visitors from cutting within two scores, as she scored eight early points in the quarter to push the lead into double figures. Marian pushed the lead to 12 with 4:34 remaining in the quarter, but their scoring came to a halt, as a pair of three-pointers made by Mariah Claywell in 30 seconds slashed the advantage to six.
Bethel’s run pushed to nine unanswered points, lasting nearly three minutes, as the score was cut to three. Marian went 0-5 from the field in its drought, but were brought back to life late in the quarter with an 8-2 sprint. Abbey McNally scored each of the Knights’ final eight points, pushing Marian in front 50-41 after three quarters of play.
Leading by nine entering the final quarter, the Knights put the foot on the pedal and rocketed their lead well into double digits, getting to the foul line early while a three-point make from Olivia Faust grew the lead to 14. Kiley McNally added to the scoring for Marian as they reached 60 points as a team. Bethel could not recover from Marian’s hot start to the quarter, and with 4:27 to play in the game, Abbey McNally scored off a Madisyn Bailey feed, logging points 38 and 39 of the day, breaking her own career-high to reestablish the Marian single-game scoring record.
Marian would go on to lead by as many as 24 points in the final quarter, as Taylor Double put the finishing touches on Marian’s totals in its 74-56 victory over Bethel University.
Abbey McNally filled in the box score in her record-setting day, breaking her own school record with 39 points on the day, while also grabbing 16 rebounds to record her 11th double-double of the season. In her record, McNally scored 14 points in the first quarter, two in the second, 16 in the third, and seven in the fourth. Her 16 points in the third quarter match her career-high, as she previously scored 16 in her then-record of 38 points on November 20, 2024, at Grace College.
Behind McNally, Taylor Double scored 10 points, and Kiley McNally scored nine points. Kenna Kirby had a team-high seven assists, while Madisyn Bailey had five assists and five steals in the win.
The Knights now go on the road for their next two games, first traveling to Spring Arbor on Wednesday, January 28, for a 5:00 p.m. contest.
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“SPORTS EXTRA”
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
On January 25 in …
1894 – James J Corbett knocks out Charley Mitchell in three rounds for heavyweight boxing title.
1910 – First stumping by a 12th man in cricket Tests (N C Tufnell, South Africa versus England).
1924 – (to February 4) The first Olympic Winter Games are held in Chamonix, France.
1929 – Donald Bradman scores 340* for New South Wales versus Victoria, 488 minutes, 38 fours.
1932 – Donald Bradman scores 167 New South Wales versus Victoria, 224 minutes, 22 fours.
1939 – Joe Louis knocks out John Henry Lewis in one round for heavyweight boxing title.
1945 – Dan Topping, Del Webb, and Larry MacPhail purchase New York Yankees for US$2.8 million.
1952 – Test debut of Richie Benaud, versus West Indies at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
1953 – Yuri Sergejev skates world record 500m in 40.9 seconds.
1955 – Jill Kinmont hits a tree and breaks her back in Snow Cup Ski Race.
1961 – Louise Suggs wins LPGA Naples Pro-Am Golf Tournament.
1972 – 25th NHL All-Star Game: East beats West 3-2 at Minnesota.
1972 – 7-foot tall Ohio State center Luke Witte is stomped in face during a brawl in a game with Minnesota.
1975 – 10th hat trick in New York Islanders’ history-Denis Potvin’s first.
1976 – Surinder Amarnath scores 124 on Test debut India versus New Zealand Auckland.
1978 – San Diego Padres trade pitcher Dave Tomlin and US$125,000 to Texas Rangers for Gaylord Perry (he wins 1978 Cy Young Award).
1980 – Dutch Government demands boycott of Olympics.
1981 – NFL Super Bowl XV at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana: Oakland Raiders beat Philadelphia Eagles, 27-10; Most Valuable Player: Jim Plunkett, quarterback.
1985 – Test debut of Wasim Akram, versus New Zealand at Auckland (2-105).
1987 – 75th Australian Mens Tennis: S Edberg beats Pat Cash (6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3).
1987 – NFL Super Bowl XXI: New York Giants beat Denver Broncos, 39-20 in Pasadena, California; Most Valuable Player: Phil Simms, quarterback. This is the first NFL Championship for the Giants since 1956.
1988 – Longest winless streak in Toronto Maple Leafs history (15 games).
1989 – Michael Jordan scores his 10,000th NBA point in his 5th season.
1991 – Brett Hull is third NHL player to score 50 goals in less than 50 games (49).
1991 – Mark Waugh scores ton in first Test Cricket innings, versus England Adelaide.
1991 – The New York Giants defeat the San Francisco 49ers, 15-13, in San Francisco. The Giants win despite not scoring a touchdown, prevailing on five field goals by Matt Bahr.
1992 – 66th Australian Women’s Tennis: Monica Seles beats M Fernandez (6-2, 6-3).
1992 – Dan Jansen skates world record 500m in 36.41 seconds.
1994 – Australia beats South Africa 2-1 to win the World Series Cup.
1997 – 71st Australian Women’s Tennis: Martina Hingis beat Mary Pierce (6-2, 6-2).
1998 – Helen Alfredsson wins Office Depot LPGA tournament.
1998 – Super Bowl XXXII: The Denver Broncos become the first AFC team in 14 years to win the Super Bowl, as they defeat the Green Bay Packers, 31-24.
2002 – Thomas Junta kills junior coach Michael Costin during a fight at a junior hockey game in Massachusetts.
2005 – Carlos Delgado agrees to a four-year, US$52 million contract with the Florida Marlins.
2007 – Willie Randolph agrees to a $5.65 million, three-year deal to manage the New York Mets through 2008.
2009 – In Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the 57th NHL All-Star Game is held. The Eastern Conference team posts a 12-11 victory over their Western Conference counterparts.
2009 – In Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Glenn Howard of Ontario defeats rival Kevin Martin of Alberta to win the Canadian Open Grand Slam curling event.
2020 – (to January 26) At the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona, Florida, USA, the Rolex 24 at Daytona race is held, round 1 of the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship series.
Finishing 1st in DPi class and 1st overall is the Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 #10 Cadillac DPi driven by Renger vander Zande, Ryan Briscoe, Scott Dixon, and Kamui Kobayashi.
Finishing 1st in LMP2 class and 9th overall is the DragonSpeed USA LLC #81 ORECA LMP2 07 driven by Ben Hanley, Henrik Hedman, Colin Braun, and Harrison Newey.
Finishing 1st in GT Le Mans class and 13th overall is the BMW Team RLL #24 BMW M8 GTE driven by Jesse Krohn, John Edwards, Chaz Mostert, and Augusto Farfus.
Finishing 1st in GT Daytona class and 18th overall is the Paul Miller Racing #48 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 driven by Andrea Caldarelli, Bryan Sellers, Madison Snow, and Corey Lewis.
2022 – At Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington, USA, NHL regular season game: Nashville Predators beats Seattle Kraken by score 4-2.
2022 – At Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, NHL regular season game: Edmonton Oilers beats Vancouver Canucks by score 3-2.
2022 – At Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, NHL regular season game: Florida Panthers beats Winnipeg Jets by score 5-3.
2022 – At UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, USA, NHL regular season game: New York Islanders beats Philadelphia Flyers by score 4-3. Flyers’ defenceman Kith Yandle plays his 965th consecutive NHL game, breaking the record held by Doug Jarvis.
2022 – At PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA, NHL regular season game: Carolina Hurricanes beats Vegas Golden Knights by score 4-3.
2022 – At PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, NHL regular season game: Pittsburgh Penguins beats Arizona Coyotes by score 6-3.
2022 – At Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, NHL regular season game: Dallas Stars beats New Jersey Devils by score 5-1.
2022 – At Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, NHL regular season game: Ottawa Senators beats Buffalo Sabres by score 5-0.
Births of sports figures on January 25
1908 – Birth of W H V “Hopper” Levett; cricket keeper (England in one Test in Calcutta).
1924 – Birth of Lou “The Toe” Groza; AAFC, NFL tackle, kicker (Cleveland Browns).
1925 – Birth of Eric Dempster; cricket player (New Zealand slow bowl of mid-1950s, bowling average 109.5).
1937 – Birth of Don Maynard; NFL receiver (New York Jets), #13.
1951 – Birth of Steve Prefontaine in Coos Bay, Oregon, USA; 5km distance runner (Olympics-4th-1972) (dies 1975).
1954 – Birth of Condredge Holloway in Alabama, USA; Canadian Football League quarterback (Ottawa Roughriders, Toronto Argonauts).
1957 – Birth of Jeff Gossett; NFL punter (Oakland Raiders).
1958 – Birth of Harti Weirather; Austrian alpine skier.
1962 – Birth of Chris Chelios in Chicago, Illinois, USA; NHL defenseman (Chicago Blackhawks, Team USA).
1963 – Birth of Joe Lloyd in Highland Park, Illinois, USA; Canadian Tour golfer (1993 Space Coast).
1964 – Birth of Bob Sweeney in Concord, Massachusetts, USA; NHL center (New York Islanders, Calgary Flames).
1964 – Birth of William Thomas Andrade in Fall River, Massachusetts, USA; PGA golfer (1991 Kemper Open).
1965 – Birth of Brian Holman in Winfield, Kansas, USA; pitcher (Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners).
1965 – Birth of Esa Tikkanen in Helsinki, Finland; NHL left wing (Florida Panthers, Vancouver Canucks, Olympics-Bronze-1998).
1966 – Birth of John [Vo] Velyvis in North Adams, Massachusetts, USA; rower (Olympics-1996).
1966 – Birth of Mark Schlereth; NFL guard (Denver Broncos-Super Bowl XXXII).
1966 – Birth of Paul Ranheim in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA; NHL left wing (Hartford Whalers).
1966 – Birth of Pavel Torgaev in Nizhny, Novgorod, USSR; NHL left wing (Calgary Flames).
1966 – Birth of Richie Lewis; US baseball pitcher (Florida Marlins).
1967 – Birth of Mario Brunetta; hockey goaltender (Team Italy 1998).
1967 – Birth of Marty Calder in Saint Catharine, Ontario, Canada; 62kg freestyle wrestler (Olympics-12-1992,1996).
1967 – Birth of Randy Mckay in Montréal, Québec, Canada; NHL right wing (New Jersey Devils).
1968 – Birth of Lynette Brooky in New Zealand; golfer (New Zealand Open 1993/94).
1968 – Birth of Roosevelt Collins; WLAF defensive line (Amsterdam Admirals).
1968 – Birth of Tim De Leede; cricket player (Holland batsman 1996 World Cup).
1969 – Birth of Nolan Harrison; NFL defensive tackle (Oakland Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers).
1969 – Birth of Penny Moore; WNBA guard/forward (Charlotte Sting).
1970 – Birth of Chris Mills; NBA forward (Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks).
1970 – Birth of Milt Stegall; Canadian Football League receiver (Winnipeg Blue Bombers).
1970 – Birth of Pau Coll; WLAF kicker/safety (Barcelona Dragons).
1970 – Birth of Scott Hendrickson; Canadian Football League guard (Saskatchewan Roughriders).
1971 – Birth of Herman Smith; NFL/WLAF defensive end (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, London Monarchs).
1971 – Birth of Jordan Young in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada; Canadian Tour golfer (1992 Purdue).
1971 – Birth of Kerry Taylor; US baseball pitcher (San Diego Padres).
1971 – Birth of Kevin Williams; receiver/kick returner (Arizona Cardinals, Dallas Cowboys).
1971 – Birth of Konstantin Matoussevich in Israel; men’s high jump (Olympics-7th-1996).
1971 – Birth of Tommie Jones; WLAF cornerback (Amsterdam Admirals).
1971 – Birth of Vincent Brisby; NFL wide receiver (New England Patriots).
1973 – Birth of Anthony Harris; linebacker (Miami Dolphins).
1973 – Birth of Marco Battaglia; tight end (Cincinnati Bengals).
1973 – Birth of Rodney Young; NFL safety (New York Giants).
1973 – Birth of Terrell Wade in Rembert, South Carolina, USA; pitcher (Atlanta Braves).
1974 – Birth of Adam Meadows; offensive tackle (Indianapolis Colts).
1974 – Birth of Daniel Sproule; Australian field hockey halfback (Olympics-1996).
1975 – Birth of John Piersma; American 200m/400m freestyle swimmer (Olympics-4th-1996).
1976 – Birth of Tara Fleming in North York, Ontario, Canada; LPGA golfer (1992 LPGA Corning-10th).
1980 – Birth of Xavi; Spanish soccer player.
1980 – Birth of Michelle McCool-Alexander; American professional wrestler.
1984 – Birth of Robson de Souza, Real Madrid football player.
Deaths of sports figures on January 25
1917 – Edwin Tyler, cricket player (slow-lefty played once for England 1896), dies.
1986 – Horace Smith, cricket player (one Test New Zealand versus England 1933, one wicket at 113), dies.
On January 26 in …
1871 – British Rugby Union forms.
1913 – Jim Thorpe relinquishes his 1912 Olympic medals for being a professional player.
1921 – Soccer team GVAV of Groningen Netherlands forms.
1921 – Hockey’s Toronto Saints’ Pat Corb Denneny scores six goals versus Hamilton Tigers.
1924 – Charles Jewtraw, US 500m skater, takes first Winter Olympics gold medal.
1934 – Donald Bradman scores 128 New South Wales versus Victoria, 96 minutes, 17 fours 4 sixes.
1951 – Mel Ott and Jimmie Foxx elected to Baseball Hall of Fame.
1956 – (to February 5) The VII Olympic Winter Games are held in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
1956 – Hank Greenberg and Joe Cronin are elected to Baseball Hall of Fame.
1957 – Joseph F Cairnes succeeds Lou Perini as president of Milwaukee Braves.
1958 – Marlene Hagge wins LPGA Lake Worth Open Golf Invitational.
1960 – Danny Heater scores 135 points in basketball game (Boys’ High School).
1960 – Oakland enters the AFL.
1960 – Pete Rozelle elected NFL commissioner on the 23rd ballot.
1963 – Major League Rules Committee votes to expand strike zone.
1966 – Ard Schenk skates world record 1500m (2:06.2).
1976 – 6th NFL Pro Bowl: NFC beats AFC 23-20.
1977 – Soviet figure skaters Sergei Shakrai and Marine Tcherkasova are first to perform a quadruple twist lift, in Helsinki, Finland.
1980 – Mary Decker runs a mile in under 4.5 minutes.
1980 – New York Islanders and Hartford Whalers play a NHL penalty-free game.
1981 – Sandeep Patil scores memorable 174 versus Australia at Adelaide Oval.
1982 – New York Islanders score four goals within 1:38, five within 2:37 versus Pittsburgh Penguins.
1984 – Quebec Nordiques’ Michel Goulet scores on 9th penalty shot against New York Islanders.
1986 – Hein Vergeer becomes European skating champ.
1986 – Super Bowl XX: Chicago Bears beat New England Patriots, 46-10 in New Orleans, Louisiana; Most Valuable Player: Richard Dent, Defensive End.
1986 – Val Skinner wins LPGA Mazda Golf Classic.
1989 – Allan Border takes 7-46 against the West Indies at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
1989 – Madison Square Gardens sports arena in New York announces two-year US$100 million renovation plan.
1989 – Test debut of Mark Taylor, Australia versus West Indies, Sydney.
1990 – Boston Red Sox hires Elaine Weddington as assistant general manager (highest-ranking black female in a major-league front office).
1991 – 65th Australian Womens Tennis: Monica Seles beats J Novotna (5-7, 6-3, 6-1).
1991 – Houston Rockets’ guard Vernon Maxwell is fourth NBA player to score 30 points in a quarter.
1991 – Jan Stenerud becomes first pure placekicker to make NFL Hall of Fame.
1992 – 80th Australian Mens Tennis: Jim Courier beats Stefan Edberg (6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2).
1992 – The Washington Redskins defeat the Buffalo Bills 37-24 in Super Bowl XXVI football at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
1993 – West Indies defeats Australia by one run in fourth Test at Adelaide.
1997 – 85th Australian Mens Tennis: Pete Sampras beats Carlos Moya (6-2, 6-3, 6-3).
1997 – Brunswick World Bowling Tournament of Champions won by John Gant.
1997 – The Green Bay Packers win the NFL Championship for the first time since 1967, defeating the New England Patriots 35-21 in Super Bowl XXXI at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.
2003 – Super Bowl XXXVII: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeat the Oakland Raiders 48-21.
2009 – Kansas City Royals’ pitcher Zack Greinke agrees to a four-year contract worth US$38 million.
2019 – (to January 27) At the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona, Florisa, USA, the Rolex 24 at Daytona race is held, round 1 of the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship series.
Finishing 1st in DPi class and 1st overall is the Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 #10 Cadillac DPi driven by Kamui Kobayashi, Renger VanDer Zande, Jordan Taylor, and Fernando Alonso.
Finishing 1st in LMP2 class and 6th overall is the DragonSpeed #18 ORECA LMP2 driven by Pastor Maldonado, Sebastian Saavedra, Ryan Cullen, and Roberto Gonzalez.
Finishing 1st in GT Le Mans class and 10th overall is the BMW Team RLL #25 BMW M8 GTE driven by Colton Herta, Auguste Farfus, Connor De Phillippi, and Philipp Eng.
Finishing 1st in GT Daytona class and 17th overall is the GEAR Racing #11 Lanborghini Huracan GT3 driven by Mirko Bortolotti, Christian Engelhart, Rik Breukes, and Rolf Ineichen.
2022 – At Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, USA, NHL regular season game: Colorado Avalanche beats Boston Bruins by score 4-3.
2022 – At Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, USA, NHL regular season game: Chicago Blackhawks beats Detroit Red Wings by score 8-5.
2022 – At Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, USA, NHL regular season game: Calgary Flames beats Columbus Blue Jackets by score 6-0.
2022 – At Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., USA, NHL regular season game: San Jose Sharks beats Washington Capitals by score 4-1.
2022 – At Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, NHL regular season game: Toronto Maple Leafs beats Anaheim Ducks by score 4-3.
Births of sports figures on January 26
1878 – Birth of A W “Dave” Nourse; cricket player (“Grand Old Man” of South African cricket).
1907 – Birth of Henry Cotton; English golfer (British Open winner 1934, 1937, 1948).
1919 – Birth of Khanmohammad Cassumbhoy Ibrahim; cricket player (batted in four Tests India versus West Indies 1948-49).
1925 – Birth of Paul Newman in Cleveland, Ohio, USA; racer/popcorn mogul/actor (Hud, Hombre, Hustler).
1930 – Birth of Harry “Buddy” Melges Junior in Wisconsin, USA; yachter (Olympics-gold/bronze-1964, 1972).
1935 – Birth of Bob Uecker in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; baseball catcher, actor (Mr Belvedere).
1935 – Birth of Henry Jordan in Emporia, Virginia, USA; NFL defensive tackle (Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers).
1945 – Birth of Mick Hill; cricket player (New South Wales all-rounder 1964-75).
1951 – Birth of Jarmila Kratochvilova in Czechoslovakia; 400m/800m runner (women’s world record holder, Olympics-silver-1980).
1952 – Birth of Thomas Edward Henderson in Newberry, South Carolina, USA; basketball player (Olympics-silver-1972).
1954 – Birth of Kimberly J “Kim” Hughes; cricket player (brilliant Australian batsman 1977-84).
1957 – Birth of Ashok Malhotra; cricket player (Indian batsman in 7 Tests 1982-84).
1957 – Birth of Shivlal Yadav; cricket player (Indian off-spinner 102 Test wickets 1979-87).
1958 – Birth of Dave Rummells in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA; Nike golfer (1993 Buick-second).
1960 – Birth of Gary Plummer; NFL linebacker (San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers).
1960 – Birth of Jeanette Bolden in Los Angeles, California, USA; 4x100m runner (Olympics-gold-1984).
1961 – Birth of Wayne Gretzky in Brantford, Ontario, Canada; Edmonton Oilers/Los Angeles Kings/New York Rangers (NHL Most Valuable Player 1980-1987), The Great One.
1962 – Birth of Roshan Guneratne; cricket player (wicketless in only Test SL versus Australia 1983).
1962 – Birth of Tim May; cricket player (Australian off-spinner 1987-95).
1963 – Birth of Simon O’Donnell, cricket player (Deniliquin New South Wales ODI all-rounder 1985-90).
1965 – Birth of Lou Frazier; US baseball outfielder (Montreal Expos).
1965 – Birth of Tim McDonald; safety (San Francisco 49ers).
1967 – Birth of Jeff Branson; US baseball infielder (Cincinnati Reds).
1967 – Birth of Katie Peterson-Parker in Bethesda, Maryland, USA; LPGA golfer (1995 Oldsmobile-5th).
1967 – Birth of Tim Pugh in Lake Tahoe, California, USA; pitcher (Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals).
1968 – Birth of Eric Davis; NFL cornerback (San Francisco 49ers, Carolina Panthers).
1968 – Birth of Reggie Jordan; NBA guard (Minnesota Timberwolves).
1970 – Birth of Dan Carlson; US baseball pitcher (San Francisco Giants).
1970 – Birth of Dean Malkoc in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; NHL defenseman (Vancouver Canucks).
1970 – Birth of Ronald Moore; NFL running back (New York Jets, Saint Louis Rams, Arizona Cardinals).
1971 – Birth of Jon Heidenreich; WLAF guard (Frankfurt Galaxy).
1971 – Birth of Lamar Mills; WLAF defensive end (Amsterdam Admirals).
1971 – Birth of Lee Naylor; Australian 400m runner (Olympics-1996).
1971 – Birth of Min Tang in Hunan, China; tennis star (1995 Futures-Canberra Australia).
1972 – Birth of Harrison Houston; NFL wide receiver (Chicago Bears).
1973 – Birth of Mark Brook; WLAF linebacker (Rhein Fire).
1973 – Birth of Tatsuki Katayama; hockey defenseman (Team Japan 1998).
1973 – Birth of Tony Ramirez; tackle (Detroit Lions).
1976 – Birth of Paul Byrne; Australian 800m runner (Olympics-1996).
1977 – Birth of Justin Gimelstob in New Jersey; tennis star (1994 doubles USTA Bakersfield).
1989 – Birth of Emily Hughes, American figure skater.
Deaths of sports figures on January 26
1932 – William K Wrigley, owner (Wrigley Gum, Chicago Cubs), dies.
1961 – Morris Nichols, cricket player (41 wickets in 14 Tests for England 1930-39), dies.
1983 – Death of Paul “Bear” Bryant, American college football coach, at age 69 in Alabama (born 1913).
1995 – Vic Buckingham, English soccer player/trainer (Ajax), dies at age 79.
1996 – Death of David Schultz, shot by US millionaire John Du Pont at Foxcatcher estate in Newton Square, Pennsylvania, USA; wrestler (Olympics-Gold-1984).
2007 – Death of Gump Worsley, Canadian hockey player (born 1929).
2020 – Death of Kobe Bryant at age 41 in a helicopter crash; basketball player (shooting guard – Los Angeles Lakers, five NBA championship rings).
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TV SPORTS
Sunday, 1/25/26
| NFL REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| AFC Championship Playoff: New England Patriots at Denver Broncos | 3:00pm | CBS Paramount++ |
| NFC Championship Playoff: Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks | 6:30pm | FOX |
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Sacramento Kings vs Detroit Pistons | 3:00pm | NBCS-CA FanDuel Sports DET |
| Denver Nuggets vs Memphis Grizzlies | 3:30pm | ALT2 FanDuel Sports MEM |
| Dallas Mavericks vs Milwaukee Bucks | 7:00pm | KFAA FanDuel Sports MIL |
| Toronto Raptors vs Oklahoma City Thunder | 7:00pm | TSN FanDuel Sports OKC |
| New Orleans Pelicans vs San Antonio Spurs | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports SW GCSN |
| Miami Heat vs Phoenix Suns | 8:00pm | FanDuel Sports Sun AFSN |
| Brooklyn Nets vs Los Angeles Clippers | 9:00pm | YES FanDuel Sports SoCal |
| NHL REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Colorado Avalanche vs Toronto Maple Leafs | 1:30 pm | ALT TSN |
| New Jersey Devils vs Seattle Kraken | 4:00pm | KONG MSGSN |
| Vegas Golden Knights vs Ottawa Senators | 5:00pm | Scripps SN |
| Pittsburgh Penguins vs Vancouver Canucks | 6:00pm | ATTSN-PIT TSN |
| Florida Panthers vs Chicago Blackhawks | 7:00pm | Scripps CHSN |
| Anaheim Ducks vs Calgary Flames | 8:00pm | SN Victory+ |
| MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL | TIME ET | TV |
| Le Moyne at Fairleigh Dickinson | 12:00pm | YES |
| Florida Atlantic at South Florida | 1:00pm | ESPN2 |
| Saint Francis U at New Haven | 1:00pm | NESN |
| Central Connecticut at Stonehill | 2:00pm | NESN+ |
| Purdue Fort Wayne at IU Indianapolis | 2:00pm | WNDY |
| Chicago State at Mercyhurst | 2:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Tulane at Charlotte | 2:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Wagner at LIU | 3:00pm | NEC Front Row |
| Oregon at Washington | 3:00pm | Peacock |
| Illinois State at Belmont | 3:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Tulsa at Rice | 4:00pm | ESPNU |
| USC at Wisconsin | 4:00pm | Peacock |
| Southern Illinois at Evansville | 4:00pm | ESPN+ |
| GOLF | TIME ET | TV |
| PGA Tour: The American Express | 4:00pm | GOLF |
| Champions Tour: Mitsubishi Electric Championship | 7:00pm | GOLF |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| Serie A: Sassuolo vs Cremonese | 6:30am | CBSSN Paramount+ |
| La Liga: Atlético Madrid vs Mallorca | 8:00am | ESPN+ |
| Ligue 1: Strasbourg vs Metz | 9:00am | beIN Sports fuboTV |
| Serie A: Atalanta vs Parma | 9:00am | Paramount+ |
| Serie A: Genoa vs Bologna | 9:00am | Paramount+ |
| EPL: Crystal Palace vs Chelsea | 9:00am | Peacock |
| EPL: Newcastle United vs Aston Villa | 9:00am | Peacock |
| EPL: Brentford vs Nottingham Forest | 9:00am | Peacock |
| Ligue 1: Nantes vs Nice | 9:00am | Peacock |
| Bundesliga: Borussia M’gladbach vs Stuttgart | 9:30am | ESPN+ |
| La Liga: Barcelona vs Real Oviedo | 10:15am | ESPN+ |
| Ligue 1: Brest vs Toulouse | 11:15am | beIN Sports fuboTV |
| Ligue 1: Paris vs Angers SCO | 11:15am | beIN Sports fuboTV |
| Ligue 1: Metz vs Olympique Lyonnais | 11:15am | beIN Sports fuboTV |
| EPL: Arsenal vs Manchester United | 11:30am | Peacock |
| Bundesliga: Freiburg vs Köln | 11:30am | ESPN+ |
| Serie A: Juventus vs Napoli | 12:00pm | Paramount+ |
| La Liga: Real Sociedad vs Celta de Vigo | 12:30pm | ESPN+ |
| Liga MX: Pumas UNAM vs León | 1:00pm | VIX |
| Serie A: Roma vs Milan | 2:45pm | Paramount+ |
| Ligue 1: Lille vs Strasbourg | 2:45pm | beIN Sports fuboTV |
| TENNIS | TIME ET | TV |
| Australian Open | 3:00am | ESPN2 |
| Australian Open | 8:00pm | ESPN2 |
Monday, 1/26/26
| NBA REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Philadelphia 76ers vs Charlotte Hornets | 7:00pm | NBCS-PHI FanDuel Sports CHA |
| Orlando Magic vs Cleveland Cavaliers | 7:00pm | Peacock FanDuel Sports FL FanDuel Sports Ohio |
| Indiana Pacers vs Atlanta Hawks | 7:30pm | FanDuel Sports IND FanDuel Sports ATL |
| Los Angeles Lakers vs Chicago Bulls | 8:00pm | Spectrum CHSN |
| Memphis Grizzlies vs Houston Rockets | 8:00pm | FanDuel Sports MEM SCHN |
| Portland Trail Blazers vs Boston Celtics | 8:00pm | NBCS-BOS Rip City |
| Portland Trail Blazers vs Boston Celtics | 9:30pm | Peacock |
| NHL REGULAR SEASON | TIME ET | TV |
| Los Angeles Kings vs Columbus Blue Jackets | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports West FanDuel Sports Ohio |
| Boston Bruins vs New York Rangers | 7:00pm | NESN MSG |
| New York Islanders vs Philadelphia Flyers | 7:00pm | ATTSN-PIT NBCS-PHI |
| Utah Mammoth vs Tampa Bay Lightning | 7:00pm | FanDuel Sports Sun Utah16 |
| Anaheim Ducks vs Edmonton Oilers | 8:30pm | ESPN+ Victory+ |
| MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL | TIME ET | TV |
| Louisville at Duke | 7:00pm | ESPN |
| Penn State at Ohio State | 7:00pm | FS1 |
| Bucknell at Lafayette | 7:00pm | CBSSN |
| Alabama A&M at Prairie View A&M | 7:00pm | SWAC TV |
| Maryland Eastern Shore at North Carolina Central | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| McNeese at Southeastern Louisiana | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Howard at Coppin State | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Morgan State at Norfolk State | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| East Texas A&M at Lamar | 7:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UAPB at Grambling State | 7:30pm | SWAC TV |
| New Orleans at Nicholls | 7:30pm | ESPN+ |
| UTRGV at A&M-Corpus Christi | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| UIW at Houston Christian | 8:00pm | ESPN+ |
| Arizona at BYU | 9:00pm | ESPN |
| Northwestern State at Stephen F. Austin | 9:00pm | CBSSN |
| SOCCER | TIME ET | TV |
| Serie A: Verona vs Udinese | 2:45pm | Paramount+ |
| EPL: Everton vs Leeds United | 3:00pm | Peacock |
| La Liga: Girona vs Getafe | 3:00pm | ESPN+ fuboTV |
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About The Author
